After sensing no presence from any of the Hashira, Akaza leaped onto the top of a utility pole and scanned the surroundings.
Right then, Torataro's figure entered his field of vision.
...
Elsewhere.
Kyojuro Rengoku's group successfully reunited with Mitsuri and the Snake Hashira Obanai Iguro.
When she heard that Upper Rank Six had been killed, Mitsuri covered her mouth in shock, an incredulous look on her face.
"That was way too fast. It only feels like it's been…"
She counted on her fingers. "One, two… five minutes."
"Most of the credit goes to Mr. Greevs. His speed was so fast I couldn't even see how his blade fell," Kyojuro said with his usual bright laugh.
At first he had been worried someone might die during this mission, but clearly he had overthought it. The only one injured so far was Tengen Uzui.
"Ah, Tengen, you're hurt? Is it serious?"
Mitsuri looked worriedly at Tengen's right arm, which had already been wrapped in bandages.
"Just a bit of poison. Nothing worth mentioning. Besides, getting to see Mr. Ivan's flashy strike made the injury worth it."
While speaking, Tengen suddenly looked behind them. The smile on his face vanished, replaced by a grave expression. "Careful. A powerful presence is heading straight for us."
"Didn't expect there really was an Upper Rank with a broken brain."
Winning two battles in a row so easily had given Sanemi Shinazugawa plenty of confidence. He even started thinking Upper Ranks weren't all that special.
The next second, however.. Urg?
A sharp pain exploded in his shoulder, instantly teaching him the true strength of Upper Rank Three.
Before anyone realized it, Akaza, black stripes covering his face, had appeared right in front of Sanemi. His arm had punched clean through Sanemi's right shoulder. If it had been just two inches further to the right, Sanemi would already be a corpse.
"Upper Rank Three. You've got some real strength after all." Ivan could have blocked the strike for Sanemi, but he chose not to.
"You're the one Lord Muzan mentioned. I can sense the powerful force hidden inside you." Under the hostile stares of the Hashira, Akaza slowly pulled his arm out.
His original target hadn't been Sanemi at all — it had been Ivan. But when he saw that Ivan's eyes had stayed locked on him the entire time, he understood that the speed he was so proud of meant nothing in front of this man.
"Muzan sent you, didn't he."
There was no need to guess. Akaza's sudden appearance definitely had something to do with Muzan. There was no other way he could have jumped from a completely different area and shown up here so abruptly.
He had to have used the power of the Infinity Castle.
After a few seconds of silence, Akaza spoke again. "You're sharp. Yes, Lord Muzan sent me. He told me to deliver this message: if you still can't produce the blue spider lily by tomorrow, he will make the entire Tokyo Prefecture die with you."
At the same time, Muzan's furious roar exploded inside Akaza's head. "Why?! Why didn't you kill that bastard just now?! Akaza… what the hell are you thinking?!"
Half of Akaza's face suddenly cracked open. Blood vessels flooded his eyes in an instant.
"Stop your pathetic screaming already, Muzan."
Ivan walked right up to Akaza. Through the man's eyes, he could almost see Muzan's face twisted in rage.
Zero tolerance for even this much. No wonder people called him a giant baby.
"So what if a few Upper Ranks died? What are you getting so proud about?" Akaza's gaze turned ice-cold. Clearly Muzan had taken control of his body and was speaking through him now.
Ivan gave a cold smile. "True. Just a few Upper Ranks. I'm sure Lord Muzan doesn't care about their lives at all. In that case, why not just call the rest of them over so they can die too?"
"You bastard… you're asking for death!" Enraged beyond reason, Muzan forced Akaza's body to throw a punch straight at Ivan's chest.
Boom!
After the loud impact...
Akaza's fist was stopped cold by Ivan's outstretched right hand.
"Your fighting technique is genuinely trash. Drop the control over Akaza already. Even I'm embarrassed for you."
Haa! Haa!! Inside a room in the Infinity Castle, Muzan's chest heaved violently. His lungs nearly exploded from pure anger.
But he quickly forced himself back to calm.
"Trying to provoke me into coming out to face you? What a ridiculous idea."
Akaza looked around at the Hashira who were gripping their Nichirin Blades, fully on guard, and sneered.
"Think about the hundreds of thousands of lives in Tokyo Prefecture. If I don't see the blue spider lily by tomorrow night, they will all die because of you. Tsk tsk tsk. A Demon Slayer Corps that claims to stand for justice… I'm sure you can't stand by and let that happen.
I'll give you two choices. Either hand the blue spider lily over to me tomorrow night, or work together and kill this Ivan yourselves. Otherwise, just wait for Tokyo to turn into hell, and wait for the ghosts of the dead to ask you why you didn't save them."
Muzan Kibutsuji was planning to attack Tokyo Prefecture?!
What the hell was he trying to do?
Even with his strength, there was no way he could wipe out hundreds of thousands of people in one go.
Kyojuro Rengoku's brows furrowed tightly. He shouted, "Don't try to drive a wedge between us. The Demon Slayer Corps is not something a creature like you can dirty with your words."
"Oh? You think I'm bluffing? Send your Kasugai Crow south and take a look. You'll get a nice surprise."
"Torataro." Kyojuro looked at the crow perched on Mitsuri's shoulder.
Before Akaza arrived, Torataro had been passionately telling Mitsuri about the touching love story between itself and some bird named Rei. The whole thing was made up, of course, but Mitsuri hadn't doubted a word. Her eyes had even gone a little misty.
"Understood." Torataro nodded seriously, then flapped its wings and flew south.
While they waited, worry inevitably appeared in the Hashira's eyes.
They didn't fully believe Muzan's words, but he also didn't look like he was lying.
Please bring back good news.
The Hashira silently prayed.
A few minutes later, Torataro's terrified cries rang out above their heads. "Gah! Gah! Something huge happened! A large area to the south has completely disappeared, like someone just dug it out of thin air! The people who lived there are gone too. I flew around several times and couldn't find them!
I also asked a nearby witness. According to him, after what felt like an earthquake, everyone living in that area, along with their houses, vanished without a trace."
"Well? I wasn't lying, was I?"
The pure coldness in Muzan's voice made every Hashira present feel their hair stand on end.
____
[]~(￣▽￣)~*
Read 12 Advance Chapters—P@t- Captain69