"Infinity Castle, Lotus Pond Battle with Douma"
"Hmm, I think I've seen you somewhere before," Douma mused, vaguely recognizing Aoki who had appeared almost instantaneously beside Shinobu Kocho.
Then, realization dawned. "Ah, yes! I remember! I saw you in Asakusa. You ran away the moment you saw me, and I couldn't find you afterward."
"To think you killed Gyutaro and Hantengu. Impressive! No Upper Moon has been killed by a demon slayer in nearly a century. You single-handedly killed two Upper Moons. Perhaps I'll be the third."
Aoki flatly denied this. "No, not perhaps. You will definitely be the third Upper Moon to die by my hand!"
With that, Aoki moved like a phantom, appearing before Douma in an instant. Yōitsu (his Nichirin Blade) was drawn, aimed at Douma's neck with a vicious slash.
The attack was so swift and precise that Shinobu Kocho couldn't react; it was impossible to see with the naked eye.
However, even this attack, imperceptible to Shinobu, was effortlessly evaded by Douma.
"Devouring Breathing, Fourth Style: Thunder Annihilation!"
Anticipating Douma's evasion, Aoki immediately followed up, swinging his blade towards the spot where Douma would land.
"Clang!"
A wave of black lightning accompanied the clash of steel. Douma blocked Aoki's attack with his iron fans just before impact. The force of the blow sent him reeling back several meters, but he remained unharmed.
"Impressive! Befitting a Hashira who killed two Upper Moons. Your strength is remarkable, quite unlike the you who fled at our last encounter.
Very well, I'll have to get serious now," Douma chuckled. Aoki, however, noticed a subtle shift in Douma's eyes—a fleeting moment of seriousness, easily detected by his Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan.
This subtle change indicated Douma was now fully engaged, and if Aoki didn't fight with equal intensity, he might not win.
"Blood Demon Art: Cryokinesis: Lotus Vines!"
Douma summoned several vines entwined with ice lotuses, lashing out at Aoki like venomous snakes.
"Devouring Breathing, Seventh Style: Wicked Yama Raja!"
Yōitsu glowed crimson as Aoki unleashed seven rapid slashes, pulverizing the vines into fragments.
Just as Aoki thought the attack was over, his Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan detected a potent poison clinging to the chilling aura of the severed vines!
Instinctively covering his mouth and nose, Aoki's heart pounded. He retreated rapidly, but still inhaled a small amount of the poisonous air.
"Cough, cough!"
With each breath, Aoki felt a searing pain in his lungs—Douma's mastery of poison even surpassed Shinobu Kocho's.
"Aoki-kun!" Shinobu Kocho, noticing Aoki's distress, moved to help, but stopped when she saw him raise a hand.
He didn't need her concern; indeed, he didn't want it.
"Potent poison. My lungs feel delightfully cool. Thank you for the gift," Aoki said, forcing a smile as beads of sweat trickled down his cheeks.
"Oh my, don't mention it. If you'd like, I have even more potent poisons. Care to try?" Douma laughed.
Aoki sneered, launching another attack.
"Blood Demon Art, Cryokinesis: Freezing Clouds!"
Douma swung his fans, instantly releasing a blizzard of ice crystals, each coated with potent poison. A few breaths of these crystals, and Aoki would be dead within minutes.
Aoki's eyes narrowed. He threw a Flying Raijin kunai at Douma.
Demons share a linked vision, so Douma knew Aoki's plan. He struck the kunai away with his fans, choosing not to dodge.
Though the kunai was deflected, it was now clear of the ice crystals. Before it could be touched by the ice, Aoki used the Flying Raijin technique, appearing beside the kunai. He then threw three more kunai at Douma.
One kunai was manageable, but three simultaneously? Douma was momentarily taken aback, choosing not to deflect them and instead teleporting away before Aoki could close the distance.
Looking back at Aoki's previous location, Douma found him gone, absent from the kunai's locations.
Just as he felt puzzled, Aoki appeared silently behind him.
Douma reacted instantly, turning to defend against Aoki's attack, but as he turned, he saw the faint, ominous glow of Aoki's left eye.
"Tsukuyomi!"
Douma's eyes glazed over, his raised fans freezing mid-motion.
Aoki, seizing the opportunity, raised Yōitsu, preparing to decapitate Douma.
"Devouring Breathing, Ninth Style: Supreme Divine Punishment!"
Yōitsu, imbued with dark, terrifying energy, slashed towards Douma's neck. But just before impact, Douma reacted, blocking the attack with his fans.
"Boom!"
A violent black storm erupted where Yōitsu struck Douma's fans, engulfing him.
"Blood Demon Art, Cryokinesis: Barren Hanging Garden!"
Douma deflected Yōitsu and unleashed a nine-hit ice attack.
Seeing his strategy fail, Aoki, to avoid further poisoning, didn't linger. He teleported to one of the kunai he'd thrown, escaping Douma's attack.
After several exchanges, neither side had a clear advantage.
Aoki was slightly more on the defensive, needing to constantly watch out for the poison in Douma's attacks, which required extra focus. The battle was finely balanced, hinging on a single mistake.
One lapse in concentration, and the fight could end decisively.
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