After figuring out that the girl with him was actually Kanao, and how old she probably was, Itsuki had a good idea of where he was in the Demon Slayer timeline. That meant he had a new goal: learn a Breathing Technique and join the Demon Slayer Corps.
For someone who got thrown into the world of Demon Slayer, there was no way around it—if you didn't have power, you were just waiting to die. And the only real way to fight demons in this era was to join the Corps.
At first, Itsuki had thought about this too. But back then, he was broke, starving, and had to focus on surviving each day. There was no time to chase dreams when your stomach hurt from hunger. But now, three years later, he had money, a home, and support. Life with Kanao was steady. They trained hard every day, had good food, and didn't need to worry about much. Compared to most people, their life was pretty peaceful.
Sometimes, he even caught himself thinking, maybe it's okay to just stay like this. Maybe they could keep living quietly together.
But Itsuki knew better. That kind of thinking was a trap.
The Upper Moon Six was still in the Flower Street. And if you knew Demon Slayer, you knew that meant real danger. These weren't just any demons—they were under Muzan himself, the top demon and final boss. And Upper Moon Six wasn't just one person—it was Daki and her brother Gyutarou.
Most of the time, Gyutarou stayed hidden while Daki acted like some high-class Oiran, picking off people she didn't like at night. She had her tastes too—ugly people, older folks—she wouldn't go near them.
Thinking back, Itsuki realized why they were safe for so long. When he and Kanao first got here, they looked like street rats. Even after cleaning up, they still wore simple clothes and worked random jobs. Daki probably saw them once and instantly lost interest. And once they joined the martial hall, they barely left the training grounds anyway. Daki didn't even get a chance to notice them. Now he looked good to be honest when he looked in the mirror with his black hair and black pupils, he looked like a younger version of Madara
In a weird way, being forced to stay in Flower Street might've saved them.
"Itsuki if you don't eat soon, it'll get cold."
"Yeah, I'm coming."
Itsuki grabbed the two bento boxes from Kanao and kept thinking.
But staying here was only safe for now. The only way to actually be free from demons was to get strong enough to kill them.
There were two ways to kill a demon. One was just burning them with sunlight—worked every time, even Muzan himself couldn't handle that. The second was using a Nichirin blade, which you had to combine with a Breathing Technique to actually make it work. That was how the Corps operated. Well, it would probably work without a breathing style, but I don't think it would be good for the higher demons.
So, learning a Breathing Technique became his top priority. The problem? He needed someone from the Corps to teach him.
Each Breathing Technique had its own trainer, and to be honest Itsuki didn't care which one he learned. He just remembered two places: Mount Sagiri and Mount Fujikasen. Both had someone named Sakonji Urokodaki, who taught Water Breathing.
But getting there was a whole different problem. First, leaving Yoshiwara was risky. And second, he'd have to bring Kanao. Bandits they could probably handle. But a demon? They didn't have Nichirin blades. If a fight broke out at night, their only shot would be holding out until sunrise.
Also, he couldn't just abandon the stability they'd built. The Dojo gave them food, shelter, and even meals. Without that, how would he keep leveling up? Without those meals, it would take forever to gain skill points. That wasn't something he was willing to give up.
"Itsuki, you don't look good. Is something wrong with the food?"
"No, the food's great. And look at you, worrying about me now? That's new now"
He gave her a smile and saw something change in her eyes. Even if she still had a calm face, she clearly cared. And he felt it too. After everything they'd been through together, they were more than just Dojo partners now.
Still, he had to figure out how to go learn a Breathing Technique without giving up everything he had. He needed to take a team with him—support staff, food suppliers—if he was going to train far from the Dojo. To pull that off, just being a Elite disciple of the Dojocho wasn't going to cut it.
He had to earn more trust from the Dojo Master. Which meant getting stronger and making himself even more valuable.
With that in mind, Itsuki's mood flipped. He dug into his breakfast with a new level of energy. By the end, both boxes were gone.
"Kanao, can you go grab me another box from the cafeteria please?"
"Mm."
She nodded and jogged off, clearly happy to see him looking more like himself.
A week later, his energy bar hit 100% again. He used the new skill point on Flame Blade Swordsmanship, and just like that, it reached full mastery.
The next day during training, his improvement shocked everyone. His moves were sharper, faster, cleaner. His fellow students couldn't stop talking about it.
And that meant he caught the Dojol Master's attention again. Back in the study, the old man praised him some more, and Itsuki played it cool. But this time, he made sure to drop a few lines about his desire to master even more powerful sword styles. He wanted to train outside eventually. He didn't think much of it at the time—just planting seeds.
But apparently, the Dojo Master really respected that ambition. Maybe he also realized Itsuki ate more than any three disciples combined, because he upped his monthly cut of the honeycomb briquette profits from 20% to 35%.
That surprise bonus was just what Itsuki needed. Back in his room, he started making a new plan.
He'd spend another year rising through the ranks, get even closer to the Dojo Master, and build the foundation he needed to leave and study without giving up everything. All while stacking up more skill points to prepare for the Breathing Technique.
What he didn't know was that right then, Dojo Master Marume Kurando had started thinking of his own plans for him, too.