Yoriichi…
Musashi heard a name he had never heard before.
"When I first met him, I hadn't yet escaped Muzan's control and was forced to stay by Muzan's side. One night, Muzan and I encountered him.
Originally, Muzan didn't pay him any mind, dismissively stating he had seen many swordsmen who could use a Breathing Technique. However, with just one encounter, Muzan was cut into more than a dozen pieces by him.
Muzan then used his ability to split himself into countless flesh pieces to escape. Although Yoriichi eliminated most of the pieces in an instant, a small portion still managed to get away.
To evade Yoriichi, Muzan didn't show his face for nearly a century afterward, only reappearing in the world after he was certain Yoriichi had died.
The reason Muzan immediately fled upon seeing you is that your appearance is almost identical to Yoriichi's. Muzan is a coward; he doesn't care about things like dignity. Everything he does is solely to ensure his own eternal survival.
Your appearance triggered his deep-seated fear, causing him to panic and split to escape, even knowing that Yoriichi was already dead.
Even if he realizes later that you couldn't possibly be Yoriichi, he definitely won't personally verify it. He will most likely send his subordinates to eliminate you and, incidentally, probe your strength," Tamayo explained to Musashi.
Musashi now had a preliminary understanding of the Yoriichi Tamayo spoke of: extremely powerful, and his appearance was almost identical to his own.
Musashi wasn't worried about Muzan sending subordinates to eliminate him, and he felt a bit regretful that Muzan wouldn't personally confront him.
"However, your Demon Slayer Mark are on the right side of your forehead, while Yoriichi's Demon Slayer Mark are on the left side of his forehead. This is probably the biggest difference in your appearances," Tamayo said, looking at Musashi.
Hearing Tamayo's words, Musashi realized something. He asked Tamayo with some confusion, "You said that person also had Demon Slayer Mark? Then why did Muzan hide from him for nearly a century? Don't Demon Slayer Mark swordsmen all die before turning twenty-five?"
Tamayo's words differed from the information Musashi had previously received from the Master, which made him unsure whose information was correct.
Tamayo heard this and said to Musashi, "There's no problem with the fact that Demon Slayer Mark swordsmen die before turning twenty-five, but this doesn't apply to Yoriichi.
I don't know his exact age when he died, but it was definitely far beyond twenty-five.
Having lived for so long, I only know of Yoriichi as the one Demon Slayer Mark swordsman who lived past twenty-five. While I can't be certain yet, I suspect that he had Demon Slayer Mark and could still live past twenty-five because his Demon Slayer Mark were innate, whereas other swordsmen's Demon Slayer Mark appeared later in life."
After Muzan escaped, Tamayo told Yoriichi everything she knew about Muzan and her own past. Perhaps out of sympathy, Yoriichi also told her some things about himself, including his innate Demon Slayer Mark.
Are mine also innate, just like his…? Does that mean I can also live past twenty-five?
Musashi chose to believe Tamayo's words. He was quite happy to hear this news; although he didn't fear dying at twenty-five, living longer wasn't a bad thing, and it would also give him more time to hunt demons.
"Although it's a bit presumptuous, I still want to ask, what is your current strength?" Tamayo suddenly asked Musashi.
This was the first time she had encountered a swordsman with Demon Slayer Mark outside of Yoriichi's era, which gave her some hope of eliminating Muzan.
Fearing that Musashi might misunderstand, Tamayo further explained to him, "You are the only Demon Slayer Mark swordsman I've encountered outside of Yoriichi's era. Although your appearance is extremely similar to Yoriichi's, Muzan might avoid you because of it.
However, Muzan knows that Yoriichi is already dead, so he might not completely remain hidden from human sight as he did when Yoriichi was alive.
If your strength is sufficient, there is a possibility of eliminating Muzan in this era, and I will do my best to help you."
The Demon Slayer Mark and Bright Red Nichirin Musashi displayed when facing Muzan earlier gave Tamayo hope of eliminating Muzan. These two were also the abilities Yoriichi used to fight Muzan at the time.
After hearing Tamayo's words, Musashi felt a bit troubled. He didn't know his own strength. He hadn't fought Muzan during their previous encounter, so he didn't know who was stronger between them.
"I haven't fought Muzan, so I can't judge my own strength. However, Muzan is the only demon who has made me feel pressure, but it's only pressure. If he hadn't fled, I believe I could have slain him," Musashi said truthfully based on his feelings.
Tamayo's previous words made Musashi realize that she understood Muzan very well, and she also said she was developing a drug to prevent Muzan from splitting. Therefore, Musashi wanted to secure this ally who also wanted to eliminate Muzan.
"Is that so…?" Tamayo pondered for a moment upon hearing this, then said to Musashi, "Then I will tell you everything I know about Muzan."
Musashi nodded upon hearing this, listening intently.
"As the progenitor of demons, Muzan can turn people into demons through his blood, and at the same time, he also places a Demon on those who become demons.
Through this, he can track the locations of other demons, and if they are close, he can even read their thoughts. Furthermore, any demon who leaks information related to Muzan will be corroded by the Demon," Tamayo explained to Musashi.
When speaking of Muzan's ability to turn people into demons, Tamayo's hatred was particularly strong.
Her family was destroyed because of this. She had only wanted to see her child grow up but was deceived by Muzan and turned into a demon. Afterward, her demonic instincts caused her to eat her own family. Therefore, she would eliminate Muzan even if it meant her own death.
"Besides that, he also possesses extremely advanced mimicry abilities, allowing him to transform into various human forms.
And he has already broken through one of the demons' limits: he will not die even if decapitated," Tamayo continued.
Hearing this, Musashi frowned and asked Tamayo, "In that case, can only the sun eliminate Muzan?"
"That's probably the case, since he can continue to live even if he splits into countless pieces of flesh.
However, there are abilities that can restrain him. The Bright Red Nichirin you used earlier is one of them, and there's also a Breathing Technique that can restrain Muzan," Tamayo replied.
"What Breathing Technique?" Musashi asked Tamayo.
"The Breathing Technique Yoriichi used at the time, Sun Breathing," Tamayo said.
"Sun Breathing?!" Musashi exclaimed in surprise.