"I noticed it first! I'll cut its head off!" Hearing Tanjiro's words, Inosuke shouted loudly and jumped far towards the Demon's location. But he was immediately driven back by the Demon, whose hands were like blades.
"This guy! It has no head!" Driven back, Inosuke was a bit stunned. The Demon blocking their way had no head. Its entire body was also manipulated by numerous threads, clearly the work of the Spider Mother, and her last card.
"That guy has no vital points either! If it has none, we can't cut it. Wh-what do we do, what do we do!" Facing this irregular Demon, the simple Inosuke was unusually flustered.
"Inosuke, calm down! Cut diagonally from the shoulder! Try cutting from the right neck to the left armpit. But the range is wide. I think it might be very hard." Seeing Inosuke's panicked state, Tanjiro shouted loudly to him and quickly analyzed the Demon's weak point.
As Tanjiro's words fell, Inosuke charged forward with a burst of speed. But the headless Demon's speed and reaction were equally fast.
The moment Inosuke got close, it reacted, quickly attacking him. Instantly, several superficial wounds appeared on Inosuke, and blood quickly seeped out.
"Fast, but not completely unavoidable." Although initially caught off guard, Inosuke wasn't truly injured. Circling the headless Demon quickly, Inosuke looked for a suitable opening to attack.
But focusing entirely on the headless Demon, Inosuke was unknowingly surrounded by spiders, completely restricting his movement. Seeing the headless Demon's arm thrust directly at him, Inosuke realized he might die.
At the critical moment, Tanjiro stood in front of Inosuke. He blocked the headless Demon's attack with his sword, deflecting it to the side, driving it back.
Finally, seeing Inosuke bound, he cut the spider threads with his sword.
Watching Tanjiro step up to protect him, Inosuke was stunned. He felt an inexplicable warmth. It made him feel light and airy. He had never experienced this kind of care before, so he was lost, but he didn't dislike it...
"Inosuke, let's fight together! Let's think together! To defeat this Demon, let's work together!" After saving Inosuke, Tanjiro shouted loudly to him.
"You! Stop making me feel so light!" Coming back to his senses, Inosuke spoke angrily to Tanjiro, worried that getting used to being cared for might make him no longer be himself...
"Inosuke, step on me!" At this moment, Tanjiro ignored Inosuke's awkwardness. He crouched down and spoke to Inosuke.
Inosuke, saying one thing but doing another, hearing Tanjiro's command, didn't overthink. He stepped on his back. Then, with two slashes, he severed the headless Demon's arms.
Then, Tanjiro continued giving orders, having Inosuke jump high into the air.
Tanjiro seized the opportunity, using Water Breathing, Fourth Form: Striking Tide, to cut off the headless Demon's legs. Finally, Inosuke finished it off.
'Damn it, what is this? So frustrating. Did it all go as he predicted? It's like it couldn't have been otherwise, as natural as flowing water. That guy wasn't trying to show off, but... watching the flow of the entire battle.'
Seeing how everything changed as Tanjiro predicted, although Inosuke didn't say it, he couldn't help but feel some admiration for Tanjiro.
The Spider Mother not far away, the moment her puppet was defeated, felt a tremor in her heart and realized her death was near.
She also knew that the moment Rui died, their fate was sealed. She just hadn't wanted to believe it. But now, it seemed there was nothing left to regret.
And honestly, the moment Rui died, she felt a glimmer of relief. Perhaps disappearing now was good. Finally, she wouldn't have to live that fearful, trembling life anymore...
On the other side, after defeating the headless Demon, Inosuke rushed over, hugged Tanjiro, and, to Tanjiro's confusion, tossed him high into the air. Once airborne, Tanjiro finally smelled the true culprit manipulating the Demon Slayer Corps' members to kill each other.
"Is that it, Inosuke? Water Breathing, First Form!" Tanjiro wanted to charge and use the First Form. But seeing the Spider Mother, after a moment's thought, give up resistance with a look of facing death, and the sad aura emanating from her, Tanjiro was stunned. He quickly changed his attack.
"Fifth Form, Blessed Rain After the Drought." Instantly, water flowed across the Spider Mother's neck, and Tanjiro stopped behind her.
"This is! It feels like being hit by gentle rain. No pain at all, just warmth. To be able to welcome such a gentle death, this way, I can be completely free." Feeling this gentleness, the Spider Mother was no longer afraid.
Before dying and dissipating, she noticed Tanjiro's gaze looking at her. 'Those eyes, those gentle eyes. When I was still human, I felt someone once looked at me with gentle eyes. Who was that? I can't remember. What happened to that person?'
"Thank you. May you be blessed with fortune in battle..." In her final moments, the Spider Mother finally completely recalled her memories as a human.
In those memories, someone had always been gentle to her. But she herself had shattered that gentleness. Thinking this, tears flowed uncontrollably, and she left the world with regret.
In the distance, Takeru 'saw' Tanjiro's conclusion with the Spider Mother. Although far away, Takeru could also sense the sadness emanating from her.
Knowing the Spider Mother was a pitiful person, Takeru had chosen to let Tanjiro end her. As for letting her live, Takeru never considered it.
Although pitiful, she had also done many hateful things. Perhaps forced, but her frenzied state also seemed to enjoy it.
And surviving might not bring her happiness. Having killed her closest loved ones and so many innocent people, living might only mean more pain.
Sighing, Takeru stopped thinking. This outcome was actually good.
"What's wrong, Takeru? Why are you sighing?" Seeing Takeru suddenly sigh, Rikka was surprised.
"Nothing. Just feeling that there are too many sad things in this world." Hearing Rikka's words, Takeru said with slight emotion.
Back with Tanjiro, after a moment of sadness for the Spider Mother, he finally remembered the injured Inosuke and quickly ran back.
"You beat it?" Seeing Tanjiro return, Inosuke snorted.
"Is your body alright, Inosuke?" Seeing Inosuke's burst of effort had torn his wounds larger, with blood flowing more freely, Tanjiro was very nervous.
"I asked if you beat it!"
"Yes, I beat it. More importantly, how is your body, Inosuke?" Hearing Inosuke's words, Tanjiro continued asking.
"Stop caring about me so carefully! Listen, understand? What you can do, I can do too! After a while, my head will be harder than yours! And then, and then... it's that..." Seeing Tanjiro's actions, Inosuke blushed and spoke tsunderely.
'Such heavy injuries. The healing potion is also used up. Need to quickly return to Takeru-san. And is everything going well with Nezuko? Also, that person just now radiated a smell of terror and pain. What is this mountain? There's even a Twelve Kizuki, and a family of Demons. I wonder if Takeru-san knows.'
Listening to Inosuke's muttering, Tanjiro thought about his own matters.
"Inosuke, okay. You're quite injured. Let's go back quickly, back to Takeru-san." Then, Tanjiro dragged Inosuke and quickly ran back to where they had come from.
As for the blood continually seeping from Inosuke's wounds, Tanjiro was a bit helpless. But Inosuke refused his treatment, so Tanjiro had no way.