When Tomioka Giyu sliced off the last demon's head, the sky was just beginning to pale.
It was an ordinary demon lurking in the southern mountains of the Echigo area, without any special ability—just one that relied on its knowledge of the terrain to hunt travelers.
When Giyu found it, it was gnawing on a corpse, the stench of blood thick in the forest air.
No suspense. With Water Breathing, First Form: Water Surface Slash, the kill was clean and sharp.
He sheathed his Nichirin Sword. The blood droplets on the scabbard dried quickly in the morning breeze, leaving only faint marks behind.
After confirming there were no traces left, he turned and headed back toward the outpost.
Three consecutive days of patrols, three demons slain. The Echigo area's safety would be stable for now.
His steps were unhurried, his mind still replaying the movements of the Hinokami Kagura.
Kamado Tanjuro's breathing rhythm was too unique—long and endlessly looping, carrying a quiet endurance completely unlike the fluid grace of Water Breathing.
Last night he had practiced it in the courtyard until deep into the night, but he still couldn't capture that feeling. Instead, he had only drenched himself in sweat.
"Giyu-sama!"
A hoarse cry snapped him from his thoughts.
He stopped and looked toward the sound.
Suzuki Jiro came stumbling out from the woods, his uniform torn in several places, soaked with blood and dirt.
Bruises mottled his face blue and purple; his left arm hung limp—clearly broken.
His breathing was ragged, every step making him grimace in pain. When he saw Giyu, his eyes filled instantly with tears.
"Giyu-sama…"
Jiro collapsed to his knees in front of him, voice breaking.
"Tanaka-nii… Sato-nii… they… they…"
Giyu's brows tightened at once.
"What happened?"
His voice was low, calm, but carried a sharp undercurrent.
"We… we followed your orders and went to patrol around Hieda Town…"
Jiro's words came out haltingly between shaky breaths.
"When we got to the village, it was just like you said—something was strange. Every house had its doors shut tight, no one answered when we called out. We searched the whole place and found no trace of demons, so we decided to leave…"
He sniffled, his face twisting in fear. "But just as we reached the village gate, the villagers suddenly rushed out! They had hoes, sickles—anything they could grab—and they attacked us!"
Giyu's pupils narrowed slightly.
Villagers attacking Demon Slayer Corps swordsmen? That was far from normal.
"It got worse…"
Jiro's voice trembled harder.
"Behind the villagers… there was a demon! A demon with so many arms! It attacked with them—together with the villagers!"
Humans and demons—working together?
A heavy weight sank into Giyu's chest.
He had slain countless demons. He had seen cruelty, terror, despair, resistance—everything humans could show before death.
But he had never seen humans and demons fight side by side—never seen humans attack those sworn to protect them.
"Tanaka-nii told me to run. He and Sato-nii stayed behind…"
Tears streamed down Jiro's face uncontrollably.
"I looked back once… Tanaka-nii was being pinned by the villagers. The demon's arm… pierced his shoulder… Sato-nii's sword was knocked away… I… I ran… They… they probably…"
He choked, unable to finish, but Giyu understood.
Tanaka Hei—the honest user of Stone Breathing.
Sato Shin—the sharp, skilled wielder of Wind Breathing.
Two swordsmen who had trained under him for a month, showing real improvement at last.
Giyu stood motionless, his body stiff for a moment.
It wasn't the first time he had lost comrades. During the final battle in the Infinity Castle, too many had fallen beside him.
But this time, it felt completely different.
They hadn't died to a demon's fangs—but to human betrayal and a demon's collusion.
A cold fury rose from deep within Giyu's chest, sharp and suffocating.
It wasn't rage that burned hot—it was anger that froze.
He could understand human fear, and even their desperate compromises for survival. But he could never understand—why join hands with monsters that devour their own kind, to attack those who protect them?
Did those villagers not know what demons truly were? Did they really think cooperation could buy them safety? That was stupidity beyond saving.
"Giyu-sama…"
Suzuki Jiro shrank back a little, frightened by the icy look on his face.
He had never seen the calm Water Hashira look like this before. His eyes seemed frozen solid—yet behind that stillness, a storm was waiting to break.
Giyu took a deep breath, forcing down the turmoil inside him.
Now wasn't the time for anger. Tanaka Hei and Sato Shin might still be alive.
He crouched to inspect Jiro's injuries.
The left arm was broken, the rest were bruises and cuts from blunt weapons. Serious, but not fatal.
"Can you walk?"
Jiro nodded hard. "Yes! I can still walk!"
"Go back to the outpost."
Giyu stood, his tone calm but carrying undeniable command.
"Find the medical team from Butterfly Mansion and get treated. Have your wounds cleaned and bandaged. You're not allowed to go anywhere else until I return."
"But… Tanaka-nii and Sato-nii—"
"I'll save them."
Giyu's voice was low but steady, filled with a strength that calmed instead of comforted.
"Staying here will only get in the way."
Jiro clenched his jaw, knowing he couldn't help. He nodded hard, pushed himself to his feet, and limped toward the outpost.
His back looked thin among the trees—heavy with guilt and helplessness.
Giyu watched until the boy disappeared from sight, then turned toward Hieda Town.
The morning sun had risen. Golden light filtered through the trees, scattering unevenly across the ground.
But inside him, everything was cold.
He gripped the hilt of his Nichirin Sword. Its familiar texture steadied his breath.
"Water Breathing…"
The words slipped from his lips as his breathing quickened, sharper, stronger than ever before.
"Fourth Form: Striking Tide!"
His body shot forward, the ground cracking beneath his feet.
He moved through the forest like flowing water, leaves swirling in the wind behind him, forming a fleeting green spiral.
He didn't hold back—every step, every breath pushed Water Breathing to its limit.
Each leap and turn sliced perfectly through the gaps between trees and rocks, his body flashing like blue lightning through the woods.
Jiro's words echoed in his mind.
The villagers' attack… the demon's alliance… Tanaka Hei pinned down… Sato Shin's sword knocked away…
Anger surged again, but this time, he didn't restrain it.
He poured it into his strength—into his breathing, his steps, every pulse of his muscles.
He would reach Hieda Town.
He would find out why those villagers had done this.
He would find the demon that dared to work with humans—and cut it down.
More than anything, he needed to see if Tanaka Hei and Sato Shin still had a chance to live.
Even if that chance was only one in ten thousand—he would go.
Because they were his subordinates. They had followed his command into danger.
He couldn't let them die namelessly, betrayed by both demons and humans alike.
Tomioka Giyu's figure tore through the forest, his deep blue haori whipping violently in the wind like unfurled wings.
Sunlight slid across him in fleeting flashes, vanishing as quickly as it appeared.
Hieda Town drew closer and closer.
He could feel it—that beneath its quiet surface, something twisted and foul was waiting.
He would find out whether it was the fangs of demons… or the malice of humankind.