Sara had been through hell and back during her training in order to become a Demon Slayer.
Heck, training for with her own very human mentor felt like torture. He was strict and made her train until her hands bled. Worst hellhole ever. Or so she thought.
That was until she started her training with Kokushibo.
Thentruehell started.
The first day she was trained by him, she didn't even touch a sword. She just did cardio and breathing forms simultaneously as she ran and jumped. The session didn't stop until she threw up severely at least 5 times.
She expected something a bit different each day, but Kokushibo was merciless. He didn't deem her or her base stamina strong enough so, every single day for what felt like an eternity, she did this training. Same thing everyday, training didn't stop until Kokushibo indicated so. No matter her physical pain, no matter her throw-ups. Hell, no matter her period when she got it. She had topush through the pain. Even if she fainted, Kokushibo would wake her up to keep training.
During one of her nightly encounters with the Demon Prick, she was styling his hair with one of her hand-made plant-based gels. Each one of her muscles hurt as if she had been beaten up thoroughly on every inch of her body. Instead of closing his eyes, like he usually did, he was giving her what she could only describe as a mischievous look.
"You don't look so good" Kibutsuji grinned maliciously as he spoke. "Is Kokushibo being too harsh on the poor baby?"
Sara rolled her eyes while finger-styling his waves individually. "This baby is fine, she's ready for every and all training. You don't need to worry that much... Such a sweetheart" Her smile was sickly sweet, which contrasted with the irony of her words. Plus, she was in incredible physical pain from the training, though she refused to show any hints of it to Kibutsuji.
"Should I tell him to tone it down for you, baby princess?" He asked in a mocking tone, clearly enjoying the fact that she was in absolute pain.
Ugh, so annoying, Sara thought to herself. It was no secret to her that Muzan loved getting under her skin. It seemed like the main source of his entertainment. What a poor, boring and isolated creature.
"I can handle the training just fine, shut up" She was a proud demon slayer after all. She felt offended that her potential wasn't recognized.
"That's not what Kokushibo told me" His ill-meaning smile only grew wider. "He thinks you're weak and lack speed."
Sara scoffed. "Of course I know what Mr. 6-Eyes thinks. He made sure to tell me" She rolled her eyes, lightly shaking her head and styling his front locks delicately. "But I trust in my abilities, so shut it." She finger-curled the next section of his dark locks. "Unrelated, but your hair is giving."
Muzan blinked a couple times after she said that. "My hair is giving... what exactly?"
"Just giving, y'know."
"Is this a new language fad you young people use?" he tilted his head, confusion invading his usually relaxed expression.
"It sure is, old man. Also, don't move your head, you'll just make it harder to style you"
He sighed lightly and kept his head straight and still as she continued with her styling session.
That prick exhausted her mentally. But his snarky remarks and annoying voice were nothing compared to Kokushibo's training hellhole. While being with Muzan felt like stepping into perilous territory, training with Kokushibo felt like all of the creatures in that perilous territory were attacking her all at once in her weakest spots, and she couldn't even defend herself from them.
The next time Sara saw Kokushibo, he held a wooden sword in hand. He had decided to increase the difficulty of the training by having her swing at him using Moon Breathing aside from doing high-impact cardio exercises. He also wanted her to learn how to dodge him so, from time to time, he tried to push and trip her from her exercises.
"Your reaction time is too slow, youngling" He said, after having had her trip for what was the 100th time that day.
Of course I am too slow.
Sara was lying face-down on the ground, panting heavily due to the intensity of the training. A couple seconds earlier, she had reacted too late and got pushed by Kokushibo. Of course she knew that he saw her as a slow Demon Slayer. An insect that he would have probably squashed in less than half a second if Kibutsuji didn't want her alive.
Why am I even here? Just to suffer?
I'm just a girl in this world... why am I getting pushed by a tall man with 6 eyes and no eyebrows to match them?
I can't take this anymore, this is too much.
I should quit.
I quit.
I quit.
I quit.
"Stand up. Keep fighting" Kokushibo's voice was potent and deep. His aura was that of an ancient entity. An ancient demon who could snap her with just one look.
I can't quit.
I can't bring myself to quit.
I am a Demon Slayer.
I have to do this.
This is what I became a demon slayer for. I can't prove the fucking prick right about needing to tone this down.
If I complete this training without dying, I will ask Kokushibo to bring red meat for fucking dinner.
With all her might, Sara stood up again. Her whole being ached inside out. She was truly in hell. Both physically and psychologically. Heck, even spiritually. She thought that she may have died without even knowing, and she was in hell, paying for her sins in this way to neutralize her karma.
How the heck did I end up in this situation?
I regret all of my life choices.
Of course my stupid ass chose to be a fucking Demon Slayer.
I should have just been a stylist, a local singer and a wife.
Why, why, why, why.
She breathed in as she had been taught and kept pushing through the exercises and the training despite her whole body burning in pain. She was not about to allow Kibutsuji to believe she was a little princess who needed to tone training down. She also wanted to challenge Kokushibo's view of her.
Without freedom, without agency to decide her destiny anymore... Her pride, her endurance and her resilience were the only things she had left. They were the only things she had control over. It was her last bit of freedom, and she would use it to become stronger.
Breathe in.
You can do this, Sara.
Push through the pain. Keep fighting! Come on!
"Moon Breathing, Third Form: Loathsome Moon!" Her speed increased radically. Her tiredness was temporarily pushed aside.
Kokushibo tried tripping her, but she reacted quickly, almost cutting a piece of his hair with the sword. He was surprised at the sudden exponential increase in speed. He had not seen anyone's abilities increase as much in such a short span of time. Of course, he dodged her with ease. But he acknowledged her sudden, massive improvement.
For just a split second, Kokushibo thought she had reached the Selfless State he saw in his brother. But it lasted so little that he thought he might have imagined it.
"Training session is over" he simply stated.
Sara was snapped out of her survival mode suddenly and, as her muscles relaxed, she fell to the ground, unable to stand up for herself. All of the tension she didn't even notice she was carrying, immediately left her body the moment Kokushibo released her from the training session. It was a clear sign that she was at her limit. The adrenaline rush ended, and so did her muscle strength.
I can't believe it... it's over...
"You have improved, youngling. You seem to have more potential than what I originally expected" He approached her and kneeled down next to her. He seemed to ponder whether he should reach out to pat her back, but refrained.
Sara just couldn't believe that hellish training day was finally over. She closed her eyes, silently crying happy tears. Hearing Kokushibo FINALLY say a good thing about her and speaking of her untapped potential made her feel extremely overjoyed. She finally had ONE thing to hold onto during her captivity. Her new-found talent and her new mentor.
"Your muscles need a break to regenerate. I will allow you to rest tomorrow." his voice sounded commanding, definitive. It made her insides shake.
Sara kept on crying happy tears from the floor. She really needed that break, however small it was, from the two weeks and a half of hell she had been enduring.
"Thank you for your training..." She mumbled, still in tears.
She might have imagined it but, for a fleeting moment, she thought she saw him smile.
Heyyy! I'm back one more week.
Stuff will be getting real crazy real soon.
Anyway, see you next Monday!
