Shinsuke's shouting nearly sprayed spittle in Roy's face.
Fortunately, Senior Brother Fukuda acted in time, grabbing his neck. With a "Kaba" twist, he gave Roy a quiet morning.
The short-hilt hung quietly on the south wall. Giyu Tomioka, Sabito, Makomo, and the others gathered around. Roy glanced at Urokodaki Sakonji. His master was busy in the kitchen as usual. He smiled and said, "It followed me into my dream."
As he spoke, the young man opened his right hand and, visualizing the "short-hilt" in his mind, called softly, "Sword, come."
"Om..."
The short-hilt trembled and, under the shocked gazes of Giyu Tomioka, Sabito, and Makomo, dissolved into specks of light, then reformed, appearing in Roy's hand. He grasped it, holding it firmly.
"Is this some technique I don't know about?"
The group stared at each other, all silent. In the kitchen, Urokodaki Sakonji's vegetable knife paused. He rubbed the knife, deep in thought.
Makomo was the first to recover. She quietly glanced at Sabito, thinking, 'Senior Brother was right, Eiichiro did it.'
The fox-masked boy stared at the short-hilt without speaking. Then he saw Roy softly say, "Go."
The short-hilt, as if it had a human brain and could understand words, instantly dissolved into specks again, converged on the south wall, and hung itself back up.
Sabito thought with deep emotion... 'Master once said, "As the sword is, so is the man. If the sword breaks, the man dies." The state every swordsman dreams of is "man and sword as one"... Has Eiichiro's move already reached this state?'
Sabito turned his head to look at Giyu. Giyu Tomioka still had his usual cold expression, but a glint of sharpness could occasionally be caught in his beautiful, lake-blue eyes.
Everyone tacitly agreed not to ask Roy how he did it... The only one with a big mouth was still lying on the ground with a twisted neck.
Roy sat up in bed. He had no intention of hiding his secrets. He reached out his hand, and the short-hilt flew into his grasp again. This time, he used [Magnetism · Attract]...
The two different methods produced two different visual effects. The young man, a faint smile on his lips, looked at Giyu Tomioka. "Senior Brother, you're leaving soon, right?"
The Demon Slayer Corps has heavy responsibilities. If not for Roy, Giyu Tomioka wouldn't even have the chance to return home.
"The Master approved a week's leave." Going back and forth would take five days. Staying for two days was already the limit.
Roy nodded. "Senior Brother, please draw your sword."
"Why?" Giyu Tomioka was stunned. Sabito, Makomo, and Fukuda looked over. Shinsuke, who had just "died," rolled over and scrambled up....
Roy smiled without a word. He drew his sword from its sheath. The short-hilt trembled and was instantly covered in a crimson coat. In a single thought, it transformed from an ordinary "practice sword" into an "anti-demon treasure"—a "Crimson Sword"!
"Last time, Senior Brother said he wanted to see the technique that turns a sword red. Since Senior Brother is leaving," Roy stroked the reddened blade of the short-hilt with two fingers and said breezily, "I thought I'd give this 'Crimson Sword' method to Senior Brother as a parting gift."
Demon Slayer's three great buffs: "Crimson Sword," "Mark," and "Transparent World."
"Transparent World" is mysterious and profound, requiring extremely high comprehension. Without a certain opportunity, it's hard to explain the key points clearly.
"Mark" is the advanced version of a "Breathing Style." Roy himself hadn't fully grasped it yet and was still in the process of learning, so he naturally wasn't qualified to instruct Giyu Tomioka.
That only left the "Crimson Sword," which could be fully mastered through training and easily taught through words.
Giyu Tomioka was stunned... Sabito, Makomo, and the other disciples looked at each other, then at Roy, their expressions complicated. There was admiration, and... conflict... They opened their mouths, wanting to tell him not to be so foolish... One's own techniques shouldn't be given away so easily. But on second thought, it seemed Giyu wasn't an "outsider."
Giyu Tomioka placed his hand on his hilt, conflicted. His heart, wanting it but not wanting to take advantage of his junior brother, was twisted into a knot... Just when he didn't know what to do, he suddenly heard...
A faint, weathered voice came from the kitchen. It was Urokodaki Sakonji.
"Eiichiro, you don't have to do this."
The Tao is not taught lightly, the Dharma is not sold cheaply... What the "Crimson Sword" meant was evident from the Swordsmith Village's centuries-long search and the Ubuyashiki family's emphasis on it.
The more precious something is, the more it should be cherished... This wasn't about being "narrow-minded," purely the old Water Hashira's experienced advice, born from "caution."
But, even if Roy didn't publicize the "Crimson Sword" training method, following the original plot, other "Hashira" would master it in the next two or three years. It was just a matter of time.
So, it was more practical to trade it for something now.
Roy smiled, unfazed. "I'm not giving it for free, either. Please, Senior Brother, report to the Demon Slayer Corps when you return. I still have the same request... I just want all the demon intelligence the Demon Slayer Corps possesses."
Exterminate all evil, not a single drop of life energy can be wasted. This was a goal Roy had set long ago.
"It's not an equal trade." Giyu Tomioka looked deeply at Roy. "A 'Crimson Sword' is more important than 'intelligence.' Even if you hadn't said, I would have tried to get it for you."
"That's different. I'm not in the habit of taking things for free."
"That's still not enough."
Giyu Tomioka pondered for a moment, then reached into his robes, took out a scroll, and handed it over. "These are some of my notes on understanding breathing styles. Take them and read."
Roy took it and flipped through. His gaze solidified. He noticed the words "Total Concentration: Constant." Suppressing his surging emotions, he said, "Alright."
He smiled brightly. "With this added, it's enough."
Giyu Tomioka opened his mouth, but finally closed it, humming a soft "Mm." ... Beside them, Sabito and Makomo watched this scene and smiled in relief.
This was the best solution. Eiichiro got what he needed, the Demon Slayer Corps obtained the "Crimson Sword" training method. The only one who gets hurt in this world is the demons...—
"Master, what do you think?"
"Me? Nothing." Urokodaki Sakonji turned and brought a pot of fresh fish porridge from the kitchen, chuckling. "Porridge is here. Time to eat."
Roy and Giyu Tomioka looked at each other and both smiled.
After eating porridge with Urokodaki Sakonji and his fellow disciples, a short while later, they each brought their short-hilt and Nichirin Sword to the waterfall.
"Hold your Nichirin Sword with the determination to die. Through high-speed vibration, make the blade heat up. When it reaches the critical point, it will trigger the 'Crimson Sword'." Roy made up a cover story: "This is a technique I discovered by chance while chopping wood."
"It's that simple?"
"Just increase your grip strength and hold the Nichirin Sword?" Shinsuke and Fukuda circled Roy and Giyu Tomioka, finding it hard to believe.
Sabito and Makomo, as usual, found a birch tree to stand on. Their gazes were heavy as they looked down, not speaking... Giyu Tomioka looked at Roy suspiciously. Following his instructions, he drew his Nichirin Sword with a "Clang" and gripped it hard. First time, failure!
"Senior Brother, determination..." In the original story, when Tanjiro fought Hantengu, and when Giyu Tomioka and Obanai Iguro fought Muzan in the Infinity Castle, it was only when they were in a desperate situation, embracing the will to die, or recalling his father Tanjuro's words to strengthen his grip, or by clashing swords to generate heat...
In short, without determination, it's impossible!
Giyu Tomioka nodded. He gripped his Nichirin Sword again, took a deep breath, and grit his teeth, "slicing open" his own heart.
He forced himself to recall the scenes of his sister Tsutako and his Senior Brother Sabito dying horribly at the hands of demons to protect him. At a certain moment, his gaze focused, and he gripped hard...
"Poof." Specks of red light appeared, instantly connecting into a sheet of fire, enveloping the Nichirin Sword... Giyu Tomioka's second attempt at the "Crimson Sword"—success!
"He... he really did it? Senior Brother Giyu is truly a genius!"
"Isn't Eiichiro the genius?" Fukuda rolled his eyes at Shinsuke. "He figured out the 'Crimson Sword' just from chopping wood. If it were in the hands of an idiot like you, you probably couldn't figure it out in ten thousand years."
"Aren't you the same as me?"
"Who's an idiot like you!"
The bickering instantly turned into a scuffle....
Makomo and Sabito were long used to it, simply treating them as air. They squinted, watching Giyu Tomioka, who was holding the Crimson Sword, staring blankly, his eyes overflowing with envy.
"If we had met Eiichiro a few years earlier, Senior Brother... maybe we wouldn't have had to die."
At the least, Makomo felt, if she had possessed a "Crimson Sword" back then, even if that guy grew more arms to protect his neck, he definitely couldn't have withstood one blow from a "Crimson Sword"!
"Unfortunately, there are no 'ifs'." Sabito slowly drew his own katana. This sword was not a Nichirin Sword, and it would never have the possibility of becoming a "Crimson Sword." Just like him and Makomo, and Shinsuke, and Fukuda, and Shimizu, Watanabe, Yagiku, and all the other disciples... they were just lingering souls.
"Whoosh." A mountain wind blew, passing through their bodies, rustling the branches....
Makomo buried her head and asked in a low voice: "Senior Brother, when Eiichiro kills that guy, will you choose to disappear?"
Without the "hatred" for that guy as an anchor... Sabito smiled freely: "Even if I don't want to, I probably will."
"Can you bear to leave, Senior Brother?"
"What can I do if I can't? Cry about it?" Sabito patted Makomo's small head. "Before Eiichiro came,
...I only wanted revenge. Now..."
The fox-masked boy looked deeply at Roy, who was now learning the "Stone Blowing Method" under Giyu Tomioka's guidance.
He said softly: "I also want to stay with Master and all of you for a while longer..."
Makomo looked up, her pretty eyes shimmering with tears. "Me too, Senior Brother."
"And me!"
"Me too!"
"I want to stay with Master and my senior brothers forever..."
"What about your senior sisters?"
"Of course, and my senior sisters..."
"You guys..." Sabito glared at Shinsuke and Fukuda, a hundred emotions welling up at once. He didn't know what to say.
He sheathed his sword and sighed into the wind... 'Ah, well. Let's not say those cruel words. Let's just cherish each other in the time we have before Eiichiro leaves the mountain....'
His gaze drifted back down....
Beside the waterfall.
Following Giyu Tomioka's guidance, Roy poked a hole in a large boulder with one strike. He then took a sharp breath and blew into the hole. The goal—to blow it up!
This method of training the lungs and maintaining "Constant" seemed familiar. It was wonderfully similar to the "Gourd Blowing" method at the Butterfly Mansion.
Giyu Tomioka named it the "Stone Blowing Method."
It was to build up lung capacity and increase the lungs' tolerance for "keeping the breathing style active" long-term, to achieve the goal of maintaining "Total Concentration: Constant" 24 hours a day.
"Ten days." This was the goal Giyu Tomioka set for Roy. Blow up this boulder within ten days. By Giyu's estimation, Roy could then maintain his "breathing style" for half a day without breaking.
However, "half a day" was a huge leap for Roy, who could previously only "concentrate for one hour"!
He aimed at the small hole, took a deep breath, and blew hard!
"Kak... ka..."
The large boulder trembled violently. As his cheeks puffed out, he strained... cracks appeared on its surface. Within two seconds,
"BOOM!" It exploded!
Flying stones "Twak... twak... twak..." pierced through several large trees...
Giyu Tomioka was quick-eyed and fast-handed. He spun his scabbard, batting away a few more pieces. He looked at Roy... The young man had succeeded on his first try... This lung capacity and physical strength...
He wondered if the "Stone Hashira," always known for his "great strength," could have done this back in the day.
[Tip: "Sun Breathing" +100]
[Current Level: 583/1000 (Mastery)]
'As I thought, I just didn't have the right method before.' Roy received the panel's notification, a slight smile on his lips. He caught his breath and asked Giyu Tomioka: "Senior Brother, how was I? Should I continue or..."
Giyu Tomioka: "..."
After a long moment, he forced three words through his teeth: "Still need practice."
"Then I'll continue." Roy found another large boulder, poked a hole, and with another breath, blew it up... [ "Breathing" +100 ]
Next... three, four, five... [ "Breathing" +100... 100... 100... ]
Finally... [Tip: Current Level: 999/1000 (Mastery)]
Roy suddenly found that no matter how much he blew, the experience value wouldn't budge. He realized something. Perhaps... he had already touched the limit of "Breathing Style"!
The next step is "Total Concentration: Constant"!
"Phew" He straightened up, no longer wasting his effort. He looked at Giyu Tomioka with burning eyes.
The "Water Hashira" stood amidst the wreckage and scattered stones, his gaze a little dazed. He suddenly heard the young man say: "Senior Brother, you were right. I still need practice."
He was determined. He had to earn that last point of experience!
Giyu Tomioka suppressed his emotions. He looked at him seriously for a moment, and finally said calmly: "Alright."
"Tonight, I will personally watch over you..."
He was resolved to help the young man take that final step—maintaining the "breathing style" uninterrupted, even in his sleep.
In the original story, to achieve this, Tanjiro asked the Butterfly Mansion nurse, Kanzaki Aoi, to hit him awake if he ever stopped his breathing while asleep.
Giyu Tomioka looked at the young man quietly, thinking he must have already steeled his resolve. Just as he had told him, he had to have determination... Giyu Tomioka would not hold back!
"Then I'll be in your care, Senior Brother." Roy smiled, just hoping he'd be fortunate enough to sleep until dawn.
Luckily...
He made it.
[Tip: "Sun Breathing" +10]
[Current Level: "Sun Breathing": 9/10000 (Great Achievement)]
[Note: Maintaining "Total Concentration: Constant" daily increases "Constitution" by "1" point]
"Clack clack clack... clack clack clack..."
Hunter World.
Zaban City.
5:30 AM.
Roy, under Xiao Jin's relentless, fierce pecking, groggily opened his eyes. The first thing he received was the panel's notification.
This meant he had slept well last night and hadn't been beaten by Giyu Tomioka or forcibly woken for interrupting his breathing.
'Should I call it good luck... or is luck itself a form of strength.'
Roy grabbed Xiao Jin, placed it on his head, and rolled out of bed. Just like any other day, he began his morning run....
Ever since leaving home, he was either drifting at sea or running on mountains. It was rare to step on a flat road... Roy jogged along a sparkling river in Zaban City. At a certain moment, he stopped...
He saw an old man by the river, with a topknot, wearing loose robes with wide sleeves. He seemed to be admiring the scenery, or perhaps waiting for someone.
He turned his head, glanced at him,
"Ho ho."
And smiled.—