Come Take Your Revenge!

Obanai Iguro shot Hiruma a sidelong glance. The table leg in his hand had long been itching for a fight; if not for the formidable enemy before them, he would have beaten him to death.

Why were you pointing at me while provoking the enemy?

The next instant, Hiruma turned into a crimson-gold bolt of lightning and charged straight at Bakotsu, leaving behind only a shameless remark.

"Don't mind it, I'm just distracting the enemy!"

"Tch, you bastard!" Iguro Obanai cursed at Hiruma.

The moment Hiruma closed in on Bakotsu, he unleashed five crimson-gold slashes at a speed imperceptible to the naked eye. The five slashes connected end to end, forming an even larger lightning-shaped strike before Bakotsu.

Thunder Breath: Second Form - Rice Spirit.

With thunder about to descend, Bakotsu's expression remained unchanged. The Spinal Bone Snake whip spun around it, deflecting Hiruma's attack.

At the same time, a ghastly pale, withered fist shot straight for Hiruma's face. The terrifying force of the punch nearly crushed the breath from his lungs.

With a thunderous boom, an invisible whirlwind swept past Hiruma's cheek, leaving countless cracks in the ground behind him.

This was Bakotsu's Blood Demon Art, Wind Fist.

After the brief exchange, Hiruma pulled away from Bakotsu. This demon was strong, but that only excited him more. Only powerful enemies could make one grow stronger.

Besides, this thing was Shinobu's enemy. That alone made him want to kill it.

"I take back what I said. You're worthy of being eaten by me!" Seeing Hiruma evade its Wind Fist in an instant, Bakotsu regarded him in a new light. It was going all out now.

"Good. That just makes me want to kill you even more!"

Hiruma's gaze burned like boiling magma, his fighting spirit surging.

Thunder Breath: Third Form - Swarming Mosquitoes Become Thunder.

He took a step forward, shattering the ground beneath his foot. The next second, rubble flew into the air as Hiruma vanished and reappeared.

He moved at high speed around Bakotsu, leaving rippling crimson-gold lightning in his wake.

Heh heh.

This freak was ridiculously strong!

Was this guy really the same age as me?

Iguro Obanai tossed aside the battered wooden table, less than a quarter of it remaining, and sighed inwardly.

This level of battle was beyond his ability to interfere with. He yearned even more to become stronger—stronger than Hiruma—and kill even more demons.

In the blink of an eye, the roaring thunder and Hiruma's moving figure formed a prison of lightning, and that prison began closing in on Bakotsu.

At the same time, scorching slashes continuously flew toward Bakotsu. The relentless barrage was like an unending waltz.

Bakotsu sneered disdainfully. It grabbed one end of the Spinal Bone Snake and began swinging it wildly, even taking the time to comment.

"Human brat, interesting!"

The bone whip grew faster and faster. In an instant, a cocoon formed from wind collided with the crimson-gold lightning.

Clanging rang out without pause like a stirring symphony. Blade light flashed, whips danced, and sparks from metal collisions scattered through the air like fireworks blooming in the night sky.

The clash between man and demon was dazzling to watch. Suddenly, the white wind cocoon exploded, and a black horned demon head shot straight toward Hiruma.

Unfortunately, it missed. Hiruma had evaded it with his keen senses.

Yet under such a dense barrage of wind blades, his body was covered in bloody cuts, and his clothes had been shredded into strips of rags. He looked utterly bedraggled.

Bakotsu was no better off. Its body was covered in charred sword wounds, clearly far deeper than the injuries on Hiruma.

In this exchange, it had been at a disadvantage.

The scent of blood spread through the air. It wrinkled its nose, instantly looking refreshed and exhilarated. Rare Blood—and premium quality at that.

What an unexpected windfall.

Not far away, Shinobu Kocho witnessed everything. Seeing the bloody wounds on Hiruma's body, much of her anger faded.

To Hiruma, she was merely a stranger. They had only spent a few hours together—why was he doing this much for her?

"Tendo, I don't..."

Shinobu Kocho's lips trembled. She regretted it. She did not want to drag anyone else into her hatred, much less see him hurt because of it.

"Shinobu, I'm fine. Wait for me to avenge you!"

Tendo Hiruma cut Shinobu Kocho off and charged at Bakotsu again.

Idiot!

Bakotsu cursed inwardly. It was a demon. The greatest difference between demons and humans was their ability to recover. Even if this guy was strong, his stamina was not limitless.

What an idiot. He could have escaped without any trouble.

The next second, its eyes widened in shock, because the bloody cuts on Hiruma's body had already scabbed over.

Could this guy be a demon too?

Was he one of its kind?

Bakotsu was confused. How could a human possess such recovery ability?

In that instant of distraction, Hiruma, leaping high into the air, became a crimson-gold meteor. Countless crimson-gold slashes erupted around him.

Thunder Breath: Sixth Form - Rumble and Roar.

In an instant, blade winds pierced through Bakotsu's body, sending blood spraying everywhere.

By the time Bakotsu came to its senses, Hiruma was already behind it, and all four of its limbs had been sent flying.

But the Spinal Bone Snake moved on its own. With the last of its strength, Bakotsu aimed it at Hiruma's heart. Its body shortened by half, it wore a victor's smile.

I won!

In the end, he was just an arrogant little brat. He actually dared to leave his back exposed to an enemy.

Just as it thought everything was about to end, the battered wooden table came crashing down from above, smashing into a pile of splinters and knocking the Spinal Bone Snake down once more.

"You useless glutton, what can you do besides eat and show off!"

Iguro Obanai cursed as he brushed the dust from his hands and kicked the limbless Bakotsu away.

Hiruma glanced at Iguro Obanai and grinned impishly.

"Isn't that why you're here?"

"Next time, just go die already. Hmph!" Iguro Obanai turned his head away and snapped.

Bakotsu's limbs were still slowly regenerating. Since it had not eaten a human in a month, its strength was nearly depleted, and its regenerative ability had weakened greatly.

Otherwise, there was no way it could have lost to some brat.

It could only blame itself for being too picky about food. As expected, picky eating was a bad habit.

Hiruma drove his blade into Bakotsu's heart, severely wounding it. He patted its cheek and taunted it.

"Young demon, next time, fill your belly before going out!"

"But there won't be a next time!"

"Human, why aren't you cutting off my head?"

The moment Bakotsu finished speaking, five flashes of blade light swept past. Its not-yet-regenerated limbs were severed again, and its body was split in two.

Now, it was completely crippled. At least, it would not recover anytime soon.

Splattered demon blood slowly ran down from his forehead, staining half of Hiruma's face red. Under the silver moonlight, he looked somewhat terrifying.

He did not answer. He merely gripped his sword and walked toward the Kocho sisters, one step at a time.

Under normal circumstances, he would have cut off a demon's head immediately. But today was different.

Because her enemy was here. Everything Hiruma had done was so Shinobu could personally kill her enemy. That way, at least she would feel a little better.

He slowly walked up to Shinobu Kocho and handed her the cold blade gleaming in his hand. A dazzling smile bloomed across his face as he said gently,

"Come take your revenge!"