A Kitchen Knife Is Still a Knife

"A blade breaks easily. It handles force along its length well, but struggles with force from the side. When you use a sword, apply force in a straight line. The blade's orientation must match the direction of your swing. Even the slightest misalignment will weaken your strike, or even shatter the blade."

As Urokodaki spoke, he held his sword and effortlessly cut the wooden post in front of him in half.

Cutting through a wooden post was harder than it looked. After watching Urokodaki's demonstration, Tanjiro eagerly tried it himself, but his blade failed to slice through the post and instead lodged in its outer edge.

Despite Tanjiro's considerable strength, it was useless without proper technique. Besides, deep down, he was afraid he might accidentally break the sword.

Urokodaki wasn't surprised, but a lecture was still in order. While he was lecturing Tanjiro, Chinatsu held the sword Urokodaki had handed her after his demonstration and turned her gaze toward the post Tanjiro had yet to cut through.

With a swish!, the wooden post was sliced in two with a clunk. One half slowly rolled onto the ground. Hearing the noise, Tanjiro and Urokodaki stiffly turned their heads, inch by inch, toward Chinatsu.

"Chinatsu... how did you do that...?"

"Uh, I just... did it?"

Chinatsu blinked, a little embarrassed herself. In truth, the moment she gripped the sword, she had vaguely sensed something extraordinary. Following that feeling, she had simply decided to give it a try. The result had surprised her, too.

After thinking for a moment, realization dawned on Chinatsu's face. She looked earnestly at the stunned Tanjiro and Urokodaki and said, "Well! A kitchen knife is still a knife! This might be my first time holding this kind of blade, but don't I use a kitchen knife every day?!"

Chinatsu's first theory: a kitchen knife was still a knife!

Urokodaki was utterly exasperated by this theory. Yes, a kitchen knife was a knife, but that didn't mean knowing how to use one made you proficient with a proper sword.

While Urokodaki remained exasperated, Tanjiro beside him wore a look of understanding, his train of thought falling perfectly in line with Chinatsu's.

"That's right! A kitchen knife is still a knife, and you're amazing with one!" Tanjiro explained to himself, his eyes shining.

In the Kamado household, their father's poor health and early death had forced their mother and the older children to mature early and take on household chores.

Nezuko looked after the younger children and did some sewing, while Tanjiro chopped wood and helped their mother handle important household matters. Chinatsu, meanwhile, had picked up a kitchen knife at an early age and become the household's leading cook.

Tanjiro had seen his sister's knife skills in the kitchen before. Calling them a work of art would hardly have been an exaggeration. Once he connected her kitchen knife skills to swordsmanship, it suddenly didn't seem strange anymore.

Tanjiro tightened his grip on his sword, thinking that since his sister had succeeded, he needed to hurry up and succeed as well.

In the original story, Tanjiro had taken two years to learn everything Urokodaki taught him in the mountains. Now, with Chinatsu here, he had another powerful source of motivation.

Keep pushing harder!!!

Nezuko slept, Tanjiro gave it his all, and Chinatsu was still exploring the mysteries of her body.

Although she no longer needed a wheelchair, Chinatsu still used one from time to time. The counterpart to this body's inexplicable talent was that she tired more easily than most people.

Perhaps this was what they called "equivalent exchange."

Chinatsu was also practicing Water Breathing. Some might wonder why she didn't simply practice Hinokami Kagura, but there was a reason for that.

Hinokami Kagura's "power" was far, far more intense than Water Breathing's. Even after training for two years, leaving the mountains, joining the Demon Slayer Corps, and successfully killing several low-level demons, Tanjiro would collapse to his knees in agony after just a few swings using Sun Breathing.

Practicing Hinokami Kagura without first building a solid foundation was like forcing yourself to use a high-level skill when your level was too low. Not only was it questionable whether you could activate it at all, but it would also drain your health like crazy.

Water Breathing was one of the five foundational Breathing Styles derived from origin breathing. It was characterized by well-rounded capabilities and gentle breathing. Among the five foundational Breathing Styles, it was relatively easy to learn, and a large portion of the Demon Slayer Corps used it.

First Form: Water Surface Slash

Second Form: Water Wheel

Third Form: Flowing Dance Movement

Fourth Form: Striking Tide

Fifth Form: Blessed Rain After the Drought

Sixth Form: Twisting Whirlpool

Seventh Form: Drop Ripple Thrust

Eighth Form: Waterfall Basin

Ninth Form: Splashing Water Flow, Turbulent

Tenth Form: Constant Flux

From a swordsmanship perspective, these ten techniques really did cover all the bases. There was the movement-focused "Splashing Water Flow, Turbulent," the saintly "Blessed Rain After the Drought," and "Constant Flux," which allowed the weaker fighter to overcome the stronger, among others.

Chinatsu studied them diligently, too, and when she actually mastered them, she was startled. They really could unleash "water"...

Well, after observing more closely, she realized it wasn't actual water, but water-like sword energy-a physical manifestation of sword energy.

If Water Breathing could truly produce water, Flame Breathing could truly produce fire, and Thunder Breathing could truly summon thunder, then the real value of these Breathing Styles would probably extend far beyond killing demons...

The days passed one by one. Because their training progressed far faster than Urokodaki had imagined, his original plan was thrown off, forcing him to revise it frequently.

Night fell.

Chinatsu lay in bed, quietly watching the ceiling. She slowly closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep. As expected, she once again had the dream she had experienced countless times since transmigrating.

Back at the Kamado home, after Tanjiro left, the family continued living together in harmony as they always had.

Their mother was gentle and caring.

Nezuko was a proper young lady, too.

Though Takeo, Mao, Rokuta, and Delia were still young and had their mischievous sides, they never caused trouble for everyone. They weren't little brats.

Chinatsu stood in the kitchen, inspecting the ingredients before her and wondering how she could make the food even tastier.

Just as Chinatsu decided what to make and was about to start cooking, a bang! bang! bang! sounded at the front door.

"Who is it?"

"Well, it can't be Tanjiro. He only just left."

"I'll get it! I'll get the door!"

"Takeo, slow down. Slow down."

Takeo rushed toward the front door, and their mother, Kie Kamado, quickly got up as well to see who was knocking.

With a click, Takeo opened the front door. A man in a black suit, who looked like Michael Jackson, stood outside.

"Hello there~"