"Demonstration?"
Sakonji Urokodaki stared at the hand Shirakawa Sato held out, the corners of his mouth likely twitching beneath the tengu mask.
"You want to demonstrate the move you just 'realized'?"
"Exactly!"
Shirakawa Sato nodded, his eyes sparkling. Though his face still bore red marks and sweat from the earlier "tug-of-war," his expression was exceptionally serious.
"Master, you'll see! I guarantee it'll give you a shock!"
Sakonji Urokodaki fell silent for two seconds. Looking at the boy's sincere expression and recalling that peculiar pink breathing current from before...
He gave a cold snort but still unfastened the Nichirin short blade from his lower back and handed it over.
"It better be real," Sakonji Urokodaki said, his tone still harsh. "If you're trying to fool me, your training volume when we get back will be tripled."
"No problem!" Shirakawa Sato took the short blade and stood up with a swish, his movements so crisp he looked nothing like the shameless fellow who had just been sprawled on the ground acting like a rogue.
He weighed the short blade in his hand.
The blade was much shorter than a standard Nichirin blade, making it easier to conceal and draw quickly.
But it made sense; Sakonji Urokodaki was a semi-retired old man, after all. It wouldn't be appropriate for him to wander around with a long sword all day.
However, if he truly encountered a demon, he couldn't just ignore it.
Thus, he carried this short blade hidden at his lower back.
But for Shirakawa Sato, the length of the blade didn't matter.
At least, not when using this specific move!
"Watch closely, Master!" Shirakawa Sato turned with a smile, facing the Temple Demon's head that was still pinned to the tree by an axe, its hands flailing.
Temple Demon Head: "..." (He finally noticed me! But... I have an ominous feeling.)
Tanjiro Kamado was still protectively standing in front of Nezuko Kamado, looking a bit upset, but his attention was also drawn by Shirakawa Sato's stance.
He clenched his fists, staring without even blinking.
Shirakawa Sato took a deep breath—it wasn't the crisp, flowing sensation of Water Breathing, but rather... a deep breath carrying a hint of sweet warmth and a subtle, alluring fragrance.
Between his mouth and nose, a faint pink current emerged again, more solid than before.
He held the short blade level in front of him, his left hand gently stroking the blade.
"Color Breathing..."
Amid his whisper, the pink current seemed to be summoned, flowing rapidly from his mouth and nose to wrap around his right arm holding the sword. Then, like a living vine, it climbed onto the hilt, the guard, and finally completely enveloped the short blade!
"First Form..."
Pink aura flickered on the blade, emitting a faint humming sound.
The short blade, originally only the length of a forearm, was now covered by a thick layer of what looked like burning pink energy. That energy continued to extend forward, condensing and taking shape...
In the blink of an eye, a giant energy blade over ten meters long, composed entirely of pink aura, appeared in Shirakawa's hand!
Sakonji: "?!!"
Tanjiro: "!??"
The silhouette of the giant blade vaguely maintained the form of a Nichirin blade. As Shirakawa slowly raised it, the pink light appeared exceptionally brilliant, dazzling, and magnificent against the night sky!
It also reflected the terrified expression of the demon's head beneath the tree and Shirakawa Sato's serious profile.
"No!!! Stop it!!!!"
The demon head's heart-wrenching scream was met only with a cold sneer. "Heh~ too late."
"First Form—Heroine!"
The moment his shout fell, Shirakawa moved!
There was no complex footwork, no dazzling combos—just the simplest, most direct, and most violent move: a vertical slash!
The short blade, covered by the giant pink blade, swung down with a force that seemed capable of splitting mountains!
The first to suffer was the tree where the demon's head was pinned; starting from the crown, it suddenly split open!
The Temple Demon's head roared, its eyes rolling back as it struggled to see what was happening above.
But in the next second, the giant pink blade sliced through the demon's forehead, the bridge of its nose, and its mouth without any resistance...
"No—!!!"
The Temple Demon only had time to let out a short scream of agony before it was cleanly split into two even halves!
It instantly disintegrated into ash.
Tanjiro Kamado's hand axe, which had been wedged in its neck, was also split in two and fell cleanly to the ground.
Yet the momentum of the giant blade did not diminish. As if cutting through butter, amid the roar of the tree trunk snapping, it slammed heavily onto the ground—
BOOM!!!
Dust flew and grass scattered everywhere.
This single strike not only split the demon's head and the tree it was pinned to, but even a massive tree directly behind it—one that would take two people to encircle—was also cut in half!
On the ground, there was a ferocious gully several meters long and half a foot deep!
The soil along the edges of the gully appeared charred black, as if scorched by intense heat, with faint pink particles of light drifting away.
Crack... Boom!
The split trees slowly toppled to either side, hitting the ground with a dull, heavy thud.
Silence.
A deathly silence.
Sakonji Urokodaki stood where he was, his tengu mask facing directly toward the gully and the fallen trees, as if he had turned into a statue.
Beneath the mask, the corner of his left eye twitched uncontrollably.
What... what kind of power was this?!
As a mentor, Sakonji Urokodaki knew very well what Shirakawa's physical strength was like. The power contained in this strike... was absolutely not something he should have been able to produce.
In other words, that giant blade condensed from pink aura didn't just extend the attack range; more importantly, it represented the overwhelming power the move unleashed in an instant!
The force of that blow just now was definitely far beyond that of an ordinary Demon Slayer Corps member, and even... faintly approached the level of a Hashira!
He stared blankly at the panting Shirakawa Sato, his throat bobbing, but he couldn't say a single word.
This kid... this foolish boy who couldn't even grasp the basics of Water Breathing after eight months under his guidance...
Just now, in the short time he was pinned down by the little demon girl, he not only created his own Breathing Style but also... created such a powerful move?!
How is this possible!?
That pink energy of his... just what kind of Breathing Style is it?
Could it be... that I was actually the one holding him back?
Was he a genius all along?
Tanjiro was even more completely dumbfounded.
His mouth hung wide open, his jaw nearly hitting the ground, and his crimson eyes were filled with confusion—Who am I? Where am I? What did I just see?
Human... can human strength really reach such a level?
A single strike... splitting such a thick tree? And carving such a deep gully into the ground?
Is this really something a human can do? Not a demon? Not a god?
While his worldview was being shaken... for some reason, as Tanjiro watched that giant pink blade slash down, he felt a strange sense of familiarity.
The blade becoming massive... the heavy slash...
It slightly overlapped with the way his petite younger sister had suddenly grown larger and then brutally kicked the demon's head away.
Tanjiro Kamado suddenly turned his head to look at Nezuko Kamado, who was still being protected behind him and was also curiously peeking out at the scene.
Nezuko Kamado blinked her large pink eyes, looking at the gully and then at Shirakawa Sato's proud expression. Her small face also seemed to hold a hint of... confusion?
"Ahem!"
Shirakawa Sato suppressed his inner excitement and gave a dry cough, letting the last of the pink energy on the short blade dissipate, returning it to its original form.
He turned around, his slightly pale face carrying an irrepressible smile. (Because he wanted to show off and vent his frustration, he had used all his strength to manifest the blade at its maximum size, leading to heavy exhaustion.)
"Master, how was it? I didn't lie, right?" He handed the short blade back to the still-dazed Sakonji Urokodaki. "This 'Heroine' move of mine is pretty good, isn't it?"
Shirakawa Sato shamelessly took credit for the system's work.
Sakonji Urokodaki took the short blade mechanically, the faint warmth of the hilt bringing him back to his senses.
He looked down at the blade, then up at Shirakawa Sato, then at the gully and the fallen trees...
Only after a long while did he squeeze a few words out: "...It's passable."
But anyone could hear the shock hidden beneath that cold tone.
This kid... might really be a monster.
Tch~ what a stubborn old geezer—saying one thing but thinking another. He won't even give me a word of praise!
Just as Shirakawa Sato curled his lip and complained internally about this old tsundere—
The horizon began to brighten with the break of dawn.