Kimon

Akatsuki slowly turned his head toward the voice and saw a man in a black kimono with blood-red eyes, long black hair that flowed past his shoulders, and handsome, angular features. The man wore a sly smile as he dangled the body of a teenage woman out in front of him by the neck, her body covered in blood.

Upon looking closer, Akatsuki could see that her short hair was actually red in color with blood mixed in, and her blue eyes were wide open in shock and pain. Akatsuki's heart felt like it was being gripped by a vice as a primal rage took control of his body. Releasing a feral roar, Akatsuki drew his katana before dashing toward the black-haired man.

"Oh? Was this someone you knew? A lover, perhaps? My, if so then I'm jealous..." The Demon continued to try and casually converse with Akatsuki as he dodged the countless frenzied stabs and slashes. Akatsuki remembered the pain he felt when he lost his parents and friends to this monster, and now he had ruined yet another beautiful place with so many beautiful souls.

He couldn't let this man roam free for another second.

"Die you bastard!! You took everything from me, and now you take more innocent lives!? You're disgusting!!" Akatsuki yelled and screamed, however, none of his attacks would land. Suddenly, The Demon stopped Akatsuki's blade with a single finger before tossing the woman in his hand to the side. Hearing the body hit the floor with a wet thud infuriated Akatsuki even more.

Using all of his strength, Akatsuki yelled out and tore his katana through the Demon's finger and made a shallow cut on his cheek. Akatsuki fell to the ground, due to how much power he had used, and the Demon was stunned as he stared at his mangled finger. It began to regenerate at a visible rate, and the Demon let out an impressed 'Hm!'

Akatsuki jumped to his feet and slashed out toward the Demon's neck, but he suddenly found himself in the side of a building. The pain caught up to Akatsuki and he coughed up a decent amount of blood as the Demon appeared in front of him with the same smile as before. "Now, if you would be a dear and just come with m-"

The Demon was reaching out his hand toward Akatsuki as he spoke, however, his hand went flying into the air as blood sprayed all over Akatsuki's body. The Demon raised a brow and turned around with a curious expression before moving his head to the side in order to avoid a bright blue blade aimed at his throat.

Yazura stood there with a murderous glint in his eyes and yelled "Akatsuki! I know you're alive, so go! Go and find Nashida Kurizato!" Yazura dashed forward with his katana in its sheath as lightning crackled through the air. His sword flew toward the Demon's head as fast as lightning and the Demon was forced the harden his skin and block the attack.

Yazura's sword was now a bright yellow as clouds formed overhead and filled the sky with loud thunder. "Go!" Akatsuki remained still, watching as Yazura held his own against the Demon, who was laughing in a pleased manner. Almost like he had just found his favorite toy...

Akatsuki was tired of running away and leaving those he cared for to die. He was tired of being weak, and he wanted to change. He wanted to rid the world of this scum. Akatsuki's veins began to bulge from his skin as he pulled himself from the building he was lodged in.

Yazura was defending himself from the Demon's ruthless attacks when he caught a glimpse of Akatsuki. "Damnit, listen to me boy! I know that you are not Human, and I want you to live! Everyone in the village knew that you were a half-breed, but they all made me promise to let you stay. You've done so much for us, and now we will return your kindness. Run, Akatsuki!!"

The Demon suddenly snarled and yelled "Shut up for once!" as he hardened his nails and plunged his hand toward Yazura's heart. Yazura was able to deflect the attack from being fatal, but it still created a large gash across his chest. Akatsuki saw this and no longer had any ideas of running. He knew that Yazura would die if he fled.

Readying his katana, Akatsuki began to control his breathing as he settled down into a low stance and lightly gripped his sword's handle. Seeing Akatsuki's glowing red eyes, enlarged canines, and bulging veins, Yazura couldn't help but feel like he had let the man down. He let him become what he hates the most.

The air began to crackle around Akatsuki as he breathed out and set his sights on the black-haired Demon. Akatsuki sprang forward and drew his katana with an incredible amount of speed. It was so fast that even Yazura had trouble keeping track of his attack, even though he was a master in the technique he was using.

"The Thunder Breathing Technique...To think that this man could already utilize my Technique to the point that he could copy another...Magnificent...I believe he can rid this world of these foul creatures, and I believe that he can avenge me..." Yazura thought as the Demon's hand swiped back and toward his throat, too fast for him to dodge or parry.

Suddenly, Akatsuki appeared in front of Yazura and chopped the Demon's hand off with a feral snarl. The Demon seemed genuinely afraid as he took a step back and stuttered "W-Where did you get such power!? You're nothing but a damned half-breed! How can you be so strong!?" Akatsuki responded with a yell as he flashed forward; thunder drowning out all sounds.

"Die." Akatsuki slashed out with his katana and the Demon's head was sent flying through the air as a bolt of lightning struck the ground nearby. Akatsuki fell to one knee as his veins began to slowly turn back to normal, while his eyes dimmed down to their usual dark color. He was gasping for breath as sweat rolled down his face.

Yazura walked over to Akatsuki and put a hand on his shoulder before saying "You did well, boy. You truly are strong, stronger than you know..." Yazura was interrupted by a rustling noise and the two looked over at the Demon's body and saw it crawling toward his head, which wore a distorted smile.

"You may have gotten lucky this time, but I swear that I will get you one day, half-breed!" The Demon snatched his head up before reattaching it to his body and disappearing into a thick cloud of black smoke. Just like that, he was gone once again. Akatsuki felt his body growing weak as his consciousness faded in and out.

He fell to the floor and felt an emotion he had forgotten long ago.

Joy.

---

A group of ten men wearing long-sleeved black, collared shirts, with a long-sleeved white shirt underneath, a white belt, and black hakama pants darted through the trees with their katanas at their sides, ready to be drawn at any moment.

A man with long, bright yellow hair with red streaks, two shoulder-length bangs and two chin-length bangs on the side of his head, black forked eyebrows, and golden eyes that fade to red with white pupils was running at the front when he suddenly stopped and held his hand up with a serious expression on his face.

"Jura, what's that smell?" A short man, about 5 feet and 8 inches tall, appeared next to the man and sniffed the air a few times before turning, saluting, and saying "I believe that it is the smell of smoke, Rengoku-sama!" The man nodded his head before mumbling "That matches the report..." After staying still for a little while longer, the man motioned for the group to continue moving as he leapt from tree branch to tree branch.

The sight that unfolded in front of the group when they emerged from the forest was...more than what they expected, to put it as simple as possible. Jura walked up to the yellow-haired man and saluted before saying "Rengoku-sama, the report says that the entire village was attacked by a horde of medium-ranked Demons, and this isn't a small village by any means..."

Rengoku could hear the concern and worry oozing from Jura's voice, but this only made him angry as he said "So what! There are civilians who need to be rescued, so we shall fight to the death to ensure that they make it out alive! Now, move out men!" Jura sighed as he watched Rengoku draw his reddish-orange katana and dash forward toward the still burning village ahead of them.

Looking back, Jura motioned for the rest of the group to follow behind as he drew his own white colored katana and followed behind Rengoku. Jura saw three misshapen Demons with pale skin and multiple mouths jump out in front of Rengoku, but they were soon covered in raging flames and screaming out in agony.

The group pressed on and dealt with any Demons they saw while looking for survivors, however, there were none in sight even after twenty minutes of searching. Suddenly, a cry for help could be heard in the distance, and Rengoku and his group were quick to respond. They quickly arrived at a burnt down building and started to search for survivors.

A rustle was heard off to the side and Rengoku looked over to see a man in a black kimono with long, black hair that went past his shoulders, blood red eyes, sharp, handsome features, and a devilish smile on his face as he held up a little boy by the neck. Rengoku dashed forward without hesitating and swung his sword down. "Third Form: Blazing Universe!"

Flames leapt from his blade as the Demon turned his head and said "Oh, they decided to send a bigshot!" before moving his hand to where the boy was in front of the strike. Rengoku clicked his tongue and shifted the weight of his attack before jumping back and analyzing the situation.

"Who are you, Demon. I see no number engraved into your eyes, yet you're able to easily dodge and follow my movements, which should be impossible from a Demon that is not within the ranks of the Twelve Kizuki." Rengoku kept his sword ready as he spoke, and the Demon laughed lightly before holding the boy up to his face and saying "My name is Kimon, and trust me, I'm waaaaaay beyond those guys! In fact, I'm second only to the boss man himself!"

Despite Kimon's cheery and seemingly amiable attitude, Rengoku could feel the thick killing intent that was being directed his way, and he could tell that this Demon was no ordinary Demon. "Well, I'm afraid that I have to go, but I promise to come and play with you later! Tata!" Kimon disappeared into a thick cloud of black smoke along with the boy, leaving an echo of his creepy and deranged laughter behind.

Rengoku cursed as feelings of guilt and remorse filled his mind. He couldn't save that boy's life, and he was too late to save anyone from the village. He was a failure. However, a voice suddenly knocked him out from his self-pity. "Hey, can you give me a hand you big oaf!? Damn, this boy sure is heavy! Rengoku. Rengoku! I said come here damnit!"

Rengoku turned his head to see his long time friend and mentor carrying a white haired man over his shoulders. He quickly rushed over and helped Yazura carry the man when a sudden smell invaded his nose. Rengoku, as well as his group, suddenly pulled their katana's from their sheathes and were ready to attack the unconscious man when Yazura shouted out in anger.

"Don't you dare lay a single fucking hand on him! He has helped me, and this village many times, and I'll be damned if I repay his kindness with betrayal. I don't care if he's a half-breed, for his heart is much purer than most of those in the Demon Corps!" Rengoku was completely flabbergasted at Yazura's words.

An ex-Hashira was defending a man who was tainted with the blood of a Demon.