Chapter 202: Upper Seven

Chapter 202: Upper Seven

As the battle in the Infinity Castle raged on, some were unlucky and got separated, while others were fortunate enough to be grouped together and acting together.

Tanjirou was one of the lucky few.

When Tanjirou was transported to the Infinity Castle, he found himself alongside two familiar faces he interacted with daily—Zenitsu and Inosuke.

Surprisingly, the atmosphere between the three was not as harmonious as it usually was.

On any other day, Inosuke would be recklessly charging ahead, with Tanjirou and Zenitsu scrambling behind to catch up and stop him. But today, it wasn't Inosuke charging ahead without a thought—it was Zenitsu.

Surprisingly, this normally timid and fearful youth, who avoided missions and dreaded encountering demons for fear of danger, was now marching forward in silence, his face cold and unyielding.

Tanjirou and Inosuke followed behind Zenitsu, walking and talking.

"Hey, sleepyhead, what's up with you?"

Inosuke, always blunt, asked Zenitsu directly.

"You've been acting strange lately. Did you eat something bad?"

Hearing this, Tanjirou could deeply relate to Inosuke's feelings.

Zenitsu had indeed been acting very strange recently.

Since arriving at the Swordsmith Village and receiving a letter that changed his complexion drastically, Zenitsu had stopped being his usual timid, tearful self. He became silent, disciplined, and trained relentlessly, completely unlike his old self.

In the past, the training at the Swordsmith Village would have had Zenitsu complaining within three days, whining by the fifth, and practically giving up by the seventh, acting like he was on the brink of dying.

Yet this time, Zenitsu neither complained nor shirked his training as if an obsession drove him. He trained harder than both Tanjirou and Inosuke, surprising many who knew and understood him.

During this month, Zenitsu only smiled once in front of everyone, which was the day he learned Nezuko had turned back into a human, but after that, he never smiled again.

Zenitsu trained as if his life depended on it, a sight that worried Tanjirou deeply.

Inosuke, despite his seemingly carefree and boisterous nature, was more sensitive and perceptive than most, particularly about Zenitsu's change. Due to this, today, he didn't charge around yelling as usual but just quietly followed Zenitsu.

Unfortunately, Zenitsu didn't seem to appreciate it.

"Stop being so noisy..." Zenitsu said without looking back, continuing to walk forward with a cold expression. "You're so loud, I can't hear anything. We won't be able to find that guy if you don't quiet down."

"So, who exactly are you looking for?" Inosuke insisted. "Did that guy make you mad or something? Tell me and I'll cut him down for you!"

"No need." Zenitsu replied coldly, his voice low. "He can only be killed by my hands."

"You—"

Inosuke seemed like he wanted to say something more, but Tanjirou stopped him.

"Alright, Inosuke, calm down, don't get worked up."

Tanjirou soothed Inosuke before turning to Zenitsu.

"What happened, Zenitsu? Tell us."

"..."

Zenitsu remained silent, not saying a word.

Seeing him like this, Tanjirou showed a worried expression.

"Aren't we friends?" Tanjirou continued. "Nezuko is also worried about you, y'know?"

Hearing these words, Zenitsu finally stopped walking.

"But—"

"But you see, humans have their limits, so I chose to become a demon, Zenitsu!"

Zenitsu's voice, filled with hatred and anger, was suddenly interrupted by someone.

As this stranger's voice rang out, Tanjirou, Zenitsu, and Inosuke all quickly turned around, placing their hands on the hilts of their swords.

In front of them, a youth slowly walked around the corner and came into view.

He had black hair and green eyes, thick eyebrows, and wore a magatama necklace and bracelet. He carried a sword, had sharp ears, deathly pale skin, black tiger-like stripes on his face, and fangs that protruded from his mouth as he grinned.

Without a doubt, he was a demon.

However, he was clearly not just any demon, as evidenced by the Japanese characters in his eyes.

Nonetheless, Zenitsu didn't notice this, as the moment he saw this youth, his breathing became heavy.

"KAIGAKU—!!!" Zenitsu shouted angrily.

"Yo, long time no see, Zenitsu."

Kaigaku greeted Zenitsu with neither enthusiasm nor friendliness. Instead, there was a sense of aggression.

"So, you made it into the Infinity Castle too, huh? Good, good..." Kaigaku said with a smile. "After Lord Muzan ordered the complete annihilation of the Demon Slayer Corps, I thought, in that case, I should be the one to take care of you."

"Luckily, we met smoothly." Kaigaku's smile turned sinister, full of sarcasm. "Otherwise, a weakling like you would have surely been taken out by those little demons the moment you arrived here."

His words didn't make Zenitsu lose his temper, but they did make the impulsive Inosuke draw his two swords.

"You damn bastard!" Inosuke exclaimed angrily.

"Wait, Inosuke!"

Tanjirou hurriedly stopped Inosuke.

"Something's not right, look at his eyes!"

His words finally made Zenitsu and Inosuke notice the Japanese characters in Kaigaku's eyes.

One eye had 'Upper Rank', while the other had 'Seven'.

""Upper Rank... Seven...?""

Tanjirou, Zenitsu, and Inosuke were shocked.

What happened?

Weren't there only six Upper Ranks?

How did an Upper Seven appear?

"Oh? You mean this?"

Kaigaku pointed to his eyes, his smile not fading.

"That's right, I am Upper Seven—the first demon in history to hold this title, to be exact."

"Well, the Twelve Kizuki were officially disbanded when the Lower Ranks were dismissed, so Lord Muzan recently reorganized the Kizuki."

"Since he doesn't need the useless Lower Ranks, there are no more Lower Rank positions in the Kizuki, but an additional seat was added to the Upper Ranks."

"From now on, there are no more Twelve Kizuki, only us seven Upper Ranks—the new Kizuki."