Chapter 21 Sparring

In the pitch-black forest, Aomori and Tomioka Giyu stood on opposite sides.

As demons typically appeared at night, this environment was more conducive to training for the Demon Slayer Corps swordsmen.

Aomori possessed heightened spiritual awareness, allowing him to easily track his opponent's movements.

Tomioka Giyu drew the sword from his waist. The blade was azure blue, with the words "Demon Slayer" engraved on it.

This was the most critical equipment for the Demon Slayer Corps - the Nichirin Sword, imbued with the properties of sunlight. Decapitating demons with these swords was the primary method for killing demons at night.

Tomioka, seeing Aomori empty-handed, asked in surprise, "Senior Aomori, where is your Nichirin Sword?"

"My sword broke last night."

"Last night?" Tomioka Giyu recalled the battle from the previous night and suddenly realized how formidable Muzan Kibutsuji truly was.

"In that case..."

Without a sword, how could they spar?

Aomori casually picked up a medium-sized dried branch from the ground and said, "I can use this."

A perplexed expression flashed across Tomioka Giyu's face as he contemplated drawing his sword and finding a suitable branch like Aomori. After all, this was just a sparring match, and using a real sword wasn't necessary.

However, the dried branch was fragile, and many sword techniques couldn't be executed with it.

Aomori shook his head, unwilling to waste time explaining. He took a step forward, approaching Tomioka Giyu, and with a swift motion of his right hand, he brought the dried branch down.

"So fast!" Tomioka Giyu's heart tightened as he instinctively raised his yet-unsheathed Nichirin Sword to block the attack.

Clang! The dried branch collided with the Nichirin Sword, producing a metallic clashing sound.

"What's this?" Tomioka Giyu examined the dried branch and, in the pitch-black environment, noticed a faint, elusive glow on its surface.

"This is my ability." Aomori shook the dried branch in his hand and said, "Don't worry about it breaking. Come at me with all you've got."

"Ability? Is Senior Aomori a rare blood?" As a Water Hashira, Tomioka Giyu had encountered many people with strange abilities and didn't find it hard to accept. He nodded and said, "Alright."

Tomioka Giyu pointed his Nichirin Sword behind him, immediately entering a combat stance. In his eyes, Aomori transformed into a demon to be hunted.

He would go all out to see the difference between himself and Muzan.

Water Breathing, Third Form: Flowing Dance!

Tomioka Giyu, as a Water Hashira, employed Water Breathing. He charged at Aomori like flowing water, and his spinning Nichirin Sword mercilessly sliced toward Aomori's neck.

Strike after strike aimed at the neck—a veteran demon slayer!

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

The dried branch easily blocked him each time. Tomioka Giyu, far from feeling disheartened, had been psychologically prepared for this. He took a deep breath and unleashed the full power of Water Breathing.

Water Breathing, Fourth Form: Tide Strike! Water Breathing, First Form: Surface Slash! Water Breathing, Tenth Form: Flowing Current!

Tomioka Giyu was proficient in all ten forms of Water Breathing. He seamlessly executed his swordsmanship, and with each attack, he felt stronger, as if he could finally cut down Muzan Kibutsuji.

But in reality, he couldn't harm Aomori in the slightest. Aomori held only a dried branch, yet he defended himself as though he were an unmovable mountain. Tomioka's techniques, like a tiny stream, flowed past without causing a scratch.

Tomioka Giyu gritted his teeth and, once again, swung his sword toward Aomori's neck. However, just before the strike landed, he abruptly changed the sword's trajectory, making the blade rotate and slash toward Aomori's arm.

Sometimes, it was easier to kill a demon by severing its limbs first. Tomioka Giyu had set a trap by intentionally developing a habit of aiming for the neck!

Was he about to succeed?

Tomioka Giyu was about to stop, thinking he'd finally achieved a breakthrough, but he saw the fluorescent dried branch blocking his Nichirin Sword once again.

It still wasn't enough.

Despite his best efforts, Tomioka Giyu couldn't put Aomori in a difficult position, let alone defeat Muzan Kibutsuji.

The stark contrast between reality and his expectations shattered his self-confidence. He felt like a useless person who survived thanks to others. If it were Shinobu and Kanao, they would surely be stronger than him.

"Why am I the useless one who survived? I wish it were my sister and Kanae instead."

With a wavering heart, he made a mistake in his movements. Aomori sensed it immediately, raised an eyebrow, and deflected the Nichirin Sword with ease. Then, he took a step back, creating distance between them.

"Are you out of energy? It's my turn now."

Tomioka Giyu sighed quietly, his expression even darker than before.

Although Aomori had been able to block Tomioka Giyu's techniques with his extraordinary dynamic vision and physical abilities, he was still unfamiliar with swordsmanship.

After carefully observing Tomioka Giyu's swordsmanship, he gained some insights.

He eliminated flashy effects and realized that Tomioka Giyu's Water Breathing forms primarily mimicked water's characteristics, such as cutting, spinning, and flowing.

In contrast, Thunder Breathing had six forms characterized by rapid, forceful strikes.

Good swordsmanship needed to master certain characteristics proficiently. For example, in the world of One Punch Man, Atomic Samurai excelled in his swordsmanship by emphasizing speed, accuracy, and ferocity. It was simple and effective.

Recognizing these key points, Aomori struggled to replicate them easily. Swordsmanship involved the application of force in the fingers, wrists, arms, legs, and even the whole body. 

After generations of effort, Water Breathing had evolved into ten distinct forms. Currently, Aomori was focusing on the aspect of speed, which was essential.

To achieve this, Aomori intentionally concentrated energy in his hands and feet to enhance his mobility and sword drawing speed.

When he practiced, Tomioka Giyu couldn't land a single blow. Aomori's strikes were so fast that Tomioka Giyu only saw a flash before the tip of the dried branch was at his neck.

"I give up," Tomioka Giyu sighed softly, his expression even gloomier.

"You did well," Aomori sincerely praised him. In the original story, Tomioka Giyu's strength was solidly in the middle ranks among the Hashira.

"Yeah," Tomioka Giyu believed Aomori was just trying to console him, but the weight on his heart didn't lessen.

"You can head back now. I'll continue practicing here." Aomori knew this fellow had a lot of traumas, but he was not interested in playing the role of a psychologist. Besides, Tanjiro, the warm-hearted protagonist, was there to comfort him.

Aomori now focused on mastering swordsmanship.

Although he couldn't easily replicate Tomioka Giyu's abilities, Aomori had realized the importance of mastering certain characteristics for good swordsmanship. He continued to train and work on honing his skills.

At the end, Tomioka Giyu looked back at Aomori's indistinct figure in the distance, diligently practicing with the dried branch in his hand. He gripped the hilt of his sword tighter, sighed, and resumed his journey.

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