Chapter 5 : Shadows

Ibuki without hesitation ran at full speed towards the direction of the scream, Jirocho who was still surprised by the scream quickly came to his senses and ran towards the direction of screams as well.

Ibuki, although slowed down by the snow, ran at a speed that can only be described as extraordinary, his steps were so fast that he left almost no imprint on the snow.

He quickly arrived on the frozen lake, and saw a little girl carrying a boy a little taller than her on her back while being chased by a humanoid monster with the head of owls and a thin and tall body of about four meters high, the long tongue of this monster hanging out of his mouth was covered with blood.

His scarlet pupils looked with amusement at the little girl who was desperately running away, as if he was entertaining himself from this scene, like a predator playing with his prey.

The little girl, perhaps tired of running carrying the boy on her back, took a wrong step and fell to the ground.

The monster seeing this had a perverse smile on his face as he approached the terrified child.

"Mom! Dad! Help me!" Does she scream in desperation as she watches the monster slowly approach her.

"Hoshin : True liberated Mind!"

Suddenly the monster disapeared as a young boy holding a Katana with a red blade appeared in front of the little girl.

"What just happened? I executed my technique perfectly, this demon was in front of me when I jumped towards him, then disappeared! Is this magic, a cloaking skill?"

Thinking Ibuki while holding his katana firmly, without lowering his guard, then he looked at the girl who was also looking at him.

"Kid, can you get up?"

She began to cry and then nodded in response, at the same time Jirocho, out of breath, was coming from the forest.

"Kid, you're too fast! Did you find out who was screaming for help?" Said Jirocho who was coming towards the frozen lake but when he passed by a tree, the demon suddenly reappeared behind him.

Feeling a presence behind him Jirocho turned around unconsciously and seeing demon behind him fell to the ground because of the emotional shock.

"Rooar! Damn human! How dare you interrupt my feast! I'll tear you to pieces!!

His long tongue like a rope wrapped around Jirocho, while the demon opened his mouth as if to swallow him in one bite, Ibuki further away, suddenly lowered his center of gravity, put all his weight on his right feet, then he put all his Katana in its sheath before drawing it again, but this time with a faster speed than all the previous times.

"Sen : Lightning Cut!"

*Swoosh*

Ibuki suddenly became blurred and his whole body began to be blown away by the wind, leaving only a faint, lingering image of him.

The left side and the tongue of the monster were suddenly sliced in half as a draught passed by, the monster then feen the danger, suddenly disappeared in front Jirocho's astonished eyes.

Ibuki who reappeared further away holding his Katana slipped on the snow for a brief moment because of the kinetic force of his attack before rushing towards Jirocho, whom he grabbed by the arm dragging him on the lake next to the little girl and the boy.

"What the hell was that?" Murmured Jirocho unconsciously.

"A demon." Said Ibuki who was holding his Katana more firmly.

"A demon...haha...haha."

Ibuki hearing Jirocho's laughter didn't say anything, after all it wasn't easy to question all his knowledge of the world in just a few seconds.

To be suddenly in contact with the supernatural would shock anyone, even him, who had already died once was shocked the first time.

"Yare, Yare, my previous attack consumed nearly half of my physical strength, but I think I understood the nature of his faculty."

"Jorocho-san, little girl, don't move, stay here, if you ever try to run away the demon will attack you."

Ibuki took off the clothes he was wearing, leaving him dressed only with a thin layer of cloth.

Hearing that, the crying little girl nodded her head, Jirocho will be firmly clenching his fists, before nodding his head as well.

He put his Kata in its sheath and rushed to the forest.

"If I am not mistaken, this demon possesses the faculty to disappear in the shadows, just now when I attacked him, he plunged into the shadow of the tree and my first attack, he plunged into the shadow of the tree there, the only tree whose shadow can reach the frozen lake."

Ibuki's breathing quickened as he arrived in the forest, but before he could react the monster's long hands suddenly emerged from the shadow of a tree and came to strike him in the stomach.

"Ouch!"