Demon Slayer: Upper 0 seems to be a waste

For Rinko, this was a situation that was really hard to figure out. There were too many illogical aspects, which made him quite confused.

Tanjiro is not a strong guy, in fact, you could say he is a very weak guy. He is weak, fragile, lacks ability, and is not strong, at least that's how Rinko remembers him.

The boy couldn't keep up with his speed or his movements. When they fought, Tanjiro couldn't even touch him. That's how it should be, and that's how it should be now.

But in reality, the situation before him was not like that at all; what he saw and what he felt were wrong. The boy was radiating a dazzling light, quite different from the candlelight in his memory, even though it hadn't been that long since they last met.

This is an astonishing advancement, so astonishing it seems unreasonable. Even if anger influences emotions and causes a brief outburst in the other party, it doesn't make all of this seem logical.

The moment Tanjiro appeared, Rinko's first reaction wasn't even anger, but surprise—a shock and disbelief at something unexpected happening, as if he shouldn't be standing there, as if the demon fighting Giyu shouldn't be him, and as if he was the one asking, "Was it him who killed them?"

It was like a final attempt to correct all the mistakes; it seemed that Tanjiro felt he shouldn't have been the one to kill.

Rinko didn't know what Tanjiro saw in his eyes, just as he didn't know how Tanjiro should be defined in his eyes. A friend? Would a friend point a knife at him? An enemy? Would an enemy invite him into his home and defend him in front of others? It seemed too contradictory.

Really great.

Rinko had no intention of praising or acknowledging his opponent; he was simply faced with this reality and had no choice but to think this way.

From the moment the Blood Demon Art took effect, Tanjiro and Giyu's performance was different. They showed no panic or confusion. Even though it was unexpected, they quickly adapted. For the briefest moment at the beginning, their movements stiffened slightly, but the raised blades continued to follow their original direction. Even after landing and there were no enemies left, they immediately pressed their backs together, ready to face any enemy.

They realized it was just a blood demon spell. The surrounding environment hadn't changed. They hadn't left, hadn't been locked up anywhere, and it wasn't a dream. Their vision had just been completely obscured, but their bodies were still normal.

And so, incredibly, they continued their attack even after losing sight of each other.

It's incredible.

Even though he couldn't see anything, he could deduce his location by the sound of his footsteps and judge where he was by the slightest movement. Tanjiro seemed to know his location better than Giyu. Why?

Why? Why is it that even when he loses sight of him, Tanjiro is still able to keep up so closely? Why can he pinpoint his location so accurately? Why can he always find him? Even when he constantly adjusts his position and changes direction, Tanjiro is like a wild dog that can't be shaken off once it catches up with you.

Moreover, because of this strange tracking ability, Tanjiro can even provide some guidance to Giyu, who is unable to determine his location, so that the other party can cooperate to attack and chase after him.

He knew that Tanjiro's nose was very useful, and he had some corresponding fragments, sounds, and images in his memory, but could a nose be this useful?

Rinko knew that Tanjiro's nose was incredibly accurate, and that he could find this place not only because of the troublesome crows, but also because of the strong smell of blood. But even so, could the other party find him amidst such a strong smell of blood? Was that reasonable?

Can Tanjiro count how many corpses are here? Can he calculate how much blood is on the ground? Even Rinko herself, her nose is almost useless at this time. What is Tanjiro relying on to make judgments?

But apart from that, it seems there is no more suitable explanation.

It's not because of sound, because he moves without making a sound; it's not because of sight, because his Blood Demon Art completely blocks the visit of light, so they can't see him.

So, setting those aside, even though it sounds absurd, Rinko couldn't help but marvel at Tanjiro's amazing talent—an almost terrifying sense of smell.

Rinko turned slightly to the side, watching Tanjiro catch up almost resolutely not far away. The two swords worked together perfectly, compensating for each other's flaws and weaknesses. After missing, he noticed Tanjiro's nose twitch slightly as he sniffed. Just as he brushed past the other, almost instantly, Tanjiro reminded Giyu to be careful behind them.

Ah, what a troublesome fellow, almost like some kind of natural enemy of his.

But losing sight is ultimately different. If you can't see, you can't see. Even if you can find his approximate location by smell, you can't accurately hurt him. The swings of those blades lose their precise landing points. Even if the coordination is brilliant, it is difficult to actually cause damage. But this does not mean that Rinko can use this to create an advantage.

Because other things have changed.

Tanjiro's sword, the feeling of that sword is different, or to be more precise, it's not the sword, but the swordsmanship. Tanjiro's swordsmanship has changed, and therefore the feeling of that sword has changed.

Rinko was very familiar with Giyu's swordsmanship. He had seen and even learned Water Breathing. Tanjiro had also used Water Breathing before. But now, Tanjiro's swordsmanship had changed. In addition to Water Breathing, he seemed to be using another technique that Rinko was unfamiliar with, a swordsmanship that he had never seen before.

Brand new.

The wind whipped up by the blade was still biting, enough to pierce the skin. But it was no longer cold; it was scalding hot, like fire, as if the air itself had been ignited, like the sun that Rinko had never seen before. The mere passing of the blade was enough for Rinko to feel that astonishing temperature, which seemed to ignite a sense of urgency deep within her blood.

This is dangerous, without a doubt.

But this only made Rinko feel more curious and strange.

Why did Tanjiro improve so quickly?

"Why? Tanjiro was so weak before, but now he's become so strong and has even learned a new sword technique. Why? Is it because these guys are dead? Is it because of those people who died tonight that I don't even know about?"

As Tanjiro charged after her with his sword, Rinko asked softly. The scorching air brushed past her, and she nimbly dodged, bending down and leaning even lower until her body almost touched the floor, in order to avoid another long sword that followed closely behind.

"Is it because of Ubuyashiki's death? He seemed to have said something like that if he died, the Demon Slayer Corps would become more motivated, or something like that. Hmm, what exactly did he say? Oh, I can't quite remember anymore, but whatever he said doesn't really matter, since he's already dead, isn't he?"

The already-polished knife turned at an almost impossible angle after those words were spoken, like a winding dragon chasing after him. Rinko took the opportunity to lift his leg, roll backward, and the moment he touched the wall, he suddenly exerted his strength, kicked the wall to make himself slide off the floor, flipped his body backward, and pushed off with his palms to leap high into the air.

"Mr. Righteousness!"

There was no response, no warning, the cooperation required no sound, no prior communication, and it was simply unbelievable that they couldn't even see each other.

The blade came closer and closer. His body, which was briefly suspended in the air, was out of control. Even though Rinko immediately spun around, he could not dodge the blade that was strong enough to pierce through his body. In order to hit the target, the blade abandoned the neck, which was harder to aim at, and instead pierced through his body. The force was strong, and Rinko was slammed against the wall by inertia. The blade pierced through his body and then through the wooden door, and he was pressed to the ground.

The impact of the blade hitting the ground caused cracks in the floorboards.

"Ah, what an incredible teamwork."

The sudden attack caused damage that forced Rinko to interrupt her Blood Demon Art. Tanjiro's blade caught up almost immediately. This time, it was visible and aimed precisely at Rinko's neck. Rinko could tell.

"You dare insult our lord like that! You evil spirit!"

Giyu pressed the sword down even deeper, one hand gripping the hilt, the other hand and body pressed down on the bottom of the hilt, while Rinko lay on the ground, almost chuckling softly.

"Do you think this is an insult? Does Tanjiro think so too? But I don't think so. He's dead. A dead person has no meaning anymore. He can't feel, he can't hear, he can't see. Dead is dead. Gone forever. That's the end of it all. In the end, he should have died long ago. I find it unbelievable that he could live until tonight. When I saw him, he could barely breathe."

Rinko's voice was so calm. He looked at Giyuu pressing down on his sword, as if he could trap him here. He watched Tanjiro approach from the corner of his eye, as if he was about to kill him.

"I won't allow you to say such insults to our lord!"

So actually, we're not friends, right?

My friend would never do such a thing.

Rinko stretched out his hand, took a deep breath, filled his lungs with air, and gathered his strength. He then kicked Giyuu hard with both legs. Even though Giyuu was on guard the moment Rinko inhaled, the kick was still accurate and ruthless. Giyuu only had time to raise his arm in front of him and didn't even have a chance to take his knife away before being knocked away by the impact.

Before Tanjiro's blade could fall, Rinko disappeared from the ground. The sword missed its mark, leaving only a scratch on the floor. The sound of the blade falling came from behind. The moment Tanjiro turned around, he instinctively raised his sword to block, and his leg struck the side of the blade precisely.

"This is not an insult. Tanjiro, it's the truth."

Rinko spoke expressionlessly.

"Why...why did you say those things..."

Tanjiro was thrown back a distance by the impact. He lowered his head and took deep breaths, seemingly trying to calm himself down from the sudden attack using breathing techniques.

Rinko stood there, looking at him, her head slightly tilted.

"What words."

"Why insult those who sacrificed their lives? Why say things like 'they should have died long ago'? Why say that death is death? Why think that their deaths were meaningless...?"

There were too many questions, and Tanjiro was talking too much. Rinko listened, standing there, seemingly seriously thinking about the answers to these questions, but in reality, he couldn't figure them out because he didn't understand them.

why not?

But he didn't say that, nor did he answer Tanjiro's question. He looked at the boy who was panting with his head down.

He spoke, his voice calm and even.

"And you, Tanjiro, why do you care about their deaths? Why are you so angry about the deaths of people you don't even know? Why, after killing Rui, are you still able to stand in front of me with his belongings?"