Chapter 46: The Final Battle Begins
Tanjirou breathed heavily, blinking up at the night sky.
'I'm…outside…but this is…dangerous.'
"There's still one hour and a half. One hour and a half until sunrise!" a crow called as it flies over.
'Too much. That is still too much time left…Where's everyone?' Tanjirou sat up, looking around him, 'Kanroji-san, Iguro-san. Tomioka-san. Murata-san and Shinobu. Zenitsu, Inosuke and Kanao.' he saw them all coming out of the debris, 'Thank God. They're all alive.' he thinks, relieved, 'Where's Muzan? Protect yourself and sniff him out!' he looks around him, trying to find the demon's scent.
Suddenly he burst out, throwing debris away from him.
He looked pissed.
"Do you intent to keep me here until sunrise?!" he hissed, "Try it if you can!"
Tanjirou watched as the three other Pillars attacked Muzan, avoiding his attacks and managing hits of their own on him. Hits that healed the moment they happened.
"EH?! EH?! We hit him but we didn't cut him?!" Kanroji-san exclaimed, shocked and confused.
'There is a reason Yoriichi-san was the only one who got close to killing him.' Tanjirou thought, 'And it lays with the thirteenth form and something else. I am sure of it!'
Suddenly someone fell on Tanjirou.
"Go! Keep advancing! Become human shields for the Pillars! Remain alert to give Muzan some brawl at the very least!" someone called out.
A young slayer, looking scarily a lot like Nagakura, died in Tanjirou's arms, protecting him from Muzan's attack.
Tanjirou allowed himself two seconds to cry, to mourn, to hope his friends made it out alive.
"The Pillars have saved our lives countless times! If it wasn't for them, we wouldn't be alive! Don't be afraid of fighting!"
"No! Stop, all of you!" Kanroji-san's distressed voice reached him.
'Follow them! Don't stay back! If we all attack together, then somehow…' he took off towards the fight.
Then he lost his footing.
He coughed blood, fell to his knees and screamed.
'Muzan's blood…' he realised, 'He cut me and infected me with his blood. Like that man in Asakusa.'
He was trying to slow his breathing, to calm his heart, to manage the spreading of the poisonous blood in his body. To no avail.
Slowly everything turned black.
His thoughts ran to his family.
'Everyone…! I have…have to…help… Everyone's…worked hard to the end…'