Yosuke left the izakaya with Hakuji, Gyutaro, Koyuki, and Ume.
Only after Yosuke had departed did Ubuyashiki Nichiya's son, Kagaya, dare to speak.
"Father… can that man truly be trusted?"
Nichiya stared absently at the scroll on the table that contained the training methods of Sun Breathing.
"Kagaya, that man we just met—you may place your trust in him entirely. For he is our ancestor. Even after nearly a thousand years, he has never abandoned the mission of the Ubuyashiki family."
Following behind Yosuke, Ume asked curiously:
"Yosuke-sama, what did you talk about in there just now?"
Hakuji and Koyuki leaned closer, equally eager to hear. Only Gyutaro looked indifferent, scratching at his cheek as usual.
Yosuke instinctively reached out, intending to pat Ume on the head—but stopped midway, realizing she had grown up. Such gestures no longer suited her. He quietly lowered his hand.
But Ume caught it, guiding his palm onto her head.
Yosuke smiled and gently ruffled her hair.
"Nothing important. Just catching up on old matters."
Seeing that he did not wish to say more, Ume did not press further. Instead, she quietly enjoyed the rare tenderness of his touch.
Yosuke gazed up at the night sky—dark, with only a few scattered stars.
The gears of fate had begun turning once again. The inevitable clash with Kibutsuji Muzan loomed in the near future.
And at the center of that battle would be Kamado Tanjiro's sister—the demon who could walk beneath the sun.
To withstand the sun… Even Yosuke felt a pang of envy. No matter how great his strength, sunlight remained his eternal nemesis.
He let out a quiet sigh.
"It's time for us to part ways. Hakuji, Koyuki, Gyutaro, Ume—spread out and search for any trace of the Twelve Kizuki."
The four of them froze in confusion. Ume was the most shaken, her voice trembling.
"Yosuke-sama… you won't come with us?"
"No. The decisive battle is drawing near. This will be our only chance. We must prepare carefully. If I continue at your side, you'll never stop relying on me. Your strength will never grow. That is why… it's time I let go and allow you to face the world on your own."
Hakuji and Gyutaro said nothing, but their clenched fists revealed their frustration. We're still too weak. Too weak to truly aid Yosuke-sama.
For over a century, they had never once left his side. To part now, so suddenly, was almost unbearable. Ume's eyes welled with tears, ready to spill.
She was about to protest, but Gyutaro quietly held her back.
Koyuki wrapped her arms around Ume, gently comforting her sobs. Meanwhile, Hakuji and Gyutaro dropped to their knees before Yosuke.
"Yosuke-sana, we will grow stronger—strong enough to once again stand proudly at your side!"
"Go," Yosuke said softly. "I believe in you."
He, too, felt the weight of parting. A hundred years of companionship was no trivial bond. Yet if they remained with him, even he could not guarantee their safety when facing the dangers to come. Only by enduring hardship on their own would they grow strong enough to survive.
After all—fledglings must learn to fly on their own wings.
Yosuke silently watched the four walk away, his heart certain that when next they met, they would stand as warriors capable of bearing the weight of battle.
Hakuji, Gyutaro, Koyuki, and Ume disappeared from his sight.
Yosuke sighed.
"Alone again… I only hope Ume won't cry too much without me."
At that moment, he felt like a father watching his children leave home. No matter how firm his words had been before, he could not stop the worry gnawing inside.
A month later, Yosuke found himself in a small town.
The townsfolk regarded him with curiosity. To them, he was a strange man who slept away the days in the izakaya, drinking alone, then vanished at night without explanation.
But Yosuke was not idle. He, too, had to hone his strength. Against Muzan and his Twelve Kizuki—each wielding bizarre and deadly powers—he could afford no carelessness.
He summoned forth the system he had nearly forgotten. Even the sound of its voice now felt oddly nostalgic.
"System, how many draws do I still have?"
"Ding. Host currently possesses four draws—earned through the creation of four sword forms of Blood Breathing."
"Use them all."
"Ding. Congratulations. Host has obtained: Blood Demon Art – Self Division; Blood Demon Art – Deprivation of the Five Senses; Water Breathing; Wind Breathing."
"Two Blood Demon Arts and two Breathing Styles, hm…"
To Yosuke, the Breathing Styles were useless. Unable to learn Sun Breathing, he had long since forged Blood Breathing as the art most suited to himself.
The new abilities, however, intrigued him:
Blood Demon Art – Self Division: similar to Muzan's ability, allowing the body to split into fragments. As long as even one piece survived, he could regenerate fully.
Blood Demon Art – Deprivation of the Five Senses: the power to temporarily strip a target of sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch.
"…Not bad." They would not dramatically raise his power, but were useful nonetheless.
Outside the izakaya, the sun dipped below the horizon. Night fell.
As Yosuke stepped out, he suddenly sensed the presence of a demon.
"Hakuji, go—" He stopped short, remembering. They were no longer at his side.
He sighed.
"Very well… I'll handle it myself."
Following the demonic aura, he arrived at a clinic—just in time to see a demon poised to slaughter two young sisters. Beside them lay the corpses of a man and woman, their parents.
"Blood Demon Art: Deprivation of the Five Senses!"
The demon froze, every sense stripped away. Blind, deaf, and mute, it could only thrash aimlessly in the dark.
Yosuke strode forward, grasped its neck, and snapped it clean. The Muzan blood within it was obliterated. Its body disintegrated into ash.
Yosuke looked down at the trembling sisters, paralyzed with fear. For a long moment, he said nothing.
Awkward with words of comfort, he simply laid a gentle hand upon their heads.
Under his touch, their shaking gradually eased. Yet when their eyes fell again upon their parents' lifeless corpses, they clung to each other and wept bitterly.
Yosuke stepped outside, dug two graves in the earth, and laid the parents to rest.
Watching the sisters kneel at the mound, tears streaming down their faces, he spoke quietly:
"Your parents have passed on. Grieve, but live on well. That is what they would wish."
PS: Access advance chapters at