Tanjirou Kamado and Zenitsu Agatsuma had encountered one of the Twelve Kizuki, Rui and witnessed him torturing the Daughter Spider Demon with webs.
Tanjirou gasped at the scene. He was visibly shocked to see Rui torturing his supposed sister.
Zenitsu Agatsuma was stunned. His entire body stood still and his face froze. His frowning mouth was wired shut, his eyes had grown bigger and his pupils shrunk as he watched the Daughter Spider Demon cry from her face wound.
"What are you doing? This isn't a play." Rui had asked the two Demon Slayers, Tanjirou and Zenitsu.
Tanjirou grunted towards Rui and gripped the hilt of his Nichirin katana. "Just what do you think you're doing? Isn't she your friend?"
"Friend?" Rui questioned. "No. Our connection is nothing superficial. We're family. Nothing more... nothing less." Rui said in a cold tone, which made Tanjirou grunt again. "Besides, this family affair is between me and my older sister. If you both want to interfere... then I will carve you."
Zenitsu inhaled some air.
Tanjirou stared at Rui. "Whether you're-"
"Tanjirou..." Zenitsu said in a low voice.
"Eh?" Tanjirou was cut off by Zenitsu. "Zenitsu?" Tanjirou looked to see Zenitsu walk in front of him with his head hung downwards. His yellowish-orange bangs were covering his eyes.
"I got a bone to pick with that guy. Let me handle him." Zenitsu pointed towards Rui.
"Hm?" Rui looked at Zenitsu with a tiny bit of confusion. 'A bone to pick with me?'
"A bone to pick with him? Zenitsu, what are you talking about?" Tanjirou asked.
"What he did... is irredeemable." Zenitsu said in a low and angered voice. "You." He pointed at Rui. "How dare you..." Zenitsu raised his head up. "MAKE THAT INNOCENT BEAUTIFUL GIRL CRY!?"
"Huh?" Tanjirou was thrown off by Zenitsu's words and nearly tripped.
Daughter Spider Demon gasped and looked to Zenitsu. The wound on her face begun to heal slowly.
Rui did not phase from Zenitsu's words.
"OUT OF ALL THE DEMONS I'VE EVER COUNTERED SINCE I BECAME A SWORDSMAN, YOU'RE THE ABSOLUTE LOWEST! I MEAN, HOW DARE YOU MAKE HER CRY, EVEN IF SHE IS A DEMON... MAKING GIRLS CRY IS WRONG!" Zenitsu shouted at Rui.
Tanjirou stared at Zenitsu's backside with an embarrassed face. 'Is that what he's worried about? Because she's a girl?'
The Mother Spider Demon looked at Zenitsu in a negative manner. 'Is this guy an idiot?'
"What I do with my family is none of your concern." Rui simply answered.
"I WON'T FORGIVE YOU! NOT EVEN IF YOU BEG FOR MERCY! I'M GOING TO AVENGE ALL THE CUTE AND INNOCENT GIRLS THAT YOU KILLED, RIGHT HERE! RIGHT NOW!" Zenitsu angrily bent his knees, tilted his head forward and took a swordsman position. Then, he reached into his yellow haori and gripped the hilt of his Nichirin sword very hard. "Thunder Breathi-"
"Looks like I found a demon."
"Huh?" Zenitsu was cut off by a random voice. He stopped his Thunder Breathing technique and glanced at a person who was a few yards behind Rui.
Tanjirou spotted a boy behind Rui with a black Demon Slayer uniform and a Nichirin sword. 'Who's that?'
The person had short black hair in a bowl cut and black eyes that were filled with confidence. His name was Jishin Kajo.
"And it's shorter than me, so it must be weak." Jishin assumed as he stared at Rui's backside.
"No! He's not what you think!" Tanjirou yelled to Jishin.
"You, stay back! This demon is mine!" Jishin replied to Tanjirou, then glanced back at Rui. "If I get promoted, I'll earn more money. Most of my unit were wiped out, but I don't care. As long as I slay a proper demon, I'll be off this mountain!" Jishin pulled out his Nichirin sword and pointed the blade towards Rui's back. He let out a chuckle then charged. "Now die, demon!"
"No! Don't do it!" Tanjirou yelled.
As when Jishin was charging towards Rui within his personal space, Rui suddenly released a net of web and threw it towards Jishin. Within the next four seconds, Jishin's upper body was diced up by Rui's sharp web. He died within a second before his amputated body pieces landed on the ground.
Tanjirou and Zenitsu froze in horror after watching Jishin Kajo get sliced into pieces.
'He got diced up in a single strike!' Tanjirou thought as he stared at Jishin Kajo's amputated corpse.
"THAT DEMON SLICED THAT BOY UP LIKE BUTTER ON A HOT KNIFE! THERE'S NO WAY FREAKING WE CAN WIN AGAINST A DEMON LIKE THAT!" Zenitsu screamed while staring at Jishin Kajo's corpse.
Rui turned his attention to Zenitsu. "You're becoming really annoying." He said in an irritated tone, then released webs from his hands and threw it towards Zenitsu.
"Eek!" Zenitsu squealed as he saw the web coming towards him.
"Zenitsu, get down!" Tanjirou tackled Zenitsu to the ground in order to dodge Rui's sharp and deadly web.
"He dodged it." Rui muttered.
Tanjirou's body bend over Zenitsu's. "Zenitsu, are you okay?"
"You saved me, Tanjirou! Thank you so much! I thought I was gonna die and that I never was gonna marry Nezuko!" Zenitsu quickly wept in a comic relief fashion.
Tanjirou sat up and grabbed Zenitsu's shoulders. "Listen, Zenitsu! I need you to run away and find help! Can you do that?" Tanjirou shook Zenitsu a bit.
"Uh-huh..." Zenitsu cried a bit and shook his head fast. Three seconds later, a branch falls out of a tree and hits Zenitsu's head. "Oof!" Zenitsu grunted before passing out.
"Zenitsu!" Tanjirou cried as he watched Zenitsu get knocked out.
Zenitsu snoozes with a happy face a and big bubble of snot hanging out his nose.
Tanjirou silently sighed. 'Good. He's asleep.' he lightly smiled at the sleeping Zenitsu.
"Are you going to fight me?" Rui asked Tanjiro.
Tanjirou gasped, then looked over at Rui. He can see Rui holding a small net of webs in his hands.
"I will let you live, If you leave this mountain at once. But if wish to fight, I will shed your skin. Then, I'll chop you up with my webs." Rui said.
The Daughter Spider Demon worriedly stared at Rui.
Tanjirou stared at Rui before taking a deep breath. He closed his eyes and thought for a moment. As soon as he opened them, he made a decision. He drew his Nichirin sword from his sheath and pointed it towards Rui.
"So, you wish to fight, then?" Rui asked.
"As much as I want to leave with all of my friends in tact... I can't let you continue to kill innocent people who roam this mountain! I will never back down!" Tanjirou yelled.
"Then I will take my time killing you." Rui unleashed sharp web towards Tanjirou.
Natsu Rengoku, Ozaki and Inosuke were currently running towards Tanjirou's location. Inosuke took the lead as he has used his spatial awareness technique to pinpoint Tanjirou. Natsu carried Ozaki on his back, because Ozaki hadn't fully recovered from the minor injuries she received while being controlled by threads.
"They're this way!" Inosuke yelled in an excited tone.
"Okay!" Natsu replied while running.
"You better keep up, because I'm not slowing down for a second!" Inosuke said.
"Got it. I'm right behind you!" Natsu said as he ran behind Inosuke a yard apart from one another.
As Ozaki was riding on Natsu's back, she looked at her surroundings in the mountain. Suddenly, she saw a dark figure flying over her head and gasped.
Natsu heard Ozaki gasp from under and slightly looked to her while running. "Hm? What's wrong?"
"Sorry... I thought I saw something fly pass us." Ozaki said as she looked at Natsu, whom was carrying her.
"You did?" Natsu then looked forward towards their destination. His golden eyes squinted as he used his good sight to see what was ahead of them. "Hm..." The next ten seconds, Natsus eyes caught a man with an odd haori a few miles ahead of their direction. He gasped. "Hey, Inosuke! There's someone ahead of us!"
"What?" Inosuke temporarily looked at Natsu. In a few seconds, he turned his head forward and spotted a man standing.
The trio of Demon Slayers had ultimately stopped as soon as they came within close range of an unknown person.
"What are you doing, here?"
Natsu gasped in surprise, as he got a good look at the random person he's encountering. 'Wait, I've heard of you, before. You're...'
Elsewhere... Tanjirou Kamado had continued his battle with Rui, one of the Twelve Kizuki. As the battle between himself and Rui had lasted for a few minutes, it wasn't going in his favor. He has a few cuts on his face, a broken jaw, the blade of his Nichirin sword snapped in half from the webs. Tanjirou had just taken both a sleeping Zenitsu and an injured Nezuko to safety by a tree and some bushes. Now, he stood before Rui, holding the hilt of his broken Nichirn sword. And Rui had previously ordered the Daughter Spider Demon to go hunt other Demon Slayers on Mount Natagumo.
"I believe that people who don't fulfill their roles have no right to exist. They're only... a waste of space. Do you know your current role is?" Rui questioned Tanjirou.
Tanjirou did not respond.
"It is not to kill me, because you can't kill me. It is to give your sister to me, then leave this mountain. And never return." Rui told Tanjirou.
Tanjirou grunted, angrily.
"If you cannot abide, then you must die!"
Tanjirou continued to glare towards Rui. 'I can't cut through his webs, nor could I pierce his skin with my sword! Is his skin harder than his clothing?'
Rui can easily the glare. "I don't like how you're glaring at me. Could it be..." Rui then swings his arm back and yanks Nezuko, sending her flying into the air.
Tanjirou shockingly gasped as he spotted Nezuko flying over his head.
"Do you really think you can beat me?" Rui caught Nezuko and held her in his grasp.
"Nezuko!" Tanjirou shouted as he saw Nezuko in his grasp.
"There. I've taken her. She's mine, now." Rui said, while Nezuko struggles to break free.
Tanjirou sprinted towards Rui with frustration. "Let her go!"
"I told you what your role was. To give Nezuko to me and take your friend and leave this mountain." Rui said as he jumped ten feet away from Tanjirou.
Nezuko grunted. She expanded her claws and scratched his face, which didn't faze him.
Tanjirou continued to chase Rui. As soon as he got within range, he tried to swing his broken Nichirin sword, but saw Rui's left fist swinging at him. 'Oh no!' Tanjirou dodged by simply flipping backwards to avoid him. Three seconds after blinking, he noticed Nezuko was missing from Rui's grasp. 'Huh? Where's Nezuko?'
In the next moment, Tanjirou started to smell Nezuko's blood, which alerted his senses. 'This smell... it's Nezuko's blood!' His eyes widened in shock and he looked around the area to see where Nezuko was. 'Nezuko, where are-' Suddenly, Tanjirou gasped in shock as he founder her hanging upside down, a few thousand feet within the air over the tree Zenitsu was sleeping under. "Nezuko!"
"Cease your screeching. My webs can't kill a demon." Rui stated.
Meanwhile, as Rui kept talking to Tanjirou, Nezuko's blood from her body continued to drip from above like raindrops. Drops of her blood had landed on leaves and branches, then the drops of blood would make their way down to hit the grass. Zenitsu continued sleeping until something wet and liquid had touched his face. After two drops of blood touched Zenitsu's forehead and cheek, he begun moaning to where he slowly awakens.
Zenitsu moaned and sat up, feeling a bit sleepy. "Ugh, is it raining?" he mumbled to himself. His ears could hear the sound of droplets, as if it was almost raining. Suddenly, a few drops of blood had landed on his yellow haori. "Huh?" Zenitsu wiped a red liquid from his cheek. "What's this? Blood?" Zenitsu paused and thought for a moment. "IS THIS MY BLOOD!? WHERE IS IT COMING FROM!?"
A moment later, a few more drops of blood landed on the dirt next to Zenitsu.
"Huh?" Zenitsu suddenly looked up and followed where the blood was coming from. As soon as he look up, he gasped in horror. He saw Nezuko hanging upside down like a cocoon, but she was trapped with threads and bleeding out. "N-Nezuko?"
Meanwhile, Tanjirou was stuck in a hard situation. He thought about stopping Rui and saving Nezuko. But, he didn't know how to, yet.
'I need to save Nezuko!' Tanjirou thought.
"Whatever you are planning is not going to work. Just give up and leave." Rui said.
Tanjirou gritted his teeth and clenched his right arm.
'Stay calm... don't get emotional. Concentrate. Control your breathing... do your final form with the highest precision.' Tanjirou thought as he stared at Rui.
"Hm?" Rui looked up to see Nezuko passed out while suspended a few thousand feet within the air. 'Did she pass out? What a unique demon...' Rui silently commented Nezuko.
'I have to use the tenth form! Or else Nezuko will-' Tanjirou's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of thunder. He gasped, then looked behind himself to see an Zenitsu on his feet, but his head was lowered. "Zenitsu, you're awake!" Suddenly, he gasped as he knew something about Zenitsu was off.
As Zenitsu was slowly walking, his entire body was coated with thin sparks electricity and the pupils within his eyes had disappeared. It was as if his mind and body was possessed by a high deity.
"Zenitsu?" Tanjirou had questioned as he stared at Zenitsu's current state.
"You again..." Rui said while looking at Zenitsu.
"You..." Zenitsu stared directly at Rui. "Put her down... right now." Zenitsu did a thumbs down, while referring to freeing Nezuko.
"What will you do, if I refuse to?" Rui asked.
"Then you will perish!" Zenitsu screamed in a fit of rage. He then reached in his haori for his Nichirin sword and gripped his hilt. He then inhaled lots of air as he took his natural fighting stance. 'Thunder Breathing. First Form...'
Tanjirou gasped. 'He's going to stop him and help save Nezuko! I gotta help Zenitsu! But, how do I do that?' Tanjirou thought.
Rui's eyes widened as he knew Zenitsu was about to attack him. He can see sparks of electricity getting thicker around him. 'This can be trouble...' He raised his arms forward and released multiple thick and long webs from the tip of his fingers in order to stop Zenitsu from attacking. 'Now, let's see if he could-'
'Thunderclap and Flash!' Zenitsu chanted, then dashed towards Rui at god speeds. But before he could get to Rui, he knew that he needed to take care of the thick and strong webs in front of him. He'd previously seen a boy get cut into pieces, so he knew that Rui's threads were an issue. He targeted the webs first, and successfully cut all of them with everything he had. 'Eight Fold!' Zenitsu also chanted while severing all of Rui's threads.
Tanjirou happily gasped. 'He did it! Zenitsu managed to-'
'Severe all my webs in an instant?' Rui thought in shock and in disbelief. 'This can't be happening!' Who is the hell is this guy?' Rui grunted in irritation.
In the next second, Zenitsu appeared before Rui, ready to decapitate his head.
'He's really fast!' Rui noted in shock.
"Do it, Zenitsu!" Tanjirou yelled.
For the first time ever since becoming a demon, Rui had felt fear. He like he couldn't move, due to the heavy pressure of Zenitsu Agatsuma's rage. He can see the anger within his eyes. 'It's no use! He's too fast and too close! I'm going to-'
"Die." Zenitsu muttered, before unsheathing and horizontally swinging his Nichirin sword at his neck while dashing by.
Rui panted heavily after Zenitsu had dashed by him. In a split second, he felt Zenitsu's blade made contact with his skin.
Zenitsu took a landing, then drew his Nichirin sword back within his sheath. His eyes remained closed.
A moment of silence occurred within the dark mountain.
'D... did he do it? Did Zenitsu killed him?' Tanjirou questioned after Zenitsu attacked Rui.
In the next three seconds, Rui lifted his right hand and clasped his right neck. His eyes widened in surprise as he can feel the deep cut on his neck. It wasn't fatal, but it was big enough to make his head easily tilt to the right.
"Zenitsu?" Tanjirou stared at Zenitsu.
Zenitsu suddenly awakens from his anger and looks at Tanjirou. "Hm? What is it, Tanjirou?"
"Did you decapitate him?" Tanjirou asked Zenitsu.
"Huh?" Zenitsu drew out his Nichirin sword once again and made a big discovery. Zenitsu's eyes grew massive in horror as he stared at his Nichirin sword. The blade of his Nichirin sword had broken off while attacking, similar to Tanjirou's. He screamed in terror. "AAAAAHH! I BROKE MY SWORD! HOW THE HELL AM I SUPPOSED TO KILL A DEMON WITH A BROKEN SWORD!?" he panicked.
Rui grunted in an irritated manner and dashed towards Zenitsu.
Tanjirou gasped as he saw Rui move towards a screaming Zenitsu. "Zenitsu! Look out!" He stretched his hand out towards Zenitsu.
"Tanji-" As soon as Zenitsu tried to turn towards Tanjirou, he was met with a full fist to his face caused by Rui. The punch that Rui sent then caused Zenitsu to fly backwards at mach speed. He crashed through a couple of wooden trees, then hit a circular shaped boulder. The force of Zenitsu colliding with a boulder was too great that the boulder had broken in half, cracked like an egg. Zenitsu hit the ground, face first.
"Zenitsu!" Tanjirou screamed as he watched Zenitsu get assaulted.
Zenitsu's face was covered in blood, his eyes were rolled to the back of his head and parts of his body twitched as if he was shivering.
"I would not worry about him, right... as you are about to suffer a fate worse than his." Rui said, before calming down and turning to Tanjirou.
"Tch!" Tanjirou grunted in anger towards Rui.
"Don't worry. That punch wasn't fatal. I have knocked him out for the time being. I have now decided to keep that screaming boy alive. I will force him to drink my blood and turn him into a demon. Then, I will make your sister apart of my family." Rui told his plan to Tanjirou about turning Zenitsu into a Spider Demon and changing Nezuko's appearance. All to Tanjirou's dislike.
"You bastard!" Tanjirou shouted as he leaped towards Rui with anger.
Thank you for continuing to follow.
I gave a minor character a name, because we didn't know anything about that Demon Slayer that Rui killed with his webs. I named him Jishin Kajo, which means "Overconfident" in Japanese.