Chapter 208 — Sword Rings
When the two female Kakushi learned that Ren would be coming to the Swordsmith Village, they were so excited that they nearly jumped for joy.
They immediately volunteered for the assignment and successfully made the cut!
However, because of Shinobu's gender requirement, the two female Kakushi could only carry Shinobu and Kanao.
Ren, meanwhile, was assigned to a male Kakushi.
Seeing the delighted expression on the man's face, the two female Kakushi gnashed their teeth in envy!
"We're here."
The Kakushi carrying Kanao and Shinobu arrived at their destination and expressionlessly set the two of them down.
Then another Kakushi took over and continued carrying them for the next leg of the journey.
After several changes of carriers, Ren, Shinobu, and Kanao finally arrived at the Swordsmith Village.
The sun was still high in the sky when they reached the entrance to the village, but the short and sturdy village chief was already waiting at the gate.
The village chief, Kawahara Tetsuzin, had hurried over that morning as soon as he received Master Ubuyashiki's orders.
Although it was already afternoon, he hadn't moved an inch.
Even the two burly men who normally worked with steel beside him couldn't help suggesting,
"Boss, why don't we head back for now? We don't know when Lord Dragon Hashira will arrive."
Another man immediately agreed.
"Exactly. You should go back first. When Lord Dragon Hashira arrives, we'll bring him over."
Kawahara Tetsuzin shook his head.
"No. You don't understand. Mr. Ren is far too important to the Demon Slayer Corps. Besides, the sun isn't even that strong. If you can wait, why can't I?"
Kawahara Tetsuzin was extremely stubborn.
He had been waiting since morning without showing the slightest sign of impatience.
He simply wanted to meet Ren as soon as possible.
Seeing this, the two blacksmiths were about to continue persuading him when, fortunately, figures from the Kakushi finally appeared on the distant horizon.
There were three people being carried among them.
All three were wearing Demon Slayer Corps uniforms.
"Boss, someone's coming."
Kawahara Tetsuzin replied without even looking back, "I know. I'm not blind yet."
The few people there didn't immediately go forward to investigate.
Instead, they remained where they were and continued waiting.
Many people came to the Swordsmith Village every day, but Ren wasn't among them.
So, to conserve their energy, they had gotten into the habit of observing visitors from a distance first.
"Ada, have you ever seen Lord Dragon Hashira?"
One of the men working at the forge asked.
"No."
Another blacksmith named Kanamori answered.
"Look at you two! You came here with me, yet you don't even recognize Mr. Ren! I'm embarrassed to tell anyone!"
The two men working at the forge lowered their heads in shame.
Everyone knew about Ren's final match against Sanemi.
But they were devoted to forging swords and couldn't spare the time to leave, so they had missed it.
Although they had heard Ren's name countless times, they had never actually seen him.
Kawahara Tetsuzin was different.
He had gone out of his way to gather information about Ren.
So he knew quite a lot about him.
Of course, he hadn't seen Ren in person either.
Therefore, he could only rely on what he considered a clever method.
Kawahara Tetsuzin's method of identifying Ren was simple.
He had heard that Ren was a doctor at the Butterfly Mansion, that he had extraordinary massage skills, and that he was extremely handsome.
So observing people's faces was his primary method of identification.
As the group drew closer, Kawahara Tetsuzin's eyes suddenly widened.
"Mr. Ren is here!"
The shout startled Kanamori and the other blacksmith who had been working the forge.
Hearing the voice, they immediately looked in the same direction.
"Where?! Is it that person over there?!"
"Wow, he's so young! He looks even younger than Lord Muichiro!"
"The people beside him are Lady Kocho and her successor. Lord Dragon Hashira is also from the Butterfly Mansion, so it has to be him!"
"The boss is amazing! He recognized him at a glance!"
Kawahara Tetsuzin smiled smugly.
Of course he had.
He had noticed Ren's handsome face immediately.
Only then did Kawahara Tetsuzin truly understand what people meant when they called someone handsome.
The word seemed practically made to describe Ren.
After all, Ren's appearance was simply too striking.
At a glance, there was no way to conceal the brilliance of such a handsome man.
Kawahara Tetsuzin had recognized him instantly.
This was the real deal.
When the Kakushi carrying the three people from the Butterfly Mansion finally approached, Kawahara Tetsuzin immediately went forward.
"Welcome, everyone from the Butterfly Mansion! I'm Kawahara Tetsuzin, the village chief of the Swordsmith Village. Welcome to the Swordsmith Village!"
The village chief's booming welcome was immediately followed by Kanamori and Ada speaking in unison.
"Your arrival brings honor to our Swordsmith Village!"
"Chief, you're being a little too enthusiastic."
Shinobu smiled as she climbed down from the Kakushi's back and immediately greeted Kawahara Tetsuzin.
Seeing Shinobu reminded Kawahara Tetsuzin of something.
"Ah, Insect Hashira, about the modifications to your Nichirin Sword last time..."
Shinobu blinked.
"Oh my~ Has the chief already found a solution? As expected of the chief!"
Hearing this, Kawahara Tetsuzin looked slightly embarrassed.
"No. I still haven't found one."
"I've tried every method I could think of over the past few days, but none of them worked."
There was a hint of helplessness in his voice.
"Throughout the history of the Demon Slayer Corps, swordsmen as physically weak as you are extremely rare. And the weight of a weapon like a Nichirin Sword is difficult to control."
"If it's too light, it will break under impact, and it won't be able to properly display the cutting or piercing power of a Nichirin Sword."
"If it's too heavy, you won't be able to wield it."
"So finding the right balance is extremely difficult."
"Right now, the proportions of your Nichirin Sword are already the best I can achieve. I can't find a better way to improve it."
"Is that so?"
Shinobu smiled faintly and said nothing.
Her tone sounded relaxed, but the disappointment on her face was unmistakable.
"Wait, Insect Hashira. May I borrow the Nichirin Sword at your waist for a moment?"
At that moment, Kawahara Tetsuzin, who was normally calm and composed, suddenly lit up.
His voice had even become slightly excited.
Shinobu didn't refuse.
She drew the Nichirin Sword from her waist and handed it to him.
Kawahara Tetsuzin held the Nichirin Sword and gently ran his fingers over it.
The more he examined it, the brighter his eyes became.
Seeing the village chief's intense curiosity, Kanamori and Ada also leaned forward slightly.
Then the three of them examined the sword together.
They held the blade and ran their fingers along it from top to bottom, as though they were looking at some unparalleled work of art.
Their hands couldn't help lingering over its surface.
Finally, Kawahara Tetsuzin pointed toward the final three sword rings on the Nichirin Sword and turned toward Shinobu.
"Insect Hashira, who made these?"
Shinobu instinctively glanced toward Ren and smiled faintly.
"Dragon Hashira did~."
"What?!"