Demon Slayer : The Silent Journey

Chapter 11: Breathing styles and training

[Seiji's POv]

Here's an interesting fact about the future Flame Hashira.

Did you know that he learned his breathing style mostly through the dairy and manuals left behind by the previous Flame Hashiras?

It shocked me at first because I thought he would at least get some training from his father but no, other than a few guidances and a beatdown where he told his son how pointless his training was, the father was a useless bum.

Don't let him catch me saying that though. He still had deep respect for his father and wouldn't allow anyone to badmouth him.

He admired his father for all he had done and Rengoku did not blame him for how he turned out to be. A profession like his could really break any man, my friend said.

His father had been strong for long enough. He had saved enough lives. Now it was his turn to do so, it was his turn to carry his father's burden.

That's what he told me.

Anyway, let's shift the topic to more interesting matters.

Breathing styles, just like Rengoku said, I had been going horrendously wrong this whole time. It was no wonder I wasn't able to use it properly, much less complete my own breathing style.

The problem lay in my simplistic thought and lack of creativity. I was too caught up on logic and what I remembered from the show.

You take in huge amounts of air and increase the amount of oxygen in your blood so that your muscles have a boost in energy and performance.

I lived by that statement and it was wrong.

I am not sure how I could compare it but let me try it this way. Imagine a breath could be any number and my capacity for one breath was 10.

So I go, 10 + 10 + 10 + 10 + 10 = 50

I took in as much air as possible and forced my body to absorb all the oxygen it could get. But that was a primitive way of doing it.

I learned that using unique breathing patterns and correct forms could have huge effects in the way my body got enhanced.

So I could go like, 10 x 5 = 50

Using a proper pattern and knowing exactly what I wanted to achieve allowed me to increase the efficiency of my breaths many times over. What took five huge breaths could be achieved using two if proper technique was applied.

Then there were many other things that could be taken into account as well. There were proper ways to exhale and the way you matched your breaths with your heartbeat. And posture could have a significant impact. Take the negative number as an exhalation.

-10 x - 9 + 10 = 100

It's all about the patterns. And just like how you could have a positive effect, if you did an incorrect form and pattern, you could have a negative effect.

9 + 10 + 10 x 0 + 5 = 5

I hope this comparison made sense as it was the most simplistic way I could explain.

In conclusion, breathing style was not about your lung capacity, it never was, it was all about forms and the pattern with which you breathe.

When I learned this, I almost leapt up and started dancing in joy because if there was anything I was good at, it was learning and observing the pattern of things.

After all, breathing styles were also a movement, all under the language of the body.

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"Stop it, that's enough." I said to Rengoku who had a giant boulder on his back while he did pushups.

"You are only breaking your body."

Rengoku was a training freak. His training was so intense that it almost scared me when I first saw it. It was scary for me because I could see in detail how his body was working and tearing apart with each set of training he endured.

I had never seen anyone training so hard and barbaric before.

It reminded me of Might Guy from Naruto. In fact I believe they were the same person in different universes. Instead of shouting 'Youth!!' Regoku yelled 'Set your heart abalze!' while breaking his body and forging it like a sword.

"That is the whole point Seiji. How about you come join me instead, let me show you everything is possible if you put your mind to it." He said.

"No."

I was not going to endure such hellish training for literally no gain. I could see how my muscles work and I trained just enough to simulate them and then allow them time to grow so that I could make the most progress at a period of time.

What Rengoku did was actually counterproductive. He was overtraining himself and in terms of increasing muscle power and building the body, he was cutting his own gains.

I tried to tell him this multiple times but he did not listen. In the end, we just came to a mutual agreement that we had different type of training styles.

I utilized my gifts to get the most progress out of training but he was using his determination to not only sharpen his body but his mind as well.

Each of our styles had its pros and cons.

Looking objectively, my training style was superior and I made maximum progress. But on the other hand, Rengoku was not only training his body but also the endurance of his mind.

It was because of his freakishly intense training that he was able to go beyond his limits and achieve the impossible when it was needed. Like it was the case when he was fighting Akaza.

In the end, it was just a matter of choice. Which one would you prefer?

Heh, this reminded me of the scientific training vs ego-lifting in the gym. Which one was a better method?

By the way, this did not mean I was not training hard by any means. I was training as hard as my body could handle but Rengoku was just another level. He was a freak.

And I believe he would get stronger his own way. Who am I to try and stop him when I clearly knew that he would grow stronger?

"One hundred!!" Rengoku yelled and then he stood up with raised hands. I cringed when I saw the muscle tear on his tricep and chest muscles.

That would take at least two weeks to heal properly but he would probably train again the day after tomorrow. I guess we are persisting through sheer shounen power with this one.

"Seiji! Let us go for a run around the mountain." he said and I released a sigh. I shook my head and relented.

I guess I could go for a run.

A few minutes later I had to struggle to catch up wirh him. He said let's run around the mountain but what he meant was, let us sprint as fast as we could around the mountain.

Fucking freakish bastard.

...

We trained like that for a week.

We would spar against each other whenever we had time with the victor always being me. But the thing about winning against Rengoku was that he never even went close to going all out. His body just couldn't go full power on someone he held close.

I learned Flame-Breathing with Rengoku as well and he was even kind enough to let me read the manuals of the previous Flame Hashiras.

I managed to learn all of the forms in a week. I made huge progress especially when Rengoku was always willing to demonstrate them for me and my eyes saw everything so it made it easer to learn them.

Although I was far from mastering them, I think it boosted my overall combat power many times.

We would hunt demons during the night as well and it became a lovely bonding time between us. It was times we spent under the moon that I would remember forever.

Then a week passed and it was finally upon us.

The final selection.

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Double update

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