Chapter 5: Hair Demon
"Ryou, be careful. If you fail to defeat the demon, don't be stubborn, at least try to save your life." Uncle Daishi patted his shoulder and said.
"Don't worry, Uncle Daishi. I will be back in a few days!" Ryou smiled and headed out, carrying the sword and weapons forged by Uncle Daishi.
As Daishi watched, Ryou's figure disappeared from his view in a few seconds. "I hope nothing happens to you."
--
Ryou sprinted in the direction where the previous owner's home was located. Around the evening, he reached the area. 'I am back!'
From a distance, he could see twenty or so gassho-structure houses spread in a small plain surrounded by brilliant shades of green.
As he approached the previous owner of the body's home, he observed the entire village was abandoned. Probably, the people left this place after the demon attack.
With the doors already destroyed, Ryou easily entered the wooden house that was entangled in cobwebs. It looked desolate without anyone taking care of it.
The memories of him living here with his parents flashed past his eyes. As he walked out of the house, he saw two stone graves in the distance.
'Demon slayers should have come after the incident. If they had arrived sooner...' Ryou shook his head as there was no point in mulling over the past.
Kneeling before the grave, Ryou prayed. "Mother, Father, I hope both of you are living well on the other side.
Though I am not your son, I consider you as my parents. I will avenge your deaths by eradicating the demons!"
Leaving the village, Ryou headed north. On his way, he heard a traveler talking about a demon that killed a family yesterday. The location is just a few kilometers away.
By the time he reached the location, the sun had begun to set welcoming the night. But to Ryou's surprise, he saw two men wearing Demon Slayer inspecting the area.
Ryou watched everything from a distance without interfering with their work. 'It should be an Ordinary Demon since the Demon Slayer Corps only sent the two of them.'
From their actions and expressions, he concluded they were new, possibly, they just become Demon Slayers.
Still, they are knowledgeable when it comes to demons. They observed the traces and tracked the demon outside of the town.
It didn't take long for them to find the demon inside a house surrounded by a rice field. When they opened the door, they were shocked to find a Demon feeding on two dead people; one woman and a child.
The demon is a pale, young woman appearing in her mid-twenties and of average height. She had long dark blue hair, prominent fangs, and sharp nails common to Demons.
As soon as the Demon Slayers appeared, the Demon turned its attention to them. "Interrupting my meal, you Demon slayers should die!"
Saying this, she pounced on them. One of the Demon Slayers narrowly dodged the attack by leaping sideways while the other one was kicked away.
They weren't able to react to the sudden attack because of the menacing aura and fear induced by the demon.
"Suzuki!" The one who dodged the attack yelled and slashed his Nichirin sword at the Demon.
The Demon Slayer called Suzuki coughed a mouthful of blood and shouted, "Hoshiko, it's not an ordinary demon. Be careful!"
"First Form: Dust Whirlwind Cutter!" Without heeding Suzuki's advice, Hoshiko dashed forward at extreme speed and slashed continuously in a horizontal cyclone pattern.
"Weak!" The female demon commented while her long blue hair came alive and surrounded her body blocking the incoming attack.
Her hair then tangled together to produce around ten or so tendrils made of hair that had sharp tips. Five of them whipped at the Demon Slayer called Hoshiko the next second.
But, before it could lash at him the demon slayer called Suzuki came to his aid and cut the hair tendrils with his Nichirin sword. But, the demon's hair regenerated the next second.
Observing their attacks, Ryou knew that both of them were users of the Wind Breathing style.
Both the Demon Slayers fought hard, putting their lives on the line but they couldn't even approach the demon because of the tendrils.
Not even half an hour passed, but they were wounded. 'They aren't strong enough! If I don't do something, they will lose their lives!'
Ryou was nervous but at the same time thrilled to fight such a supernatural creature. On Earth, his father and mother honed his fighting skills from childhood.
Since Earth is a peaceful society, he couldn't utilize his ability in an actual battle. Finally, he has an opportunity to test his strength.
With a determined face, Ryou came out of his hiding. 'Sixth Form: Shadow World!' His form blended with the shadow as he rushed towards the female demon.
Both the demon slayers were in a bad position, trying their best to avoid the attacks. But the long fighting exhausted their stamina and they also lost blood due to piercing wounds.
The demon's hair suppressed their movements by binding the hands and legs. "I am going to enjoy feasting your brains." The female demon laughed softly, licking her lips.
She then readied her tendrils to pierce the head of two demon slayers.
Just as they thought they were going to die, a shadowy figure appeared out of nowhere and cut the hair that bound the two of them before chopping the head of the demon.
Ryou came out of the Shadow World and kicked the head of the terrifying demon far away.
The Demon Slayers Hoshiko and Suzuki were stunned by the sudden change that happened in a blink of an eye but they soon noticed the abnormality. The body of the demon isn't dying.
The Demon Slayers looked at Ryou who covered his face with a white mask. Holding the gleaming katana in his hand, he had an air of mysteriousness around him and looked powerful.
"Give me your sword. The demon isn't dead yet, my sword is an ordinary katana." Ryou asked, glancing at Hoshiko and Suzuki.
"What?" The Demon slayers looked confused. How could such a strong person be without a Nichirin sword? Tossing the useless thought aside, Suzuki threw his Nichirin sword to Ryou.