His Name Means 'Agony'

Disclaimer: All properties belong to their respective owners, I only own my OCs. Now with that out of the way, welcome everyone to another chapter for Breath of the Rifleman! Now it doesn't appear like we have any guest review questions this week, so let the pain begin! Also, a real quick shout out to groche9655, Lonetaker and Noble Eight for their continuing contributions, especially with the introduction of a new character this chapter. Now where were we, ah yes, to the story!

Sunrise: Butterfly Mansion

'Now this is something I was missing to a degree,' thought Subaru as he woke up and stretched his arms a bit. Nezuko shifted slightly next to him before tightening her grip slightly on his pajama shirt. 'Ah that's right, the mornings are just the slightest bit better than they used to be.' "I know you'd like me to stay here for a while longer," Said Subaru as he gently covered her hand with his, "but your brother and I have a lot of work ahead of us before we get back to finding you a cure. Don't worry, I'll be back in a little while."

Whether or not she actually heard him was a matter of debate, but the demon girl did loosen her grip ever so slightly as the hunter got up and gently pulled the covers back over her. He then glanced at his friend with a finger to his lips as they quietly made their way out of the room. "You know I'm a little jealous," said Tanjiro, "Nezuko's been wanting to cuddle a lot ever since she became a demon, but it used to be me more than you."

"I honestly don't know what to tell you," said Subaru with a shrug, "I guess all of us nearly dying kinda put things into perspective. But that is why we're training to get stronger after all."

"Right," said Tanjiro as he nodded his head, "it's going to be another tough day, but if we get Zenitsu and Inosuke up in time, we might be able to watch the rest of the sunrise."

"You know Aoi said not to worry about them anymore," Subaru pointed out as they approached the hospital ward, "they apparently have a plan of their o-OOOOFF!" The next thing he knew, the door burst open as both Zenitsu and Inosuke came flying out and slammed into the Matagi. All three of them crashed into a heap on the floor as a rather unfriendly looking individual wearing a Japanese military uniform with a shaved head and a shade hat in his right hand suddenly filled the doorway.

"Listen here you scroungy little fucks!" Yelled the man in a very commanding voice, "I came all the way out here from my cozy little den because I heard some cock suckers needed motivation! So now I am telling you all to line up outside or I will unscrew your heads and shit down your necks!" To say Subaru was confused was an understatement, but he had no doubt that the new guest to the mansion was capable of exactly what he said judging by the size of his arm muscles.

So in record time the four of them were all lined up on the training ground as the man paced back and forth with a wooden sword under his left arm that he'd use to tap the ground from time to time. The man was apparently blind, but that didn't seem to be slowing him down any as he began what must've been a very practiced introductory speech. "I am Itami Kumon!" the man declared, "Former Sound Pillar and Senior Trainer when I feel like it. While I am in charge of your training you will only speak when spoken too and the first and last words out of your filthy sewer mouths will be Sir. Do you maggots understand?"

"I'm no maggot I'm-," Inosuke started to say before Kumon turned his blind gaze on him.

"WRONG!" Declared Kumon, "You are all pukes!" He regained his composure then and resumed pacing back and forth. "You are the lowest forms of life in this world, not even human-fucking-beings! The lot of you are nothing but unorganized grabastic pieces of amphibian shit. But if you make it out of here, if you survive my training regimen, you will be weapons. You will be ministers of death praying for demons to slaughter. Now because I am hard you will not like me, but the more hate you have for me the more you will learn."

"I already hate this whole thing," Zenitsu whispered under his breath the moment the Instructor's back was turned. Despite this, the former Hashira still whirled around looking for the source of the comment.

"Who the fuck said that!" Questioned Kumon, "who's the slimy little Russian shit twinkle-toed cock sucker who just signed his own death warrant?!" Unsurprisingly, none of them answered due to either not having heard Zenitsu or simply not being guilty. "No one, a fucking Irish fairy said it! Outstanding, that just means I will PT you all until you fucking die! I will PT you until your asses are sucking buttermilk!"

"Sir," said Subaru suddenly, "is training not our objective today Sir?" 'We already feel like we're gonna die from our current training.'

"Why yes it is Private Genny," replied Kumon, "but first we're going to establish what happens when you are disrespectful to your instructor." The man moved with blinding speed then and slammed his fist into Zenitsu's gut, knocking the wind out of the blond slayer as he collapsed to his knees in pain. "Did you think you could fool these ears?" He asked as he pointed at Zenitsu, "You little scumbag, I've got your name, I've got your ass! You will not laugh, you will not cry! You will learn by the numbers because I will teach you! Now get on your feet and you'd best unfuck yourself or I will carry through with my threat on shitting down your neck!"

"Sir yes sir," Zenitsu groaned as loud as he could while Inosuke couldn't help but chuckle at his plight. It would turn out to be a mistake as the Instructor quickly turned his attention on the boar fighter.

"Do you think I'm cute pork chop, do you think I'm funny?!" said Kumon with a sneer on his face.

"Well I think it-," Inosuke started to say before he was quickly interrupted.

"Then wipe that atrocious grin off your face!" Ordered Kumon. Subaru wasn't sure, but the boar fighter seemed to be more than a little confused. Or he thought his face couldn't be seen under the mask. Either way, things were not going his way. "Well any fucking time sweetheart!"

"I swear I'm not, uh, sir," said Inosuke as he was trying not to snicker.

"I am going to give you three, exactly three fucking seconds, to wipe that stupid looking grin off your face or so help me I will gouge out your eyes and skull-fuck you!" Threatened Kumon. "One, two, three!" Whether or not Inosuke actually did, none of them were sure due to his mask. What was certain was that Kumon suddenly extended his hand and grasped the boar fighter's head in an iron grip before forcing him to his knees.

"Sir, uh, Kumon sensei Sir," said Tanjiro, "Isn't that going a bit far?"

"I say how far we go!" Exclaimed Kumon as he removed his hand with Inosuke's mask still in it. "Holy shit, did your parents have any children that lived?"

"Sir, I lived, sir," said Inosuke as he rubbed his aching head.

"I'll bet they regret that," insulted Kumon, "you're so ugly you could be a modern art masterpiece!" Inosuke might've said something to that if Subaru hadn't stopped him with a hand on his shoulder and a shake of his head. "It's clear to me now that all of you need to square your asses away. So once training is underway you'd best start shitting me Tiffany cufflinks or I will fuck all of you up far worse than any Kizuki ever will! Now get to running!" And thus began the more arduous part of Total Concentration Constant training.

A Few Days Later: Butterfly Mansion Training Grounds

Like the name of their new instructor implied, pain and agony was the routine now. After quickly verifying that neither Inosuke or Zenitsu could use Constant Breathing for very long, he immediately set up an obstacle course and ran them through it for hours at a time. Rock jumping, crawling under logs, rope and rock climbing, pull ups and push-ups with rocks tied to their backs, running with rocks tied to their backs, pulling on ropes with small boulders tied to the other side. At one point Inosuke questioned in a somewhat joking manner if the old man had spent all of his time finding new uses for rocks when he wasn't training people. He was then forced to carry logs on his back as punishment for mouthing off with Kumon mockingly asking if the boar fighter was happy to have something besides a boulder to move.

Of course, even when they weren't mouthing off the former Hashira still had plenty to say about their performances. "You run that obstacle course like old people fuck you know that?!" Or "Were you born a slimy scumbag piece of shit or did you have to work on it?!" It was obvious negative reinforcement was his prime motivational approach. Which made it all the more nerve-wracking when he told Subaru he was going to give him a personal lesson. But not before getting one last jab in at Zenitsu when he tried to sneak off during the run for the tenth time.

"And you call yourself a womanizer!" Yelled Kumon as he sprang forth and chased after Zenitsu, "how about this, I'm going to rip your balls off so that you can't contaminate the rest of the world! I will motivate you demon slayer even if it short dicks every cannibal in the fabled Congo!" Zenitsu's obvious response to this was to run a whole heck of a lot faster as the blind man took multiple swings at him with his wooden sword.

'What the fuck does that even mean,' thought Subaru as he and Tanjiro made it to the finish line of the obstacle course and paused to let their own tired muscles rest, 'and where in the world is this 'Congo' place even supposed to be?' He'd never get the chance to ask, however, as Zenitsu and Inosuke both came collapsing over the finish line, also breathing heavily. "Congratulations, you actually completed the course," said Kumon, "Now you three get to run it a few more times until the sun goes down."

"But we've already run it-," Zenitsu started to argue before the former Hashira turned his blind glare on him.

"Did I fucking stutter?" Said Kumon, "You lot will get a quick fill of some rice balls and then you'll get back out on that obstacle course! And as you've found out, the helpers have been instructed to slap the shit out of you with the carpet beaters should you stop Total Concentration Constant for more than five minutes. Now then, Private Genny, grab your snack and come with me!" Subaru was given little chance to argue as the man had already started walking away, forcing him to scarf down what he could while grabbing just a couple of extra to eat on the walk.

"Sir," said Subaru after a moment, "I'd like to ask a question, uh, sir."

"What is it numb nuts?" Asked Kumon, "If you think I'm bringing you back here because you're my favorite, you'll find your dead wrong."

"Sir, I didn't believe that for one second," said Subaru, way past tired of having to say 'sir' so often, "I was actually wondering if I'd done something wrong, sir?"

"You've done plenty wrong," replied Kumon, "but that's not why I'm bringing you back here. You see I have your old man to thank for getting me into firearms which eventually lead to a stint in the military along with the Corps. I see that you too have adopted the use of firearms for demon slaying, but I imagine you have yet to master two distinct techniques that are known only to the Sound Pillar and your father."

"Sir, I was certain Father taught me everything he knew, sir," replied Subaru as they entered another part of the training grounds. It was here that Kumon turned to him before pulling out a gun that Subaru had heard was called a 'Luger'.

"Did he teach you this," questioned the instructor as he pointed behind himself and fired, hitting one of the targets that had a flowing scarf of sorts on it.

"How did you-," Subaru started to ask before he was quickly cut off.

"I believe I told you to begin and end your statements addressing me as 'sir'." Said Kumon.

"Sir," said a slightly annoyed Matagi, "what did you do just now, sir?"

"I used my other four senses to locate my target," answered Kumon, "like your father I imagine you spent a lot of time working on your eyesight. That's all well and good but given that you spend half the time wearing an eyepatch, yes I know you were one from when I bonked you on the head once, and that these demons can literally disappear in some cases, it'd be good for you to learn a little bit about blindfold fighting and location by your other four senses."

"Sir," said Subaru, "why am I the only one who has to learn this, sir?"

"Your friend Tanjiro has a great sense of smell," explained Kumon, "that whiny blond shit stain has an incredible sense of hearing like yours truly, and the walrus boy has a sense of touch that allows him to locate opponents at long distances. All of these are senses that don't require sight to work and while I know you can see in fairly well in even the dark, you are still limited by what's to the front and sides of you. However, hone your other senses and then," Kumon stepped on a rope on the ground which caused another target to spring up, which he shot before it even got all the way in place. "Your prey will have nowhere to hide from you."

The Matagi pondered this for a moment before asking the only question he knew Kumon would want to answer. "When do we start, sir?"

"Right now Private Genny," said Kumon as he pulled out a blindfold, "so get that revolver ready."

Another Few Days Later

To say Subaru never realized just how much he relied on his extraordinary vision was an understatement. He had made use of his other senses often enough to narrow down the location of what he was hunting, but much of his success came from having knowledge of his prey. Though he loathed to admit it, the demons they'd been encountering on their journey were some of the most outlandish, powerful creatures he'd ever met in his life and there was still a lot he didn't know about their varying abilities or limitations aside from the basic weaknesses. Though that didn't keep things from getting frustrating for him whenever he missed a target, such as now.

"Missed the whole target by only a couple of inches!" declared Kumon, "you might make your enemy shit themselves but I guarantee you they won't die of fright!"

"Well I don't usually practice shooting with my eyes covered," remarked Subaru, "are you sure I'm not hitting anyone, sir?"

"If you're using your ears like I told you too you'd know pretty immediately if you'd actually hit someone," replied Kumon, "Now get back to pumping your enemy full of lead! And remember, concentrate and use all of your senses!" 'I have been,' thought Subaru, 'but just using Total Concentration Constant already makes focusing a bit difficult. Circulating so much air through my body while also, wait a minute.'

A possible epiphany suddenly revealed itself to the young demon slayer as he took a few deep breaths and readied his revolver again. He remembered now, what his father said about the breathing technique enhancing the circulation of blood throughout the body. What he'd partially forgotten was that it could be focused to certain parts of the body more. 'Just breath, listen, smell, feel,' he commanded himself as he relaxed a bit and took aim, focusing more on what he was picking up with his other senses as they seemed to grow sharper.

He fired then, the recoil almost forcing him to open his eyes as he heard the bullet strike something solid. "Well I'll be damned," said Kumon, "you can hit a target after all."

"Father would call it learning through trial and error, sir," commented Subaru as he lifted the blindfold, only to have it immediately pulled back down by the instructor.

"I don't recall saying you were done with that yet," said Kumon, "you hit the target but not quite in the middle. By the end of this regimen I want you to be able to put a bullet in a demon hiding in the bushes from several yards away! Now get back to shooting!" The Matagi complied as he readied to fire again, using the same method he'd just discovered. The next hit would be closer, and the one after that even closer.

Pretty soon, Subaru could fire and hit near the middle three to four out of six times. Given that it was his first time ever accomplishing such a feat, he felt a little proud of himself. Though it was far from good enough for Kumon. Luckily for Subaru, he wasn't the only one who was annoyed. "Will you two quit it already with that blasted noisemaker!" Yelled Aoi as she slid the door open.

"We are in the middle of training missy," Kumon shot back, "I'm making sure this little shit is able to fire that 'noisemaker' of his under any condition! So unless Kocho herself orders training done for the day, you're just gonna have to plug your ears sweetheart!"

"As a matter of fact she did," said Aoi through gritted teeth, "the sun is going down and it's time for all of our patients to be in bed."

"Very well then," said Kumon grudgingly as he turned to Subaru who was pulling the blindfold off, "you know what time you're supposed to be up in the morning, right Private Genny?"

"Sir, the crack of dawn like always, sir," said Subaru in reply.

"Good," said Kumon, "In the meantime get some shuteye and don't let me catch you or any of your other friends goofing off in the middle of the night. I will hear you and I'll find you before you hear me coming." With that, the instructor turned on his heel and began walking down one of the mansion hallways to his own private room. The Rifleman waited for an extra long length of time before turning and speaking to Aoi.

"What continent did you dig that guy up on?" Questioned Subaru, "I went through some tough training with my Father to become a demon slayer, but even when he was actively discouraging me from being one he was never this creative with his language."

"Well as you heard," replied Aoi, "he was the former Sound Pillar, and he even trained the current one, Tengen Uzui. I sometimes wonder if he inherited all that 'flamboyant' nonsense from his time learning under him, given that he has to bring it up all the time instead of just talking like a normal person."

"Well he and the rest of them did something right if they became Hashiras," replied Subaru, "but you're right, the man has yet to have a normal conversation with any of us that doesn't involve shouting profanity in our faces at the top of his lungs."

"Speaking of noise," said Aoi as she pointed at Subaru's revolver, "how is it you're able to hunt demons with a contraption like that? Master Kocho mentioned something about you applying the same method of poisoning to it that she uses for her sword."

"Something like that," said Subaru as he opened the break action on the revolver and pulled out one of the bullets, "I coat these little babies with the same type of wisteria poison that Shinobu uses for her sword. When the hammer, this funny looking thing on the back, strikes the primer on one of these bullets, the gunpowder inside ignites and sends the head of this thing flying out of the barrel at high speed."

"While that is interesting," said Aoi, "It still doesn't explain why it's so damn loud."

"Well the explosive powder in these cartridges is similar to the stuff they use in fireworks," explained Subaru, "You have seen fireworks before, right?"

"The girls and I try to see them every year during the annual festival," said Aoi with her hands on her hips, "I just can't believe someone could turn something like that into a weapon."

"Gunpowder has a number of uses," said Subaru as he closed the action and holstered his revolver, "what those uses are all depend on the ingenuity of the one using it. If they want to make fireworks with them, that's what it'll do. And if they want to put it into cartridges and create projectile weapons with a high noise level, then that's what they'll get. But one universal thing all of us users of gunpowder can agree on, explosions are almost always gonna be loud."

"I'd best tell the girls to stock up on the cotton balls then," said Aoi with a sigh, "for you and that loud, annoying blond. Now off to bed, doctor's orders."

"Assuming I'm going to get any sleep tonight with Kumon ordering the helpers to clobber us whenever we stop Total Concentration Constant," commented Subaru as he turned and started down the hallway. But not before firing off one last round at the target to annoy Aoi.

A Short Time Later: Nezuko's Room

'Asleep already,' the Matagi observed as he entered the room to find Tanjiro and Nezuko passed out in opposite beds. He knew any minute now the helpers would be checking up on them, so he figured it best that he tried to get some much needed sleep as well in preparation for another day of grueling training. It still felt strange to him that he was even sharing a bed with Nezuko from time to time, and stranger still that her brother willingly allowed it. He'd heard a number of stories from the townspeople at the foot of the mountain about lovers sneaking around behind their family's backs to find some alone time together, and then one of them would get chased off when the siblings or the father found out about it.

Yet here he was with Nezuko almost instinctively snuggling up under his arm with her brother sleeping just a few feet from them. "You know I'd dream about us like this sometimes," whispered Subaru, "obviously there were no demons involved and you didn't have a bamboo muzzle covering your mouth, but it was the same basic idea. It'd be just you and me under a big tree or on a mat or sometimes in a grassy field, just enjoying each other's company. I'd rehearse the words I always wanted to say to you, make up the worst haikus you're probably better off not hearing, or just get lost in thought with you at the forefront of my mind."

The demon girl hummed in apparent understanding, or at least contentment. Subaru honestly wasn't even sure if she heard him or not, but he continued anyway. "Though I guarantee you, in none of those dreams did I ever think I'd confess my feelings while shoving a Derringer in some prick's mouth or while on trial after fighting horrid spider monsters. I never dreamed our lives would turn into something like this, you me and Tanjiro fighting tooth and nail against demons in order to let you walk in the sun again. We're so far from home now and Tanjiro and I have grown so much in terms of ability. If I'd seen your brother trying to wield a sword two years ago I would've laughed my ass off for five minutes straight. And now here we are, trying to learn how to breath in a specific way while we're asleep."

"It's been a time and a half and we've still got to take on the strongest demons the world has to offer," said Subaru, "but don't worry. We've made it this far by working together and fighting as hard as we can. And a good bit of luck. But I promise you now as I did then, we will turn you back."

"I know you will, my love," said a sudden whisper that was so soft that Subaru wasn't even sure he heard it at first. He glanced down at the girl in his arms, almost certain she was smiling under the muzzle before giving a light smile himself. 'We'll get through this, together,' he thought as he kissed her head one more time before closing his eyes to sleep. It would be one of the more peaceful nights for him, at least until he and his friend stopped breathing properly and were rudely awoken by a beating from the helpers. It seemed he and Tanjiro both still had a little ways to go yet.

And here we are at the end of a, hopefully, entertaining chapter for you all. Now then, there is a bit of business I feel I need to mention before the next chapter. As you're all no doubt aware, the next chapter is going to be at the current end of the anime season and it once again poses the question: 'Should I stop after the next chapter and wait for the next bit of animation to come out' or 'should I attempt to continue using other sources?' Let me know what you think in your comments and reviews. Be sure to stop in next time as our heroes ready to embark on another leg of their journey. 'Til then.