Chapter 14: Urokodaki Sakonji

"Kill it? Shiroi-senpai, you must be joking! How could I possibly do that?" Tanjiro stared at Haru in shock, clearly unable to comprehend his words.

Shouldn't Haru be the one to handle this? How could he bring himself to do such a thing?

"If you can't do it, then how will you protect your sister? How will you avenge your family? Or have you already given up on revenge and chosen to live in cowardice?" Haru questioned Tanjiro sharply.

Tanjiro shook his head in denial. "No, that's not it!"

"Then kill it! The path ahead will only grow more treacherous," Haru's tone carried an undeniable authority.

Tanjiro fell silent, trembling as he hesitantly pulled a small knife from his waist. He raised it before the demon's head, struggling to steel his resolve.

Just then, a hand suddenly reached out from behind and rested on Tanjiro's shoulder.

"That won't kill it," an aged voice spoke.

Both Haru and Tanjiro were startled, immediately turning toward the source of the voice.

It was a man wearing a tengu mask, a headscarf wrapped around his head, and a sky-blue long robe adorned with wave patterns.

Judging by his voice, he was at least in his fifties. Despite his age, his posture remained upright, exuding an undeniable vitality.

What surprised Haru the most was that he hadn't sensed the man's presence at all.

If this person had harbored any ill intentions, he could have taken Haru by surprise without him even realizing it.

Then again, perhaps it was simply because the man bore no killing intent, allowing him to approach unnoticed.

As Haru processed his shock, he suddenly remembered the identity of this elderly man—he was the very person Tanjiro had been searching for: Urokodaki Sakonji.

[Urokodaki Sakonji: A practitioner of the Water Breathing style and a trainer for new Demon Slayers in the Demon Slayer Corps. Tomioka Giyu was once his disciple.]

"Then how do I kill it?" Tanjiro asked, his voice filled with both shock and curiosity.

"Don't ask others—can't you use your own brain?" Urokodaki retorted.

With that, Urokodaki turned his attention to Haru, scrutinizing him briefly. In response, Haru offered a faint smile as a gesture of respect.

Meanwhile, Tanjiro began to think. Eventually, he picked up a large rock, gripping it tightly in his hands. Yet when the moment came to act, he still hesitated.

"Ah… This child is no good. Too considerate of others, unable to make firm decisions. Even when faced with a demon, his gentle scent doesn't fade. He even harbors sympathy for the demon itself. Giyu, is this really the one you chose?"

Urokodaki muttered to himself as he observed Tanjiro.

Haru, on the other hand, remained silent. Now that Tanjiro's true mentor had appeared, there was no need for him to interfere.

Time ticked by, and eventually, the demon's head—previously unconscious—began to stir.

"You brat! I'll kill you! I'll devour you whole! Come over here! Hey! I can't move, so get over here already! Hey!" The demon's severed head, still pinned to the tree by the axe, flailed its grotesque arms and shouted at Tanjiro, who remained frozen in hesitation.

At that moment, the sun began to rise, and golden light soon bathed the area.

The demon, now exposed to sunlight, started to burn away piece by piece, letting out agonized screams.

In the end, before Tanjiro's eyes, the demon's head completely disintegrated into nothingness.