Without the slightest hesitation, facing Tanjiro's surprise attack carried out through self-mutilation, Mitsuba—who no longer had time to dodge—immediately raised her Nichirin Blade, blocking the scorching hot meteor hammer smashing down from above.
Almost at that exact same instant, behind her, the hand axe at the other end of the chain was also pulled toward her, hacking directly at the back of Mitsuba's neck.
Slightly tilting her blade, redirecting the meteor hammer's falling momentum to the side, Mitsuba quickly spun around and delivered an upward slash, sending the hand axe behind her flying away.
But at the same time, from above and behind her, a scorching hot aura immediately followed.
In the perception of the Transparent World, Tanjiro's figure was clearly visible.
While Mitsuba was busy blocking the meteor hammer and hand axe, he had seized the opportunity to once more launch a surprise attack behind her.
Sun Breathing: Tenth Form—Sunshine of the Gods!
The blazing fire dragon smashed down fiercely, but it didn't produce the devastating, unstoppable effect he had anticipated.
The flames on the blade slightly scorched the sleeve of Mitsuba's kimono. At the very last moment before the Nichirin Blade fell, she raised her blade horizontally before her, blocking Tanjiro's strike.
But Tanjiro didn't stop there.
Under the stimulation of adrenaline, enduring the intense pain from his arms, he immediately drew the scorching hot blue Nichirin Blade that hung horizontally at his waist behind him.
[This Nichirin Blade...]
A trace of doubt slightly flashed in her eyes. Mitsuba's gaze quickly glanced at Genya not far away.
She saw that Genya, who should have been pinned to the wall, had now fallen to a sitting position on the ground.
The Nichirin Blade that had been lodged in his chest—Muichiro's blade—was now in Tanjiro's hands.
Sun Breathing: Eleventh Form—Hinokami Kagura: Dance!
Dual-wielding a Nichirin Blade in each hand, Tanjiro exerted himself to his absolute limit, unleashing his techniques and continuously launching close-range attacks on Mitsuba!
"Truly magnificent, little one. It seems you're very clear about where your advantage lies."
Moving her feet, using the Nichirin Blade of Yoriichi in her hand to swiftly block Tanjiro's dual-blade offensive, Mitsuba praised.
The Bright Red Blade—this was Tanjiro's only advantage against Mitsuba right now.
Even as Upper Rank One, without using her Blood Demon Art to rewind, she couldn't withstand the damage dealt by the Bright Red Blade.
Therefore, facing Tanjiro's Bright Red Blade attacks, after temporarily excluding the option of directly killing Tanjiro, she either had to dodge or rely on Yoriichi's Nichirin Blade in her hand to block.
"But little one, the problem now is that you don't seem to be able to break through my defense..."
Squelch!
Before Mitsuba could finish her words, another scene that surprised her occurred.
After several consecutive attacks were easily blocked by Mitsuba, Tanjiro charged forward without hesitation, slamming his own chest onto her Nichirin Blade!
The blood-stained black blade instantly pierced through his chest, emerging from his back!
The exquisite swordsmanship and swift reactions of Mitsuba had both exceeded Tanjiro's imagination.
Even though he had already exerted himself to the utmost, he still couldn't break through her defense.
In that case, as long as he could find a way to restrict her blade, wouldn't that work?
And the best, as well as the only method he could currently accomplish, was to use his own body!
Blood continuously overflowed from his mouth. Waves of intense pain came from his chest. His breathing seemed about to stop. Gritting his teeth, he contracted his muscles, forcibly lodging the Nichirin Blade in Mitsuba's hand within his own body.
"Take this!"
Tanjiro shouted, once more swinging the dual blades in his hands, hacking down forcefully at Mitsuba before him!
"I truly didn't expect you could go this far..."
The flow of time seemed to become extremely slow at this moment. Looking with considerable surprise at Tanjiro before her—covered in wounds all over his body, yet still exerting himself to his absolute limit to launch attacks on her—Mitsuba was first stunned, then a smile of approval appeared on her face.
"In desperate straits, when the body has already reached its limit, that astonishing will can often lead us to break through.
That's enough, little one. You truly surprised me, achieving results beyond my expectations.
I admit, this round is your win. You can be proud of it... Now depart."
Her left hand finally released the Nichirin Blade she held. Mitsuba quickly retreated. While evading the Nichirin Blade Tanjiro swung, a katana formed from her own flesh and blood rapidly took shape in her hand.
Thk—
Raising her hand for a light thrust, the blade tip swiftly and precisely pierced through Tanjiro's heart.
His forward momentum halted. Tanjiro slowly lowered his head. Looking at the blood continuously gushing from his chest, his body—which had only kept going until now on adrenaline alone—finally began to fall.
[Is it... over...]
The two Nichirin Blades in his hands fell to the ground. At this moment, only this single thought surfaced in Tanjiro's mind.
[Gave it everything... yet in the end, still couldn't hurt her...]
"Little one, after you go down and reunite with your comrades, you can proudly tell them that you truly and genuinely won me one round."
"Now, you may depart in peace."
As she said this, just as Mitsuba raised the katana in her hand, wanting to completely end Tanjiro's life—
She saw Tanjiro, lying on the ground, suddenly extend his arm—from which countless beads of blood seeped from every pore—and lightly grasp her ankle.
"Miss Mitsuba..."
Using Breathing Styles to forcibly tighten the muscles around his heart, delaying the arrival of his death, Tanjiro—who couldn't even raise his head at this moment—suddenly asked in his weak voice:
"That day in Tokyo, you told me... that gods exist in this world... Was that... true or false..."
"Of course it's true. His existence has long been confirmed by me."
Temporarily stopping the blade in her hand, Mitsuba replied somewhat puzzled.
She didn't understand why Tanjiro was suddenly asking this.
"You also said... that you wanted to eradicate the Demon Slayer Corps... in order to use that to slay the god... Was that also true..."
"Of course."
"You also said... that you never harbored hatred toward any Demon Slayer... Was that... also true..."
"Of course. You all merely did what you should do from your standpoint. Therefore, I naturally have no reason to hate you.
But Tanjiro, why are you asking me these things? You couldn't possibly... be trying to beg me to spare you?"
Without responding to Mitsuba's question, Tanjiro continued speaking, asking his final question.
"Miss Mitsuba... you said before... that you wanted to make our battle interesting... which is why you played with me for so long...
Then could you please tell me seriously... did my performance just now... meet your expectations?"
"Tanjiro, I've already answered this question. I am very satisfied with your performance."
"In that case... seeing as I satisfied you... could I request one thing from you..."
Clutching Mitsuba's ankle tightly, Tanjiro arduously raised his head bit by bit. With eyes nearly pleading, he looked at her and weakly said:
"If everything you said is true... if you truly accomplish your goal... then after everything settles... I beg you... could you resurrect my comrades... let them live on... as ordinary people...
I know... for you, this is just a trivial matter... I also know this is despicable... shameless... I have no right to demand such things from you...
But this is all I can do right now... Just as you told me that day in Tokyo... in your eyes... they are all puppets who were guided onto this path...
So... Miss Mitsuba... seeing how desperately I fought this battle with you... I implore you... save these puppets as well... many of them... are actually very good people..."
His voice grew increasingly weak, his head also lowering bit by bit. With the fall of these final words, Tanjiro finally collapsed onto the ground, just like that, losing his breath.
"..."
When the first rays of morning sunlight rose, Kocho Shinobu, who had been leaning against the corridor outside the mountain cabin wrapped in a blanket, also opened her eyes once more.
"So sleepy, it's already morning... Seems I accidentally fell asleep last night...
But it's fine anyway. The Blue Spider Lily couldn't possibly bloom in the middle of the night..."
Raising her hand to rub her eyes, she subconsciously glanced at the two mounds of grave soil in the nearby woods, then her eyes suddenly widened.
"Th-that is..."
She saw that at some unknown point, atop those two grave mounds, a dark blue spider lily was quietly blooming, facing the first rays of morning sunlight.
Its petals were crystalline and translucent, as if carved from gemstones—unlike anything of this mortal world.
Throwing off the blanket, she hurriedly got up, even stumbling midway, Shinobu ran to that Blue Spider Lily, crouched down, opened her eyes wide, and carefully examined it.
"It's the Blue Spider Lily?!"