Tsunami of Dead Tears: Part 2

Chapter 31

Inosuke hated how short a wakizashi's blade was.

He didn't even like it's name. Wakizashi. It was just a crappy katana! What was the point?

Inosuke channeled his hate for the wakizashi's design into his attacks, slamming the dagger again and again on the demon's neck, which he had pinned.

Another demon rushed at him from his left, holding a machete. Seeing this, Inosuke leaned back, letting the demon's swing come down. The machete descended, missing Inosuke and hitting the other demon instead, decapitating him. Inosuke then released the now-decapitated demon and grabbed the machete demon's wrist, pushing him back.

They both stayed in a grapple, Inosuke pushing the demon forward, until they met the wall. Inosuke tried to use his wakizashi, which he was holding in his right hand, to slice at the demon's throat, but the demon anticipated that. He raised his left arm and caught the blade, then slammed it at Inosuke's mask. Inosuke stumbled back, but didn't withdraw completely. He grabbed a lamp that was placed on a nearby table and smashed it across the demon's face. The lamp oil combined with the lit candle quickly set the demon's head on fire.

"HAHAHAHAAA!!!" Inosuke bellowed. "How'd you like that?!"

But instead of crumpling in pain, as Inosuke thought he would do, the demon instead roared and dashed towards Inosuke, tackling him while his head was still on fire. They both wrestled on the ground, trying to pin the other, but the demon was seeming to take the upper hand. Inosuke dropped his wakizashi, and he couldn't find it. As he desperately tried to shove him away, the demon's head started trembling. His head soon split open, revealing a huge set of charred teeth, with flames enveloping the exposed muscle. The demon reared his head back, as if to finally chomp on Inosuke's flesh.

But before he could do that, a flash of blue swept past. The demon's burning head rolled to the ground, and so did his torso.

Inosuke crawled away from the demon, catching his breath. His arms were a bit sore, but otherwise, he was fine. He looked up, and saw Giyuu, his Nichirin blade in hand.

He saw what I did. Inosuke thought. He'll finally be able to trust me now, right?

Inosuke stood back up. Underneath his mask, he was smiling. With the countless amounts of ash piles around, surely Giyuu would see that he could handle himself!

But then Giyuu turned to Inosuke. His face was wrathful. Inosuke's smile dropped.

. . .

"You stupid son of a-" Giyuu muttered, cutting off the last part of the sentence and grabbing Inosuke by his shoulders. "What did I say about hanging back?! What were you thinking?!"

"I was trying to help!" Inosuke answered. "Now you don't have to deal with anyone running off!"

"That doesn't matter anymore!" Giyuu yelled. "You left the roof. You were safe on that roof! I told you to stay away!"

"GET OFF OF ME!" Inosuke screamed, shoving Giyuu away. The sheer volume of that yell was enough to give Giyuu a moment of pause. They both faced each other, trying to calm down.

"Inosuke..." Giyuu muttered, cooling his head. "What did you think you were going to accomplish with following me? You could've died!"

"I was doing good!" Inosuke said, taking off his boar mask and dropping it to the ground. "I was doing better than good, I was doing great! I slayed six or seven demons without your help, and you aren't even acknowledging that?! What, you couldn't even give me a 'thank you'?! How about 'Hey, I'm sorry for bringing you here just to stand in one place like an idiot, thanks for making the job easier for me', can't you at least appreciate what I did?!"