Chapter 82: How Could a Lion Care About the Rage of an Ant?
Slurp—
Tatsu sat at one side of the table, holding a pair of chopsticks.
He skillfully picked up a mouthful of ramen soaked in rich broth and brought it to his mouth.
Kocho Shinobu sat upright opposite Tatsu.
On her small, delicate face, she wore a gentle smile that was perfectly flawless.
Her hands, hidden within her sleeves, had already pinched her thighs hard enough to cause deep bruises.
Creak—
In this eerie atmosphere, the door was gently pushed open from the outside.
The moment the wooden door swung open, Kanae's heart was actually racing a bit.
Over the past two hours,
she had been wandering aimlessly by herself on the streets outside the inn.
Shinobu's hatred for demons was etched into her very bones.
Leaving her alone in a room with Tatsu,
Kanae had even mentally prepared herself to return to a room in ruins.
However, what met her eyes was such an unbelievable sight.
Tatsu was quietly eating ramen, while Shinobu sat obediently across from him, keeping him company.
There were no flashing blades, no poisonous mist—only the steam from the noodle soup rising slowly between them.
In just two hours... Tatsu had already won Shinobu over?
Kanae marveled silently in her heart, and a trace of admiration couldn't help but appear in her eyes as she looked at Tatsu.
Tatsu was truly amazing; Shinobu's guardedness
had actually been soothed by him so quickly.
"Seeing you two getting along so harmoniously, I can finally put my mind at ease."
Kanae stepped into the room and closed the wooden door behind her.
Hearing her sister's voice, Kocho Shinobu, who had been in a state of high Spiritual tension,
felt her body tremble violently.
She stood up abruptly, her movements so hurried that she even knocked over the cushion behind her.
Like a lost bird that had finally found a safe harbor,
she threw herself into Kanae's arms and hugged her sister tightly.
"Sister... where did you go..."
Kocho Shinobu buried her face deep in Kanae's Haori, which carried a faint scent of wisteria,
and her voice uncontrollably took on a slight tremor.
Only in Kanae's embrace could she cast off that false mask of gentleness.
She was too afraid—not of death, but of losing her sister.
Just now in this room, Tatsu had used the calmest tone to issue the most terrifying threat against her and her sister's lives.
To protect her sister, she had been forced to sign a humiliating treaty under duress,
forced to stop injecting poison, and forced to retract all her fangs.
"I'm sorry, Shinobu, for making you worry."
Feeling her younger sister's body trembling slightly in her arms, a flash of heartache crossed Kanae's eyes.
She raised her hand and stroked Kocho Shinobu's soft black hair with extreme gentleness, over and over again.
"I just went out for a walk."
Kanae lowered her head slightly, her chin resting gently on the top of Shinobu's head, her voice full of self-reproach.
"I was thinking... exactly what I could do to make Shinobu stop injecting wisteria poison."
"I've been wondering if it's because I'm too useless as an older sister,"
"that you need to fight in such a self-destructive way..."
Hearing these words from Kanae, Kocho Shinobu, buried in her sister's embrace, suddenly widened her eyes.
Could it be...
An absurd thought flashed through Shinobu's mind.
Was it because of her sister's wish that this demon had just used those threatening methods
to force me to stop injecting wisteria poison?
Did he do all this because he saw through her sister's thoughts and wanted to please her?
But this thought existed for less than a second before Shinobu ruthlessly snuffed it out in her heart.
No! Impossible!
A demon is a demon!
How could he possibly have that kind of human emotion?
This must all be nothing but the demon's disguise!
The reason he won't let me inject wisteria poison is simply because he's afraid.
He realized that the toxins in my body could threaten him, so he used my sister's life to blackmail me.
This cunning, despicable, and utterly disgusting monster!
Although in the depths of her heart she had already sliced Tatsu into a thousand pieces countless times,
when Kocho Shinobu raised her head from Kanae's embrace,
her face once again wore that gentle smile as warm as a spring breeze.
"Sister, you don't need to worry about me anymore."
Shinobu looked into Kanae's eyes, her lips curling into a perfect arc,
as she said in a light and soft tone,
"I've thought things through.
From now on, I will no longer continue to inject wisteria poison.
And..."
At this point, Shinobu turned her head slightly,
her gaze seemingly casually sweeping over Tatsu, who was sitting at the table drinking from a teacup.
A trace of extremely hard-to-detect malice flashed in the depths of her eyes, yet her tone remained sickeningly sweet.
"And, I will get along well with the de... Tatsu.
Sister's wish is Shinobu's wish, after all."
She forcefully swallowed the word "demon,"
forcing herself to speak the name that made her feel utterly disgusted.
For her sister's safety, she had to endure now, putting up with him for the time being.
As long as she was alive and could still hold a blade, one day, she would personally send this demon to hell.
"Really? Shinobu!"
Hearing this, Kanae's eyes instantly lit up.
She didn't notice the gritted teeth behind her sister's smile at all,
feeling only pure, immense joy at her sister's change of heart.
She cupped Shinobu's cheeks with both hands and said happily:
"Good, that's wonderful! That's my good sister.
I knew Shinobu would be able to understand me.
As long as we open our hearts to each other, humans and demons can definitely find a way to coexist!"
Tatsu, sitting by the table, finished the last sip of soup in his bowl and gently set down his chopsticks.
He quietly watched this scene of sisterly affection and heartwarming warmth,
not a single ripple in his blood-red eyes.
With his extraordinary perception,
he naturally and clearly captured the killing intent hidden beneath Shinobu's smile, which was almost tangible.
But he didn't care.
How could a lion care about the rage of an ant beneath its feet?
He slowly stood up and casually picked up the green nichirin sword on the table,
the scabbard making a slight scraping sound against the tabletop.
"Kanae."
Tatsu turned around and looked at Kanae Kocho.
His voice, which had been cold and mocking when facing Shinobu,
miraculously softened at this moment,
as if he were a different person, carrying a reassuring gentleness,
"You haven't done your training for tonight yet.
It's getting late; let's go train."
"Training?"
Before Kanae could answer, Shinobu tilted her head,
her eyes filled with scrutiny and doubt.
"Sister, what training? Where are you going to train in the middle of the night?"
In her understanding, the training of the Demon Slayer Corps was nothing more than sword swinging, physical conditioning, and Breathing Styles.
But training with a demon?
That was simply the height of absurdity.
What exactly was this demon planning?
Kanae turned her head, saw her sister's confused look, smiled gently, and explained:
"It's like this, Shinobu.
Tatsu... helps me with a special kind of cultivation every night.
It's a very profound and wonderful realm called the 'Transparent World.'
Tatsu says that once I master that realm, my strength will see a qualitative leap."
"Transparent World?"
The smile on Shinobu's face froze for a moment; this was a term she had never heard in any of the Demon Slayer Corps' records.
"Shinobu, you should come too!"
Kanae suddenly seemed to think of something, grabbed Shinobu's hand, and said with a face full of anticipation,
"This training has extremely high requirements for perception and concentration.
You're so smart, Shinobu; if it's you, maybe you'll master it very quickly.
That way, you'll have an extra measure of self-protection in future battles."
Kanae was always like this; no matter what good thing happened, the first person she thought of was always her younger sister.
Then, Kanae turned her head and looked at Tatsu with a bit of apology and a hint of expectation:
"Tatsu, Shinobu is coming to train with us... you won't mind an extra person, will you?"
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