Hearing that voice, Kaigaku raised his head in confusion, and a familiar-looking demon appeared before him.
It had two horns on its head and a sturdy build.
"You... You're that demon from outside the Temple back then!"
Although he didn't recognize its appearance at first, its words made Kaigaku recall the demon's identity.
"I didn't think you'd remember me, you little demon. It's because of you that I met that humanoid monster! He beat me from night until dawn! I should have just eaten you back then!" The horned demon roared furiously at Kaigaku.
The fear and pain from that time were deeply etched in his memory, even if he went to hell.
He only realized that a human, whose build was far less sturdy than his, could possess such immense power when Gyoumei pinned him to the ground and smashed him into a bloody mess.
In his heart, it was precisely because Kaigaku hadn't given him this information that he had endured such torment.
In hell, he had been waiting for Kaigaku, knowing full well that he would also fall into hell like him, but he never expected it to be as a demon.
Immediately after, the horned demon started laughing again.
"But this is good too. I believe with your personality, the crimes you've committed might not allow you to leave here easily. I'll take good care of you from now on."
The horned demon chuckled sinisterly a few times, slowly walking towards Kaigaku.
"You think you can bully me? I'm Upper Rank Six! I can kill a common demon like you with ease!"
Kaigaku roared back at the horned demon, unwilling to show weakness. Although his demeanor was good, his panting and frail body made his words sound like a joke.
"Hahahahaha! Are you trying to make me die of laughter? You? Upper Rank Six? Hahahahaha, don't make me laugh! How dare a good-for-nothing like you claim to be Upper Rank Six?
I'll show you who's boss right now!"
The horned demon was also amused by his words. After laughing for a while, he clenched his fist and viciously punched Kaigaku.
Kaigaku wanted to retaliate, but he had no strength. The horned demon's punch landed on him, directly knocking him to the ground.
"Ah!" Kaigaku screamed, blood gushing from his face.
"I'm going to kill you!"
The strong sense of disparity made Kaigaku incredibly furious. Not long ago, he was Upper Rank Six, and he could have dealt with a common demon like this in minutes. Even if he hadn't become a demon, he could have slain it with his sword skills. Yet now, he was punched by such a minor character.
Kaigaku raised his fist to strike the horned demon, but he was no match for the horned demon at all, and he was quickly knocked to the ground again.
"Still going to kill me? How dare a good-for-nothing like you lay a hand on me? Upper Rank Six, huh? I'll show you Upper Rank Six!"
The horned demon continued to punch Kaigaku while yelling at him...
Everything he had once gained had turned to dust; now, all that remained of Kaigaku was his identity as a demon.
He couldn't hold onto any kindness others showed him, and perhaps he shouldn't have received such kindness from others in the first place...
...
Kaigaku had died and dissipated. Chiba Yo looked up at the Kasugai Crow perched on the tree.
"Caw?"
The Kasugai Crow seemed to sense something and flapped its wings, intending to fly away.
However, it didn't succeed. Chiba Yo leaped up and caught it in his hand, though Chiba Yo was very careful and didn't use force.
"Caw! Caw, caw!"
The Kasugai Crow struggled in Chiba Yo's hand, constantly flapping its wings, but it couldn't break free.
Chiba Yo looked at his Kasugai Crow and said sternly, "Crow, I'm about to say something very important, so I'll have to trouble you for now."
Without waiting for the Kasugai Crow to speak, Chiba Yo continued, "Crow, I hope you don't spread what happened here today. I will report it to the Master myself, but before that, I hope this matter remains a secret between heaven, earth, you, and me. Understand?"
Chiba Yo didn't know if anyone else was aware of Kaigaku becoming a demon. He prayed in his heart that no one else knew, otherwise, according to the Demon Slayer Corps rules, Kuwajima Jigorō would surely be implicated and might have to commit seppuku to atone.
Chiba Yo felt that things shouldn't turn out this way. From Gyoumei's experience, Kaigaku had been like this since he was young: ungrateful and often doing things that benefited himself at others' expense.
His development into his current state had nothing to do with Kuwajima Jigorō. One could only say that he was always that kind of person.
If this led to Kuwajima Jigorō committing seppuku to atone, Chiba Yo felt it would be utterly wrong, so he wanted to change this situation.
To change it, first, more people couldn't know, and it absolutely couldn't reach Kuwajima Jigorō's ears, otherwise, given the temperament of those former Pillars, they would likely directly take responsibility and commit seppuku.
Secondly, he planned to talk to the Master. Rules are dead, but people are alive. He believed the Master was definitely not someone who was bound by rules; otherwise, he wouldn't have accepted Nezuko and chosen to cooperate with Tamayo.
The rule itself was probably established to ensure that trainers instilled correct values in their disciples. From Zenitsu's situation, Kuwajima Jigorō did just that. The situation with Kaigaku was mainly due to Kaigaku's own problems and shouldn't implicate Kuwajima Jigorō.
"Caw, caw! Why? Slaying Upper Rank Six is your achievement, why can't you talk about it?"
The Kasugai Crow clearly couldn't understand the reason and asked Chiba Yo in return.
It was also proud of its master being so strong and capable, and telling this would give it a lot of face among the other Kasugai Crows.
Before Chiba Yo, the most arrogant Kasugai Crow was Muichiro's, simply because Muichiro was a genius who became a Pillar in less than two months. However, with Chiba Yo, the situation changed. Muichiro's Kasugai Crow never came to boast about its master to Chiba Yo's Kasugai Crow.
"Don't worry about why, just remember what I said and keep your mouth shut. Consider it my request, understand?" Chiba Yo earnestly told his Kasugai Crow. He still remembered when this Kasugai Crow sold him out on Mount Natagumo that day.
After that incident, Chiba Yo knew that his Kasugai Crow was a bigmouth, and he didn't know who it learned it from.
So, if he wanted to keep this matter a secret for now, the first thing he had to do was manage his own Kasugai Crow.
"Caw, caw! I know! I know!"
The Kasugai Crow replied repeatedly after hearing Chiba Yo's words.
Chiba Yo was still a bit uneasy after hearing its words, after all, this guy had a history of causing him trouble.
"Forget it, I'll just have to trouble you for a while."
"Caw?"
The Kasugai Crow let out a confused cry, and then saw Chiba Yo pull a rope from his embrace...