Chapter 134: Sound Hashira: Ren Is the Hope of the Demon Slayer Corps!
Gyutaro said furiously, "You bastard! You're really persistent!"
From the moment he had fallen from the rooftop, Gyutaro had wanted nothing more than to kill this man outright.
But he had overestimated his own strength and underestimated the Sound Hashira's.
Ten minutes had passed, yet he still hadn't been able to do anything to Uzui Tengen.
However, he had already poisoned his opponent.
As long as Gyutaro dragged the battle out for another ten minutes, victory would be his!
But...
His sister was still waiting for him to save her!
He had no idea what was happening over there, but Gyutaro had a strong feeling that it wasn't anything good.
"Sound Breathing, Fifth Form—String Performance!"
Taking advantage of a momentary lapse in Gyutaro's attention, the flamboyant Uzui Tengen launched another attack!
He charged forward, rapidly spinning his dual blades as he attacked. Every rotation was accompanied by a dazzling explosion.
At this moment, Uzui Tengen's fighting spirit surged.
It seemed he had encountered such a powerful opponent for the first time, so he was taking the battle more seriously than ever.
"Damn Demon Slayer Corps! Are you that eager to reincarnate?!"
Gyutaro could no longer hold himself back.
Even if he was beheaded, his sister wouldn't die.
He had to eliminate the Hashira standing before him!
With that thought, Gyutaro immediately went all out.
The two clashed fiercely.
And to Uzui Tengen's surprise, he actually found himself at a slight disadvantage.
Driven by hatred, Gyutaro fought like a god of war, forcing Uzui Tengen backward step by step.
But Uzui Tengen was a veteran who had survived countless battles.
Whenever he couldn't properly defend against Gyutaro's sickle attacks, he would set off his "firecrackers" to relieve the pressure.
As a result, the two engaged in an intense exchange of blows.
After dozens of exchanges—
Uzui Tengen was secretly astonished.
Did I really choose the strongest one?
Ever since becoming a Hashira, he had never encountered an opponent this powerful.
Is this the strength of an Upper Rank demon?
The man had actually managed to force him backward!
With that thought, Uzui Tengen suddenly burst into laughter.
"As expected of you! Your strength really is incredible! Looks like the opponent I, Uzui Tengen, chose really is this powerful!"
"Flamboyant?"
Gyutaro sneered.
Then he carefully examined Uzui Tengen's appearance.
Tall.
Handsome.
Dressed impeccably.
He was practically the definition of a handsome man!
Seeing this only made Gyutaro angrier.
A flying blood sickle struck Uzui Tengen directly, sending him flying!
Gyutaro said impatiently, "Ah, so you're pretty handsome! A guy as handsome as you must have plenty of women chasing after you, right? How interesting!"
"Oh? Are you jealous?"
Uzui Tengen wasn't angry.
Instead, he looked at Gyutaro and began taunting him.
"Looking at that ugly face of yours, I doubt you've ever had a girl chase after you, have you?"
Uzui Tengen continued, "After all, I have three wives, so I can't really understand your feelings."
"Eh? Three wives?!"
The two immediately launched into a lengthy argument over the subject of polygamy.
In the end, Gyutaro wore an expression of disgust.
"Tch. You're annoying!"
He's handsome, has three wives, and keeps bragging about it.
"You're different from them."
"You're different from all the Hashira I've killed before. You were born different, weren't you?"
Jealousy gradually filled Gyutaro's voice, which began to grow hoarse.
"You really are a genius. I'm so jealous of you!"
"I wish you would die soon!"
To his surprise, Uzui Tengen merely shook his head with a smile when he heard this.
"Talent? Heh!"
"Do you really think I'm talented?"
For some reason, Uzui Tengen suddenly asked, "If even you think I'm exceptionally talented, then your life must have been incredibly fortunate."
Gyutaro looked puzzled.
"What do you mean?"
Uzui Tengen continued, "Looks like you've lived for several hundred years, yet you've remained trapped in this place the entire time. No wonder you lack experience."
"Oh? You know quite a lot."
Unexpectedly, Uzui Tengen's tone suddenly became extremely confident.
"I know a lot!"
"You might not know this, but this country is vast, and there are distinctive individuals everywhere. Some people are simply impossible to understand."
Uzui Tengen looked at Gyutaro with pity in his eyes.
Although his opponent was an Upper Rank demon who had lived for several hundred years, his knowledge was still inferior to that of humanity.
Uzui Tengen said coldly, "You still don't know, do you? There are people in the Demon Slayer Corps who are simply unfathomable."
"Some people went from picking up a sword for the first time to becoming a Hashira in only two months."
"And there are others who, after only half a month of swordsmanship, directly surpassed veteran Hashira and became the new hope of the Demon Slayer Corps!"
"Heh. Talent."
Uzui Tengen's words seemed to be directed at Gyutaro, yet they were also directed at himself.
"I'm exceptionally talented? Don't make me laugh!"
"Do you know how many people have died needlessly before my eyes?"
"Do you know how much effort the Demon Slayer Corps has put in while you've been slaughtering human beings?!"
Anger filled the Sound Hashira's voice.
As he looked at Gyutaro before him, it was as though he saw his own miserable past.
At this moment, his hatred reached its peak!
That's right.
He could never be as perfect as Kyojuro Rengoku.
Nor could he possess the extraordinary talent of the Stone Hashira or the Mist Hashira.
He was merely an ordinary man with a flamboyant personality.
Uzui Tengen had never considered himself talented.
And he had never acknowledged himself as such.
Because everything the Demon Slayer Corps had accomplished from the very beginning until now could not simply be summed up by one word:
Talent.
If his current strength could only be described as talent...
Then what about all the comrades who had died before him?
What about those who had sacrificed themselves to protect him when he was at his weakest?
Did they have no talent?!
This strength had been bought with the blood and lives of countless comrades who shared the same conviction!
The difference between humans and demons was not simply talent.
It involved physical constitution, recovery, experience, and countless other factors!
But Uzui Tengen had never given up.
Because he still believed that humanity could win!
Not for any other reason—
But because of Ren!
Uzui Tengen silently glanced toward the direction where Ren was fighting.
The night there was deep and dark.
Yet within that darkness shone the brightest light of the Demon Slayer Corps.
That light had once been hope!
Ever since his first encounter with Ren, Uzui Tengen had seemed to glimpse that hope.
Ren possessed a calm aura.
And that mysterious mark.
Ren's growth had dealt an enormous shock to Uzui Tengen at the time!
Later, all the Hashira witnessed Ren's growth as well.
And he had never disappointed Uzui Tengen's expectations.
His opponent had become the new Dragon Hashira in only half a month.
The speed of his progress was frightening.
He was a doctor.
He was also a member of the Demon Slayer Corps.
Ren had accomplished one astonishing feat after another.
It was difficult to imagine how a single person could accomplish so many things!
All of this allowed Uzui Tengen to witness Ren's astonishing talent for learning.