"Mr. Suzuki, are you there!"
"Mr. Suzuki, are you awake!"
"Mr. Suzuki, I'm here!"
Suzuki Makoto's eyes shot open, and he looked out the window.
A faint glimmer of light had just begun to brighten the sky. If one were still half-asleep, it would be impossible to tell if it was moonlight or sunlight.
No, young Tanjiro, I did ask you to come see me during the day, but isn't your definition of "day" a little too... early?
Sighing, the man got out of bed, dressed, and opened the door for the boy outside.
"Mr. Suzuki!"
"Did you get enough rest last night, Tanjiro?"
"No problem, Mr. Suzuki! I feel great right now!"
the boy said, full of energy.
"Then head over to the dojo. Get changed and wait for me there."
"Yes, sir!"
Most of the Hashira's residences were similar: a house and a dojo. Unless there were special requests, or like the Butterfly Mansion which served as the Corps' hospital, they wouldn't undergo additional modifications.
By the time Suzuki Makoto returned after washing up, Tanjiro Kamado was already standing in the dojo, methodically practicing his forms.
"Tanjiro, first, tell me in detail about the Hinokami Kagura."
"Okay, but I don't know that much myself. It's just some things my father told me. He said it's a ritual to worship the Fire God, passed down through our Kamado family for generations. Since I'm the eldest son, I would watch my father perform the ritual from a very young age."
"So, do you remember the entire ritual?"
"I do—should I perform it for you now?"
"Yes, do it here in the dojo."
Tanjiro took a deep breath, picturing his father's form in his mind, and began to swing the sword in his hand.
Thud.
"Huh?"
Both the one who fell and the one still standing made sounds of confusion. Suzuki Makoto quickly went to help Tanjiro Kamado up.
"What's wrong? Are you okay, Tanjiro?"
"Right now... I don't think I can perform the entire Hinokami Kagura continuously. My breathing style doesn't support using these forms one after another."
Tanjiro Kamado gasped for air, his breathing so ragged that even the constant breathing training he had been maintaining was disrupted.
Suzuki Makoto nodded slightly. Tanjiro had only completed one form, but if he were to perform just that single form, its destructive power would likely surpass all known Breathing Style techniques—it was the purest form of killing technique!
"Alright, don't rush. Can you perform the Hinokami Kagura one form at a time?"
"Okay, I'll try."
Tanjiro Kamado adjusted his breathing and began his second attempt. After that, he kept losing his breathing rhythm, forcing him to readjust his breath again and again, just to barely perform all the forms in a fragmented way.
Although it looked broken and messy, the boy was clearly giving it his all. The irregularities along the way were enough to prove that the start and end of these forms were not something the user, Tanjiro, could control himself.
"Let's stop here for now."
Suzuki Makoto held down Tanjiro, who had fallen again.
"Readjust your breathing. Don't force yourself to adapt to those forms anymore, and don't think about how to swing the blade. Just focus on recovering your own normal breathing rhythm first."
"Yes, sir."
Tanjiro didn't get up again. Instead, he sat on the floor and began to restore the rhythm of his Water Breathing. Suzuki Makoto walked to the other side, his Nichirin Blade silently sliding from its sheath. He closed his eyes slightly, calming his mind and focusing his spirit.
The boy watched the motionless Suzuki Makoto with curiosity. Could Mr. Suzuki have learned it already?
Suddenly, the man moved.
It was the opening stance Tanjiro was familiar with, followed fluidly by the second form, the third form... all the way to the last form!
However, upon reaching the final form, the man who should have stopped did not. Instead, he let out a soft sound of surprise and, guided by the blade, instantly resumed the stance of the first form and continued to link them together.
The boy's eyes widened as he sat up. The first time through, there were quite a few differences between Suzuki Makoto's movements and his father's, especially in the transitions between each form. But in the very next repetition, the dissimilarities in Suzuki Makoto's techniques had already diminished significantly!
When Suzuki Makoto finished the second run-through, he still didn't stop. He linked back to the first form once more and began a third repetition. And on this third time, Tanjiro could hardly see any difference at all. The figure brandishing the Nichirin Blade gradually began to overlap with the image of his father in front of the bonfire on that snowy night.
He sat there dumbfounded, watching Suzuki Makoto. In the blur, it was as if he saw his father again, being held tightly by his mother, gazing at that figure with admiration and reverence.
"Tanjiro."
"..."
"Tanjiro?"
"Ah, what is it, Father?"
The boy wiped away his tears, the cry from his heart slipping out unconsciously.
The scene became terribly quiet for a moment.
"Tanjiro—what did you just say?"
Suzuki Makoto was stunned. What in the world was happening?
Only then did Tanjiro Kamado realize what he had just said. His face flushed beet red, and he immediately prostrated himself on the ground.
"I'm so sorry! I was exhausted and confused! I mistook you for my father, Mr. Suzuki! I'm really sorry, Mr. Suzuki!"
"Hahahahaha, it's alright, Tanjiro. Get up."
Suzuki Makoto pulled Tanjiro up from the floor, but the boy was too thin-skinned and looked so ashamed he wanted to bury himself in the ground. It was clear another topic was needed to dispel the awkwardness.
"Come on, let's go have some breakfast."
"Okay! Please, let me be the one to cook!"
Tanjiro Kamado rolled up his sleeves. Whether it was out of fighting spirit or a desire to flee the scene, he rushed into the kitchen with an incredible burst of speed.
Suzuki Makoto didn't follow him to the kitchen. He sheathed the sword in his hand and began to think about the forms from before.
Although Tanjiro Kamado had said this was the Hinokami Kagura passed down through the Kamado family for generations, and also said that he had never heard of Sun Breathing, Suzuki Makoto was now almost certain that the Hinokami Kagura was indeed the set of forms for Sun Breathing. At most, the breathing method didn't match, which was why it was so strenuous for Tanjiro Kamado to use.
The reason was simple—even he, before studying these thirteen forms of the Hinokami Kagura further, could not find any way to refine or improve this complete set of techniques.
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