Kanzaki Kumo: This guy is beyond saving

With a forceful attitude and words, he completely detonated Giyu Tomioka's emotions, breaking through the lifeless shell that encased his heart.

Then he used absolute strength to plunge him into deeper self-doubt and despair.

Finally, while Giyu Tomioka was at his most vulnerable, he had someone Giyu cared enough about awaken his heart.

That was Kanzaki Kumo's plan, simple and brutal. The slightest misstep could completely ruin this rather talented trainee Swordsman, Giyu Tomioka, but the chances of success were not low either.

After all, if Giyu Tomioka could be defeated by something like this, he would never have become the Water Hashira after experiencing Sabito's death, much less been considered the strongest Water Hashira in the Demon Slayer Corps' history.

That final look Sakonji Urokodaki gave Kanzaki Kumo contained many emotions, but above all, it held shock at Kanzaki Kumo's far-too-mature conduct.

Kanzaki Kumo checked Giyu's condition one last time. Once he confirmed that Giyu's eyes were no longer so lifeless, he turned and joined the others practicing swordsmanship. His original reason for coming here had only been to learn Water Breathing...

Before they knew it, evening arrived. The sun was about to set, and everyone stopped training.

Makomo was still in the kitchen helping Sakonji Urokodaki prepare dinner, while Kanzaki Kumo and Sabito sat outside the house staring at each other, keeping an eye on Giyu as he sat in the yard gazing blankly at the sunset.

"Honestly, did you really come up with that plan in just one night?"

Once his emotions settled, Sabito calmly thought back over what Kanzaki Kumo had done. The more he thought about it, the less it seemed like a plan a child even younger than him could devise, let alone in a single night.

"To be precise, it was about an hour. Yesterday, after Makomo told me about Giyu's past, I came up with the rough outline. By the time I left your place, it was basically complete."

Kanzaki Kumo shrugged, seemingly answering casually while actually "secretly" showing off.

"Now you actually look like a boy in his teens, Kumo." Makomo came over to join them too.

"Hmm?" Kanzaki Kumo gave her a puzzled look.

"Just now in the kitchen, even Master Urokodaki was saying that the way you handled this was nothing like what someone your age could manage."

"I've just seen a little more and been through a little more. That's all." Kanzaki Kumo shook his head, unconcerned.

Hearing Kanzaki Kumo's words, however, Makomo fell somewhat silent. She had heard him speak about his past before, but she did not know how long he had wandered alone at just seven years old after the grandfather who adopted him passed away, or how much he had experienced before the temple took him in.

Judging by Kanzaki Kumo's behavior, it must have been an extremely difficult time.

At that thought, Makomo's gaze held a little more sympathy as she looked at Kanzaki Kumo.

In a sense, Makomo was not wrong, except that those experiences of struggling alone had mostly come from Kanzaki Kumo's previous life.

In this life, Kanzaki Kumo had not wandered alone for very long after Kanzaki Keizan died. After all, he had not yet awakened his memories of his previous life then. If he really had wandered for a long time in this world where those at the bottom struggled to survive, he probably would have been reincarnated again long ago.

But Kanzaki Kumo was not going to explain that.

Just as silence briefly settled among the three of them, Giyu, who had been staring blankly at the sunset in the yard, suddenly stood up. After taking a deep breath, he turned and walked toward them.

"Mr. Kanzaki, senior brother Sabito, senior sister Makomo, thank you."

Although Giyu Tomioka's face was still mostly expressionless, with only the faintest curve at the corners of his mouth, his eyes had already changed considerably.

Those deep blue eyes that had once seemed frozen had now thawed. Though still calm, they no longer lacked so much life.

"There's no need to thank me. As long as you don't hold it against me for repeatedly bringing up your sister." Kanzaki Kumo waved a hand at Giyu's thanks.

"Thank you." After hearing Kanzaki Kumo's words, Giyu Tomioka froze for a moment, then thanked him again.

Giyu Tomioka: He refused my thanks → he thinks bringing up my sister would make me angry → he thinks I haven't forgiven him for that and thinks I'm petty → but I don't blame him → I must make him accept my gratitude → thank him again.

"Huh?" Giyu's behavior left Kanzaki Kumo bewildered. Sabito and Makomo beside him were equally baffled.

"Thank you."

Seeing that Kanzaki Kumo still had not given a clear response, Giyu Tomioka continued thanking him.

"All right, all right, I accept your thanks." Though he had no idea how many twists and turns Giyu's thoughts had taken, Kanzaki Kumo chose to go along with him first.

Sure enough, once Kanzaki Kumo said he accepted his gratitude, Giyu Tomioka stopped thanking him over and over.

Looking to either side, Kanzaki Kumo discovered that Makomo and Sabito were just as baffled as he was. Seeing that the prerequisites for "everyone ganging up on Giyu" seemed to be taking shape, Kanzaki Kumo thought for a moment and decided to offer a reminder.

"Giyu, now that you've emerged from the shadow of your past, besides practicing your Breathing Style, you should also learn how to speak properly and make friends."

Giyu Tomioka: Mr. Kanzaki wants me to learn how to talk and make friends. He thinks I can't express myself and that I'm withdrawn → perhaps I really do need to learn → I need to find someone to teach me → Mr. Kanzaki seems like a good choice → I need to ask for his consent.

After a brief daze, Giyu Tomioka spoke, his face still expressionless. "Mr. Kanzaki, do you think you're good at talking?"

Kanzaki Kumo: Slowly types a "?".

Makomo & Sabito: !!!

While the three of them were still stunned, Giyu immediately added, "Do you think you're good at making friends?"

Kanzaki Kumo: This guy is beyond saving.

"I'm terribly sorry! Giyu just doesn't know how to express himself. He absolutely didn't mean to offend you, Mr. Kanzaki..."

"Yes, yes, yes! Calm down, Kumo. We'll make sure to help Giyu practice expressing himself..."

Before Kanzaki Kumo could react, Sabito and Makomo had already grabbed one of his arms each and were showering him with apologies and soothing words.

Giyu stared blankly at the three of them, his mind racing to work out the situation.

Giyu: My senior brother and senior sister are apologizing for me → they think what I just said offended Mr. Kanzaki → Mr. Kanzaki doesn't want to teach me how to express myself and make friends.

After a bout of brainstorming, Giyu slowly said, "If you're not, then never mind. I was only asking."

All three of them, Kanzaki Kumo included, froze on the spot.

"Heh."

At that moment, Kanzaki Kumo experienced what it meant to say, "People really do laugh when they're speechless."

Even Sabito and Makomo tacitly let go of Kanzaki Kumo's arms. After all, if he truly lost his temper, the two of them could only get beaten up along with Giyu. Since they could no longer talk him down, naturally, they would let the culprit bear it all.

After thinking for a moment, Kanzaki Kumo slowly said, "Giyu, if you talk like that, watch out. People might dislike you."

Giyu looked at Makomo, then Sabito, then Sakonji Urokodaki, who had just come out of the kitchen, and finally Kanzaki Kumo before him, who had just helped him untangle the knot in his heart. At last, he said, "I am not disliked."

Hearing that supremely classic line, Kanzaki Kumo suddenly smiled, letting it go.

Kanzaki Kumo: What else can I say, then? That's Giyu, after all. Why bother taking issue with him?