Nothing special?
When Muzan Kibutsuji read those words in Akaza's consciousness, he was so angry he almost wanted to laugh!
That was Yoriichi Tsugikuni!
In his youth, he could severely wound Muzan in a single encounter.
Even when Muzan split into more than 1,800 pieces to escape, he could instantly slash more than 1,500 of them to bits.
Even when he was old, frail, and on the verge of death, he had nearly beheaded Kokushibo with a single stroke!
And Akaza was telling him that a man like that was nothing special?!
Muzan Kibutsuji could not even be bothered to explain anything more to Akaza.
With a thought, he temporarily tore Akaza's consciousness to shreds.
Then Muzan Kibutsuji took control of Akaza's body and reached up to seize his head.
Crack!
There was a sharp snap!
Before Kyojuro Rengoku and Lin Yoriichi's eyes, Akaza actually ripped his own head off!
The maneuver left Lin Yoriichi dumbfounded.
Seriously, man?!
You saw me about to cut your head off, so you pulled it off yourself first?
That... actually kind of makes sense?
Caught off guard, Lin Yoriichi had no time to change his move. He could only watch as his blade swept through empty air above Akaza's bare, headless neck.
The next moment, the hand holding Akaza's head flung it backward, sending it flying behind him.
Then he retreated at astonishing speed, reaching out with his other hand to catch his own head in midair.
Afterward, Akaza pressed his head back into place with a pop.
Lin Yoriichi was genuinely dumbfounded by Akaza's maneuver.
Ever since transmigrating to this world, he had considered himself quite worldly. What hadn't he seen?
But Lin Yoriichi had truly never seen Akaza turn into the "Head-Reattachment King"!
A demon deliberately severing his own neck to evade an opponent's beheading strike.
Lin Yoriichi had indeed seen such a maneuver in the original work.
Rui, Lower Rank Five on Mount Natagumo, had pulled that trick against Tanjiro.
But the one standing before him was Upper Rank Three, Akaza.
For someone who only fought head-on to suddenly use a move like that truly caught Lin Yoriichi off guard.
At that thought, something suddenly occurred to Lin Yoriichi.
This slippery, survival-first style fit his stereotypical impression of Muzan Kibutsuji perfectly.
In other words, has Muzan Kibutsuji personally logged in to take the controls?
Meanwhile, Kyojuro Rengoku launched an attack as well:
[Flame Breathing, Fifth Form: Flame Tiger]
Kyojuro Rengoku surged forward, swinging the Nichirin Blade in his hand.
At that moment, fierce flames seemed to erupt along his blade.
In an instant, the flames twisted and transformed into a majestic, enormous flaming tiger that lunged straight at Akaza to sink its teeth into him.
Seeing the swordsman he thought highly of launch an attack, Akaza's consciousness actually showed signs of coalescing again.
"What a powerful attack, what tremendous spirit!"
"As expected of the swordsman I set my sights on!"
But just as Akaza's consciousness coalesced, the oppressive force within his blood struck again!
"Urgh-"
Akaza felt as though countless heavy hammers had come crashing down into the world of his consciousness once more.
Yet even under that crushing pressure, Akaza struggled to keep his consciousness intact.
Within his mind, he asked in agony:
"Lord Muzan, w-why?"
The demon-slaying swordsmen were right before him. Why turn and run instead of eliminating them?
Especially when the swordsman he admired had already unleashed such a stunning attack.
Why should he flee instead of meeting that attack?
The consciousness Akaza had hastily pulled together successfully set his body in motion.
The martial arts he had mastered through relentless training were about to unfold as naturally as breathing:
[Technique Development]
[Destructive Death: Compa...]
But before the technique resembling a snowflake-shaped ice crystal could fully unfold, Muzan Kibutsuji took control of his body again.
His voice was chillingly cold:
"You dare question my decision?"
"You still want to deploy your technique?"
"Put it away!"
Faced with Muzan Kibutsuji's fury, Akaza felt as though his consciousness was caught in a raging storm.
Moreover, Akaza could sense every word Muzan Kibutsuji spoke in his mind turning into a hammer even more terrifying than before, pounding his consciousness.
This was undoubtedly a warning to him!
If he showed the slightest further defiance, he would only be erased completely!
Thus, Akaza could only struggle to speak with Muzan Kibutsuji within his mind:
"My lord, I... would not dare!"
Muzan Kibutsuji snorted coldly and temporarily tore Akaza's consciousness to shreds once again.
Then, facing Kyojuro Rengoku, whose attack reached him first, he actually made Akaza leap straight into it!
Yes!
He crashed straight into it!
Kyojuro Rengoku's eyes widened.
His slash had been aimed straight at Akaza's neck.
Yet he saw Akaza suddenly leap half a person's height into the air, meeting his blade with his waist!
Swish!
The incomparably sharp slash cut Akaza clean in half at the waist!
Yet Kyojuro Rengoku saw a strange smile spread across his opponent's face, as though his scheme had succeeded!
In Muzan Kibutsuji's view, being cut in half by this firecracker-haired fellow's blade-
Although the wound looked frightening, it was nothing at all.
As long as he was not struck by that "Yoriichi Tsugikuni" over there, whose Nichirin Blade inflicted wounds that could not immediately regenerate.
Then, with Upper Rank Three's regenerative abilities, even if he discarded his entire lower body, he could quickly grow it back.
But discarding his entire lower body let him immediately shed half his weight!
The next moment, Muzan Kibutsuji controlled Akaza to use the force of Kyojuro Rengoku's attack, thrusting out both hands and pushing hard against the blade of Kyojuro Rengoku's Nichirin Blade.
Under Lin Yoriichi's astonished gaze, Akaza shot backward at incredible speed.
Just as he was about to land, Akaza's lower body finished growing back, transitioning almost seamlessly into his next movements as he fled!
Lin Yoriichi was truly stunned!
He had genuinely never expected Muzan Kibutsuji to control Akaza through a series of moves he had completely failed to anticipate, all within a single brief exchange!
In the distance, Akaza looked back at Lin Yoriichi as he ran.
In his eyes, Lin Yoriichi kept feeling that he could see Muzan Kibutsuji's figure, and even understood what he wanted to convey-
"Yoriichi Tsugikuni, you didn't see that coming!"
"This is my escape route!"
Before you continue