The silence in the courtyard lasted for a full ten seconds.
Kochou Shinobu was the first to snap back to her senses.
She gently raised her hand to cover her lips, her purple eyes curving into gentle crescents.
Her voice carried an undisguised sense of wonder: “Truly… quite astonishing. In just half a day, you’ve not only mastered the basics of Total Concentration: Constant, but you’ve also created the prototype for your own Breathing Style… Even seeing it with my own eyes, I can’t help but wonder if I’m under the influence of some Blood Demon Art.”
Her tone remained soft, but the surprise and admiration were genuinely conveyed.
Hanayuki Ichika relaxed his posture, letting go of the imaginary grip in his hand, and the sense of surrounding shadows dissipated as well.
He scratched the back of his head somewhat sheepishly, showing a candid, youthful smile: “This is all thanks to Shinobu-san’s patient guidance on the principles and tricks of Total Concentration: Constant. If I hadn’t first understood the feeling of ‘maintaining concentrated breathing in a normal state,’ I wouldn’t have been able to grasp that… ‘frequency’ that belongs to me.”
He paused, then honestly added: “Actually, the Breath of Darkness is still just a very rough idea, I’ve only just barely touched the edge of it.”
As those words left his mouth, the expressions of the already stunned Demon Slayer Corps members became even more vivid.
“Wait… Is he, is he saying… he only started learning Total Concentration: Constant this afternoon?”
“Half a day?! He mastered concentrated breathing in a normal state in just half a day? My master scolded me for an entire week before I even reached the threshold!”
“Not just that… while mastering Constant… he also managed to ‘touch the edge’ of creating his own Breathing Style???”
“This isn’t just a genius anymore… this is a monster!…”
“Seriously, man… Is your casual effort already the limit of our understanding?”
The whispers turned into uncontrollable clamor, and the way everyone looked at Hanayuki Ichika had completely changed, mixing shock, disbelief, and even a hint of awe.
Sanemi Shinazugawa’s face turned a mix of red and blue, that phrase about “handstand hair washing” seemed to still echo in his ears, he suddenly let out a sharp “Tch,” crossed his arms, and turned his head away, though the tips of his ears were slightly red.
Kochou Shinobu listened to the surrounding discussions, the smile on her face deepening, though a flicker of deep thought passed through her eyes.
She clapped her hands, her voice crisp: “Alright, today’s quota of surprises seems to have been exceeded. In that case, I’ll take my leave…”
“Please wait a moment, Shinobu-san.”
Hanayuki Ichika called out to her, his gaze serious,
“If it’s possible… could you please accompany me for some combat practice? After all, a Breathing Style needs actual combat to truly take shape and be refined.”
Almost at the same time, a girl with short pink-tinted hair and a butterfly hair ornament appeared silently beside Kochou Shinobu.
Her face was expressionless, her purple eyes quietly watching Kochou Shinobu, and though she didn’t speak, her expectant gaze already made her thoughts clear— she also wanted to practice with Kochou Shinobu.
Kochou Shinobu looked at the eager Hanayuki Ichika, then at the obedient Kanao Tsuyuri beside her, and her lips suddenly curved into a familiar, slightly mischievous arc.
“Oh my, both of you want to practice with me, this is quite a dilemma.”
She pulled out two ordinary wooden water cups from somewhere, handing one to each of them.
“How about this, let’s go by the old rules. You two will compete for this cup.”
As if by magic, she produced a third identical cup, smiling brightly: “Whoever grabs it first and splashes the other, wins the right to spar with me. Quite fair, isn’t it?”
This was exactly the method she often used to train Kanao and the other members in the original story.
Hanayuki Ichika gripped his cup, immediately understanding the rules.
He looked at Kanao opposite him; the girl had already crouched slightly, entering a state of readiness, her eyes calm and rippleless.
“Begin.”
Kochou Shinobu announced softly.
Almost the instant the sound fell,
Kanao’s figure moved!
Her movements were so fast they almost left afterimages, her slender fingers reaching for the water cup in Hanayuki Ichika’s hand with precision and speed, while her other hand protected her own cup.
It was a refined, almost instinctive speed.
Hanayuki Ichika’s eyes narrowed, the shadows beneath his feet seemed to ripple slightly, and his body slid sideways at a clever angle, narrowly avoiding the first snatch.
He tried to counter-attack, but Kanao’s speed was indeed incredible, Enjoying the story? Read on at novelping.com.
coupled with her predictive calmness.
Several times in a row,
Kanao successfully splashed water onto his sleeve or shoulder, while her own haori was only touched by a few drops.
The water droplets were cold, but Hanayuki Ichika was not discouraged.
He gradually adapted to Kanao’s rhythm, his breathing subconsciously adjusting, faintly echoing the sense of the “Glimmering Shadow” he had realized that afternoon.
Another clash.
Kanao’s fingertips touched the rim of his cup again as if she had foreseen it.
But this time, Hanayuki Ichika’s wrist moved with a smaller range, retracting and thrusting in a more uncanny trajectory, as if infused with the slipperiness and abruptness of a shadow, instantly pressing down on the back of Kanao’s hand and gaining control of the cup!
The water cup was raised, and the splashed water traced a bright line in the setting sun.
However, that line of water did not fly toward Kanao, who was within reach, but at the last moment, Hanayuki Ichika’s wrist turned extremely slightly, splashing the entire cup of water with a “splash” onto the empty ground beside them.
Kanao maintained a slight dodging posture, looking at the water stain quickly spreading on the ground, then looking up at Hanayuki Ichika.
Her face still held no expression, but in those purple eyes that were usually devoid of ripples, a faint flicker passed very quickly—perhaps confusion, or perhaps some other emotional ripple.
She looked down at her clean clothes, and silently straightened her body.
The moment Kanao stood straight,
Hanayuki Ichika suddenly reached out and gently placed his hand on her short pink-tinted hair.
Kanao’s body stiffened slightly.
The movement was very natural, even a bit nonchalant, as if it were a casual gesture.
Hanayuki Ichika’s palm was warm, his fingers passing through the soft hair, gently rubbing with a steady and gentle rhythm— the action was so practiced it was as if he had done it countless times, carrying a certain sense of comfort.
Kanao’s eyes widened slightly for a moment, a rare and obvious reaction for her.
She looked up at Hanayuki Ichika, his smiling face reflected in her purple pupils.
She didn’t pull away, just stood there quietly, allowing that hand to move within her hair, like an exquisite doll.
But if one looked closely, they would notice her fingers by her side curling slightly, a rare manifestation of her subtle bewilderment.
“Oh my, oh my~”
Kochou Shinobu’s smiling voice rang out at the right time.
She had approached within two steps at some point, her hands behind her back, head tilted slightly, her narrowed eyes curved into crescents, her face wearing that familiar, somewhat mischievous smile,
“Ippū-san, you can’t just pat a girl’s head like that~ You’ll be seen as a pervert, you know~”
Her tone was light and teasing, but the underlying reminder was clear.
Hanayuki Ichika gave a light cough, a hint of awkwardness flashing across his face, but the movement of his hand didn’t stop— on the contrary, he found the rubbing even more natural.
Kanao’s hair was exceptionally soft, the texture incredibly fine, the feeling of touching it…
was a bit like his palm brushing against the finest fur while petting a cat in his previous life,
Furthermore, Kanao herself didn’t resist.
He knew this girl, due to childhood trauma, had always lacked emotional expression, or rather, had been unable to truly show her emotions.
Being touched like this, she wouldn’t shyly pull away like an ordinary girl, nor would she show disgust—she simply accepted it, receiving the interaction from the outside world in an almost vacuum-like state.
And this lack of resistance, in Hanayuki Ichika’s view, was more like a form of tacit permission.
So he continued to pat her, his movements becoming gentler, like comforting a quiet little animal.
Kochou Shinobu took all of this in, the smile on her face deepening.
She didn’t stop it further, just watched the scene meaningfully with her narrowed purple eyes, then said softly: “Alright, alright, let’s end today’s farce here.”
When Hanayuki Ichika finally withdrew his hand, Kanao blinked almost imperceptibly.
She raised her hand to gently tidy her ruffled bangs, the movement so subtle it was almost invisible.
Then she turned to follow Kochou Shinobu, only to look back at Hanayuki Ichika once before leaving— that gaze was still calm, but it seemed to hold something indefinable.
Kochou Shinobu saw everything.
She looked at Hanayuki Ichika, and the scrutiny and inquiry in her gaze unconsciously dissolved, becoming softer and warmer.
She chuckled softly: “It seems Kanao won more times. However…”
She looked at the sky, the setting sun had already dyed the horizon crimson.
“Today has been exciting enough, let’s end the practice here. Good work to both of you.”
Kochou Shinobu put away the cups, nodded gently to Kanao, then cast an appreciative glance at Hanayuki Ichika, and turned to walk away gracefully.
Kanao quietly followed behind her.
Hanayuki Ichika, meanwhile, strolled through the Demon Slayer Corps headquarters to relax.
…
At the same time, the news of Hanayuki Ichika creating his own Breathing Style…
spread through the headquarters ten times faster than before.
When Ubuyashiki Kagaya heard the report, he was handling official business in his study with his eldest son, Kiriya.
Lady Amane was quietly pouring tea nearby.
“Breath of Darkness…”
Ubuyashiki softly repeated the name, deep within those eyes that were ravaged by illness yet still wise, a flicker of profound consideration flashed.
He walked to the window, looking toward the Butterfly Mansion.
A demon who not only refrained from eating humans, but instead created a Breathing Style belonging to ‘Demon Slayers’.
The meaning behind this was far more significant than just the appearance of a genius.
If…
if this demon could truly maintain his current kindness and justice, and not associate with evil demons…
Then to the Demon Slayer Corps, he would be more than just a “special case”; he might be an unprecedented trump card capable of changing the situation.
A combat force that understands demons but stands on the side of humanity.
A turning point that might break the stalemate of “absolute opposition between humans and demons” that has lasted for hundreds of years…
An opportunity.
A gentle yet unfathomable smile appeared at the corners of Ubuyashiki’s mouth.
“It seems we need to re-evaluate Hanayuki Ichika’s value…”