Chapter 158: The Wonderful Uses of En x Enlightenment at the Estate
Mitsuri is watching him!
What a huge amount of jealousy... En, like an overturned bowl, silently covered the entire courtyard. Roy glanced at Obanai Iguro and easily caught his inner thoughts. The white snake wrapped around his neck, Kaburamaru, flicked its tongue, its slit pupils glowing...
Replacing Obanai's nearly blind right eye, it stared intently at Roy. Unfortunately... the boy's gaze swept around, passing right over him, pausing for a moment on each of the other Hashira, and finally landing on Giyu Tomioka. "Senior Brother," he greeted.
Giyu Tomioka, gripping his Nichirin Blade, nodded slightly.
Roy ignored the others, leaning on his blade, standing alone to the side, eyes closed in rest.
Suddenly...
Gyomei Himejima, who had been silently weeping and chanting sutras at the foot of a pillar, clasped his hands together and announced, "Namu Amida Butsu. The Master has arrived!"
Swish— All the Hashira, whether they were lying down, standing, perched in trees, or leaning against pillars, instantly dropped their lazy postures. They lined up in a row, knelt on one knee, and bowed respectfully towards Kagaya Ubuyashiki, who was walking slowly towards them, supported by his wife Amane.
"We greet the Master!"
For a thousand years, ever since Muzan became a demon, the Ubuyashiki family had fought him, bound by a "curse." Through countless battles, they had earned their authority... Add to that the current head, Kagaya Ubuyashiki, who valued his subordinates, possessed responsibility and courage, and was deeply loved by the Hashira. The moment he appeared, no one in the courtyard dared stand straight.
In that moment... Roy, standing alone, stood out like a sore thumb, completely out of place!
"This guy has some nerve!"
"Not bowing to the Master? Who does he think he is?"
"I don't care if he's a genius or not. Who wasn't a genius back in the day?"
"Since he participated in the Final Selection, he's a member of the Demon Slayer Corps. He should show the Master some basic respect!"
Swish— Dozens of glares, carrying the weight of their inner thoughts, pressed down on Roy.
Invisible pressure...
Giyu Tomioka frowned. He had expected this. He opened his mouth to explain... but Gyomei Himejima clapped his hands together with a sharp Smack!, drawing everyone's attention. His deep voice rumbled, "Eiichiro Kamado participated in the selection solely for revenge. He has not joined the Demon Slayer Corps."
"His relationship with us is merely one of cooperation."
Cooperation? The Hashira reacted with varying expressions.
At that moment, Kagaya Ubuyashiki opened his pale, nearly sightless eyes, looked towards Roy, and smiled. "Eiichiro, thank you for coming."
With one sentence, he defined the relationship.
To his right, Sanemi Shinazugawa, his white hair standing up like a hedgehog's quills, scars marking his face, wearing a white haori over his uniform, couldn't suppress his temper. He snorted two long streams of air from his nose, glaring at Roy, who stood there calmly, as if his spirit had wandered off, merely nodding slightly at Kagaya's arrival...
Hand on his Nichirin Blade, Sanemi said, "Master, I will not oppose your decision, nor will I target anyone deliberately. However..."
Clang! Sanemi drew his blade, pointing the tip at Roy from afar. "Even a partner is a comrade. I must know if he has the strength to be worthy of me entrusting my back to him!"
"Haha!" Kyojuro Rengoku, his yellow hair tipped with red like a lion's mane, laughed loudly. His fiery eyes burned with battle lust as he looked at Roy. "Sanemi, count me in as well!"
Hiss... Kaburamaru flicked its tongue, representing Obanai Iguro's will.
Tengen Uzui, dual blades on his back, tapped his fingers rhythmically. He seemed to foresee a flamboyant battle about to unfold, his eyes flashing, eager to try... Beside him, Shinobu Kocho remained silent, while Mitsuri Kanroji looked back and forth like a bobblehead, confused and unsure what to do...
Seeing this, Giyu Tomioka started to rise... but then he saw... Kagaya Ubuyashiki, supported by Amane, bow to Roy. He apologized sincerely, "My apologies. I extend my deepest apologies for failing to restrain my subordinates."
Giyu's knee bent again, and he sank back down.
Sanemi Shinazugawa, Kyojuro Rengoku, Obanai Iguro... except for Gyomei Himejima, whose expression was obscured by tears, all the Hashira: "..."
They fell silent instantly, shocked by the scene. It was the first time they had seen... the head of the Ubuyashiki family show such courtesy to a single person... Could it be true, as the retired Water Hashira Sakonji Urokodaki said—
That this boy in white, with hair like flickering flames, possessed the ability to... kill the Demon King... Muzan Kibutsuji?
Whoosh~ A gust of wind blew past, swirling a few wisteria petals to the ground.
Silence reigned over the Ubuyashiki estate.
Roy manipulated magnetism, raising a hand to support Kagaya Ubuyashiki without any visible movement. He smiled. "This is a good thing. Master Kagaya, there is no need to apologize."
The boy's gaze swept around, looking at Kyojuro, Obanai, Tengen... finally settling on Sanemi. He flicked his sleeve, nodding in agreement. "If I were in their position, suddenly having someone join such a secret meeting, I would be suspicious too. So... they haven't done anything wrong. Why not let them be?"
His Hanafuda earrings swayed in the wind... Roy smiled, his eyes narrowing. "Do you want to come at me all together, or one by one?"
Gyomei Himejima's hand paused on his prayer beads. He silently chanted a Buddha's name.
Sanemi Shinazugawa, who had been held back by Kagaya's gesture, raised his blade again. He stepped forward. "I'll go first!"
Before the other Hashira could react, he bowed to Roy with his sword... Roy appreciated his directness and returned the bow. Looking up, he heard the wind roar. Sword light swirled with wind blades, flying straight for his face. He instantly read the "name" of the move and the rhythm and technique of the "Wind Breathing" through Sanemi's inner voice...
"Wind Breathing, First Form: Dust Whirlwind Cutter!"
If one were to ask who was the strongest among the nine Hashira, the Wind Hashira, Sanemi Shinazugawa, would rank in the top three. In the original story, it was he, along with the Stone Hashira Gyomei, who killed Upper Moon One, Kokushibo—Yoriichi Tsugikuni's own brother, Michikatsu Tsugikuni!
Whoosh!
Blade wind, wind blade aura. Before it even reached Roy, it blew his fiery red hair back wildly.
Using En to capture Sanemi's inner voice and savoring the "Wind Breathing," Roy moved unhurriedly. He reached out a hand and patted the oncoming wind blades... [Magnetism: Repel]
A transparent [Magnetic Wall] suddenly appeared in front of him. In an instant, it bounced all the wind blades aimed at him away!
"Which Breathing Style is that?" In a corner of the courtyard, Murakami Kenya, the [Kakushi] serving directly under Kagaya, was knowledgeable about news but lacked combat prowess. He knew a bit about the Breathing Styles of various schools and Hashira. But this was the first time he had seen...
Someone who didn't even need to draw their sword, just a gentle pat of the palm, could block Lord Sanemi's wind-blade attack!
"Eiichiro has improved again." Giyu Tomioka noticed Kyojuro and Tengen exchange a silent glance. Just as in his first fight with Roy, he knew the depth of his opponent from the very first move.
Masters fighting isn't about trading blows back and forth; victory is often decided in an instant by a "hair's breadth."
Obanai Iguro stroked Kaburamaru's head, soothing its unease. Seeing Roy's relaxed movements, how could his heart remain calm?
He stole a glance at Mitsuri... The girl who had joined the Demon Slayer Corps solely to find a husband stronger than herself was clenching her fists in excitement. Obanai's heart broke quietly...
"Namu Amida Butsu... It is a new style!"
Like Muichiro's "Mist," Mitsuri's "Love," and Obanai's "Serpent"... Gyomei Himejima had followed Kagaya the longest, was the strongest, and had the deepest understanding of "Breathing Styles." Just by "sensing" the aura, he could tell... that gentle pat from Roy was a style that had never appeared in this world before.
And... from the moment Eiichiro Kamado appeared here, Gyomei felt unsettled, as if a hole had opened in his heart, and someone was looking right through him from the outside. He felt uncomfortable all over, unable to shake the feeling even by reciting the "Calming Sutra." Clearly... this was also the boy's doing.
Kagaya Ubuyashiki was nearly blind, so he couldn't see clearly, but listening to Gyomei's description, he knew... the boy had done something incredible again!
Good. fighting it out might be the only way to sit down and talk peacefully.
Just as Eiichiro said, since he was here, this fight was inevitable.
Swish... swish... swish... The wind blades aimed at Roy were bounced into the sky by the [Magnetic Wall] and vanished.
Sanemi Shinazugawa, due to his family background and "Marechi" blood, had a rough and violent personality, but he wasn't stupid. On the contrary... his battle IQ was exceptionally high. In the fight against Kokushibo, he had even used his brother Genya's gun to block a fatal blow at a critical moment!
So, after a brief probe, noticing the "First Form" couldn't break Roy's defense, he immediately launched another attack...
"Wind Breathing, Eighth Form: Primary Gale Slash!"
Using a rapid thrust to close the distance, he flipped his wrist as he passed, executing a spinning slash to bypass the [Magnetic Wall] and find Roy's opening.
Unfortunately... with his inner voice completely exposed, Sanemi had been predicted by Roy from the moment he started. Roy captured his movement a step ahead, manipulated the [Magnetic Wall] behind him, tanked the blow, and bounced Sanemi away!
Wind... Sun... The boy didn't turn around. This time, he didn't even move his hand, continuing to savor Sanemi's understanding of [Wind]. His calm, effortless demeanor left everyone staring at each other.
"There's a wall in front of him." Muichiro Tokito, who had suffered physical and mental trauma after his brother Yuichiro's death and killed a demon in revenge, had temporarily lost his memories and usually acted dazed. Now... ripples appeared in his empty eyes.
He stared blankly at Roy. "He can move the wall. If you can't break the wall, you can't hurt him."
A wall?
"What a bizarre Breathing Style... not flamboyant at all..." Tengen Uzui crossed his arms, rubbing his chin in thought. He considered opponents with "turtle shells," impervious to oil or blades, to be the most difficult to deal with...
"Indeed, tough enough!" Kyojuro Rengoku said seriously. "Sanemi is angry."
Eyes wide, scars crawling across his face like centipedes... Sanemi, having failed with two attacks, let his temper flare. Refusing to believe it, he slashed again... This time, throwing caution to the wind, he poured everything into his Breathing Style. "Wind Breathing: Total Concentration: Constant!"
Two jets of white steam shot from his nose. His body temperature rose, his heart beat double-time. His state instantly elevated, far surpassing before. He was getting serious!
"Wind Breathing, Second Form: Claws-Purifying Wind... Third Form: Clean Storm Wind Tree... Fourth Form: Rising Dust Storm..."
WHOOSH! A gale rose, making everyone's faces feel tight!
Wind blades churned up dust and sand, creating a whirlwind that engulfed the world... Everyone involuntarily shielded their eyes, peeking through their fingers...
Roy stood in the center of the dust storm. As Sanemi performed the "Wind Breathing" forms one by one, Roy's understanding of "Wind" accelerated. Enlightenment dawned. He whispered, "Ken."
A layer of purple magnetic force instantly coated the [Magnetic Wall], firmly protecting Roy in the center.
His feet were rooted to the ground like an old tree. No matter how Sanemi "battered him with wind and rain," he remained immovable... At a certain moment, his eyes lit up. Through En, he captured Sanemi's inner voice and understood "Wind Breathing."
Everything is like a dream, an illusion, a bubble, a shadow; like dew and lightning. One should view it as such.
"Breathing Styles" originated from Yoriichi Tsugikuni. Derived from "Sun Breathing," the various schools could not escape the "Sun's" influence.
Physically speaking, the sun is the main driving force behind wind formation. Uneven heating of the earth's surface by radiation causes air to flow, creating wind.
So, in the end, the so-called wind is just a "byproduct" of the sun shining on the earth...
One slash... two... three... Sanemi swung his blade countless times, but he just couldn't break the magnetic wall. In his anxiety... he gritted his teeth, leaped into the air, and directly above Roy's head, unleashed his ultimate technique, his final resort...
"Wind Breathing, Ninth Form: Idaten Typhoon!"
WHOOSH!
A typhoon rose, threatening to destroy the courtyard!
Murakami Kenya, who was guiding Roy, realized too late that something was wrong. He turned to run, but was a beat too slow. His body lifted, blown away by the wind. Luckily... Kyojuro Rengoku was faster. Activating "Flame Breathing," he turned into a streak of fire, catching Murakami mid-air and saving him from a nasty fall!
"Namu Amida Butsu. That is enough..."
Chanting the Buddha's name, Gyomei Himejima quietly shielded Kagaya Ubuyashiki behind him. Tears streaming from his compassionate eyes, he prepared to stop the fight.
Unexpectedly—
Suddenly, a typhoon strangely rose from nowhere!
The wind force was even more violent than the typhoon Sanemi had raised!
☆☆☆
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