Kagami and Tanjiro entered the hospital ward to see Inosuke and Zenitsu sulking on their beds. They sat and laid quietly, their heads dropped low to their chests, and shadows creased their faces. She knew, they all knew, that training was going to be agonizing and excruciating. Not just physically, but spiritually and mentally as well. To have thought they were one of the strongest Demon Slayers for surviving against not just one but two members of the Twelve Kizuki really made them overconfident. Kagami did single-handedly defeat a former Twelve Kizuki but... it was more than likely not a real accomplishment of itself.
Still though, Inosuke and Zenitsu were beating themselves up way too hard. They can't discredit what they've done just because they couldn't defeat a couple other Demon Slayers. It should be made a goal to grow, to learn, and to become stronger in order to finally finish training. But those two were really depressed about it.
"Why don't you come back to training, Inosuke?" Kagami asked him as she and Tanjiro stood by his bed but got no reply.
Tanjiro sighed, "Sulking and feeling sorry for yourself won't do you any good. Zenitsu, you should come, too!"
Zenitsu jumped out of bed and looked out his open window. She could hear birds chirping and see butterflies swarming the garden with the bright sun beaming down on the earth. He basked it in, a smile on his face, speaking happily, "Well, those were good times for me!... Just tell them my injury's gotten worse!" Then, he bounced out of the room, much to their dismay, dreamily speaking, "Hey there, Kakushi lady! Would you like to have some tea with me?"
Kagami and Tanjiro groaned to themselves and decided to leave the two alone for now. If they were adamant on staying in bed and losing what muscle they had left, she wasn't going to waste her breath. She needed to train and focus on practicing Total Concentration Breathing nonstop... even if it'll be extremely painful.
Sitting on a large boulder in the garden, Kagami placed her softly clenched fists on her knees, tilted her head up, and began to breathe deeply in and out using the Total Concentration Breathing. She needed to focus on the technique and breathing correctly. She thought she'd start by doing it every morning, noon, and night, but doing it while she slept was the tricky part. Trying to do it around the clock without thinking about it, to let her body do it naturally, was way harder than she thought. She didn't realize how much she needed to concentrate!
Also, she forgot how extremely agonizing it was!
She fell off the boulder and plummeted to the ground but the pain wasn't even close to what was striking through her body! A yelp, scream, or gasp couldn't even fall from her lips! Even though she was breathing, it felt like the wind was knocked right out of her! Performing Total Concentration longer than usual made her feel like she was going to die! Her lungs hurt, her ears hurt and were ringing like crazy, and she thought her heart was going to burst out of her chest! No, not from her chest! Her ears! She thought they were going to burst out of her ears and destroy her eardrums! Or... did they already burst?!
"AH!" Kagami screamed and tightly pressed her hands to her ears. Then, she brought them to her eyes, frantically searching for any droplets of blood. When she saw none, it didn't still any fear or stop the tears from flowing out of her eyes. "Come on, get it together me!" She screamed at herself and stood shakily to her feet.
She retook her place on top of the boulder and closed her eyes, focusing on her lungs. Perhaps the reason why they hurt so much and she couldn't get the hang of it was they were too weak. Her lungs are one of the most vital components of fighting, moving, breathing, and living. In order to master nonstop Total Concentration Breathing, she needed to work harder! It was the only thing she could do at that point; building the strength of her lungs to the point where she could perform the breathing technique without a thought. One step at a time.
Taking a small break, Kagami and Tanjiro ate rice balls together as Kiyo, Fuji, Sumi, and Naho brought out a few caramel-colored gourds from inside the mansion. They explained what they needed to do with them.
"Blow into these gourds?" Tanjiro repeated curiously.
Kiyo nodded her head. "Yeah! When she was training Lord Karasuma and Lady Kanao, Lady Shinobu often had them blow into gourds."
"Wow, that's really neat," Kagami gasped taking a bite of her rice ball. "Does the gourd make some kind of special sound to know when you've reached your limit?"
The four girls giggled at her assessment and shook their heads. "Oh, no," Fuji giggled. "They blew into it and made the gourd go all kaboom!"
"Wow," Kagami and Tanjiro smiled taking another bite of their rice balls... but almost choked on it. Something clicked in their heads late at Fuji's words and their eyes landed heavily on the gourds. "Kaboom?" They gasped out. "Wait, you mean they made this thing explode?! Something... this hard?" They gasped out again tapping a finger against the hard shell.
"That's right!" Naho smiled. "Not to mention, this is a special kind of gourd, so it's harder than normal ones."
For Karasuma to blow the gourd until they exploded wasn't surprising. He was taller, stronger, older, and faster than she could ever be. With those traits, it was seemed kind of an expected outcome. But for Kanao?! Kagami is not one to underestimate women and the hidden powers or talents they possessed, but it was very surprising! Kanao was smaller and more petite than her, and looked so delicate at the same time! And she was able to burst one of the special hard gourds?!
"The gourds get bigger and bigger as you progress. The one that Lord Karasuma and Lady Kanao can burst right now... is this one right here!" Naho gestured to a gourd that was half the size of Kagami! Maybe even taller!
"It's huge!" Kagami and Tanjiro screamed in sheer shock but clenched their fists tightly. "I'll give it a shot!"
After practicing Total Concentration Breathing all afternoon and night, the next day Kagami and Tanjiro showed up alone again to Rehabilitation Training. Inosuke and Zenitsu were still adamant on skipping so they just left them in bed. After more rounds of excruciating training with Karasuma and Kanao, and losing every single one like usual, Kagami and Tanjiro went back to their normal routine of physical training and added Total Concentration Breathing to it.
They began to run Mr. Urokodaki's training drills that he had pounded into them in the garden. They swung wooden swords through the air 1,000 times just like they practiced and raced around the garden like they were descending a mountain back at Mr. Urokodaki's, with all the obstacles as stand-ins for the trees on the mountain! They ran across the dirt, weaved in and out of the trees, took one large leap over the pond, and jumped high on the fence surrounding the property. Running along the top, she and Tanjiro continued training even as Aoi, Kiyo, Fuji, Sumi, and Naho watched. They even used large rocks to lift and strengthen the muscles on their arms!
Kagami and Tanjiro even took up sparring against each other using shinais she had found. They exchanged blows, the hard bamboo grass clacking and thumping harshly against one another, and tried to disarm or touch the other's to symbolize the end of the match. All the while, throughout their entire training, they continued Total Concentration Breathing making their match and sparring that much difficult.
After 15 days of excruciating painful training that lasted from morning to sunset, Kagami had regained most of her strength and stamina. She was able to run further than before, and her lungs were getting stronger, too! It means she's been doing the right training; covering long distances as well as working out her lungs with swift moves. Then, as she sat on the boulder in the garden during the night, she'd take slow deep breaths and send the air all the way to her fingertips. Meditation improves concentration. She knew this because Mr. Urokodaki taught her, but just thinking about him made her sad. Then, her mind drifted over to Watanabe, her sword-maker.
Kagami felt horrible knowing Watanabe was crafting her a new Nichirin Sword after it broke in Mount Natagumo. Even though the woman said it was fine, she still pleaded for her forgiveness.
Ugh, she was losing focus! She needed to concentrate!
"Hello."
Kagami gasped and her eyes flew open hearing a voice from beside her.
She whipped her head around and saw Karasuma sitting quietly beside her. He gazed down at a purple butterfly sitting delicately on his finger and didn't move a muscle, not when she looked curiously at him. Then, he slowly lifted his eyes to hers. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," He quietly spoke again. His voice was so soft, gentle, and didn't sound like he had ever raised it before at something or someone.
"It's all right," Kagami smiled shaking her head. "I didn't expect anyone to be awake at this time."
Karasuma guided his hand in the air and the butterfly took off into the sky. They watched it flutter gently in the air before disappearing into the night. "I've been observing you and Tanjiro over the past couple weeks. You've been training hard to master Total Concentration, Constant, to build your endurance, stamina, and lung capacity. That's a magnificent feat itself. I'm sure you will master it in no time," He spoke softly to her moving from their shared boulder. "I'll let you get back to meditation. I will see you tomorrow at the training room."
"Hey, Karasuma," Kagami quickly spoke.
He turned around and gazed at her curiously.
"Do you know why Lady Kocho, your older sister, brought all of us here? She didn't need to, and didn't have to, but she did. I was just wondering why," She asked him with a slight shrug.
Karasuma took a couple steps towards the small pond laying beside them. The blue waters shimmered lightly under the bright moonlight, the waters lapping gently against one another, and reflected their bodies. "You were all severely injured and there was no safer place for Nezuko Kamado than here. It's very much like my sister to help others around her, no matter if they were human or demon. It's her dream to befriend the demons and she believes Tanjiro is the key to achieving it," He explained picking up small pebbles and skipping it across the calm waters.
"Lady Kocho wants to... befriend demons?" Kagami asked him surprised.
"Yes but... it wasn't always her dream. It belonged to someone else," He quietly mumbled dropping his head. He skipped another pebble across the waters, speaking, "My sister is always angry even with that smile on her face. I can tell she tries to hide it from Kanao and I, but it's always there. It's been... a long time since the constant state of anger she is in had dissipated for just a moment. She hasn't been genuinely happy, not since our elder sister was slaughtered by a demon. Seeing and hearing those mourn over loved ones killed by demons, their cries of despair, it builds the anger up inside of her more and more. I... am afraid of what's going to happen to her."
Kagami listened with a soft and aching heart. The older boy who always kept an expressionless but curious look on his face, greeting everything with the small upward quirk of his lips making no noise or sound, looked so... lonely. His eyes dropped to the waters, his shoulders slouching forward slightly, and skipped another rock across the waters.
"I'm sorry... about what happened to your sister," Kagami sadly said in the silence. Then, she asked just as soft, "What was... she like?"
Karasuma slowly lifted his head up to the moon. His eyes shimmered and wavered but a small grin spread on his lips. A look of adoration and amazement flickered across when he gently spoke, "Her name was Kanae, and she was the most kindhearted, good-nature, and easygoing person I knew. No matter where she went, she always had a gentle smile on her face. She even had sympathy for demons. When she was on the brink of death, she still felt pity for them. Her dream was to live peacefully side by side with them, and it never changed. Not for a moment." He clenched his fists suddenly, darkness creasing his face, and nearly spat, "I can't bring myself to feel the same way. Even though Nezuko Kamado is a rare exception, and I won't dare lay a hand on her, I can't feel sympathy for creatures who've killed humans. But Kanae truly felt it in her heart it could be accomplished. It's our duty as her siblings to carry on her will. If there's a way to avoid killing them, we must keep trying to find it."
The ache in her heart hardened seeing the tears that threatened to fall from his eyes at the mere memory of the sister he loved and lost years ago. She knew exactly how he felt. With the lost of her father only a few years ago, she understood too well about the feelings of lost, loneliness, and sorrow he was feeling at that moment.
"It kind of feels silly shedding tears over someone you're not exactly related to by blood," Karasuma chuckled softly.
Kagami's eyes widened slightly. "Wait, you're not all related?" She asked curiously.
Putting a hand to his chest, he answered, "Kanao is my baby sister by blood but we were adopted by Kanae and Shinobu when we were young. That... is a story for a different time. Perhaps another day when I show you the Book of the Dragon Hashira."
"Book of the Dragon Hashira? My mother left something behind here?" Kagami gasped loudly in shock.
He nodded his head. "Yes, I found it in the archives and believed it was something you would be interested in reading. I'll bring it to you soon after training."
"Yes! Yes, please!" Kagami smiled nodding her head.
Karasuma smiled down at her and gently spoke, "I'll see you tomorrow. By the way, you've stopped your Total Concentration Breathing."
Kagami groaned and cursed at herself for stopping. Again, her body didn't let it happen naturally as she hoped it would at some point. The moment she took a large deep breath in, Karasuma's figure immediately disappeared. He might've been strange, mysterious, and quiet, but he held silent anger inside of him just like Lady Kocho. He didn't look it but he was an open book, willingly answering all of her questions with a small smile. Perhaps because he was lonely. Perhaps he never had a friend to talk to about such horrors. She couldn't imagine what he had went through in his childhood.
Shaking her head free of her thoughts, Kagami was dead set on her goals. She was determined now more than ever to get stronger, master Total Concentration, Constant, and turn Nezuko back into a human. She realized that finding a cure, a hope, would bring many people happiness once again.
She wasn't the only one fully determined. She and Tanjiro gathered the help of Kiyo, Fuji, Sumi, and Naho and gave them each carpet beaters. They were going to practice Total Concentration, Constant, and do it in their sleep! If they were to stop for any reason, the four were granted permission to beat them awake! They were excited to help and seemed happy they were asked for their assistance. Their help was valuable.
The first night... wasn't easy and extremely painful.
Kagami gasped, choked, and screamed at the constant beating of the carpet beaters smacking into her body. She lost count at how many times the four girls had to hit her awake in order for her to continue Total Concentration, Constant, but her abdomen knew it was an almost good dozen times.
The next day at training, Kagami continued using the breathing technique even though it burned every part of her body. When she did pull ups, climbing, push-ups with Fuji sitting on her back, she never stopped using Total Concentration. She was beginning to get used to it while training hard. She did notice it didn't nearly hurt as much as it did in the beginning. She was able to train longer than she was normally used to. Although, she still couldn't maintain it all day unless she put in the extra effort and got herself pumped up! Even so, the longer she continued doing it, the greater her stamina became!
All morning, she'd train in the training room with Karasuma. All afternoon she'd train in the garden. At dusk, she'd meditate and focus on her lungs. Then, at night, she'd focus on sleeping while maintaining the breathing technique. It was a routine she drilled in her mind and body. No matter how much she ached or how much she was tired, she was going to reach her goals!
Then, one day during full-body training with Karasuma, she almost won.
When she was the tagger, Kagami had noticed she was able to get closer to him, reacted faster when he dodged her hands, and chased him longer than she normally did. The gap between their bodies had gotten smaller and smaller! She had reached her hand out, her fingers aiming towards his broad shoulder, and jumped for it! But she didn't notice him side-stepping away from her. She yelped when she couldn't stop her momentum, her body crashing harshly into the wall of the room. She would've felt defeated but she was one step closer to winning!
Outside, Kagami stared determinedly down at the gourd in her hands and placed her lips around the tip. With every fiber, energy, and power she had in her body, she blew as hard as she could into it! Tanjiro, Kiyo, Fuji, Sumi, and Naho cheered her on, pumping their fists in the air, as she blew, blew, and blew! She thought her body was going to collapse, she felt her heart stop beating in her chest, and her head felt light when she didn't stop to inhale another breath! She was going to do it all in one and nothing would stop her! Not even the prospect of fainting on the ground!
CLINK!
Kagami gasped when the gourd in her hand shattered!
"I did it!" She screamed happily in the air.
"You did it!" Tanjiro and the four girls screamed alongside her as they jumped, cheered, and danced in their spots.
Naho quickly whipped out the gourd that was half the size of Kagami's body, speaking, "Now all you have to do is break this one!"
Kagami and Tanjiro had successfully made their tiny gourds explode and were one step closer to destroying the giant one! Now, she was more determined than ever to master the breathing technique! That small explosion was enough to light a gigantic flame in their bellies! What made them even happier was Inosuke and Zenitsu finally showing up to training again!
"Inosuke, you're here!" Kagami had exclaimed rushing to him with a smile.
That's when Kagami and Tanjiro learned Inosuke and Zenitsu wanted to learn Total Concentration, Constant. Tanjiro was more than happy to train with them and give them tips on how to gain control of their breathing, but Inosuke and Zenitsu's will looked like they completely faded. After trying to breathe for more than a few minutes, their bodies went rigid and they gave up so quickly. She understood their pain, it was exactly like that with her, but she didn't want them to give up after they made the effort to finally get out of bed.
Suddenly, Lady Kocho appeared behind her and Tanjiro, smiling widely and giggling, "Come now. We're talking about a basic skill, or should I say; a beginner's technique, so anyone should be able to do it. But it's also true that mastering it requires incredible effort." Then, she knelt in front of Inosuke and patted his shoulder roughly, tauntingly speaking, "Well, since just about anyone should be able to do it... I was sure it would be child's play for you, Inosuke. But it seems like you can't do it. Even though everyone else can? It can't be helped, then, if you can't do it. Can't be helped, and that's that!"
Kagami and Tanjiro watched with wide eyes as Lady Kocho kept smiling and smiling as she mocked Inosuke's pride. He looked like he was about ready to burst and did so when she finished speaking. "EXCUSE ME?!" He screamed harshly out loud. "Why do you think that?! I can do it, all right! Why wouldn't I?! Don't talk down to me, or else I'll rip off your breasts!"
A groan left Kagami and Tanjiro's mouth and they rubbed their faces in shame.
Lady Kocho then tenderly grabbed Zenitsu's hands and held them gently in hers. Unlike with Inosuke, she smiled warmly at him, her body radiating with a bright yellow light, as she giggled, "Please give it your all, Zenitsu! I'm your number one supporter!"
In an instant, Zenitsu's face went bright cherry red and his wide eyes landed shakily on Lady Kocho's hands holding his. Smoke billowed out of his ears and the largest smile she's ever seen spread across his face. He cheered loudly, "Yes, ma'am! WOOHOO!" pumping his arms in the air wildly as Lady Kocho continued smiling and giggling along.
Kagami and Tanjiro looked at each other with raised eyebrows... then shrugged. If it worked, it worked.
That day, Inosuke and Zenitsu began training hard. Kagami and Tanjiro trained them all they knew and gave them tips on how to properly utilize the breathing technique while training. They sparred, ran through the garden, and lifted heavy rocks again, again, and again. Over, over, and over again they trained Inosuke and Zenitsu hard into the ground for missing so many weeks worth of the Rehabilitation Training. It took a long time but they both knew the two would come around eventually.
Finally, all four of them can get back into shape and find a cure for Nezuko.