Ryoma felt a sense of crisis he had never experienced before. The power of this move had exceeded his current ability to cope.
Just as he was about to be completely torn apart by that terrifying cutting vortex—
A figure wearing a haori with different patterns on the left and right sides—the left half a tortoiseshell pattern interwoven with yellow, orange, and green, and the right half a red haori—instantly entered the battlefield.
Water Breathing: Eleventh Form: Dead Calm!
In an instant, a domain of absolute tranquility unfolded around him.
All the violent, icy, sharp threads, the moment they entered this domain, seemed to lose all their power, becoming weak, sluggish, and finally quietly falling apart and dissipating.
Rui's pupils constricted violently for the first time, sensing an unprecedented threat. "Who are you?!"
Ryoma collapsed to the ground, exhausted. He panted heavily, a mix of relief and shock from his near-death experience churning in his chest.
Looking at the man in front of him, wearing a haori with different patterns on each side and an indifferent expression, he felt a wave of relief.
"Finally... he's here..."
Water Hashira, Tomioka Giyu!
"You did well to keep him entangled until I arrived. The rest is up to me.'
Giyu didn't even glance at Ryoma, his gaze was completely fixed on Rui.
"Worthless pests who keep getting in my way!" Rui was completely enraged by that calm gaze.
"Hmph, what if he's a Hashira!"
Blood Demon Art: Cutting Thread Rotation!
Countless blood-red thread vortices, thicker and sharper than before, attacked Giyu from all directions, each one was strong enough to easily sever steel. However, Giyu's expression remained as calm as water.
Water Breathing, First Form: Water Surface Slash!
A simple slash, yet it carried unparalleled precision and power.
The slash rippled like water. Wherever it passed, Rui's threads snapped as if encountering a natural enemy.
"Impossible! How could my strongest threads—"
Water Breathing, Third Form: Flowing Dance!
Giyu's figure moved like flowing water between the threads. Every movement was as elegant as a dance, yet terrifyingly deadly.
Ryoma sat on the ground, panting heavily, his eyes fixed on the scene.
Is this the strength of a Hashira?
Indeed, both his physical abilities and sword techniques are still far behind. He was still relying on the advantage of his magic power.
Although it could be combined with Breathing Style, he felt that it couldn't exert its proper power in this world.
"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!"
Rui completely lost his mind.
"You Demon Slayer Corps guys, why do you always destroy my family!"
Blood Demon Art: Murderous Eye Basket!
The entire area was covered in dense threads, like a giant spider web, closing in from all directions, intending to shred everything within the cage to dust.
"I'm going to cut all of you into pieces!"
Facing this overwhelming attack, Giyu finally displayed the true stance of a Water Hashira.
Water Breathing, Tenth Form: Constant Flux!
His body began to spin at high speed, his nichirin blade tracing a perfect arc.
A blue water vortex, composed of countless overlapping slashes, constantly rotating and increasing in power with each layer. All threads that touched this water current were instantly severed, turning into fragments flying everywhere.
"Wh... what kind of monster is this!" Rui's voice was filled with intense fear.
He frantically waved his hands, and more threads gushed from his body. But these attacks, in Giyu's eyes, were like a child's tantrum.
Giyu leaped up, his body flipping in the air, his nichirin blade tracing a perfect circular trajectory.
While neutralizing all of Rui's attacks, he brought his blade down towards Rui's neck.
The moment Giyu landed, he was already behind Rui. Rui's head flew off without any warning, his face still holding an angry expression.
"How could this be..."
Rui's eyes were filled with unwillingness and confusion, his body beginning to disintegrate.
Just before Rui's body completely turned to ash, Ryoma quickly took out the special bottle Tamayo had given him and successfully collected some of Rui's blood.
"...Even creating a false family still couldn't stop the emptiness... In search of a bond... yet unable to touch anything..."
In his final whisper, Lower Rank Five, Rui, dissipated.
Giyu sheathed his blade, then slowly turned his head to look at the injured Ryoma, silent for a moment, then spoke, "How are your injuries?"
Although his tone was still cold, Ryoma could feel the concern within it.
"I'm... I'm alright." Ryoma exhaled a turbid breath.
"Thank you, Giyu-san."
Giyu nodded almost imperceptibly, saying nothing more.
Just then, a gentle voice sounded from not far away.
"Oh my, Tomioka-san is so fast. I thought I'd get to enjoy a more exciting battle, what a shame."
Accompanying the voice, a petite figure wearing a butterfly haori, like a butterfly dancing in the night, quietly landed.
She wore an unchanging smile on her face, with black and purple hair—it was Insect Hashira, Kochō Shinobu.
She was the only swordsman among the nine Hashira who couldn't sever a demon's neck. Although her sword-swinging strength was weaker, her downward pressure and thrusting power were nothing to scoff at. She often used poison extracted from wisteria flowers to kill demons.
As the head of the Demon Slayer Corps' medical facility, Butterfly Mansion, she possessed extensive pharmacological knowledge.
Giyu said concisely, "There are other demons on the mountain that need to be cleared."
"I know." Shinobu smiled and nodded.
Then she looked at Ryoma and said, "This young boy is quite injured, he needs treatment."
Ryoma then realized the extent of his own injuries.
Although he had used cold air to freeze the wounds to stop the bleeding, beneath the temporarily frozen wounds, sharp pain was constantly assaulting his nerves.
"I'm fine, save the others first." Ryoma shook his head, refusing.
If he remembered correctly, there should be at least two more demons here, though neither was strong. But that was only from Ryoma's perspective. Rushing over quickly might save a few more people.
"What a kind child." Shinobu's smile became even gentler.
"However, injured people should receive treatment, that's common sense, you know."
She took a small bottle from her bosom, containing a pale green liquid.
"Drink this, and you'll feel much better."
Ryoma took the bottle, hesitated for a moment, then drank it all down. A warm sensation instantly spread throughout his body, and the pain significantly lessened.
"Thank you."
"You're welcome." Shinobu put away the empty bottle.
"Well then, I'll go take care of the other little troubles. Tomioka-san, I'll trouble you to look after this adorable junior."
Before her words finished, her figure had already flown away like a butterfly, disappearing into the shadows of the forest.
Only Ryoma and Giyu remained at the scene.
The atmosphere was a bit awkward.
Giyu wasn't a talkative person, and Ryoma didn't know what to say either.