The young two swordsmen were unable to find any other contestants throughout the mountain that night, except one. As Natsu and Zenitsu were about to call it a night, both teens were approached by a strange shirtless boy with a boar hide on named Inosuke Hashibara. He was topless, wore a brown boar fur around his waist over his dark gray baggy hakama pants. He also wore dark boar fur covering his shin and feet. Also black sandals. He also possess dual wield swords with dented chips on the blades.
"Hahaha!" Yelled the boy with the boar hide on. He stood on top of a big boulder, as he looked downward at both Natsu and Zenitsu. As they both looked up, they could see the crescent moon in the background as they stare at Inosuke.
"Who's that?" Natsu asked, as he looked upwards at Inosuke.
"You." Inosuke pointed his hand towards Natsu, catching his attention.
"Fight me." Inosuke demanded.
"Who's that?" Natsu asked.
Zenitsu stared directly at Inosuke, he had gotten a closer look at him, then gasped as he remembered something. Earlier that night, when the Final Selection Exams had started, he saw a boy rush head first and climbed the mountain. He was energetic and hyped up to take down demons. He gasped.
"What is it, Zenitsu?" Natsu turned his head to Zenitsu.
"I remember that guy, from earlier." Zenitsu pointed towards. "He's the one who rushed up the mountain, headfirst! When the Final Selection Exams started."
"R-really?"
"Yeah. He's a real hothead." Zenitsu added.
Inosuke grunted as he landed feet first onto the surface after jumping from a high boulder. Him landing feet first, caused Zenitsu to flinch and squeal. "Who are you calling a hot head, you blonde crybaby!" Inosuke pointed his finger towards Zenitsu.
"H-hey! That's not nice!" Zenitsu replied, as he tried to cower behind Natsu.
Inosuke let out some steam through his boar hide's nose. Then turned his pointing finger towards Natsu. "And you..." He took a few steps forward towards Natsu. "I asked you to fight me! Right now!" Inosuke grunted.
"Fight you... why?" Natsu asked.
"I saw you easily kill that one giant fat demon an hour ago..."
Flashback
An hour prior to meeting Inosuke, Natsu and Zenitsu was walking on a road and had encountered a blue-skinned, overweight eight-foot tall ogre-like demon. It had a large dark gray horn on its forehead, a thick beard, and one large yellow eyeball in the center of its head. It's teeth was yellow and dirty. The ogre raised its large club in the air and tried to strike downwards towards the boys.
"Die!" The demon chanted as it swung its club.
"Look out!" Natsu pushed Zenitus out the way, before the club could make contact with either of them. The giant club had made contact with the ground, making a small dint in the road.
Zenitsu fell to the ground, face first after being pushed. He quickly lifted his face to see Natsu alone. "Be careful, Natsu!"
"Right," Natsu stood and faced the demon head on. The blade from his katana was pointing towards the demon's eye. The demon swung at Natsu a few times, horizontally, trying to knock off Natsu's head clean. But Natsu's good eyes were able to predict the ogre's moves and was able to dodge that swing by jumping a few feet back. Natsu gripped his hilt and jumped towards the demon, a few feet forward.
'Third Form...' Natsu flipped his body vertically, while gripping his katana. His katana blade had quickly ignited in orange flames, slashing through the demon like a wheel. 'Flame Wheel!' Natsu chanted, as he slashed through the demon in half, from top to bottom. The demon slowly collapsed, falling onto its back.
Third Form: Flame Wheel. The swordsman jumps and vertically spins in the air, while releasing a flowing attack of flames in a circular motion.
"You did it, Natsu!" Zenitsu cried with tears in his eyes. He immediately hugged Natsu by the waste, which would embarrass Natsu a little.
From a distance, Inosuke had hid within the bushes, watching the entire battle go down. He started to feel jealousy for the red-headed swordsman.
End Flashback
"So, you followed us?" Natsu asked.
"That's right. I watched you fight those strong demons. And now that I know how strong you are... I challenge you to a dual!" Inosuke responded.
Zenitsu grunted, as his eyes had grown big.
"Uh, okay... but one question. Are we fighting with our swords, or with our bare hands?" Natsu asked.
"Whatever you want to use," Inosuke chuckled and drew out his dual blades. "Now, let's fight!"
Zenitsu's eyes widened after hearing Inosuke's challenge."This isn't the best time to be fighting right now! We are in the middle of the Final Selection Exams! There are still demons roaming this mountain that wanna eat us!"
"If you're that worried about the demons, then why don't you take care of them while we fight, you wimpy crybaby?"
"I am not a crybaby, nor a wimp! I don't wanna die before I get married, that's all!" Zenitsu yelled.
Inosuke looked at Natsu, who was calm. "Now, are you ready?"
Natsu inhaled some air, then exhaled. "Yes, I am. But if you don't mind me asking another question..."
"What?"
"Why is it so important to fight other people?" Natsu asked. "I mean, we're all working to become Demon Slayers. We should be working together, though."
Zenitsu smiled and his eye sockets were streaming tears in comic relief. 'That's what I'm trying to make him see.'
"Why, you ask?" Inosuke pointed his thumb towards his chest. "Because, I want to be the strongest swordsmen there ever was." He answered. "There! Does that answer your question?"
"Sure." Natsu raised his hands up, refusing to grab his katana.
"You're not fighting with your sword?" Inosuke asked.
"I think I can fight this one without it."
"You can fight that crazy guy without your sword, Natsu? You don't know what this guy is capable of! Please, stop this before you get hurt for real!" Zenitsu tried to reason.
Natsu smiled at Zenitsu. "Don't worry, Zenitsu. I'll make this quick."
Zenitsu gasped. 'Make this quick? What does he mean by that?'
"The fight has now started!" Inosuke gripped his dual swords and charged towards Natsu. He then jumped a few inches in the air, then tried diving towards him with a kick. Natsu dodged, by moving from behind Inosuke, after his foot hit the ground. Inosuke quickly knew Natsu was behind him, so he tried to swing his body around, throwing a kick at him, but missed. "Haaaaa!" Inosuke yelled, as he ran towards Natsu and tried to throw a punch. But before he could deliver a punch, Natsu had already jabbed Inosuke in the face within a second.
In that instant, Zenitsu was shocked, as his pupils suddenly disappeared. His mouth was open. 'What just happened?'
In Inosuke's mind, under that mask, his eyes was in shock, as he felt the powerful jab through the mask. His head was feeling dizzy. He could also feel his brain bouncing in his skull, and his eyes rolling His feet were losing balance. 'This guy's really... strong...' He thought before collapsing.
"Natsu? What just happened?" Zenitsu asked.
"You..."
Natsu rubbed his back. "I quickly jabbed him in its snout. I had to hold back some of my strength, so I wouldn't have to injure him."
"You have gotta teach me how to do that!" Zenitsu jumped.
"Eh?" Natsu looked over and saw Inosuke sitting up and pointing his finger at him.
"You really are... strong. The battle was... totally... worth it." Inosuke chuckled, before collapsing on the ground stretched out and losing conscious. His boar hide had suddenly slipped off his head, rolling to the side of his forearm.
"What?" Natsu bent close towards Inosuke's body to get a good look at his face. Natsu paused.
"Uh?" Zenitsu also saw looked and saw that Inosuke had a feminine face. Black hair with blue die at the end, and feminine eyebrows. As soon as he realized, his eyes widened in surprise and his blonde hair stood up. "A girl!? You knocked out a girl, Natsu!? How could you!" Zenitsu screamed.
"I-I'm sorry, Zenitsu. But, there's no way this person could be a girl." Natsu tried to reason be waving his hands, no.
"And what makes you think that's a guy! Look at his face!" Zenitsu pointed at Inosuke's face. "That should be all the proof you need for it to know that this HE is a SHE! Apologize to her!" Zenitsu demanded that Natsu apologize to an unconscious Inosuke.
"I know where you're going with this, but just hear me out, Zenitsu. If this HE were to really be a SHE. Do you think this SHE would've at least worn bandages wrapped around her chest or at least a bra?" Natsu asked and pointed at Inosuke's chest.
"M-Maybe... you're right." Zenitsu turned away from Natsu with a huge blush on his face. He twiddled his thumbs and fantasized Inosuke being a topless woman.
Natsu grunted, and picked up an unconscious Inosuke's body and carried him over his shoulder.
Zenitsu turned around to see Natsu carrying Inosuke over his shoulder. "What are you doing?"
"We're take him with us on our journey." Natsu replied.
"A-are you sure?"
"Yeah. Plus with more skilled people like him on our side, the merrier."
"But, what if he tries to attack us again?" Zenitsu asked.
"Then I'll just knock him out again."
Zenitsu paused. "Okay."
"Urrggh..." Inosuke moaned his his sleep.
Natsu could hear Inosuke moan over his shoulder. Suddenly, a breeze had suddenly flowed by Natsu, as his nose caught the scent of nearby demons that were a few yards from them. He turned to Zenitsu. "I can smell them. They're getting closer by the minute." Natsu referred to the demons coming from yards away.
Zenitsu saw a serious look on Natsu's face, then quickly understood. He knew if he attempted to freak out for a moment, he could possibly lure the demons closer to where they are. "Right." He nodded and grabbed Inosuke's boar hide.
"Let's go." Natsu said, before running with an unconscious Inosuke over his shoulder. Zenitsu quickly followed Natsu's lead as he ran with Inosuke's boar hide in his hands. Both Natsu and Zenitsu with Inosuke in their care is now traveling east of Mount Fujikasane. Where the sun would rise up first.
t is now morning time, the sky is blue, the sun is out shining and there are just a few clouds in the sky. Inosuke sounded asleep, as he lied on soft grass. He had a kimono to cover his body, which was Zenitsu's. And another kimono folded and used as a pillow, which was Natsu's. He moaned when he started to wake up from his slumber. He gasped as his eyes shot up and saw the blue sky above him. He slowly sat his back up from the ground and rubbed his head. As he looked around, he saw trees and a few bushes with berries in the area. As he placed a hand on the back of his head, he felt that something was missing.
"Uh?" At first, he had no clue, until he started turning his head left and right, swiftly. He scratched his head with his left index finger, trying to figure out what was missing. "Was I missing something?"
"Oh, you're finally awake." said a familiar voice.
"Huh?" Inosuke heard a voice and turned left to see Zenitsu holding a boar mask in his hands. "You..." Something had clicked within his mind. His boar mask. And Zenitsu was holding it. Inosuke quickly became irritated and gritted his teeth. "You..." He slowly got up out of comical rage. His eyes were pupil less, his body was surrounded by a thin layer of red aura. "Mask stealer...! Who gave you permission to steal my mask, huh?"
"N-no! I wasn't trying to steal your mask! I-I decided to wash it, because it smells!" Zenitsu quickly responded, as he begun to get scared as Inosuke was about to approach him. He took a few steps back.
"How dare you... insult my mask, huh!?" Inosuke started chasing Inosuke in a fit of rage. He chased Zenitsu with his katanas held in the air. He chased Zenitsu like a wild angry boar.
"What is wrong with you!?" Zenitsu asked, while comically running in a fast pace.
"You stealing my mask! That's what's wrong with me!" Inosuke responded, while chasing Zenitsu at a fast pace.
"Oh no! He's up and angry!" Zenitsu screamed as he ran with Inosuke's furry mask in his arms. He held the mask up in the air, over his head.
"Gimme back my mask!" Inosuke yelled.
"Natsu! Help!" Zenitsu begged for Natsu to help as he tried to run away from Inosuke.
Meanwhile, Natsu was meditating by a small stream in the woods. His eyes were closed, his legs were in a crisscross position. He inhaled an amount of oxygen for five, then exhaled right after. He continued this routine for two hours straight, and is still going strong. Natsu was currently practicing his Total Concentration Breathing in a specific pattern to enhance his physical and mental prowess.
Things sounded peacefully, until a screaming noise was coming from less than a yard away.
"Natsu! Save me!" Zenitsu spotted Natsu meditating by a stream.
"Get back here with my mask, before I make one out of your face!" Inosuke growled as he chased Zenitsu around.
"No! Don't make a mask out of my face! I like my face-aaah!" Zenitsu screamed as he ran behind Natsu for protection.
"Huh?" Inosuke spotted Natsu by a stream as well. As soon as Inosuke had made it to a stream, he stopped running after Zenitsu and turned to Natsu, who looked like he was sitting. He looked and saw Natsu breathing weird.
"You. Redhead." Inosuke pointed down at Natsu, who then stopped his Total Concentration Breathing technique for a moment. "Just what do you think you're you doing?"
Natsu opened one of his eyes and saw Inosuke Hashibara standing over him. "Oh. Hello, Inosuke." Natsu greeted.
"Don't you, "Oh. Hello, Inosuke" me! I want to ask what you are doing! But first, how do you know my name? I haven't even told you!"
"I read it off your waistbands." Natsu answered. "I kind of have a question." A question had hit Natsu's brain.
"What?"
"How do you write your name, Inosuke?" Natsu asked, curiously.
"White?! Uh, I can't read or write!" Inosuke admitted. "Now answer my question! Why are you sitting here, breathing like a moron!?" Inosuke mocked Natsu, by huffing and puffing heavily.
"Breathing like a moron? That's not a nice compliment." Natsu mentioned.
"Who cares what it is! Just tell me what you're doing!"
Natsu lightly sighed. "Alright. I'll tell you." He stood up and brushed off some dirt off his pants. "You see. I'm practicing my Total Concentration Breathing."
"Total Conce-what?" Inosuke was lost.
"Total Concentration Breathing. It's when... well... I can't explain it like my older brother, but I'll try to put it where you can understand..."
"Put it in what way?" Inosuke felt little impatient.
"Total Concentration Breathing. The more you breath in a special way, the stronger you'll get. Both body and mind."
"Wait, so all I have to do is breath like a moron and I'll suddenly get stronger?!" Inosuke asked with excitement.
"I wouldn't call it breathing like a moron... but it's not-"
"I'm gonna try it!"
"Wait! It's not that simple...!" Natsu tried to warn Inosuke.
"Done listening. I'm gonna try it out, now!" Inosuke ignored Natsu's warning and quickly sat down. He put himself in crisscross and tried to imitate Natsu.
"Wait, do you even know how to do it?" Zenitsu asked in concern.
"Sure I do! I just gotta sit down, cross my legs, close my eyes and..." Inosuke inhaled some air. Within three seconds, Inosuke choked up. His face was blue, eyes nearly popped and kind of looked like he was giving an allergic reaction. "Ack! Ack!" Inosuke quickly clutched his chest in pain as he huffed. He soon collapsed on his back. He huffed heavily as he could feel his entire body in hurting, his eyes nearly rolled in the back of his head.
"Are you okay?" Zenitsu asked a nearly unconscious Inosuke. "What was that just now?" Zenitsu asked.
"I was trying to tell Inosuke using Total Concentration isn't easy. It's going to take time and effort to master the technique." Natsu told Zenitsu.
"Natsu. Have you mastered it? Total Concentration Breathing?" Zenitsu asked.
"No. Not yet." Natsu shook his head no. "I still have to practice my Total Concentration like everyone else. Whenever I have time at home, I try to practice it morning, noon and night. But since we're taking the Final Selection Exams, I can't use Total Concentration at night. Demons can attack at any moment the sun is down."
"Oh. No wonder you're practicing Total Concentration, now." Zenitsu smiled. "Tell me. What was it like, when you first tried Total Concentration Breathing?"
"Oh, the first time I tried using the technique? I nearly croaked." Natsu said, bluntly.
"W-what?" Zenitsu paused.
"Yeah. I was eight years old when I first tried it, unexperienced. Back then, my lungs were hurting, my head wouldn't stop shaking, my eardrums were pounding like drums. It felt like I was having a heart attack. My older brother had to come and save me." Natsu noted his first time attempting to use Total Concentration, as he explained what it felt like to Zenitsu.
"That sound super scary! Why would anyone in there right mind want to go through that kind of torture!?" Zenitsu shrieked.
"I know it sounds rough, but it'll make you stronger, both physically and mentally."
"If you continue to practice the technique, morning, noon and night with others, you'll get better. And later, you'll be able to master it. I guarantee it." Natsu placed a hand on Zenitsu's shoulder and smiled.
"Natsu? Do you know anyone who's mastered Total Concentration?" Zenitsu asked.
"Yeah. My older brother, Kyojuro and my father. And the Hashira." Natsu answered.
Zenitsu looked down a bit. "Well, if that's the case," Zenitsu gripped his fist and looked up at Natsu with new confidents. "I want to get stronger, too! I want to get married and protect my future wife!"
"That's the spirit!" Natsu chuckled.
"Urrrgh," Zenitsu groaned as he lied on the floor. He raised his arm in the air, catching both Natsu and Zenitsu's attention. The pain within Inosuke's body had gently eased. "Don't forget about me, too... I want to get stronger, too... I still want my rematch later on with you."
Natsu smiled down at Inosuke, then helped him up slowly back on his feet. "Alright. Let's all get stronger, together. We're going to pass the exam and become the strongest Demon Slayers there are!" Natsu raised a fist in the air.
"Woo-hoo!" Zenitsu jumped up in excitement.
"Yeah..." Inosuke weakly chanted, feeling a little dizzy.
So on and so forth, the three future Demon Slayers had agreed to work together throughout the remaining six days within Mount Fujikasane. During the mornings, they would continue to practice Total Concentration and attempt to push their bodies and minds to the. Of course, Zenitsu and Inosuke struggled, due to being beginners. But they chose not to give up in the slightest. In the afternoons, they find food and would rest their bodies, so that they could prepare themselves for upcoming demons. And at night, they would work together and fight off minor demons. As they traveled around, they had found no living contestants, during their time on Mount Fujikasane.