Since he has already disguised himself as Rin Taki Sakonji, he must disguise himself more thoroughly.
Having these two people come not only to teach Tanjiro, but he will also learn the "water breathing" technique from the side, so that he can later appear in the ghost's sight as Rin Taki Sakonji.
Now Xuan Hao has returned to his full strength, and the cracks on his body have been repaired long ago. There will be no smell of blood coming out of him. As long as he is not injured and bleeding, with this identity concealed, unless Muzu Onimusuji comes to him in person
Otherwise it would be impossible to recognize him in front of him.
"You should know the purpose of my disguise as Lin Taki. When you teach Tanjiro, I will also be watching from the side. I'm sorry to bother you."
"Sir, you're serious, don't bother. Leave it to us."
Qiantu and Zhenshan looked at each other and roughly understood what this man meant.
Teacher Lintaki had warned him before sending them here that this man was the key to the Demon Slayer Squad's victory over Muzan, and they had no doubts about the teacher's words.
It is the wish of every member of the Demon Slayer Corps to eliminate Muzan. If they can eliminate Muzan, they are willing to accept any task, let alone a simple task such as teaching breathing techniques.
······
the next day.
Tanjiro wakes up from coma again.
"This is Qiantu and Zhenshen, your senior brother and senior sister."
Xuanhao introduced to Tanjiro, "One year, I will give you one year to learn 'Water Breathing' and then defeat them. Then you can participate in the final selection."
"well?"
Hit...defeat? Tanjiro was still a little teary-eyed, but the hellish training seemed to have finally come to an end.
But after hearing the teacher's words, he became uneasy again.
Regarding the 'breathing technique', the teacher had already explained it to him when he was teaching him about the Demon Slayers and ghosts. In fact, he had always wanted to learn it, but the teacher had always refused to teach him.
And now...I can finally learn breathing techniques!
Tanjiro was extremely excited because he knew that the breathing method could greatly improve his strength. He had been working hard for so long, but he felt that there was still a huge gap between him and his teacher. It must be because of the lack of the 'breathing method'
Bar?
But defeating senior brothers and sisters?
Tanjiro was a little doubtful whether he could do it. After all, he was a senior brother and sister, and they must be very strong. It seemed impossible no matter how hard he thought that he could learn the breathing technique and surpass them within a year.
"Does the teacher have such high expectations for me?"
Tanjiro felt a little moved in his heart.
Although he suffered a lot during the year of learning from his teacher, he knew that it was all for his own good. Only in this way could he become stronger and be able to better protect Nezuko.
Although it is painful, the pain is so that he will not regret it in the future. Only with enough strength can he protect what he values most.
"Okay, you can train with the two of them, and I'll go check on your sister."
Xuan Hao said, turning his head to greet Qiang Tu and Zhen Sang, "I'll leave this kid to you two. Train him well."
"is teacher."
Qiongtu and Masaki set their sights on Tanjiro.
They seemed to have heard something interesting just now...
Learn breathing techniques within a year and still defeat them?
Although the man in front of them was someone whom Teacher Linlong respected, he somewhat made them feel uncomfortable.
So they prepared to train and train this lovely younger brother.
"Forehead……"
For some reason, Tanjiro felt a chill down his spine.
He carefully looked at the two senior brothers and sisters in front of him.
This senior brother is as mysterious as the teacher, with a scarred fox mask on his face that makes it difficult to see his appearance.
The senior sister on the side... looked petite and cute. Although her head was still decorated with a fox mask, she did not use the mask to cover her beautiful face. However, Tanjiro always felt that this senior sister looked younger than him.
.
Qiong Usagi and Masaki glanced at Tanjiro and headed towards the mountain. Tanjiro quickly followed after seeing this.
Both of these two people are very fast and extremely flexible. With Tanjiro's physical fitness far beyond ordinary people at this moment, he could barely catch up with these two people while running on the ground.
Because they are not simply running, they master flexible steps and techniques combined with breathing techniques, and use the elasticity of branches to jump back and forth in the woods when moving.
Tanjiro, who knew nothing, could only run around on the ground.
"This kid..."
The fast-moving Usagi looked back from time to time to observe Tanjiro's situation.
He had some bad comments about Tanjiro's situation.
A slow and weak layman? No, although this boy's movements look clumsy, he cannot be considered weak at all.
How fast can he and Masaru move? Even Tomioka Giyu, who is the 'Water Pillar' at this moment, may not be able to beat the two of them.
Although they didn't run with all their strength, this boy could barely catch up with his brute strength.
"It is said that this boy was just an ordinary person a year ago. What kind of method can be used to train an ordinary boy who can't even breathe to this point..."
Qiantu suddenly understood why Teacher Linlong respected that gentleman so much.
"alright."
After reaching the top of the mountain, Qiantu stopped.
He turned around and waited for the panting Tanjiro to come to him, and then slowly pulled out the sword he was carrying from his waist.
"Wooden knife?"
Tanjiro quickly calmed down his breathing and looked at the boy in front of him with some surprise, who must not be much older than him.
"Draw the sword."
Qiongtu raised the wooden sword in his hand and pointed it at Tanjiro and reminded him calmly.
"But... what you have in your hand is a wooden sword. I am a real swordsman!" Tanjiro held the scabbard on his waist with some hesitation.
"Isn't this strange? I see that you didn't feel any pressure when fighting the unarmed teacher?" There was a hint of displeasure in Qiang Tu's tone, as if he had been underestimated.
"but……"
Tanjiro was still a little hesitant, because this was not a concept at all. After all, after a year of getting along with him, he knew very well that his teacher was a monster. Even if he had a knife in his hand, he could not hurt the teacher, and the senior brother in front of him...
Tanjiro felt that this senior brother looked about the same age as himself. No matter how strong he was, he couldn't be a monster like the teacher, so what should he do if he hurt his senior brother?
"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha……"
Qiang Tu suddenly burst out laughing, "Boy, are you worried about hurting me? Thank you very much for your concern! But your worries are unnecessary. If I am not wrong, Teacher Linlong will only
The body that has trained you has not given you any skills, has it?"
"Uh...yes." Tanjiro answered honestly.
"Then...why do you think you can hurt me?"
Qiang Tu leaned down slightly and made an attack gesture, "Let your horse come over with confidence and boldness!"
call--
The waving wooden sword made a whistling sound and arrived in front of Tanjiro in an instant.
"!?"
The sudden attack made Tanjiro confused, but he still subconsciously raised the scabbard to block, but he was still knocked back a few steps by the huge impact.
"..."
Qiaotu looked at Tanjiro who was repelled by him in silence.
The hand that retracted the wooden knife trembled slightly behind his back.
What a quick reaction, what a powerful force...
He was a little surprised by the abnormal physical fitness of the young man in front of him who seemed to know nothing.
Although he didn't use all his strength in the blow just now, it was definitely not something that ordinary people could dodge. He originally wanted to knock this kid out with a sap to show off his power, but this kid blocked his attack just by relying on his instinctive reaction.
Didn't even fall to the ground.
Otherwise...should I give this guy a wooden knife instead?
"I see!"
Tanjiro's expression became serious.
He has clearly understood that the senior brother in front of him is better than him, and more than just a little better, so there is nothing to worry about.
‘锵——’
The iron sword is unsheathed.
"Ah ah ah ah ah--"
"I see……"
Qiantu finally understood why the gentleman was so confident in leaving this boy to them for training.
Attacking without any plan seems silly...
This kid doesn't seem to have as amazing a talent as he imagined. After all, he has been fighting against a strong man for such a long time. Even if the opponent doesn't teach anything but just trains his body, a smarter person should learn something, right?
But this kid is completely passively receiving training. Although he works hard, it doesn't work at all!
"Hey...boy."
The voice behind Qiang Tu's mask became a little cold.
"Snapped--"
He gently swung the knife to deflect Tanjiro's randomly swung blade.
"I heard from Teacher Linlong that you became stronger to protect your sister?"
"Yes." Tanjiro was stunned.
"Snapped--"
"puff--"
The wooden sword hit Tanjiro hard on the abdomen, causing him to take a few steps back and fall to the ground, clutching his stomach in pain.
"Slow, weak, and attacking without any plan. Is this your consciousness?"
Qiongtu walked up to Tanjiro with a wooden sword in hand and looked down at him.
"You have been training with the teacher for so long. Have you only developed a strong body?"
"Forehead……"
Tanjiro was stunned.
He seemed to realize the mistake he had made. He seemed to have been passively beaten this year and never thought about learning anything from the teacher...
Maybe it was because that kind of training was too inhumane, and the pain made him forget unnecessary thinking, but this was not the reason, it only proved that his awareness was not enough.
The teacher is very strong, as powerful as a monster. After training with such a person for a year, I actually... learned nothing during this year? Tanjiro suddenly felt regretful, "Don't just ask others, use your own brain to think."
Ah, the teacher seemed to have reminded me of this sentence from the beginning. Why am I so stupid?
"Why are you still standing on the ground?"
Qiongtu pointed his wooden sword at Tanjiro who was still sitting on the ground and shouted angrily.
"Stand up! You have to know what kind of battlefield you will embark on next! The devil will not let you stay on the ground in a daze for so long! Or... do you want to give up?"
"How could you give up?"
Tanjiro gritted his teeth and stood up.
He had survived such a hellish ordeal, how could he give up so easily?
There was nothing to be afraid of anymore, neither pain nor death were scary to him at this moment.
"I want to become stronger and protect my sister."
Tanjiro raised the blade in his hand towards Qiu Usagi in front of him, "Please, senior brother! Help me train!"
"Very good! Hahahahahaha."
Qiantu looked at the young man whose eyes became firm and laughed.
He also raised the wooden knife in his hand.
The next moment, several afterimages hit Tanjiro.
"Then let me see your current strength first!"
Tanjiro was hit with slashes one after another, but Tanjiro did not fall down again because of these slashes.
The speed of Qio Usagi's slashes was so fast that he couldn't react at all, but at this moment, Tanjiro finally understood what the previous hellish training had brought to him.
He has a strong physique and extraordinary reflexes in dealing with crises.
Although every knife hit him accurately, he actually subconsciously tried to dodge before each knife hit, just because his speed was too slow and he couldn't keep up with Qiu Rabbit's quick slashes.
Qiang Rabbit, who was constantly attacking, seemed to have discovered this.
This young man is constantly growing under his slashes, no, it should be said that he is adapting. With every slash, Tanjiro is trying to dodge, and he is getting closer and closer to success.
What a pervert... The wooden knife in Qiang Tu's hand sped up.
"boom--"
A muffled sound hit Tanjiro on the back of his head. Tanjiro instantly lost consciousness and fell to the ground.
"call--"
Qiantu breathed a sigh of relief.
"Isn't it too harsh..."
"What's wrong?" Maosaki on the side looked at Qiu Usagi who suddenly knocked Tanjiro to the ground with some confusion.
She was a little confused, how could she continue training after being knocked unconscious?
"That gentleman is not joking with us." Qiang Tu took off the mask on his face and showed a wry smile, "This boy may really be able to defeat us within a year."
He was a little anxious just now, so he failed to control his strength and knocked Tanjiro unconscious. If the beating continued, Tanjiro might soon be able to adapt to his attack rhythm and even start to counterattack.
Of course, Qiantu is confident that if the knife in his hand is a real knife, this boy will not be able to withstand a blow. But the problem is that this boy has not even learned the breathing method!
Qiantu can almost imagine that Tanjiro will definitely become one of the best swordsmen in the Demon Slayer Corps in the future, because Tanjiro's starting point is already much higher than that of ordinary swordsmen. According to his current strength, as long as he is given a sword
Nichirin Sword, there should be no pressure at all if you pass the 'final selection'.
But that gentleman’s goal for Tanjiro was to defeat them first before he could participate in the ‘final selection’.
"Do you still remember what Teacher Linlong said before we came here?" Qiantu asked Maoshan.
"Well..." Maosaki smiled and squatted in front of Tanjiro who fell to the ground, stretched out his hand and poked Tanjiro's face, "The wish we are looking forward to may come true soon."
A smile appeared on Qiang Tu's face unconsciously.
The two sat down quietly, guarding the sleeping Tanjiro and waiting for him to wake up.
······
Time passes day by day.
Tsutomu guides Tanjiro's training on the mountain every day. The two of them have never left the top of the mountain since they went up.
The food was delivered by Xuanhao who came up the mountain from time to time to check, or by Zhenyao who came down the mountain to replenish the food.
Tanjiro worked hard day and night to learn the breathing method of "water breathing" and sword skills from Qiu Usagi.
The basis of the breathing method is to master "full concentration breathing", which speeds up the blood circulation in the body and the beating speed of the heart. This will cause the user's body temperature to rise rapidly, making humans as powerful as ghosts.
After he completely mastered the correct breathing method, he realized how meaningful the "devil training" his teacher had given him was.
The stronger the physical fitness, the higher the upper limit, and the longer the breathing method can be maintained.
But now that he has physical fitness as a basis, he can learn breathing techniques many times faster than ordinary people, and he can exert most of his power just after learning it. As long as he gets used to it a little, he may be able to master it soon.
The advanced version of "Complete Concentration of Breathing" is "Complete Concentration and Constant Breathing".
One year passes quickly.
Tanjiro himself didn't even know that at this moment, he had already reached a level of strength close to that of a 'pillar' without even realizing it.
One morning.
Tanjiro was ready and challenged Tatsuto again.
This time Qiantu finally pulled out the real sword.
Tanjiro knew that the mission given to him by his teacher was to defeat Souji Usagi and Makoto, but in fact, the only target he wanted to defeat was Soujiu Usagi.
A head-on confrontation between humans and a fight with ghosts is different.
If both sides have mastered the same skills, then the essence of this duel is a competition between pure strength. After he mastered the 'breathing of water', the petite Shine no longer has the strength to face him head-on.
As far as the conclusion is concerned, Tanjiro's body, which he has tempered while wandering between life and death, is already doomed to win compared to his strength.
The reason he lost a year ago was because he didn't know breathing techniques or swordsmanship.
Now, even when facing Qiu Tu, although his sword skills are still inferior, his strength is enough to make up for the gap and overturn the outcome.
"Qiang——"
Two somewhat incomplete iron knives were unsheathed at the same time.
Tanjiro and Souto stood face to face and waited for the opportunity, just like a duel between samurai.
The whole forest was peaceful.
Tatsuto looked at Tanjiro in front of him helplessly, knowing that he was probably going to be embarrassed.
Zhen Jian, who was watching the battle from the sidelines, also had a helpless smile on his face,
After a while.
Qiang Tu sighed, holding the knife with both hands slightly harder, that's all, just be embarrassed!
He watched with his own eyes the young man in front of him grow up from nothing to what he is now, and to be honest, he felt a little relieved.
The stalemate was broken in an instant, a strong wind roared through the mountains and forests, and the next moment was the sound of swords clashing.