The training grounds weren't far from the main courtyard. They all walked in silence with the exception of Tengen, who was whistling. Giyu walked close to John and asked him
"Do you feel prepared? Nobody really expects you to win." Giyu asked with a blank face as he tried to reassure John.
"Thanks for the confidence boost." John said with sarcasm as a smile bloomed on his face. Although he had said it nonchalantly, John knew he was worried, and he wanted to encourage him.
"You ready?" Rengoku asked while smiling brightly. The Hashira's had arrived at the training grounds, and Obanai Iguro went ahead to get them wooden practice swords. "So who would you like to pick?"
That was a tough choice for John, for he knew these people well. They were terrifying monsters in human skin. No matter who he picked, the result would remain the same, disastrous defeat.
John glanced around the training ground. It was huge, about 100 square meters, it was an empty space. That was quite good. It meant he couldn't get ambushed. He considered his options. Gyomei was out of the option for he had overpowering strength, Shinobu was also out for the reason of poison, Tengen was too fast, Muichiro was stealthy, obanai had flow and unpredictability, Mitsuri was strong also, Sanemi might as well murder him. That left Giyu and Rengoku to pick from. But John wanted to learn from Rengoku directly, so.....
"I pick you Rengoku-sama." John respectfully replied.
"No surprise there, I admire your courage, John-san." Rengoku was ecstatic. He saw promise in the young man, especially the speech he had made about his moral code. "Such a firm will. "I truly respect that." Rengoku laughed loudly as his flame cloak gently floated with the wind.
John laughed as well. This might as well be a last-ditch effort. If this didn't work, he would go for plan B, but he hoped and prayed with his entire being that this fight would work in his favour.
"If this doesn't work out, I might as well enjoy myself." John whispered to himself as he got into a stance. He went for the standard Quick draw stance. This fight would be the determining factor that might guarantee his acceptance into the Demon Slayer Corps.
"Subarashi {Excellent}." Rengoku said with a grin at the corner of his mouth. The other Hashira's had retreated farther than the training grounds and were watching from afar. Rengoku could feel John's resolute fighting spirit, and he was delighted in it. "Come, I'll let you have three moves. If you manage to inflict a wound within those three moves, you win. But if you fail to inflict any wounds or injuries, then i will begin to fight back. Keep in mind that i will use minimal movement until the three moves have been used." Rengoku wanted the boy to have as much of a chance of winning as possible. The chance to grab his wish was here. Would he do everything within his power to achieve it, or would his determination wear out. That was the crucial question, and Rengoku was determined to find it's answer.
John's heartbeat was heavy.
"BEGIN." A loud shout a distance away was heard.
Rengoku stood I place as John swiftly approached. John didn't waste time closing the gap. He approached instantly, covering the distance of tens of meters in a single breath. His posture was bent as he pulled his wooden blade out of it's sheath. The blade rushed swiftly towards Rengoku's neck, ribcage, and collarbone. John didn't hesitate to go for a killing move. This was Rengoku. We're talking about how he could go toe to toe with Upper Rank 3 Akaza for several minutes, almost killing him in the process. John believed he could handle it.
Rengoku smiled slightly. All the areas the boy had gone for were all vital spots. It seemed he really intended to win. Rengoku dodged swiftly by stepping backwards and manoeuvring his body to twist slightly in the opposite direction. He then put some distance between them.
"That counts as one opportunity. You should try harder. Next time, you should twist the handle of your Katana so as to get an edge over your opponent."
"Noted, get ready..."
John rushed forward again, but this time, he went in a zig-zag pattern. He had abandoned all the formalities. This was serious business. He only had two more moves to make before Rengoku started to fight back. This time, he went for a low attack. The blade cut swiftly towards Rengoku, bringing along with it a sharp sound. Immediately, Rengoku began to react to it. John switched forms again this time.
"Kirioroshi{Downward cut}..."The blade lightly brushed past Rengoku's forearm, but John wasn't done yet. "Gyaku{Reverse cut}"
The blade stopped and began it's immediate return to it's initial position. Rengoku stepped aside swiftly, but the blade still managed to cut a milimeter or two of his hair.
John stepped back to regroup. He couldn't believe he had actually done that. Though Rengoku used minimal movement, it still felt like an achievement to him.
Rengoku was genuinely surprised. That move was never meant to have hit him. He was so sure he had dodged it successfully. Nevertheless, that was a hit, but it didn't classify as a wound or injury. Three moves were up so he could make a move.
"Impressive. I really didn't expect that from you. I'm going to start now."
Suddenly, he disappeared before John's eyes. DANGER
John instantly took the wooden and swung it towards his left side. It clashed with Rengoku's wooden sword. Rengoku's eyes glimmered with excitement and true fun. John instantly went for the counterattack. He performed a Tsugi-ashi{Following step}. Rengoku didn't budge. It felt like he was pushing a mountain. John stopped pushing and bent his sword, so that his blade was facing downwards, which let Rengoku's blade slide off, during his shift of balance, John performed a Yokogiri{Lateral cut} which cut towards his outstretched forearms. The slash went through the body of his opponent. It was an after image. The real deal was standing a few feet away. John dashed forward again, and this time went for short thrusts.
During that time, they had clashed several times. Rengoku was impressed with the boy's ability to keep up even though he wasn't using full strength deserved admiration. Although he was a bit clumsy with a sword, that didn't change the fact that he had impressive physical form.
John slowly began to notice patterns due to the combined effect of
"Time to speed this up." John whispered. This whole time, he had preserved his stamina, but he knew he had enough confidence that he could at least damage Rengoku a bit.
Rengoku sharp eyes squinted a bit as he laughed a bit. It seems the boy didn't have any more patience to continue testing waters. That's all right. He was also tired of playing the car and mouse game.
"Bring it on. Show me your fighting spirit." Rengoku's face splitter into a wide grin as the boy's speed increased drastically, but he stood still using his eyes to follow his movement. The boy ran around in circles, stirring up a smokescreen made of dust. His footsteps were inaudible. What a terrifying ability. The dust storm had risen by about 4 meters now, obscuring hus vision was a good plan, but not good enough. With a sudden burst John lunged out of the storm to begin a barrage of attacks which were all aimed at Rengoku's vital points, anticipating the attack Rengoku pivoted to the left and deflected the blows with precise ease. The sound of wood clashing resounded.
John followed up with a series of rapid strikes, each one calculated to find a weakness. Rengoku weaved and ducked, his footwork light and agile, avoiding the onslaught.
John suddenly performed a feint, which surprisingly worked. He then followed through with an aggressive Kaiten{Rotating cut} the blade passed through again, another after image. John followed Rengoku doggedly, not giving him a chance to recover an advantage. While doing so, a sudden impulse began to reoccur, correcting his movements and strikes.
[Talent
Rengoku sensed the sudden change instantly. The moment the boy attacked again, he found it harder to get out of his sword flow movement. It tightly began to constrict, giving no space to manoeuvre. This was getting really exciting. He decided to apply more power to his strikes.
John speed and power were constantly increasing, although Rengoku had managed to parry every single one of his attacks, no matter. He will definitely hit him for sure. John decided to expend mana to increase his speed by channelling it to his legs. The increase was outstanding. John's slashes became faster and stronger.
Rengoku couldn't keep the smile off his face as they clashed again and again. This was proving to be exciting.
"Omoshiroi{Facinating}." Rengoku couldn't help but let out. His heartbeat was soaring through the roof. "Let's go even faster." He shouted over the sound of clashing swords.
John could not disappoint his potential teacher. John immediately activated
Their clash brought about a wave of powerful air currents, the earth shook, and dust began to gather in a whirlwind of great magnitude. Then the inexplicable happened, when they clashed one more time, their wooden swords both broke.
"What..." John stared dumbfoundedly at the broken piece on the floor, he then turned his gaze to Rengoku, who also had the same look on his face. Rengoku then burst out laughing as he pulled his cloak forward to expose a tiny tear at the bottom most corner.
John then collapsed of exhaustion.