The meeting began with the arrival of Amane Ubuyashiki, Kagaya's wife, accompanied by two of their children. She bowed deeply before addressing the gathered Hashira.
"In today's Hashira meeting, I am here on behalf of Kagaya Ubuyashiki. I deeply apologize for the fact that Master Kagaya will no longer be able to appear before you due to his worsening health.
As you are all aware, a demon who can withstand sunlight has now emerged—Nezuko Kamado. Muzan will definitely come for her, trying to conquer the sun too. A large-scale war is now unavoidable."
Amane then turned her gaze toward Mitsuri and Muichiro, her expression calm and inquisitive. "During your battles with the Upper Moons, I was told that both of you manifested unique marks on your bodies.
I would like to hear more about them—under what circumstances did these marks appear? Is there any way to awaken them?"
Unlike Mitsuri's blunder of attempting to describe her experience with a string of vague gestures and sounds, Muichiro calmly recounted how his demon slayer mark awakened in detail—during a near-death struggle.
After that, the Hashira meeting went as happened in the original timeline With Amane explaining the origin and history of Demon Slayer marks.
Ryou remained silent throughout the meeting, just sitting there absentmindedly without even listening to the conversation.
Soon, the Hashira meeting ended, and Amane Ubuyashiki bowed once more before leaving with her children. Just as the Hashira were preparing to leave, Gyomei stepped forward and stopped them, proposing his 'Hashira Training plan' to prepare the Corps members for the upcoming battle.
Everyone then spent another hour discussing the specifics of the training program—working out the schedule, time periods, and dates. Each Hashira would take charge of a particular training session, with Ryou overseeing reaction and perception training.
----
After the meeting, Ryou and Kanae left the Ubuyashiki Mansion and walked side by side. Kanae glanced at Ryou who was quiet, she asked. "Ryou, why are you so absentminded today? Is something bothering you?"
"It's nothing," Ryou shook his head. He couldn't tell her that he was preoccupied with thoughts about the Earth humans. They somewhat bother him.
In fact, he wanted to explain about them, but with the looming threat of Muzan, he didn't want to burden her with even more worries.
Kanae smiled softly and said, "To be honest, I think you're the only one who stands a real chance against Muzan. And, I believe you. But, if something's bothering you, it may affect everyone."
Ryou chuckled, seeing she had misunderstood. He let out an exaggerated sigh and said, "Alright, I'll tell you the truth. I've been thinking hard... about what name we should give our children when they're born in the future. Will it be a boy or a girl? Or will it be twins?"
Hearing the words, Kanae paused in her tracks, then shot Ryou a glare before shaking her head. 'For a moment, I thought he was genuinely bothered. No... he's definitely worried about something, but he's covering it up by teasing me.'
Kanae sighed as she turned her head to look at the horizon, "If you don't want to tell me, then so be it."
'It's getting harder to fool her,' Ryou thought before saying aloud, "You'll find out in due time. But rest assured, it's not about Muzan. He doesn't worry me."
It was those very words that bothered Kanae even more. 'What could possibly be more concerning than Muzan, the progenitor of all demons?'
--
Three days after the emergency Hashira meeting, Demon Slayers began arriving at Ryou's Nature Manor for their training, in batches with a three-day gap between each.
On the first day, 25 people arrived, standing in a 5x5 formation. Ryou stood before them, while Tatsuya, Haruka, Yui, and Hina stood on the sides.
"Under my guidance, you'll improve your reaction and perception. My training lasts three days—push yourselves and grow as much as you can," Ryou instructed.
He then divided the group of twenty-five into two teams. Each group formed a circle with a ball soaked in water in their hand, which was heavy and painful to be hit by. In the center of the circle stood several large poles that obstructed their vision to some extent.
The play was simple: one person would throw the ball, and another had to catch it. However, before catching the incoming ball, they had to throw the ball they were holding.
On top of this, no one was allowed to stand without a ball for more than four consecutive throws. If they did, the fourth person to throw the ball would face the punishment.
Anyone who fails to catch or throw correctly also faces punishment.
As for the punishment, they had to stand in the center while everyone tossed balls at them. If three balls hit them, they were out and had to repeat the routine until they succeeded.
At first, the players thought it was all fun and games. But once they began, they quickly realized how challenging it was.
They had to stay completely focused, reacting in an instant, without allowing any distractions, not even for a fraction of a second. Missing a catch or failing to throw the ball accurately became common mistakes, especially with the large poles blocking their vision.
On top of that, they had to constantly keep an eye on the person who was without a ball, as they had to throw him the ball within four throws.
The punishment was no joke either. Getting hit by the water-soaked ball felt like being struck by a rock, leaving painful bruises.
And that was just the beginning. Next came the dodgeball game, followed by an even tougher training where rocks were thrown at high speed, forcing them to react and dodge quickly. The training was relentless, pushing everyone's reaction to the brink, and sharpening their natural reflex.
With Ryou, Tatsuya, and Haruka overseeing the training, the slayers couldn't cheat, even if they wanted to. The day went on like this, and by the end, the slayers collapsed to the ground, mentally drained despite their physical strength.
After the training, the slayers were treated to full meals and a relaxing bath, allowing them to recover from the mental exhaustion with a good amount of rest.
The next day, Ryou gathered the Demon Slayers, who were now in high spirits, and introduced the next phase of their training: Perception.
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