After defeating the monstrous spider demon, Ishida took a brief breather as the demon's body dissolved into ashes.
"The work is far from over..." Ishida reminded himself, remaining calm as always.
Then, he turned toward the boar-masked guy standing behind him—the one who had been fighting the demon before Ishida arrived.
"He seems to be doing alright... bleeding a bit. He's a tough one, it seems," Ishida thought to himself as he took a few steps toward the masked guy.
"You alright?" he asked, but it seemed the guy was in a completely different world altogether—he didn't respond to the question.
"OY! WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?!
Don't go actin' like you saved me!! I was JUST about to rip that blood demon apart!! Now ya pissed me off! We're fightin' RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW!! I'LL SHOW YOU WHO'S THE STRONGEST!!!"
The boar-masked guy shouted at the top of his lungs, bluntly challenging Ishida to a fight—even after witnessing how quickly and effortlessly Ishida had taken down the demon he himself was struggling against and nearly got killed by.
"You seem to be in good health... I have no time for something as pointless as fighting you."
Ishida turned around, sheathing his blade as he activated his sensing ability, trying to pick up the presence of other demons in the forest.
'It seems I'm not the only Hashira deployed... So the level of danger and potential loss is greater than I expected,' he thought to himself.
Ishida began walking away from the scene, but the boar-masked guy had a very different idea. Once again, he screamed from behind, loud as ever:
"OY! YOU THINK YOU'RE HOT STUFF JUST 'CAUSE YOU SWUNG YOUR SWORD ONCE?! YOU STOLE MY PREY!! I WAS GONNA RIP THAT DEMON TO SHREDS!! AND NOW YOU'RE JUST WALKIN' OFF LIKE YOU'RE SOME BIG SHOT?! TAKE OFF THAT SMUG FACE AND FIGHT ME!! I WON'T LET YOU RUN, YOU HEAR ME?!"
But Ishida didn't even glance back. Even after all that yelling, he simply picked up his pace—and in the same blistering speed with which he had arrived, he disappeared just as swiftly.
The boar-masked guy stood frozen, wide-eyed, stunned by Ishida's sheer speed.
---
After picking up his speed, Ishida ventured deeper into the forest. He had already sensed the presence of another Hashira nearby and knew they would be able to handle the situation at their location, along with the enemy they were facing. So instead of crossing paths with them, Ishida decided to target the demon farthest from that Hashira's position.
His sensing ability picked up a few more demons still lurking in the forest.
As Ishida raced toward the next demon's location, he realized—based on his sensing—there weren't just one, but two demons at the same spot. The discovery reminded him of a mission he'd completed before becoming a Hashira, deep within another forest… with Kazuki and—
'Karin... I wonder if our paths will cross again in the future or not...'
Ishida thought, leaping over a thick branch that snapped and crashed to the forest floor below.
'Not that I necessarily want it to happen... but just thinking...' he murmured to himself, never slowing down, continuing his rapid approach toward the demon's location.
It was taking longer than expected—mostly because the demon was positioned almost at the center of the forest.
---
In the heart of the forest…
The boy in the bloodstained green and black checkered haori dragged himself forward, every movement labored, every breath a struggle. His hands shook violently, leaving crimson smears in the dirt as he crawled across the forest floor. His back was torn, slashed open by something unseen, and his legs refused to respond.
Just ahead of him, lying motionless on the ground, was a small girl in a torn pink kimono. Her bamboo muzzle remained intact, though her limbs were bloodied and scraped, her face pale. Despite the eerie demonic presence that clung to her, there was a sense of innocence… a fragile humanity, flickering in the way her fingers still curled toward the boy, even in unconsciousness.
The boy's eyes locked on her.
He reached out, inch by inch, dragging his battered body through pain and blood.
Just beyond them stood the enemy.
A young-looking demon, barefoot, unnaturally pale, with white hair that shimmered faintly under the moonlight. His red eyes were glassy and cold, his expression devoid of empathy. His face bore no anger, only a chilling stillness—as though all emotion had long been carved out and replaced with hollow superiority.
He stood still, arms at his sides, but the red threads floating around his fingers told the real story. They shimmered like spider silk soaked in blood, stretching out behind him in fine, deadly lines. Some were already planted into the ground like traps waiting to snap.
The boy crawled forward still, sobbing, inching closer to the girl—his broken blade still planted behind him in the dirt where it had fallen from his hand. His fingers clawed at the soil.
"Almost there... just a little more..."
The demon tilted his head slightly.
"I gave you a chance," he whispered. "You insulted our bond… now you'll both be cut to pieces."
He flicked his hand.
CRACK!
The threads whipped forward at terrifying speed, slicing through the air toward the crawling boy.
SLASH!
One of them struck — a sharp burn opened across the boy's shoulder as blood sprayed out, and he cried out in agony, body twisting to shield the unconscious girl.
The threads spun again, rising—ready to lash forward and finish them both.
---
Ishida, after running for some time, finally reached the place his senses had locked onto.
"Just a few steps more and—"
He stopped.
The scene in front of him unfolded in a flash.
Three figures.
One boy—badly wounded—crawling on the ground.
One girl—unconscious—lying just ahead.
And one demon—white hair, red eyes, standing still like a puppet master.
Ishida narrowed his eyes.
"Three entities... two demons… one human."
His sensing was spot-on. But what caught his attention next—were the threads.
Thin red threads, sharp like blades, hanging just above the crawling boy, ready to tear him apart.
Ishida didn't think twice.
His right hand moved instantly to his sheathed blade—
Shing!
In one swift move, he drew it—and his feet shifted forward, like a blur.
One breath. One form.
"Fifth Form: Moon Spirit Calamitous Eddy."
A sudden rush of spinning slashes burst out around him—his blade moved in wide, wild arcs, fast and fluid, like a whirlpool of moonlight.
SWOOSH! SWOOSH! SWOOSH!
In the blink of an eye, the air filled with flashing crescent waves. They spun and danced like a storm, cutting everything they touched.
The red threads?
Gone.
Shredded. Vaporized into the wind before they could drop.
The demon's eyes twitched.
He hadn't even seen Ishida coming.
And yet… his threads were already gone.
The boy on the ground blinked in confusion. One moment, he was about to die. The next? Nothing. Just calm. Just silence.
Ishida stood now between him and the demon.
Blade in hand.
Not even out of breath.
He turned his head just slightly to look at the boy, and the demon girl just few steps away from the boy, then without a word he looked back at the demon in front of him.
[Lower Moon Demon : Rui]
[Level : 29]
"You people are like endless stream of lowlife getting in my way..." The Demon , Rui, spoke with a irritated voice towards Ishida, "Blood Demon Art, Cutting Web Mandala," The Demon announced it's next move.
Rui's voice echoed coldly across the forest clearing.
"Blood Demon Art… Cutting Web Mandala."
From his outstretched fingers, a dense web of crimson threads exploded outward in every direction—thicker, sharper, deadlier than before. The forest shimmered red with death.
But Ishida's eyes didn't waver.
His grip tightened.
His feet shifted.
His blade whispered out from its arc—
"First Form: Moonlight Crescent Draw."
In that moment, he became wind.
A blur. A flicker of motion faster than thought.
A single horizontal slash, elegant and impossibly fast—carving a perfect arc of silvery moonlight.
SHRRRAAAK!
The threads screamed as they were instantly severed, shredded mid-air before they could touch flesh or bark.
Rui blinked.
He didn't even see the movement. But his threads were gone. Again.
His mouth barely opened— "Wh—"
But that was all.
Because Ishida was already there.
Blade now crackling with residual momentum, he stepped in—face calm, eyes sharp.
"You talk too much."
With the same First Form, used not as a draw this time, but as a direct slash—
SHING!
A blinding silver arc sliced through the air—through bone, through skin, through the space between fear and realization.
Rui's neck split open in a single perfect line.
His eyes widened in pure disbelief.
Then—silence.
His head dropped cleanly from his shoulders, rolling once on the forest floor.
His body, still standing for a moment, slowly crumbled into ash.
'1 Gone ... 1 Left...' Ishida said to himself, turning around towards the other demon, putting his focus now on the demon lying in the ground.