"Ahahaha."
Shinobu Kocho covered her mouth and laughed, her eyes curving into pretty crescent moons.
Clearly, she also thought this whole scene was a little ridiculous.
After watching for a while, Shinobu glanced at Vincent Fox with some curiosity.
"Mr. Fox, have you ever done this kind of training before? This is how I honed my own Breathing Style, you know."
"No."
Vincent answered honestly and shook his head.
"Oh? Then for you to temper your body to this level without such training… your talent really is exceptional."
She then made a welcoming gesture toward the training ground.
"Would you like to try, Mr. Fox? You might find a few gaps in your basics and be able to patch them up."
"Sure."
Vincent stepped forward and walked right into the circle where the three boys were training.
"Where should I start?"
He looked around with interest. Every drill here seemed easy to him.
"Wherever you like is fine."
Shinobu's tone was as gentle as ever.
"Alright."
Vincent nodded and began to stroll around the courtyard.
His appearance, of course, drew the attention of the three "main characters."
Especially Zenitsu. The moment he saw Vincent come out from Shinobu's side, he rolled on the ground once, then sprang up and marched toward him with a dark look.
"Who are you?!"
"I… came here for rehab training."
Crap. That was exactly what he was thinking. And he just said it out loud.
Sure enough, as soon as the words left his mouth, a wild figure barreled straight at him.
"What did you say? You dare call this level of training rehab?!"
"You arrogant jerk! I challenge you!"
With that, Inosuke Hashibira hugged the huge boulder in his arms and charged straight at Vincent.
"Inosuke, no!"
Tanjiro Kamado had already noticed the commotion.
By the time he ran over, he saw Inosuke charging Vincent with the boulder lifted over his head.
He wanted to stop him, but he had burned through a lot of his strength in training just now.
He simply could not catch up.
In his anxious gaze, a bizarre scene unfolded.
Inosuke roared like a beast, swinging the boulder as if it weighed nothing.
He even used his own Beast Breathing as he attacked.
But no matter how wildly he lashed out, Vincent's expression did not change.
Dragging along a leg still wrapped in plaster, he slipped past every attack with ease.
He had simply activated his Observation Haki. Every twitch of Inosuke's muscles was as loud as a shout in his ears.
Seeing that even with one leg in a cast Vincent could still dodge him so easily, Inosuke only became more furious.
"Stop it, Inosuke!"
Tanjiro rushed up and wrenched the boulder out of his hands.
Inosuke still wanted to claw his way over to make trouble for Vincent, but Tanjiro grabbed him from behind and held on for dear life.
Thud.
One well-practiced headbutt later, Inosuke slumped to the ground, completely out cold.
His savage boar mask rolled off to the side, revealing the face underneath.
"Pretty handsome, actually."
Shinobu kept smiling. This was also the first time she had seen Inosuke's real face.
A few Kakushi in black uniforms with the kanji for "Hidden" on their backs hurried over.
They bowed and apologized over and over, then carried Inosuke away.
"Sorry about that."
Tanjiro, exhausted, walked up to Vincent and extended his right hand with an apologetic expression.
"That was my companion just now. He really doesn't mean any harm, he just has a strong sense of pride and he loves to fight. Please don't hold it against him."
Vincent shook his hand and smiled.
"Of course not."
"That is a relief!"
Tanjiro's face brightened, and he shook Vincent's hand again.
"I am Tanjiro Kamado. I have not asked your name yet. Judging from that character there… is it 'Ye'?"
Vincent followed his gaze and looked down at his own chest.
On the uniform, a big white character for "Ye" was printed on a black patch.
"Vincent Fox," he said. "Nice to meet you, Tanjiro."
After that, Tanjiro led him around to meet the others.
The three little attendants under Shinobu's care, Agatsuma Zenitsu, and the unconscious Hashibira Inosuke who had just been carried away.
Vincent shook hands with each of them in turn.
During this process, he kept feeling a chill on the back of his neck.
Following that prickling sensation, he turned his head and saw Zenitsu narrowing his eyes, looking Vincent up and down.
That gaze felt like he was calculating from which angle he could land a one-hit kill.
"Zenitsu, why are you staring at me like that? Do I have something wrong with me somewhere?"
Vincent leaned over with a grin and asked.
"You and Miss Shinobu… no. I need to duel you. A man's duel."
"Only the victor can win Miss Shinobu's love!"
Zenitsu muttered to himself, and without noticing it, he stoked his own anger back to life.
"A duel, huh?"
Vincent regarded him with interest, then glanced over at Shinobu.
She was still standing under the eaves, watching them. When she heard their conversation, her smile became even more amused.
Vincent ignored Zenitsu's declaration of war and quietly walked over to Shinobu's side.
"I already have a girlfriend," he said under his breath. "Relax. It is not Shinobu. And… your Miss Shinobu already has a ship."
"Ship? What is that?"
"As in, she is already paired with someone. A couple."
"What?!"
Zenitsu practically jumped three feet high, then collapsed back to the ground.
"My Shinobu, my beautiful Miss Shinobu, no…"
A second later, he suddenly perked up again and grabbed Tanjiro by the shoulders.
He stared at him with fierce seriousness.
"Brother-in-law, I will train hard. Nezuko, wait for me!"
Then he turned around and threw himself into the brutal training once more.
Tanjiro was a bit confused, but seeing his friend motivated to train still made him happy.
At the same time, he walked over to Vincent, face full of curiosity.
"Mr. Fox, this is our first time meeting, so I still do not know what Breathing Style you use."
Breathing Style, huh?
That question actually stumped Vincent.
He could certainly breathe, but as for an official Breathing Style…
The forbidden zone had not come with a free starter pack.
Suddenly, an idea flashed through his mind.
He drew a line through the air with his right hand.
A surge of flame rose up in front of him and then quickly faded.
"So it is Flame Breathing!"
Tanjiro's eyes lit up.
The same Flame Breathing as big brother Kyojuro Rengoku.
But a moment later, he frowned in confusion.
The flame Vincent had produced was not just that familiar blazing red. There were faint traces of other colors as well.
It was not quite the same as Flame Breathing.
Suddenly Tanjiro remembered the Hinokami Kagura he had used before.
He had asked many people about it.
The answer had always been that what he used was not Flame Breathing, one of the five basic Breathing Styles.
"Mr. Fox, what is the name of your Breathing Style?"
Tanjiro asked earnestly.
In the fire Vincent produced, he had not only felt scorching heat.
There had been something in it that felt like the sun.
As for the question, Vincent really could not give a proper answer.
There were countless Breathing Styles. He did not need to force his into the Flame Breathing mold.
He shook his head.
"I do not actually know what my Breathing Style is called. I have just always used it this way."
"I see…"
Tanjiro looked a little disappointed.
Still no clear answer.
"Boys, it is time to get back to your training."
Shinobu's gentle voice floated over, bringing the brief break to an end.
----------------------------------------------------
The deeper he goes, the more the truth unravels. Don't wait read ahead and witness Vincent's rise before the world catches up!
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