Accompanied by the opening and closing of his Teiichi gaze.
The next moment.
Sanemi Shinazugawa froze instantly, his hair standing on end.
The instincts of the genes, hidden deep within the cells, were frantically issuing a warning at this moment.
It was as if they had encountered a natural enemy in the food chain.
The breeze in the courtyard had suddenly become sharp, causing the leaves to rustle.
Bang--!
The sudden explosion brought Sanemi Shinazugawa back to his senses.
The world before him seemed to be fast-forwarded as a seemingly ordinary wooden sword, yet imbued with boundless power, hurtled toward his chest at a speed too fast for the naked eye to perceive.
The wooden sword fell too fast.
The brain has no instructions and no time to issue them.
But the body, having endured countless life-or-death battles, had already reacted automatically.
The wooden sword was quickly raised and held horizontally in front of his chest.
Clang!
The wooden swords clashed, and the falling swords paused for only a moment before continuing their downward slash with overwhelming force.
Damn it, how could that attack be so powerful?
Looking at the wooden sword still falling towards him, Sanemi couldn't help but think.
Then, as the wooden sword fell, Sanemi Shinazugawa was sent flying backward.
The wind whistled past my ears, and the scenery around me flashed by like scenes from a movie.
However, Sanemi paid no attention to any of that, his gaze fixed on that figure.
Under Sanemi's gaze, the figure crouched slightly before charging forward again.
Sanemi gritted his teeth.
You can't fight him in the air!
He quickly mobilized all his muscles, controlling his body to flip over in mid-air.
He then landed steadily on his feet, using the strength of his calves to forcefully stop his backward flight.
He gripped the wooden sword tightly with both hands, took a deep breath, and gathered all his strength.
" Wind Breathing - Third Form: Clean Storm Wind Tree!"
With his roar, three sharp blades of wind slashed out like lightning.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Three crisp, rhythmic knocking sounds rang out.
As the last sound rang out, the wooden swords gripped tightly in both hands were jolted high into the air, and the arms trembled violently from the enormous recoil.
Sanemi's gaze was fixed on Teiichi, staring at his calm and expressionless face, his heart filled with unbelievable shock.
Although yesterday's intelligence had given him a general idea that Teiichi was very strong, even stronger than Gyomei Himejima.
but...
He never imagined that the gap between the two sides would be so vast.
How long has it been since I felt this way of being crushed?
No! I've never experienced that myself!
If I had experienced that, I probably wouldn't be alive today...
The sight of the wooden sword falling again in his pupils brought Sanemi back to his senses.
We can't keep playing like this!
If we keep letting the opponent attack, we'll never have a chance!
Thinking this, Sanemi quickly took two steps back, dodging the incoming wooden sword.
He then quickly lowered his body, his gaze fixed on the feet standing on the ground.
" Wind Breathing! Eighth Form: Primary Gale Slash!"
Across from him, Teiichi's eyes were slightly lowered.
In his field of vision, crimson muscles, connected to bones, slashed downwards.
Do you feel that your lower body is relatively weak and difficult to protect?
That's generally true if you're using a sword or knife.
but...
You're mistaken...
His right foot suddenly lifted up, then stomped down hard.
Bang!
His foot landed precisely on the blade of the wooden sword.
Witnessing this scene firsthand, Sanemi Shinazugawa's pupils contracted involuntarily.
???
Is this even possible?
What's the difference between this and catching a blade bare-handed?
The next moment, under Sanemi Shinazugawa's watchful gaze, the wooden sword slashed straight down towards the ground.
laugh--!
The wooden knife drew a thin line on the ground.
It's not that I don't want to draw a line.
It was because the blade was pinned down by that foot and couldn't move at all.
Sanemi Shinazugawa strained with both arms, trying to pull the wooden sword out again.
However, after several attempts, the wooden knife showed no sign of being pulled out, only experiencing a slight tremor.
The next moment.
A chill ran down my neck.
Sanemi Shinazugawa stopped drawing his sword.
Slowly raise your head.
There stood Teiichi, his back to the sunlight, holding the Nichirin Blade, silently across his neck.
far away.
"Hiss--!"
Tengen Uzui gasped.
Has Kato gotten this strong?
He charged forward, snap, a single slash!
He charged forward again, crack, two slashes!
And then it ended?
"Hey, hey, hey! This is a bit ridiculous, isn't it? How long has it been? Not even ten seconds?"
Upon hearing this, everyone around looked at each other in bewilderment, none of them able to refute Tengen Uzui's sentiment.
Apart from Kanae and Shinobu Kocho, who had already experienced it, everyone else stared solemnly at the two figures in the arena.
Even though Mitsuri Kanroji had been warned about this yesterday, she still raised one hand to cover her mouth.
Knowing and seeing are two different things.
No matter how much one talks about the profound impact of the Demon Slayer Mark and the Transparent World on combat power, nothing leaves as deep a impression as this decisive and straightforward victory.
Gyomei Himejima spoke in a deep voice, tinged with emotion. "I didn't expect Kato to improve so much in the past few years. Four years ago, although he was already very strong, we could still hold our own against him back then. But now..."
Kyojuro Rengoku nodded as well, "It seems our efforts over the years haven't been enough! We'll have to work even harder from now on! Otherwise, won't we just have to rely on Mr. Kato to defeat the Upper Rank?"
"No!" Giyu Tomioka exclaimed, "We hardly ever encounter Lower Rank, let alone Upper Rank Moons!"
Kyojuro Rengoku said, "But many Pillars have sacrificed themselves in the history of the Demon Slayer Corps. I'm afraid they only died when they encountered Upper Rank!"
So it seems that encountering the Upper Rank isn't actually that difficult, it just might take a while!
Obanai Iguro, holding a wooden sword, swept his deep gaze across the crowd, his tone grave:
"Is this the power of Upper Rank One? If so, with our current strength, we'd probably have to send all our forces to kill him, and there's no guarantee we'd avoid casualties..."
After a moment of silence, Gyomei Himejima, "It seems we really need to work even harder in our cultivation from now on!"
Kagaya Ubuyashiki looked around at everyone present and said with a gentle smile, "I believe that everyone will be able to reach Teiichi same level of strength as Teiichi in the future!"
"Yes! I will certainly not let my Master down!" Kyojuro Rengoku replied loudly.
Kagaya Ubuyashiki smiled slightly, then asked, "So, who will go and Teiichi try next, Kazuya?"
The atmosphere in the room became slightly tense, and everyone hesitated.
Just as Kyojuro Rengoku was about to volunteer, Gyomei Himejima slowly spoke:
"Let me give it a try!"