The Butterfly's Dance, Hearts of Comrades — The Light Shinobu Saw - Dawn's Bee Fang — You Are Not Alone

The demon's clouded white eyes narrowed. The face your sister saw at the end——it was the same face I'm wearing now. Those words kept spinning in her head, over and over. Shinobu couldn't move within the ice's restraint. Her entire body was frozen through. She could taste blood in her mouth. Her ribs creaked with each breath, and she wasn't even sure if she was breathing properly anymore. Her vision wavered. And then——Giyuu appeared in that blurred sight. Blood traced down his face. The bandage on his right shoulder was stained red, continuously seeping. Yet he stood. Kneeling, he still tried to rise. "You can cry" The words were short. Just that. Giyuu spoke little. Shinobu knew this. That's why a single phrase pierced straight through her chest. "But don't die" He held his blade toward the demon, his face turned away. Yet his voice reached her clearly. At that moment——from another direction, a dull thud echoed. The sound of a body crashing against the ice wall. It was Tanjirou. He threw himself repeatedly against the edge of the wall that the Hinokami Kagura had carved, trying to break through. His legs were unsteady. The arm holding his blade trembled. Yet he didn't stop. And the moment he bounced back and fell into the snow——still on his knees, he turned back toward her and smiled. With a blood-covered face. Thumb raised. "I'm alright!" Shinobu——while tears fell——let out a sound she didn't understand. She couldn't tell if she was laughing or crying. "You're not alone, Shinobu-san!" Tanjirou's voice echoed through the ravine. Shinobu bit her lip hard. Kanae's words surfaced in her mind. ——Keep smiling. All this time, she'd thought it meant forcing herself to smile alone. Never relying on anyone, never worrying anyone, keeping that perfect mask of a smile——that was her vow to her sister. She was wrong. Because there are comrades, I can smile. Shinobu closed her eyes. Total Concentration Breathing——she pushed air deep into the depths of her lungs. Blood circled through her body. Heat gradually returned to her frozen limbs. She raised her body temperature to its limit. Melting the ice from within. She wedged her fingertips into the gaps of her right arm's restraint. She applied the poison liquid made from wisteria flowers into the narrow crevice. Her breathing was painful. Her ribs creaked. Still, she didn't stop. The demon noticed. It looked at her. That's when Giyuu stepped forward. Water Breathing drew the demon's attention. Tanjirou unleashed a flame-wrapped slash from another angle. Both of them were buying time for Shinobu. (I can't let these people fall here.) Slowly, the restraint on her right arm began to crumble. Melting away. Finally, her right arm was free. Shinobu reached deep into her sleeve. Something she'd been making in secret in the Butterfly Mansion's preparation room. It wasn't finished yet. A prototype. But——it was there. One needle of ultra-concentrated wisteria flower poison. She poured Total Concentration Breathing into the restraint on her left arm and shattered it with raw force. A sharp crack rang out. The moment she stood, her knees trembled. She gritted her teeth. She couldn't fall. She stood. She could see Giyuu's back. Blood still seeping from his right shoulder, yet standing perfectly straight. (You can't end here.) "Tomioka-san! Tanjirou!" That was all she said. But Giyuu——moved immediately. Water Breathing, Eleventh Form: Calm. A quiet slash. A soundless strike that cut through the very air itself. The demon's movement stopped completely. As if time itself had frozen. Tanjirou roared. The Hinokami Kagura's flames wrapped his blade and crashed into the ice walls surrounding the demon. CRACK!! The walls shattered. Shattered and shattered——the escape route vanished. The demon tried to break free from the Calm's restraint. That instant. Shinobu stepped forward. Insect Breathing, Bee Sting Dance——. The thrust drove deep into the demon's neck. The ultra-concentrated wisteria flower poison spread through its body. The demon——froze. The wound wouldn't regenerate. Its eyes widened. The demon's voice cracked. "What is this……I can't regenerate……!" At the immobilized neck. Giyuu, squeezing out his last strength——one final slash. Swoosh. The head fell. The demon's body dissolved into particles of light. As it scattered, it shrieked in agony. "Douma-sama……help me……Douma-sama……" It vanished. Silence. The pale light just before dawn faintly illuminated the ravine's bottom. The three stood there, unable to speak. The empty poison needle in Shinobu's hand trembled slightly. Exhaustion crashed over her entire body all at once. Then. From the direction of the mountain's entrance——footsteps like the earth itself was shaking. "Was I late!? Looks like you finished it spectacularly!!" A loud voice echoed through the ravine. The figure that appeared was a man of immense presence. Vivid crimson hair fluttered in the wind, golden vertical-slit eyes surveyed the three. Three red marks on his forehead, large jeweled earrings on both ears. The Sound Pillar, Uzui Tengen——the pillar who rushed here tonight as emergency reinforcement from the Ubuyashiki household. Uzui gazed at the three's battered forms and whistled. "You three really managed to survive" "Uzui-san!?" Tanjirou's eyes went wide. He tried to sit up but collapsed from his knees instead. Exhaustion hit him all at once, and he fell backward onto his back. "We won……!" His voice alone was bright. Giyuu silently sheathed his blade. He leaned his back against a rock and closed his eyes. His right shoulder's bandage was completely crimson now. Shinobu saw that wound immediately and tried to move to treat it. Uzui's hand pressed her shoulder. "Rest now. If the doctor collapses, what's the point" ……She obeyed without resistance. The Shinobu from a little while ago probably wouldn't have. Uzui crouched beside Shinobu, and for just a moment, something else flickered beneath his flashy expression. Sharp eyes surveyed the three's positions. He seemed to have read the situation almost instantly. "Carrying everything alone isn't cool, Insect Pillar. A comrade who can rely on others is way more flashy" Rough words. No beating around the bush. But they struck right at the core. Shinobu was silent for a moment. Then——a relaxed smile appeared at the corners of her mouth. "……You might be right" It was her first genuine smile of the night. Not a mask. A real smile. Uzui turned toward Giyuu. "You're still making that dull face, Tomioka" Giyuu, eyes closed, ignored him. Completely ignored him. Even when Uzui said "Hey," Giyuu remained leaning against the rock, utterly unmoved. Tanjirou, still on his back, murmured troubled, "Giyuu-san……" Shinobu couldn't help but laugh a little. Just a little. Four people breathed quietly at the ravine's bottom. Shinobu looked at the sky. The pre-dawn sky was gradually turning white. In her mind——the name the demon had shrieked as it vanished kept repeating. Douma. Upper Moon Two, Douma. The demon who killed her sister Kanae. His subordinate had been here. Definitely moving. Tonight's mid-level demon had succumbed to the ultra-concentrated poison. But——whether this would reach Upper Moon Two himself, she still didn't know. That demon's strength would be incomparable. She'd need to increase the poison's concentration further. Giyuu, eyes still closed, spoke quietly. "……I saw you stand" That was all. He'd been watching, Shinobu thought. While standing before the demon, he'd been watching properly. She said nothing. She simply touched the butterfly hairpin Kanae had given her, the one in her hair, gently with her fingertips. Sister. Together with my comrades, I'll defeat him. In the pale light, dawn approached. A quiet resolve kindled in Shinobu's chest. To defeat Douma——this time, not alone.

日本語

What is Novelia? →

Episode 6

Name: The Butterfly's Dance, Hearts of Comrades — The Light Shinobu Saw
Author: Novelia

What is Novelia?

Novelia is an AI-powered platform to read original light novels and fan fiction, create your own in just a few taps, and chat with the characters. New, illustrated episodes arrive daily — free to start.

Learn more about Novelia →New sign-ups get 5,000pt