When the carriage carried everyone back to the Butterfly Mansion, the snow was still falling.
It didn't stop until another day and night had passed.
"W-what! Could it be that all those ghost stories, and the tales of the demon-slaying swordsmen, are true?"
Tanjiro, holding his broom, exclaimed in surprise to Muichiro beside him.
"Well, a while ago a very beautiful woman with white hair came to my house and said something to my brother and me that we were descendants of the Initial Swordsman. My brother chased her away, but I heard that they seemed to have left some means to monitor us. They saved us when we encountered a ghost. The one who saved us was the guy with the Gunbai pattern painted on his body who brought you back."
Muichiro swept the snow and answered woodenly.
"Huh? That guy... is he really that good?"
"Yes, at that time, my older brother Ichiro had already been bitten by a demon. Later, a guy named Meikyō appeared and killed the demon with a flaming knife."
"A sword that can catch fire... Is it related to Dance of the Fire God? No wonder they say Dance of the Fire God is some kind of initial Breathing Technique. Is this initial Breathing Technique also related to your family's so-called Initial Swordsman?"
Tanjiro quickly connected everything together.
"I don't know about that, but I heard from them that the guy named Meikyō is one of the most powerful people here, just like those pillars and stuff."
"Zhu? Is that the white-haired guy who was so fierce and loud in the yard?"
Tanjiro curiously peeked into the room.
"Hey! With your skinny body, don't even think about learning any Breathing Technique from me!"
Shinazugawa Sanemi glared angrily at Tokito Yuichiro.
This guy is so stubborn!
"No! I want to learn!"
"What's the point of learning it! Once I learn that Ancestral Breathing Technique, I'll definitely be able to kill all the demons!"
"I want to learn how to protect my younger brother!"
Tokito Yuichiro Shinazugawa Sanemi.
He had heard from those people that this hot-tempered guy in front of him was a very powerful pillar!
Even Uchiha Meikyō was a little short of becoming a Pillar, so this guy must be even more powerful!
He wants to learn how to be powerful.
Shinazugawa Sanemi raised an eyebrow.
He was also a brother-complex guy, and he always refused to let his younger brother join the Demon Slayer Corps and risk his life to fight demons.
"Protect your younger brother? Fine! Your basics aren't up to par. I'll teach you how to hold and wield a sword first. If you can't complete a thousand sword strikes by today, you're not worthy to learn from me!"
Shinazugawa Sanemi cursed, but still tossed a bamboo sword to Ichiro and taught him the basic sword stance.
"I'll only teach you once, and I might come back to check at any time! You'd better not let me catch you slacking off!"
He gave a harsh remark and turned to leave.
The news that the descendant of the Initial Swordsman and the successor of the Ancestral Breathing Technique had been discovered had spread, so Ubuyashiki Kagaya convened the semi-annual Hashira Meeting ahead of schedule.
Demon Slayer Corps, Headquarters.
Meikyō and all the current Pillars of the Demon Slayer Corps arrived at the scene. Ubuyashiki Kagaya was also very excited after learning about the Ancestral Breathing Technique and waited at the scene early.
Tomioka Giyuu coldly scrutinized everyone present.
Shinazugawa Sanemi had not yet arrived, and everyone else seemed to be the same as before.
The only change is the addition of a newcomer Uchiha Meikyō.
Upon seeing Shinazugawa Sanemi, who was late because of teaching Ichiro, Tomioka Giyuu suddenly recalled his experience at the last Hashira Meeting.
How did Shinazugawa Sanemi warmly welcome the Newcomers Arrive then?
"I remember... this should be the Hashira Meeting, right?"
Tomioka Giyuu suddenly spoke up, attracting a curious crowd to watch.
"Then why are there guys who aren't Pillars here?"
Tomioka Giyuu pointed his finger at Uchiha Meikyō.
He remembered how warmly Shinazugawa Sanemi had welcomed Rengoku Kyojuro and encouraged him to become a Pillar as soon as possible.
Meikyō was dumbfounded.
He knew that Tomioka Giyuu was aloof and not good with words, but there was no need to target him like this.
Shinazugawa Sanemi and Rengoku Kyojuro felt as if they had seen this scene before.
"Hey, Giyu, I think it shouldn't be a problem for Meikyō to stay here, right? Even if she's not a Pillar, it's not much different now. Besides, among the current Pillars, I don't think anyone except Himejima can be Meikyō's match, right?"
Uzui Tengen looked at Tomioka Giyuu with great confusion.
"That's you guys, I'm different from you."
Tomioka Giyuu shook his head.
What he meant was that he hadn't actually fought Meikyō yet. Even though he knew he was unlikely to beat Meikyō, he saw them as teammates in the ghost-slaying game, so there was no need to compare them.
All the pillars looked rather grim.
What do you mean, Tomioka Giyuu, is different from us? You look down on us, don't you?
"Tomioka Giyuu, are you deliberately trying to mock me like this?"
Shinazugawa Sanemi finally remembered where this sense of familiarity came from, and shouted angrily, while drawing his sword and standing in front of Tomioka Giyuu.
On the other side, Iguro Obanai, the Serpent Hashira, also silently stood up, blocking Giyu's retreat, and together with Shinazugawa Sanemi, surrounded Tomioka Giyuu.
Tomioka Giyuu looked at Shinazugawa Sanemi with puzzlement, but he was used to the latter's volatile personality.
"Ahem, alright, everyone sit down."
Ubuyashiki Kagaya late, felt somewhat weary upon seeing this scene.
The Demon Slayer Corps is full of talented individuals, but this also means that these people are all too individualistic, and if you don't keep an eye on them, things can easily go wrong.
"The important matter today is still the Initial Breathing Technique that Meikyō brought back. Meikyō, I heard that you have already learned the Initial Breathing Technique. Could you tell us about it in detail?"
When confronted with Ubuyashiki Kagaya's words, Meikyō did not acknowledge them.
"As you all know, I have learned many Breathing Techniques, so I can also discover some things that others have not noticed. For example, the five basic breathing styles can complement each other. This can be seen from the fact that many of the branch Breathing Technique that have emerged in the past were created by predecessors who introduced other Breathing Technique on the basis of one breathing style."
"So I wondered, if we combine all five Breathing Techniques, would we form a single Breathing Technique that combines the advantages of all the Breathing Technique? Or perhaps, the five basic Breathing Technique are derived from a very basic Breathing Technique."
"In response, I specifically asked Kyōjurō to help me look up records related to the Ancestral Breathing Technique. Fortunately, the Flame Hashira lineage has never been interrupted and has the longest history. In the end, we successfully found clues about the Sun Breathing, which is the Ancestral Breathing Technique, in the ancient texts."