Tanjuro's gentle demeanor seemed right in front of him... He always looked at him with warmth, like a quiet orchid blooming in the spring...
The small house would still be guarded by his father, but as for the outside world... Roy tightened his grip on the sword, sweeping horizontally with a strike... "Water Breathing·Fourth Form·Striking Tide!"
The river water swirled up forming a dancing water ribbon rushing towards Tomioka Giyu.
Upon hearing "father," Tomioka Giyu thought of his sister, who always gazed at him softly like water... He reached out to grasp a droplet of water, then stepped forward, bursting out from the waterfall, raising his hand to launch the same move, "Striking Tide," clashing with Roy!
Everyone guards something different; women tend to households, men bear the burden of making a living, and the Demon Slayer Corps hunts evil ghosts to protect a region...
Everyone is trying desperately to survive...
"Ding ding clang clang..."
The sound of clashing metal echoed like large and small pearls falling onto a jade plate, continuous and unending...
The sword light devoured everything around, either cutting down trees, cleaving open the lake, or smashing stones.
Shinsuke Fukuda, Shimizu, Watanabe, and others watched in shock, trying to widen their eyes as much as possible, eventually realizing that it was very difficult to keep up with the two men's pace... viewing became progressively straining...
"It's too fast, for Senior Brother Giyu to have such strength as a 'Hashira' is understandable, but what's with this Eiichiro guy?"
Chopping a wood post alone is far less visually impactful than a fierce fight with a master.
When Shinsuke Fukuda learned that Tomioka Giyu was coming, he intended to suppress Roy's sharpness so that he would take it easy when venturing out, lest he suffer big losses... Now, look at each other and themselves, unsure who would educate whom!
The key... "Eiichiro hasn't used a breathing technique yet." Makomo struggled to capture Roy's figure, noticing his chest heaved powerfully, but not as violently as Tomioka Giyu... The youth was entirely fighting with his own powerful physique!
"Water Breathing·Third Form·Flowing Dance... Fifth Form·Blessed Rain After the Drought... Eighth Form·Waterfall Basin... Ninth Form·Splashing Water Flow..."
Each sword technique collided, and the battle intensified to a fever pitch... Tomioka Giyu's breathing visibly became heavy...
Sabito, the strongest among all the senior members, had also mastered the breathing technique in his lifetime, though he couldn't maintain "Full Concentration·Constant" like Tomioka Giyu, and his vision compared to Makomo and Shinsuke was undoubtedly much stronger...
So when he noticed Tomioka Giyu beginning to pant, Sabito's gaze solidified, feeling complex... Affirmation of Giyu's strength, yet astounded that Roy could persist until now without falling behind, and filled with satisfaction...
"They're both excellent," he opened his mouth wanting to call a halt, "The 'test' has reached such a point, there's no need to continue."
But... as a swordsman, he couldn't speak because he understood what facing a worthy opponent means to a swordsman!
This could be seen as both parties became more excited and their moves quicker.
"Water Breathing·Tenth Form·Constant Flux..."
"Roar!"
The sword guided the water, the water transformed into a dragon... Roy and Tomioka Giyu seemed to have a mutual understanding, simultaneously unsheathed their swords, each commanding a water dragon, roaring towards the other with their slash!
"Ding—"
A sharp sound capable of piercing eardrums ripped through the air, sweeping outwards...
Roy and Tomioka Giyu parted with a touch, each standing tiptoe on a birch tree.
"Boom!" With them as the central axis, the waterfall exploded apart!
Water splashed everywhere, cascading down like a light rain... soaking the area.
"Huh~" Tomioka Giyu let out a long breath, looking distantly at the youthful Roy, who stood composedly, unperturbed and calm, his state far better than his own!
By rights, having the 'test' come this far, there was no need to continue... Being able to fight with him as a "Hashira" to such an extent, Tomioka Giyu could easily imagine what kind of expression Lord would have upon hearing this news.
Perhaps he would smile slightly, as usual, but Tomioka Giyu knew in his heart that his feelings would be nowhere as calm as he seemed.
"Splashing..." The waterfall returned to its original state... Tomioka Giyu took a deep breath, adjusted his posture once more, and locked his gaze on Roy, speaking in a deep voice: "Eiichiro, at your age,"
"I, Tomioka Giyu, am willing to call you the strongest!"
"Senior is joking." Roy held the sword in one hand, its tip pointing diagonally downwards, looking at Tomioka Giyu with appreciation, knowing that beneath his senior brother's cold appearance, there was a kind heart.
On the contrary, in the original work, it was he and Urokodaki Sakonji who vouched for Tanjiro during the Hashira Alliance Meeting, helping to spare Nezuko. Even now, Roy would not disrespect this bond.
Tomioka Giyu shook his head, earnestly saying: "I never joke."
His gaze burned as he looked at Roy, holding the Nichirin Sword with both hands, the tip also pointing diagonally downwards, speaking peacefully: "I have one more strike, do you want to see it?"
"Is it the Eleventh Form?"
"Yes."
"Hey~ hey... don't you two speak to yourselves!" Shinsuke Fukuda and others were dumbstruck.
They had practiced "Water Breathing" under Urokodaki Sakonji for many years, hadn't they? There were only "ten" forms in total, right?
When did this Eleventh Form appear?
"It should be a sword technique created by Giyu himself." Sabito looked at Tomioka Giyu with heartfelt emotion, realizing the little crybaby of the past had grown to a point even he couldn't reach... "If the Eleventh Form is used, I'm afraid even the master wouldn't know how to react."
Makomo hurried to find an excuse for Urokodaki Sakonji: "It's normal that Master can't compare with Senior Brother Giyu considering his age, after all... he's the current 'Water Hashira.'"
Sabito smiled and said no more, turning to look at Roy.
The young man appeared composed, secretly looking forward to witnessing the 'Niji' sword technique that once decapitated the "Lower Moon Five·Rui" during the spider arc...
Smiling broadly, he said: "If Senior Brother wants me to see it, I certainly want to, and moreover..."
Roy propped his short sword, letting its tip hang to his toes, squinting at Tomioka Giyu and said: "The junior has a strike as well, and wants Senior Brother to critique it."
Huh?
Shinsuke slapped Fukuda: "Did I hear that right?"
"Slap~ slap..." Fukuda slapped him back twice: "You didn't hear wrong."
The group looked at Roy with suspicion, not really knowing if Eiichiro's words... were intended to intentionally disturb Senior Brother Giyu's mind or if he was serious... Staring dazedly at him in confusion...
Amazed, Makomo opened her mouth wide, reaching out to poke Sabito... The fox-boy was similarly stunned, blankly meeting eyes with Makomo after a while, both in disbelief...