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Nezuko stared wide-eyed, her beautiful gaze filled with curiosity as she took in everything happening around her.
She even wondered if this might be some kind of Blood Demon Art.
Seeing her expression, Alex felt his heart melt on the spot.
Such an adorable little girl. He absolutely had to take her back to Orario.
The rotting flesh and writhing tentacles inside the train car couldn't attack ordinary passengers, so they quickly shifted targets, lunging toward Alex and Nezuko instead.
Alex casually put another barrier around himself and Nezuko.
"Watching the rotting flesh and tentacles panic as they failed to break through the barrier felt incredibly satisfying."
They were scrambling around like an anxious monkey jumping up and down. It was honestly a joy to watch.
Over on Tanjiro's side, he quickly found Enmu and the two launched into a fierce battle.
The Infinite Train began to tremble violently from their clash, swaying unsteadily along the tracks.
At the same time, the Flame Hashira had broken free from the dream and awakened.
He stood up, walking through the train car littered with decaying flesh as he spoke."Hmm. I only took a short nap, and things ended up like this. I never imagined it. Never imagined it at all. As a Hashira, I've really failed. If there were a hole here, I'd want to crawl into it."
His tone was calm, but the guilt and self-blame in his voice were unmistakable.
In the next instant, he drew his Nichirin blade. Flames ignited along the steel.
His body turned into a streak of fire as he dashed through several cars in a flash, incinerating all the rotting flesh and tentacles in his path.
It was then that the Flame Hashira noticed Alex and Kanae Kocho.
He nodded to them before continuing his cleanup.
Kanae joined in as well, and with two Hashira working together, the remaining flesh and tentacles were cleared out in no time.
After that, the two of them reached the connection between the train cars and the engine and severed it with a single strike.
With that, Enmu lost control over the cars.
The train cars slowly came to a stop on the tracks, while the engine continued racing ahead.
At the front of the engine, Tanjiro and the others were still locked in battle with Enmu.
Rengoku Kyojuro was about to rush in to help, but Alex stopped him.
"You can try trusting them," Alex said. "They're the future of the Demon Slayer Corps. This is a path they have to walk if they want to grow stronger."
After hearing that, Rengoku nodded and sheathed his blade.
And so, Alex, Kanae Kocho, and Rengoku Kyojuro, three Hashira of the Demon Slayer Corps, stood there watching as the three youngsters struggled desperately against one of the Lower Moons.
What followed was largely the same as in the original story.
Enmu could hypnotize people, but only through direct eye contact.
Inosuke wore his boar mask, so Enmu had no idea where he was even looking.
Zenitsu was already asleep, so the hypnosis didn't work on him at all.
Tanjiro was easily hypnotized, but the kid had guts and was ruthless toward himself. Every time he fell under, he killed himself to break free.
With the three of them working together, they finally managed to behead Enmu.
As for the freight train conductor Enmu had been controlling, he tried to sneak-attack Tanjiro, only to be casually knocked unconscious by Alex and the others who were watching nearby.
Thus, the first demon of the Infinite Train arc was dealt with.
Next came the second.
Because Enmu had fused with the train, his death caused the engine to start shaking violently.
Alex and the others jumped off immediately. The engine exploded moments later.
Clearly, Enmu had tried to take them down with him in his final moments.
Unfortunately for him, it was all in vain.
After landing, everyone except Alex broke into smiles.
They all thought the mission had ended perfectly.
Noticing that Alex wasn't smiling, Kanae Kocho couldn't help asking, "What's wrong?"
Alex was just about to answer when a deafening boom echoed from the distance.
A figure descended from the sky and landed in a half-crouch.
An overwhelming aura of power.
Dense, suffocating demonic energy.
Rengoku and Kanae instantly went on guard, their eyes locked onto the newcomer.
As the smoke cleared, the figure's appearance came into view.
Short peach-pink hair. Golden eyes. Deathly pale skin covered in countless deep blue tattoos symbolizing sinners.
He wore a purple-red short jacket, with prayer beads hanging around his ankles.
The moment they saw the mark of Upper Rank Three in his eyes, Rengoku and Kanae tensed completely.
Their hands clenched around their Nichirin swords, ready to draw at any moment.
As for Tanjiro, Inosuke, and Zenitsu, the sheer pressure from the demon's presence had crushed them so thoroughly that they couldn't move.
Even Nezuko, a demon herself, bared her fangs slightly, her eyes filled with wariness.
"Upper Rank Three… so this is my great achievement for leveling up," Kanae said with a bitter smile.
She knew Alex had brought her on this mission so she could obtain that achievement.
But she never imagined the opponent would be Upper Rank Three.
In an instant, memories surfaced of how she had once died at the hands of Upper Rank Two.
That overwhelming, crushing strength. Completely hopeless.
Upper Rank Three shouldn't be much weaker than Upper Rank Two.
Could she really win?
Alex seemed to sense her tension and spoke calmly."Don't worry. Put everything you've learned this past month together. He's not your opponent."
"…Mm." Kanae nodded, her eyes sharpening with resolve.
At this moment, aside from Alex, almost no one was truly calm.
Zenitsu had just woken up, but the moment his cowardly personality saw Upper Rank Three, he fainted again on the spot.
"Why is Upper Rank Three here?" Tanjiro struggled desperately to move his body, but it refused to respond.
Meanwhile, Akaza, Upper Rank Three, scanned everyone present before finally fixing his gaze on Tanjiro.
Without a single word, his body shot forward like a cannonball, and he threw a punch straight at Tanjiro.
It was so fast it vanished from sight.
Rengoku and Kanae could see it, but just as they were about to move, Alex, standing beside Tanjiro, spun around and lashed out with a whip-like kick, sending Akaza flying back.
The sudden turn of events shocked everyone, including Akaza himself.
Tanjiro's eyes went wide in disbelief.
This new Hashira was this strong?
Just from that one strike alone, his strength already surpassed the Flame Hashira's.
"So strong. He's even stronger than the Flame Hashira!" Inosuke exclaimed.
Alex calmly withdrew his leg and said to Tanjiro and the others, "You three, fall back. This fight isn't something you can take part in yet."
The words stung, but they were the truth.
Tanjiro and Inosuke felt their desire to grow stronger flare even more intensely.
Because Alex's kick had shattered Akaza's oppressive aura, Tanjiro and Inosuke could finally move again.
They dragged the unconscious Zenitsu along with Nezuko and retreated far away.
Akaza stood up from the ground, excitement flashing in his eyes.
That was the thrill one felt upon encountering a true strong opponent.
"A human strong enough to reach the supreme realm. Interesting. This is truly interesting!" Akaza laughed loudly.
After a moment, his tone shifted."My name is Akaza. May I ask yours?"
"Alex," Alex replied casually.
"Alex… a name like that. So you're from the continent across the sea," Akaza nodded, then extended an invitation. "Then, Alex, would you like to become a demon?"
Alex smiled and shook his head, not interested in wasting words.
He turned to Rengoku and Kanae."I'll leave it to you."
With that, he stepped aside to watch, showing no intention of joining the fight.
This infuriated Akaza.
"If you're looking for death, I'll grant it!" he snarled.
In his eyes, even if Alex's technique surpassed his own, he was still a demon with an immortal body. He could simply outlast him.
But just as he moved again, Rengoku and Kanae drew their blades and blocked his path.
The battle erupted.
Akaza was powerful, but facing two Hashira at once pushed him hard.
Especially Kanae.
Her Breath Style combined with divine blessings and the Fighting Aura Sword God system.
Three different cultivation systems from three different worlds, perfectly reinforcing one another.
Her strength shot far beyond that of a normal Hashira, approaching the level of Yoriichi Tsugikuni himself.
And who was Yoriichi?
A man who once beat Kibutsuji Muzan into the ground.
Against someone like that, what chance did Akaza have?
Under Kanae's relentless assault, wounds continuously appeared across Akaza's body.
They healed quickly, but the damage still enraged him.
With Rengoku assisting as well, Akaza was completely suppressed.
Under immense pressure, Akaza broke through into the supreme realm, just like in the original story.
Even so, he was still no match for Kanae and Rengoku.
After a prolonged battle, Kanae severed Akaza's head and limbs.
Even then, Akaza did not die.
That was the terror of Upper Rank Three.
But soon enough, the morning sun rose.
Bathed in sunlight, Akaza finally turned to ash and vanished completely.
"..."
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