Chapter 139: A New Life x The Day We Meet Again is the Day Muzan Dies
Several pairs of eyes snapped towards him in unison, as if rehearsed. Makomo's head shot up. Sabito's gaze burned. Sakonji Urokodaki put down his knife and looked over. Roy grinned, showing his teeth, and said, "I promised Master I'd come back to the mountain and drink with all of you after I kill the Demon King. I can't just drink alone. I've always thought it would be more enjoyable... if we were all together."
Whoosh! A ghostly wind blasted past. Makomo was in front of Roy in an instant, grabbing his hand. "Eiichiro, do you have a way?" The girl was full of hope and apprehension, her beautiful eyes shining, fixed on Roy.
Roy nodded gently. "Of course." He looked around, his gaze resting on Sabito, Shinsuke, and Fukuda. "Seniors, please choose an object to be your new vessel. With that as an anchor, I can avenge you all without worry... and without fear of you all dissipating."
"What kind of object?"
"Are there special requirements? Like wood or stone that contains yin energy?"
"Eiichiro, you... you can really do it?"
Whoosh! The cabin instantly came alive. Ghostly winds swirled around Roy. Shinsuke, Fukuda, Watanabe, Shimizu... every last one of them crowded in, surrounding him.
Sabito leaned against the pillar, watching. The boy patiently answered everyone's questions. He had never felt it so clearly before... it was truly a blessing to have Eiichiro as a junior brother. Perhaps he, Makomo, and all the others—even Master—hadn't realized... how much they had all, slowly and unconsciously, come to rely on Eiichiro.
'When did it start?' Perhaps it began the very first day he appeared on Sagiri Mountain with his younger brother.
A faint smile touched Sabito's lips. He pushed off the pillar, moved through the crowd, and clapped Roy on the shoulder. "Let me go first, as an example for the others."
Nothing is certain. If something went wrong, someone had to take responsibility. It wasn't that Sabito didn't trust Roy's methods... he just couldn't bear to see any of the others "go" before him. If they were destined to fade, he, as the eldest brother, would be first.
"Senpai..." Makomo looked at Sabito, wanting to speak but holding back. Shinsuke and Fukuda fell silent. They had always followed Sabito's lead and knew that once he made a decision, no one could sway him. They just looked at Roy, their eyes full of hope.
Roy was much calmer than any of them. He said nothing, just gave Sabito a slight nod.
The fox-masked boy looked around. Suddenly, he saw Master Sakonji Urokodaki wash his hands, then feel under a cabinet for a hidden compartment. He pulled out a box and opened it, revealing a set of small, lifelike wooden figures. Looking closely, they were carvings of Sabito, Makomo, Shinsuke, Fukuda, and all the others!
The old man picked up the one of Sabito and placed it on the bed. "Use this."
"This is perfect," Sabito said, teasing Roy. "Only the disciples who died get this treatment. You and Giyu definitely don't have one."
The carvings were clearly made by Sakonji to commemorate his lost students. Some of them had even watched him carve their likenesses. Seeing them, a knowing smile passed between the spirits. They each 'flew' their own wooden figure over and lined them up neatly on the bed.
Roy didn't hesitate. He picked up Sabito's figure, coated it in a layer of Nen, and then, with a snip of his [Will Shears], Shu was complete! The wooden figure, now wrapped in milky-white Nen, transcended its mundane form and became a [Nen Object]!
The boy set it down. "Senpai, if you please."
Sabito nodded. His spiritual form dissolved into a wisp of wind and shot into the wooden doll. Everyone watched with bated breath. The doll's eyes snapped open. In an instant, it "came alive." It flexed its wooden arms, kicked its legs, and rotated its neck. It was a perfect, miniature Sabito.
"It... It really worked!" Shinsuke's eyes widened. He reached out and roughly tousled Sabito's wooden head, only to flinch back when Sabito glared at him. The fox-masked boy looked down at his new body in disbelief, as if reborn. His first act was to bow deeply to Roy.
But Roy, anticipating the move, sidestepped it.
"Good... very good... it couldn't be better..." Sakonji Urokodaki's old eyes glistened. He looked at Roy, his voice thick. "Eiichiro, your senior brother is thanking you. You should accept it." This was no less than the gift of life.
"Master is right," Sabito said, clenching his wooden fists. "A pity I'm missing a sword. Otherwise... I'd go down the mountain with you and fight that monster myself!"
"Why should senpai get all the fun?"
"If we're going, we all go together!"
"Yeah! Yeah! We'll have the Swordsmith Village make us tiny Nichirin Blades! I'll chop that thing's head off this time!"
Excitement surged. Roy felt a tug on his sleeve. He looked down. Makomo was looking up at him, her eyes pleading. "Hey... Eiichiro, my turn."
"Of course I won't forget you, senpai."
The boy picked up Makomo's figure, applied Shu just as he had for Sabito's. The girl dove in eagerly. When her wooden eyes opened, she spun around joyfully. Never before had she felt how wonderful it was to be "alive"!
"Eiichiro, me next! And me! I want one too!"
After Sabito and Makomo, the little wooden figures of Shinsuke, Fukuda, Watanabe, and Shimizu came to life, one by one. They leaped and tumbled around the cabin, jumping up and down. Anyone peeking in would have thought they'd stumbled into a land of tiny, hyperactive wooden people.
Sakonji Urokodaki watched with a smile, letting them celebrate, not stopping them. The guilt and self-blame he had carried in his heart for so many years quietly dissolved.
"Master, the pot is boiling over!"
Bubble... bubble... The steam pushed the lid off, and it was about to fall. Makomo, quick-witted, dashed over, turned off the heat, and secured the lid—something her previous form could never have done.
"Coming, coming..." Sakonji Urokodaki chuckled, lifting the lid. The aroma of miso soup filled the air. The sound of sniffing echoed. Shinsuke, Fukuda, and the others stopped their roughhousing, stunned. They realized... they had a sense of "smell"!
They all turned to look at Roy.
The boy rubbed his chin, thinking. He looked up, enlightened. The five senses—sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch—are all just signals perceived and processed by the brain through imagination. And Nen itself is a product of imagination. Since the wooden dolls were "activated" by Nen, it was only natural they would also possess the five senses.
"You can hear, see, smell, touch, and taste... but you can't digest." Roy smiled. "Congratulations, my seniors, on your new life."
Shinsuke jumped up and punched him lightly. "Eiichiro, I knew you could do it!" Before he could land, Fukuda grabbed him from behind in a headlock, squeezing his neck. "Don't! Don't!" Shinsuke yelped. "This is wood! Be gentle, Fukuda, you bastard!"
"Scared now, are you?" Fukuda snorted, releasing Shinsuke. He then pushed his head down, mimicking Sabito, and bowed deeply to Roy. He was followed by Shimizu, Watanabe, Yagiku... one by one, the little figures bowed.
Roy didn't dodge this time, accepting their gratitude. He met Sabito's eyes across the room, and they both smiled.
"Soup's on!" a voice chirped. Pat... pat... pat... Makomo, balancing a pot of porridge, her lips stained, walked out. She had already tasted it. It was delicious.
The moment she set it on the table, pat... pat... pat... Shinsuke, Fukuda, and the others swarmed, their eyes wide with desperate hunger.
Sakonji Urokodaki walked out with the sliced sashimi. Seeing the scene, his heart ached. The "lonely ghosts" who had wandered the mountain for so long finally had a home. In a way, wasn't this its own kind of liberation?
He instructed everyone to get their bowls and chopsticks. They sat in a circle and formally began the meal.
"Let's eat." The old man clasped his hands. The moment he finished, the table was hit by a whirlwind. Shinsuke and Fukuda, in a frenzy, devoured most of the food. Even the normally demure Makomo and Yagiku had extra helpings. Sabito laughed. "You guys... just a taste is enough. Didn't you hear Eiichiro? You can eat, but you can't digest. You're wasting food."
"It's fine," Roy said, understanding. If he had "starved" for that many years, he'd be just as frantic.
Sakonji Urokodaki smiled. "Let them eat. We have plenty of rice." Besides, they're just little wooden figures. They can't eat that much. Breakfast quickly ended amidst laughter and bickering.
Afterward, the boy helped Sakonji, Makomo, and Sabito with the dishes, and then began to pack his bag.
The cabin seemed to fall silent again.
He had arrived on Sagiri Mountain with just a bamboo basket and a change of clothes. He would leave the same way. The boy packed, took his training blade, and held it in his hand.
It was time to go down the mountain.
Creeak...
The wooden door opened. Sakonji Urokodaki, without a word, packed the freshly made rice balls and sashimi for Roy's journey. He patted the boy on the shoulder, smoothing a wrinkle on his clothes. A thousand words were condensed into one: "Go."
Sabito, Makomo, Shinsuke, Fukuda... they stood in a line, watching him silently.
The boy smiled and waved. He said nothing, just turned and left, not taking a single cloud with him.
The morning sun cast dappled light through the mist, illuminating Roy's not-so-large back.
Makomo cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted, "Come back safe!"
Roy's steps faltered for just a moment. "Of course."
He lifted his foot again and, in a flash, vanished from their sight.
"Stop staring. We'll see him again, and soon," Sabito said, patting Makomo's little head. The girl gave a soft "Mm," but her body remained rooted to the spot, staring into the distance for a long, long time.
Half a year wasn't long, but it wasn't short, either. Roy wasn't made of wood; he could feel the clinging sorrow of parting. So, just like Giyu Tomioka, he left decisively. Not for any other reason than... reunion.
However... "The next time we meet... it will be after Muzan is dead!"
He gripped his sword, his pace quickening. The boy flickered... and flickered... like a phantom, he moved through the mountain forest, left Sagiri Mountain, and headed straight for Mount Fujikasane.
The annual Demon Slayer Corps Final Selection had already begun.
Ubuyashiki Estate.
Kagaya Ubuyashiki, a blanket over his lap, listened as his daughters, Hinaki and Nichika, reported on the Final Selection arrangements. At one point, Gyomei Himejima, who had been chanting sutras, spoke, "Master, Giyu Tomioka has arrived."
Right on cue, a guard announced his arrival. Giyu Tomioka, wearing his red, yellow, and green haori, and carrying the "Crimson Blade Method," walked down the corridor, appearing before Kagaya Ubuyashiki, his face weary from his journey.
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