EPISODE 4: FINAL SELECTION
The reason I won...
was because I learned to detect the scent of the opening thread.
When I'm battling someone,
and I pick up this scent, then I can see the thread.
The thread is connected from my blade to my opponent's opening,
growing taut the instant I see it.
My blade is drawn toward it with great force,
and then I slash the opening.
Mr. Urokodaki...
I had no intention of sending you to Final Selection.
I didn't want to see children die anymore.
I was sure you wouldn't be able to slice this boulder, but...
Well done, my boy!
Tanjiro, you're...
a remarkable kid!
Make sure you come back alive from Final Selection.
Both your sister and I will be waiting for you here.
What's the occasion? There's so much.
You've completed all your training, so we're celebrating.
Don't be shy. Eat up.
Thank you very much!
Tanjiro,
there's nothing more I can do for you.
From here on out, you'll be going through such hardship and strife.
Your training will seem like nothing in comparison.
So, for now, at least,
you should rest well without a care in the world.
Hey, Tanjiro...
Yes?
Did you enjoy that hot pot?
Yes! I haven't had such a feast in so long!
A growing boy like you with a hearty appetite should get stronger the more he eats,
as well as grow bigger in size.
But that goes for demons, too.
Remember this.
Basically, a demon is as strong as the number of humans he's devoured.
So, the more they eat, the stronger they get?
That's right.
There are demons who gain power, become able to transform their bodies,
and even use strange spells.
When your sense of smell becomes keener,
you'll be able to tell how many humans a demon's consumed.
What's this?
It's called a "warding mask."
I've charged it with a spell to protect you from harm.
Warding mask...
Nezuko...
I'm coming back here no matter what, all right?
Don't worry about your sister.
I'll take good care of her.
All right! Thank you very much!
I'll be going, then, Mr. Urokodaki!
Say hello to Sabito and Makomo for me!
Tanjiro...
How do you...
know the names of those dead children?
Wow.
Look at all these wisteria flowers.
Even though they're out of season...
There are so many.
- Everyone... - Everyone...
- ...we thank you for coming here tonight. - ...we thank you for coming here tonight.
- To the Demon Slayers Corps Final Selection. - To the Demon Slayers Corps Final Selection.
There are demons imprisoned here on Mt. Fujikasane,
captured alive by the Demon Slayer swordsmen,
and unable to leave.
That is because wisteria, which demons hate so much,
blooms year-round from the bottom to halfway up the mountain.
However, there is no wisteria from this point on,
and so demons abound.
You'll need to survive here for seven days to pass Final Selection.
- And now, be on your way. - And now, be on your way.
Survive for seven days... That's all I'm going to think about.
First, I'm going to survive tonight.
Once the sun comes up, the demons won't be able to do anything,
so I can get some rest then.
So, I'll have to head east!
I'm gonna make my way to where the sunlight will hit first!
This smell... It's a demon!
And it's nearby!
Where is it?
Where's it coming from?
I can't pinpoint the direction of the scent!
From above?
Demon...
Damn you!
Don't even try to grab my prey, man!
Get off my turf, dammit!
The hell with you! Just beat it!
Two of them right from the get-go? I wonder if I can take them!
That's my prey, you know!
Shut up!
It's first come, first served!
I'm okay! Just calm down and watch their movements!
Remember the training!
It's been ages since I last had human flesh!
Total Concentration!
Water Breathing!
The scent of the thread!
Fourth Form!
Striking Tide!
I did it!
I defeated demons!
I've grown stronger!
All that training wasn't for nothing!
I've mastered it!
If I slash a demon with the sword Mr. Urokodaki gave me,
not even the bones are left behind, huh?
A demon's weak spot is its neck!
But you can't kill it with a normal sword even if you slash its neck.
Then, how can I take it down?
The swords wielded by the Demon Slayer Corps
were forged with a special kind of steel.
That's the only way to kill a demon.
They're called the "Nichirin Swords."
Rest in peace.
What's this rotten smell?
No one ever told me! I never signed up for this!
What's going on?
What the hell is that?
Hey, Sabito...
Do you think Tanjiro can beat that one?
I don't know.
No matter how hard you try, it's never enough.
You know that well yourself, don't you?
What's this morphed demon doing here anyway? They didn't tell us!
He got eaten!
Don't wimp out!
Save him! Save him! Save him!
I'm not powerless anymore!
Move!
Water Breathing, Second Form!
Water Wheel!
Another sweet little fox has come to me.
"Another"?
Little fox cub, what is the year of Meiji now?
It's the Taisho Period now!
Taisho?
Holy crap!!
Time has passed into a new period?!
Again! Again while I've been held prisoner inside this place!
Unforgivable! Unforgivable!
Damn you, Urokodaki! Damn you, Urokodaki!
How do you know Mr. Urokodaki?
I know him, all right! Because Urokodaki is the one who captured me!
I'll never forget that day 47 years ago!
Back when he was still hunting demons!
It was the Edo Period during the Keio Era.
Hunting demons? Edo Period?
You're lying!
No demon has ever lived that long!
The only demons in here should be the ones who've eaten just two or three humans!
They don't live long because they're killed during Final Selection,
and they even eat their own kind!
Yeah, but I've survived all this time.
Inside this wisteria prison, I've eaten at least fifty of you brats.
Fifty?
11, 12...
13.
That makes you Number 14!
What are you talking about?
The number of Urokodaki's disciples I've eaten, that's what.
I promised myself to kill every one of his disciples.
Let's see... The ones who particularly stand out to me... It's those two.
Those two...
That brat's hair was an unusual color. He was the most powerful.
He had pinkish hair.
A scar by his mouth.
The other one was a female brat in a flowery kimono.
She was small and lacking in power, but she was awfully agile.
They had already been killed by this demon?!
But I was with them!
That mask.
I can tell by the fox masks.
I know the texture of the masks Urokodaki carved.
The same style of carving he used for his own goblin mask.
Warding masks, right?
Everyone got eaten just because they were wearing them.
They're all here inside my belly.
Urokodaki might as well have killed them himself!
When I said that to the girl, she was crying and fell into a rage.
And right after that, she lost control of her movements.
I ripped off her limbs, and then...
Calm down, Tanjiro. Your breathing's uneven.
It's all right. Never mind us!
I'm getting out of here while the demon's taking out that guy!
Another of Urokodaki's brats is dying.
I wonder how he's gonna feel when another of his kids doesn't come home.
I wonder what kind of look he'll have on his face.
Oh man, I wish I could see it.
I really do.
Big Bro!
He dodged it!
So, he can still move?
Great! I can have some fun!
Damn! No matter how many arms I cut,
they grow back in a second!
You can't defeat me just by slashing off my arms.
Then again, even that pink-haired brat couldn't slice off my head!
I can't just let this one go!
Before any more lives are sacrificed,
I gotta bring him down now!
A demon's scent coming from the ground?
H-He jumped! Dammit, I missed him!
Yeah, but no way can he dodge this attack in mid-air!
Do you think Tanjiro's going to lose, too?
His neck is so tough after all.
He may lose, and yet, he may win.
Either way, there's one irrefutable fact.
That Tanjiro...
is the man who sliced the toughest, largest boulder of all.
He deflected me!
Total Concentration!
Water Breathing!
He got too close to me!
Not to worry. My neck is tough! He can't slash it!
First Form!
As soon as he fails to cut my neck, I'm going to crush his head!
Just like I did to the other one!
Water Surface Slash!
PREVIEW
RUSTLE RUSTLE
Water Surface Slash!
How was that Nezuko? How cool am I?
What? Sabito was cooler than me?
C-Come on, Nezuko!
R-Right!
I saw beautiful wisteria flowers blooming around the exam hall.
Let's go see them when you turn back into a human.
Now, it's time for a Taisho secret!
A blond boy named Zenitsu... I heard he was brought here
after he got slapped by his master for refusing to take the selection exam.
Next, Episode 5, "My Own Steel"!
TO BE CONTINUED