Only when the first rays of dawn had fully dispelled Yoshiwara's darkness did large numbers of masked Kakushi members surge like a belated tide into the ruins, which looked as though a god had plowed through them.
Everyone who arrived fell speechless for a long time at the sight before them.
Crumbling walls, scorched earth, and the heart-pounding remnants of energy that still lingered in the air after the purple giant had vanished.
But what shocked them even more was the outcome of the battle, as revealed by the preliminary tally.
Upper Rank Six had been slain.
And the core participants in the battle-the Sound Hashira, the Thunder Hashira, and three young Corps members-had all survived.
The news thundered through the hearts of every Kakushi member who had come to provide support, bringing unbelievable elation.
At the center of the ruins, one of the central figures in this miraculous battle, Tengen Uzui, slowly sat up with Hinatsuru and Makio supporting him.
He had regained consciousness.
The deadly poison within him had been burned away by Nezuko's miraculous flames, and surging vitality had returned to his body.
But he immediately felt what his body was missing.
He instinctively tried to raise his left hand, only for his empty sleeve to flutter in the morning breeze.
He tried to open his left eye, too, but he could still see only half the world. The other half was eternal darkness.
"Lord Tengen..."
Looking at his empty left eye socket and missing left arm, Suma, whose tears had only just stopped, began weeping again, letting out stifled sobs.
Tengen Uzui fell silent for a moment.
Rather than looking at his damaged body, he slowly turned his head and swept his gaze across the battlefield.
He saw Tanjiro having his wounds bandaged by the Kakushi.