Demon Slayer: The Journey That Began When I Became Yoriichi's Sister

Chapter 600 Zaraki Sword 8

Kenpachi Zaraki's swordsmanship was fully revealed in Ikuko's transparent world.

No, using "swordsmanship" seems somewhat insulting to the word "swordsmanship."

There were no moves, no rules, not even the most basic sword stance.

Every swing of his sword was simply driven by the most primal and purest instinct: to cut down whatever was in front of him.

Just like Sister Hua... no, even more pure than Sister Hua.

This very purity, ironically, creates an extreme sense of oppression.

"Interesting! Very interesting!" Kenpachi Zaraki's maniacal laughter echoed through the forest. With his terrifying strength, each swing of his tattered longsword brought forth a shrill whistling sound that tore through the air.

It can be described as having an overwhelming momentum.

Yu Zi's eyes were calm as still water. Her figure moved through the gaps between the flashing swords, like a butterfly dancing in a blizzard. Her movements were light and graceful, yet she always managed to narrowly avoid fatal blows.

"Snow Breathing, Fifth Form, Snow Walk".

The rhythm of her breathing technique fueled her Shunpo (flash step), and Yuuko's movements suddenly became ethereal, the trajectory of her Zanpakuto unpredictable. When Kenpachi Zaraki's powerful slash came down, her blade met it at an incredible angle.

A clear, ringing sound was heard.

The two forces clashed, and it was his favorite head-on collision. Kenpachi Zaraki's blood seemed to boil.

It's been so long... since I've met someone who suits my taste so well.

"It's not over yet!" he roared, deflecting Yuko's Zanpakuto with a single sword strike. With a backhand upward slash, the blade skimmed the ground, creating a golden arc of spiritual pressure mixed with dirt and gravel, heading straight for Yuko's face.

Faced with this unreasonable spiritual pressure attack, Yuko did not back down.

Her breathing rhythm changed again, becoming rapid and powerful, and a burning sensation surged from her heart to her limbs.

"Breath of the Sun, Form of the Fourth Stage, Illusory Sun Rainbow".

Yu Zi twisted her body at high speed, spinning like a top, leaving behind blurry afterimages with flames in her wake.

"Up there!" Yachiru shouted excitedly, pointing to the sky from afar.

Kenpachi Zaraki suddenly looked up, and what came into view was a pair of cold and calm eyes.

Yuko adjusted her posture in mid-air.

"Snow Breathing - Land Form - Snowflakes Falling for Thousands of Miles".

A vast, wave-like snow-white slash descended from the sky, instantly engulfing Kenpachi Zaraki.

Kenpachi Zaraki's combat instincts were on full display at this moment. He knew he couldn't dodge in time, and he didn't even think about dodging. He raised his left hand like lightning, intending to take the blow head-on with his own flesh and blood.

"Pfft!"

The blade struck his left shoulder precisely, and blood gushed out instantly.

However, Kenpachi Zaraki seemed to feel no pain; instead, he grinned and revealed an even more ferocious smile.

His left hand gripped Yuko's blade tightly, preventing her from going any further.

Yuko's eyes flickered slightly; it was indeed a very direct fighting style.

"caught you!"

Kenpachi Zaraki's right arm muscles bulged, and he twisted his wrist, which was gripping the long sword, violently swinging the Zanpakuto towards Ikuko's neck.

However, her clear vision had already told Yuuko what the opponent's next move was. Just as Kenpachi Zaraki grabbed Yuuko's blade, Yuuko released the hilt and floated backward.

“Even his own sword…” Kenpachi Zaraki clicked his tongue, subconsciously letting out a sarcastic remark.

Before he could say anything more, a prism that had somehow appeared in the air swallowed the entire blade.

"What?" Kenpachi Zaraki was taken aback for a moment before noticing that the surroundings were filled with floating dream prisms.

He looked at Yuko again and saw that Yuko had a smile on her lips and was holding the Zanpakuto with its broken patterns in her hand again.

"Let it be disordered, Butterfly Without Form," Yuko murmured softly.

Kenpachi Zaraki stood rooted to the spot, not saying anything, while Yachiru, standing to the side, was already staring at the prisms fluttering around her with shining eyes.

"Wow~" Yachiru's eyes sparkled.

She reached out to try and touch a prism with dreamlike colors, and then her whole body was instantly sucked into it.

Kenpachi Zaraki subconsciously took a step toward Yachiru's position, but then heard Yachiru's laughter coming from behind him.

"Hahaha~"

Kenpachi Zaraki turned around and saw Yachiru performing an infinite teleportation in the open space behind him, falling into the prism below, then emerging from the prism above, and then falling in again, over and over again.

"Little Sword, this is so much fun~" Yachiru's voice was full of joy.

Kenpachi Zaraki scratched his head: "What's that?"

Compared to this messy stuff, he still felt that a head-on fight was more satisfying.

Yuko stared speechlessly at Yachiru, who was treating her Shikai like a toy. Then, she casually swung her Zanpakuto, and as Yachiru fell, the Prism suddenly disappeared, and she landed hard on the ground.

"Ouch, ouch, ouch~" Yachiru rubbed her buttocks as she got up, pouting and looking at Yuuko with dissatisfaction.

"Xiao Yu is so stingy~"

Yu Zi's lips twitched. So what kind of weird name is this?

"What?" Kenpachi Zaraki looked at Ikuko with a puzzled expression. "Aren't you going to continue using your special ability?"

Yuko shook her head: "I just suddenly feel that using this ability to fight you is kind of pointless."

Kenpachi Zaraki grinned: "He's exactly my type."

"Shall we continue?" Yu Zi smiled slightly. "If not, I'll leave."

"How could I possibly let you escape!" Kenpachi Zaraki roared with joy and charged toward Ikuko without saying another word.

Yuko countered his attacks one by one, clearly sensing that the force emanating from the sword was constantly increasing.

"Hahahaha! That felt so good! That felt so good! You're really strong!" Kenpachi Zaraki's spiritual pressure surged again and erupted.

Yuko could clearly sense the changes in his spiritual pressure. Was he getting stronger when faced with stronger opponents?

Do not……

It seemed that he had been suppressing his power, gradually releasing the suppressed spiritual pressure.

What does it mean?

Without hesitation, Yuko lowered her head to avoid Kenpachi Zaraki's sweeping slash, causing a few strands of her hair to flutter.

"Again! Again!" Kenpachi Zaraki's voice rang out repeatedly, clearly enjoying himself immensely.

His body was covered with sword marks left by Yuko. Facing Yuko's attacks, Kenpachi Zaraki did not have much of a thought to dodge and ate almost seven or eight tenths of his full stomach.

What a gluttonous fellow.

I see……

Is it just to fully enjoy the thrill of fighting?

Whether it's cutting someone or being cut, it's not about defeating the enemy, but simply about enjoying the thrill of battle.

Yuko took a deep breath. She understood that conventional fighting methods could no longer end this battle.

The opponent is a pure battle maniac; the more injured he gets, the stronger and more excited he becomes.

To end this battle, we must strike him with a thunderous blow, rendering him unable to get up even if he wanted to.

We need to end this battle quickly, or it'll be troublesome when Yoruichi comes over.

“Since you’re so eager to fight…” Yu Zi’s eyes changed, and beneath that calm, something that had been dormant for a long time began to awaken.

A delicate and intricate red mark quietly appeared on one side of her cheek and quickly spread out.

The marks never disappeared; this was just Yuko going all out, using even her efforts to conceal the marks on her in battle.

Simply put, she took it seriously.

This should be the first time she's been this serious. Even when facing her opponent's Bankai at the Uesugi family last time, Ikuko wasn't this serious.

She was serious at the time, but who knew that guy's Bankai was just a showy but useless weapon that posed no threat whatsoever.

But this guy is different.

Although he lacks Bankai or Shikai, his spiritual pressure during battle is genuinely captain-level, remarkably pure and powerful.

If I don't take this seriously, I might end up just acting cute and fooling around with that little girl today.

Yachiru, who had sat back down on the rock to watch the battle, showed a look of surprise on her small face: "...Yu, she's different now."

Kenpachi Zaraki also sensed this change. The woman before him had altered her aura.

If Yuko was just casually swinging her knife before, now... that overbearing aura is starting to sting his skin.

"Oh!!!" Kenpachi Zaraki instinctively sensed an even stronger threat, and therefore felt an unprecedented pleasure.

That's the feeling! That fighting spirit!

"You're a dual-wielder, aren't you?" Kenpachi Zaraki grinned. "Let me see your other sword!"

Yuko narrowed her eyes slightly. This guy... should we call it a fighting instinct?

Did you even notice?

That makes sense; it would be strange if someone couldn't notice.

He's so skilled at handling the scabbard that it would be unreasonable to say he doesn't have a second sword.

"Then let me show you." Yuko smiled slightly and casually tossed the scabbard of her Zanpakuto to Yachiru.

"Heave-ho~" Yachiru caught it steadily.

With a casual wave of her free left hand, blood splattered, and a pure white knife appeared in her hand.

Blood dripped quickly from the blade, as if it had come into contact with laundry detergent stains, leaving no trace of blood on the blade.

Kenpachi Zaraki's pupils contracted slightly; that sword... seemed to have emerged from that woman's hand.

“Let me see.” Kenpachi Zaraki licked his lips; things were getting even more interesting.

Compared to Kenpachi Zaraki's enthusiasm, Ikuko simply watched him calmly.

The spiritual pressure is still increasing. Does it sense the danger I'm in?

Unfortunately...

Yuko said calmly, "Although I'd be happy to continue fighting with you, I can already sense that guy's presence. If I keep dawdling, I'm afraid I'll get scolded."

"Huh? What are you talking about?"

Yu Zi smiled slightly: "It's coming."

"Come on!" Kenpachi Zaraki grinned.

Yuko's smile faded, and then... she suddenly disappeared from Kenpachi Zaraki's sight.

Kenpachi Zaraki's pupils suddenly contracted.

No, it didn't disappear.

It was so fast that there was no time to react.

It was as if a faint, delicate silver thread swept across Kenpachi Zaraki's face, rippled in the air, and turned out to be two thin silver threads, seemingly intertwined.

Kenpachi Zaraki remained frozen in place, as if nothing had happened.

ended.

This thought flashed through Kenpachi Zaraki's mind.

The next moment, two surging pillars of blood erupted from his chest; it was a crisscrossing slash.

"Snow Breathing, Seventh Form, Snow, Narrow Passage, Flying Crossing." A calm voice rang in his ears; it was the last sound Kenpachi Zaraki heard.

Yuko's figure appeared behind him without his noticing.

Kenpachi Zaraki's vision went black, and his massive body collapsed forward, unable to rise again.

“Kenpachi…” Yachiru jumped off the rock, ran to Kenpachi Zaraki’s side, poked his face, and after confirming that he was just unconscious, she raised her head and looked at Yuuko with bright, admiring eyes.

"Xiao Yu, you're amazing! You're so much better than Xiao Jian right now!"

Yu Zi's lips twitched: "I'm telling you, aren't you worried about him?"

Yachiru gave a thumbs up: "Hey, Koken, all you need to do is take a nap."

Are these two devils?

A battle maniac and a social butterfly who doesn't care about others' lives—you two are a perfect match!

Yu Zi breathed a sigh of relief, took the documents back from her arms, and after confirming that they were intact, a figure suddenly appeared.

"Yuko, how is the situation?" Yoruichi's serious voice rang out.

Yu Zi turned around and waved the documents in her hand: "I got the stuff."

Yoruichi stared blankly at the scene before her: "What... is going on?"

Wasn't it supposed to be one traitor? How come so many people suddenly appeared?

"And that little girl."

“Friends, oh friends~” Before Yuko could reply, Yachiru grabbed Yuko’s hand and chuckled, “Ken and I are Yuko’s friends.”

"Wait...!" When Yuko heard the word 'small', she had already realized what was going on, but she still couldn't stop her from saying it.

Yoruichi was taken aback for a moment, then looked at the two of them with a strange expression:

"Xiao...Yu?"

“That’s right! Yu is Yu!” Yachiru wanted to pat Yu’s back, but found that he couldn’t reach her, so he stood on the stone next to him and patted Yu’s back with an old-fashioned look.

"Pfft~" Yoruichi let out a sound of suppressing a laugh.

Yuko squinted and turned to look at Yachiru: "This girl's name is Yoruichi. You can call her Yoruichi or Yachiru."

Ye Yi's expression changed slightly, sensing something was wrong. He raised his hand as if making Er Kang's gesture: "Wait..."

Yachiru instantly understood, nodded, and looked at Yoruichi with a serious expression: "I understand! Yoruichi!"

Yoruichi covered her face: "So, what exactly is going on?"

“Hmm…” Yu Zi pondered for a moment, “This traitor was killed by Xiao Jian… no, by this big guy.”

"Then, in order to get the documents back, he wanted me to fight with him, that's how it happened."

Yoruichi frowned as she looked at Kenpachi Zaraki, who was lying on the ground, unable to get up.

No wonder the spiritual pressure impact was so exaggerated just now; it turns out Yuko was fighting someone.

But... just what kind of size is this big guy that makes Yuko so serious?

Although Yoruichi often spoke ill of Yuuko, she had already acknowledged in her heart that Yuuko was stronger than her. This girl was just too exaggerated; whether it was Kido or anything else, she could learn it in an instant.

Yuko's spiritual pressure reaction just now was something she had never felt before.