Gyutaro could accept that a Hashira could fight him evenly, but he couldn't accept a human blocking his Blood Demon Art barehanded and being unharmed.
He saw all the recent fighting. The demon with ranged attacks had hit the black-clad man but hadn't broken his skin.
If the opponent were a demon, Gyutaro could understand—powerful demons had tough skin, able to shatter Nichirin swords. But his senses told him the man wasn't a demon.
But he could be sure the man wasn't human!
Humans were weak—there's no way they could block Blood Demon Art or shatter iron swords. This being was no human!
"How rude."
Gusion's expression darkened. "I am Gusion, a newly joined member of the Demon Slayer Corps, certified by the Corps as a pure-blooded human."
As he spoke, thundering light wrapped around him, and with Shunpo he flashed forward, thunder and wind echoing down the street. In a second, he leaped to a rooftop two hundred meters away.
The sniper, eye at the scope, saw Gusion's face suddenly fill his view—Gusion had crossed the distance in an instant.
Just what kind of monster were they hunting?
Gusion's Zanpakuto, hungry for souls, cut through the sniper's neck before he could pull the trigger.
Gyutaro arrived too late, his scythe only cutting through lingering golden lightning.
Gusion had already jumped, bringing his blade down from above. Gyutaro barely blocked, but was hammered into the house below.
Gusion stood above, flicking blood from his blade as the sniper's blood arced across the beams. He looked down. "It's quiet now. I'll send you to your sister."
"Gusion!"
Gyutaro, in a frenzy, unleashed all his power. Blood Demon Art whipped up a bloody storm, shredding the house as he rode the whirlwind up to Gusion, eyes full of hatred and grief.
Can I not even avenge my sister?
Sorry, Ume, I'm a useless brother!
Boom—
Driven by sorrow and rage, Gyutaro charged at Gusion, their weapons clashing dozens of times in midair.
The two landed, sparks and bloody wind swirling with every exchange.
Just as Hinatsuru, who had finished evacuating the crowd, returned, she saw Gusion and Gyutaro in fierce battle and seven demon corpses. Her mouth dropped open in shock.
She'd only been gone a few minutes—how had this group of powerful demons been wiped out?
The demon fighting Gusion was definitely an Upper Moon—Lower Moons could never cause such devastation.
She was relieved the townsfolk had escaped, otherwise dozens would have died instantly in this carnage.
Her kunoichi sister, Makio, with black and gold short hair, jumped onto the roof, eyes wide. "So strong… Is he the new Hashira?"
"So this is the power of an Upper Moon? So scary… we can't even join in…"
Suma, with long black hair, also joined, hugging herself at the oppressive aura from Gyutaro. "Did he… do all this?"
Hinatsuru muttered, looking at the demon corpses, puzzled as to why they hadn't dissipated despite being dead.
"There shouldn't be any other Demon Slayers here, right…"
Makio replied but with disbelief in her eyes. She'd heard from Hinatsuru that there were several Twelve Kizuki here.
If Hinatsuru wasn't lying, then seven demons, each as strong as a Lower Moon, had been killed?
Even killing seven Lower Moons single-handedly was amazing for a hashira.
And the man was still fighting an Upper Moon, meaning he'd killed seven demons while outnumbered eight to one!
"He's so strong… maybe even stronger than Lord Tengen."
Suma exclaimed. Though she adored her husband, she had to admit that in such a situation, Tengen would be lucky to escape, let alone kill seven out of eight demons.
"What are you saying? Lord Tengen is the strongest!"
Makio slapped Suma's head.
Suma covered her head, aggrieved. "But the Hashira down there is really strong…"
Hinatsuru ignored them, focusing on the battle, marveling at the one-versus-eight Hashira's strength.
Wait… one versus eight?
She remembered the Upper Moon was a woman, and there were seven demons surrounding the brothel. She'd seen Daki's corpse, so who was Gusion fighting now?
Did he already kill one Upper Moon and was fighting another?
When did the Demon Slayer Corps get such a strong man?
…
At this moment, the clash between Gusion's blade and Gyutaro's scythe echoed like hammering iron under the false night sky. Both had immense speed and power, their clashes sending shockwaves down the ruined street.
Through the sparks, Gusion saw close up that Gyutaro's eyes no longer had the desire to live.
After another exchange, the two separated—even Gyutaro, as a demon, was starting to pant, showing how much power he'd spent.
Normally, demons don't tire unless they use too much power on regeneration or their Blood Demon Art. Gyutaro had done both.
In his fight with Gusion, his body had been repeatedly injured. Even his advanced regeneration struggled to keep up, and Gusion's blade was strange—wounds cut by it seemed to have a toxin, continually corroding them, prolonging the pain and draining his strength.
Worse, despite all his efforts, Gyutaro had not injured Gusion at all.
He'd never received formal training but prided himself on his combat instincts. Even as a human, he'd been feared as a debt collector and could kill trained samurai.
As a demon, he'd fought for centuries to protect his sister, accumulating vast experience and skill.
Yet, he couldn't land a single blow on Gusion. His supposed talent meant nothing in this fight. Gusion's technique far surpassed his.
Since Daki's death, Gyutaro had reclaimed his power, and he felt he was stronger than Gusion, yet he was still being suppressed.
Gusion was a Thunder Breathing swordsman, so Gyutaro had no speed advantage. The only thing he didn't understand was why Gusion hadn't killed him yet.
Yes, after a while, Gyutaro realized—even though he hated it, he couldn't win. Gusion had several chances to behead him but hadn't.
This only made Gyutaro more furious. "Are you humiliating me?!"