In the early morning, threads of golden sunlight filtered through gaps in the mountains and wilderness, painting the earth into a stunning golden oil painting.
Kurozawa was already up. He pushed open his door and stretched lazily.
"Morning, Senior Disciple."
His junior sister, Hanada Shizuka, skipped over to greet Kurozawa.
Before Giyu Tomioka arrived, Hanada Shizuka had been the youngest of them all. Coupled with her cute, airheaded personality, she had been adored by all her senior brothers and sisters.
The moment Shizuka came close, Kurozawa unceremoniously reached out and rubbed her little head.
"Since you're up, why aren't you practicing your sword forms?"
"I-I just remembered, I haven't washed my face yet."
Shaking her head free from Kurozawa's evil grasp, Hanada Shizuka put on a guilty expression and tried to return to her room.
However, Kurozawa grabbed her by the collar and hauled her back like a kitten.
"You're still this lazy. Sooner or later, you'll pay dearly for it."
"Go. Practice your sword forms for two hours!"
Not every swordsman harbored a deep hatred for demons. Among Sakonji Urokodaki's fourteen disciples,
twelve had watched demons destroy their homes and kill their families. They had therefore chosen to become swordsmen, fight demons, and avenge their families.
The remaining two were Kurozawa and Hanada Shizuka.
Kurozawa had been adopted as a child, and Hanada Shizuka's circumstances were similar. Her biological parents had died when she was five, after which she had been adopted.
But her adoptive parents had treated her terribly. Beatings and scoldings were an everyday occurrence. Once little Shizuka had been capable of escaping, she took some money from their home as revenge, then fled under cover of night.
After wandering about, she eventually arrived at Mount Sagiri and met Sakonji Urokodaki and Kurozawa. Penniless, little Shizuka stubbornly insisted on staying, and somehow became a trainee swordsman for the sake of a meal.
Her childhood had been unfortunate, but Hanada Shizuka had always remained cheerful and quirky, unaffected by those experiences.
Because she lacked a powerful driving force, and because practicing Breathing Techniques and sword forms was exhausting work, Hanada Shizuka loved slacking off more than anyone else. Someone had to push her along.
"O-okay."
Looking utterly dejected, Hanada Shizuka saw Kurozawa's serious expression and obediently went to practice her sword forms.
Seeing this, Kurozawa felt a headache coming on.
Becoming a Demon Hunter Swordsman might not have been a good thing for her.
Unless she encountered something powerful enough to shake her to the core—for example, close friends dying before her eyes at the hands of demons—Hanada Shizuka might never realize the cruel war of slaughter between humans and demons.
If there was a chance, he should still help her leave the Demon Slayer Corps.
Watching Hanada Shizuka's skipping figure disappear into the distance, Kurozawa had that thought.
Then Kurozawa looked up at the golden sun before turning back into his room.
After sitting down casually, he slightly closed his eyes and focused his entire body, mind, and spirit on circulating his Breathing Technique.
With his Breathing Technique running at full power, Kurozawa's heartbeat exceeded that of an ordinary person by more than three times. His blood flowed several times faster, while every muscle in his body trembled faintly and continuously grew stronger.
This state was Total Concentration, a special state that, if maintained for too long, could cause blood vessels throughout the body to burst and muscles to tear apart.
However, maintaining Total Concentration for a certain period could improve one's physique with tremendous efficiency.
Breathing Techniques were miraculous arts for strengthening the body, but ordinary people could not withstand such intense internal exertion.
"I should save my Potential Points for breaking through to the fifth stage of the Breathing Technique. That should be a qualitative transformation."
"I've never heard of a Hashira breaking through to the fifth stage."
At present, after training with Total Concentration Breathing and receiving a tiny boost from Potential Points, Kurozawa's physique was already no weaker than a Hashira's. As long as he did not encounter an Upper Moon demon, it would be enough.
If he encountered an Upper Moon, it would all be useless unless his physique could also undergo a qualitative transformation. Sakonji Urokodaki had said that the Demon Slayer Corps had estimated that a powerful Upper Moon required two or three Hashira just to match it, and four Hashira to surround and kill it. Even a weaker Upper Moon was still a cut above the average Hashira.
"What exactly is the fifth stage?"
Now that Kurozawa understood the grim truth that his talent was abysmal, he had already abandoned the unrealistic notion of personally breaking through to the fifth stage.
When Total Concentration training pushed him to the limit of his physique, Kurozawa stopped and used the Constant state to ease his internal condition.
Thanks to his extraordinary constitution, he recovered quickly. Once he had recovered, he resumed Total Concentration and steadily improved himself bit by bit.
As Kurozawa repeatedly trained in Total Concentration and the Constant state, time silently advanced to noon.
At the foot of Mount Fujikasane, nearly a hundred people had gathered in a vast clearing.
After finishing his Breathing Technique training, Kurozawa brought his junior brothers and sisters here as well.
"Everyone, I will now announce several points to note."
A Kakushi member stepped out from the crowd, climbed onto the conspicuous temporary platform in the center, and spoke loudly.
The trainee swordsmen present all turned their gazes toward the Kakushi member.
"First, form teams of two. You may act separately or together."
"Second, the number of demons slain will not count toward the assessment. Swordsmen must not fight one another."
"Third, if you encounter someone in dire straits, help them as much as possible."
"Fourth, regardless of the method, anyone who survives one night on Mount Fujikasane will pass the assessment."
The rules were quickly read aloud, and the Kakushi member withdrew.
At the same time, the trainee swordsmen were led away one by one by the next group of Kakushi members according to their teams.
On Kurozawa's side, Sabito was with Giyu Tomioka, while Makomo accompanied another junior sister. Everyone else had found their own partners as well.
"Remember, if you encounter danger, shout my name. If I hear you, I'll rush over immediately."
Before leaving, Kurozawa repeatedly reminded them.
After all, he had spent a long time with his junior brothers and sisters. It would be a lie to say he felt nothing for them.
Kurozawa did not want to see anyone he knew die.
Moreover, he had promised Sakonji Urokodaki that he would bring everyone back safely.
Hanada Shizuka followed Kurozawa. Led by a Kakushi member, they wound through twisting mountain paths until they arrived before a secluded forest trail.
Wisteria Flowers grew on both sides of the path, their vines tangling overhead to form a canopy that blocked out the falling sunlight.
"Enter here, and it will lead directly to the middle of Mount Fujikasane. The middle of the mountain is also where demons are most densely concentrated."
To prevent demons from escaping, dense Wisteria Flowers had been planted below the middle of Mount Fujikasane. Above the middle of the mountain lay ordinary wilderness—ancient trees, rivers, boulders, and everything else.
The area above the middle of the mountain was where demons roamed, and it was also the true site of the Swordsman Trial.
"You may choose to head up the mountain now and familiarize yourselves with the terrain. Of course, that comes with danger. Demons hiding in shadows or caves will be eager to attack once they sense you. Even during the day, shadows still exist within the mountain."
"Or you can wait until nightfall. Then all the swordsmen will head up the mountain, dividing the demons' attention and lowering the danger."
Having offered them a choice, the Kakushi member withdrew.
With the dense Wisteria Flower canopy blocking the sunlight, the narrow path, barely wide enough for one person to pass, appeared quiet and pitch-black, like a dark maw waiting to devour its prey.
"Let's go. We'll head in now."
After thinking for a moment, Kurozawa made his decision.
"Huh? Senior Disciple, don't. That person said heading up the mountain now would easily draw more attention."
Hanada Shizuka stared at the pitch-black path and instinctively shrank behind Kurozawa.
"With me here, what are you afraid of?"
With a light snort, Kurozawa stepped forward into the quiet, deep Wisteria Flower path.
Potential Points, here I come!
His tall figure and confident words gave Hanada Shizuka a sense of security, and she unconsciously followed after him.
Before you continue