Rengoku watched Tanjiro charge recklessly toward Akaza once again, his expression tightening slightly.
[Kamado boy's Blood Demon Art seems capable of causing Akaza quite a bit of trouble. Unfortunately, he doesn't seem able to hear my voice right now…]
[Umu. In that case, I'll coordinate with him.]
He exhaled the stale air from his lungs and fixed his gaze on the spot where Tanjiro and Akaza were fighting.
Rengoku opened his hand slightly before gripping his blade again. After repeating the motion a few times, he also rushed forward.
The orange-red flames along his blade intertwined with the twin crimson flames surrounding Tanjiro.
The two blades blazed together—one in front, one behind—as they struck toward Akaza in perfect coordination.
Tanjiro's Blood Demon Art did restrain Akaza somewhat, making it difficult for him to move freely.
However, the true threat still came from Rengoku's sword.
The danger carried by a sword technique polished through many years of training was not something Tanjiro's instinct-driven attacks could match.
Akaza clenched his fist and swung downward with tremendous force.
The ground beneath their clash shattered instantly, shards of stone blasting outward toward the three of them.
The purpose of the attack was merely to force Rengoku onto the defensive.
But what Akaza had not expected was that Tanjiro—now fighting entirely on instinct—would abandon his own attack and instead intercept most of the incoming fragments for Rengoku.
The remaining shards only managed to add a few faint scratches to Rengoku's clothing.
[He's still protecting humans? What exactly is this kid…?]
Akaza lost focus for a brief instant.
That moment of distraction gave Rengoku another opportunity.
His blade slipped past Tanjiro with precise control and thrust straight toward the back of Akaza's neck.
But Akaza had practiced martial arts for many years.
Because of certain experiences, his study of swordsmanship was no less extensive than his mastery of fist techniques.
He planted his hands against the ground and twisted his body.
His right leg snapped upward with full force, knocking Rengoku's blade aside before hooking around Tanjiro's neck and slamming him downward.
A sharp crack sounded.
Tanjiro's voice cut off abruptly.
Rengoku immediately brought his blade down in a follow-up strike.
Akaza responded by tightening his core and lifting his upper body, meeting the attack with both palms.
At the same time, one leg pressed heavily against Tanjiro's neck while the other knee drove into Tanjiro's back, pinning him firmly to the ground.
But Tanjiro was no longer human.
A restraint that would immobilize a human barely hindered him.
Crimson flames suddenly surged from his body, engulfing both Akaza and Rengoku.
Strangely, the two reacted very differently within the flames.
Akaza immediately knocked Rengoku's descending blade aside and withdrew from the fire.
Meanwhile, Rengoku—though he could feel the heat—noticed that the flames ultimately avoided touching him.
[The flames avoided me… Does Kamado boy still retain some subconscious awareness?]
[What a resilient will. Truly worthy of being Yoriichi's disciple.]
Rengoku lowered his gaze slightly and looked at Tanjiro, who was unsteadily climbing back to his feet.
[His neck has already recovered? What terrifying regenerative ability. In terms of regeneration alone, he's not much weaker than the demon called Akaza.]
[But he doesn't seem to have much rationality left.]
[Is this the necessary price for gaining such power?]
[I need to end this battle quickly and return Kamado boy to normal.]
[And behind me are children and civilians.]
[I have a reason I absolutely cannot lose.]
Not far away, Akaza looked down at the extensive burns covering his body.
Then he raised his head and looked at Tanjiro and Rengoku charging toward him again.
The smile on his face slowly twisted into something mad.
As his injuries rapidly regenerated, his voice rose with excitement.
"Excellent! Excellent!"
"I haven't felt this excited in a long time!"
"Come on!"
"Both of you attack together!"
"Let me enjoy this even more!"
...
The four people rescuing civilians near the overturned train had naturally noticed that the battle had grown even more intense.
Inosuke stopped dragging a passenger and looked toward the battlefield.
"What the hell is that? That's amazing! I wanna go too!"
"Are you stupid?!"
Zenitsu had just climbed out of a carriage with an unconscious old man on his back. Hearing that, he immediately shot Inosuke an angry glare.
"How could we possibly help in a fight like that?! We can't even see what's happening!"
"Decided! I'm going!"
Inosuke dropped the person he had been dragging and drew his twin blades.
"How could a battle this exciting happen without the King of the Mountains?!"
"So Inosuke is giving up, then?" Takeo cut open part of the carriage and bent the jagged metal inward with force. "Then I'll take the victory this time."
"Huh?! What did you say?! There's no way I'd give up! Takitake, you bastard!"
"Well, earlier you said we'd compete to see who could rescue more people, didn't you?" Takeo said calmly. "The number of people you've pulled out should be less than mine, right?"
He looked at Inosuke, completely ignoring the fact that his name had been said incorrectly.
"But I understand. After just finishing a battle, rescuing people nonstop is pretty boring. I also want to go help over there."
"But responsibility comes first."
"So Zenitsu and I will handle things here. You can go ahead if you want, Inosuke."
"We'll finish quickly anyway, so resting a little earlier won't be a problem for you."
"But the victory will belong to me."
"Huh?!"
Inosuke exploded instantly.
"You bastard, are you provoking me?!"
"Just wait!"
"Thirty people, fifty people—I'll save them all!"
"The victory will definitely belong to me!"
Watching Inosuke storm angrily into the passage Takeo had just cut open, Zenitsu stared at Takeo in disbelief.
"…You're actually that ruthless?"
"Huh? Ruthless? What are you talking about?" Takeo looked confused. "I'm serious. I also want to help over there."
"But this is what my brother and Mr. Rengoku asked us to do. I can't let them down."
"And besides, Inosuke and I really are having a competition."
"He's the one who suggested it."
"If you start something, you should see it through to the end."
[It's exactly because you mean every word that you're terrifying.]
Zenitsu silently carried the injured man toward the evacuation area.
[Is Nezuko the only angel in this entire family?]
"Nezuko, this person also needs bandaging. Can I leave him here?"
"Yes, that's fine."
Nezuko was still tending to the wounded.
"I'll come over after I finish bandaging this person. Thank you for your hard work."
Zenitsu gently laid the injured man down and looked at Nezuko.
Thanks to her calming the people who had awakened from the illusionary dreams, no panic had broken out.
If panic started now, their situation would only grow worse.
But remembering the sounds coming from the battlefield, Zenitsu opened his mouth several times—yet no words came out.
What could he even say?
Tell her that no matter how hard they tried to rescue people, the situation might not improve?
Tell her that the demon who appeared was so powerful that even the Flame Hashira and Tanjiro fighting together could not gain the upper hand?
Or tell her that the sound of Tanjiro's voice from the battlefield had grown so chaotic that he might lose control and eventually become their enemy?
"Everything will be okay."
"Huh?"
Nezuko hadn't heard clearly and looked up at Zenitsu.
"What did you say?"
"Nothing," Zenitsu replied quietly. "I was just saying that I'll definitely protect you, Nezuko. No matter what happens."
The words were the same as always.
But the seriousness in Zenitsu's expression left Nezuko momentarily unsure how to respond.
In the end, she simply smiled reassuringly.
"It'll be alright."
"The Kasugai Crow will definitely bring good news."
"Until then, let's all do our best."
"After all…" she said gently, "…we all have reasons we cannot afford to lose."