— — — — — — —
"Jie hahaha! You are…?"
At this moment, the Hand Demon had closed in to just three meters away from Renzo. Catching the familiar scent and seeing the recognizable warding fox masks worn by Renzo, Sabito, Makomo, and the others, he was about to speak.
But Renzo's face remained cold. Without hesitation, he held his blade at an angle toward the ground and, in the blink of an eye, shot forward like a bolt of lightning—straight for the Hand Demon's head.
"You think you can pull this off? Die for me!!"
The Hand Demon, who had been ready to toy with Urokodaki Sakonji's disciples, suddenly flew into a rage.
Dozens of hands sprouted wildly from his body, reaching for Renzo mid-air in an attempt to grab him.
Swish swish swish!
With a rapid flurry of slashes, Renzo effortlessly severed the incoming hands.
"Lightning Slash!"
In the next moment using Uchiha Renzo's attack, he transformed into a streak of lightning, flashing past the Hand Demon's neck.
He moved so fast that even the Hand Demon, Sabito, and the others couldn't track his movements.
By the time they registered what had happened, Renzo was already behind the Hand Demon.
With a cool flick of his blade—despite there being no actual blood on it—he calmly sheathed it before swiftly leaping back to Sabito and the others.
They all watched in silence as a jet of blood spurted from the Hand Demon's neck. His body and head rapidly disintegrated from the point of the cut.
"Impossible!... How could a brat like you cut off my head?! Damn it! Urokodaki Sakonji, you bastard!!"
With one final roar of fury, the Hand Demon completely faded into nothingness, vanishing into the depths of the mountain forest.
"Hmm?"
Sabito, Makomo, and Giyu weren't deaf. They had clearly heard the name the Hand Demon called out in his last moments.
"Why did that demon say our master's name? And he sounded absolutely filled with hatred!"
"Could they have known each other?"
"No idea…"
The three of them couldn't make sense of it and turned their gazes toward Renzo.
Sabito immediately asked, "Renzo, do you know what's going on?"
For some reason—maybe just instinct—Sabito had a strong feeling that Renzo recognized the Hand Demon the moment he laid eyes on him.
Not only that, but Renzo's attack had been exceptionally decisive and ruthless.
He hadn't given the demon a single second to speak, as if he couldn't wait to cut him down.
That was completely out of character for Renzo, who was usually laid-back and carefree.
Normally, he'd at least let the demons ramble for a bit before finishing them off instantly, almost as if he enjoyed watching them squirm.
But this time was different.
"I don't know."
Renzo firmly shook his head.
Of course, that was a lie.
As someone who had read the original story, how could he not know?
But he had no intention of letting Sabito and the others find out. More importantly, he didn't want Urokodaki Sakonji to know.
That was why, the moment the Hand Demon had tried to start rambling, Renzo had silenced him permanently.
If their master learned the truth, he would be burdened with guilt for the rest of his life.
After all, before them, twelve of his disciples had entered this mountain to take the Final Selection.
All twelve had been slaughtered.
And it was all because they wore the warding fox masks that their master had crafted for them.
The Hand Demon had specifically targeted them, using the scent of the masks to hunt them down one by one, devouring every last one of them.
It was pure revenge.
Revenge against Urokodaki Sakonji for injuring and capturing him all those years ago, trapping him on Fujikasane Mountain for decades.
So no matter what, their master could never find out.
And it was best if Sabito and the others remained unaware as well.
The truth would only be a burden to them.
Renzo would carry that burden alone.
"Renzo! You clearly—"
Makomo tried to call him out.
But Sabito raised a hand to stop her. "Don't ask. If it was something we needed to know, Renzo would've told us."
"Right?"
Sabito gave Renzo a serious look.
"Ah… so you figured it out?"
Renzo met Sabito's gaze, sighed, and rubbed his temple. "Damn, Sabito… you're really too smart."
Since Sabito had pieced things together, Renzo had to make sure he wouldn't spread the truth.
With a grave expression, he said, "Since you understand, you should also know how cruel this is. Absolutely do not tell anyone else. Ever. Understand?"
"Yeah."
Sabito let out a long sigh. "Even if you didn't say anything, I would've kept it secret."
"Makomo, Giyu, don't ask any more questions. This isn't something good."
"…Alright."
"Got it."
Seeing both Renzo and Sabito looking so serious, Makomo and Giyu nodded, understanding the gravity of the situation.
"Good. Let's continue the exam."
Sabito forced out a smile and led the group forward.
He couldn't help but recall that their master had mentioned before—twelve of his disciples had died during the Final Selection.
With the Hand Demon's final words filled with hatred for their master, and Renzo's unusual behavior…
It wasn't hard for Sabito to connect the dots.
And he understood why Renzo had done what he did.
"What a kind junior brother…"
Sabito glanced at Renzo with admiration.
Meanwhile, Renzo turned to Shinobu and extended an invitation.
"Hey, wanna team up with us?"
Her strength was too weak, and he was worried about her.
Though, if he were being honest, it was also because she was beautiful.
If it were some random guy, he wouldn't have gone out of his way to help. Sure, he wouldn't let them die, but he wouldn't offer to protect them either.
Makomo, watching from the side, suddenly felt… annoyed.
"Eh?"
Shinobu blinked in surprise. "I… I can?"
"Of course."
Renzo grinned. "You're so weak. If I just left you alone, you'd probably die, right?"
"Pfft!"
Makomo couldn't help but burst into laughter and playfully smacked Renzo's arm. "That's no way to talk to a girl!"
Shinobu's face immediately stiffened. 😐
The slight fondness she'd just developed for Renzo vanished in an instant.
This guy looks so handsome and is crazy strong, but why does he have such a big bad mouth?!
"Hmph! Fine, I'll trouble you guys, then."
For the sake of survival, Shinobu still accepted.
She was weak—she knew that.
She didn't want to die and make her sister sad. But she also wanted to pass the exam and help her sister kill demons.
Following Renzo's group was her best chance.
— — —
In the blink of an eye, seven days and nights passed.
The five of them walked out of Fujikasane Mountain, looking exhausted—well, the other four did. Renzo still looked spotless.
"Congratulations on passing the exam! Please wait here for further instructions."
Ubuyashiki Hinaki and Ubuyashiki Kiriya stole a few extra glances at Renzo before smiling.
"Sounds good."
The group sat down to rest while waiting.
One by one, other survivors emerged from the mountain.
Unlike Renzo's group, they were battered and injured, some even missing limbs.
Out of over a hundred participants, only about ten had survived.
The survival rate was brutal.
.
.
.