Demon Slayer: The Journey That Began When I Became Yoriichi's Sister

Chapter 705 Doesn't this look awkward at first glance?

Longgui paused for a second, then looked at Yuko with some confusion: "Why would the teacher say that?"

"...It's nothing, let's continue."

Yuko originally thought that Tatsuki liked Ichigo, after all, the two had been childhood friends, but now Tatsuki keeps mentioning Orihime, so she thought...

She didn't even blush, so it seems she was overthinking it.

She meant to say that she had a lot of experience in this and could teach her a thing or two.

“Since you’ve made up your mind, I’ll teach you how to use this power.” Yu Zi reached out and grabbed at the air beside her, causing ripples to spread through the air as she drew out a pure white blade.

Long Gui was dumbfounded.

Yuko handed the blade to her, and Ryuki instinctively caught it.

"This knife was custom-made for you. You can try it out first and see if it's comfortable to use. If there's anything you don't like, I can help you optimize it."

Long Gui quickly replied, "No need, I'm very satisfied."

She's already troubled Ms. Yu Zi to teach her, and you can tell from the appearance of this knife that a lot of thought and effort went into its creation.

Yuko saw through her thoughts and said calmly, "Don't think it will be a trouble for me. It's just about pulling out a rib. If the blade isn't easy to handle, it'll be a big problem if we lose in battle."

"Pull out a rib?" Long Gui looked bewildered, wondering if he had misheard.

Yu Zi nodded slightly: "Yes, that knife was forged from my ribs, so adjusting it is just a matter of minutes."

Long Gui's hand trembled, and he almost dropped the knife handle.

Ignoring her reaction, Yu Zi continued, "Get up and wave it."

Given Yuko's attitude, Longgui had no choice but to pick up the knife, stand up, draw the blade, and assume a swinging stance to test it.

To be honest, she occasionally uses wooden swords for training, but holding a real one in her hand feels completely different.

Do Ichigo and the others usually fight monsters like this?

Long Gui took a deep breath and stopped what he was doing: "Feeling...not bad, right?"

Not bad at all!

Doesn't this look awkward at first glance?

"...Bring me the knife."

"Huh? Oh."

Yuko placed the knife on her lap, touched the blade with her fingertips, and then, to Ryuki's astonishment, the blade began to change slightly.

So it really really is just a matter of minutes... no, it's practically a matter of seconds now, isn't it?

"try again."

"Huh? Oh."

"This should work." After trying it several times, Yuko, using her keen eyesight and experience, adjusted the knife to the right size based on Ryuki's posture.

Long Gui waved it a few times, looking surprised: "It really does feel different."

Even though the weight hasn't changed much, it just feels much lighter and easier to handle.

Yuko continued, "Although this sword cannot compare with the Zanpakuto used by some Shinigami in terms of strength, if you can wrap it with your spiritual power, its strength will not be much inferior."

"Entangled in spiritual energy?"

Long Gui took the knife and sat back down.

"Just like I demonstrated before, gathering spiritual particles into spiritual weapons for combat, and covering the weapons with spiritual energy, can unleash greater power, and in some ways, it is also easier than directly condensing spiritual energy into weapons."

Yuko casually used the spiritual energy of the air to draw the wooden sword placed on the corner sword rack.

"like this."

As Yuko spoke, a wisp of crimson spiritual energy surged from the palm of her hand holding the hilt of the sword, instantly covering the blade.

Yuko sat on the floor and raised the wooden sword, which was wrapped in a faint red spiritual energy, toward Longgui.

"Come on, break it."

"I understand." Long Gui licked her lips, stood beside Yu Zi, gripped the hilt of the bone knife tightly with both hands, and with a cold shout, she swung it down with great force.

hum~

It felt as if he had struck a steel bar, the shock making Long Gui's hands go numb, and the bone knife almost slipped from his grasp.

"Wow, that's amazing!" Long Gui exclaimed in surprise. "But why is it red this time?"

"This brings us to the different fighting styles of Shinigami and Quincy." Yuko dispersed the spiritual energy wrapped around the wooden sword.

"Different fighting styles?"

"The so-called Quincy mainly fight by manipulating external spiritual particles and using spiritual particle weapons, which is highly dependent on the purity of their bloodline. Whether it's the efficiency of extracting spiritual particles or other skills, the difference between a pure-blooded Quincy and a hybrid is enormous."

"The Grim Reaper, on the other hand, fights using his own spiritual power."

"In other words, one seeks power outward, and the other seeks power inward."

"Most of the spiritual particles in the environment emit a pale blue light, so Quincy attacks are mostly blue spiritual energy attacks. However, one's own spiritual energy will produce different results depending on the individual."

"What I want to teach you is a fighting style that prioritizes Shinigami and uses Quincy as a secondary force."

Long Gui pondered for a moment: "So, the crimson spiritual power is your own spiritual power, Master?"

"...Yes, you could say that."

Yuko was also a little puzzled. Since the butterfly was her other half, and its spiritual power attribute was a dark purple light, there was no reason why her own spiritual power attribute should be red.

Only the spiritual power released through butterflies is purple.

Her own pure spiritual power was crimson in color.

This is not an illusory power; it is her original power.

I wonder if it's related to her constitution.

Yoruichi was aware of this, but did not offer any reasonable explanation.

Since it didn't have any impact, Yuko didn't investigate further.

Long Gui asked the crucial question: "But how do I gather spiritual energy?"

Yu Zi said, "Although your spiritual power is strong enough to see souls and illusions, you are still lacking in the ability to use your own spiritual power or condense spiritual particles."

"I've already come up with a solution for this."

Yu Zi gestured for Long Gui to hand over the bone knife, lightly touched the blade, and drew out a stream of spiritual energy from the blade with her fingertips.

"This knife will automatically absorb the surrounding spiritual energy when it is hungry."

As Yuko explained, the snow-white blade began to emit a faint glow, which was the way the spirit particles absorbed it.

"Even if it is cut in half, it will slowly repair itself, just like a Zanpakuto."

“With your current spiritual power, it’s not as strong as the spiritual power of the bone sword itself,” Yuko explained. “I told you before, your spiritual power only became strong because Ichigo couldn’t control his own spiritual power.”

“Wearing this bone knife regularly will have the same effect.” Yu Zi returned the bone knife to Long Gui. “You can find a wooden sheath to put it in and carry it with you.”

Long Gui nodded slightly: "I see."

"Improving spiritual power often requires diligent cultivation or rigorous combat. Let's talk about it again when you can use your own spiritual power."

"Just absorb the spiritual energy emanating from the bone knife in a natural way."

"Well, I see."

Yu Zi showed no intention of getting up and continued, "Now, let's talk about the second way to become stronger."

"The second one?"

"This is a human training method. Although it cannot be compared with the training of Shinigami and Quincy, it can enhance oneself to a certain extent."

Yu Zi nodded slightly: "Just like long-distance running, if you breathe at the right rhythm, you can save some of your energy."

"And the breathing technique I'm going to teach you, once you've mastered it, will enhance your combat capabilities to a certain extent by allowing more oxygen to enter your bloodstream."

"Breathing techniques? How do I do that?"

“Breathing techniques do require a certain level of physical strength, but luckily, your physical fitness is quite good, even better than most boys.” Yu Zi walked behind her and placed one hand on her back: “Follow my voice.”

"Inhale..."

Although Long Gui was somewhat confused, he still did as he was told, adjusting his breathing rhythm in accordance with Yu Zi's.

Exhale.

"Cough cough..."

When Long Gui tried it for the first time, he found the frequency and rhythm of the breathing uncomfortable. It was completely different from normal breathing, or even the breathing regulation when running. It was as if he was being tortured.

"This is how it is the first time, just bear with it."

Time passed second by second, and in the empty dojo, only Long Gui's constantly adjusting breathing could be heard.

"Cough cough..."

He didn't know how much time had passed, but Ryuki was drenched in sweat. It wasn't like he was just sitting there breathing; it was more like he had run a lap around Karakura Town.

"What a coincidence!"

"Ok?"

Long Gui could detect a hint of joy in Yu Zi's voice, and turned around in confusion.

Yuko smiled slightly: "The breathing rhythm I just had you try is actually a variety of different breathing techniques."

"I need to select the one that suits your constitution."

Long Gui asked, "Are there any suitable for me?"

"Of course, and it's the Snow Breathing technique that I created."

"Snow Breathing?" Ryuki murmured the name.

Yuko sighed, "I originally thought that Flame Breathing would be more suitable for Ryuki, but I didn't expect it to be my breathing technique. I guess it's fate."

Hearing Yuko say that, Longgui's face lit up with a hint of joy, and he opened his mouth as if to say something.

"This shows that my breathing method still has its merits."

Long Gui was stunned for a moment.

"what?"

What are its merits?

This doesn't sound like a good thing.

“Some people once said that my breathing method was nonsense and that no one could learn it.”

"But actually, it still exists."

"Me?" Long Gui pointed to himself with a blank expression.

"Of course it's not just Long Gui. If we count now, there are already two people including Long Gui."

"..."

What's the difference between that and being a person?

Long Gui suddenly felt uneasy.

Yuko didn't notice Longgui's reaction and said, "I'll tell you the secret to breathing. Practice this breathing method first, and try to change your original breathing rhythm in daily life. It would be best to use this rhythm and frequency even when you're sleeping."

"Even while sleeping?" Long Gui didn't think that was too demanding; she just doubted whether she could do it.

After all, that thing is really hard to breathe.

Concentrating before going to sleep is not a problem for her, but maintaining her breathing while sleeping makes her feel like she might suffocate.

Yu Zi waved her hand: "It's okay, you'll get used to it."

"……I see."

"Let's move on to the next stage of cultivation once you can clearly perceive the spiritual energy within your body." Yu Zi dusted off her trouser legs and stood up. "Take your time to adjust. I'll be leaving now."

Long Gui looked up and asked, "Teacher, what's the name of this knife?"

"A name? You can choose one yourself."

Although it was forged from her own flesh and blood, this sword is not Shura. Yuko has devoted far more effort to this sword than Shura.

Long Gui solemnly said, "No, please choose one, teacher."

"Bone knife."

"what?"

Yu Zi proudly said, "If I were to name it, I'd call it Bone Knife. I'm terrible at naming things."

"...It's pure white, so let's just call it..."

"Charcoal?"

Long Gui looked on speechlessly.

Yu Zi shrugged: "You asked me to name it, this is all I can do."

Then it should at least be called Snow White, right?

The teacher is clearly just fooling around!

Long Gui said firmly, "How about we call it Snow Fang?"

Yuko couldn't help but complain, "It sounds awful. Why not call her Yukihime, Yuki-zuri, or Fubuki?"

Her rant prompted Long Gui to speak up as well.

"You're good at naming things, aren't you?!"

And the name sounds pretty good!

Long Gui looked speechless for a moment. "So, the teacher was actually just teasing me, right?"

Yuko's eyes darted around, and she didn't say anything.

Ryuki sighed, "Since it's the Snow Breathing taught by the teacher, and it's a fang that's revealed to protect the person you want to protect... let's call it Snow Fang."

"Oh~ there's even a source. No wonder he's a high school graduate."

Long Gui's lips twitched: "You talk as if you, teacher, never went to high school."

Yuko thought for a moment: "...No."

Not really.

Long Gui retorted, "Did you find your teacher's certificate somewhere?"

"I'm leaving. Keep working hard." Yu Zi smiled faintly and turned to walk out of the dojo.

"Hmm." Long Gui let out a soft breath, and when Yu Zi reached the door, he couldn't help but call out to her again.

"teacher."

"Hmm?" Yuko turned around.

Longgui gripped the hilt of his knife tightly: "Thank you."

This time, I won't just stand by and watch.

"Hey, what's the big deal? As long as you become incredibly good at cooking in the future, don't reveal your teacher and say that I taught you."

"..."

A gust of cold wind swept by, and Long Gui's lips twitched slightly as he lowered his head and rubbed his forehead.

From a young age, Ryuki knew that Yuko was an adult who liked to play pranks, and now that she's confessed, it's only gotten worse.

She finally understood why Ichigo was so afraid of Ikuko-sensei.

Even she probably couldn't handle it.

Long Gui was immersed in his helplessness towards Yu Zi when he suddenly heard a soft laugh.

"Long Gui, I have high expectations for you now. Keep it up!"

She looked up in a daze, but there was no one in the doorway.

……

As Yuko left the dojo, she looked up at the sky.

Breathing techniques...

In this world, a simple breathing technique is not powerful. Even if it is combined with spiritual power, it is only 99 plus 1, which is a bit like patting oneself on the back.

Insignificant.