On the mountain road.
Sato looked at his friend who was hiking with him and asked:
" Sawada, thank goodness you stopped me just now, otherwise I would have rushed up and gotten beaten up too."
I never expected... Lord Kato be so strong?
Did you already know before you grabbed me?
Sawada nodded. "Ah, if I remember correctly, he was the Wind Hashira several years ago!"
" The Wind Hashira?" Sato was somewhat surprised. "Isn't the Wind Hashira Lord Shinazugawa?"
Sawada shook his head.
"I don't know the specifics, but a few years ago when I was still a member of the Mizunoto Rank, I heard that the Wind Hashira's name was Kato Teiichi."
Later, for some reason, they were informed that the Wind Hashira had become Sanemi Shinazugawa.
I initially thought the original Wind Hashira had died in battle, but I never expected...
"Then you tell me..."
A rustling sound came from a large tree not far behind us.
The two quickly turned around and looked towards the tree from which the sound had come.
However, nothing was seen except for the trees that were still swaying slightly.
After waiting for a while, there was no movement from the tree.
The two carefully approached the tree and examined it closely.
They confirmed there was nothing on the tree.
Sato said somewhat fearfully:
"Hey, Sawada, is there a ghost on this mountain?"
Snap!
Sawada gave Sato a tap on the back of the head.
"What are you doing?!" Sato looked at Sawada with displeasure.
Sawada retorted, "Don't you even listen to what you're saying? We're demon slayers!"
Sato grumbled, dissatisfied, "I know that, I wasn't talking about those man-eating demons, I was talking about those unseen demons!"
"What are you afraid of if you can't even see it..."
They ignored the two team members who had just passed by.
Teiichi sped up the mountain.
With the help of the Wind Field, Teiichi can easily leap more than ten meters each time he jumps, far exceeding the range that ordinary people can achieve.
They completely ignored the normal uphill route and the various obstacles they might encounter along the way.
Instead, they chose the most direct straight road and sped up the mountain along it.
Occasionally, when passing by the roadside, Teiichi would move towards the side of the road.
Let's see if we can spot any of the team members.
If I see it, I'll take a second look.
But it was just a fleeting glance.
After reading it, he leaped up and continued his ascent up the mountain.
Bang!
Teiichi landed on a thick tree.
He paused briefly, glancing at the three-person team not far below.
Then, he pushed off with his feet, using the rebound force of the tree trunk to leap forward again.
Upon hearing the sound, Tanjiro and the others quickly turned around to investigate its source.
They were better than the two people Teiichi encountered before.
They didn't see Teiichi's specific figure either.
At least we saw a figure leap out of that tree.
Their gazes followed the figure intently.
"That is..."
Tanjiro was interrupted by Zenitsu before he could finish speaking.
"Why is that guy climbing the mountain like that?!"
Zenitsu stared wide-eyed at the direction Dingyi Teiichi just disappeared, pointing with one finger and saying in disbelief.
Tanjiro corrected him, " Zenitsu, you should call him Mr. Kato! It's basic manners."
Zenitsu exclaimed, "I know! I usually yell too, but... but... that guy's cheating! We're here obediently climbing the mountain, but he's just jumping all the way up!"
Inosuke pushed Zenitsu away from behind.
His years of experience surviving in the mountains told him...
The roads built by humans are not necessarily the fastest, but they are certainly much easier to travel on.
On a mountain, when the terrain ahead is unknown, following the existing path is always the safest approach.
"Don't block my way. If you want to jump, go ahead and jump yourself. I'm going to be second!" Inosuke said.
Having said that, he began climbing upwards once more.
Seeing this, Tanjiro quickly turned to Zenitsu and said something.
" Zenitsu, let's hurry up! At the pace Mr. Kato was going, we'll reach the summit in no time. Let's not keep Mr. Kato waiting too long at the top!"
Having said that, he turned and started running uphill.
"Huh? Hey!!"
Zenitsu called out twice, but seeing the two running forward without turning their heads, he sighed helplessly.
They could only quickly adjust their mindset and follow closely behind.
After dozens of jumps, Teiichi successfully reached the summit.
I estimated the time.
"A little over four minutes... not bad, a bit faster than expected."
I didn't see any sign of Kanon or Kanao along the way.
I suppose I missed it somewhere.
However, Teiichi didn't pay any attention to it.
Standing atop the mountain, Teiichi deep breath, closed his eyes, and felt the mountain air.
He then slowly opened his eyes and determined his direction.
Looking towards the Butterfly Mansion.
In the vast wilderness, Teiichi quickly found the house that was sitting alone in the forest.
After enjoying the view from the mountaintop for a while, Teiichi turned his gaze back to the mountain.
With a slight twitch of its nostrils, a gentle breeze blew down the Yamashita.
Not long after.
The situation in the mountains quickly came to Teiichi's mind.
emmmm...
Kanon led the way, and they reached the halfway point up the mountain...
Next was Kanao, and we had walked about a third of the way...
Further back, in the distance, are Inosuke, Tanjiro Zenitsu...
Kanao had actually trained at the Butterfly Mansion for several more years.
She can't catch up with Kanon, but her current physical abilities are better than Tanjiro's and the others.
Tanjiro and his group were followed closely by the other team members.
They haven't yet experienced much combat or training.
Although their skills have improved rapidly.
But it hasn't reached the Hashira Rank yet.
However, he's still much better than the other team members.
Even the worst of the other team members are from the Kinoto, and many are much older than them.
The last team member also climbed about two hundred meters.
Having roughly grasped the team members' climbing progress, Teiichi gently placed his hand on the wooden sword behind him.
"The real climb is just beginning!"
On the mountain path.
Kanon's figure was light and graceful, like a nimble mountain deer, as she ran quickly along the rugged mountain path towards the summit.
Every now and then, she would use the terrain to leap into the air, her body drawing a graceful arc in the air, shortening the distance she had to climb.
The wind whistled past my ears.
Her purple hair, tied in a ponytail, swayed wildly behind her in the strong wind, like a purple tassel.
Kanon kept running while slightly raising her head.
I assessed the distance between our current location and the mountaintop.
"It should be about seven or eight minutes to reach the summit..."
A sudden gust of wind blew in.
The invisible, unexpected attack caused Kanon's body to be blown backward for a moment.
However, she quickly realized what was happening.
His feet dipped, he turned and regained his footing on the ground.
Feeling the strong wind blowing in her face, Kanon's lips curled up slightly, revealing a faint smile.
"I knew it couldn't be that simple!"