Chapter 65: The New Water Hashira, Demon Slayer Corps's Appointment Ceremony
Infinity Castle.
On the highest platform, Kibutsuji Muzan sat on a chair, with Nakime kneeling behind him holding a biwa.
Muzan's face was covered with a layer of gloomy frost.
He said nothing, but the irritation and rage emanating from his very bones had already made the atmosphere of the entire Infinity Castle oppressive to the extreme.
Suddenly, his brow furrowed.
On that face that was beautiful to the point of being eerie, his blood-red vertical pupils suddenly constricted.
Another... Lower Rank has died.
"Useless!"
"They are all a bunch of useless trash! The trash of trashes!"
His voice was not loud, but it made Nakime behind him tremble all over and bury her head low.
"Ha..."
Muzan chuckled lowly, his face full of bulging veins.
For hundreds of years, he had spent so much blood and created so many demons, but in the end, these so-called Twelve Kizuki, especially the Lower Ranks, were as fragile as paper, easily slaughtered by the Demon Slayer Corps.
Forget it, trash like the Lower Ranks.
It doesn't matter.
But... the Upper Ranks, the Upper Ranks have also begun to fall, defeated by those foolish, disgusting, fragile, insect-like Demon Slayer Corps members!
Fist Hashira!
Ryuji!
"Hoo..."
Muzan took a deep breath, suppressing the anger in his heart. The rage on his face quickly faded, turning back into a cold indifference.
Twang.
With the sound of a biwa string, one figure after another began to emerge within the distorted space.
"Ah, Lord Muzan, good evening. It seems your mood isn't very pleasant today?"
The first to appear was upper rank two, Doma.
He was still that frivolous self, waving his golden fans and greeting with a smile, as if he hadn't noticed the low pressure in the air that was enough to freeze the Soul.
Before his voice could fade, Doma's body suddenly exploded!
Only half a torso remained standing on the platform, but almost instantly, Doma's body grew back.
Doma knelt on the ground and said in a low voice: "My apologies, Lord Muzan..."
"There won't be a next time."
Muzan spoke slowly, his voice chillingly cold, as he allowed Doma's wounds to heal.
After disciplining the frivolous Doma, he turned those blood-red vertical pupils toward the silent Akaza nearby.
Suddenly, his anger flared up; it was this useless trash—if he had killed Ryuji last time.
There wouldn't be so much trouble!
Useless!
"Akaza, you have truly disappointed me."
Akaza's eyes narrowed, and then he quickly dropped to one knee, lowering his head: "My apologies, Lord Muzan!"
"What use is an apology! Akaza, tell me, can it make that guy die? Hmm?"
Akaza remained silent, just keeping his head down. Veins bulged on his forehead, his nails pierced his palms, and blood dripped out bit by bit.
He squeezed out a sentence through his teeth: "I am extremely sorry, Lord Muzan!"
Muzan looked away, watching the Upper Ranks gradually appear, his voice carrying a bone-chilling wind:
"It has been hundreds of years. What on earth have you all been doing? You haven't even been able to deal with a single Demon Slayer Corps!"
No one dared to respond to the enraged Muzan.
Just as the atmosphere was about to solidify, a steady voice sounded: "Lord Muzan, to summon us, something major must have happened, right?"
It was Upper Rank One, Kokushibo!
At this time, only he dared to speak.
He slowly opened his six eyes and spoke calmly: "Also, Gyokko has not arrived. According to the rules, he should be punished."
Muzan's expression softened slightly, and the violence in his eyes faded a bit.
He looked around at these Upper Ranks with their own agendas, his voice becoming calm again, yet carrying a hint of lingering coldness.
"Gyokko... can't come."
He said flatly: "My perception of him is gone."
As soon as these words were spoken, the entire Infinity Castle fell into a moment of dead silence.
To lose perception of an Upper Rank, there was only one possibility!
Slain by the Demon Slayer Corps!
"upper rank five, Gyokko Your Excellency... is dead?"
Daki let out a short cry of surprise, subconsciously clutching the sleeve of her brother Gyutaro beside her, her face full of disbelief.
"How... how terrifying! Master Gyokko actually...!"
Hantengu was even more terrified, trembling all over and shrinking into a ball, holding his head while tears and snot flowed together, muttering incessantly: "So scary, so scary."
Only Kokushibo remained expressionless, but his six eyes narrowed slightly at the same time, as if he were deep in thought.
"It was done by that swordsman named Ryuji."
Muzan added.
"Oh?"
Kokushibo's flat face finally showed an expression, a hint of interest appearing in his eyes:
"To be able to slay Gyokko... I would like to meet this swordsman personally."
He looked at Muzan and said in a deep voice: "Is it permitted?"
Muzan thought for a moment and nodded: "It is."
He trusted Kokushibo's strength.
However, Tsugikuni Yoriichi... that bastard knows about Tsugikuni Yoriichi.
The Blue Spider Lily.
As long as I have it, I can overcome the sun and become the ultimate lifeform!
By then, forget knowing about Tsugikuni Yoriichi; even if Tsugikuni Yoriichi were reborn, he wouldn't be afraid!
It would all just be a pile of rotten meat!
His desire for the Blue Spider Lily became stronger than ever at this moment.
Having received permission, Kokushibo bowed slightly, and his figure disappeared from the spot.
Muzan looked at the remaining Upper Ranks, glanced at Akaza, and snorted coldly.
With a flick of his finger, several tentacles pierced into the bodies of the remaining Upper Ranks, injecting a large amount of blood into Akaza, Doma, Hantengu, and Gyutaro respectively.
"This is a reward for you, and also a spur for your incompetence."
Next, he turned his gaze to Nakime, who had been playing the biwa in the corner.
"Nakime, from today on, you are the new upper rank five."
The tentacles injected blood into Nakime's body.
Nakime's body trembled slightly, and she knelt respectfully on the ground, allowing the blood to merge into her body.
After a moment of pain, Muzan lifted Nakime's hair and carved the character for "Five" onto her single eye.
After finishing this, Muzan's voice sounded again, but this time, it carried an indiscernible hint of... wariness.
"Next, your primary mission is to find the Spider Lily. I do not wish to lose any more Upper Ranks due to pointless conflicts."
Muzan suddenly remembered that nightmare-like sentence.
"What do you think... life is!"
Just the memory made cold sweat break out all over his body.
That man's shadow, after hundreds of years, still hung over his head like a sword.
Damn it!
He's been dead for hundreds of years, so why does he still haunt me!
He continued:
"You can create more useless demons to consume and divert the strength of the Demon Slayer Corps to buy time. Once we overcome the sun..."
Muzan didn't continue, only looking coldly at the many Upper Ranks kneeling before him.
"Please rest assured, Lord Muzan!"
Akaza knelt on one knee, making a solemn pledge, his voice hoarse and resolute: "I will definitely crush Ryuji's head with my own hands!"
"Hmph, as long as it doesn't affect the mission, whatever."
"Also, this is the second time. If you can't do it, kill yourself. Don't come to see me again, you trash!"
With that, his figure completely disappeared from the Infinity Castle, leaving Akaza kneeling with his head down.
"Oh my, Akaza Your Excellency, don't be too sad."
Doma approached with a grin. He thought his good friend must be very sad after being scolded and felt he should comfort him.
He was such a good person.
Thinking this, Doma reached out to pat Akaza's shoulder: "Don't take it to..."
Bang! Bang!
Responding to him were two merciless heavy punches from Akaza, who then walked out with a face full of anger without looking back.
"That's too much! How could that guy Akaza treat Lord Doma like that!"
Daki stamped her feet in anger.
Gyutaro held his two flying sickles and looked at Doma. With just one command, he would dare to cut a couple of holes in Akaza!
He would never let anyone who hurt Doma get away with it.
Lord Doma was the benefactor who saved them, brother and sister.
"It's alright, Ume."
Doma still smiled lightheartedly, cupping Daki's face and saying softly: "Don't be angry. You won't look good if you're angry."
Daki looked at Doma's gentle smile, her cheeks flushing slightly, and she nodded heavily.
Doma then went to Gyutaro's side and lightly patted his shoulder:
"We are good friends. This is just our way of communicating."
"Yes, Doma Your Excellency."
Gyutaro nodded and said.
On the other side, Hantengu was already so scared he couldn't even cry, trembling as he said: "Lord Akaza is so scary."
Then he disappeared.
Twang!
The Infinity Castle disappeared. Doma sat on a soft seat, his rainbow-colored eyes full of curiosity.
Ryuji?
What an interesting child!
Three days later.
Ryuji was helping the villagers of the small fishing village repair the fishing boats damaged by the heavy rain and the battle.
This was the guarantee of the fishermen's survival; they had to be repaired.
"Ryuji, orders from the Master!"
Little Red flapped its wings, descended from the sky, and landed on Ryuji's shoulder, gently rubbing against his face.
The jade necklace around its neck glowed with a warm light in the sun.
"He wants you to return to headquarters immediately and bring Tomioka Giyu back with you."
Ryuji was startled, the hammer in his hand nailing a boat nail stopped: "Bring Giyu back?"
He frowned.
What happened?
What did Tomioka Giyu do to make the Master want him brought back?
It shouldn't be. Sabito didn't die, so Giyu shouldn't have committed any offense... He greeted Mochizuki Inasaburo, who was still drying fishing nets, and hurried to Mount Sagiri.
Upon arriving at Mount Sagiri, he first went to check on Kocho Sisters who were training.
Good grief, in just a few days, the two of them had basically mastered all the Moves of Water Breathing.
Kocho Kanae had even begun to try creating her own Breathing Technique based on Water Breathing. Her elegant and nimble sword techniques already showed the prototype of the future Flower Breathing.
"What ridiculous talent... Damn, as expected of medical students!"
Truly ridiculous.
Sure enough, medical students are amazing; they learn everything so fast!
Ryuji clicked his tongue and found Urokodaki Sakonji to ask about Tomioka Giyu.
"Haha, did the Master ask you to take him back? That's good; that child is about to be promoted to a Hashira... That's wonderful."
Urokodaki Sakonji said with a smile.
"Huh?"
Seeing Ryuji's confused look, Urokodaki Sakonji explained.
Only then did Ryuji find out.
Tomioka Giyu had just solo-slain a Lower Rank demon in a mission a few days ago!
"So it's a promotion. Scared me for a second."
Ryuji breathed a sigh of relief, feeling moved in his heart. Is this the confident Tomioka Giyu?
His promotion is really fast. How long has it been since he became a Tsuchinoto Rank Swordsman?
And he can already slay a Lower Rank!
Not bad, not bad.
Soon, he saw the long-unseen Tomioka Giyu.
At this time, Tomioka Giyu still had very few expressions on his face, but it wasn't a lifeless indifference; rather, it was an inner calmness.
Most importantly, his eyes were full of confidence!
One could say compared to the original... well, can't say it's completely different; at least his way of speaking was still the kind that could annoy someone to death.
"Ryuji, long time no see. I no longer need to look up to you."
The corner of Ryuji's mouth twitched. Why did that sentence sound so wrong?
Sabito knocked Tomioka Giyu on the head from the side and explained with a smile: "Ryuji, don't listen to his nonsense. What he meant to say was, long time no see, I've finally caught up to your back through hard work."
Tomioka Giyu nodded. Yes, that's exactly what he thought:
"Actually, it didn't take very long."
Looking at Sabito who still wanted to translate, Ryuji raised a hand: "Forget it, let's go. The Master is still waiting for us."
Sabito said with a smile: "Alright, be careful on the road. In a while, Kocho Sisters will finish their training, and you'll see them at the next selection!"
Ryuji nodded and high-fived Sabito: "I'll leave it to you."
Leaving Mount Sagiri with Tomioka Giyu, they walked on the road back to headquarters.
On the way, there were a few blind little demons who wanted to ambush them.
Ryuji dealt with them all with one punch each.
"Do you need to rest, Giyu?"
Ryuji asked, looking at the somewhat tired Tomioka Giyu.
"It doesn't affect my movement, I can still keep going. Do you want to rest?"
Tomioka Giyu said calmly.
Ryuji opened his mouth. Sabito is really something, not having beaten Tomioka Giyu to death... "Never mind, there's a small town ahead, and it's getting dark..."
Before he could finish, Ryuji's eyes turned red; his Observation Haki sensed the presence of a demon!
"There's a demon! Keep up!"
Ryuji threw out a sentence and instantly disappeared from the spot.
Tomioka Giyu looked at Ryuji's disappearing back, his eyes narrowing. So strong!
I am still not enough!
Then he chased after him!
Ryuji relied on Observation Haki to lock on and quickly arrived at a small alley. A demon was drooling, lunging at a pink-haired little girl who had collapsed on the ground.
Ryuji flashed over and chopped the demon's neck with a hand-blade, snapping it.
He helped up the terrified girl, and when he looked closely, he couldn't help but be startled.
Cherry-blossom pink long hair, braided into several thick plaits, with grass-green tips.
Isn't this the future Love Hashira, Mitsuri Kanroji?
"Waaa... so scary..."
At this time, the little Love Hashira was not yet the cheerful and lively girl of the future; she was scared into tears and couldn't stop crying.
"Don't be afraid, it's okay now."
Ryuji was about to offer a few words of comfort when he heard a flurry of noisy footsteps.
"Young Miss!"
"Who are you! What did you do to our Young Miss!"
A group of burly men looking like servants rushed over. Seeing their Young Miss crying while a tall stranger stood beside her, they immediately became alert.
Ryuji was about to say something when he heard Tomioka Giyu's voice:
"You or me?"
His mouth twitched.
He could understand some of Tomioka Giyu's words by now; this sentence probably meant to ask, "Will you explain, or should I?"... But, in this scene, paired with that ambiguous phrase... doesn't that just confirm they are kidnappers?
Seeing them holding katanas and speaking such arrogant words with calm faces, the servants were certain!
These are two damn kidnappers trying to abduct their Young Miss!
"I'm warning you, if a single hair on the Young Miss is harmed, you'll both be beaten to death!"
"Let go of our Young Miss right now!"
Just as the misunderstanding was about to escalate, Mitsuri Kanroji, having come to her senses, quickly wiped her tears and said loudly: "No! This big brother saved me! He's the one who drove away the monster!"
Ryuji breathed a sigh of relief. Luckily, Mitsuri Kanroji was just scared and hadn't fainted.
Otherwise, it would have been very difficult to explain.
Hearing the explanation, the servants immediately apologized repeatedly.
To express their gratitude, the Kanroji family treated the two of them to a feast so lavish that Ryuji confirmed once again.
The Kanroji family is truly wealthy.
I envy that kid Iguro for landing a rich girl.
Before leaving, Ryuji left a message: "If you have trouble in the future, you can find me at the Demon Slayer Corps."
After this little interlude, the two finally returned to the Demon Slayer Corps headquarters.
Upon entering the courtyard, Ryuji noticed the atmosphere was somewhat unusual. Stone Hashira Himejima Gyomei and Sound Hashira Uzui Tengen were both there.
He even saw a familiar figure.
Long hair with mixed gold and red colors, like burning flames, eyes bright and full of infinite vitality.
Rengoku Kyojuro!
However, at this moment, he was only a Tsuchinoto Rank Swordsman, attending the meeting on behalf of his increasingly despondent father.
"Everyone is here."
Ubuyashiki Kagaya's gentle voice sounded. He looked at Tomioka Giyu with a gratified smile on his face.
"Then, the meeting begins now, regarding the appointment ceremony for the new Water Hashira, Tomioka Giyu..."
As he spoke, he glanced at Ryuji, his eyes full of gratification:
"And, the reward for the Fist Hashira, Ryuji, for defeating upper rank five."
Loving Book So Far Check Out Complete Book In Advanced At Pa Treon:
patreon.com/FictionsTL