Kanae Kocho Severely Wounded

"Haruko, what's wrong? Did that man kick you out? It's just as well—I've been dying to see what this man you all can't stop raving about actually looks like. Don't just stand there, lead the way!"

Suzuki Mufeng froze for a moment. Daki hadn't noticed anything yet, but if she walked into the room, his cover would be blown. He had to notify his Shadow Clone to prepare.

"What are you dazing off for? Move!"

Daki barked a sharp command. Suzuki Mufeng had no choice but to feign obedience while looking for a chance to slip away.

Suzuki Mufeng led Daki into his room, where Haruko had already been hidden away by his Shadow Clone.

When Daki pushed the door open, her first impression of Suzuki Mufeng was that he was an incredibly ordinary man, marred by scars on his face—ugly, far too ugly.

Yet, why did every woman who had visited this man claim to feel a sense of ethereal bliss, as if their body and soul had been healed? And why, upon waking, did they only find him sitting nearby, fully clothed? So, are you what I suspect? A Rare Blood?

"Oh, Haruko, how did you bring such a pretty little thing back? Should this Seat—"

The moment Suzuki Mufeng's disguised persona spoke out of turn, Daki struck without warning. The sashes at her waist pierced the Shadow Clone's chest, instantly detonating it into a cloud of smoke.

"Total Concentration—Sunlight Breathing, First Form—Halo."

As the Shadow Clone burst, Suzuki Mufeng quickly drew his Nichirin Sword, using the iridescent blade-light to fix Daki's attention. Her eyes locked onto the shimmering glow, finding it beautiful, yet unable to fathom such beauty existing within a human.

"You wretched vermin, how dare you play me for a fool!"

The sashes on Daki's body surged forward like thousands of sharp blades, stabbing toward Suzuki Mufeng. However, they all passed right through his body—they were nothing but illusions.

"Drown in the genjutsu of the Sharingan!"

Suzuki Mufeng closed the distance and cast the illusion directly into Daki's eyes at point-blank range. The First Form—Halo had been nothing more than a distraction to capture her focus.

Daki herself was weak, but it was Gyutaro inside her that he had to be wary of. As long as Daki wasn't decapitated or dealt a fatal blow, he shouldn't emerge.

Now was not the time to fight them. His goal was to put Daki to sleep and immediately rush to support Kanae Kocho!

"My lord, I'm so happy!"

Daki knelt on the ground with a blissful expression, giggling in a daze.

Suzuki Mufeng had used the Sharingan's illusion to trap Daki in a beautiful dream; faced with such a dream, no one would choose to wake up easily.

Bug, it ran away. It seems to be heading in Doma's direction. As long as no one hurts my sister, none of this has anything to do with me.

As long as no one harmed Daki, Gyutaro inside her couldn't be bothered to care. As for Suzuki Mufeng going after Doma, their relationship with Doma was mediocre at best—why should he intervene?

It was precisely because of this lack of unity that they would eventually be wiped out by the Hashira one by one—a fate they brought upon themselves.

At this moment, Kanae Kocho was in a dire state. She was fleeing for her life across a massive mountain, with Doma chasing her like a cat playing with a mouse.

"My beautiful swordswoman, why don't we become one, cast aside your worries, and live happily ever after? But, seeing as you possess such a lovely face, I can offer you another option: join us and become a demon."

As he spoke, Doma fanned himself, sending a flurry of ice crystals swirling through the air toward Kanae Kocho.

Before the operation, Suzuki Mufeng had already provided Kagaya Ubuyashiki with all the intelligence on the Upper Rank demons, and Kagaya Ubuyashiki had passed this information on to the Hashira.

Although Kanae Kocho carefully controlled her breathing to avoid inhaling the highly toxic ice crystals, she felt her steps growing heavier and her breathing increasingly labored. She had been poisoned; only one choice remained before her.

"Total Concentration—Flower Breathing, Fifth Form—Peonies of Futility."

Kanae Kocho spun around, unleashing a nine-strike barrage aimed at Doma's neck with blinding speed. Yet, to Doma, these movements were nothing more than a child playing.

"It's over, little butterfly. What a pity. If I don't eat you now, the sun will probably rise soon."

Blood Demon Art—Frozen White Princess.

As Kanae Kocho lunged at Doma, a snow maiden formed of ice and snow manifested behind him, exhaling a massive wave of freezing cold.

"Total Concentration—Flower Breathing, Second Form—Honorable Shadow Plum."

Mid-air, Kanae Kocho forcibly shifted her stance. Her Nichirin Sword danced, the dense barrage of slashes forming a spherical defense that blew the cold air away.

"Blood Demon Art—Lotus Vines."

Ice vines, suddenly generated from the cold air on the ground, tightly bound Kanae Kocho in mid-air. The ice thorns on the vines pierced her skin, bringing not only physical agony but the mental torment of the ice poison.

"Such a beautiful Flower Hashira. I didn't expect to catch you so easily. It would be a shame to just eat you. How about I freeze you like this and turn you into an ice sculpture to admire as a collection piece? Just thinking about it is delightful!"

Doma cupped his cheeks, his face flushed with excitement. This sight filled the frozen Kanae Kocho with utter disgust. She would rather die than become a demon's ice-sculpted collection!

Her consciousness began to blur. Memories flashed before her eyes like a lantern: a happy childhood, the life she and her sister shared after being harmed by demons, and why, in these final moments, the figure that appeared most in her memories was Suzuki Mufeng.

She was first drawn to the boy's medical skills, and later, his willingness to share medical knowledge that could have been a family heirloom—such magnanimity only deepened her curiosity.

All that followed: their laughter on the road to the Kamado Family, and later, fighting side-by-side against Upper Rank Three. It turned out they had already been through so much.

The brooch he had bought for her was still pinned to her clothes. She hoped that after she died, Suzuki Mufeng would take it as proof that she had existed. She didn't want him to forget her.

Just as her vision began to fade into darkness, a light pierced through—dazzling and brilliant, it scattered all the darkness away.

"Total Concentration—Sunlight Breathing, Second Form—Light Speed Flash!"

Suzuki Mufeng transformed into light, surpassing the speed of Thunder Breathing. A white line streaked across Doma's neck.

"Fire Style—Great Fireball Technique."

Suzuki Mufeng's hands moved in a blur of seals, and with a deep breath, he exhaled a massive fireball. Under his precise control, it easily melted the ice trapping Kanae Kocho.

He pulled Kanae Kocho into his arms, tore off his own outer garment, and wrapped her tightly in layer after layer. He kept her pressed against him, using his body heat to warm her—it was the safest way.

"How impressive! That was so close; I truly thought my head was about to fall off."

The wound across Doma's neck had already frozen over and healed, missing the mark of decapitation by a hair's breadth.

"As the price for interrupting me, I won't be holding back anymore!"

Blood Demon Art: Crystal Child.

Five small ice dolls, identical to Doma, surrounded them.

Suzuki Mufeng held the heavily wounded Kanae Kocho in his arms. Now forced to face five ice dolls, each possessing the same strength as the original, his only chance at victory was to stall—to stall until the sun finally rose!