Swish.
A sinuous arc of swordlight sliced through the air, like a plucked string, sending sprays of blood and severed heads flying in its wake.
Huff.
Exhaling a breath of turbid air, Haku landed steadily on the ground.
With a Nichirin Blade in hand, slaying demons was indeed much easier, but no matter how swiftly he killed, he couldn't keep up with the endless waves of demons surging from all directions.
"This…"
Haku scanned his surroundings, his expression darkening.
He had known something major had gone wrong in Kyoto, but he never imagined it would be like this. The sheer number of demons pouring in suggested that the entire city's population might have been turned.
Yet, transforming into a demon came at a cost. He couldn't fathom how these citizens had been converted.
"Damn it… Damn it!" Inosuke roared, swinging his Nichirin Blades, hacking at demons while bellowing wildly.
The other Demon Slayer swordsmen fought individually, barely holding a crumbling line.
Even these elite members of the Corps, facing such an overwhelming number of demons, were like paper boats in a tidal wave, on the verge of capsizing.
After all, slaying ten demons was already a mark of an exceptional Demon Slayer, and seventy or eighty was the standard for a Hashira.
But the demons before them numbered not just thousands—likely tens of thousands.
"Ah!"
"Don't eat me!"
"I don't want to die!"
Each scream, each wail, marked the gruesome death of a Demon Slayer.
In the flickering firelight, the Corps' formation was compressed smaller and smaller, like a flame on the verge of being snuffed out in the darkness.
"Everyone, follow me!" Seeing the worsening situation, Nezuko shouted, fully unleashing her Breathing Style. "Sun Breathing, Fifth Form: Fire Chariot!"
Swish.
In an instant, she charged forward like a blaze, crashing through the demon horde and speeding toward the path they'd come from.
With Nezuko leading the way, the surviving Demon Slayers followed, carving a bloody path through the demons.
Bringing up the rear, Haku glanced at the city's depths, sighing softly.
In such a situation, he could no longer continue the investigation. After a moment's hesitation, he guarded the rear while following the others.
The Demon Slayers fought as they retreated, with members falling to the demons, their bodies devoured in the blink of an eye.
Haku was inwardly shocked. "No wonder none of the swordsmen sent here returned—this place is a demon's den!"
After relentless fighting, even Nezuko, with her Mark awakened, was growing exhausted.
The other swordsmen were gasping for breath, their stamina and willpower nearing their limits, and they were still miles from escaping the city.
Zenitsu's face was bitter. "Are we going to die here?"
Genya snapped, "Can you stop saying stupid things?"
"Huff… huff…" Kanao, panting heavily, said, "Haku, Nezuko, you two are the only ones with a chance to escape. Don't worry about us—just go!"
The remaining Demon Slayers looked at Haku and Nezuko, nodding in agreement.
Haku and Nezuko were undeniably the strongest among them. Without the burden of the others, they had a shot at escaping.
Nezuko shook her head, about to speak, when Haku cut her off. "No time for talk. Follow me!"
Under the stunned gazes of the group, Haku planted his Nichirin Blade in the ground and formed hand seals. "Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!"
Whoosh.
A massive wave of water surged forth, crashing into the encroaching demons, scattering them in disarray.
Haku formed another set of seals. "Ice Release: Crystal Ice Technique!"
A chilling aura spread, freezing the surging water into a glistening glacier across the street.
"Go!" Haku flashed onto the ice, speeding toward the city's edge.
The dumbfounded Demon Slayers snapped back to reality, hurrying to follow.
"What kind of Breathing Style is this?"
"Can Water Breathing do that?"
"I've never heard of this before!"
The swordsmen raced across the glacier, the demons blocking their retreat frozen beneath their feet. Though demons from behind climbed onto the ice in pursuit, the deadly trap had been broken. Amid their surprise, they whispered among themselves.
Haku ignored their murmurs, mentally planning how to report this mission to Shinji.
On a distant mountain, Shinji gazed at the darkness-shrouded Kyoto, his brows furrowed.
He had observed Haku's Demon Slayer squad's ordeal from afar, so he already knew the general situation in the city without needing Haku's report.
"How could this happen…" His mind was filled with questions.
Only the mysterious figure, the Demon King, could turn an entire city into a demon's lair.
But from the demons' loss of control to a city becoming a demonic stronghold, Shinji wasn't sure if the mysterious figure had gone mad, becoming a monster and causing this chaos, or if it was all a deliberate act to oppose him.
Seeing Haku safely retreat from the city, Shinji sighed. "It seems pinpointing and quietly capturing the mysterious figure is no longer possible."
He had been gathering intelligence to locate the mysterious figure discreetly, avoiding drawing the Hegemon's attention, as the Demon Slayer world was already targeted and its barrier breached.
But the mysterious figure's actions had derailed his plans.
Now, he faced a choice: retreat to the shinobi world or use decisive force to drag the mysterious figure out of this demonic lair.
The Demon Slayer world had already contaminated the shinobi world significantly. If he retreated now, he feared the Demon Slayer world might collide with the shinobi world before the Hegemon consumed it, leading to mutual annihilation. Or worse, their proximity might draw the Hegemon's gaze to the shinobi world.
As the Lampbearer protecting the shinobi world, Shinji had no choice.
...
Shinobi World, Ninja Academy.
In the classroom, Iruka was lecturing on the basics of genjutsu, along with tips for identifying and countering it.
Yawn.
Bored, Sasuke stifled a yawn.
Suddenly, he perked up, tilting his ear as if listening to something. A slight smirk curved his lips, as if he'd heard something intriguing.
At the same time, Shion, Yakumo, Kimimaro, and Neji in the classroom also froze, their expressions varying.