"My head's been chopped off? No way, how could this happen! Did I lose? This must be a dream! How could I lose to two brats? Absolutely impossible!!!"
Jade Pot Head, still spouting trash talk as it rolled to the ground, couldn't believe it had lost.
This is understandable. Even Daki and Gyutaro, the Upper Moon Six, together ate more than 20 Pillars. So the number of Pillars that died at the hands of Gyokko, the Upper Moon Five, would only be more.
Such a contrast was bound to shock him.
Meanwhile, Muichiro and Tanjiro ignored Gyokko, who was still spewing trash talk, because Gyokko's body was already on the verge of disintegration, and he only had a few seconds left to spew trash talk to disgust them.
Tanjiro excitedly strode over to Muichiro's side and said with a smile, "You did it! Tokito-kun, you defeated the Upper Moon!"
Compared to Tanjiro's joy, Muichiro's expression remained calm.
"I didn't defeat the Upper Moon... If it were just me alone... I might not be his match..."
Despite defeating the Upper Moon demon, Muichiro wasn't particularly happy. Instead, the power of Gyokko put pressure on him.
He was thinking about how he had fallen into Gyokko's trap and been swallowed by the sea. If Tanjiro hadn't helped him then, would he have been able to escape?
Even if he breaks free, can he defeat this Upper Moon on his own?
Muichiro fell silent.
Upon hearing Muichiro's soft mutterings, Tanjiro immediately displayed his thought process, which was completely different from Muichiro's.
"There are only so many things a person can do, which is why people choose to help each other. If my sister were here... um... cough cough! Let me gather my thoughts for a moment!"
Tanjiro coughed heavily, trying his best to mimic his older sister's voice. However, despite his efforts, Tanjiro's version of Chinatsu's voice still sounded somewhat awkward... no, extremely awkward.
"Stop thinking about one-on-one fights all the time. If you can team fight, then team fight as much as you can. If you can pick off isolated targets, then pick off isolated targets as much as you can. You can't talk about martial ethics with ghosts. Ghosts won't talk about martial ethics with you. So we have to be even less martial ethics than ghosts!"
Of course, Tanjiro's words were still optimized. If Chinatsu were really there saying this to Muichiro, she would have said more and the content would have been more "direct".
"There's only so much that one person can do...that's why people choose to help each other..."
As Muichiro listened to Tanjiro's words, Tanjiro's figure seemed to double before his eyes, and a familiar figure gradually split off from Tanjiro's body.
This is a man with eyes of similar color to Tanjiro's and the same gentle nature.
He...he is...my father...
In that instant, previously sealed memories surged forth like a tidal wave.
Muichiro Tokito was born into a family that made a living by logging. As a child, Muichiro often followed his father and helped him cut down trees.
When Muichiro was 10 years old, his mother caught a cold that was difficult to cure and eventually developed into pneumonia and died. His father fell off a cliff and died while trying to gather herbs to treat his wife's illness during a rainstorm. From then on, Muichiro and his older brother, Yuichiro Tokito, began to depend on each other for survival.
"Sympathy doesn't help people, and even if you try your best for others, it won't do you any good."
"No, helping others will ultimately help yourself, that's what my father said."
The older brother, Ichiro, spoke negatively, a stark contrast to his gentle father, and even uttered a certain phrase at one point.
"Muichiro's 'Mu' is the 'Mu' of 'incompetence'."
Muichiro felt pressured by his relationship with his older brother, believing that his brother was a cold person and that his brother might dislike him. Gradually, the brothers talked less and less.
The seasons change, and so it goes on.
This boring life continued until one day Muichiro went out to fetch water and saw a beautiful woman by the river, who was like a birch tree fairy.
Her name is Ubuyashiki Amane, and she is the wife of the Demon Slayer Corps leader.
From her words, the brothers learned about the existence of "demons" and the "Demon Slayer Corps," and that their family were descendants of swordsmen who used the Primal Breathing technique.
Muichiro was very happy, but his brother ruthlessly kicked Amane out of the house.
"Let's become swordsmen! Even though it's hard to believe in ghosts, if there's anything we can do to help..."
"What do you think you can do?! You can't even cook rice yourself, what kind of swordsman are you? Help others? Stop dreaming! You're just like your father and mother!"
My mother, who was suffering from illness, continued to work; my father, who went out to collect herbs in the pouring rain; and I... I tried so hard to stop him! I even told my mother she needed to rest so many times... Damn it!
As Yuichiro gritted his teeth and spoke, he lowered his head and slammed his fist heavily on the table next to him. After this big argument, the two brothers, whose relationship was already strained, stopped talking to each other.
But this lack of communication didn't last long, because on a summer night when Muichiro was 11, a ghost came to their house.
Just as the demon was about to attack Muichiro, the older brother instinctively ran to Muichiro's side. The next second, one of his arms was cut off by the demon, and blood splattered all over the ground, including Muichiro's face.
"Stop yelling, stop yelling. Anyway, woodcutters like you are useless. It doesn't matter whether you exist or not. You're just boring and insignificant lives."
Hearing the demon's words and his brother's painful cries, Muichiro's vision was instantly engulfed by "red," and the first and greatest rage since birth consumed his heart.
When Muichiro came to his senses, the demon had already been nailed outside with wood and farm tools, and was scalded to death by the scorching sun.
When Muichiro walked home step by step with a dazed look in his eyes, his older brother Yuichiro had already lost too much blood and was barely clinging to life.
In this situation, even though he had almost lost consciousness, he was still whispering a prayer for God to protect Muichiro. In the last moment of his life, he used his last bit of strength to say his true feelings about Muichiro.
"Muichiro's 'Mu' is not the 'Mu' of 'incompetence,' but the 'Mu' of 'infinity.'"
………………
Recalling all of this, tears welled up in Muichiro's eyes. Tanjiro, who was standing in front of him, was startled by the sight and hurriedly asked Muichiro what was wrong and if he was injured somewhere.
Muichiro gently shook his head, reached out and wiped away his tears. His eyes, which had been devoid of emotion, now showed expression, as if a dead fish had come back to life—a true miracle.
Muichiro smiled faintly and said to Tanjiro, "Thank you, Tanjiro."
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