Hiruma darted through the grassy expanse of Mount Fukasane's foothills, her hand clutching the hilt of her sword that was secured in her sword holster. The silver light of the moon illuminated the purple haze of the distant wisteria, and the cool night breeze carried faint rustles from the forest, sending a shiver down her spine. Every sound might signal danger or an opportunity to strike first.
'Survive for seven days that's all I need to think about.' Hiruma thought as she crouched behind a rock taking in her surroundings. Her gaze lingered on the wisteria-lined treetops further down the mountain, their purple blossoms starkly contrasting with the darker, ominous sections where demons prowled.
She took a deep breath, centering herself. Her katana hummed softly at her side, a reassuring presence that brought clarity to her racing thoughts. She adjusted her grip on the hilt, her resolve hardening.'I will focus on surviving tonight. Once the sun comes, the demons won't be able to do anything, and I can use that moment to get some rest since the sunlight will hit there first.' Hiruma thought.
The stillness broke as leaves rustled loudly. Hiruma turned in the direction of the noise, her hand poised on her sword ready to unsheath it at any moment. The demon emerged from the treetops, dropping to the ground in a blur. It was grotesque—grey, muscular, and covered in scales. Its wide, pupilless white eyes gleamed in the moonlight. Sharp, curved claws adorned its hands, and its purple hair whipped around its horns as it grinned with a jagged mouth and lizard-like tongue.
"Well, well, aren't you a little morsel," It hissed, its forked tongue flicking out as it grinned hungrily.
Hiruma wasted no time, lowering into her stance and slowing her breathing into a steady rhythm of her Ink Breathing.
"Ink Breathing: First Form-Ink Slash."
Her blade arced in a smooth, fluid motion, leaving a trail of dark energy in its wake. The ink spread through the air, forming a swirl of illusory Hiruma figures. The demon snarled, confused by the sudden influx of doppelgangers. It lunged toward one but missed as Hiruma struck from its blind spot slicing through its arm.
The demon howled, staggering back. Hiruma wanted no time.
"Second Form- Dripping Stroke!"
With graceful precision, she slashed downward, causing ink-like energy to drip from her blade mid-air. The drops solidified, curving sharply towards the demon. It dodged the first two but was caught by the third, and its head was sliced off.
Hiruma took a deep breath as the demon's body turned into ashes slowly being defeated. She gazed at her sword.
'It's true not even a demon's body is left behind when you slay a demon's head with a Nichirin sword.' Hiruma thought as she put away her sword.
The next three nights followed in the same harrowing rhythm. As Hiruma moved through the mountain, each encounter pushed her to her limits. Some demons fell swiftly to her techniques, while others demanded every ounce of her training to subdue them. Yet, with every victory, her confidence grew.
By the fourth night, her exhaustion was evident. Her muscles ached from constant movement, and the ever-present sense of danger made rest fleeting as she prepared for another night of fighting demons. Still, she pressed on, her survival instinct and willpower unrelenting.
Walking through a dense patch of forest, Hiruma suddenly froze. A distinct growl reverberated through the air. She tightened her grip on her katana, eyes darting around the trees.
A blur of movement darted past her peripheral vision, so fast she could barely register it.
"Well, what we got here?" A voice purred."A young girl you be delicious to devour."
Then it struck a sleek demon lunged at her from the shadows, its claws extended like jagged blades. Hiruma barely dodged, tumbling to the side as its claws raked through the bark of a nearby tree, leaving deep gashes.
"This one quick," Hiruma muttered, adjusting her stance. The demon was covered in midnight-black fur, its glowing yellow eyes fixed on her with predatory intent. Muscles rippled under its lithe frame as it circled her, growling lowly.
"You're going to be my next meal!" The demon pounced again, and Hiruma countered.
"Fourth form-Calligrapher's Barrage!"
A flurry of strokes shot from her blade, striking from erratic angles to corner the demon. But the demon was quicker, twisting its body mid-air to dodge most of her attacks. It landed with a smirk, showing its gleaming teeth with excitement.
'This one's trouble.' Hiruma thought stepping back to reassess her approach against this demon.
However before she could act, a sudden whistle of wind split the air. A blade struck the demon from the side, forcing it to stagger. Hiruma turned sharply toward the source. Emerging from the shadows was the same boy from earlier who had a pale complexion and sharp gaze with raven black hair tied into a neat ponytail and bandages wrapped around his lower mouth. A white spent coiled around his neck hissed softly.
'That's the boy I almost bumped into, but was he always wearing their bandages.' Hiruma thought as she studied the boy's lower face.
"Step back," he ordered in a calm, commanding tone, unsheathing his sword.
Hiruma blinked in surprise but quickly followed his instructions. The boy lowered into a serpentine stance, his movements fluid and calculated.
"Serpent breathing, Third Form- Coil Choke!"
The boy spiraled around the feline deon, his sword flashing as he struck from multiple angles with blinding speed. The demon screeched, flailing helplessly as the strikes tore into the flesh. In one final motion, the boy lunged forward, decapitating the creature with precision, its body crumpled to ash.
The air grew still once more. Hiruma let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. She approached the boy, her expression equal parts gratitude and curiosity.
"Thank you," She said sincerely, her heart fluttering slightly as her eyes made contact with his beautiful different color eyes.
He glanced at her, his expression unreadable."A Demon slayer must protect, so there is no need to thank me."
Hiruma smiled faintly at him."Still, I'm grateful. I didn't catch your name earlier when we almost collided, my name is Hiruma Wantatanbe."
The boy hesitated, then spoke with a reserved tone."Obanai Iguro."
She nodded."I'll remember that name."
He didn't respond, his sharp eyes scanning the area briefly, and without another word, he turned and disappeared farther into the forest, his white snake glanced briefly at Hiruma with its redish-pink eyes.
"Alright, I still have three more nights to survive, and the demons are bound to get harder to face," She muttered, gripping her blade.
Hiruma pressed forward into the darkness, her resolve burning brighter than ever.
Here is chapter eight of The Ink Pillar. In this chapter, Hiruma faced one of her most grueling challenges yet in the Final Selection, including fierce demons testing her stamina and skills. Obanai Iguro her future lover was officially introduced as he provided her assistance for a brief moment. Hiruma's resolve remains unwavering as she moves into the last three nights, In the next chapter, Hiruma will face even greater challenges as she tries to survive the last three nights will be the final chapter of this arc I decided to do the whole Final selection in one chapter would be too much to write.
Thanks for reading!
Question of the chapter: What do you think the next demon will be like?
[Meiji period secrets]
-The feline demon was inspired by a cat that used to scare me as a kid appearing out of nowhere and gazing at me.
- Kaburamaru is curious about Hiruma.
Word count:1,150