The meeting ended after a few minutes of conversation, exchanges of information, and reports.
"Thank you all for your hard work," the Master said, standing up.
"Master!" they replied in unison.
He simply smiled, then turned and slowly walked back inside the mansion.
When the sliding door closed, silence returned to the courtyard.
I stood up along with the others.
I felt several gazes fall on me almost at the same time.
The first to approach was the man with flame-like hair, Rengoku's father.
"Flame Hashira: Shinjuro Rengoku," he introduced himself, crossing his arms.
"Shadow Hashira: Usan Hayashi," I replied with a slight nod.
He nodded once.
"So you defeated a Lower Rank alone."
"Yes."
He stared at me for a few seconds.
Then let out a small "Hm."
"That's no small feat."
He immediately turned away.
"Stay alive, Hayashi."
And simply left, without further ceremony.
He didn't seem completely broken like in the anime, maybe things haven't worsened that much yet, or he's just managing to hold himself together…
I decided not to pry into his emotions with my presence.
I wouldn't be any different from a creep if i started looking into people's deepest feelings just because i was curious.
The others began introducing themselves as well.
"Sound Hashira: Uzui Tengen."
Tengen approached, posing and pointing at himself, his jewels reflecting a beam of light directly into Sanemi's eye.
"Flower Hashira: Kanae Kocho." Kanae also introduced herself casually, giving a wink at the end.
"Tsk. Wind Hashira: Sanemi Shinazugawa…"
"YOU BASTARD!! STOP AIMING THAT AT MY EYE!!!" Sanemi shouted at Tengen, who was clearly holding back laughter.
"Stone Hashira: Gyomei Himejima," the man said while rubbing the beads in his hands.
"Giyu Tomioka." Giyu's dry tone earned an irritated click of Sanemi's tongue.
Tengen then approached, wearing a confident smile.
"So, Hayashi…"
"You seem interesting… but I need to ask."
He tilted his head slightly. I could see a strange glint of expectation in his eyes.
"Are you a shinobi?"
'…'
'???'
"Not exactly."
Tengen placed a hand on his chin.
"Not exactly?"
Then he pointed at me.
"That thing you did earlier, the shadow silhouette."
The others were paying attention to the conversation.
"Is that some kind of jutsu?"
"No..."
Tengen raised an eyebrow.
"I think I was born with it, and it awakened at some point in my life."
"I'm not sure."
"..."
"Hah! Truly interesting," Tengen let out a short laugh.
Then Gyomei said his farewells and left.
Giyu looked at me for a few moments and also left.
Sanemi stared at me openly.
I met his gaze.
'If I had to guess, he probably wants to fight me…'
On the other hand, I still had my doubts, if he really wanted that, he would've already challenged me in front of the Master.
But after a few seconds, he simply turned his head and started walking away.
He probably had some mission or something important to finish.
Tengen cracked his neck.
"Well, Hayashi."
He placed his hands on his waist.
"One of these days, I want to spar with you."
He pointed at me again, he really is quite expressive with his gestures.
"That extravagant teleportation of yours looks fun."
Then he turned, looking at the horizon.
"But for now, I need to head back."
"My three wives are waiting." And then he left.
I blinked.
'Did he just flex his triple marriage on me???'
It was super effective.
Kanae chuckled softly beside me.
"That's just how he is. I knew you two would get along."
"???"
"The others have their quirks too, but you'll get used to them with time."
"I hope so..."
And then we started walking back.
─── ◆ ───
Something new to me:
The Hashira are unaware of the route to the Master's residence, as a sort of security measure.
To leave and enter, we need to be guided...
I put on the blindfold, sighing, already sensing what was about to happen.
"Left!" Hotaru shouted.
"No! Right!" Tsubaki replied.
"WRONG! THE RIGHT WAY IS FORWARD!!" Kuroha shouted even louder.
'…'
"GO LEFT!!" Hotaru insisted.
"NO! RIGHT!!" Tsubaki argued just to oppose her.
"YOU TWO ARE WRONG!!" Kuroha yelled.
I took a deep breath.
'I'm going to die...'
I took a step.
"YOU WEREN'T SUPPOSED TO GO THERE!!"
"YOU WERE!!"
"THE TREE!!"
'…'
I only didn't walk straight into the tree because I extended my presence around me, reading the path, but slowing down my pace.
I sighed, glancing to the side and seeing Kanae being guided by her crow from a considerable distance.
'How embarrassing…'
'I'll scold the three of them later.'
─── ◆ ───
The next day, mid-morning.
A little distance from the Butterfly Mansion, in the local forest.
Kanao, Shinobu, and Kanae stood in front of me.
I crouched down to Kanao's height.
"So, Kanao-chan, as promised, I'll show you my fourth form now that it's complete."
Kanao nodded quickly.
I took some distance from them and inhaled deeply, exhaling a massive amount of dark, purplish cloud.
The cloud floated upward and covered the canopy of the large trees.
A thin stream of the cloud continued to flow from my mouth, connecting to it as it kept taking shape.
When I use it in combat, there's no time to admire the beauty of this form. It's like those images of an extremely majestic outer space, except it has only two colors, with some variations of purple.
The cloud swirled in irregular spirals, outlined in a bright, light purple.
I have to admit, I was making the result a bit more beautiful on purpose.
I wouldn't have the time to form something like this in a real fight.
Tlim-Tlim~
The sound of bells chimed a soft melody from within the cloud.
"Shadow Breathing: Fourth Form, Suzu no Muku."
The cloud hovered above us, its spirals spinning hypnotically.
[Image]
Kanao's eyes were wide, shining with something rare for her: emotion.
She observed every movement of the cloud with her special eyes, seeing far more detail than any of us.
"Beautiful…" Kanao said softly.
Shinobu and Kanae let out a soft laugh, in the same tone and duration, perfectly synchronized.
I smiled.
The extra effort had definitely been worth it.
Seeing Kanao this expressive was something to celebrate.
Almost at the same time, the three of us patted her head, barely leaving space in her hair.
Kanao looked at the three of us, confused, but didn't complain.
"Thank you, little one," I said, raising my gaze to the cloud once more.
'You would've loved to see this, Chiyo…'
The bell at my waist chimed with the wind, resonating with the sounds of the cloud.
The cloud continued to spin above us, like a piece of the night, even under the morning sun.
─── ◆ ───
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