Chapter 146 Unfavorable Development

"Wait, Ootori, please stop! Open the doors to customers, I'll teach them a lesson."

A man ran over, trembling as he knelt on the ground, drawing the attention of Daki and Ichiro. The man didn't look up, and even in that movement, Ichiro could see the beads of sweat on his brow.

"Please, for my sake..."

Daki looked at him, gave him a kind smile, released Ichiro's face, and pressed her hand on his shoulder.

"Boss, please look up. I should apologize. I've had a lot of frustrating things lately, and I was indeed too harsh on the new kid."

After speaking, she turned around and looked closely at Ichiro, sending chills down his spine. Ichiro could sense an extremely dangerous aura, but he had to suppress his body's defensive reactions so that she wouldn't discover that he was a member of the Demon Slayer Corps.

"I need to get ready, so hurry up and get me all dressed up."

Daki could feel the changes in Ichiro's muscles through her palm, but she didn't notice anything. She released her hand and gave instructions to the others.

The scene immediately stirred because of her words. Ichiro slowly left with the crowd. Judging from the boss's appearance, he must know something.

This female ghost is no ordinary being; she must be an Upper Moon demon. He needs to tell Uzui Tengen. He glanced in the direction Zenitsu was taken away, thinking that Daki was still getting ready.

There shouldn't be any problem. I'll go over and keep watch after I'm done with my work.

On the other side, Yoriichi Tsugikuni walked slowly down the street. The pitch-black night made this magnificent yet decaying place come alive, and the crowd grew larger and larger.

He looked at the unremarkable street and could feel a faint, pervasive aura, not strong, but enveloping every place he walked.

As soon as Jikuni Yori turned around, he walked through the bustling streets and into the more secluded areas. The pervasive aura gradually faded, and just as he was about to turn into another alley, he sensed the presence of a ghost.

"This is?"

Following the scent, Yoriichi Tsugikuni came to a dilapidated house, where he could see many women lying on the beds.

Here... He looked around and came to a house. The dilapidated wooden house had many patches on it. Yoriichi saw the ribbons swaying beside the weak woman lying inside.

An ordinary person might think it's just a hoax, but Yoriichi could tell.

Those are ghost items.

Yoriichi reached for his waist, but didn't feel the familiar touch. He then realized that his weapon wasn't on him.

Let's go find Mr. Yu Sui first.

Ji Guoyuan glanced at the house, then turned and headed towards the bustling street. Since he was mainly assisting, it would be more appropriate for him to go find the person in charge of the mission.

——

Yan Sheng silently watched the boy sitting opposite him, his black hair carefully combed, as he slowly turned the pages of the book in his hand.

At this moment, Yan Sheng was truly grateful for his intuition. He hadn't expected Muzan Kibutsuji to suddenly come looking for him; it was completely out of the blue.

If he hadn't quietly re-established contact after leaving Momoyama, his ability to cut off the investigation would have been exposed. Thinking of this, he felt a cold sweat break out. He glanced at the other person and saw Muzan Kibutsuji pause in his book-flipping motion.

"Kuroshibo, you seem to have developed a strong interest in the Demon Slayer Corps lately?"

The boy turned his head, his red, vertical pupils looking at him with a calm expression, making it impossible for Yan Sheng to tell whether he was angry or not.

"I had no such thing as a subordinate; it was just... a coincidence."

Iwakatsu knew that Doma was unreliable. Fortunately, he sent Kaigaku back to Momoyama. If that scoundrel had seen him with another oni, it would have been all over.

"Yeah?"

Kibutsuji Muzan narrowed his eyes. He wasn't interested in such things. He looked at Iwakatsu, who still looked the same as he remembered.

It has to be said that Yan Sheng's existence brings him joy. No matter how strong he is, what he cares about is still in my hands.

Humans are fragile beings, and even that monster is essentially just a human.

Iwakatsu didn't know why Kibutsuji Muzan was suddenly in a good mood, but he was relieved. Knowing the scumbag boss as he did, he probably wouldn't come looking for trouble in this situation.

"Kuroshibo, Daki told me she captured a member of the Demon Slayer Corps. Do you think she can find out anything from him?"

Muzan Kibutsuji asked casually. He had just left Yoshiwara and suddenly remembered Iwakatsu. To be honest, he didn't know why he wanted to see him, but that didn't stop him from doing whatever he wanted.

Iwakatsu paused for a moment. "Mei's side? If I remember correctly, Tanjiro and the others' next stop is Yoshiwara, the entertainment district."

He looked up at Muzan Kibutsuji, who was still turning the pages of his book, and suddenly felt a little sorry for him; he didn't have much time left to live.

"I believe... the Demon Slayer Corps' location is not so easily exposed, after all, the enemy... also has the ability to foresee."

Iwakatsu carefully considered his answer to Kibutsuji Muzan.

"Yeah, what a nuisance, those annoying ants."

Muzan Kibutsuji was aware of this, but the reason the Demon Slayer Corps had existed for so many years was not only because of the other side's caution, but also because he didn't care.

So what if he's a demon killer? He can't even beat the Upper Moon demons anyway. Muzan Kibutsuji has only one goal: to find the Blue Spider Lily.

"Then go and see Daki, and while you're at it, have her take care of those annoying ants."

"yes……"

After receiving Iwakatsu's reply, Kibutsuji Muzan nodded before getting up to leave. Iwakatsu watched the wooden door disappear and couldn't help but rub his temples. He felt somewhat exhausted, probably because he hadn't eaten for a long time and was feeling weak.

The daytime light can seep through the gaps to inform others, and even if Iwakatsu is indoors and everything is blocked out, he can still tell that the sun has risen.

It's truly dazzling.

He slumped onto the sofa, feeling drowsy. Living alone made it easy for him to lose track of time, only remembering it when the seasons changed.

He should rest for now and go see Mei tonight. Yan Sheng thought to himself, and slowly closed his eyes.

Come to think of it, I've been awake for so long and I still haven't seen Mei or Gyutaro.

Iwakatsu still remembered what 1008 said: the timeline had been restored. If the original timeline were followed, they would have only been ghosts for a little over a hundred years, and Iwakatsu wasn't sure if they still remembered him.

Oh well, we'll meet tonight anyway.

Kokushi didn't think about it anymore; he was just going to check on the child. But honestly, if he had known that Tanjiro and the others had already arrived in Yoshiwara, he would never have gone.

Yoshiwara during the day is different from at night; there are hardly any people, the shops are closed, and many people are asleep.

Yoriichi Tsugikuni leaped onto the roof and saw Tanjiro talking to Inosuke. He went up to him, saw no one else, and stood there waiting.

"Yoriichi-san!" Tanjiro greeted Yoriichi Tsugikuni warmly when he saw him standing there looking at the sky.

"Um."

Yoriichi Tsugikuni responded, then turned his gaze to another person, Tengen Uzui, who was sitting on the roof, looking rather grim.

Zenitsu has disappeared.

The sudden words silenced Tanjiro and Inosuke, and Ichiro, who arrived shortly afterward, also looked rather grim.

"Zenitsu has disappeared. He disappeared after I contacted Mr. Uzui."