Demon Slayer Corps Headquarters.
It was a complex hidden deep within a sprawling mountain range, with numerous towers and houses scattered throughout. Now and then, Kasugai Crows rose into the air and soared across the sky.
"Did you hear? Apparently, this Hashira Meeting is being held because that gentleman wants to change the Corps' examination system."
"I heard that too. People have brought it up before, but nothing ever came of it. Still, if it's him, surely he can make it happen."
"Yes. After all, he even killed an Upper Rank demon. He really is incredibly powerful."
Hearing the passing Kakushi talking quietly, Shinobu Kocho smiled faintly, her footsteps almost soundless.
Beside her was Aoi Kanzaki, holding clothes she was about to hang out to dry. The girl looked somewhat distracted, her thoughts tangled.
"Aoi, this is a good thing, isn't it?"
"Huh? Y-yes!"
Aoi Kanzaki was a nurse at the Butterfly Mansion, the headquarters' medical department, but besides that, she had another important identity...
She was an official swordswoman who used Water Breathing.
Moreover, she was a Demon Slayer who had passed the final examination, survived seven days on Mount Fujikasane, and bore the duty of killing demons.
So in the original story, it was perfectly normal for the Sound Hashira to want to take her to the Entertainment District. After all, every official member of the Demon Slayer Corps had a duty to answer missions and kill demons.
However, she was very timid.
She did not dare face demons directly. Even on Mount Fujikasane, she had not passed through her own strength.
Instead, she had relied on help from her companions.
She had taken the same examination as the Mist Hashira, Muichiro Tokito.
Muichiro had virtually cleared the entire route to the final destination. Simply by following behind him, many people could pass the examination, shameful though it was to admit.
If I could, I would rather not have this identity at all. But failing the examination meant death...
She often thought this to herself.
Shinobu Kocho could see what was troubling her. She smiled gently, and the two returned to the Butterfly Mansion.
There were many others like Aoi Kanzaki.
Even the current Water Hashira, Giyu Tomioka, had been left with an irreparable emotional scar because of that examination.
They had only passed with Sabito's help, yet Sabito had remained there forever...
He often thought that he should have been the one to die there. Someone like him did not deserve to be the Water Hashira at all.
"What comes surging toward us is everyone's determination to change. Times are changing, and we, too, should learn to change."
Kagaya Ubuyashiki sat cross-legged on the main residence's outer veranda, sunlight spilling down before him as he quietly awaited the Hashira, although he had announced that the meeting would begin in half an hour.
As for why he had come early, perhaps he wanted to bask in the sun.
"Lord Kagaya, have you made up your mind?"
Amane looked gently at her husband.
"I'm looking forward to meeting him for the first time."
"I'm sure he won't disappoint you."
The first to arrive was the Stone Hashira. Tall and imposing, he stood like a sturdy rampart. Seeing that Ubuyashiki was already there, he immediately knelt on one knee in greeting.
"I wish you good health, Oyakata-sama!"
"Gyomei, there's no need for formalities. I'd like this meeting to be more relaxed. It's also a rare chance to gather everyone together. Thank you for all your hard work lately."
The second to arrive was Shinobu Kocho. Her small, slender frame looked especially cute beside the Stone Hashira, and a gentle smile graced her delicate, fair face.
Her violet eyes were clear and lustrous, like agate gemstones. Her glossy black hair was pinned up, its pale purple tips adding to her charm.
She wore a butterfly-patterned haori over a modest black Demon Slayer Corps uniform.
"I wish you good health, Master."
"Shinobu, I heard You brought you some Upper Rank blood. I imagine it will help your research."
"Yes, Master. It's been very helpful."
The third to arrive was the Wind Hashira, Sanemi Shinazugawa. He looked extremely fierce, his white hair sticking up wildly like a hedgehog's spines and his eyes filled with bloodshot veins.
He was tall, powerfully built, and muscular, with prominent scars on his face, and he seemed perpetually brimming with killing intent.
"Master!"
He knelt on one knee in greeting, his expression respectful. Toward the Master, Sanemi Shinazugawa was quite polite.
"Thank you for your hard work on your recent missions."
"It's my duty. Unfortunately, I still haven't found an Upper Rank demon."
"The Twelve Kizuki all hide in the shadows. If you do encounter one, you must be extremely careful."
"Understood!"
The fourth to arrive was the Mist Hashira, Muichiro Tokito. An impassive boy with distinctive blue-green hair and a vacant expression, he offered his greetings, then stood to one side, his mind wandering far away.
Within the Demon Slayer Corps, Muichiro could be called a genius among geniuses. He had become a Hashira-level swordsman after only two months of wielding a sword.
Considering the time involved, Muichiro could not possibly have killed fifty demons in two months. In other words, he had become a Hashira by killing a Lower Rank.
In that sense, Muichiro was even more extraordinary than Lu You.
Even Lu You had needed a full six months of training before he could defeat a demon at the level of a Lower Rank.
Of course, considering that Muichiro was one of this world's greatest native geniuses and possessed Yoriichi Tsugikuni's bloodline, that was perfectly normal.
After all, Lu You's true strength was certainly not the speed of his improvement, but his complete lack of bottlenecks.
After six months of growth, Lu You could kill an Upper Rank alone. Yet Muichiro, who had become a Hashira two years ago, still had not reached that level of strength.
He still needed a Demon Slayer Mark.
Put simply, the further he progressed, the harder it became to improve.
For Lu You, the further he progressed, the easier improvement became, until he reached the world's limit.
The fifth to arrive was the Sound Hashira, Tengen Uzui. Another familiar face, he wore a confident, flamboyant smile, his crimson irises showing all his dashing charm.
"You did very well, Tengen."
"The credit mainly belongs to Jigoro Kuwajima. He's a trainer with a strong sense of responsibility. Not only did he soothe You's misgivings, he also restored his favorable impression of the Demon Slayer Corps."
"Yes, you're right, Tengen. Over the past thousand years, the Demon Slayer Corps has only made it this far thanks to these upright, kindhearted people.
"They have no fear of sacrifice, and their magnetic charisma has drawn countless people of noble ideals."
Kagaya Ubuyashiki spoke with feeling.
Looking at it now, if Kaigaku's case had been mishandled, he hardly dared imagine whether Lu You would still have stood with the Demon Slayer Corps afterward.
Fortunately, Jigoro Kuwajima had been there.
The old man was decisive and principled.
The sixth and seventh to arrive were the Love Hashira, Mitsuri Kanroji, and the Serpent Hashira, Obanai Iguro.
Mitsuri Kanroji was a sweet, adorable girl with a curvaceous figure. Her long pink-and-green hair was woven into three braids, and her pale green eyes were dewy.
She wore a white haori over her open-chested uniform, and her cheeks were flushed.
Ah! The Master is as gentle as ever!
The Serpent Hashira was a boy with bandages wrapped around his face and mismatched eyes, the left gold and the right green. A white snake coiled around his neck as he stood beside Mitsuri.
After offering their greetings, the two also took their places nearby.
The eighth was the Flame Hashira, Kyojuro Rengoku. Tall and well-built, he wore a flame-patterned haori, a radiant smile always on his lips.
His yellow-and-red hair jutted out on both sides, making him look like an owl from the front.
His whole being exuded an upright, sunny, openhearted boldness.
"Master!"
"Kyojuro, welcome back."
As the best-liked and most popular of the Hashira, Kyojuro Rengoku brought a slight change to the atmosphere with his arrival, making it much livelier.
Last came the endearingly vacant Water Hashira, Giyu Tomioka, his beady eyes wide and his face utterly expressionless, as though paralyzed.
Who am I? Where am I? Why did I come? I'm not the real Water Hashira...
Oh, Oyakata-sama told me to come.
But do I really have to be here?
Yes, yes. No, no. Yes. No?
"Tomioka, I heard you're close to that newcomer who killed an Upper Rank. Just how powerful are Upper Rank demons? Come on, tell us!
"How strong do you have to be to kill one?
"If an Upper Rank was killed so easily now, does that mean they aren't nearly as strong as we imagined?!"
The Wind Hashira questioned Giyu with some impatience.
Giyu Tomioka paused in a slight daze, then looked at Shinazugawa and said earnestly, "I really envy that mind of yours, which still hasn't grasped how strong the Upper Ranks are."
A vein suddenly bulged on Sanemi Shinazugawa's forehead.
"Huh? So you know, then!"
Looking at the angry Sanemi Shinazugawa, Giyu Tomioka remembered what Lu You had said when they met before: that they could sense each other's feelings through their swordsmanship.
"If you want to know, come try me."
Silence instantly fell over everyone.
"You bastard!!! Are you provoking me?"
Veins bulged all over Sanemi Shinazugawa's forehead.
"Quiet. You is coming."
Kagaya Ubuyashiki suddenly spoke, and the two arguing men, along with the other Hashira, immediately fell silent.
They looked into the distance beyond the gate, where a figure was already walking slowly toward them.
An invisible presence seemed to soar beyond the clouds into the highest heavens!
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