Conqueror Among Demons: Demon Slayer x Male Reader

Chapter 16: Shattered Hope

"Rengoku!" Lynn yelled with worry before covering herself when a small shockwave blew through the area as Rengoku and Akaza continued to clash against one another. 

Thunderous sounds of fleshing being cut and banged against metal filled the air as you, Lynn, Tanjirou, and Inosuke watched Rengoku fight against Upper Moon Three, Akaza. The Flame Hashira dodged three strikes from Akaza and tried to counterattack with one good slash, but the Upper Demon dodged with ease as Rengoku was forced to block five furious attacks with his blade. Akaza followed up with two more punches before sending a spinning kick that moved Rengoku back about a foot before he parried one punch and brought his blade down to catch Akaza's left hand by the wrist, digging his blade deep into his arm. 

"Please, my Lord!" Lynn begged, but you remained silent and continued to watch from the sidelines. "He really isn't going to help him...?" She couldn't believe what you were doing while turning her head back towards the fight.

Rengoku barely had enough time to react to Akaza's deadly chop and sliced upwards to amputate his right arm, but it would be a futile effort as Akaza grinned as his limb grew back in an instant and he used the same arm to force Rengoku to block. Reeling back his left arm with glee, Akaza sent another power blow that Rengoku clashed with as sparks and blood flew in the air between the two of them. The two of them were face to face before Rengoku let out a powerful yell while slashing towards Akaza, making the demon leap back high into the air before he suddenly spun around and entered a strange stance.

"Destructive Death..." Akaza's hands briefly had a strange aura around them before he closed them into fists and reeled back his right arm. "...Air Type!" He threw his fist forward with great force as Rengoku waited to see what attack was coming towards him.

Rengoku scanned his surroundings before coming to a realization of the kind of attack he unleashed and feeling a strange force come towards him, the Flame Hashira raised his sword in time to block an air punch that almost knocked the wind out of him. Akaza flipped over right-side up and sent two more air punches as Rengoku blocked those as well, sliding back a few feet before regaining his footing.

"I see..." Rengoku thought as he watched Akaza unleashed six air attacks. "Flame Breathing...Fourth Form..." He adjusted the grip on his blade before moving it in a circular motion with great force. "Blooming Flame Undulation!" He unleashed his fourth technique that absorbed the all of the air attacks thrown at him. "When he strikes the air with his fist, the attack will reach me here!" He thought as Akaza unleashed another volley at him and Rengoku performed the same technique to counter before Akaza landed back on the ground a few feet away from him. "He can move faster than the blink of an eye. If I allow him to fight from a distance like this, slicing his head off will be tricky. In that case..." Rengoku assumed a strong stance before he moved faster than Tanjirou and Lynn could see.

"Hmph, good battle sense." You said as you saw Rengoku close the distance between himself and Akaza. "Realizing his best chances are to remain up close, he'll use his speed to make sure Akaza won't be able to use his ranged attacks. I guess you shouldn't expect any less from a human of today who's bloodline has been slaying demons for quite some time. However, they're still on even ground." You watched as Akaza smiled before clashing with Kyojuro once more in a violent volley of attacks that the two were letting off, creating thunderous shocks through the area they were in.

Watching the two of them trade blow after blow in such an intense manner, Tanjirou tried to get back on his feet to try and join the fight. Before he could however, Rengoku took notice mid-fight and glanced back to Tanjirou.

"Stay where you are!" Rengoku yelled as Tanjirou and Lynn stopped moving, along with Inosuke who had just gotten back to the scene. "If that wound reopens, it'll be fatal! Stand back! That's an order!" He yelled at Tanjirou before putting his focus on the battle.