Demon Slayer : The Silent Journey

[3rd POV]

The human was not weak.

He was not particularly strong either but Muzan concluded that the human was far from being a vulnerable prey.

It was nothing worth a real threat, but Muzan could understand now - how this human was killing his Upper Moons.

Even without his true form, Muzas was superior in every aspect which is important for combat. He was faster, stronger, smarter, and more experienced, and he could heal from injuries considered fatal by human standards in the blink of an eye.

Yet somehow, they were fighting on equal ground.

The human just understood fighting. That was the only way Muzan could describe it.

They shot around the forest like living bullets, razing the trees down and leaving a trail of destruction in the wake of their battle. Somehow the weaker and slower human could keep up with the battle.

No, it would be more correct to say that the human was winning the fight. Muzan was simply covering up every mistake he made with his regeneration. Thus making the fight equal.

If not for that he would've died ten times over. A hundred times even.

Although impressed, Muzan also felt annoyance brew in his heart, which is why in the very next moment, demonic markings started appearing on his body and he felt a surge of his true power in his veins.

Doing that was akin to releasing a handcuff. He felt his power free from the confines of self-suppression, and he allowed it to run wild.

But in the next exchange, Muzan did not find the overwhelming advantage of power. Instead, he found that he was repelled by just as powerful of an attack.

'Demon Slayer mark' Muzan observed the markings that appeared on the human. 'A cheap imitation of the demon mark on a human,'

Yorihii was born with it but other humans could acquire it by sacrificing their lifespan over 25. Demons faced no such problems because they were practically immortal.

Clicking his tongue in annoyance, Muzan manipulated his arm to turn it into a sharp blade and he blitzed at the human. He mowed down the towering trees like they were grass and he came upon the human like an unrelenting force of nature.

*BOOM!!!*

And yet....

"Thunder Wind Breathing," Muzan heard the faintest whisper amid the explosion.

Muzan was aware of the breathing techniques that humans often used to fight demons. But he had never heard of a particular style that combines two elements. So he threw out a tendril made of blood to test the water.

You didn't survive hundreds of years without being cautious.

Muzan's demonic eyes widen and his pupil shook at the scene he beheld. The human blurred into an afterimage. It was so fast that Muzan himself was barely aware of it it even after unleashing his full power.

Such raw speed.

By the time he marvelled at the sheer speed, the attack was already done. The human was already behind him, Muzan could feel the heat on his skin. It was like the human teleported in an instant.

There was no sound, no disturbance in the air nor an image to be seen. By the time Muzan's five brains process what happened, it already happened. He was only just fast enough to know how he was sliced apart.

The world was even slower to react. It started from the long tendril he shot at the human. The rope of blood was sliced right in the middle and when it finally reached his arm, it carved a nasty circular line.

The line extended, curving and flowing all over his body before those lines erupted. It was like many zippers materialized on his body and they opened up.

That day, Muzan got to experience first-hand the fastest Breathing Style in existence, It was easily faster than even the likes of Sun Breathing.

To be completely honest, even the human had no control over himself while using the technique and all actions were predetermined.

"AHHHHHH!!!" A guttural scream erupted from Muzan when he felt the searing pain in his body. It was then that he realized the lines on his body were not random at all. They all targeted his vital organs, his five brains and seven hearts.

Only half of them were damaged but that act alone spoke volumes of the danger the human posed to him.

"You..!!!" Muzan chanted with immense hatred and his red eyes burned upon the enemy.

Now Muzan changed his mind on how he saw the human. He no longer saw a mortal with adequate strength.

He saw danger, he saw a threat.

A human that had somehow mastered violence.

"Seiji Shigan," Muzan spat out in acknowledgement.

The last time he called out a human by their name in acknowledgement was five hundred years ago.

Yoriichi Tsugukuni.

And now Seiji Shigan.

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[Seiji's POV]

"Muzan Kibutsuji," I cursed out his name in return.

I felt my body heat up to unhealthy temperatures. It was like I had ten layers of fever, but instead of being sick, it filled me with unmatched vigor.

I had prioritized only speed in my last attack and it showed. My attack barely did any damage to the demon lord. A cut like that was akin to a scratch to him.

I was trying to cut through him but I had to resort to craving at his weakness instead. The violent nature of Wind Breathing still showed though, as Muzan's wound exploded in blood and flesh.

Wind Breathing could make a sharp blade violent like a chainsaw.

Right after that, a shockwave erupted. A high-pitched sound that managed to tickle my dead ears, exploded. They could break any glass.

Sound finally caught up to us and it declared my attack way after it was already done. That was one characteristic of Thunder Wind Breathing.

There was no exchange of attacks after that and we both landed on the ground with a thud. Muzan held his stomach and bent over. His wounds were already healed and the markings in his body grew redder and covered more of his body.

His current appearance was pretty tame compared to what he looked like in the final battle in the manga. His hair was still back and other than the markings and the demonic eyes, there were no flesh configurations yet.

'So he is transforming,' I concluded in my mind when I saw him bending over and his demon marks grew.

Before those thoughts even finished in my mind, my body was already moving. I would be one stupid motherfucker to stay still while he transformed into something I could not fight.

"Storm Breathing : First Form," I bit out and moved at a speed almost equalling Thunder Wind Breathing.

"Tempest Fury!!"

My body did not resist nor hesitate as I executed the movement like it used to. Instead, it was roaring with life, as if encouraging me to use more powerful moves. It was fully embracing what I wanted it to be - a battle machine.

I did not need comfort, I did not need to store energy for later use nor did I need to care what my own strength would do to my body.

Just fight.

And I did. The ferocity and the ease at which I moved was a far cry from when I would still every time I use three breathing styles at once.

This time, I minced the Demon Lord into tiny pieces of flesh.

The earth shattered and everything in the vicinity was ripped apart. When I stopped a few meters away I only left a hollow land devoid of life. Even the algae undee a layer of snow was sliced apart.

But Muzan somehow remained in one piece.

I gritted my teeth.

My attacks landed and I minced him into tiny pieces but his body healed before it could have the chance to fall off. He was already done healing half his injuries by the time my attack was done.

I see now.

So that's why Sun Breathing and a red blade is needed to finish him. Muzan healed far too quickly.

Nevertheless, my attack seemed to piss him off beyond words. I knew this because of my eyes. Outwardly, he looked calm and stoic, like my attacks did not even bother him.

"Your attacks are strong but...futile," he said and then I saw his shoulder muscles move as if they were alive.

His deltoid muscles ripped themselves from their insertion. The muscle elongated and turned into a tentacle that had a blade made of bones at the end.

The rope of muscle moved like a whip, many times faster than the speed of sound. Normal civilians could make a whip move faster than sound so imagine what the Demon Lord could do.

It was fast enough to appear like a blur to my eyes. But fortunately, they were predictable. My eyes could predict where they would hit from the beginning of the tentacle when the speed was not as fast.

I shifted my blade to block the attack and a bright spark was produced. It was so bright that it almost looked like a flashbang. I also noticed my sword chipping at the impact.

'Not good,'

Then the tentacle blurred into speed and delivered around a hundred strikes in one second. It was an insane speed that could not be put into words.

I lept away from my position immediately and I was glad to see that the tentacle had a range.

But that relief was broken and the frustration doubled when Muzan burst into speed. My eyes also saw that the other shoulder ripped itself out from his arm to create another tentacle.

I branded my sword in front of me, its giant length covered much of my body and I was glad I chose a long sword as my main weapon.

"Thunder Wind Breathing : Flash,"

It was like fireworks happening in the dark and chilling forest. Our battle was no longer as destructive as before since we did not focus on power.

Instead, it was now a battle of speed.

My title as the faster Hashira was being tested.

The quick impact of our clash was so fast that it released constant vibrations that looked like soundwaves. I imagined it would sound like an engine to others, a literal roar of the battle.

I could feel my body tightening as the battle went on. Even a few seconds of the battle was intense enough to wear me down.

I could only hope that Raven had delivered her message and he was on his way.

That's right.

The plan was never to try and defeat Muzan alone in the first place. It was not me against Muzan.

This war was humans against Demons.

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[IMAGE]

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Author : You doublee the stones. Very funny