As dusk settled and a brilliant moon began its slow ascent, the forest behind the manor started to fill with figures.
Dozens of Demon Slayers, their faces etched with a mixture of exhaustion and anticipation, all moved toward the same destination.
Among them were seasoned swordsmen who had already completed the other legs of the Hashria Training, their bodies honed to a razor's edge.
But there were also many who were still in the thick of it, their muscles aching from Sanemi's relentless assaults or their limbs trembling from Gyomei's impossible trials.
Beyond their fatigue, however, a shared curiosity and a deep-seated awe for the Forest Hashira propelled them forward.
As they stepped under the canopy of trees, the atmosphere changed.
A faint, clean fragrance filled the air, and with each breath, they felt a wave of revitalization wash over them.
It might have been a trick of the moonlight, but the flowers, leaves, and even the bark on the trees seemed to hum with a soft, gentle glow.
"Hey… is it just me, or do I feel less tired all of a sudden?" one Slayer whispered, flexing his sore shoulders.
"No, you're right," another replied, touching a scratch on his cheek.
"This doesn't even hurt anymore."
"You've got to be kidding… wait," a third Slayer paused, stretching his back.
"It's true. My body doesn't feel like a giant bruise anymore."
Surprised murmurs rippled through the group as they looked at their hands or rolled their necks, feeling the day's physical and mental fatigue slowly melting away.
Unseen by them, a faint current of pure vitality, like a cool, gentle stream, was seeping into their bodies, mending their minor aches and calming their frayed nerves.
Slowly, they gathered in a clearing where Shinichi was waiting.
He stood atop a huge square boulder, his gaze sweeping over the arriving Slayers.
He recognized several familiar faces, including the earnest young slayer, Tanjiro Kamado, who had accompanied him on more than one dangerous mission.
Shinichi took in their young, determined faces.
He saw the lingering exhaustion and the fresh scars from their training, but beneath it all, he saw an unquenchable desire for strength and a flicker of uncertainty about the future.
As the last of the Slayers arrived, they called out greetings, their voices filled with a respectful excitement.
Shinichi smiled and leaped down from the rock.
"I think most of you know who I am," he began, his tone relaxed and friendly.
"Of course, I do have another… identity, but to avoid giving everyone a heart attack, we'll skip the formal introductions for now."
His easygoing manner immediately put the tense Slayers at ease.
A few chuckles broke out, and someone even called out boldly, "It's okay, Forest Hashira-sama! We heard you look incredibly cool in that form! And you can beat up Upper Moons with it! We wouldn't mind seeing it!"
Shinichi just shook his head and shared a smile with them, the atmosphere growing warm and harmonious.
But tonight was about training, and he had a very specific lesson in mind.
"Forest Breathing was never meant for destruction," Shinichi's voice grew steady, clear yet gentle, like a stream flowing over moss.
"Its true purpose is to protect. Its power comes from sensing and resonating with the vitality of all living things. For a long time, I was too focused on the power it could grant, and I lost sight of its most important lesson."
As he spoke, he drew the vibrant green Nichirin Blade from his waist.
He raised it slowly, the tip pointed not at any of them, but at the rich earth beneath his feet and the swaying trees that surrounded them.
"Tonight, we are going to get to know it again. The true Breathing of the Forest."
He asked them all to sit cross-legged on the ground and close their eyes.
This time, he wouldn't make the mistake of simply telling them to feel for something they didn't understand.
He began by guiding them to slow their breathing, to cast aside the worries of the day, and to sink their awareness into the ground beneath them.
The vitality emanating from his own body gently permeated the air, a silent guide leading their senses.
He prompted them to feel the sturdiness of the soil, to feel its energy extending into the roots of the trees, to feel the silent respiration of the leaves and the quiet rhythm of life itself.
"Don't try to control anything," Shinichi's voice was a near whisper, carrying a strange, soothing power.
"Just feel. Feel the breath of the grass. Feel the dew condensing on the leaves. Feel the pulse of life all around you."
At first, many of the Slayers were restless, their minds still racing.
But under the gentle but powerful influence of Shinichi's vitality, an unprecedented peace began to settle over them.
Their tired bodies felt as if they were being nourished from the inside out, and their tense nerves slowly unwound amid the faint whispers of the forest.
This wasn't about becoming lazy or complacent; it was about perceiving the world with a new clarity, building a deeper resilience for the battles to come.
Soon, a few of the more sensitive Slayers began to notice a change.
Their perception, amplified by the surrounding life force, grew incredibly sharp.
They could sense the breathing patterns of every companion around them, hear the subtle flutter of a moth's wings in the air, and feel the gentle shift of the wind.
The world was no longer just something they saw; it was something they felt.
Once he felt they had grasped this basic principle, Shinichi moved on to the next phase.
He had the Slayers pair off, one acting as the attacker, the other the defender.
He told them to use whatever sword style they were best at, but with one condition: they had to do it blindfolded, relying only on the perception they had just awakened.
The first few minutes were clumsy and comical.
Slayers stumbled around, swinging at empty air.
But as they focused, they gradually adapted.
Guided by the power of vitality, they began to anticipate movements, to sense the presence of their opponent, and to parry blows they couldn't see.
They were rapidly turning this newfound perception into a tangible combat skill.
Finally, Shinichi gathered everyone for his last, and most important, lesson.
He didn't teach them a complex sword form or a flashy new move.
Instead, he guided them to try and connect the sense of vitality within themselves to the Slayers standing beside them.
"A forest is not a single tree," he said, his own turquoise aura spreading out like gentle ripples, touching each of them.
"A single tree stands alone, but ten thousand trees create a forest. Your breath, your fighting spirit—it doesn't have to exist in isolation."
He stood in their center, a calm anchor in a sea of fluctuating energies.
"Try to feel the aura of your companions. Imagine you are all trees, and together, you form a vast, interconnected wood. We are not aiming for perfect synchronization. We are aiming for a connection of spirit, a resonance of hearts."
At first, their individual auras were chaotic, clashing and interfering with one another.
But under the guidance of Shinichi's own vitality, which felt as vast and accepting as the ocean, they slowly began to find a shared rhythm.
Dozens of life forces, some strong, some faint, began to flow and intertwine.
It was far from perfect, but a strange and powerful sense of connection began to grow.
When Shinichi had them perform a simple, coordinated sword strike, their movements were still uneven, but the combined fighting spirit they unleashed was more focused and powerful than anything they could have managed alone.
It felt as if the entire forest had taken a single, unified breath and exerted its will.
The surge of power and the profound spiritual connection they felt left every Slayer in the clearing stunned and inspired.
They finally understood.
As Shinichi had said, Forest Breathing was never meant to be a solitary path.
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