The Tall Woman's Rage
Hello everyone and welcome to the latest chapter of The Heart of the Asura! Yet another Lower Moon has appeared to confront our heroes in this chapter. Now we find out if all of that training paid off and how hard Honoka will fight to protect her childhood home. And speaking of protecting homes, I've recently posted a new exclusive for you all to read on my Pat reon! Come see what Princess Ariel from Mushoku Tensei might do if granted the power of Highschool DxD's Incinerate Anthem in the new short: 'My New Host Is Kinda Cute'! As always you can buy the post for just $3 dollars if becoming a member currently isn't in the cards for you. Now I believe that's everything, so on to the story!
A Couple Months Earlier: The Infinite Fortress
Mukago gasped at the sound of a biwa strumming. "What, what happened," she looked around frantically, noting the new location she found herself in was anything but normal. There were halls and stairways everywhere, as if someone had built countless rooms and passages but only put up some of the walls. Odder still, these rooms and passages were all connected to one degree or another but had no coherent pattern, just seeming to go on and on wherever the demon girl looked.
She wouldn't have long to ponder her situation as the biwa strummed again and the scenery changed somewhat. Mukago now found herself on a large, square-shaped wooden platform and this time she wasn't alone. Four other individuals were present, demons Mukago knew well: the other Lower Moons. 'What's going on, why are the lower ranks here but no one else,' Lower Moon Four racked her brain for the cause of this.
It all became clear, however, when they looked up and saw a pale woman in a black kimono. 'That face, why's it look so strange,' Mukago clenched her fists, wondering if she should activate her Blood Demon Art. "Lower your heads and crouch down," the mannish woman ordered. Scarlet eyes flashed by the demon's vision then as they recognized who was before them and immediately fell to their knees with their heads down.
"Please, forgive our rudeness," Mukago apologized as sweat beaded down her forehead, "we didn't recognize you because of your new form and aura-."
"Who gave you permission to speak," the one they now recognized as Muzan growled. Lower Moon Four clammed up immediately upon realizing her error. "Rui has been killed, I believe you are aware how fond I was of him. I give few demons the right to gather together in such a way." He paced back and forth while saying this until he stopped suddenly and turned a wicked eye on a demon man in blue robes with wild hair and a goatee, "Isn't that correct, Lower Two?"
"It is, Lord Muzan," the muscled demon answered shakily, "to lose such a fine member-."
"Silence," the demon progenitor ordered, "were he a truly fine member of the Lower Moons, he would not have been killed. I showed him favor and this is the result."
"We are not as weak as Rui-," Lower Moon Six, a male demon with short dark hair possessing orange tips, tied in a ponytail and wearing a striped green kimono spoke up. But he was quickly halted in his speech by a fleshy red tendril with a hand on the end grasping his neck.
"Your very number says otherwise," Muzan reminded by squeezing his neck so hard the Kizuki was certain his head was going to pop off, "but even those of you above him have proven yourselves weaklings. Though you survive your ranks have had to be replenished again and again while the Upper Moons have remained the same for a hundred years." He released the neck of the lower rank demon then, retracting his arm back to its normal length. "My tolerance for you all would be at an end already under ordinary circumstances, however, a small chance to redeem yourselves still remains."
No one dared speak as the head demon produced something that looked like an earring with a sun symbol on it. "There is a slayer, a boy possessing Hanafuda earrings," Muzan explained, "I desire for him to be eliminated. He is not a hashira, so there should be no reason you cannot kill him. This is your last chance to appease me and prove your worth. I shall allow the one who succeeds in killing the boy to live, while the rest of you will die. Will this be motivation enough for all of you?"
"Your word is law master!" The Lower Moons all declared, fearfully, at the same time.
"That's the best declaration I've heard tonight," the demon lord waved his hand, "now go forth!" With one final strum the Lower Moons were all returned to their respective territories. Mukago let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding as her body trembled all over.
"One chance," she thought aloud, shakily, while hugging herself, "I have just one more chance. I can't run away this time." A plan started forming in her mind then as she slowly calmed down. 'I need to gather my strength,' Lower Moon Four told herself, 'I know just where to begin.'
The Present: Nighttime: Honoka's Village
Her preparations had begun in earnest. Mukago had learned over the years the relative number of people she could kidnap and devour without drawing too much attention. She started with the back alleys of big cities, taking a few bodies there before moving on to the smaller towns. Finally, she began taking from small villages out in the middle of the boonies. It had been a slow, meticulous process, requiring her to stagger the length of time between each victim she consumed and to move on when the people started noticing something was amiss.
This is why it had taken her so long to reach this little place and why she'd underestimated how quickly word would reach the slayers. But this seeming misfortune turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Of all the people for the Corps to send after her, they chose the one person she'd planned on looking for! Mukago wasn't about to waste this chance which is why her opening attack was a fountain of lava that spewed high in the air and rained the molten substance all around the nearby area.
"Don't let it hit you!" Tanjiro warned as the group of three all scattered to avoid the immensely hot projectiles. The ground was, fortunately, sparse with little to no grass for the lava to light on fire. The houses, however, were a different story. Their wooden roofs caught on fire almost immediately from even the smallest of the molten stones, which quickly burnt through and threatened to ignite the inside of the houses as well.
"L-Lava," Honoka gasped in surprise, her voice trembling as the memory of that day came back to her. She saw it all happening again, the flaming projectile, the house exploding inward, her parent's still forms. And she was a child again; small, helpless, and unable to help or save anyone. Then, as one of the lava bombs came towards her, Honoka felt something smash into her and carry her out of the way.
"Honoka!" Susamaru's yell broke her out of her stupor. They ran for a few seconds before the Temari Demon stopped and put her down. "What's wrong, you zoned out? You're lucky Tanjiro noticed and sent me over or you'd be fried right now."
"I'm sorry," the police officer shook her head, "this attack, it's just like back then."
"Pretty sure it's worse," the demon girl remarked as another projectile sailed over their heads and landed on a porch, setting it on fire, "but even if this brings up bad memories, you're a police officer, right? Tanjiro can handle the demon for now, so let's do what your dad would do and get these people out of here."
"Right," Honoka slapped her cheeks to shake herself the rest of the way out of her stupor, "let's go." The two girls rushed into one burning building after another then, leading, and in some cases carrying, the occupants out. While this was happening, Tanjiro was busy engaging the demon in combat.
"You're more nimble than I thought," Mukago complimented as she threw small bits of magma from her hands, one after the other, "if you'd been fighting me a couple months ago I might be impressed." She put her hands together and fired out an even larger ball of lava, this time intentionally aimed towards an area where she knew civilians were.
"Breath of Water Second Form," Tanjiro jumped up and somersaulted forward, slicing the projectile in half with a rotating water slash, "Water Wheel!" Every time he used one of his water-based techniques, the lava would make a loud hissing noise as the Breathing Form caused it to rapidly cool by several degrees. 'This form, it's effective against this type of attack,' the slayer quickly realized as he next employed Striking Tide to slice through several more lava orbs, 'water is a cooling substance, but this means I might not be able to use Hinokami Kagura in this situation.' Not that he was currently able to use it all that well anyway.
Tanjiro's training with the form had been going well, but it still drained too much of his stamina to utilize in a potentially prolonged fight, especially against a Kizuki. "But I've been preparing for this, gaining strength and developing my Blood Demon Art," Mukago continued as she suddenly jumped forward and brought down a lava covered foot which the slayer dodged before swiping at him with white hot claws, "I won't lose to a little brat who struggled to beat my inferior!"
"Water Surface Slash!" Was Tanjiro's response as his blade went immediately for her neck, only for the demon to cross her fists in front of her and block the attack with lava that cooled and hardened against the flowing technique. She then countered with another geyser in front of her but the swordsman was ready this time. "Whirlpool!" Tanjiro stepped back and spun his body, a whirling slash meeting the geyser and blasting away the now cooled debris from it.
'It's just me and the Lower Moon right now,' he took a steadying breath, 'I don't know if Yosoko knows what's going on and Susamaru and Honoka are busy evacuating people. I've got Nezuko here, but it's best she only comes out if things turn really bad.' With that thought in mind, Tanjiro continued to dodge around and trade blows with his strongest opponent yet. As for Yosoko, she was having something of an issue of her own.
Outside The Village
"What are the damn odds," she cut through several large mantises that tried assaulting her, "another demon on the same day?!"
"My aren't you a pretty thing," the demon, an old looking man in a green and yellow kimono with a balding head, antennae, and four insectoid legs remarked, "I'd best make sure my assistants here don't treat you too roughly. I like to eat girls like you alive." He grinned wickedly as more mantises came out of his sleeves and grew to the size of humans.
"You're worried about rough," Yosoko sheathed her sword and took a running stance, "let me show you what 'rough' looks like." She let out a slow breath, calling upon Total Concentration Breathing as the swordswoman unleashed her technique. "Breath of Thunder Second Form: Rice Spirit!" The female slayer unsheathed her sword, releasing five arched slashes accompanied by yellow lightning.
The quintet of manties she was facing were all cut down the middle and fried in quick succession, their corpses turning to ash and blowing away as Yosoko pointed her blade at the demon. "Tell me, are you the one who's been attacking this village?"
"Am I the one," the old-looking mantis demon chuckled, "I only got here tonight. Whatever demon you slayers were looking for, it's been there for some time before me." The girl raised an eyebrow at this before an explosion and a geyser of lava inside the village diverted her attention. The mantis demon produced a sickle from his sleeve and attacked during her moment of distraction.
"Breath of Thunder Third Form," lightning flashed from Yosoko's eyes as she turned back to the demon, "Thunder Swarm!" Suddenly, the demon found himself surrounded by waves of arced lightning as burning cuts assaulted his body from all directions. The demon managed to leap away from the assault but not without losing his hands and front legs. Impressively, he was able to enlarge his back legs enough to stay upright when he landed.
"So you've got a bit of a sting," the mantis monster growled upon noting his injuries.
"And little time to waste on you," the Breath of Thunder Wielder shifted her stance, "so do me a favor and let me cut your neck this time."
"You want my neck," the demon held up his bleeding stumps, "come and take it!" A small swarm of mantises flew out of his sleeves then before enlarging and surrounding the slayer both on the ground and in the air. 'Try and hold on guys,' Yosoko shifted her grip before letting out a battle cry followed by a clap of thunder.
Back With the Others
"Is this everyone!" Susamaru yelled over the noise while holding up a collapsing entrance so that a family could flee.
"This is everyone in the immediate area," Honoka reported while directing the crowd, "the fight seems to be contained to one area at the moment, probably Tanjiro trying to keep that demon corralled."
"Great," the Temari Demon let the entrance collapse once the family was clear, only to rush over and stop a wall from falling on a couple of kids, "you get back there and see if you can help. I'll finish up here and join you guys when I'm sure everyone's safe."
"Thank you," the policewoman hefted her MP18 and ran back towards Tanjiro who was currently fighting the demon on a roof. Or at least he was until the burning building collapsed on his side, forcing him to jump off. Mukago laughed as she took the opportunity to throw more lava spheres at him while also setting off geysers.
"I'll give you credit, you're a bit more troublesome than I thought," the lava demon laughed, "but you can't keep this up fore-RATATATATATATATATAT!" She was halted mid-speech as a spray of bullets peppered her, causing the demon to take a step back and leap down to the ground below. "Who in the?"
"You won't be destroying my village," Honoka declared while reloading, "we suffered one flaming disaster already and we're not going to go through another!"
"One flaming disaster already," Mukago raised an eyebrow, "the volcano here…. Oh, oh no." For whatever reason, the Lower Moon began to giggle, which soon turned into a full-blown fit of laughter.
"What's so funny?" Honoka growled as Tanjiro moved to stand next to her.
"I can't believe it is why I'm laughing," the lava wielder grinned wickedly, "I remember now, I came here once before because the place was near a volcano. An inactive one but who would really know the difference if a disaster struck?"
"What, what are you saying," the tall woman began to sweat for reasons other than the fire and lava around the area.
"If you know this place had a disaster already then you either lived here or were around here when it happened," Mukago continued, "I was taking people away one at a time, very slowly, very meticulously. But there was one week where I was absurdly hungry so I got a little greedy. That's when I got seen by some annoying detective prick."
"You, you're the one Uncle saw, the one he was going to tell dad about," Honoka paled.
"Oh, was that guy your uncle," Mukago stifled a laugh, "you should tell me where he is so I can thank him. I didn't really need the excuse but it was nice to have one. You see, the volcano didn't have any activity that night, it was all me. I rained disaster on this place so I could take a bite out of as many people as possible. After all, burn a body beyond recognition and who's gonna notice if a few chunks are missing?"
"You're the one who killed Honoka's parents," Tanjiro grit his teeth and moved to step forward, but his friend stomped him with a hand on his shoulder.
"For the last few years," her eyes were covered by the shadow of her hair as she spoke, "I thought it was all just a disaster, just bad luck. I joined the police so that I could help protect people from bad things happening to them. Even though I'm big and clumsy and mess things up, I still managed to be happy with the life I have now. But now, now that I know the truth," she raised her head, revealing a visage of absolute rage, "I realize, just how FUCKING ANGRY I REALLY AM!"
She bolted like a tiger then, pushing off with so much surprising force that Tanjiro staggered back, caught off-guard by the feat. "Oh bring it," Mukago ignited and shaped the lava into shuriken this time before throwing them at her attacker. The burning projectiles cut into Honoka's side, left leg, right shoulder and left arm along with another hitting her neck. But instead of flinching from the pain like the demon expected, Honoka's charge continued.
"The fuck, back off!" The demon held out her hands defensively. But the policewoman was now moving with a speed she never knew she possessed and rolled to the side, dodging the erupting geyser before her feet hit the ground running. Mukago formed lava on her hands but before she could do anything, Honoka shoved the barrel of her submachine gun down the monster's throat.
"This is for what you've done!" Honoka raged as she pulled the triggering, unloading bullets literally down Mukago's throat at full auto. "This is for mother and father and everyone else in the village you killed that night!" But all too soon the sound of gunfire ceased as the magazine ran out.
"Honoka, hold her there!" Tanjiro called out as he came in from behind the demon, "I'll cut her head off!" He moved in, poised to use the first form of Water Breathing. But Mukago wasn't a Kizuki for nothing. With a strangled and gargled roar, lava exploded out of her mouth in a stream, blasting the gun away with it.
Honoka was forced to let go as the molten substance assaulted her hands, arms, upper chest and part of her face. Mukago then turned the spewing lava onto her other opponent. Tanjiro was able to cool the attack initially by following through with his attack, but the lava demon continued to literally pour on the pressure by breathing out more and more. The boy swordsman swung with as much Water Breathing as he could muster, but he didn't have time to set up a proper defense and was eventually pushed back.
Tanjiro tried to dodge when the assault became too much for him and mostly succeeded. However, as he evaded, a large batch of lava got on his left leg, causing him to cry out in pain as he collapsed to the ground. Mukago spat a few more bits of lava out at him, but he was able to get up just enough to scamper out of the way before he was hit again. A pause finally came in the demon's attacks as she suddenly heaved a couple times before suddenly throwing up more lava on the ground.
But this time, the bullets Honoka had fired down her throat were in the molten bile. "Ah, fuck," the Lower Moon coughed, "never had that happen before. Molten metal tastes-GAH!" She was again silenced, this time by several bullets from a sidearm before a fist slammed into her face, causing her to stumble several feet. "Seriously, you're still up." The annoyed demon growled as Honoka, her clothes now burnt in several places, tossed the empty pistol away and took a boxing stance.
At About The Same Time: Yosoko's Fight
"W-What," the mantis demon backed up in fear as the last of his mantises were eliminated, "what sort of slayer are you?"
"I'm the granddaughter of a cultivator," Yosoko swung her sword to get some of the ash off of it, "and a recently promoted Kinoe. About the only thing you'll encounter stronger than me is a hashira or someone with prodigious talent for slaying."
"Well let's see your prodigious talent at flying!" Insect wings sprouted from the demon's back and beat rapidly, allowing him to ascend into the air. "You may be mighty but you can only reach as far as that sword! But make no mistake, I won't forget this. when we meet again, I'll devour you!"
"Someone hasn't been paying attention," the slayer shook her head before taking a new stance, "thunder and lightning can come from the ground as well as the sky. Breath of Thunder Fifth Form: Heat Lightning!" Yosoko swung a powerful upwards slash towards the demon, unleashing a bolt of lightning which traveled straight up to him. The old-looking monster had only a moment to grasp what was happening before the attack struck.
The next thing he knew, his head was separated from his body, and both were falling towards the ground before landing with a thud. "Lightning can strike anywhere," the slayer sheathed her sword, "the creator of this style wasn't so foolish as to only imitate its speed. But it seems age doesn't always equate to wisdom."
"You, you damn," was all the demon had the chance to say before turning to ash.
"I'd gloat a little more, but I've got other places to be," Yosoko remarked before turning and heading back towards the village.
Back With Honoka and the Others
Honoka let out a battle cry as she deftly evaded more lava shuriken and clotheslined their opponent. Mukago was back on her feet soon enough only to be slugged across the face again and again by the policewoman, causing her to stagger back further and further. "Are you serious," the lava wielder scoffed despite having her jaw broken and healed all in the span of seconds, "you can punch me for the next few hours and you won't get anywhere." She formed a molten tanto then and slashed upwards, tearing apart most of Honoka's shirt, "just give it up already!"
"DIE!" The tall woman retaliated with a powerful front kick that sent the white-haired girl rolling back. Once again this only succeeded in annoying the demon as some rubble fell down and hit her head.
"And now you're messing up my hair," Mukago threw the tanto at her opponent, impaling her left ankle. Honoka let out another howl of pain but somehow remained standing as the weapon dissolved. "I'll give you credit, you're taking a better beating than I expected. Too bad you don't have what it takes to finish-."
She felt a presence behind her then as Tanjiro moved in, favoring his right leg. "Water Surface Slash!" Mukago leaned back just enough to keep from losing her head but not far enough that her throat wasn't cut.
"RAH!" The lava wielder's reaction was a kneejerk response as she caused a geyser to erupt under Tanjiro. The slayer had just enough time to kick off the ground and flip away, avoiding the majority of the damage but he still landed hard on his left leg, causing him to stumble to his knees with his sword being used as a support to keep him upright.
"We need a new plan," the boy swordsman gasped out. But his suggestion fell on deaf ears as Honoka suddenly grabbed and yanked his sword out of his hands. "What, Honoka!"
"RAAAAAAAGH!" Her eyes had gone completely white as she snarled like a wild animal. She charged in, swinging the weapon haphazardly but still on target. Mukago attempted to block the attacks with a new lava tanto but the strength of the blows surprised her, pushing the demon girl back more and more. 'What's going on, this woman can't be a regular human,' the Lower Moon thought in shock. It was then her tanto was knocked out of her hand and the blade found its way into the side of her neck.
"This is for my father!" Honoka yelled as she pushed into the demon's skin, "for my mother, for my village, and for everyone you've killed!"
"GET AWAY!" Mukago shrieked as a geyser of ash and flame erupted beneath the both of them. But Honoka wouldn't stop, roaring defiantly as she pushed harder and harder, even as her skin peeled off more and more. The blade sank deeper with each passing second, seeming to turn bright crimson for a moment. 'What's going on,' Mukago was in a complete panic now, 'why isn't the blade melted yet? Why does it seem like it's getting stronger the more I heat it up?!'
It was then, with one final shout and one final powerful push that the blade severed the demon's neck. The geyser stopped then, blasting away as if a gust of powerful wind had scattered it. And with its scattering came the head of Mukago, dropping onto the ground a short distance away. It took a few moments for everything to register as Honoka's breathing was heavy and erratic, her clothes now little more than burnt rags, her skin deformed in several places, especially around her mouth and neck, and her hair was a disaster with glowing, singed tips.
But once she'd calmed down and realized what she'd done, the policewoman shouted in triumph, her voice echoing through the mountains as the sun began to rise. It was a new day, one that marked the end of Lower Moon Four, Mukago, and the beginning of a new chapter in the life of Honoka Juzako.
And the next in the line of Lower Moons has been defeated! For those wondering, yes, the current plan does seem to have a small arc planned for dealing with all of the other Lower Moons before getting to Enmu, meaning we're going to be getting pretty experimental with Blood Demon Arts in the coming chapters. But let me know what you all think of the direction so far in your comments and reviews along with what you liked/disliked or if you've got any neat ideas for future chapters! Also, stop by my Pat reon for news, scene samples, and even the most recent exclusive! Last thing, stop in next time as our heroes recover once again and prepare for the next challenge. 'Til then.