Uzui Tengen bellowed, his hands blurring as he flipped several kunai. The cold steel gleamed under the moon. "Watch as I solve this—flashily!"
"Tengen-sama, be careful!" The girl named Suma cried out, her voice wobbling with tears. "It's regenerating again!"
Makio shielded Suma as they retreated, her expression fierce. Hinatsuru bit her lip, fingers poised over her own hidden weapons, waiting for an opening.
The demon roared. A massive, barb-covered claw swung down with a foul wind! Uzui Tengen twisted mid-air, intercepting the strike with his kunai.
CLANG!
The sheer force caused the ground beneath Tengen's feet to spiderweb. He let out a muffled grunt, his muscles bulging as he physically deadlocked the monster's heavy blow. As he leapt back, he peppered the demon's neck with projectiles, but the creature simply plucked them out with a mocking grin.
"Damn it! Is this thing immortal?!" Tengen gritted his teeth, a rare flicker of shock and frustration in his eyes.
As a Shinobi, his specialty was assassination. He had completed countless high-stakes missions for his clan. But even he had never encountered a monster that could heal instantly—an undead nightmare.
"Retreat! Flashily! Go!" he roared, preparing to put his life on the line to buy his wives time to escape.
Just as the demon unhinged its jaw to pounce, a bolt of golden lightning tore through the dark!
"Thunder Breathing, First Form: Thunderclap and Flash!"
A cold, sharp voice erupted from the woods.
BOOM!
Tengen only saw a blur. A figure wreathed in electricity brushed past him.
Schlick.
There was no thunderous collision, only a sound like a sharp knife cutting through paper. The demon froze. Its eyeballs rolled downward as if trying to see what had happened.
A second later, a hair-thin red line appeared on its neck. It expanded instantly.
Spray!
The hideous head went flying! The headless corpse slammed into the dirt and began to dissolve into ash.
[Notice: Slayed Mid-Phase Demon. Gained 1 year of lifespan. Current remaining lifespan: 5 years, 338 days.]
Ryousuke ignored the dying demon behind him, smoothly sheathing his white blade.
Uzui Tengen's eyes practically lit up. Flashy!
Thunder Breathing, First Form: Thunderclap and Flash?
What a flashy move! What a flashy name! What a flashy blade!
Though... the guy's face was a bit plain.
"WAAAAAH!!!" Suma wailed, throwing herself at Tengen. "Tengen-sama! I'm so glad you aren't dead!"
BONK! Makio delivered a sharp punch to the top of Suma's head. "Suma! Shut up! How could Tengen-sama die?!"
"Now, now..." Hinatsuru sighed, stepping in to gently calm the two as she began to check Tengen for injuries.
Tengen ignored the bickering and stepped toward Ryousuke. "Brother, what in the world was that thing? Why wouldn't it die? And that move you used... what was it?"
Ryousuke sized them up, feeling a surge of internal commentary. White hair, handsome, muscles... classic protagonist material. Even though they were roughly the same age, Tengen stood a full head taller than Ryousuke—1.9 meters of pure muscle.
In the original series, Tengen was a "late-bloomer" favorite. He talked about "Flashiness" constantly like he had a terminal case of Chunibyo (middle-schooler syndrome). But after the Entertainment District arc, everyone loved him.
And his wives...
Makio's legs were longer than most people's lifespans. Suma was a "clumsy crybaby" with an impressive... chest. And Hinatsuru was the ultimate "Reliable Wife" archetype.
Don't envy the gods, just envy the Sound Hashira's daily life, Ryousuke thought. Flashy Brother has it all!
"Demons," Ryousuke explained aloud. "Monsters that feed on human flesh. Ordinary weapons can't kill them. Only a specially made Nichirin sword to the neck, or sunlight, will turn them to ash."
"Demons... Nichirin sword..." Tengen rolled the words around in his mouth, his eyes flickering with intensity.
Tengen had defected from his clan because he refused to be an emotionless killing machine. Seeing someone who belonged to an organization dedicated to protecting people from the unknown... it set a fire in his soul. This power, this battle against the hidden horrors of the world... it fit his "Flashy" philosophy perfectly.
Ryousuke saw the heat in Tengen's gaze and knew he had him. In the original timeline, Kagaya Ubuyashiki's kindness won Tengen over.
"It looks like you don't have a place to stay," Ryousuke said, pointing toward Momoyama. "If you're lost, come back with me. That's my master's mountain. It's safe from demons."
Tengen looked at his wives. Hinatsuru, the only one who could truly steer him, gave a small nod. Tengen let out a long breath. The world outside the Shinobi clans was far more dangerous than he had imagined. Leading his wives on a blind pilgrimage was foolish.
"Momoyama..." Tengen repeated, his silver hair catching the moonlight. "Sounds flashy enough! Fine! We'll intrude on your mountain!"
He stepped forward with a grin. "I am Uzui Tengen. These are my wives: Hinatsuru, Makio, and Suma."
"Yasui Ryousuke."
Ryousuke turned and led the way. I left home alone and came back with a family of four. Momoyama is about to get very noisy.
At the top of the mountain, a sleepy Master Jigoro hadn't even processed Ryousuke's arrival before he saw the entourage.
"Gramps..." Ryousuke started.
Fwoosh! Before he could finish, Jigoro used a burst of speed to appear right in front of him. Ryousuke stumbled back in shock.
"Wait, Gramps, I—"
Jigoro didn't care about Ryousuke's new "Constant" breathing or his safe return. He looked at Hinatsuru, Makio, and Suma, his beard twitching as he broke into a massive, toothy grin.
"Good boy! You've finally grown up! You went out for a mission and brought back three of them at once!"