At that moment, Shinazugawa had a Nichirin Blade at his waist.
He also carried a pile of sickles, iron rods, and the like on his back.
Rather than a reserve member of the Demon Slayer Corps, he looked more like a kid collecting scrap.
"Those are the boy's own weapons."
Master Kazami sighed, his voice tinged with emotion.
"He still hasn't gotten comfortable with his Nichirin Blade, so he's unwilling to put down the things he used to kill demons with."
"This boy is just like you back then. You're both proud to the bone."
Huh?
He'd already killed demons before joining the Demon Slayer Corps?
No wonder he had so many scars. He must have gotten hurt plenty of times fighting demons.
After all, not everyone was Gyomei Himejima.
He could pin a demon to the ground and beat it with his bare fists, even in a weakened state from never having had enough to eat.
Wait...
Xia Xi protested, "What do you mean, just like me?"
Kazami looked at Xia Xi with the nostalgic gaze peculiar to elders.
That look was just like the relatives Xia Xi had met as a child.
They would even say, "I held you when you were little..."
Kazami said slowly, "When I first brought you out of that mansion."
"You had that same look that kept strangers at bay."
"Every day, apart from practicing swordsmanship and your Breathing Style, you did nothing but push your body to its limits."
He had been a child whose entire world was filled with revenge.
To be honest, Kazami had been very worried for a time.
He had worried that Xia Xi would go astray, or ruin his body by pushing himself too hard.
But looking at him now...
Xia Xi had grown into a very