The wind howled in her ears, and the sea churned below.
Shinobu came to her senses and looked up.
Mr. Aomura had black hair, golden eyes, and was incredibly handsome. A pair of huge black wings spread behind him, like a legendary demon.
She had always known Mr. Aomura was powerful, but what she saw today still shook her.
But Shinobu's attention quickly shifted.
The air smelled of blood. As they got closer to the village, the smell grew stronger. She could already see a few bodies from afar.
Whoosh!
Aoki landed on a rooftop with Shinobu and looked down.
The village was small, with only one main street and houses scattered on both sides.
The entire street was stained with blood. Many body parts lay on the ground. Most horrifyingly, in the center of the street, a huge vase held a pillar made of countless stacked bodies.
Arms and legs, like branches, stuck out around the pillar. Faces twisted in terror were embedded in its surface.
A sickening smell of blood hung over the street.
The entire village was silent.
Aoki also noticed there were almost no children among the bodies on the street.
Doma liked to eat women, while Gyokko preferred children.
Shinobu's face grew paler. She turned away sharply, her stomach churning.
"Ugh!"
Aoki held out a bottle of water. "Here!"
He had guessed this might happen, but Gyokko's actions were even more cruel.
Shinobu took it and gulped down two big mouthfuls of water. Her face looked a little better.
She thought she had seen many cruel scenes. She had remained calm even when facing the Yagihime Society, where blood flowed like a river and hundreds of bodies lay.
But the scene on this street was beyond her limit.
The bodies at the Yagihime Society were just bodies, representing simple death. Here, it was a cruel, bloody hell created by a twisted, brutal monster.
Shinobu took a deep breath. "Mr. Aomura, is anyone still alive here?"
"I don't know. If there are, they're hiding. They won't show themselves for a while."
Aoki said, then suddenly grabbed Shinobu's arm.
They flashed to the end of the street.
Broken bodies piled up into a small mountain. In the middle was a woman with a high ponytail. Most of her body was gone, and her head was badly damaged, but the tattered "Destroy" character was still visible on her uniform.
"It's one of our Demon Slayers!" Shinobu's face was tight, her expression cold.
"She must be the Demon Slayer who found Gyokko."
Aoki observed their surroundings. "She must have seen Gyokko's evil deeds, couldn't hold back, and rushed out."
Shinobu's chest rose and fell quickly. The killing intent in her eyes was almost solid.
"I will find Gyokko and kill him!"
Aoki turned. "Let's go!"
"Go? What about this place?"
"The people are dead. There's not much we can do. The Hidden should handle it.
Our only mission now is to find Gyokko quickly and prevent more casualties."
Shinobu calmed down, knowing Mr. Aomura was right.
"Yes, finding Gyokko is most important now! What should we do?"
Aoki said, "Let's split up and search!"
"Okay!" Shinobu had no objections.
This was why she had insisted on coming.
They quickly split up.
Aoki went east, Shinobu went west.
Whoosh!
Aoki flapped his wings and flew into the sky.
The weather was good. Visibility was clear. There were few obstructions by the sea. He could see everything below.
But finding Gyokko wouldn't be easy. If he wanted to hide, finding him would be much harder.
"Would Gyokko hide, given his personality?"
Aoki searched and thought.
"Gyokko saw the Demon Slayer. He must know his location is exposed and that Demon Slayers will hunt him.
My cooperation with the Demon Slayer Corps shouldn't be a secret among the Upper Moons.
If Gyokko has a brain, he should guess I'll come after him.
So, would Gyokko hide or run away because he fears me?"
Aoki wasn't sure.
They had fought in Infinity Castle. Gyokko had lost.
Logically, Gyokko wouldn't face him alone. He would hide far away.
But Gyokko was cruel, arrogant, and twisted. It was hard to say if he would think like a normal person.
Suddenly, Aoki stopped in the sky.
Why had Gyokko left that disgusting human pillar in the village?
Was it just for his "artistic hobby"?
It was possible, but there were other possibilities.
Aoki tapped his finger. "Is Gyokko deliberately provoking us? Is this another trap?"
He wouldn't doubt Muzan's intent to kill him.
Akaza had been the bait last time. Gyokko being the bait this time made sense.
After a moment, Aoki shook his head, dismissing the idea.
First, Muzan had just failed. He didn't think Muzan could find another way to counter Space Traverse so quickly.
Second, if it was a trap, there should be a clear clue. Otherwise, how would he fall into it if he was just wandering around?
A trap was unlikely.
But provocation was possible.
Gyokko was cruel, arrogant, and twisted. He might get pleasure from provoking them.
If it was provocation, how could he find Gyokko?
Aoki thought.
If it was provocation, Gyokko wouldn't stop. He would probably commit more crimes nearby.
His target wouldn't be too close to the village, because that would be too dangerous. But it wouldn't be too far, because that would lessen the effect of the provocation.
A map appeared in Aoki's mind.
He hadn't wasted the past month. He had made many space marks and memorized the nearby map.
There were many small villages along the coast. Not many met his criteria, but not few either.
Aoki quickly identified a few targets and decided to scout them first.
But this was just his guess.
No one knew Gyokko's true intentions.
Analysis and speculation were just to increase the chance of success.
It was better than running around blindly.
"I need to tell Shinobu about this guess."
Aoki spread his wings and vanished quickly.
---
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