"Miss Tamayo, if you don't have enough blue spider lilies, you can always ask me for more. Other things aside, blue spider lilies are plentiful."
Before Naruto left, he casually dropped a sentence that left Tamayo, who had her hands propped on the table, completely stunned.
"Blue spider lilies... plentiful?"
She raised the blue spider lily in her palm, a half-mocking, half-complex smile curving her lips.
"Kibutsuji Muzan, this is probably fate's arrangement."
"The blue spider lily you've sought for a thousand years without success, someone else can find with ease."
Tamayo let out a sigh of relief, looking towards the window.
Naruto had already left at some unknown time, leaving only the curtains fluttering in the evening breeze.
It was as if everything that had just happened was a dream.
For a thousand years, Tamayo had lived in constant fear, constantly evading pursuit, while at the same time, she was always thinking about how to eliminate Kibutsuji Muzan—to poison him!
And for the Demon Slayer Corps to kill him!
Too many plans, but all difficult to achieve.
So Tamayo had endured for a thousand years.
Unexpectedly, just tonight, her enemy, her hatred, was suddenly resolved by someone else.
While feeling relieved, Tamayo still felt a bit unreal.
"What kind of person is Lord Naruto, after all?"
"But no matter what, he killed Kibutsuji Muzan, making him my benefactor. I must complete this medicine with all my might."
Tamayo clutched the Underground City teaming badge in her hand, resolving to fulfill Naruto's request.
Demon Slayer Corps Headquarters.
Yaozai Ubuyashiki sat in the scenic corridor, facing the dry garden, quietly waiting for something.
Most of the Pillars who had gathered during the day had already left for their respective missions, leaving only the injured Wind Pillar, Shinazugawa Sanemi, and the temporarily resting Flower Pillar, Kanae Kochou.
"Yaozai, it's getting too cold at night. Shall we go back inside to rest?"
Yaozai Ubuyashiki's wife, Amane Ubuyashiki, draped a black haori over him, speaking softly in his ear.
"Just a little longer."
Yaozai Ubuyashiki patted his wife's delicate hand on his shoulder with one hand, then looked up at the pitch-black night sky.
Would the Naruto Pillar, who had made a fleeting appearance during the day, return?
From his tone, he intended to eliminate the Twelve Kizuki and the Demon King, Kibutsuji Muzan, alone.
Could such a feat truly be accomplished?
Even the strongest swordsman from the Sengoku period, the legendary figure who created the breathing styles, as recorded in the family's ancient texts, probably couldn't take on so many demons alone.
Leaving aside Kibutsuji Muzan, just the Twelve Kizuki alone had a track record of slaying Pillars.
Yaozai Ubuyashiki exhausted his wisdom, unable to imagine how to kill them all by himself.
"Heh heh, that arrogant blond brat, he must have already died in the demon's nest!"
Shinazugawa Sanemi, wrapped in white bandages, snorted.
A Demon Slayer Corps medic, who was changing his dressing nearby, angrily tapped Shinazugawa Sanemi's head, scolding him, "Lord Wind Pillar, please don't move!"
"You brat, whose head are you hitting!"
Shinazugawa Sanemi's eyes widened, bloodshot, and he roared furiously, scaring the girl into tears.
"Shinazugawa Sanemi, what kind of man are you to scare our 'Flower House' medics? If you have the guts, wait for Lord Naruto to return and act fierce in front of him."
Kanae Kochou shielded the girl behind her, her usual gentleness gone, her pretty face filled with seriousness and anger.
"Heh heh, if he has the guts to come back alive, I still have a score to settle with him!"
"At that time—I'll let him taste my breathing style's secret technique—[Vajra Hurricane]!"
"Is that so?"
An indifferent voice, without any warning, sounded behind Shinazugawa Sanemi.
Shinazugawa Sanemi was startled, his scalp tingling, and he pressed his hand on his nichirin blade, quickly leaping aside, a line of cold sweat trickling down his forehead.
"When did this guy appear behind me? I didn't even notice him."
Naruto, ignoring Shinazugawa Sanemi, walked towards Yaozai Ubuyashiki.
"Lord Naruto! You're back!"
Kanae Kochou's eyes lit up with surprise, and she asked softly, "Are you unharmed?"
"Mm, no."
"A few demons in Infinity Castle can't hurt me."
Naruto nodded to the Flower Pillar.
Yaozai Ubuyashiki pulled the haori on his shoulders, a gentle smile appearing on his lips: "From Lord Naruto's words, could it be a great victory?"
He didn't call Yaozai Ubuyashiki "Master" like the other Pillars, and directly replied: "Kibutsuji Muzan and the Twelve Kizuki have all been annihilated by me."
"The demon's nest—Infinity Castle—has also been destroyed by me, completely collapsing."
Yaozai Ubuyashiki's hands, resting on his thighs, instantly clenched into fists, his fingers tightly gripping his pants, and his calm yet strained face showed intense emotion for the first time.
He gasped, asking excitedly and determinedly, "Lord Naruto, is that true?"
"Naturally."
"Hmph, you say you've annihilated the demons, and you've annihilated them? I could also say that Kibutsuji Muzan was killed by me—"
Shinazugawa Sanemi was about to continue his foul mouth, but Naruto's cold, murderous gaze swept over him, and the rest of his words immediately got stuck in his throat,
Unable to be uttered.
"If you don't believe me, I don't mind sending you to meet Kibutsuji Muzan and ask him directly."
"No—no need—"
Shinazugawa Sanemi avoided Naruto's azure eyes, grumbling with a turned head.
Yaozai Ubuyashiki didn't doubt Naruto, and stood up excitedly, walking towards Naruto.
"Lord Naruto Pillar, you are a benefactor to my Ubuyashiki family, and also to our Demon Slayer Corps!"
"Cough, cough, cough!!"
"Yaozai"
Amane Ubuyashiki stepped forward worriedly to support Yaozai Ubuyashiki, but he waved her off.
"Lord Naruto Pillar, whatever you desire, just ask!"
Naruto answered directly: "It's simple, help me find a person, or rather—a family."
"They live in the mountains, making a living by selling charcoal for generations. The head of the family and the eldest son should have burn-like scars on their foreheads."
Hmm, one of them also wears hanafuda earrings."
"In the mountains—"
Yaozai Ubuyashiki, who had listened carefully to Naruto, frowned slightly and said with some difficulty, "Lord, there are many mountains in this country."
Naruto had a flash of inspiration and added: "It should not be far from the mountain where the former Water Pillar lived."
"If I remember correctly, the former Water Pillar seems to have died in battle. The living former Water Pillar—could it be—Mr. Urokodaki!"
"Mr. Urokodaki retired from the position of Water Pillar and then retreated to the background, specializing in cultivating talent for the Demon Slayer Corps."
"The current Water Pillar, Giyu Tomioka, is Mr. Urokodaki's student!"
Yaozai Ubuyashiki immediately guessed who Naruto was referring to as the former Water Pillar.
"Yes, it should be him."
Naruto nodded.
He didn't remember Sakonji Urokodaki's name, only that this old man had a strange temper and had taught Giyu Tomioka and Tanjiro.