"My Lord." Shinobu Kocho knelt on one knee, her loyalty to Kagaya Ubuyashiki genuine and profound.
Kagaya Ubuyashiki's eyesight was poor, but he sensed a palpable heat emanating from Ryo Hoshi, a warmth that wasn't from a breathing technique but from within his heart.
"Ryo Hoshi, a very excellent swordsman," Kagaya Ubuyashiki's gentle words immediately put Ryo Hoshi at ease. His voice was incredibly soft.
Ryo Hoshi thought to himself, "No wonder all the Demon Slayer Corps swordsmen adore him; he truly is a wonderful leader."
Shinobu Kocho, seeing Ryo Hoshi's lack of response, couldn't stand it any longer and quickly tugged at him. "You cannot be disrespectful to Master."
Ryo Hoshi: "Oh, right, greetings, Master."
He offered a symbolic clasp of his hands, then sat down. Standing for too long was tiring, and he pulled Shinobu Kocho up to sit beside him.
"Ryo Hoshi, what did you promise me earlier?" Shinobu Kocho was a little annoyed. How could he be so tactless? Thankfully, they were in front of Master; otherwise, he would surely be punished by losing his meals.
Kagaya Ubuyashiki merely smiled, waved his hand gently, and said, "It's alright, Shinobu, please sit as you please. The Demon Slayer Corps has no such strict rules. He is my beloved child."
"Yes, Master."
With that settled, the three of them fell silent. Kagaya Ubuyashiki continued to smile as he looked at Ryo Hoshi. Shinobu Kocho and Ryo Hoshi couldn't hold back any longer. Ryo Hoshi was the first to break the silence, and then he repeated what he had told Shinobu Kocho.
"Ryo Hoshi, is this true? In a thousand years, the Demon Slayer Corps has never had such a record. I have never heard of these Seven Deadly Sins demons." Although Kagaya Ubuyashiki asked Ryo Hoshi if it was true, his expression revealed that he completely believed Ryo Hoshi.
"Shinobu, convene a Hashira Meeting in five days. We will explain this matter clearly to the children then."
"Yes, Master." Shinobu Kocho agreed immediately, then sat down obediently.
This time, Kagaya Ubuyashiki spoke first.
"Ryo Hoshi, may I see your breathing technique?"
This put Ryo Hoshi in a bit of a predicament. He knew all the breathing techniques that had ever appeared in history and truly didn't know which one to demonstrate.
"Which breathing technique are you referring to? I know a tiny bit of every breathing technique."
Now it was Shinobu Kocho's turn to be astonished. "Ryo Hoshi, don't speak nonsense."
Knowing Shinobu Kocho didn't believe him, Ryo Hoshi stood up, borrowed Shinobu Kocho's Nichirin blade, and began to dance in the courtyard outside.
"Wind Breathing..."
"Stone Breathing..."
"Flame Breathing..."
"Water Breathing..."
"Thunder Breathing..."
Then followed the breathing techniques derived from the five major breathing styles, including Shinobu Kocho's Insect Breathing.
...
After a demonstration, Shinobu Kocho was stunned. How could someone be so exceptionally talented as to know all the breathing techniques? However, this was not what Kagaya Ubuyashiki most wanted to see.
"Ryo Hoshi, you have one more breathing technique you haven't used, haven't you?"
"No, it should be two breathing techniques: Moon Breathing and Sun Breathing," Ryo Hoshi thought that since he was already being high-profile, he might as well make a grand impression.
Shinobu Kocho looked confused, did these two breathing techniques exist?
Ryo Hoshi didn't hesitate and immediately demonstrated all the forms of these two breathing techniques, including explaining to Kagaya Ubuyashiki how to perform the Thirteenth Form of Sun Breathing.
"Good! Good! Good! Cough, cough, cough..." Kagaya Ubuyashiki said "good" three times excitedly. Such a perfect swordsman must be sent by the gods to save the Ubuyashiki family. He believed that the millennium-old fate would end in his generation.
Amane ran in to help Kagaya Ubuyashiki, urging him not to get too excited.
"Ryo Hoshi, what is the situation with these last two breathing techniques?" Shinobu Kocho was puzzled; she had never heard of these two breathing techniques.
Ryo Hoshi no longer held back. "Moon Breathing is the breathing technique of the Tsugikuni family's Yoriichi, and Sun Breathing is the breathing technique of the Tsugikuni family's Kokushibo. These two breathing techniques are called the original breathing techniques, especially Sun Breathing, which possesses the power of the sun and is the best breathing technique for slaying demons."
Kagaya Ubuyashiki was not surprised by Ryo Hoshi's extensive knowledge; such a person must have been sent by the gods.
"Shinobu, Ryo Hoshi is correct. Over four hundred years ago, there were two brothers in the Tsugikuni family who were swordsmen using these two breathing techniques. The Demon Slayer Corps has records of them."
"Yes, Master." Shinobu Kocho was shocked, hearing about such things for the first time. She was also very curious about how Ryo Hoshi knew so much.
Ryo Hoshi then continued, "There is currently a successor to Sun Breathing, in my year, Tanjiro Kamado. Similarly, there is also a demon who uses Moon Breathing, who was the former Yoriichi of the Tsugikuni family, now Upper Rank One, Kokushibo."
This shocked Shinobu Kocho even more. To know such things, what kind of person was Ryo Hoshi?
Kagaya Ubuyashiki noticed Shinobu Kocho's surprise and began to tell her about the past.
Seeing that the two of them were talking and ignoring him, Ryo Hoshi interrupted them during a lull when Kagaya Ubuyashiki was drinking tea, "Master, my Nichirin blade was broken by Gourmand. I need a new Nichirin blade."
"My apologies, I forgot. Amane will take you to choose the steel later. It's getting late, Shinobu. Let's conclude here for today."
"Yes, Master, I wish you good health."
...
On their way back to the Butterfly Mansion, Shinobu Kocho asked Ryo Hoshi how he knew so much and could perform so many breathing techniques.
Ryo Hoshi brushed it off with a laugh. "I had a dream from God while I was sleeping, and I learned the breathing techniques in my dream. God told me all this."
"Hoshi, you don't even blush when you lie now. I really feel sorry for those girls you've charmed."
"Charmed? I've only spoken much to Kanao since I arrived here. How could it be as exaggerated as you say?" Ryo Hoshi naturally wouldn't admit to these fabricated matters, mentally refuting Ryo Un.
Shinobu Kocho didn't entirely believe Ryo Hoshi's explanation but had no choice but to accept it, as there was no other plausible explanation.
Upon returning to the Butterfly Mansion, Ryo Hoshi rushed to the kitchen to eat voraciously. As soon as he was full, he went to chat with Kanao, which made Shinobu Kocho very helpless, as she couldn't do anything about Ryo Hoshi.
Days passed, and soon it was time for the Hashira Meeting. Mitsuri Kanroji, the Love Hashira, was the first to arrive at the Butterfly Mansion, as she had the best relationship with Shinobu Kocho and Kyojuro Rengoku among the nine Hashira.
"Huh? There's a handsome guy at the Butterfly Mansion! Wow, he's looking this way, so handsome!" Mitsuri blushed instantly, covering her face and sweating profusely.
Ryo Hoshi saw her and recognized her as Mitsuri Kanroji, the Love Hashira. He had heard she was very strong and ate a lot, so he greeted her first.
"Miss, my name is Ryo Hoshi, the lowest-ranked member of the Demon Slayer Corps."
Mitsuri replied shyly, "My name is Mitsuri Kanroji, and I like cats and sakura mochi."