Akaza remembered everything about his past: why he had pursued strength and why he had hated the weak.
Akaza's headless body stood motionless. At that moment, he was completely defenseless. If they wanted to, they could have taken the opportunity to cut him to pieces.
But Chinatsu would not do that. Underhanded as she was, that side of her was reserved for enemies. The Akaza before her now... no, the person standing before Chinatsu was Hakuji, and he was no longer an enemy.
Kyojuro slowly approached from a short distance away. He did not draw his sword to attack Akaza either, but simply walked over to Chinatsu's side.
He studied the motionless, headless Akaza and asked Chinatsu in confusion, "Why isn't he moving?"
Chinatsu answered his question with a perfectly serious expression. "He's a demon whose head's been cut off. Wouldn't it be stranger if he could still move?!"
Kyojuro gave a dry chuckle. He knew Chinatsu was hiding something, but he also knew she was on their side, so he did not press her.
At that moment, within Akaza's inner world, Koyuki gently stroked the face of Hakuji, who still wore Akaza's appearance.
Under Koyuki's gentle touch, Akaza gradually regained Hakuji's appearance. He embraced her and poured out his feelings.
Koyuki simply listened in silence. Once Hakuji had let it all out, she smiled at him with tears in the corners of her eyes and said, "Welcome back, my love..."
In the real world, Akaza's headless body finally began to crumble, gradually turning to dust and drifting away before Chinatsu and Kyojuro.
Hakuji would go to hell, but fortunately, he would not go there wearing Akaza's appearance. Koyuki would wait for him until he had atoned for his sins in hell.
Of course, Chinatsu had no way of knowing