The next day, at noon, after finishing lunch, Sui met the village chief once more.
"Haganezuka still hasn't turned up," Tecchin said. "But from what you told me, you want the tsuba from your former Nichirin Blade fitted onto this sword instead?"
Resting quietly in the box between them was a single short blade.
Its blade was golden, and its hilt looked slightly worn with age. It was the Nichirin short sword hidden inside the compartment of the biwa, Jiao Wei—the weapon once used by Hizuki-hime, the Thunder Hashira of the Warring States era.
"Yes," Sui replied with a nod.
"My, my, what astounding craftsmanship!" Tecchin exclaimed as he lifted the short sword from the box. "So this is truly an ancient blade from the Warring States period. Incredible, incredible."
The old man kept running his hands over the blade. After a while, he paused.
"Though after so much time, it seems it's no longer sharp enough."
"That's why I came to ask for your help. I'm a swordsman of Thunder Breathing, so using the Nichirin Blade of a former Thunder Hashira is perfectly suitable. There shouldn't be any issue of incompatibility."
"That's not quite the problem, Thunder Hashira-sama." Tecchin shook his head. "If this ancient blade is to be restored to its peak condition, it will require an extremely delicate and complex polishing process. It will also take a very long time. If the sword polisher loses focus for even a moment midway through, everything will be ruined. It's a rather troublesome task."
"If I were still a few years younger, I could handle the polishing myself without issue. But I'm old now—my stamina and concentration just aren't enough anymore. There are very few people in the Swordsmith Village with the skill for this, and among those who do, the only one who also has the physical endurance and focus required is that boy, Hotaru."
"Haganezuka's stamina can even keep up with many swordsmen. His body has been tempered a thousand times over."
"Reforging a new blade, I can certainly manage. But to restore this old one according to your wishes... I'm afraid we really do have to find that boy," the village chief said, bowing to Sui. "Please rest for now. The moment we hear anything, I'll inform you."
"Then perhaps I should help search," Sui offered.
"How could we possibly ask that of our guest?" Tecchin refused at once, waving his hands.
"Oh, right—there is also an artifact in the village connected to that primordial swordsman from the Warring States era. If Thunder Hashira-sama is interested, you may wish to seek out Kanamori Kotetsu."
"An artifact connected to the primordial swordsman?"
"Yes, yes—a puppet with six arms. Apparently it was made that way because only with six arms could it replicate that swordsman's movements."
"Pleased to meet you. My name is Sui." She folded her hands and bowed politely.
"No, no, the honor is mine," the man across from her said hurriedly, returning the bow. "I am Kanamori Kotetsu. The village chief told me you were interested in Yoriichi Type Zero."
"I am. Thank you for seeing me."
"You're too kind, Thunder Hashira-sama. If Yoriichi Type Zero can be of any help to you, if it can increase the Demon Slayer Corps' strength even a little, then it would be an honor for my whole family."
A five-year-old child stood beside him. When Sui's pale, unfocused eyes shifted slightly in the child's direction, the man introduced him.
"This is Kotetsu—my son."
"Kotetsu, didn't you always admire the Demon Slayer Corps? This is one of the Hashira. Quickly, say, 'Thunder Hashira-sama, pleased to meet you. My name is Kotetsu. Please take care of me.'"
The boy immediately bowed with all solemnity and shouted, "Thunder Hashira-sama! Pleased to meet you! My name is Kotetsu! Please take care of me!"
"Please take care of me as well, Kotetsu," Sui replied with a bow.
Watching the excited boy run off ahead, Sui followed Kanamori Kotetsu to an open clearing not far away.
"He's a lively child," she said.
"Hahaha! Hearing Thunder Hashira-sama say that puts my heart at ease. Kotetsu will definitely become an outstanding swordsmith one day!"
The man smiled and set a large wooden crate down in the clearing, then slowly opened it.
Inside was a puppet.
Red-haired, six-armed, and adorned with sun-shaped earrings, it hardly looked like a mechanical doll from afar.
"Yoriichi Type Zero!" the man announced proudly.
What in the world happened back in the Warring States era...? Sui wondered silently.
Whether it was the craftsmanship of the Nichirin Blade or the construction of this puppet before her, neither seemed remotely like something that should have existed in that age.
"Would you like to try it?" the man asked, turning the switch on its back.
"My thanks."
Sui nodded and retreated, putting some distance between them.
The instant the switch was turned, the puppet came alive. Its six arms moved at once, weaving an impenetrable mesh of sword forms.
Sui rushed directly into the range of its blades, avoiding its attacks at unbelievable angles. Only at rare moments did she strike back.
"The forearms, the shoulders, the wrists... I can see the method behind that primordial swordsman's attacks."
Having already grasped the essential veins of the five fundamental styles and working tirelessly to reverse and fuse them into one, Sui began to catch a trail. In a daze, she could almost feel that swordsman's breathing rhythm and the way he moved.
The primordial breathing style.
"So amazing!" Kotetsu ran back to his father's side, staring wide-eyed at the two figures crossing blades in the clearing.
"No swordsman has ever fought Yoriichi Type Zero like this before!"
"That's only natural. After all the painstaking repairs your father made, Yoriichi Type Zero has practically returned to its Warring States-era state," Kanamori said, his callused hand resting on his son's head. He too watched the flickering forms in the clearing, barely able to keep up with Sui's movements. "A Hashira who can slay an Upper Rank demon is truly extraordinary!"
The clash of blades rang out.
The sword in Sui's hand wasn't one she was used to; she had merely borrowed a Nichirin Blade from Kanamori's household.
But she was not here to defeat Yoriichi Type Zero. She was here to understand the puppet's movements. Wind, Thunder, Water, Flame, Stone—taking what was best from each of the five fundamental breathing styles to reverse-engineer the primordial breath. In the same way, the primordial breathing style naturally contained the strengths of all five.
Sui continued to swing her sword.
Yet in her mind flashed the scenes of her training in the other breathing styles.
What is this...?
Suddenly she realized her body was heating up. Her temperature had already risen far beyond what a human body should be able to bear.
Was the primordial breathing style becoming clearer?
In the storm of blades, Sui's motions began to change. From the Thunder Breathing she knew best, to Wind Breathing, and then into Flame Breathing.
"What... what is this?" Kanamori stared in shock at Sui as she began shifting through different sword forms.
Thunder, wind, flame, flowing around the woman's blade in turn.
Kotetsu could only gape.
Sui's body grew hotter and hotter. Flame Breathing changed into Stone Breathing, the style least suited to her, before finally flowing into Water Breathing—the one she had learned best.
Ripples spread through the air as Sui raised her sword tip and caught Yoriichi Type Zero's thrust.
Then thunder rose again, and the five styles she wielded formed a cycle.
"Haa..."
Sui retreated and sheathed her blade.
At that very moment, dark clouds gathered overhead, and after a crack of thunder, rain began to pour.
Sui's body temperature slowly dropped until it returned to normal.
"Let's continue tomorrow," she said to Kanamori.
She was close now.
Very close to mastering the primordial breathing style—the power of Sun Breathing.
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 178)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 138)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League ( 126 )
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter160)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter98)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter175)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 77
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 163
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 150
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass 100
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 170
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65
Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer 145
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 125
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player 69
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 90
Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 66
Uma Musume: From Beginner 100
Becoming a Horse Girl, I Will 70
Uma Musume: I Want All 90
I Can Copy Unique Skills 65
Summoning an Evil God, but the 52
Supernatural Multiverse 65
My Harem Is Indescribable 55
Jujutsu Kaisen: Heroic Spirit 55
"I'm just a Valkyrie passing through." 66
Uma Musume: Today Is Another Romantic Battlefield 55
Still playing traditional Honk 35
The Most Filial Son Under Heav 35
What Should I Do After Switchi 24
Reincarnated as a Demon, Skill 35
Hell-Difficulty Dungeon? 27
Transmigrated as Sukuna 27
Checking In in Demon Slayer 32
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