After lunch, Ren took Tanjiro to the woods outside the town.
taking advantage of the free time he had now, he wanted to give Tanjiro some special training to help him quickly master the Hinokami Kagura, also known as Sun Breathing.
He wasn't expecting him to reach Hashira-level strength immediately, but he wanted him to at least have the ability to kill Lower Moon demons.
This way, when Ren wasn't around, Tanjiro could protect his family.
"Brother Ren, why have we come here? I still need to go up the mountain to chop wood."
"You don't need to chop wood anymore. Not just today, but if nothing unexpected happens, you won't need to chop wood for several years."
"Eh? Why is that?" Tanjiro was confused.
"Because before you came back, I already gave Auntie Kie one hundred and fifty thousand yen. That money is enough for you all to live on for a long time."
"Fif... fifteen thousand?!"
Tanjiro's eyes widened to the size of saucers, revealing an expression of utter astonishment as he cried out in disbelief.
"That's right. That's the money I earned from killing demons this past month. I only kept a portion for myself and gave the rest to Auntie."
As he spoke, Ren found two sticks shaped like wooden swords, handed one to Tanjiro, and said, "So you don't need to worry about money at all right now. Just focus all your mind on cultivation."
"But..."
Tanjiro wanted to say something more, but he was ruthlessly cut off by Ren.
"You should know by now that demons exist in this world. To protect Auntie Kie and your sister Nezuko, Tanjiro, you must become stronger!"
"I understand, Brother Ren."
Tanjiro's gaze sharpened. He took the wooden sword from Ren's hand and thought to himself, 'If something were to happen to mother and the others, then selling all the charcoal in the world would be meaningless! While Brother Ren is away, I will protect my family!'
As his thoughts raced, Tanjiro took a deep breath and adjusted his breathing. He then swung the wooden stick and rushed toward Ren.
"Hinokami Kagura: Dance!"
Tanjiro gripped the sword with both hands and slashed diagonally. As the wooden sword swung, it felt as if a heatwave was roaring, and a sharp gust of wind suddenly blew toward Ren's face.
Tanjiro had put his full strength into this move, but in Ren's eyes, this strike was simply slower than a snail.
"The form and movements are standard enough, but the speed is too slow, and there isn't enough power!"
Suddenly, Ren swung his sword horizontally in front of his forehead, blocking the move with ease, leaving only a crisp sound of collision echoing through the dense forest.
"This level isn't nearly enough, Tanjiro. Is this the extent of your strength? Have you really been practicing the Hinokami Kagura properly while I was away?"
"Of course, Brother Ren. Don't underestimate me! Hinokami Kagura: Dance!"
Using the recoil from the impact, Tanjiro raised his wooden sword again and unleashed another diagonal slash.
This time, the momentum of the wooden sword was even more fierce, as if it could slice through iron like mud. This was Sun Breathing, First Form: Dance, possessing the power to sever gold and jade!
Seeing the sword intent on the wooden blade becoming sharper, Ren couldn't help but smile slightly, a fanatical fighting spirit revealing itself in his eyes.
"Good! Then I'll make a move too. Thunder Bagua!"
Ren also held his sword with both hands. The muscles in his calves and waist exerted force simultaneously as he wielded the wooden sword like a spiked club, swinging it around to smash down on Tanjiro.
Bang!!!
The two wooden swords collided in the air, erupting with a violent wave of air. Although they were wooden swords, the two of them looked as if they were fighting with real steel blades.
"Ah!"
The moment the wooden swords collided, Tanjiro let out a wail. The immense power from the wooden sword instantly transmitted through his entire body. The fierce and domineering force not only made the web of his thumb ache but also numbed his whole body.
Even the wooden sword in his hand developed dense cracks, looking as if it would shatter at any moment.
"Focus, Tanjiro! In actual combat, demons won't give you a chance to catch your breath!"
Before his voice had even faded, Ren was already swinging his sword to stab at Tanjiro. Although he was holding back his strength so as not to truly injure Tanjiro, his speed was as swift as a gale, so fast that Tanjiro couldn't react at all.
'Not good, I'm going to get hit!'
"Hinokami Kagura: Parhelion Rainbow!"
Twisting his body, Tanjiro seemed to turn into an afterimage. At the moment the wooden sword struck, he forcefully dodged the blow, simultaneously retreating backward to maintain a certain distance from Ren.
"Not bad. Your ability to adapt is very strong. Then I'll speed up too."
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!
A piercing sound of breaking wind suddenly rang out. If Tanjiro's Parhelion Rainbow only increased speed for a short time to make his movements look like afterimages, then right now, Ren was practically in a state of "Parhelion Rainbow" at all times. His speed was dazzling, like a shadow clone technique—phantom and reality intermingled, making it hard to distinguish truth from falsehood. Every afterimage swung a wooden sword to strike.
This wasn't because he actually knew the shadow clone technique, but because his speed was so fast that the naked eye could only see afterimages.
'No good, I can't tell them apart!'
'Brother Ren's speed is too fast. My eyes and sense of smell can't keep up with him. Since that's the case, I have no choice but to do this!'
"Hinokami Kagura: Clear Blue Sky!"
Tanjiro swung his wooden sword, executing a circular slash. Scorching sword qi shot out, resembling a flame storm.
The searing aura forced Ren to stop and raise his sword to block. He also halted his footwork, and the dazzling afterimages vanished.
"Is this a skill like my Whirlwind Dance? Except this move can be used not only for defense but also for offense."
"Now! Hinokami Kagura: Sunflower Thrust!"
While Ren was contemplating, Tanjiro leaped up, using the momentary acceleration to close in on Ren quickly while thrusting his sword out.
Ren glanced at him. In his eyes, Tanjiro's movements seemed to slow down several times over. He could accurately predict Tanjiro's target and react in time.
He swung his sword again, blocking Tanjiro's sword technique with immense strength.
Through one practical combat session after another, the two spent a fulfilling afternoon.
During the special training, with Ren feeding him moves, Tanjiro became increasingly proficient in the various forms of Sun Breathing, and his strength and stamina improved accordingly.
As for Ren, although his basic attributes didn't improve, his movement techniques became more agile.
Most importantly, as Tanjiro continued to attack him using Sun Breathing, Ren not only memorized the various forms of the technique but was even able to rely on his superhuman physique to replicate the Sun Breathing forms exactly as they were.
Breathing techniques were originally a method of improving cardiopulmonary function to drastically enhance the human physique.
Ren's physique was already far beyond that of ordinary humans, surpassing even the vast majority of demons. naturally, he could execute various sword forms without using the breathing technique.
It wasn't just Sun Breathing; even for sword forms of other breathing styles, as long as Ren watched them a few times, he could replicate them just the same.
If one had to put a label on it, he should probably be considered a Copy Swordsman.
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]