"There are words in its eyes?"
Naruto stared intently at the demon, the characters carved into its eyes reflecting faintly in the mist. His excitement was unmistakable as he exclaimed, "It's actually one of the Twelve Kizuki!"
Naruto remembered Shinazugawa Sanemi telling him that the defining trait of the Twelve Kizuki was the numbers carved into their eyes to represent their rank.
This demon clearly had markings in its eyes. That meant it truly was one of the Twelve Kizuki. Judging by the characters engraved there, it was the Lower Rank Four.
"You… are excited?"
The Lower Moon demon looked at Naruto's expression with visible confusion.
This human didn't look like a Hashira of the Demon Slayer Corps. Ordinary Demon Slayers should feel fear after confirming its identity as one of the Twelve Kizuki—yet this boy looked thrilled.
"Of course!"
Naruto tightened his grip on his nichirin blade, his eyes gleaming as he stared at the demon and said excitedly, "I've been looking forward to meeting one of the Twelve Kizuki! I didn't expect to run into one on only my second mission. I'm ridiculously lucky!"
Even if it was only a Lower Moon, it was still a Twelve Kizuki. If Shinazugawa found out, he'd definitely be jealous.
"…"
Hearing Naruto's words, the demon observed him carefully for a long moment, its gaze turning wary. Then it asked, "Are you a Hashira of the Demon Slayer Corps?"
This Lower Rank Four demon—named Zero—was the most cautious among the Lower Moons. Its Blood Demon Art allowed it to create mist, and it specialized in hunting Demon Slayer Corps members, believing their flesh to be the most nourishing.
It often deliberately created disturbances to lure Demon Slayers in, then used the mist to isolate and slaughter them.
However, whenever it encountered a Hashira, it fled without hesitation. It was precisely this caution that had allowed it to survive after killing so many Demon Slayers.
"A Hashira? Not yet."
Naruto shook his head, then stared at Zero with burning eyes and said fervently, "But once I kill you, I'll be qualified to become one!"
Whoosh!~
The moment Zero heard Naruto admit he wasn't a Hashira, it let out a quiet sigh of relief. Then its expression twisted with disdain.
"In that case—die!"
As its words fell, it waved both arms, releasing a massive amount of mist that instantly swallowed Naruto's field of vision.
Hidden within the fog, Zero's red eyes glowed as it launched a long-range attack from several meters away.
Even though Naruto wasn't a Hashira, Zero still chose to remain hidden, cautiously testing his strength first.
"Wind Breathing, Second Form—"
Naruto instantly sensed the attack from behind. He turned sharply and swung his nichirin blade.
"—Claws- Purifying Wind!"
Four claw-shaped wind blades shot forward, instantly shattering Zero's attack. Without losing momentum, they tore through the mist and surged straight toward Zero's hidden position.
"So fast!"
Zero felt the pressure of the incoming wind blades, its expression shifting slightly as it hurriedly dodged. The powerful gusts carried by the blades blew away the surrounding mist.
In that instant, Zero realized something terrifying—
Naruto was already there.
"Got you!"
Naruto grinned as his body swept past Zero like a violent gust. His nichirin blade flashed with emerald light, passing cleanly across Zero's neck in a single motion.
Clang!~
Naruto sheathed his blade.
A moment later, Zero's head fell from its body and struck the ground.
"How… is this possible…"
Zero instinctively caught its severed head, disbelief frozen on its face. "I'm not facing a Hashira… so why am I losing?"
"You're mistaken."
Naruto turned back and looked directly at Zero's fading eyes, speaking seriously.
"It's not that I'm too strong. You're just too weak."
This wasn't sarcasm. Naruto genuinely meant it.
From everything he had heard, the Twelve Kizuki were supposed to be terrifying beings—so powerful that even Hashira had to risk their lives to defeat them.
But the demon before him felt nothing like the monsters Shinazugawa Sanemi had described.
Did I run into a fake one?
With that thought, Naruto suddenly asked, "Uh… are you really one of the Twelve Kizuki?"
"???"
Zero froze for a split second.
Then, as its body rapidly began to disintegrate, it unleashed a torrent of furious, vulgar curses at Naruto—so obscene that they continued right up until it completely vanished.
"If you're real, you're real. No need to get that upset…"
Naruto dug a finger into his ear, looking mildly annoyed, then turned and prepared to leave.
After taking a few steps, he noticed the thick mist filling the canyon was already dissipating.
"Guess the mist disappears when the demon dies."
Murmuring to himself, Naruto exited the canyon.
"Uzumaki Naruto-sama!"
The Kakushi members waiting outside immediately rushed forward, their faces tense. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine."
Naruto waved casually. "The demon inside has been dealt with. Oh, right—it was one of the Twelve Kizuki."
"That's good—wait!"
The Kakushi member froze, eyes widening in shock.
"Did you just say… one of the Twelve Kizuki?"
"Yeah. Lower Rank Four."
Naruto nodded thoughtfully. "It had numbers carved into its eyes."
"..."
The Kakushi member stared at Naruto with an indescribable expression, then asked solemnly, "Uzumaki Naruto-sama, are you absolutely certain the demon had the Twelve Kizuki's rank engraved in its eyes? Please answer carefully—this is extremely important."
"Yes."
Naruto's expression also turned serious.
"I'm certain. It had the markings, and it identified itself as Lower Rank Four."
"Understood."
The Kakushi member immediately took out paper and pen, carefully recording Naruto's statement. After finishing, he handed it over.
"Please review this record. If everything is accurate, sign your name at the bottom."
Naruto skimmed the page, nodded, and signed his name without hesitation.