The Match Begins
Looking into the other person's eyes, one could see the words "Upper Rank" and "one".
The Ginko bird trembled and cried out:
"Lord Muichiro, hold on! I'll go get the other lords to come and help!"
With that, Ginko turned around and quickly flew away.
Kokushibo glanced at the Ginko but didn't stop it. This was based on his hundreds of years of experience and his confidence as Upper Rank One.
Over the centuries, only two freaks have emerged: Kato Teiichi and Yoriichi Tsugikuni.
He didn't care about anyone else.
Kokushibo shifted his gaze back to Muichiro and slowly began to speak:
"Muichiro... is your name... Muichiro Tsugikuni...?"
Muichiro frowned, then swiftly drew his Nichirin Blade from his waist, looking at Kokushibo as he replied:
"My name is Muichiro Tokito, not Muichiro Tsugikuni!"
"Tokito... Muichiro... It seems... the surname... Tsugikuni... has also... disappeared... into... the long river of history!" Kokushibo said slowly.
"What does the surname ' Tsugikuni ' have to do with me?" Muichiro asked.
Kokushibo slightly raised his eyes, glanced at Muichiro, and said, "The moment I saw you... I knew... that your body... carries the bloodline of our... Tsugikuni!"
Upon hearing this, Muichiro calmly glanced at Kokushibo twice, showing no emotional fluctuation.
He had little motivation to even retrieve his previous memories, let alone those of an ancestor from who-knows-how-many years ago.
Anyway, he's a ghost now, and I'm Demon Slayer, that makes sense!
Seeing that Muichiro remained expressionless, Kokushibo thought for a moment and then spoke:
"Would you... be... will... be... a ghost...?"
"No interest!" Muichiro replied calmly.
"Kato Teiichi didn't... come in. You have no chance of winning. If you persist, all that awaits you is death!" Kokushibo continued to persuade him.
"Perhaps!" Muichiro replied calmly.
Silence fell over the room for a moment as Kokushibo quietly gazed at Muichiro.
Fine, he's still my descendant after all. I might as well just turn him into a ghost by force!
Thinking of this, Kokushibo gently drew the Kyokokukamusari his waist.
The next moment, with a 'bang', Kokushibo's figure vanished from the spot.
Clang!
The blades clashed, Kyokokukamusari pressed down on the Nichirin Blade, little by little.
Kokushibo's gaze pierced through the clashing blades as he looked down at Muichiro.
"To be able to train your body to this level at such a young age... you're probably only slightly inferior to... Yoriichi and... Kato Teiichi."
Are you really prepared to... let your talent go to waste like this?
Muichiro did not reply. He pushed off with his feet and leaped backward.
"Mist Breathing, Third Form: Scattering Mist Splash!"
Seeing this, Kokushibo remained expressionless, gently raising his Nichirin Blade with his right hand.
"Moon Breathing..."
On the other side.
Akaza crossed his arms and frowned as he watched the three figures walk in together.
He vaguely remembered these people; they were the ones who had told him about the Teiichi location.
But it was precisely because he remembered it that he was somewhat impatient, after all...
"Hey! You three aren't Pillars, are you?" Akaza called out to Tanjiro and the others.
"Ha! So what if you're not a Pillar? I can still kill you today even if you're not a Pillar!" Inosuke said, raising a sword at Akaza.
Akaza ignored them, instead frowning and muttering a curse under his breath.
"What's wrong with Nakime? Why did you send this piece of trash here?!"
After saying that, he slowly lowered his hands and walked towards Tanjiro and the others.
Upon seeing Akaza, Inosuke felt a chill run down his spine, and his entire body stiffened slightly.
Tanjiro, seeing Akaza approaching, quickly shouted:
"Watch out, he..."
Before he could finish speaking, Akaza vanished from his spot, and when he reappeared, he was already standing in front of Tanjiro and the others.
Boom!
A huge fist slammed down towards Tanjiro's face.
Wow, so fast!
The word only flashed through Tanjiro's mind before his slightly stiff body left him no time to dodge.
The next moment, he heard a low shout from the side.
"Thunder Breathing - First Form..."
Zenitsu charged towards Akaza, and then...
Bang!
Akaza suddenly turned and punched Zenitsu, Zenitsu flying backward at an even greater speed than before.
But that's enough.
The time he bought was enough for Tanjiro and Inosuke to react.
"Hinokami Kagura: Dance!"
"Beast Breathing - Fourth Fang - Shattering Slash!"
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!...
Cold fists rained down on Tanjiro and his companions like a relentless stream.
Tanjiro gritted his teeth, gripping his Nichirin Blade with both hands and swinging it repeatedly in front of him.
But the continuous barrage of punches, and the force emanating from them, still made him feel pressured as if a mountain were collapsing and a tsunami were crashing down on him.
Finally, a foot broke through their defenses and suddenly slammed towards Tanjiro's stomach.
Bang!
The next moment, Tanjiro sent flying backward like a cannonball, crashing into the wall.
Having lost one kick, Inosuke and Zenitsu were also completely overwhelmed by Akaza's attacks.
In the blink of an eye, the two of them were also sent flying.
"Cough-Pfft"
A mouthful of blood spurted from Tanjiro's mouth.
Tanjiro looked up at the figure slowly walking towards them, and a sense of powerlessness spread through his heart.
It's really... way too bad!
We are so far behind Upper Rank!
Akaza clenched his fists as he walked towards Tanjiro.
"Hmm, not bad, much better than when I met you guys before!"
"So? Do you want to become a demon?" Akaza asked, looking at the three of them.
Just as Tanjiro was about to speak, a loud voice rang out.
"They are all my lovely juniors, they would never become ghosts!"
After he finished speaking, a firm shout followed.
"Flame Breathing, Fifth Form: Flame Tiger!"
The moment Akaza heard the voice, a smile appeared on his face, and he quickly turned around and put his arm around Akaza's shoulder.
Clang!
Looking at the equally familiar figure before him, Akaza smiled:
"Finally, someone who can manage things a little better has arrived!"