The Hamon Breather

Straightening the Path

Tanjiro and I finally arrived at Urokodaki's house on Mt. Sakonji. In typical Urokodaki fashion, he stepped out to greet us before we were even close to knocking on his door.

'Don't get jealous of his nose again, Keijo.'

"Greetings sensei!" Tanjiro and I greet our master cordially. He releases a slight huff in response.

"Rather than spending time with this old man, you two should've gone off to kill demons!" His words were slightly harsh, but you could tell that he was happy if you listened closely.

"Our break was going to end soon, so we decided to come to visit!" Tanjiro explains.

"Wouldn't it be worse if we spent our break working instead of with you?" I ask with a content smile on my face.

Urokodaki sighs. "Hmph. I see. Come in for breakfast and tea." He speaks as brusquely as ever.

"Hai!"

---

"Hmm. You've both had quite the journeys already, haven't you?" The old man asks during a slight downtime after the meal. "But neither of you two use water breathing much anymore?"

He sounded a little disappointed when he asked that.

"S-sorry." We, his students, could only apologize embarrassedly. 

"Well, it's fine. Rather, I'm happy for you. No matter the emotions behind it, you should only work with what works best for you." Ah, he turned it into a lecture.

I feel like those words were aimed toward me, though. Is this his way of telling me something?

"Well, since the two of you are here, let me see how your swordsmanship has progressed." The masked man stands up and walks outside.

---

"Hoo..." Tanjiro and I do a short sparring match with purely swordsmanship techniques. We didn't reach a conclusion before Urokodaki stopped us, but I could tell. I was the one who lost. You could argue it's unfair because I didn't get to use Hamon, but Tanjiro didn't use a breathing style either. It was pure swordsmanship. His seemed sharper than mine did.

"You've both gotten better. I'm quite proud of the fact you've mastered Total Concentration Constant. Tanjiro, why don't you go up and down the mountain for old times' sake? I've got something to talk to Keijo about." Urokodaki stands tall in his permanent seriousness.

Tanjiro didn't question anything and just left.

"Keijo... I do believe you must have noticed something by now." Urokodaki looks at me with some expectations. Urokodaki continues.

"You've felt it right? That plateau in your swordsmanship. You put in the work in the effort, but you don't seem to be getting anywhere. You're losing the heart you have for your blade. You've gotten better with your fighting, not with your sword."

"What? But..." I try to deny him, but I can't seem to form the words.

"You can try to deny it, but deep down, you're thinking the same way. You would have denied me if I wasn't speaking the truth." Urokodaki speaks bluntly.

"But I've spent so much time on it!" I lose my cool and yell out at the injustice.

"I don't know how you're feeling, but I can imagine how hard it is. To hear that you've wasted your time. But I can't help you if you don't say it yourself. You have to let go of that sword of your own volition, Keijo. If you don't, you'll not progress much further than this." My sword trainer keeps hammering down with his hard words.

It's not that I haven't noticed it. The signs have been there all along. No matter how much I've trained, I've never gotten past this slight uncomfort when wielding the sword. I can't describe it other than a strange feeling in my bones. As if I were bending them the wrong way.

But to just... drop two years of effort. To just deny all of that time... I find it problematic to accept that. Who can just let things go at the drop of a hat? I don't think there's anyone who can simply drop something they spent two long, hard years on.

I know it's irrational! I know I'm clearly in the wrong! But it leaves such a horrible feeling in my heart! It's like asking me to part with a portion of my very soul! You can't simply ask a farmer to stop farming, nor a seamstress to stop sewing.

"Keijo. I didn't tell you that to make you stop using swords. Look at it from a different angle. Katanas are not the only sword, like how swords are not the only weapon." Urokodaki interrupts my thoughts. "So steel yourself and say it. Scream it to the heavens if you must."

"Say what?!" I question defiantly.

"It's a phrase that only you can come up with yourself. If you aren't the one who makes those words, then this is entirely pointless." Urokodaki instructs.

We sit in silence for several minutes.

"I'm... going to stop using katanas." I finally squeaked out.

"Louder."

"What?"

"Say it louder."

"I'm going to stop using katanas," I repeat myself with a normal tone of voice.

"More confident. I'm not telling you to convince me, I'm telling you to convince you."

"I'm going to stop using katanas!" I yell at Urokodaki's face.

"Good. I knew you would come around eventually with some prodding." Urokodaki seems satisfied.

"Yeah... I'm still really bummed about all of that wasted time." I answer somewhat dejectedly as my statement sinks in.

"But Keijo, you seem to have the wrong idea here. You are putting down the katana, yes, however you didn't waste your time. Not even a single moment. Time rewards those who spend it wisely and to the fullest, and you spent two years on this mountain as best as you were able to. It doesn't matter if you put the fruits of those rewards away, it doesn't matter if they become rusty, and it doesn't matter if they aren't what you're going to do. That effort you gave... it will never leave you. You'll see, whether it's soon or in the far future. Time pays its dues no matter what."

---

Tanjiro and I spent the night at Urokodaki's.

I lay in bed in total contemplation.

Urokodaki told me to try out a multitude of different swords when I had the time.

He told me I should visit some of the Hashira who use less conventional methods to test my talents. Which led me to 4 of the 5 who don't use katanas.

Shinobu Kocho, the Insect Hashira. Her needle-like sword could pair quite well with my Hamon, but it wouldn't play to all of my strengths and agility isn't my strong suit. And, to be honest... the sword doesn't suit my taste at all! I'd look so strange!

Uzui Tengen, the Sound Hashira. His large chain sword would certainly be a compliment to my physique. I've been keeping leaner as I wanted to originally learn Water Breathing, but I could bulk up like him if I wanted to.

Gyomei Himejima, the Stone Hashira. Thinking of his visage makes me wonder how he'd match up to my grandpa. Of course, I've only heard about Johnathan, so I could only theorize. His hand axe and flail are unconventional and could work well for me. However, I'd prefer to stick with a sword at least.

And finally, Mitsuri Kanroji, the Love Hashira. As apprehensive as I am about meeting her, I have to admit she is potentially the best choice. Her whip sword is a familiar shape, I've gotten somewhat proficient in using strings in battle, and who knows what my Hamon could do with such a fancy weapon? And since I'm not learning Love Breathing per se, I don't have to be the most comfortable.

I can think more on this later, let's get some rest for now.

---

Taisho Secrets:

Keijo: "I feel like Shinobu's going to get mad at me for learning a different sword style despite staying at her estate... but I feel if I tell her about my plan she's going to force me to learn it..."