In Akaza's mind, Kawanishi must have been trying to trick him, planning to steal away Shinobu and devour her. After all, the flesh of a Pillar who has mastered breathing techniques would be a feast for any demon.
It never even occurred to Akaza that a demon might try to save a human. That possibility simply didn't exist in his worldview.
Kawanishi didn't reply. If he stopped now, he'd be handing over control of life and death to Akaza. All initiative would be lost, and from that moment on, he'd have to beg for mercy.
But demons… do they have mercy? Of course not!
"This is bad… Akaza is almost on us."
No matter how he looked at it, Akaza was closing in fast.
If this kept up, it was only a matter of time before he was caught. In a moment of desperation, Kawanishi made a bold decision—
He was going to fly.
"Hiha, Black Fang… I believe in your strength. I believe in myself. Take me into the sky!"
Until now, Kawanishi had only used Hiha for boosting speed or weaponizing its blades. But to fly, he needed Hiha to carry him.
His four wings, which had been pushing backward for propulsion, now changed direction. They began flapping forcefully at a downward angle.
Slowly, Kawanishi's body started lifting—forward and upward. He barely got off the ground before falling onto a treetop again. But he flapped again and rose once more.
Over and over, he repeated the process.
Behind him, Akaza caught sight of what was happening and felt a twinge of unease.
"This little brat… if he could fly, wouldn't he have done so already? Don't tell me… he's really about to fly?"
Shinobu watched in silence, quickly realizing what Kawanishi was trying to do.
"Can he really pull it off?"
She'd never seen a demon fly before.
With each jump and flap, Kawanishi felt his control improving. He began sensing the wind.
Air currents brushed past his wings—he was creating wind.
Gradually, Kawanishi emptied his mind, pushing aside all thoughts of Akaza. He focused only on the rhythm of his wings and the flow of air.
The wind gathered around him. His wings grew lighter and more agile. He stayed aloft longer and farther with every attempt.
And then, finally—on one final motion—Kawanishi, like a four-winged hawk, soared fully into the sky.
With Shinobu in his arms, he shot upward, higher and higher.
The threat of Akaza vanished beneath him in a single beat of his wings.
Looking down on the Blue Haze Mountains, Kawanishi felt an overwhelming sense of freedom. This… this was the human dream of flight.
He threw his head back and laughed with joy. "Can't catch me now, can you?"
"Akaza—see you around!"
His wings beat faster, carrying him higher and farther still. With the forest canopy now far below, Akaza could no longer pursue.
Behind him, Akaza's face darkened.
"Is this… mockery?"
"He could fly all along and pretended he couldn't? Heh."
"I'll remember you."
Furious, Akaza had the sudden urge to leap after him—but he had no wings. Even with his tremendous leg strength, he would still fall back down.
He gave up the chase.
In a flash, Akaza appeared atop a towering tree, standing silently on the tip of the canopy. He watched Kawanishi's silhouette fade into the distance.
That shape—he would remember it well.
"So many people escaped from the town. I wonder if Lord Muzan will be enraged."
"Maybe not… after all, his goal was to draw out the Demon Slayers. Whether or not the town is destroyed, they'll have to respond."
"Let's hope that's enough…"
...
Kawanishi soared joyfully through the night sky, the wind whistling past his ears and the vast, open world stretching beneath him.
He almost forgot that Shinobu was still in his arms.
The ends of her violet hair danced in the wind as she looked at his gleaming, triumphant face. Her heart gave a little jump.
He looked so happy—like a child with a new toy. Even though he still bore a demon's fearsome face, he radiated no menace at all.
A demon face… but with a human heart.
She didn't want to interrupt his joy. But she had no choice.
"I'm just saying—if you don't set me down soon, I'm going to bleed out."
Even though she'd used her breathing techniques to stabilize her body, that attack from Akaza had left her badly injured. Her legs were still bleeding.
Kawanishi: "???"
In a panic, he scanned for the nearest mountaintop and quickly descended. But he had no idea where they'd ended up.
Flying without landmarks or navigation, he'd just flown blindly in his excitement.
He gently set Shinobu down with her back against a tree trunk.
Riiip—
Kawanishi tore the sleeve from his right arm. His left sleeve had been shredded earlier by Watakuchi and was unusable.
He knelt to bandage Shinobu's wounds and stop the bleeding.
"Sorry, I really forgot you were still bleeding… I was just so excited. First time flying and all."
He tried to wrap her wounds carefully.
Shinobu rolled her eyes. "You're hurting me."
Kawanishi had tried to be gentle, but he had no skill in this—he fumbled clumsily.
Apologizing again, he tried to be even more careful… but after a few seconds—
Shinobu sighed, "Let me do it."
She leaned forward, took the cloth from him, and swiftly bandaged her leg with efficient, practiced movements. Then she looked at him.
Kawanishi gave a sheepish grin. "I guess I'm just inexperienced… and maybe a bit flustered."
By now, he had suppressed his demon form, returning to his human appearance.
Concerned for me?
He looked a little different from before. Shinobu studied him again, more closely. He seemed nervous under her gaze.
She pointed to his ear.
"Kawanishi, your earring is broken…"
Kawanishi: "???"
He reached up and found that his right ear's Hanafuda earring—the one passed down to him by Tanjiro's father—had snapped in half. Only the sun disc remained.
He frowned and tried to remember when it might have broken.
"Black Fang… probably happened during that fight."
Black Fang's barbed tongue had missed him by a hair, but it must have grazed his head—snapping the earring.
"Father… I hope you're not angry. I only broke it to protect others."
"It's just half now… but I can still pass it down."
He took off the earring and used his Blade Prison ability to craft a small iron chain, threading the charm onto it and wearing it around his neck.
It rested over his heart, hidden beneath his clothes.
Shinobu watched silently, not interrupting. When Kawanishi finally finished—
She spoke softly: "Kawanishi… let's be good friends."
Kawanishi, just how many people have you eaten? What punishment must you endure to atone for it all, before I can truly call you… a friend?
(End of Chapter)