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"H-....He-..lp-"

Slowly, as the winds carried her whisper and her blood cascaded and slithered slowly down the pole her body had been impaled through, she felt her eyes begin to close.

When was the last time she did that?

Oh, right. The last time she did that was in Akaza's arms back in the fortress not long ago..

Where was Akaza? He told her everything was going according to plan, but...what was the plan?

He never really specified what he meant as a 'plan'. He simply told her that he would manage to get blood from each upper moon as soon as he could, but she didn't really know what came after that.

I mean, either way, the plan she was aware of never would have worked with her in this state...

She couldn't even remember the last time she had any food- any sleep- any break from fighting and pain and the constant torture of Muzan.

How long had it been- a few days? A week? A month?

How the hell should she know...

A small attempt of a word fell from her lips, however, all that came out was another drop of blood. It was soon to join the others, slithering down her chin, jumping from her skin and thudding to the ground after a moment to meet the rest of its kind in a small puddle.

But really, where was Akaza?

Surely, she should know where he was, but, at the same time she doubted he knew this would happen.

She had noticed many of the hashira werent there for the fight, but she thought nothing of it- simply believing they would either join later on or they were resting away from the fight. Safe. Alive.

Her bloodshot eyes slowly moved over the battlefield to count the hashira...

One, his back collided into a large wall and rubble falling on top and around him as his head fell and his eyes closed, his left leg missing from the rest of his body.

Two, his body crashed and dangled from the third story window of a four story home.

Three, another lying next to a broken wall, rubble over and around him, his bleeding and sliced off arm at least a metre away from his actual sprawled out body.

Four, his body half way through a broken wall as his body dangled over the edge of what was left of the wall like a lifeless shell...

There were also two more bodies, but they weren't hashira.

One had half his body etched into a broken wall, blood surrounding him and his leg bent at an unnatural angle as he remained hunched over.

The other lay motionless on the ground, still gripping his swords while a deep gash remained all across his front.

The woman looked away, moving her eyes back to the dark clouds and skies above.

She didn't have the consciousness available enough to her to even begin to understand who was who, which body belonged to which wreckage. And, quite frankly, she didn't want to.

Her hand twitched.

All she could think of doing was attempting to rid the pole sticking out from her body as she remained impaled. She tried to move her hand, but it felt like a force far greater than her was weighing it down. And, in a position like this, there was no chance she'd be able to lift it any time soon.

She soon gave up that thought and let her eyes droop half shut.

She was so tired. Just a little nap would do. Just closing her eyes for even a moment would be enough for her...just a moment...

Slowly, she let out a shaky breath, eyes slowly lowering themselves until they closed and her lip raised the smallest bit.

This was fine. Everyone was fine. Nothing would happen if she just closed her eyes for a minute or two.

No one was hurt. No damage had been done. Nothing was wrong.

Things were far better when she closed her eyes.

She didn't need to see the blood anymore. She didn't have to focus on anything or anyone anymore. She could just lay there, close her eyes and finally have some sort of peace.

She couldn't breathe.

When she couldn't manage to take in another breath, she soon realised she couldn't breathe anymore. Her chest heaved instinctively, trying- begging to find some sort of air. Some sort of way through survival, but...nothing would work.

However, the woman didn't pay it any mind.

In fact, she could hardly register herself being alive at that moment- nevermind the issue of breathing.

Her lips parted, attempting to find something- anything. Her body desperate, but her mind calm.

And slowly...her body stopped struggling...

"No way! You aren't dying here! Wake the hell up!"

The familiar metallic taste of blood soon overwhelmed her.

She felt it slither down her throat, weave its way throughout her body, all until-

She wheezed, body hunching forward and her hands gripping towards her heart before she collapsed backwards again, her back hitting the ground.

Wait. The ground?

She gasped for breath, coughing and spluttering out spit and blood. Looking down at her body, her limbs seemed to have grown back, and what would've been a gaping hole in her chest was reduced to nothing but a small, healing, scar.

And yes, she was now lying on the ground. Not propped up in the air by a pole impaling through her heart, but lying on the ground.

However, when she snapped herself back into reality, she realised there was a shadow looming over her. With wide eyes and a stuttered breath, she glanced up at the man knelt at her side.

"Who-...Who the hell..are you.." She muttered out, still attempting to regain her breath from the sudden lack of a few moments ago.

The man with purple eyes looked down at her, moving the glass vial away from her body and placing it back in his breast pocket. "The names Yushiro. But, that doesn't matter right now."

She blinked in surprise at his urgent tone. She was just about to sit up, but she took note of the vial. With a small hum, she moved her trembling hand to feel around her lips, a metallic taste staining her throat. She suddenly realised.

"You need to get up and fight-"

"Whose blood was that?"

Yushiro tensed at her sudden question, clenching his fists as the woman moved to sit up and narrow her eyes at him. "And how did I end up on the ground?"

"Now's not the time-"

"Tell me."

Yushiro sighed, grumbling to himself and giving a small roll of his eyes. "I managed to remove your body from the pole and lay you down. That blood is a mixture of most hashira's and slayers with exceptional capabilities."

"Like who?" She narrowed her eyes, something suddenly beginning to hurt her soul. As if she knew, whoever he listed after this question was surely dead. There was no way she would've been given the blood otherwise.

And, after a moment- which felt like an eternity- Yushiro answered and a pit of dread formed at the bottom of her stomach.

"The Mist Hashira, The Insect Hashira, Shinazugawa Genya, and the three upper moons. Any more questions while we have allll the time in the world..!"

Her heart paused at his words, eyes turning to meet his own. "What..."

The world felt like it was spinning. Like most walls around her had completely crumbled to dust in just an instant. "S-shinobu..Mui.." She muttered, eyes beginning to blur with the unfamiliar feeling of tears. "W-what about upper moon three, is he-"

"We got his blood too. Why?"

Her hand moved to cover her mouth, almost as if she was about to throw up, and the moment she let her hand away from her lips, it would all spill out. She hunched over slightly , vision blurring and shaking as if she was about to pass out. She tensed, but she shook.

Akaza.

It wasn't as if she had never had his blood before. No, she had taken many tastes of his blood over the years in order to grow stronger, but...something about this time felt different...

It was mixed with her friend's blood...of the people who she loved...of the people who are now dead.

Doing this always made her feel sick to her stomach. The day she took in Rengoku's blood, she swore she held herself over the toilet for a good hour before she went to sleep that night. She thought she was going to throw it all up.

But, she didn't.

And now, with the combination of friends....of the closest thing she ever considered a family growing up....

Her eyes blurred with tears, eyelids closing and body hunching over as she shook.

Yushiro didn't know what to do at this moment.

Tanjiro was on his own right now, fighting and holding back Muzan single handedly, and Yushiro knew the boy wouldn't hold out for long, but...

A part of him felt like he shouldn't rush the woman...

"They–..they're d-dead..right?"

"Yes."

The woman was about to speak, but Yushiro glanced over to the other hashira, all of which slowly dying. He interrupted her.

"Listen, I don't know who you are, but you need to keep fighting. Tanjiro and Iguro are alone out there, fighting Muzan all by themselves. They need help, and I need to go help the other hashira. So, it's either you get up and go, or stay here and cry. Just make your choice quickly!"

This managed to snap the woman out of her daze as the man beside her stood to his feet and looked down at her. She felt her heart sting at his words, as if they struck her soul like a blade, and yet...she knew he was right.

"I-"

She began, but she couldn't find the words. She cleared her throat, moving her hand away and slowly nodding. "I see..thank you.."

She still felt like throwing up, still feeling rather dizzy in herself, but slowly, she moved to sit on her knees as Yushiro stepped away, ready to run over to Gyomei for medical help.

Suddenly, her eyes hardened, teeth gritting as they sharpened and small patterns began to form on her skin. She rolled her shoulders back, her left eye becoming slit and her nails sharpening. "Go help the others. I will help Tanjiro where I can.."

At that, Yushiro couldn't help but give out a small smile as he nodded to her. Soon, he began to run to the stone hashira in order to try to help him.

The woman slowly stumbled to her feet, eyes looking down at her palm for a moment.

She would've turned into her demon form earlier if it wasn't for the fact that when they killed Muzan, in theory, all other demons would pass on, not excluding her in her demon form. So, because of that, she prevented herself from using it. But, as times change and desperacy grows, desperate times call for desperate measures.

She'll just have to change back quickly when the sun rises.

She clenched her fists, still feeling sick to her core, and yet, she started standing. Yes, her legs were shaking. Yes, she wanted nothing more than to sleep. Yes, she wanted to just go home, but....there was no home left for her now.

This was all she had left to offer.

And she would give it her all.

Slowly, her lips released a deep breath.

Storm Breathing, Fifth Form: Raging inferno

"IGUROOOO!"

Tanjiro cried out, a grunt leaving his lips. Iguro turned over his shoulder to the boy, the scars all over his face leaving him no way of sight. Iguro parted his lips, waiting for Tanjiro to elaborate.

"HE'S RUNNING! I'M NOT FAST ENOUGH! I WON'T BE ABLE TO CATCH UP-"

Tanjiro's legs soon gave out, forcing him to the ground with a small grunt. He let his eyes widen in panic, watching as the silhouette of the demon got further and further away, Iguro moving to try to run after him, but...he knew he'd never make it. "Damnit...! No, no, no, NO!!""

Iguro panted, attempting to race after the demon with his snake around his neck, guiding him the correct way, and yet...he already knew it was too late. He was exhausted- hell, he couldn't even see!

There was just...no way...-

"KIBUTSUJI YOU BASTAAAAARD!"

A loud echoing cry sounded across the battlefield, and illuminating the way to Muzan was...a trail of blue fire?

"Huh..." He mumbled out, eyes widening in shock.

However, as Muzan kept running, he paid no mind to the curses- simply thinking they were from a hashira or two.

He was wrong.

At the sudden movement in the dust cloud swarming behind him, he let his eyes widen. He tensed his body, ready to attack at any moment's notice, however, he soon froze in place.

The sudden feeling of pure dread cascaded over him, fear overwhelming his senses as he recognised complete vengeance. Complete rage. The complete desire for death.

In his hundreds of years of living, feeling every emotion of every halfling whenever he wished....this....

Nothing could ever compare to this.

The demon had to physically stop his running to grip at his chest, eyes clouded with confusion, confliction, and most of all...dread.

However, when his gaze caught the gaze of blue fire, he let his eyes widen.

From the dust cloud around him, the halfling shoved her way through the makeshift fog. Her fists were coaxed in the blue flame. Her tear stained cheeks were almost as red as her bloodshot eyes. Her nails were almost as sharp as her hatred...almost.

Muzan saw this and wasted no time in attempting to run, turning on his heel to run away. "(L/N)...!" He exclaimed as a warning- a threat. But, all it sounded like to her was a beg. A beg for her not to do anything.

"AAAAAAAGGHHHH!"

She cried out, more tears streaming down her features as she raced towards him. When finally close enough, she skidded her feet, stopping herself right in front of him.

She bent down in her low stance, fists still coxed in flames, and her arm reeling back.

Finally, she forced a punch in his middle.

At first, there was a flash of light. Tanjiro swore he had to squint in order to even think of seeing what was going on. But after the light, there was a harsh gust of wind. Tanjiro held on the ground for dear life, a small cry leaving his lips.

And when he finally looked up, he let his eyes widen.

The demon king, Kibutsuji Muzan was leaning against a cracked wall. His whole middle section had a large hole in it- straight through the middle. Though, as quickly as he regenerated, she made her way through the remaining dust and rubble, eyes glistening a sharp red and her fists glowing a murderous blue.

Tajiro knew she was on their side, but...why did he feel shivers run down his spine..?

But, something caught his eye...on her cheek, a small grey mark in the shape of a cloud etched onto her face just under the stains of blood from the demon below her. 

Muzan looked up at the woman, pure fear struck through his eyes and his body trembling as if he was looking up at..him....

The first man to ever bring him to his knees.

Yoriichi Tsugikuni.

Ofcourse, the halfling didn't have the same presence, nor nowhere near the same amount of power, but...she brought him to his knees in a single strike...!

No, this couldn't happen.

It was that drug. That stupid drug that Tamayo and the Insect hashira fabricated. It was all their fault.

On a normal day, he never would've been winded this much from a single blow- no matter how much blood the halfling took in.

And yet...

He couldn't help but feel his fear rise in his chest.

No, not now. He was going to stand back up and kill the halfling once and for all. To hell with her! She was more of an inconvenience than a weapon in the first place.

Muzan stumbled to his feet, a growl falling from his lips.

Suddenly, sharp whips of flesh surrounded the woman as she walked towards him. She could see the flesh perfectly well, and yet..she ignored it?!

They all came crashing down at her all at once. Surely- surely, this would wind her enough to Muzan to make one more blow and finally finish her off-

A hand gripped his throat.

He gasped, eyes widening to look up at the halfling as she gripped his throat, not a scratch on her.

Muzan felt his heart sink.

"You...." The hatred in her voice was uncanny. He didn't need his abilities to know how much rage was emitting from this woman. "You curse my family with this bloodline...you rip me from my family...you torture me for decades on end...you cause me a CENTURY of pain and TORMENT..." She paused, scoffing to herself as another tear rolled down her cheek. "And now you kill my friends..." Muzan swore he heard her voice break.

He gritted his teeth, pitifully looking up at her and gripping her wrist around his throat.

It only took a moment before she exploded. "WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE!"

Tanjiro swore he felt his heart drop at the sight he witnessed.

There she was, pounding his skull into the ground over and over and over....

Muzan couldn't do anything...he wouldn't think to do anything, and when he did, it was the coward's way out.

Though, he never did have a problem with that.

As she continued slamming and crashing his head into the ground, shattered cries and screams leaving her lip as she did so, she felt even more tears fall from her cheeks. This was the man who had caused her so much pain...so much suffering and grief and anxiety and misery...and now she had him. She had him do anything she wished to him. To cause him pain, to return everything he ever did to her....

She would never pass up this opportunity.

The halfling continued until her cries reduced to screams and she held the limp body of Muzan by the hair. "I will kill you over, and over, and over again! If you are reborn as a human, I'll kill you! If you are reborn as a demon, I would go through all of that hell just to kill you again! If you are reborn as a cockroach, I will press my foot on your body until you snap! In every universe, I promise I'll kill you!!!"

And finally, she dropped his skull to the ground. His body fell limp by her feet and she panted out chest rising and falling rapidly.

She was going to go for another few rounds pounding his skull into the ground, but something made her pause.

Slowly, she watched as his skin began to bubble. She narrowed her eyes at it, about to reach down to inspect it before she heard Tanjiro's cries as he stood to his feet and began to run to the scene. "(Y/N)! HE'S SPLITTING APART! HE'S GOING TO USE THAT TO ESCAPE!"

The woman tensed, eyes turning back to the demon and widening as she watched his flesh moments away from exploding, and inevitably escaping.

"DAMNIT-"

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