Anime/Manga: Bankai Starting with Demon Slayer

"...You too, Mr. Asuka, remember to drink some calming soup before bed, it can alleviate your nightmares."

Although she sensed that Asuka had left something unsaid, Shinobu Kocho didn't press the matter.

She maintained her gentle smile, slowly closed the door to the Japanese-style room, and silently wondered to herself.

The Butterfly Mansion was bustling with activity early the next morning.

Today is Asuka's day off, and she usually stays at the Butterfly Mansion to help Shinobu Kocho.

He leaned back on the veranda, closing his eyes to enjoy the mountain breeze, pondering Muichiro's words: finding one's own breath...

"Good morning, Mr. Asuka!" Tanjiro's energetic voice broke the tranquility of the courtyard.

He arrived at the courtyard with Zenitsu Agatsuma, a blond-haired user of Thunder Breathing, and Inosuke Hashibira, a user of Beast Breathing who always wears a boar headgear.

They were wearing the same rehabilitation training uniforms provided by Butterfly House, and their spirits were much better than when they first arrived.

Zenitsu still had dark circles under his eyes and was yawning incessantly, while Inosuke was swinging his arms boisterously, his gaze under the pig's head mask frequently sweeping towards Asuka, and white breath representing burning fighting spirit escaping from his nostrils.

The bird opened its eyes and nodded slightly in response.

"Are we practicing blowing the gourd again today? Or...?"

"Hey! You wind-wielding guy!" Inosuke finally couldn't hold back any longer, pointing at Asuka and interrupting him: "Come on! Fight me too! I'm going to start my special training too!"

"Don't yell like that, you idiot!!" Zenitsu was terrified and immediately pounced on him, hugging his waist. "Do you want us to get scolded to death by Shinobu-neechan?! And Asuka-san is a Jun-Hamachi!! She'll break your newly healed bones!!"

"Stop nagging! Wenyi! I'm completely better now!"

"Who is Wen Yi?!"

Seeing the two arguing fiercely, Tanjiro quickly stepped forward, standing between Inosuke and Asuka:

"Calm down, Inosuke! It's good that you want to train and get stronger, but you need to show some respect to Asuka-san!"

"Huh?! You'd better fight me first!!"

Asuka was already used to the familiar chaotic scene before her.

Ignoring Inosuke's daily provocations, he calmly focused his gaze on Tanjiro and said, "Tanjiro, maintain your full range of attack and keep it up for me."

Tanjiro immediately stood up straight, his expression becoming extremely focused:

"Yes!"

He expanded his chest, took a deep breath, and then slowly exhaled, trying to regulate the rhythm of his breathing.

Visibly, the muscles in his body seemed to have tightened up, and his overall energy and spirit instantly increased, exuding a sense of power.

After this period of training, all three of them have basically mastered this ability, which is the foundation they must build to become stronger swordsmen.

They didn't slack off, whether it was day or night, which is good.

"Good, you're improving quickly. As long as you keep this breathing as natural as your heartbeat and never stop, your strength will improve even further."

He couldn't teach Tanjiro and the others anything else, so he could only start with the basic skills he was familiar with and help Shinobu Kocho do rehabilitation training for them.

"Yes!" Tanjiro replied happily, feeling that his efforts had finally paid off.

However, Inosuke had other ideas. He finally shook off Zenitsu and shouted angrily:

"Hmph! Let's see what I'm capable of! Unleashed a furious charge!!"

He roared impatiently, and the ferocious aura of the Beast Breath instantly erupted!

With a powerful push off the ground, Inosuke shot forward like a cannonball towards a sturdy training post in the center of the courtyard, crashing headfirst into it!

Boom!

The wooden stake was smashed open by the violent force, leaving a deep crack and splinters flying everywhere.

"Inosuke! Those are training equipment!" Zenitsu screamed again, looking at the damaged wooden stake with heartache.

"Haha! How about that! Now even Forehead Taro can't beat me!"

Inosuke awkwardly got up, rubbing his boar headgear, and shouted excitedly.

"...Your strength is alright, but your weaknesses are too great." Asuka pointed at Inosuke's body: "If you charge too hard, you won't be able to turn around. If you encounter an enemy who can dodge nimbly or has a second or third attack, you'll be the one who dies."

As Asuka spoke, she mimicked Tokito Muichiro's movements, making a swift and concealed sideways movement, instantly adjusting her center of gravity to maintain balance, while her right hand was loosely gripped near the hilt of her sword, ready to block or counterattack at any moment.

He was demonstrating to Inosuke that he could easily dodge Inosuke's attacks and immediately retaliate if he wanted to.

Inosuke stood frozen in place, his eyes, hidden behind the pig's head mask, seemed to gleam.

Although he still scoffed and said "tsk" indignantly, his eyes unconsciously glanced at the deep hole he had just stepped into, and then tried to imitate the bird's slight adjustment, appearing clumsy but thoughtful.

"You're up really early, Mr. Asuka."

A gentle voice sounded from behind Asuka. Shinobu Kocho appeared at the corner of the corridor at some point, holding a wooden tray with a medicine bottle and a clean gauze cloth in her hand.

"It's time to change the medicine. And the three of you..." She looked at Tanjiro and the others: "Aoi and the others are waiting in the Japanese-style room. Let's start with tea-sprinkling training today."

Tanjiro and Zenitsu immediately stood up straight: "Yes! Shinobu-senpai!"

Inosuke snorted and followed Tanjiro and the others to the side courtyard. Before leaving, he gave Asuka a deep look, lost in thought.

Asuka silently walked back to the corridor and sat down in the spot designated by Shinobu Kocho.

Shinobu Kocho put down the tray, gently untied the tie at his collar, and carefully lifted the gauze covering the wound on his collarbone, speaking in a casual tone:

"The guidance you just gave was very useful. Although it was simple, it was more helpful to him now than any advanced techniques."

"It seems that during his time at the Butterfly Mansion, Mr. Asuka has not only improved himself, but has also begun to understand how to pass on his experience to others."

Chapter 49 Birds and Butterflies (Part 2)

Later that evening, Asuka, who was meditating alone in the corridor, sensed the movement above her head through her spiritual pressure.

"Um... why did Senior Shinobu bring us here?"

"...You have suffered very serious injuries. My place is the best in terms of technology for treating you."

The voices of Shinobu and Tanjiro came from the rooftop, seemingly chatting.

Her voice sounded somewhat deep, and her tone was no longer so light: "...And also, I want to entrust my dreams to you."

"The dream of getting along well with ghosts, if it's you, you can definitely do it."

"...Senior Shinobu, are you angry?"

"Huh?"

"I always feel... that although you're always smiling, there's a sense of vitality emanating from you..."

Tanjiro noticed too? Asuka opened her eyes and thought it would be better to avoid this topic.

If it were him, he would also be unhappy if someone overheard something he didn't want others to know.

However, just as he was about to get up and leave, Shinobu Kocho's voice came:

"...That's probably true, ever since my beloved older sister was murdered by a demon..."

Sister... is she that woman?

Asuka walked towards the Japanese-style room, but her mind was still on that dream. Despite her usually swift movements, her steps slowed considerably.

"Whenever I see someone lose someone important to them because of a ghost, whenever I see those tears, cries, and pain, the anger in my heart keeps accumulating and swelling..."

"My sister was a gentle person, just like you, and even on her deathbed... she was still mourning for evil spirits..."

"...I can't think that way."

After closing the door to the Japanese-style room, Asuka withdrew her spiritual pressure perception, and that was all she could hear.

He sat quietly on the tatami mat, and thought of Muichiro's words again.

There's always something holding you back, preventing you from truly giving your all in the fight...

"Everyone has a reason to fight evil, but do I lack that resolve...?"

I gazed at the crickets and chirping birds in front of me for a long time without saying a word.

"...Stop arguing. If all you want is revenge and to become stronger, just keep fighting..."

But when he recalled that night when his emotions were at their most intense, his fighting spirit at its strongest, or even earlier, that reckless and arrogant battle...

That feeling of unreservedly connecting with Mujina and releasing the power of the Zanpakuto wasn't because of these reasons that I swung the sword.

He felt like he had found the answer, but he was also very uncertain, which made him, with his simple mind, somewhat irritable.

"What are you sulking about all by yourself after eavesdropping on me, Mr. Asuka?"

The bird, which was in a state of distress, felt a sweet fragrance wafting towards its nose.

Without even looking, he knew that Shinobu Kocho had once again appeared in the house mysteriously.

"Moshi moshi, are you ignoring me?" Seeing that he didn't speak, Butterfly chuckled and sat down opposite Flying Bird: "Why did you leave before listening to the conversation with the boy from the stove? Do you hate me?"

"...No, I just didn't want to eavesdrop."

"Haha, Mr. Asuka has such awareness."

"Yes, I don't want to see you cry." Asuka spoke calmly, meeting Kocho's surprised gaze:

“I felt that if you continued on that topic, you might burst into tears, so I left.”

"..." Shinobu Kocho's forced smile froze.

Huh? Is Mr. Asuka really that straightforward? So suddenly?

Although she often teases young swordsmen, it's always based on her status as a Pillar and her position as an older sister. This is the first time someone has said something like that to her.

However, how did he know what it looked like when he was crying?

Shinobu Kocho was momentarily at a loss for words, unsure of what to say. Asuka wasn't oblivious to the strange atmosphere, but feeling that things had already progressed this far, she simply continued:

"I think your sister... probably didn't want you to get hurt, and didn't want you to keep dwelling on this and crying all the time, which is why she wanted you to leave the Demon Slayer Corps."

"How...how did you know?"

"I dreamt about it."

"A dream? Mr. Asuka, isn't that a bit too much..."

This is a claim that Shinobu Kocho finds hard to believe rationally.

But looking into Asuka's calm gaze, she knew it wasn't a lie.

Is such a thing really possible?

As if her memories had been stirred, Shinobu Kocho's smile finally faded.

“…You really don’t know how to talk, Mr. Asuka.” She spoke in a low voice, “If you said you didn’t want to see me cry, then you shouldn’t have brought it up in the first place, you idiot….”

"Is that so... I'm sorry."

"...This is not your fault, it's my own fault for being too angry."

She let out a long sigh of relief, as if it had been a long time since she had spoken without putting on a pretense.

Shinobu Kocho's brows furrowed slightly, and her eyes hardened: "In the end, demons and such are just too disgusting!"

"Utterly irrational in their self-preservation, full of lies... they only rely on their base instincts to survive and kill..."

"You killed someone and now you're pretending to be pitiful? You want to repent and ask me to forgive you... Don't be ridiculous... It's best if these kinds of people are just dead..."

At this point, Shinobu's eyes welled up with tears, and her slender hands clenched tightly, her nails digging into her palms.

"I'm really a little tired... If it weren't for keeping my sister's favorite smile... I really..."

"Then let's kill them all."

"what?"

Asuka reached out and hooked her little finger with Shinobu's little finger, which had turned slightly white from exerting so much force.

Just like that day when Shinobu Kocho reached out her hand to him.

“I will help you kill that blood-stained demon wielding two fans.”

"That way, you won't be so angry every day."

"I made a promise to you, and I will definitely do it."

Asuka couldn't explain why he suddenly wanted to make such a promise to Shinobu Kocho, but he felt he should do it.

Just like Tanjiro would help others, just like Ubuyashiki no Kyoukai would do anything to fight against evil demons.