A Brawl for the Brother
Hello everyone and welcome to the latest chapter of Breath of the Rifleman! Got a little more intensity happening in this chapter, even if it is training. And as per the usual I'd like to give a shout out to LoneTaker, groche9655, and Noble Eight for their contributions to this story. And since it appears we have no guest review questions this chapter, let's head on in!
Outside: The Dojo of Sanemi Shinazugawa
The sound of training swords striking training swords filled the air, drowned out only by the loud screams of pain, agony, and vomiting. Anyone viewing the seeming massacre from the other side of the gate would be treated to the occasional sight of demon slayers being flung into the air by the tornado-like slashes of the Wind Pillar, Sanemi Shinazugawa. While it might seem like it to someone who wasn't in the know, this wasn't a form of punishment or torment for the slayers but rather the next phase of 'Pillar Training'. As far as complexity went, this was about as straightforward as training got, almost more straightforward than Tengen's basic running training.
All that was happening for the training was Shinazugawa beating down on all the slayers who came at him, slashing nonstop without rest for the victim-er, trainee, until they either vomit or faint. In Subaru's opinion, it was more training for Sanemi than it was for everyone else given that he took on multiple opponents at once. But bringing up that point wouldn't really get him anywhere, not that he had time to talk as he deflected another couple of strikes with the wooden knives he was using before taking one to his side. "Is that all you've got Genjirou, after all that talk!" Laughed the Wind Pillar as the two clashed weapons a few more times, "I guess you're not so tough when you don't have a hidden gun to rely on!"
"And maybe if you spent less time looking down on others and more time looking for demons, you'd have found Muzan by now," Subaru shot back as they continued to trade blows with Sanemi scoring a couple more hits before they locked blades, "and I don't recall saying those sleeve pistols were my only trick!" He broke the weapon lock before tossing one of his practice wisteria bombs right into Sanemi's eyes, causing the Wind Pillar to begin slashing around violently with one hand while his other covered his face.
"He's blinded, get him!" Exclaimed one of the other slayers as several of them charged in for the opening Subaru had created.
"Breath of Wind Third Form," Said Sanemi as he changed his stance with his sword in front of his body, "Clean Storm Wind Tree!" He swung the practice weapon all around him, generating powerful wind slashes in all directions which sent the attacking slayers flying or tumbling away. It also had the effect of tearing up the ground a bit. "You're delusional if you think such a cheap trick would-HEY!"
He finished clearing his eyes and raised his sword just in time to block a stab from one of the Matagi's wooden knives. Subaru would've preferred the wooden staff in this scenario, but it had been knocked out of his hands after the first several minutes of the training bout. Though in truth, the Rifleman had no idea how much time had passed since this whole thing had begun, not that he was really able to worry about it at the moment anyway. "I'll admit, that was quite a technique," Subaru said as he tried attacking with his other weapon which wound up missing due to the Wind Pillar leaping away, "guess even you know the value of a powerful defensive move!"
He charged forward in an attempt to keep Sanemi from creating any distance between them, but the Wind Pillar countered with another technique: "Breath of Wind Sixth Form: Black Wind Mountain Mist!" He rotated his body into an uppercut slash, creating a tornado-like effect of slashes in the path of the charging slayer.
"Breath of the Rifleman Fourth Form: Mountain Stride!" Declared Subaru as he shot forward with enough force to break the ground as his weapon met Sanemi's. The resulting shockwave was powerful enough to shake the area slightly as the two fighters pushed against each other with their techniques. What became the deciding factor, though, was the sound of snapping wood as Sanemi's sword broke and bent, causing the force of his technique to lessen suddenly. It also wound up redirecting Subaru's momentum as he slipped past Sanemi at high speed before impacting the ground and rolling several feet before hitting the far wall.
The Wind Pillar looked at his now broken weapon as the few splinters holding one end to the other finally gave way, letting half the training sword fall to the ground as Sanemi shot an irritated look towards Subaru who was struggling to stand, noting he'd also broken his wooden knife. "Well that's fucking inconvenient," he said while tossing his broken tool aside, "congratulations Genjirou, you're officially the first slayer whose training is gonna be halted for a reason other than vomiting or passing out, though you look like you're on the verge of that second one any moment now."
"You're too kind," quipped the Matagi as he attempted to stand. While Mountain Stride wasn't as draining or painful as Stride of Yami No Kami, it still took a bit out of him when he's already exhausted to begin with.
"And as for the rest of you!" Said Sanemi as he turned a murderous glare on the other slayers attempting to attack him from behind, causing them to freeze in place, "If you're not already vomiting or passing out, be happy I'm in a good mood. But when we resume, I'll be coming down harder on all of you, so thank Genjirou while you're having lunch." He proceeded to walk into his large home which resembled a fairly basic Japanese mansion with a large dojo on the inside.
Subaru let out a breath as he tossed the destroyed wooden knife aside, opting to pick up another one while sheathing his remaining one. Though as he got up to go inside, a familiar head of yellow hair bounded over to him with the usual look of panic on his face. "ARE YOU INSANE?!" Yelled Zenitsu, prompting the Matagi to greatly consider covering his ears, "are you trying to get us all killed by pissing him off?! He's already in a seemingly endless sadistic mood so why do you keep goading him?!"
"I thought that was obvious, he's being a dipshit," replied Subaru as he started stumbling towards the entrance to the house, "and I don't owe him the slightest bit of respect until he starts acting as befitting his station."
"Why do all my friends have to have death wishes," groaned Zenitsu, "you spent half the day getting knocked around by that guy with the rest of us and you still think you can just talk back to him like that?"
"The fucker stabbed Nezuko," said Subaru, "all while Tanjiro and I were on trial with the punishment of execution being considered. He had no orders to do so, no one suggested he do so, and there was no reason for him to do so. From what I could tell, he did it because he got a kick out of it. You really think after something like that I'd give a shit about what rank he is?"
"That guy, hurt Nezuko?" Asked Zenitsu as the waterworks stopped. He then grabbed hold of Subaru with a look of pure rage similar to the time he'd found out Aoi and the others were overseeing their rehabilitation training. "WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME THAT FROM THE START?!"
"Because I figured Tanjiro already had," replied Subaru, "he's never been the best at keeping secrets. Plus, you realize how hard it is to talk to someone who's always yelling for one reason or another?"
"Sure I do, I put up with Inosuke like the rest of you guys," said Zenitsu, "but to hear that bastard harmed even a single hair on the head of my angel is absolutely unforgivable!" 'Ordinarily I'd remind him that Nezuko and I are in a relationship,' thought Subaru, 'but this could prove useful at the moment.' He didn't have to wait too long to find out how useful either. After a short dinner break, they all gathered for one last session for that day as Sanemi stepped out into the training yard once more with a new wooden sword.
"Alright you spineless weaklings, you know the drill by now," said Sanemi, "come and get your asses slau-." He didn't get time to finish his sentence before being forced to block a surprisingly quick strike from Zenitsu.
"YOU'LL PAY FOR HURTING MY DIVINE BEAUTY!" Screamed the Breath of Thunder wielder as Subaru also charged in. Training for the rest of that evening would prove to be rather, eventful.
The Next Day
'Ouch, ouch, ouch and once again, ouch,' thought Subaru as he stretched his sore muscles, feeling the numerous bruises on his body from yesterday's session. "Gotta give him this, the guy doesn't hold back much when it comes to training people," commented Momiji as Subaru stepped out onto the training grounds with everyone else.
"This marks one of those rare moments where I'm glad to have a little demon physiology," admitted Subaru as he looked at some of his wounds which had already healed, "though if I'm looking at this right, my wounds are starting to heal faster than before."
"Probably continued development of our demon powers," surmised Momiji, "absorbing Hantengu in such a broken state has made it difficult to get a total grasp of his abilities, but we're slowly gaining strength. I can tell we're already immune to all known forms of demon poison we've encountered and then some, plus the increasing healing ability. Though right now I'm prioritizing the demon mark and domain abilities, they'll give us our biggest advantages."
"Worst comes to worse I suppose we can always pull one of those tricks out here," Subaru thought back before catching sight of a familiar, red-eyed boy entering the training ground. "Hey Tanjiro, you made it."
"Hey Subaru," greeted Tanjiro happily, "sorry if I'm a little late. This place is like a maze and has a ton of scents around it, I couldn't even smell Sanemi's until I got close."
"Didn't your crow help guide you here?" Questioned Subaru with a raised eyebrow.
"He wasn't the best with directions today," whispered Tanjiro, looking around to make sure his crow didn't hear anything, "no idea why but he was in kind of a bad mood."
"Probably has an issue with Sanemi's crow," guessed Subaru, "not surprising if that thing has a personality in any way like his. Speaking of which, have you seen the guy this morning?"
"I ran into him on the way here," said Tanjiro, "he says he still hasn't accepted me, but that's fine, I haven't accepted him either since he still hasn't apologized for hurting Nezuko."
"DAMN RIGHT!" Yelled Zenitsu as he seemingly appeared from nowhere, "this time we'll get him for sure and make him apologize for hurting her!"
"Guess that means we're all in agreement then," said Subaru as he readied his staff, noting said hated Wind Pillar was stepping onto the training ground, "let's bring the hammer down on him." What happened next, well, there are several varying accounts. At first it was wind and fire and explosions, then thunder joined the mix after a short time. Many slayers were forced to scatter in all directions as technique after technique tore up the training area.
A few slayers who were a bit stronger, or at least a bit more sturdy, braved the apparent storm of sword and rifle techniques to get a view at what was happening, and they all agreed on one thing: every preson creating that storm was pissed off about something. It would go on for a few hours before finally calming and when it did, all four of them were on the ground. "You…..bunch of no good…..bastards," said Sanemi between heavy breaths while struggling to get off the ground.
"You're just…..mad that we got…a few hits in on you," Subaru pointed out as he sat on the ground, almost completely exhausted. The others were in a similar state with Zenitsu being out cold, which in this case had been better thanks to his ability to fight in his sleep. Every one of them was also sporting bruises and a couple of bleeding wounds. And even though Sanemi had the least out of all of them, it had taken a lot more than he expected for it to wind up that way.
"Does this mean…we passed?" Questioned Tanjiro, having to turn his head to get a better look at Sanemi due to one of his eyes being swelled shut.
"Heh…I'll think about it," grunted Sanemi as he managed to get back to his feet and walked towards his dojo, "you bunch of shitheads have earned a break…for now."
"I guess that's the best…we're gonna get," said Subaru as he and Tanjiro stood up on wobbly legs, "Oh well, at least we all got a hit or two in. It's rare that I agree with Zenitsu, but that beatdown was a long time coming."
"You know we shouldn't be trying to seriously injure each other," chided Tanjiro as he and Subaru each grabbed one of Zenitsu's arms and threw it over their shoulder, "we're all on the same side, after all."
"I ain't the one with the attitude problem," said Subaru, "and you got just as pissed as I did when he hurt Nezuko. So the way I see it, if he's got us doing a training session where we get to hit 'em, I ain't gonna hold back that much."
"Well maybe we'll get lucky and he'll send us on our way," said Tanjiro optimistically as they entered the dojo.
A Short Time Later
"This training may have only been a day so far, but it's also been one of the most painful," said Tanjiro as he rubbed his bruised eye. It had taken a bit to wash the blood and vomit off of themselves after the earlier beatdown.
"Well good news is it may have also been our shortest session," said Subaru, "I recall one of the conditions of passing the training was being able to land a blow on him. Though given his sadistic nature and him hating our guts we should probably be prepared for the possibility of another session." Tanjiro sighed as he considered the pain another bout like that would cause, but was quickly interrupted by the sound of a new arrival.
"Aniki, wait," said the voice of Genya, sounding more desperate than usual, "I need to talk to you about something!" While Subaru was normally one to avoid drama, curiosity and the fact that said conversation was occurring around the corner had him and Tanjiro both taking a peek at what was transpiring.
"Wow, you're still going on about that," said a very irritated looking Sanemi as he turned to Genya, "you know I don't have a brother, so cut the crap before I shred you to pieces." Genya looked taken aback by this, but he didn't leave. "From what I've seen and heard, you have no talent whatsoever. Those who can't use breaths have no right to call themselves swordsmen, so just leave the Demon Slayers."
He turned to walk away then but stopped the moment Genya spoke up. "W-Wait," said Genya, "I want to apologize, I've wanted to apologize for a long time now."
"Yeah I don't really give a shit," said Sanemi with a dismissive wave as he kept walking.
"I even ate demons so that I could fight, just so I could tell you," said Genya. This brought Sanemi to a halt as he looked back with a somewhat shocked expression on his face.
"What did you just say," he said in a low tone, "you actually 'ate' demons?" He moved quicker than Genya could react then as he aimed two fingers right for his eyes. Thankfully, Tanjiro was fast enough as he tackled Genya out of the way while Sanemi's fingers just grazed the shotgun wielder's cheek as both slayers crashed through the sliding door into the courtyard outside. The Wind Pillar turned his eyes with murderous intent on his brother, but this left him distracted as Subaru came in low and slammed his elbow into his left side. The force was enough to send Sanemi into one of the wooden posts between the door, cracking it as Subaru moved outside to help Tanjiro and Genya.
The Wind Pillar wasn't down for long as he stood up and stalked out the door, his breathing like that of an enraged bull as he approached them. "Are you trying to kill Genya?!" Exclaimed Tanjiro, not backing down despite the Hashira's murderous intent.
"As easy at it would be, that'd go against the code of conduct," replied Sanemi as a wicked smile crossed his now vein-covered face, "I'll just leave him incapable of regenerating, that way he can finally quit the Demon Slayers and I'll forgive him."
"As if!" Exclaimed Tanjiro, "after saying over and over again that you don't have a brother, you lost the right to tell him whether or not he should quit! Don't you think he would've gone with a different method for fighting the demons if he had a choice?! And so what if he doesn't have the talent to be a swordsman, he's still killed plenty of demons with the skills he does have and risked his life just as much as the rest of us to do so! He was invaluable against Upper Moon 4 and if that's not enough for you then nothing will be, so I won't let you get in his way!"
"Okay then," said Sanemi, "I'll incapacitate you first!" He rushed forward and threw a punch straight into Tanjiro's gut hard enough to lift him off the ground, or so it seemed at first. But upon a closer look, Tanjiro had managed to catch his fist in time with his left hand before grabbing his arm and coming around with a kick to Sanemi's head. The blow more surprised than hurt the Hashira as Tanjiro fell to the ground.
"Zenitsu, please get Genya out of here!" He ordered before moving back to avoid a kick from Sanemi who used the motion to stand back up. Even though Tanjiro dodged it, the kick still managed to leave a cut on his ear.
"You've got some balls bi-GAAAH!" Sanemi started to say but was silenced as the moment he righted himself he received a punch from Subaru which knocked him back down.
"I'm here too asshole," remarked Subaru as he held up his fists in a fighting stance, "and while you can fool everyone else, you can't fool me."
"Oh and how's that," spat Sanemi as he wiped his mouth while standing back up.
"This dumb act you put on saying Genya's not your brother, that he's not fit to be a slayer, trying to render him unable to fight," replied Subaru, "none of that is the real reason you think he shouldn't do this."
"What would you know," said the Wind Pillar as his eyes narrowed, "the Corps doesn't need any half-baked wannabe shits in it. They'll just wind up getting killed and wasting the Corps time and resources, something you clearly haven't considered."
"Any slayer who survives an encounter with an Upper Moon has got something going for them and you know it," Subaru shot back, "you're just too much of a hard ass to admit that you're worried about him, that all the cruel things you've said and done to him are because you don't want him to die. At the end of the day he's the only family you got left and since you know he's as stubborn as you, your brilliant plan is to make him believe you hate him and that he can't do this so he'll leave the Corps. But clearly that's failed spectacularly so you may as well be honest with him for a change."
If Sanemi had been mad before, he was positively livid now. "You," he breathed out through gritted teeth, "should've kept your mouth shut. NOW YOU'RE FUCKING DEAD!" He shot forward with the intent to put his fist straight through Subaru's head.
"Domain!" Exclaimed Subaru as the two were engulfed in the demonic territory. While the Wind Pillar was too enraged to immediately notice the change of scenery, he was plenty confused when Subaru suddenly burst into snowflakes upon his fist connecting with his face.
"The fuck is this," he said as he looked around, noting the now snowy landscape.
"A lesson about underestimating people," said an unfamiliar female voice before Subaru burst from the snow beneath Sanemi's feet with a powerful uppercut which staggered the Hashira. His body was now covered in the maple leaf demon mark, increasing his physical abilities as he delievered another punch to the Wind Pillar's midsection before grabbing his head and yanking it down into his knee. Sanemi stumbled back from the blow, but managed to duck the next punch before grabbing his arm and flipping the hunter over into the snow. Subaru wasn't able to get up in time to block the knee to his face which knocked him over again, but he was able to sweep his leg out and trip the Hashira.
The two of them rolled back up to their feet before engaging again, throwing punches and kicks for the next minute, aggravating their already bruised bodies until Subaru finally managed to dodge one of Sanemi's punches and grab him around the waist. "For once in your life," said Subaru as he yanked the Wind Pillar off his feet, "get over yourself!" The suplex maneuver was completed then as the Rifleman slammed the Hashira onto the ground before readjusting his position and grabbing Sanemi's head in a hammer hold. It was none too soon as the domain broke, returning them back to the Wind Pillar's home.
"Get off me!" Exclaimed Sanemi as he broke the hold and tossed Subaru away from himself. The two sat there, breathing heavily while also glaring at each other. "I'll say it again…..what the fuck…..do you know…..about me?"
"I know," replied Subaru, "because I put up with it…for two whole years…..from my father."
"Your old man trained you," said Sanemi, "and you went against his wishes to become a slayer?"
"It was that or let Tanjiro and Nezuko fight on their own," Subaru answered, "they were two of the only people I had left in the world and still two of the people I treasure most. So don't think I don't get what you're doing here, and why I know it won't work." Sanemi tried to think of something to say to that, but the both of them were interrupted by the sudden arrival of Zenitsu, who proceeded to punch Sanemi in the face.
"Get him now guys! FOR NEZUKO!" Yelled Zenitsu as the other slayers and Tanjiro dog-piled on the Hashira.
"I don't know who he's talking about, but get the angry man!" Exclaimed another one of the slayers as it all devolved into a brawl that lasted into the evening.
A Couple Days Later: The Mountains
Tanjiro, Subaru and Zenitsu all got an official scolding from the higher-ups after everything calmed down, and while the two swordsmen were apologetic about the whole incident, the Rifleman had more than a couple things to say about letting a Hashira abuse their authority, especially in terms of personal reasons. The whole discussion happened via Kasugai crow as it was too small of a matter for an official face to face meeting. The outcome was that all three of them were banned from approaching the Wind Pillar and any further training with him was also halted.
"This wasn't how I hoped things would go," said Tanjiro, a bit depressed that he couldn't mend the rift between Genya and his brother, "and the mark's not showing up either. Maybe this method of training isn't working."
"Oh it's working," assured Zenitsu, "you guys were the first to get any hits in on the wind dude. Pretty badass, to be honest. And Subaru clearly has conscious control over his mark and whatever weirdness he used to make him and wind guy disappear for a bit. You're probably well on your way. On another note, WHERE IN THESE MOUNTAINS IS THE ROCK PILLAR'S HOME, WE'VE BEE WALKING FOREVER!"
"I'm sure we're almost there," assured Tanjiro before getting a sniff of moisture in the air. Zenitsu also heard an unfamiliar sound as the group hurried up and ran into a large, rocky area with a rather distinctive feature. "Oh, a waterfull and there's people there too!" The group hurried forward until they got a better view of the people in the waterfall, or rather, under it.
"Hey look, it's Inosuke," noted Subaru, easily spotting the boar fighter who sat meditating under the waterfall with the other slayers, or at least they were trying to meditate under the extreme pressure and cold. Even despite being in the water he still had his mask on, though it was the pained groans of the other slayers that had Tanjiro and Zenitsu uneasy.
"If you erase your mind, even fires will become cold," said the voice of Gyomei as everyone turned to him, and dropped their stone pillar was currently meditating, without his coat, in a squat position with two logs on his shoulders that were also weighed down by four stones tied to them. And while that wasn't the most impressive feat they'd ever seen, the fact that he was doing that while standing 'barefoot' in a fire was what really took the cake. "Welcome to my humble training ground."
Whew, it seems training with the Wind Pillar is completed, or at least to the point that they don't have to see his scarred visage again. But now they face the meditative, and painful training of Gyomei who specializes in muscle reinforcement. And speaking of muscles, feel free to exercise some finger muscles and leave a comment or review about what you liked/disliked or if you've got any neat ideas for future chapters. Be sure to stop in next time as our heroes learn the values of meditation and rock rolling, oh, and Zenitsu gets an unexpected visitor. 'Til then.