"There are too many of them. If we keep going like this, we're going to lose," Tanjiro said, his voice strained with worry. He could feel the exhaustion creeping into his limbs, and the situation was growing more desperate by the minute. More and more Demon Slayers, controlled by those sinister webs, kept coming at them. His sword arm was growing heavy from cutting the threads, and he could sense that things were only getting worse.
"Shut up!" Inosuke barked back, swinging his twin swords wildly, cutting through the webs with reckless abandon. "I'll cut them all down!" His voice was filled with fury and adrenaline, completely ignoring Tanjiro's words of caution. Inosuke's body moved like a force of nature, his boar mask only adding to his savage appearance. He showed no signs of slowing down, his blades flashing as he sliced through the air.
"You can't!" Tanjiro shouted, stepping in front of Inosuke before he could swing at another controlled slayer. "They're still alive! They're not demons; they're just being controlled by these webs!"
Inosuke stopped for a moment, glaring at Tanjiro from behind his mask, his breath heavy. "So what? They're trying to kill us! If we don't cut them down, we'll be the ones dead!"
Tanjiro's eyes softened, though his grip on his sword tightened. "I know… I know it looks bad. But they're our comrades. They're being manipulated by the demon. If we kill them, it's the same as letting the demon win. We need to find the one responsible for this."
Inosuke grunted, clearly frustrated. "Then where is it? I'm tired of waiting around while these puppet slayers attack us! I'll tear that demon apart once I find it!"
Tanjiro took a deep breath, trying to steady his rising anxiety. The situation was bad, and it was getting worse with every moment they wasted. He could smell the demon's presence—it was faint, mixed in with the thick scent of blood that filled the air. His heightened sense of smell had always been his advantage, but now it was almost overwhelming.
"Because of the intense smell of blood, I can't focus," Tanjiro admitted, his brow furrowing as he struggled to pinpoint the demon's location. The scent of the controlled slayers, the blood in the air, and the oppressive feeling of danger were all clouding his senses. "The demon is controlling them from somewhere nearby. If we can find it and cut the threads at the source, we can free the slayers without hurting them."
Hearing Tanjiro's words, Inosuke's frustration seemed to reach a boiling point. His hands clenched into fists, and he suddenly dropped down onto one knee, his face lowering toward the ground. "Enough of this waiting around!" he growled. His breath came out in sharp bursts, his muscles tensing as if ready to spring into action at any second.
Tanjiro watched him carefully, wondering what he was up to. Inosuke's unpredictable nature often made him hard to read, but in moments like this, Tanjiro knew better than to interrupt him. Inosuke was a warrior through and through, and his instincts—though wild—were razor sharp.
Suddenly, Inosuke muttered under his breath, "Beast Breathing, Seventh Form: Spatial Awareness."
Tanjiro blinked, realizing what Inosuke was doing. The air around them seemed to shift as Inosuke activated his technique. His body stilled, and for a moment, it looked like all of his energy had been drawn inward. Tanjiro could feel the intensity radiating from him, as if Inosuke were reaching out with his senses to feel every vibration in the forest around them.
Inosuke's Beast Breathing technique was uniquely suited for tracking. With Spatial Awareness, he could sense the presence of living beings across a wide area, mapping out the movements and locations of anything within range. It wasn't as refined as Tanjiro's sense of smell, but in this situation, it was exactly what they needed.
Inosuke remained perfectly still, his head slightly tilted as if listening to something only he could hear. His fingers twitched occasionally, as though sensing vibrations through the ground and air. The tension in the air was palpable, and Tanjiro held his breath, waiting for Inosuke to speak.
"There!" Inosuke suddenly snapped, his voice filled with certainty. He pointed a finger toward the dense cluster of trees ahead, his eyes narrowing beneath his boar mask. "The demon's hiding over there."
"Good work, Inosuke!" Tanjiro said, already moving to follow his friend's lead.
Inosuke jumped to his feet, his swords gripped tightly in his hands as he prepared to charge. "Let's go! I'll rip that thing to pieces!"
Just as they were about to run to where the demon was, a crying sound was heard.
"Please stop here; I don't want to hurt you." It was a girl wearing a Demon Slayer uniform.
Her hand and legs were twisted to an unusual degree.
"Please, I don't want to kill anybody."
~~~