Demon Slayer : Breath of The Forest

"Shin... Shinichi... you..."

Shinobu eyes widened, her voice trembling.

It wasn't just because of Shinichi body pierced by ice pillars, but also because of his now-terrifying appearance.

The gentle peach hue of his right eye had completely transformed into a savage crimson filled with murderous intent.

The sharp fangs protruding past his lips made Shinichi once-handsome face appear terrifyingly distorted.

Through the torn uniform, Shinobu could see Shinichi skin beneath had turned bright red, with veins seemingly visible beneath the surface.

His entire body radiated an alarming, intense heat.

A guttural sound emerged from his throat.

Under Shinobu's horrified gaze, Shinichi extended a hand tipped with black claws and grasped the ice pillar impaling his chest.

The moment his scorching hand made contact with the freezing ice, a sizzling sound erupted as plumes of steam burst forth.

Crack! Snap!

One by one, the ice pillars were snapped off by Shinichi and casually tossed aside.

Only then did everyone notice—in Shinichi other hand, he clutched the tiny ice head of Douma's miniature ice clone.

Crunch!

The miniature ice head was instantly crushed to powder.

The transformed Shinichi let out a deep, guttural roar at Douma! The terrifying aura unique to a Demon exploded forth.

Blood Demon Art: Raging Blood—Second Stage!

Douma had never encountered such a situation before.

Even with his usually erratic thought process, seeing a Hashira of the Demon Slayer Corps suddenly transform into a Demon right before his eyes—and seemingly a powerful one at that—left him utterly bewildered.

"Ah... huh? You... a Demon? Lord Muzan? A spy?" Douma scratched his head, his rainbow-colored eyes spinning in confusion as if little circles were swirling within them.

But Douma wasn't the only one stunned.

Holding her severely injured unconscious sister, Shinobu, who had just witnessed Shinichi's transformation into a Demon, was equally shocked.

How?!

How could this be?!

How could that blockhead Shinichi suddenly become a Demon?!

It's impossible! Impossible!

A voice screamed relentlessly in Shinobu's mind.

She refused to believe that Shinichi, who had lived alongside them day and night, could be a Demon.

How could Shinichi possibly be the same kind of creature as the ones who had slaughtered her parents?!

Yet no matter how desperately Shinobu's heart screamed in denial, the undeniable truth stood before her—Shinichi, radiating the overwhelming aura of a Demon.

Tears welled up uncontrollably in Shinobu's violet eyes once more.

She didn't even know why she was crying.

Was it for Shinichi's hidden identity? Or was she mourning something else entirely?

Did Shinobu hate Demons? Of course she did!

She loathed the Demons who had murdered her parents with every fiber of her being.

She had never believed in her sister's ideal of befriending Demons.

But now, faced with Shinichi...

"Go, Shinobu! Take Kanae and run!" A hoarse voice forced its way out of Shinichi's throat, as if the words were ripped directly from his vocal cords.

Seizing the moment while Douma was still dazed, Shinichi urgently tried to get Shinobu to escape with Kanae.

But Shinobu stood frozen, her violet eyes staring blankly at him, as if her soul had left her body.

"ROAR!"

A flash of crimson light ignited in Shinichi right eye.

He was growing desperate—Douma was incredibly strong.

Even in his Raging Blood state, Shinichi wasn't confident he could escape unscathed, let alone protect the Kocho sisters.

As for exposing his identity in front of Shinobu, Shinichi could no longer care about that.

The most important thing now was to survive!

Turning around, he reached out and grabbed Shinobu collar, pulling her face abruptly close to his.

The scorching intensity of his breath made it difficult for her to breathe.

"Go! Leave this to me! Take Kanae and live!"

With that, Shinichi steeled himself and shoved Shinobu away forcefully.

At that moment, Douma seemed to finally catch on.

His rainbow-colored eyes locked onto Shinichi, the curve of his smile widening as his tone grew increasingly playful.

"Splendid, truly splendid! How amusing—I had actually considered turning you into a demon, yet here you are, already one~ I didn't even notice, ah~ How shameful. But since we're of the same kind, why not join the Twelve Kizuki? With your strength, I think you could even challenge Gyokko in a Blood Battle for position~ And these two adorable girls can be your meal too~"

As he spoke, Douma extended his hand toward Shinichi with a smile, as if sincerely offering friendship.

"Take care of Maru-ni for me. And... smile more often. Shinobu, when you smile, you're truly adorable." Shinichi voice was hoarse as he left Shinobu with those final words.

Then, with a sudden stomp—BOOM!!—the earth trembled violently.

Clenching his fists, he shot forward at blinding speed, closing the distance to Douma in an instant.

"Ah~ What a pity. It seems you've rejected me. Being turned down feels so unpleasant, how heartbreaking~" Douma remained grinning, but his reflexes were razor-sharp.

He swiftly retreated while unleashing two Blood Demon Arts in the blink of an eye.

"Blood Demon Art: Freezing Clouds~ Blood Demon Art: Frozen Lotus~"

His golden war fan swept through the air, summoning a storm of icy mist and countless razor-sharp frozen petals that surged toward Shinichi.

Facing Douma's assault, Shinichi roared with an inhuman fury.

"Come!! Blood Demon Art: Rakshasa Rampage!!"

A technique he never used in battle—Shinichi burning body suddenly radiated hues of emerald green and blood-red.

Blood-soaked green thorns erupted violently from beneath Shinichi's skin, from within his very veins, writhing like hellish tendrils from the abyss.

As he charged, the thorns lashed out wildly, clashing against Douma icy barrage in a cataclysmic collision.

The deafening clash of razor-sharp ice and thrashing thorns created an indescribable shockwave, the screeching impacts fiercer than any storm.

CLANG! CRASH!!

Douma grinned, watching Shinichi close in on him.

A crack had formed on his golden war fan.

Though his expression remained composed, for the first time in his existence, Douma felt a flicker of surprise.

Not even during his Blood Battle for position of upper moon against Akaza a century ago had he felt this way.

It wasn't that Shinichi's strength surpassed Akaza—rather, it was the sheer contrast of his sudden transformation, combined with power rivaling an Upper Moon, that left Douma slightly astonished.

As a result, Douma overlooked the Kocho Sisters on the battlefield.

However, compared to two adorable and "delicious" girls, he felt that bringing this little one before Lord Muzan might be more meaningful~

Hmm~

Taking this interesting little one to Lord Muzan is such a good idea.

And with a personality so similar to Akaza, I'm sure Akaza would be very pleased too.

Thinking this, Douma slightly raised his head, his multicolored eyes dimming slightly.

But those familiar with him would know—he was about to go all out.

"Blood Demon Art: Cold White Princesses!"

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