He likes devouring strong people but is uninterested in women.
Mizuki thought this guy would probably get along well with Douma.
After reviewing the situation in her mind, Mizuki asked the question she cared about most.
"Are there any other dojos in the city?"
The young girl shook her head.
Mizuki's brow furrowed slightly, but she recovered instantly.
There's no need.
Since the opponent was a martial artist, his Blood Demon Art shouldn't be too different.
He should be the kind of character who fights fist-to-flesh.
Although it was a pity she arrived too late, she didn't leave completely empty-handed.
After asking her questions, Mizuki slowly stood up.
The young girl quickly wiped her face and looked up at her.
Although she said nothing, Mizuki understood her meaning.
After a moment of silence, Mizuki said, "If... if you can live past seventy, I can bring you news of its death."
It was already the late Edo Period. Her Japanese history wasn't great, but she knew the story of the Meiji Restoration.
The Taisho Period wouldn't begin until the early twentieth century.
This meant the girl in front of her would have to live to at least seventy or eighty to potentially see the Conclusion of Demon Slayer.
These unexpected words stunned the young girl for a long time.
Mizuki lowered her eyelids slightly and turned to walk out of the house.
"Wait!"
The young girl called out, stopping her.
Mizuki glanced sideways.
The young girl gritted her teeth and asked, "Are you serious?"
"I am."
"I'll be right here!" The young girl clenched her hands, her tone becoming resolute. "No matter how many years it takes, I won't leave this place!"
"My father's dojo, I won't let it vanish!"
"...I understood."
Mizuki nodded slightly and turned to leave the dojo.
As she reached the door, her steps suddenly paused. She turned back and asked, "By the way, did that demon ever say his name?"
"Akaza! My father called out his name before he died."
Mizuki's mind went blank for a moment.
How did she confuse 'Ji' and 'Yi'?
Even if she only recognized half the character, it should still be read 'yi', right?
After thinking it over, it could only be those weird netizens.
She was originally just a casual viewer, yet short videos managed to mislead her. Wasn't this just increasing the difficulty for her?
Now, she was starting to doubt the other information recorded in her little notebook.
Mizuki sighed inwardly and left without looking back.
It wasn't that she had a hard heart.
The tragedies caused by demons were countless.
The Demon Slayer Corps' legacy continues fundamentally because demons are constantly preying upon the human world.
Those who lost family and friends because of them wished they could eat his flesh and drink his blood.
Seeing so much without being able to change anything can lead to depression.
Did every generation of Demon Slayer Corps members die with regret, having failed to fulfill the lifelong wish of killing Kibutsuji Muzan?
Everyone harbors the wish to defeat demons and save the common people; they certainly aren't sacrificing themselves for nothing.
One day, the people harmed by demons will plunge blades into his chest, tearing his body apart... The journey to find the Upper Ranks was not easy. In the hundred-plus years since parting with Tamayo, aside from running into Douma, the only other close call was nearly finding Akaza.
Besides that, she had never encountered any other Upper Ranks.
She did deal with two Lower Ranks, and because they were causing too much trouble, Mizuki sent them straight to heaven after locating them.
This was a roundabout way of alleviating pressure on the Demon Slayer Corps.
Decades passed in a flash, and time finally reached the twentieth century.
The era Mizuki had been waiting for.
The era of the Taisho Nine Hashira and Tanjirou.
The era capable of killing Muzan.
At this point in time, she wondered if Tanjirou had been born yet.
One day, this thought suddenly popped into Mizuki's mind and quickly spiraled out of control.
Mizuki, who had wandered this land for countless years, once again found a temporary destination.
She pinpointed the direction of the Sumiyoshi family and traveled there, climbing mountains and fording rivers.
After several centuries, many changes had occurred.
The town below the mountain had developed; even utility poles were erected, and the town was visibly prosperous.
It was winter; the world was draped in silver, covered in white snow.
The thin, cold air entering her lungs dissipated much of the pent-up frustration in Mizuki's heart.
Using the moonlight, Mizuki climbed up the mountain.
Hundreds of years had changed the mountain path significantly, but the Sumiyoshi family's Ancestral Home should not have moved, so as long as she found the direction from her memory, the rest was up to time.
When she encountered an impassable road, Mizuki leaped up as if pulling a scallion from dry ground.
Her formidable physical constitution allowed her to easily achieve an effect similar to 'Qinggong'.
A tiny flicker of fire appeared in her field of view, expanding steadily as she advanced.
Was that the Hinokami Kagura Dance?
Hundreds of years ago, she had watched a descendant of Sumiyoshi demonstrate the Sword Forms of Sun Breathing.
Standing in the dark woods, using the trees for cover, Mizuki looked toward the clearing.
The house from hundreds of years ago had changed considerably, but its location remained the same.
In the clearing, a man wearing ceremonial attire had white paper with the character 'Flame' stuck to his face.
He was tirelessly brandishing a ceremonial implement in his hand, performing a dance in the snow.
Hinokami Kagura... or rather, Sun Breathing... How could the twelve Sword Forms be passed down so accurately?
This wasn't the result of one generation's effort or talent.
It was almost like... the will of a god.
Mizuki also saw through the man's physical condition.
It was terrible; he didn't have many years left to live.
It wasn't much different from when she was half-dead, maybe slightly better.
Mizuki's first reaction was:
That must be Tanjirou's father.
Mizuki tried hard to recall anything about him, but she could only remember what she had written down in her book.
During Tanjirou's fight with Lower Rank Five, Rui, a life review helped Tanjirou learn Sun Breathing.
Besides that, she couldn't recall anything, and she had even forgotten what Lower Rank Five looked like.
Mizuki's mind was blank when she suddenly realized the man's breathing frequency was surprisingly good.
Under the scrutiny of the Transparent World, he had somehow mastered the Breathing Technique to this degree without formal instruction.
The Breathing Technique allowed his body to persevere almost perfectly.
Hmm?
Two people, one tall and one short, suddenly walked out of the snow-covered house.
Mizuki's eyes automatically ignored the tall figure, focusing intently on the smaller one.
Human memory usually lasts only a few decades or even less.
Even elementary school classmates she played with for six years—when recalling the past twenty years later—she couldn't remember a single clear face.
But even after several centuries, Mizuki still remembered what Tanjirou looked like.
There was no other reason.
He was the protagonist.
He could defeat Muzan.
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