"Genya?"
Kirishima Bupai recognized him. This guy was Genya Shinazugawa, the younger brother of the Wind Hashira, Sanemi Shinazugawa.
In the anime, his unusual constitution allowed him to gain demons' abilities by eating their flesh and blood. His strength was not to be underestimated.
But he still seemed very immature at this point-mentally, that was. In appearance, he was already no different from a burly, vicious-looking man.
Genya had clearly witnessed Kirishima Bupai chasing Zenitsu.
Mistakenly thinking he intended to kill someone, he immediately stepped forward, brimming with righteous indignation. "You actually drew your sword on a fellow participant! You don't deserve to take part in the Final Selection! I absolutely won't tolerate this!"
As he spoke, he raised the small firearm in his hand and aimed it at Kirishima Bupai. "Put down your sword, or I'll shoot!"
Seeing this, Zenitsu hurriedly scrambled up from the ground and hid behind Genya. Poking his head out, he trembled as he said, "Yes! Put down your sword! He's really fierce!"
After a moment's surprise, Kirishima Bupai looked at the little firearm in Genya's hand, the corner of his mouth twitching.
In his eyes, the thing was no different from a toy.
"Oh? You'll shoot?"
Kirishima Bupai raised an eyebrow, deliberately teasing him. "Go ahead and try."
Enraged by his attitude, Genya roared, "You're asking for death!"
Bang!
He pulled the trigger, sending a bullet flying toward Kirishima Bupai.
Before the bullet could reach him, however, Kirishima Bupai casually flicked it with a finger, sending it dropping to the ground with a clink.
Genya's eyes went wide, his face filled with disbelief. "H-how is that possible?!"
Behind him, Zenitsu was dumbstruck too, his mouth hanging wide enough to fit an egg. Deflecting a bullet with a finger? Isn't that ridiculously powerful?!
Kirishima Bupai rolled his wrist and walked toward Genya, step by step. "With that little ability, you dare step up to champion justice?"
At his words, Genya went pale, but he still raised his gun with a show of composure and fired several more shots.
The result was the same. Kirishima Bupai easily blocked every bullet.
"Out of bullets now?"
Kirishima Bupai walked up to Genya and looked down at him. "Now it's my turn."
He reached out, snatched the small firearm from Genya's hand, and casually squeezed it, crushing its specially made barrel into a lump of scrap metal.
"Ah! My gun!" Genya cried out in anguish.
Kirishima Bupai couldn't be bothered to waste words on him. He raised his hand and casually delivered a hefty slap.
Smack!
With a crisp crack, Genya spun three times on the spot, a clear handprint instantly appearing on his face.
"You... you actually dared to hit me?!"
Shocked and furious, Genya clutched his cheek and glared viciously at Kirishima Bupai like an enraged little wild beast.
"So what if I hit you?" Kirishima Bupai scoffed disdainfully. "With those pathetic skills, you need some proper training!"
With that, Kirishima Bupai kicked him squarely in the stomach.
"Argh!"
Genya screamed and curled up on the ground like a shrimp, unable to speak for a long while from the pain.
Beside them, Zenitsu trembled as he watched, not daring to breathe too loudly.
He finally understood now. This powerhouse was not only strong but also had a bad temper. Of all the people to provoke, it absolutely couldn't be him!
Looking at Genya curled up on the ground, Kirishima Bupai said coldly, "Remember this: make good use of that demon-eating constitution. If I were a demon, you'd already have died twice!"
In too much pain to pay attention to his words, Genya was drenched in sweat. He raised his head and glared fiercely at Kirishima Bupai, but a trace of fear had entered his eyes.
He could feel that the young man before him possessed unfathomable strength. Before him, he was as frail as an ant.
Seeing his gaze grow a little more resolute, Kirishima Bupai paid him no further attention, turned around, and continued forward.
Zenitsu hesitated, looking at Genya on the ground, then at Kirishima Bupai's retreating back. In the end, he steeled himself and followed.
He had no choice. Staying with this powerhouse might be dangerous, but at least he could survive!
Getting beaten was better than facing those demons alone, wasn't it?
Watching the two walk away, Genya gritted his teeth and struggled to his feet.
He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, his gaze complicated.
Clearly, he couldn't accept it, but he also knew he was no match for Kirishima Bupai.
In the end, Genya chose to follow them.
Partly, he wanted to find out just who Kirishima Bupai was, and partly, he really was a little afraid to act alone.
And so, what had started as one person traveling alone became a group of three.
Only, the atmosphere was rather peculiar.
Kirishima Bupai walked at the front with an indifferent expression, occasionally cutting down demons that blocked the way as his points soared.
[Ding! Killed one Common Demon. Gained 50 points. Current total points: 950.] [Ding! Killed one Common Demon. Gained 50 points. Current total points: 1,000.]
Zenitsu followed a few steps behind Kirishima Bupai, trembling with fear and glancing around from time to time, terrified that a demon might suddenly appear.
In a daze, he kept muttering, "Amitabha, may the Bodhisattva protect me. Please don't let me run into any more demons..."
Genya brought up the rear, clutching his aching cheek and stomach.
Baring his teeth, he glared fiercely at Kirishima Bupai's back and occasionally let out a cold snort, but he no longer dared to approach him looking for trouble.
Along the way, the trio drew the attention of quite a few other participants.
Seeing Kirishima Bupai effortlessly killing demons, Zenitsu trembling with fear, and Genya following behind with a furious expression, everyone found the group utterly strange.
"Hey, could you stop repeating yourself like a broken record?" Irritated by Zenitsu's muttering, Kirishima Bupai glanced back and glared at him.
Frightened, Zenitsu immediately shut his mouth and shrank back, not daring to speak again.
After walking for a while, Kirishima Bupai stopped and looked at a dense stretch of woods ahead, a mischievous smile curling his lips.
He turned to Zenitsu and said with complete seriousness, "There seem to be a lot of demons up ahead. I can't handle them alone. Go draw their attention."
Zenitsu went pale with fright. "I-I'm not going! I'd just be serving myself up to them!"
"You're not going?" Kirishima Bupai raised an eyebrow. "Then I'll throw you over there."
"Don't, don't, don't! I'll go! I'll go, okay?" Terrified, Zenitsu hastily agreed. Looking utterly miserable, he walked toward the woods, glancing back repeatedly with every few steps.
He had barely entered the woods when demonic cries rang out, immediately followed by Zenitsu's screams. "Ahhh! Demons! Help! Bupai, big bro!"
Kirishima Bupai stood where he was with his arms folded, leisurely enjoying the show.
Watching from behind, Genya was speechless. Isn't this guy way too cowardly?
Before long, Zenitsu came scrambling out, stumbling and crawling, with more than a dozen demons behind him. As he ran, he shouted, "Run! There are so many demons!"
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