"It's...it's a success..."
Tanjiro sat down on the ground with a thud. Although he wasn't killing anyone, the difference in feel wasn't obvious. The only difference was that he didn't feel guilty about killing demons.
Tanjiro did a great job, even better than Chinatsu had imagined. Chinatsu thought Tanjiro would hesitate a bit, but he didn't this time.
That makes sense. After all, the reason Tanjiro hesitated at this stage in the original work was that he felt that the large rock he had at the time could not destroy the demon's head in one blow. It would take several or even dozens of blows, but with the iron axe, only one or two blows would be enough. Naturally, Tanjiro would not hesitate.
Just as Chika was about to raise her hands to applaud and encourage Tanjiro, she heard clapping behind her. A mysterious old man wearing a tengu mask appeared behind them, and just as described in the original work, his footsteps were fast and silent.
Smack! Smack! Smack! Smack!
"Well done, quick and decisive. Your ability to act has exceeded my expectations. You must be the kid Tomioka introduced. You're even better than I imagined."
He said this while clapping his hands, explaining that this masked old man was the person they were determined to find.
Breeder: Sakonji Urokodaki.
Tanjiro, who was sitting on the ground, heard someone come out and applaud and praise him. He lowered his head, slightly embarrassed, and scratched the back of his head, replying, "This was all my sister's idea. I just carried out the plan she suggested."
"Oh? Did you come up with this yourself?"
Urokodaki looked at Chinatsu in the wheelchair with some surprise. Giyu Tomioka had not introduced the girl in the wheelchair to him. He did not expect that the surprise attack just now was actually arranged by this seemingly weak girl.
"I'd like to ask, if this boy fails to decapitate the demon, what will you do next? Run away or continue fighting?"
"Of course, we will continue fighting. To be honest, Tanjiro's skillful killing of the demon was beyond my expectations."
"Oh? So you mean you have a backup plan?"
Urokodaki watched Chinatsu with interest. In his view, if Tanjiro failed to kill the demon with his axe, the situation would be completely reversed.
The boy was no match for the demon, and the girl was confined to a wheelchair... unable to move?
Just as Urokodaki was thinking this, Chika, who was sitting in a wheelchair, stood up on her own, proving that she was not unable to move.
"So that's how it is. It was a disguise? You wanted to use your disguise to make the demon think you were a weak point, thus giving Tanjiro an opportunity to attack?"
Urokodaki thought he already knew the truth and praised the girl's wit in his heart, but Chinatsu's answer was different from Urokodaki's.
It wasn't about sacrificing himself to create an opportunity for Tanjiro to attack, but rather about creating an opportunity for himself.
However, since Urokodaki thought that way, Chinatsu didn't intend to explain it clearly. Anyway, Urokodaki's imagination was quite good, and it should have added a lot of points to her public image.
When Tanjiro and Nezuko heard that their sister had such thoughts, they immediately became anxious. Neither of them wanted their sister to take the risks for them.
"elder sister!!!"
"sorry!!!"
Chinatsu clasped her hands together and apologized to Tanjiro and Nezuko. Urokodaki looked at the three people in front of him, his eyes filled with memories of the disciples he had taught.
The sky gradually brightened, and sunlight fell on their faces. Tanjiro's first thought was how dazzling the sun was today, before he realized that Nezuko was a demon and couldn't be exposed to sunlight.
Tanjiro anxiously turned his head and looked around. Following the scent, he quickly ran to the Buddhist hall where corpses were scattered all over the ground. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Nezuko huddled inside the hall.
Meanwhile, Urokodaki appeared behind him without anyone noticing.
"Young man, your name is Tanjiro, right?"
"Yes...yes, my name is Kamado Tanjiro!" Tanjiro quickly turned around and answered nervously.
Through their previous conversation, he already knew that the masked old man in front of him was the Urokodaki Sakonji he was looking for.
Mr. Tomioka is very strong, so the old Mr. Urokodaki whom Mr. Tomioka introduced must also be no ordinary person.
Indeed, Sakonji Urokodaki is no ordinary person; he is the "Former Water Pillar," one of the strongest members of the Demon Slayer Corps.
Urokodaki stared at Tanjiro before him and said seriously, "Since you killed that demon using the fighting method your sister described, it won't count towards my test score. I will conduct a rigorous test on you later. Let me see if you are capable of becoming a member of the Demon Slayer Corps."
Although he didn't immediately master the skill, Tanjiro was already very happy to hear this answer.
"I see!"
"Then come along with your sister on your back. I'll take care of transporting your older sister!"
And so, a truly magical scene unfolded on the dirt road in the countryside: an old man wearing a celestial dog mask was pushing a wheelchair at a speed beyond his years and stature, while a boy carrying a large basket followed behind, panting heavily.
Tanjiro's eyes were filled with disbelief. He couldn't imagine why Urokodaki Sakonji could run so fast. It was one thing to run so fast, but how could he maintain that speed for so long without slowing down at all? He had maintained the same speed for so many kilometers.
Just like Tanjiro's disbelief, Chinatsu, who was being pushed forward in a wheelchair by Urokodaki, was also shocked. With the strong gusts of wind coming from the front and the powerful push from behind, Chinatsu felt as if she were sitting on a roller coaster in an amusement park, not in a wheelchair.
This...this...this is so awesome!
Chinatsu didn't mind the speed at all, even though the wind blowing in her face made it hard for her to open her eyes.
They ran from darkness to dawn, and then from dawn to dusk, before Urokodaki finally stopped. Tanjiro, breathless and exhausted, leaned on his knees and gasped, "I...I got your...acknowledgment?"
"The test has only just begun. Let's go up the mountain. I will take care of your older sister and younger sister while we're up there."
Urokodaki gave Tanjiro a preliminary explanation of what difficulties he would encounter during the "mountain climb." Tanjiro swallowed hard and then seriously embarked on the test of climbing the mountain.
After seeing Tanjiro off, Urokodaki turned his gaze to Chinatsu in the wheelchair, a strange light appearing in his eyes beneath the tengu mask.
"Girl, can I talk to you?"
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