Demon Slayer: Muzan, will you dance too?

Samagiri Mountain,

The milky white water vapor that never dissipates, like a tangible substance, weighs heavily on the mountains and forests.

About three days later, after traveling day and night, Kiyokawa Izumi finally arrived at the hermitage of the former Water Pillar.

Pushing aside the damp grapevines, a winding path appeared before us.

"That was a bit hasty..."

Kiyokawa Izumi couldn't help but think to himself.

Mount Sagiri is so vast, I wonder where in the mountains the hut that Urokodaki Sakonji built is located.

Having come this far, there's no way we're going to back down now.

I adjusted my breathing, and I couldn't tell if it was due to the altitude or the temperature, but the oxygen in the mountains was a bit thin.

He slowly walked up the path, and just then, a commotion in the distance caught his attention.

As soon as he took a step, a bamboo pole suddenly shot up.

Kiyokawa Izumi was startled and instinctively activated his Sharingan.

The bamboo pole brushed against the hem of his clothes, narrowly avoiding it.

"What's going on?"

"Why are there still traps?"

Kiyokawa Izumi stared at the bamboo pole several meters long in front of him and couldn't help but fall into deep thought—this didn't seem like a trap for hunting.

It's more like a training trap.

The good news is that he didn't go astray.

The bad news is that there are traps all along the way.

Kiyokawa Izumi's lips twitched slightly, and he couldn't help but feel a headache coming on.

You see, his nose can't smell the trap.

There's no sign of a trap whatsoever!

Perhaps it's because of the years of setting traps, but the traps set by Urokodaki Sakonji are really hard for ordinary people to find.

Ordinary Demon Slayer Corps swordsmen who accidentally wander into this place would likely suffer losses.

Talent is one aspect, but different trainers also vary in quality.

Take the original owner's master, for example. Before he retired, he was just an ordinary second-class swordsman.

In an era where Pillars were extremely scarce, even a mediocre swordsman like him wouldn't have been able to become a Pillar.

Different trainers have varying levels of skill, and their methods for training swordsmen also differ. This results in significant differences in the strength of the swordsmen they train.

Every year in the final selection, there are always a group of "cannon fodder" who are eliminated.

Perhaps it's not that the breeders behind it are being lazy or lowering standards; it might just be that they have limited abilities.

Come to think of it, pillars themselves are dangerous.

There are very few former Pillars who can live to retirement age and are willing to serve as trainers.

"Be careful!"

Not far away, a familiar figure shouted loudly towards Kiyokawa Izumi.

More than a dozen short blades pierced through the air, and Kiyokawa Izumi's pupils contracted slightly.

While watching the anime, I just felt that Sakonji-sensei's training was really strict.

After arriving in this world, he really wanted to complain: Aren't you afraid that an accident might kill the protagonist?

A sharp short blade can be deadly.

The boy who suddenly accelerated had a head of striking reddish-brown medium-length hair, which looked somewhat messy, probably because he hadn't taken good care of it in a long time.

On the right side of her full, smooth forehead, a scar resembles a burning flame.

He had healthy, wheat-colored skin, his breathing was slightly erratic, and there was a faint blush on his face, probably related to the strenuous exercise he was doing.

What Kiyokawa Izumi found most unforgettable were those eyes.

Eyes as round as hazelnuts, like clear mountain streams.

His eyes were so clear and pure, a sight rarely seen even in my past life—no wonder he's a male lead with zero negative reviews. I was already worried about him, afraid that Kiyokawa Izumi, who had accidentally fallen into a trap, would get hurt.

As he moved quickly, the pair of sun-shaped flower-patterned earrings swayed incessantly.

Wearing a blue scarf around his neck, with one hand clenched into a fist and the other holding a knife, and dressed in an indigo haori, he almost fell into a pit by accident.

Just as he was worrying about Kiyokawa Izumi, a simple and unadorned slash suddenly appeared, and more than a dozen short blades fell to the ground.

"That's... Water Breathing - First Form?"

Tanjiro belatedly realized that the strange swordsman who had stumbled into the trap also possessed the skill of Water Breathing.

And that's amazing!

He has a pair of very, very special eyes.

Tanjiro, his nose twitching unconsciously, looked at Kiyokawa Izumi with some confusion, because he could smell a hint of bewilderment on her.

Even such a skilled swordsman can feel lost.

As he sheathed his longsword, Kiyokawa Izumi had no idea how the protagonist would rate him—impressive?

This is nothing!

He's still a long way from being a pillar.

"Let me introduce myself. I'm Kiyokawa Izumi from the Demon Slayer Corps."

"I came here simply to visit Mr. Urokodaki Sakonji."

As soon as he finished speaking, Kiyokawa Izumi looked toward the figure not far away.

That's right, Sakonji Urokodaki was always following behind Tanjiro.

The old man wearing the tengu mask looked at Kiyokawa Izumi with some doubt, thinking that the Demon Slayer Corps had something to ask him.

His brows furrowed slightly, as if something significant had happened.

Sending official team members to find a retired old man must be a very important matter.

"Um, I'm Tanjiro Kamado!"

After saying this, Tanjiro looked at Kiyokawa Izumi cautiously, his words carrying a certain certainty and a somewhat blunt tone.

"Has something bad happened? Your aura seems a bit confused and distant?"