"So, my cute miss..." Shinobu said smilingly. "May I ask how many people you've killed?"

"Fiv...five. They forced me to kill them!" Spider Demon Sister even shed tears as she spoke, looking as if she was truly repenting. 

"It's alright! No need to lie. The technique you used to wrap our member in a cocoon earlier was really amazing!" Shinobu put her palms together and tilted her head, using a very calm tone. "You've actually eaten eighty people right?"

"I...I haven't eaten that many..." Spider Demon Sister still tried to equivocate.  

But Shinobu suddenly looked towards Kenshi. "Kenshi, which direction did we come from?"

"West!" Kenshi very cooperatively pointed in the direction they came. "We came from the mountain's west side."

Only then did Shinobu continue. "Miss, we came from the west! The west! There were many cocoons hung on the mountain's west side with people already liquefied inside. Just in that ghostly place, there were already fourteen cocoons found, meaning fourteen people died!"

Shinobu revealed another smile. "I'm not angry, just confirming the right number."

Though she said so, Kenshi who was familiar with Shinobu knew that smile meant she had started genuinely raging inside.

"So now what?" Spider Demon Sister's acting skills were still slightly inferior in the end as her expression had started crumbling.

"Based on the number of people you killed, I'll have to give you a proper punishment."

"...Punishment?"

"If you kill people without any punishment, there's no way to account to the dead." Shinobu still had her smile, but her words sent chills down one's spine. "I'll gouge out your eyeballs, slice open your belly, pull out your intestines. After you endure that pain, I'll forgive your sins. Let's work hard together and become friends!"

Spider Demon Sister's complexion grew increasingly ugly, but Shinobu acted oblivious and continued. "It's fine! Since, you're a demon who won't die or have any aftereffects!"

"You...! Go die, evil woman!"

Spider Demon Sister finally couldn't take it anymore. Just as she raised her hand to attack, two flashes of blades suddenly flashed by and Spider Demon Sister saw her two arms fly off.

So fast!

Resting in the distance, Murata's eyes widened. The other Demon Slayer who was just watching the comedy with him a second ago had suddenly rushed out and severed the demon's arms in a flash.

As expected of someone by a Hashira's side, can't compare normal demon slayer with these people.

Spider Demon Sister tremblingly looked back at Kenshi standing behind her.

Kenshi didn't bother speaking and crudely grabbed her hair before lopping off her head with one slash, then threw it away like trash.

"There there, Kenshi is being too violent!" Shinobu said somewhat troubled, head tilted.

"It's because you're too gentle, Shinobu! If not for you, I'd have sliced off her long ago. Letting her live a few more minutes was already going easy on her!" He answered unconcernedly. 

He did not know when, but he truly started developing disgust towards all the demons. As for why you ask? It was because Hanako, she died in his hands, she told him her last words. He understood very well after that incident, there are many things that changed within him.

Still not fully dissipated, Spider Demon Sister's eyes widened hearing that. So I should be thanking this evil women? Were her last thoughts.

In the end, amidst the duo's back and forth, Spider Demon Sister departed very unsettled.

Seeing the demon fully disperse, Shinobu walked to Murata's side and smilingly asked. "You okay?"

Murata immediately stood up. "Yes! Thanks to you two's care! I'm fine!"

Kenshi snarked from behind. "He was just caught, then immediately rescued by me. Even his clothes aren't torn. How could anything happen to him?"

Shinobu ignored the voice behind her and continued telling Murata. "I'll give you a location. Hurry and regroup with the others."  

"Understood!"

Receiving the position, Murata immediately left. Shinobu also turned to Kenshi saying, "Alright, let's head out to continue finding other injur--" 

Booom

krrrrrrsh

Before she could finish her words, they both heard the booming and screeching sounds. Shinobu suddenly looked to her left, the sound just now came from their left.

"Follow me!" 

Without a second late, Shinobu leaped into air followed by kenshi.

They both made their way swiftly through the forest, after a while they found the traces of destruction in the path Giyu had taken earlier. An uneasy feeling gnawed at Kenshi as they ran, though he couldn't pinpoint the source of his trepidation. 

Before long, the scent of blood permeated the air and Shinobu and Kenshi exchanged a tense glance. They pushed themselves faster through the trees until they arrived upon a horrific scene. 

Giyu lay collapsed on the ground, blood dripping from his agape mouth and his severed left hand resting just inches from his body. Beside him was Tanjiro, passed out and heavily injured. Kanao stood across from them, swaying unsteadily as she faced off against a massive spider demon with flowing white hair. 

Kenshi froze in shock, unable to process how badly the situation had deteriorated. He had expected to find the Hashira finishing off the demon, not desperately clinging to life himself. A wave of guilt washed over him for underestimating the threat they are going to face, he felt stupid. After all, how could anything be normal in the plot after knowing some unknown party has interfering in the plot!

Before Kenshi could collect his scattered thoughts, Shinobu darted forward, drawing her sword and seamlessly integrating herself into the ongoing battle. Kanao's eyes widened briefly in surprise before she refocused her efforts on attacking the spider demon in tandem with Shinobu.

Kenshi snapped out of his stupor and quickly analyzed the situation. The demon exuded an overwhelmingly strong aura, probably on par pr more powerful then a upper moon 6. He would have to be extremely careful. Drawing his own blade, Kenshi activated his Hypersenses technique, sharpening his vision and intuition.

The demon laughed, an eerie, distorted sound. "More insects to join my web. How delightful." It lunged forward with blinding speed, threads of silk launching from its mouth toward the Hashira. Shinobu narrowly dodged, the threads slicing through the ends of her hair. Kanao managed to deflect them with her sword in a feat of incredible precision.

They needed to end this quickly, Kenshi realized. Kanao was at her limit and could not hold out much longer against this monster. He darted in from the side, bellowing.

"Insect Breathing : Modification : Deep plunge !" His sword glowed an ominous blue as he slashed at one of the demon's limbs.

The demon screeched in pain as Kenshi's  blade pierced through its upper shell. It turned on him with murderous intent, all eight of its eyes focused on this new threat. "You will regret interfering, boy." it growled.

Kenshi stood his ground, Hypersenses tracking the subtle movements of the demon's muscles and joints. He saw the attack coming before it happened - the demon's foreleg shooting toward him with lightning speed. Prepared, he easily sidestepped the blow, though it shattered the ground where he had been standing mere moments before. 

Shinobu and Kanao took advantage of the distraction, coordinating a barrage of attacks aimed at the demon's weakened leg. It stumbled back, ichor spraying from the wounds. They had succeeded in partially severing the limb. 

"Enough!" The demon bellowed. It began to spin a whirling vortex of threads around itself, forcing the Hashira back. Kenshi narrowed his eyes, the special properties of the silkmade them vigelent. The threads were as sharp and unbreakable as any sword. 

He turned to Shinobu and called. "I'll distract it, you two prepare to take out its head!" Hoping she understood his plan, Kenshi charged forward, ducking and weaving through the maze of deadly threads.

He danced around the outside of the thread vortex, analyzing patterns and visualizing openings. There - a brief gap opened near the demon's underbelly. Kenshi dove through, rolling beneath the spider's body and plunging his sword deep into its abdomen. 

The demon screamed, the vortex of threads falling apart as it thrashed in pain. Shinobu and Kanao wasted no time capitalizing on the opportunity. They darted in with perfect coordination, blades singing as they sliced through the air toward the demon's exposed neck.

At the last second, the demon twisted, and their blades barely grazed it. Kenshi cursed internally. Of course it wouldn't go down that easily. But the injury to its belly slowed its movements enough for the master and student to evade its counterattack.

Bellowing in rage, the demon scuttled backwards, retreating up onto a rocky overhang. "I will kill you all!" it screamed, gathering power. The air grew heavy with and oppressive energy.

Kenshi's eyes widened. "Get down!" He yelled. The three slayers hit the deck as a concentrated beam of spider silk erupted from the demon's mouth, carving a deep trench through the earth. The smell of burnt ozone hung in the air. It was so fast that it felt like leaser beam.

They were running out of time. The sun would rise soon, limiting their window of opportunity. Kenshi sprinted for the rock wall, pumping his legs furiously. Shinobu and Kanao followed his lead, leaping up the steep incline with graceful agility. 

Kenshi crested the top of the outcropping first, Hypersenses guiding his steps over the jagged terrain. The demon wheeled around, surprise flashing in its many eyes. It fired off more searing silk beams, but Kenshi nimbly evaded them, closing the gap.

His sword pierced the demon's foreleg joint, and jumped app he landed on its head and pierced hsu sword on its skull. The demon's movements slowed, its attacks going wild. Shinobu and Kanao reached the apex of the rocks, flanking each side.

Kanao leaped forward, the fire of determination lighting her eyes. In flawless sync with her sister, she launched herself upwards, blade singing. Kenshi was thrown to the left with the demon unending shaking, but he quickly gotbup and anchored the demon's leg with his sword, preventing it from dodging.

With a clean sweep, the sisters' swords sliced through the demon's neck in a spray of dark blood. Its head toppled from its shoulders, falling to land with a heavy thud several feet away.

But as the body started to collapse, one of the demon's leg that was anchored to to the ground suddenly sprang out since the spider demon body was falling to the other side, this caused pointed tip of leg to directly stab into Kenshi's shoulder. He cried out in surprise and pain.

Shinobu was at his side in an instant, examining the wound with a critical eye.

"Spider demon venom." She pronounced grimly. "And this seems to be very severe."

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