It has been a few hours since Hiroyuki's mother had passed away. The sun was setting and almost completely engulfed by a huge mountain looming over Hiroyuki and Gyomei.
The place was getting darker and made things harder to see. Luckily for Hiroyuki who was nervous being so far from home, Gyomei knew they were already nearing his place after he sensed a set of steps ahead of them.
Hiroyuki was holding Gyomei's hand tightly and anxiously said. "Uhh.. Himejima-sensei, are we there yet?"
Gyomei nodded and said. "Oh we are already here, it's up the steps just ahead of us." Gyomei held Hiroyuki's hand firmly while smiling at him.
Above the steps, a tall temple was standing in front of them. A waterfall connected to a river not so far from the temple. Sounds of water streaming and splashing onto rocks was relaxing to the mind. The temple's ground was spacious enough for people to visit and stay.
Hiroyuki was gaping with amazement. "wooaaah.. this is a really cool place Himejima-sensei!"
"Do you like it Yuuto-kun?" Gyomei said while being amused after seeing Hiroyuki's reaction.
"Yup! I really do.. but.." Hiroyuki responded excitedly but then started to doubt his feelings after remembering his mother.
Gyomei sensed Hiroyuki was feeling guilty. He must have been feeling guilty after leaving his mother back at their place, he thought. Gyomei kneeled down on one knee and grabbed Hiroyuki's shoulders softly.
"Hiroyuki-kun, I only could imagine what you're going through but I need you to know that I am always here for you. Always supporting you." Gyomei said while having a heartwarming smile on his face.
Hiroyuki feeling reassured, he leaped into Gyomei and hugged him. "Thank you sensei!"
Gyomei was surprised and did not expected it. Gyomei has not felt this for a quite a while causing a little tear to fall down his cheeks. He was glad and embraced Hiroyuki even more. Gyomei may be a giant, but he was the gentlest giant Hiroyuki has ever met. "Let's get in, wouldn't want you to catch a cold do we?"
Hiroyuki nodded and went into the temple with Gyomei.
Inside the temple, there were plenty of white cat statues scattered around with different sizes. Each statue was sitting on its back and had one paw raised to its head while the other paw was on the floor.
Hiroyuki was confused and assumed that Gyomei had some type of collection going on. "uhh... Himejima-sensei do you like cats or something?" Hiroyuki said while having a poker face.
Gyomei laughed softly and said. "Yup! cats are peaceful beings and plus these statues are lucky charms." Gyomei said and went into his normal stance while mumbling.
Maintaining the same expression, Hiroyuki was still looking around the interior admiring the number of statues that Gyomei had. He stopped himself when he saw an actual cat with it's fur white as snow sleeping on one of the statues.
"That's Shiro, he is the only I have. Found him at a village nearby. He likes to sleep a lot." Gyomei said while sitting down with his legs inside a kotatsu. "let's warm ourselves here Yuuto-kun" He invited Hiroyuki to sit down beside him.
Hiroyuki was feeling cozy when he sat down, he could feel like sleeping there after their long walk from his place. But one thing seems to be bothering him, he couldn't help but wonder. Hmm Himejima-sensei's eyes are fully white but it couldn't be.., he thought while second guessing himself.
Hiroyuki bravely asked Gyomei. "Himejima-sensei, why are your eyes completely white?" Trying his best not to sound rude to Gyomei.
"I am actually blind" Gyomei replied with a blank stare.
Hiroyuki was in disbelief. He recalled his moments with Gyomei during their long walk. I could have gotten hurt if he didn't warned me of the dangers infront of us. Hiroyuki still couldn't imagine how can this huge towering man can be so muscular and blind at the same time.
"Something wrong Yuuto-kun?" Gyomei said after noticing he was being quiet for quite a while.
Hiroyuki was feeling guilty after realising he may had made Gyomei upset with his reaction. "No, nothing at all! It's just you don't feel like a blind person."
Gyomei gave a light tap onto Hiroyuki's head. "It's alright, it's not the first time people were surprise like you."
"So.. uhh.. how did you do it Himejima-sensei?" Hiroyuki said to Gyomei.
Gyomei raised his finger as an attempt to catch Hiroyuki's attention and continued to explain. "I had to listen to the sound and visualize the object in my mind. By focusing on the sound it helped me to know the exact position of it."
Hiroyuki was easily amazed by Gyomei's achievements, making him stare in awe as if he just saw a mythical creature. Hiroyuki now feeling more curious, he shook his head back and forth as an effort to return to the subject at hand.
"What do you actually do?" Hiroyuki eyes were sparkling waiting for his response he wouldn't imagine of.
"Well we have to go further back of how I started to the things I do right now." Gyomei staring at Hiroyuki who was all ears. Gyomei smiled half-heartedly and started to recall his past.
Listening to Gyomei telling his story when he cared for nine children in a temple only for it to end up in a massacre with only one child surviving. One child sold them out to a demon to save his own life.
Gyomei managed to kill the demon but was later accused because there was a misunderstanding between the villagers and the surviving child. Gyomei was later to be executed but was saved by Ubuyashiki Kagaya, the current leader of the Demon Corps.
"Not long after that, I joined the Demon Slayer Corps and became the Stone Pillar." Gyomei said.
Hiroyuki was feeling bad for Gyomei. Himejima-sensei really went through a lot, it explains why he is alone in this place. But.. what makes me so special though.. it should be hard for him to trust people now. But he chose to trust and even open up to me instead.
Hiroyuki stared at Gyomei while holding his sleeve. "No worries Himejima-sensei! I will follow your orders no matter what." Hiroyuki said with full dedication while beating his chest.
Gyomei's raised his eyebrows and went speechless when he heard Hiroyuki said those words. Gyomei simply nodded and smiled at Hiroyuki. "Thank you Yuuto-kun, I am glad to have met you"
Hiroyuki stood up tall and bowed with his arms on his sides to Gyomei. "Himejima-sensei! Please teach me what it means to become a demon slayer."
Gyomei was impressed at Hiroyuki. Yuuto-kun.. even when losing your mother you still have the courage to keep fighting at a young age, he thought.
"Sure.. but you will have to wait". Gyomei was pointing towards outside hinting it was already close to midnight. "We will start your training tomorrow, for now let's get some rest."
It was now a couple hours later after Hiroyuki last talked with Gyomei. The sun was rising causing the dark sky to turn into bright blue. Birds were chirping and the soothing sound of the waterfall playing outside of the temple.
Hiroyuki was starting to wake up with a drool stain on his cheek. He sat down straight and was feeling drowsy. He stretched and let out a long yawn. He then wiped his cheeks with his sleeves and started to fold his futon. He placed the futon into a closet and went outside to find Gyomei.
The temple was quiet, Hiroyuki only could hear the sound of the waterfall and leaves swaying against each other. He went to check out Gyomei's room but no one was there. Himejima-sensei is probably somewhere by the waterfall, he is not in the temple, he pondered while making his way towards the waterfall.
Gyomei was sitting cross legged on a round flat stone just under a tree nearby the waterfall. He was praying and mumbling until he noticed Hiroyuki was going down the stairs. "Ah, Ohayo Yuuto-kun."
Hiroyuki waved at Gyomei and smiled. "Ohayooo Himejima-sensei"
"Are you ready for training?". Gyomei stares at Hiroyuki from the stone.
"Yeah!" Hiroyuki said while waiting for Gyomei's instructions excitedly.
Gyomei nodded at Hiroyuki and said. "Now I want you to stand under the waterfall with your legs bent down and maintain it until I say so."
Hiroyuki was puzzled and pondered on what could he had achieve by staying under the waterfall. He confidently dipped his foot into the water without a second thought and immediately regretted his choice of words. He forced his way towards the waterfall ignoring he got chilled to the bone.
Hiroyuki could barely stand on his knees, the heavy pressure from the flow of water made it difficult. His legs were shaking trying his best not to fall and his body was trembling of being cold. Once he noticed his breathe was becoming rapid, he then realized what went wrong.
He controlled his breathe , taking in deep breathes and letting it out with a rhythm. He focused his best on breathing while ignoring the fact he was under constant pressure. Hiroyuki was now in a much relaxed state. He was now enjoying the sound of water flowing, it made him felt peaceful. He was now lost in the sound of nature around him, he didn't realise that time already flew by.
"Well done, now onto the next one" Gyomei said while moving towards the next training.
Hiroyuki was surprised that the first training was already done. It felt like only a few minutes but actually the sun was at it's highest while he was under the waterfall. He then followed Gyomei from behind to the next spot.
Hiroyuki was now carrying a log on his shoulders while Gyomei was sitting on the end of the stairs playing a flute. Hiroyuki was doing so well until he added a second log and lifted it. Bunch of veins on his neck and forehead popped up. He felt like his heart was going to burst when he decided to lift another log after the second.
He releases the logs causing them to fall and tumble behind him. Hiroyuki was panting and his heartbeat was going crazy. His vision was shaky and he could barely even stand up straight. He wanted to pushed onward and continue his training while ignoring the constant aching of his body.
Hiroyuki was now standing in front of a stone. The stone was massive, almost three times his size. How am I suppose to push this through town and back here, he thought. He tried his hardest but still failed to move the stone and was wondering what was he lacking.
The sun was almost setting, Hiroyuki was now sitting with his back against the stone while Gyomei was spectating quietly from a distance behind a tree. Hiroyuki was starting to feel sleepy. He looked at the orange sky and thought of his mother while his eyelids were getting heavy. Okaa-san would give me an earful for training so hard, he imagined.
Hiroyuki's eyes were now completely shut. He was now reliving the last moments he had with his mother in his dreams. The space around him was all white and it seem endless in his eyes.
His body was floating and it felt light as a feather. As he floated, his body phased through shards of
memories that he shared with his mother but it was all blurred and it went past him too quickly for him to understand what was happening.
He was unable to think clearly until Hiroyuki was stopped dead in his tracks when he saw a shard showing that same promise he made to his mother. From that moment, he realized what he needed to do. Of course.. I just need to put my heart into it, he thought while memorizing the promise but stopped when a splash of liquid got into his face causing him to close his eyes.
As soon as he opened his eyes, he noticed he was now back at the waterfall. He was laying down with his upper half soaked wet while Gyomei was standing beside him with an empty bucket in his hand. Ah.. so it was just a dream, he thought while getting back onto his feet slowly.
Gyomei stared at Hiroyuki and said, "Sorry, I was worried. I think we should stop for tonight..." He wanted to continue talking but stopped after seeing Hiroyuki going for another try. Gyomei was surprised with the amount of sheer will coming from Hiroyuki.
Hiroyuki's whole body was shaking but he forced his way through the exhaustion. Focusing his mind on the feelings he had when he remembered that memory. His emotions were running high and his body felt stronger. Both hands were pushing, veins were popping out of his arms and finally he managed to budge the stone. He kept on repeating the same action, by putting the emotions to heart and pushed the stone bit by bit.
The sky was filled with stars and the moon was shining bright. Hiroyuki was now on his knees while hugging the stone. His body felt like jelly and could barely keep his head up. Finally.. I did it.., he thought while feeling very accomplished. Hiroyuki was slowly succumbing to slumber, but he didn't care all he wanted was to rest.
Gyomei approached Hiroyuki and went down on one knee. He smiled at Hiroyuki while giving a pat to the back. "You did well Yuuto-kun, your mother would be proud of you."
Hiroyuki only managed to respond with a small nod, smiling while his eyes were almost closed. He wasn't sure of what did Gyomei said, but he could tell that Gyomei was happy. Hiroyuki was now asleep, his face against the stone. Hiroyuki looked like he hasn't sleep for days.
Gyomei sighed and then chuckled. He carefully lifted Hiroyuki into his arms. Gyomei carried him back to the temple and walked slowly as he could. Once they arrived at Hiroyuki's room, He slowly opened the door. Gyomei then helped with changing Hiroyuki's clothes and wiped all the sweat and dirt off his body. Gyomei prepared a futon and gently tucked Hiroyuki into bed.
Gyomei was now on his knees praying for Hiroyuki. He looked at the sleeping boy and smiled. You did very well Hiroyuki-kun, he thought. He got up onto his feet and went to the door. He took one last look of Hiroyuki and then shook his head while smirking. "I am really grateful to have met you, Yuuto-kun." Gyomei said softly. The door was closed carefully and Hiroyuki was still sleeping peacefully.
A month has passed since Hiroyuki's first day of training. Since then he had been training daily and taking enough rests in order to grow. Today was the day to find out if he could handle a sword.
The sun was almost setting, Hiroyuki was now training in the front yard of the temple. He was wielding a wooden sword and there was a wooden figurine two steps ahead of him. It's been hours since he started slashing the figurine. His movements were clumsy and rushed. He sat down and wanted to take a moment to think why couldn't he use the sword properly.
Where's Himejima-sensei when you need him.. he's been missing since noon, he thought while sighing.
Hiroyuki's pondering was interrupted when he heard a loud thud coming from behind. He turned his head slightly backwards and saw a wooden box. Where did this come from? He thought while looking around him. He spotted Gyomei sitting on the stairs of the temple. Hiroyuki waited for Gyomei to say something but he remained silent.
Hiroyuki felt confused and was scratching his head."Um.. Himejima-sensei, is this for me?"
Gyomei simply nodded and asks Hiroyuki to open it.
Hiroyuki stared at Gyomei while maintaining a poker face and slowly moving his view onto the box. He decided to lift the box onto his lap and opened it. He saw two blades with a handle and a strap on each. Hiroyuki inspected the weapon and tried them on. The hilt was in his hands and the strap just before his elbow while the blade was facing away from his body.
He rotates his arms to have a better look at the weapon. The blades were slightly curved and longer than his forearm. Hiroyuki was felling more optimistic when wearing them and knew he was capable of doing more with it. He stood once more and went back into stance confidently.
Hioyuki focused his eyes onto the neck of the figurine and went for a quick jab just nearly missing it. His movements were more controlled and his strike was sharp as well. The blade went through making a clean slice forcing the head to fall backwards just as what he intended.
Hiroyuki then bowed towards Gyomei showing his gratitude.
"Those weapons will serve you well Yuuto-kun" Gyomei said but deep down he wasn't so sure. The weapon demands for it's user to get up close and personal, this would mean trouble for Yuuto-kun if he was confronted by one of the Twelve Demon Moons, Gyomei thought and then shook his head to stop himself from imagining.
Gyomei stared at Hiroyuki. "Yuuto-kun, your fighting style is powerful but it forces you to get up close." Gyomei said with a strict voice. "You will need your own form and maybe even a new breath style to give you an advantage."
Hiroyuki eyes narrowed and Gyomei's words made him lost. "Uh.. What's a breath style?"
"Swordmanship styles that we Demon slayers use to fight equally with demons."
"But Himejima-sensei how do I even know what's right for me?"
Hiroyuii was now looking at the ground with a face full of worry. Can I even do one form, let alone my own breath style?
Gyomei approached Hiroyuki and went onto his knee. He gripped Hiroyuki's shoulder firmly. "Find a form that matches with your fighting style, and be aware of it's weaknesses. You may not be a swordsman but you still can be a Demon Slayer.
Hiroyuki sighed with a smile. "Thank you Himejima-sensei." He looked and smiled at Gyomei feeling grateful.
"That's enough for today, let's have a feast for how far you gotten now Yuuto-kun."
Hiroyuki smiled with his teeth showing and nodded with delight. They both stood up and headed back to the temple to celebrate Hiroyuki's progress.
Gyomei slowly approached the temple while Hiroyuki was already there waiting. In his mind, he never believed that he would be so close to a child not after what happened in his past. He thought of him as a his own little brother. A little tear fell but Hiroyuki didn't notice. He looked at Hiroyuki and felt thankful.
Five months had past since Hiroyuki first received his weapon. He had continuously been through tough and dire situations when training ever since and still prevailed. At the center of the temple, Hiroyuki and Gyomei were just finishing their lunch.
Gyomei was eating while staring Hiroyuki who was too busy enjoying his bowl of ramen. Gyomei shook his head and placed his chopsticks down onto the kotatsu. "Hiroyuki-kun." Gyomei waited for a response from him.
Hiroyuki lowered his bowl slowly and directing his attention to Gyomei. "Yes Hiroshima-sen.."
"Please Hiroyuki-kun, we talked about this."
"I am sorry Gyomei-sensei, I didn't want to be rude."
"It's fine." Gyomei nodded.
Hiroyuki smiled happily. "What was it you wanted to talk about Gyomei-sensei?"
"I believe you're ready to be a Demon Slayer."
Hiroyuki was surprised. "Really? What do I have to do now?!" He said but didn't realize his voice was loud because of his excitement. Both of palms were on the table while he waited for Gyomei's answer enthusiastically.
Gyomei had a quick laugh at his reaction. "Patience, your journey will start tomorrow. Head to the nearest village and meet an old man who owns a carriage. He will help you get to the Final Selection"
I understand, Thank you Gyomei-sensei." Hiroyuki wanted to continue eating his bowl of ramen but was interrupted by Gyomei.
"One more thing, Hiroyuki-kun." Gyomei said while raising his index finger. "Come back home safely."
Hiroyuki bobbed his head and grinned cheerfully. "I will Gyomei-sensei"
Author's note
Hey, Ani here.
So I wanted to build Hiroyuki and Gyomei's relationship into a more deeper connection in this one. So give me your thoughts about it!
Once again thank you for reading :)