Chapter Twenty-Four: Maybe It Really Was the End…
『RYON』
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The cold wind lashed against their faces as they ran at a speed far beyond human limits.
Shinobu Kocho and Tomioka Giyu moved like shadows in the night. The silence between them was unnatural, charged with heavy tension. The information delivered by the crows had been terrifying: "Five Hashira facing one Upper Rank. Situation critical."
"Tomioka-san," Shinobu broke the silence, her voice carrying concern she tried to hide behind her calm tone. "Five Hashira… Rengoku, Sanemi, Uzui, Himejima, and the boy Yukihara. If those five called for reinforcements, then the enemy exceeds our expectations."
Giyu didn't look at her. His gaze remained fixed on the peak of Mount Kumotori, now visible under the pale moonlight.
"No one has ever survived against the Upper Moons. Even the strongest who managed to kill one had to sacrifice their lives to do it… but this time, there are five powerful Hashira."
"Are you saying they'll win… or that they'll need our support?"
"Who knows. Maybe they're already dead, and maybe we'll die with them… or maybe they succeeded and won't need us," Tomioka said, increasing his speed.
"What matters is the demon's death—at any cost."
. .
When they finally reached the mountain's summit, the sight was enough to freeze blood in their veins. The once-towering structure had been reduced to rubble and ruin.
The air around it was saturated with lethal frost that tore at the lungs—air so harsh that even Hashira frowned, knowing that fighting in such conditions would be deadly.
Giyu and Shinobu rushed inside, only to find that the battle had already ended—but the price of victory screamed from every corner.
On the upper floor, the scene shattered hearts. Just looking at it was enough to make sorrowful music play in one's mind.
Rengoku Kyojuro—the man who had never known defeat—was sitting on the ground, ash covering his orange-and-white haori.
He was carefully holding Ren's small body, as if trying to protect it from even the faintest breeze. Ren lay still, his face pale as snow, blood frozen on his forehead and face… and around that horrifying hole in his chest.
Tomioka Giyu stopped in place. His eyes widened as he looked at the boy who had become a Hashira only a short time ago.
The talented boy who had become a Hashira and declared he would become the strongest.
As for Shinobu, her artificial smile vanished instantly. She ran toward Ren and dropped beside him, her medical instincts moving before her emotions.
"Make way!" Shinobu shouted as she placed her trembling fingers on Ren's neck. "He has a pulse… very weak, but he's still fighting death! Kakushi! Bring the equipment immediately!!"
While Shinobu was fully focused on stopping the bleeding, the other Hashira withdrew to the shattered balcony. Silence enveloped them—the silence of victors who felt defeated.
Tomioka Giyu approached Tengen Uzui, who was bandaging his wounds with a frown deeper than ever before. Chaotic emotions raged behind his jeweled eyes like a violent storm.
Giyu stood before him in his usual silence, but his eyes demanded an explanation.
"Tell me," Giyu said in a low, hoarse voice. "How did it end like this? How did Ren end up in this state while he was with you?"
Tengen let out a deep sigh and looked at his bloodstained hands. "It was hell, Tomioka. That demon… Doma… wasn't just a demon. He was the embodiment of power. Our coordinated attacks, my speed, Himejima's strength, Rengoku's flames, Sanemi's assaults—none of it was enough to sever his neck. He regenerated at lightning speed and turned the air into frozen poison that weakened us little by little."
Tengen paused for a moment, pain clear in his voice. "I regret it… I'm the Hashira who prides himself on strength and speed, yet I stood there helpless while that child did what we couldn't bring ourselves to do…"
"Ren… he read the flow of the battle and understood that we wouldn't win the conventional way. The moment Doma released his ultimate technique, Ren charged straight at the ice spear. He didn't hesitate, and he didn't fear death… he allowed the spear to pierce him to pin Doma in place."
Tengen clenched his fist until it nearly shattered. "Ren looked at us while bleeding and asked for a single chance. That resolve… that terrifying aura that erupted from him in his final moments… he sacrificed his very existence to give us the chance to kill the demon. I blame myself… how could I let a mere child carry our burden?"
"If only I hadn't hesitated… if only it had been me instead of him…" Tengen sighed.
Tomioka silently watched Tengen, his turbulent emotions reflected in his eyes. Tengen—who had never hesitated.
Tengen—who had never lost his pride, confidence, or smile, even in the face of death—was now trapped in an endless loop of regret.
. .
Shinobu emerged from the room after managing to stabilize Ren's condition temporarily. Seeing Giyu speaking with Tengen, she approached with quiet but unsteady steps.
"Tomioka-san," Shinobu called. "Tell me what Uzui-san said. I want to know everything."
Giyu looked at her, then turned away in silence and walked off to sit alone in a dark corner. His refusal stirred Shinobu's suppressed anger, so she turned to Gyomei Himejima, who was silently crying while moving his prayer beads.
"Himejima-san, please… who was that demon?"
Gyomei sighed, his voice shaking the space around them. "It was Upper Rank Two, little one. A monster without a heart or emotions. He killed many—and would have killed us all if not for Yukihara-shōnen's sacrifice."
Shinobu froze. "Upper Rank Two?" she whispered, a shiver running through her body. She turned to Tengen and asked in a hesitant voice,
"Uzui-san… please, describe that demon's appearance in detail. Did he… did he have two golden fans?"
Tengen looked at her in surprise. "Yes. Golden fans, sharp like blades… and multicolored eyes with his rank engraved in them. How do you know?"
The words struck Shinobu like lightning. She staggered back, rooted in place, her head spinning as memories flooded her mind.
The image of her older sister Kanae dying in her arms—describing that demon in exact detail and begging her to run if she ever encountered him.
But Shinobu never intended to run. She had wanted to meet him and kill him with her own hands. She wanted to poison him to death and make him suffer slowly until he vanished.
"So… he's dead," Shinobu murmured faintly, her eyes hollow. "The one who killed my sister… Kanae's killer… died by Ren's hand?"
Shinobu began to laugh—a broken, hysterical laugh—as tears streamed down her face. "For years… I planned my own death. I was ready to leave everything behind for revenge… but Ren… that child… he did it."
Tengen looked at her with gentleness mixed with bitterness. He saw the confusion and shock on her face, and how the victory she had longed for tasted nothing like she imagined.
Tengen sighed and stepped away. The shocks were piling up on everyone, and no one had the strength left to comfort another.
. .
Orders arrived from headquarters to immediately transport Ren to the Butterfly Mansion. The carriage was ready, and the Kakushi carried Ren with extreme care, as if they were carrying humanity's last hope.
As the carriage moved under the light of dawn, the Hashira walked behind it in complete silence. Rengoku didn't say a word. Sanemi stared at the ground with an unusual calm. Giyu watched the road in silence.
Shinobu walked beside the stretcher, holding Ren's cold hand and constantly checking his condition. Gratitude tore at her heart, while sorrow shattered her soul.
Ren had killed the monster that destroyed her life—but now he was paying the price, trapped in a coma he might never awaken from.
Gyomei looked up at the sky, where the sun was finally beginning to rise, and murmured softly,
"The sun has risen… but the light doesn't feel bright today."
On the edge of the carriage, Ren lay completely still, as if his soul had already departed to reside in distant memories of the past.
Maybe this truly was the end…
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End of Chapter Twenty-Four.
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