Chapter 44: Timeskip & Training

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Ace yawned, lounging on a hanging net attached to a tree, taking in the scenery before him. The harsh sun bathed the people below in its warm glow as they dedicatedly trained.

Swords clashed in spars, and individuals ran around the field, partaking in diverse physical strength improvement workouts. The sounds of training harmonised with the natural surroundings, forming a serene atmosphere.

'This is quite good entertainment, watching people push themselves to the limit to fight until they collapse from exhaustion. No wonder the Romans loved the Colosseum so much,' Ace mused as he observed the intense bouts. The fights were far more elaborate and deadly than any of the fights in his previous world, given that these guys could slice through rocks like butter.

But still, these displays failed to impress him much, as he could effortlessly defeat all of them with his eyes closed, using only one hand.

Ace shifted his gaze to his far right, where a massive pit with a diameter of 200 metres and a depth of 10 metres caught his attention.

Sounds of clashes echoed from the pit, reaching him even though he was at least 50 metres away.

Inside, a two-versus-one battle was happening, featuring Gyomei facing both Sanemi and Giyu simultaneously.

Despite the odds, Gyomei demonstrated remarkable skill in keeping up with both opponents. His hulking figure and well-defined muscles allowed him to handle the heavy spiked ball and axe with apparent ease, as if they were made of paper.

'It is quite a handful to fight him if you haven't got any defencive moves, otherwise one hit from that spiked ball and you would be in your dream lands.' Ace thought.

It was currently one and a half months since the Mark training had started. With most of the demon slayers having been recalled back to base. Only leaving the scouts to relay any demon sightings they find.

Another interesting thing was, the number of demon attacks have gone to the minimum, with only a few of them still happening.

'Isn't this the infamous calm before the Storm. 'Ace mused.

"Aren't you going to train more? " Ace asked, looking sideways.

"Really! You're saying this after making me work like a bull all day and night. I need some rest," Yuki exclaimed, displaying an exhausted and somewhat irritated expression as she sprawled on the ground.

'I might have pushed her a bit too much,' Ace thought.

Nevertheless, the undeniable results spoke for themselves. Yuki had made substantial progress, evolving from struggling against a regular demon to strong enough that she can go toe-to-toe against a Lower Moon.

"But I wasn't training you at night, though," Ace smiled as he pointed out.

Yuki shot him a flat look before attempting to bite him.

"Hey!" Ace quickly intervened, preventing her from biting him.

"You really have the gall to say that after doing all those things to me. I'm still sore because of you," Yuki complained with an annoyed expression.

Ace smiled, picking her up, and settling her in his lap. "Why didn't you complain at that time? In fact, you seemed to be enjoying it. Now you're trying to put the blame on me."

"Hmph!" Yuki pouted.

"Let's go! The fighting is reaching its climax, and it's getting quite intense," Ace declared as he stood up, lifting Yuki onto his shoulders, and walked toward the pit.

"Hey! Let me down first," Yuki shouted as she struggled in Ace's arms.

"Quiet down, girl," Ace retorted, giving her a playful but hard spank on her bottom.

"You!!!" Yuki exclaimed with an embarrassed face. "We're outside; everybody will see us."

Ace glanced at the people who were looking at them with envious expressions, but they quickly averted their gaze upon noticing him.

"See, problem solved," Ace said, smiling.

Yuki sighed at his stubbornness and let him carry her.

They quickly reached the pit where the fight was happening, and Ace gently placed her on the ground as they approached the scene.

The fight was at its climax as they observed it.

Gyomei was wreaking havoc, destroying the whole arena with each swing of his spiked flail and axe. Sanemi and Giyu had to give their all, even when they outnumbered him.

Gyomei launched an attack, bringing both his spiked flail down on Sanemi and swinging his axe at Giyu simultaneously, displaying incredible speed.

[Adv. Stone Breathing: First Form: Serpentinite Bipolar]

Both the flail and axe reached their target, rotating causing the axe and flail to rotate in order to drill and grind right through his target.

Both Sanemi and Giyu took their stance to defend against the attack.

Sweeping his sword in circular movements, Sanemi swung his sword with the spiked flail to redirect it.

[Adv. Wind Breathing: Third Form: Clear Storm Wind Tree]

While Giyu executed multiple consecutive slashes, twisting his body in a flowing fashion akin to a harsh tide, utilizing the maximum potential of his body.

[Adv. Water Breathing: Fourth Form - Striking Tide]

All of them employed the Advanced forms of breathing, he improved after the Hashira Meeting. It enhanced their speed, precision, and power, basically turning them into deadlier versions of their original counterparts.

Giyu and Sanemi successfully blocked the attack, but the expressions on their faces and the tension in their muscles revealed the considerable pressure they were under.

Utilizing the spiked ball deflected on the ground from his sword slash as a platform, Sanemi ran along the chains, charging into close quarters with Gyomei.

While Giyu also charged at Gyomei at the same time, twisting his body and mimicking the form of waves, attacking him with consecutive slashes.

[Adv. Water Breathing: Third Style: Dance of the Rapid Current]

Gyomei, having the Transparent World, quickly saw through their attack. He twisted the chain on his left hand, on which Sanemi was running along, causing it to tangle around Sanemi's leg and making him trip mid-air.

Seizing this opportunity, Gyomei pulled the chain, causing the spiked ball on the ground to be launched straight at Sanemi's back.

"You!!"

Unable to dodge with both legs bound by the chain, Sanemi could only put his sword on his back and brace for the impact.

As Gyomei dealt with Sanemi, Giyu moved in, ready to strike. However, before his sword could reach its target, something grabbed it.

A big, chained-up hand.

Gyomei had rolled his chains around his hands as protection, directly grabbing the blade barehanded and stopping it completely.

Before Giyu could retract his sword, a massive iron fist came straight at his face.

BOOM.

The arena echoed with a loud sound as both Sanemi and Giyu were knocked to the ground, barely retaining consciousness.

Sanemi had taken a spiked ball to his back, while Giyu had faced a chained fist directly to his face. Both attacks were powerful enough to easily demolish a large boulder.

"Oof, that was brutal!" Ace commented.

Yuki shivered just witnessing the destruction around the arena. "I don't want to ever fight him," she said.

"Don't worry; he's on our team, and he's basically a gentle giant stereotype," Ace assured her.

"What is a stereotype?" Yuki asked.

"A mistaken idea about something that is not true," Ace gave a textbook answer instinctively.

"So... is he not a gentle giant?"

"Uhh… sometimes stereotypes are true," Ace said with difficulty. It seems stereotypes are there for a reason.

As soon as the fight was finished, two workers quickly ran to Sanemi and Giyu to treat any injuries they had.

"Tch, I don't need them," Sanemi slapped away the hand as the boy tried to examine his injuries.

While Giyu calmly sat down on the ground as a girl treated his face by applying a cream on it.

"Flamboyance indeed, Gyomei-san," Tengen praised.

"You are truly the strongest," Rengoku said.

'Gyomei-san is so strong!' Mitsuri thought internally.

"Your Mark is showing signs of awakening!" Shinobu suddenly exclaimed while everyone was praising Gyomei.

Quickly, everyone focused on Gyomei after hearing Shinobu's words and immediately noticed the signs of crack-like marks on his hand.

"Ohh!! So these are the mysterious Marks," Tengen exclaimed.

"Indeed, even though they look different from mine," Rengoku said.

"But they seem faint; it seems the conditions were not fully fulfilled," Obanai remarked.

"Of course, a body temperature higher than 39°C and 200 heartbeats per second are not that easy to achieve," Ace added.

Everyone nodded after hearing his explanation, but the moment of someone showing signs of achieving the mark was a cause for celebration.

While everyone was talking, Ace observed the marks carefully; they were slightly different from the original ones. The design of the cracks was more symmetrical, and they didn't fade away but remained on his hands like a tattoo.

This was even more surprising since Gyomei was already beyond 25, so this was supposed to be a one-time power-up for him.

In the original, all the marks faded after the fights had ended. The only exceptions to this rule were Yoriichi, Kokushibo, and Tanjiro.

It seems improving their breathing styles up to Sun Breathing level was a good idea. Most likely, it was also the reason Tanjiro and Yoriichi were able to live beyond 25 years of age.

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