37. Breath Style Vs Hamon
At Kotaro's words, Mitsuri looked at the others observing her after the revelation of her abnormal strength. Their eyes weren't filled with the judgement she was used to—the ones that saw her as a freak, a monster.
These eyes were filled with curiosity, appreciation, and surprise. And then Mitsuri understood what kind of people these were.
They were Demon Slayers, the ones who fight against demons. And to slay demons, you need strength. Her strength wasn't a curse; it was a boon, a gift recognized by these people.
An unfamiliar feeling surged within her. She felt a call, as if something was drawing her toward this place. What is this?
Her heart pounded fast, making her flushed. The Demon Slayer Corps... Mitsuri felt as if this was probably the place she had been searching for.
…
"Mitsuri?"
Kotaro looked at Mitsuri to find her dazed. Is she alright?
"Y-Yes. Sorry, Kotaro-sama. I was a bit distracted. These people… They are a bit weird, but I don't think they are bad."
"Yes. You're right."
Kotaro knew these people very well. All of them had their own stories and their own experiences behind them making them weird but ultimately they weren't bad people, except for Sanemi Shinazugawa and Tengen Uzui!
Especially that damn Sound Hashira, how dare he comment on his wife?! He won't spare him!
"Now do you understand the difference in our strength, Wind—no, Loser Hashira?"
"You...!"
"Sanemi."
"Yes, Oyakata-sama!"
Once again, Kagaya stopped him with just a word, though the aggravation was clear on Sanemi's face. After all, how could he accept that he lost to a normal human?
"Sanemi, I believe in your strength. After all, you're my Hashira."
"Yes."
With just a few words, Kagaya dispelled all of Sanemi's self-doubts, effectively closing the matter. Though Kotaro found the way Kagaya phrased it a bit strange, he knew Kagaya referred to them as his Demon Slayers, so he didn't think too much about it.
"Kotaro-kun, can we proceed with the meeting?"
"Y-Yes."
Kotaro thought that Kagaya might carry at least a hint of anger, but it seemed Kagaya's ability to regulate his emotions had reached its peak. Sasuga, Oyakata-sama!
"But before that..."
To everyone's surprise, Kotaro bowed deeply. The man who had been acting so arrogantly just a moment ago was now bowing to all of them.
"I am sorry."
His words left the others even more surprised. What was this? They all began to wonder as Kotaro stood up and began to explain.
"I apologize for causing all of this. I never intended to belittle any of you. I just didn't like your attitude, that's all."
Then he turned to Kagaya, the supreme leader, and offered another apology.
"I'm sorry if all this caused any inconvenience, Kagaya-san."
"No, it's alright. Right, everyone?"
"Namu Amida Butsu. Oyakata-sama is right. If we made Kotaro-san uncomfortable, I hope you will forgive us."
"You don't look it, but you sure are flamboyant."
"It seems Kotaro-san isn't a bad person after all."
"Tsk!"
"…"
All five of them—from Stone to Water—showed their agreement with Oyakata-sama. Kotaro smiled at them, then began to explain his "Hamon" to everyone.
"So, let me show you my Hamon."
To demonstrate Hamon, what could be better than the traditional Phantom Blood style? Kotaro walked to the nearby pond in the garden and found a frog sitting on a rock. He stepped into the pond and raised his hand.
"HAAAH!"
As he inhaled deeply, electric-like sparks suddenly began to form around him. Ripples spread across the water, with Kotaro at the center.
Then Kotaro brought his fist down straight at the frog, which was happily croaking on its rock.
"Wait!"
"No!"
They all shouted for him to stop, but Kotaro ignored their cries and punched straight at the frog. The frog, sitting on the rock, seemed destined to be squashed under the punch full of Hamon energy. But to everyone's surprise...
Boom!
"Croak!"
The frog leaped away, unharmed, while the rock beneath it split in half. Everyone was shocked.
"This... How?"
Kotaro then explained to them what the energy in his fist was.
"Hamon is a way to generate energy identical to sun's energy within the body through controlled breathing. Since the energy is made of sunlight, it doesn't harm beings unaffected by sunlight—living things. Do you understand what this means?"
"You mean..."
"That's right. Unlike your tools, which are infused with the sun's energy and require striking a demon's weak point – the neck, Hamon is the energy itself. All you need is to make contact with the demon and then pour Hamon into it, turning the demon into fleeting ashes. And Hamon can also..."
Kotaro used his strength to break the plaster on his injured hand, revealing his healed arm to everyone.
"Hamon can also be used for healing."
"His arm... it's healed?"
Shinobu, who had tended to him after Kyojuro brought him under Oyakata-sama's orders, was astonished. She knew how severe the injuries to his hand were, yet they were completely healed in less than a day. She could already see the potential of this Hamon.
But the others... they weren't as enthusiastic about Hamon. Sure, it could kill a demon without tools, but why should they adopt it when they could already kill demons using their traditional methods?
The Hashiras were not ordinary swordsmen; they were geniuses and experienced fighters. They quickly identified a flaw in Hamon compared to their traditional Breath Styles. Using Nichirin blades, they could kill demons by slicing off their heads in less than a second. But Hamon required time to infuse enough energy to kill, making it slower in comparison.
To them, the 'Breath Style' was far superior to Hamon. However, there was one person who recognized the true value of this technique.
"Kotaro-kun, I hope you can teach us this Hamon technique."
"Oyakata-sama!"
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A/N:
How is the chapter?
I was researching the differences between Hamon and Breath Style and found that time is a major flaw. In Hamon, users must pour a sufficient amount of Hamon into the undead to kill them, especially high-tier undead like DIO and the Pillar Men. Additionally, if they use a weapon infused with Hamon, they can halt the undead's regeneration, though the undead won't remain dead and can heal after a certain period of time.
In Breath Style, the technique revolves around Nichirin tools, so a swipe of the blade can kill a demon.
Wait! Now that I think about it, if a demon can be killed with just a swipe to the neck using a Nichirin blade, wouldn't it have the same effect if the neck were struck with a chain infused with Hamon instead?
After all, both methods are similar, aren't they? Demons have a specific weakness—the neck—but Vampires and Pillar Men don't share this vulnerability. Was I getting confused because of this?