LIGHTNOVELONLINE The hot spring incident
[Seiji's POV]
Standing at the impressive height of 6'6 feet and filled with bulbous functional muscles, Uzui Tengen was an absolute unit.
He was standing beside Gyomei during the Hashira meeting so he gave the impression of being normal, but now that I took a look at him up close by himself, I realized how truly monstrous he was.
You're telling me, this dude was even faster than me?
A part of me would never believe it unless I saw it. A creature this big should not be allowed to move that fast.
My eyes pierced through the very fabric of his being, analyzing from head to toe like a modern supercomputer.
Humans have two types of skeletal muscle fibres called fast twitch muscles and slow twitch muscles.
Slow twitch muscles contract slower and were designed for long-duration activities. They produce less energy in a moment but can produce energy for a long time. This means that athletes like long-distance runners or cyclists have more of these types of muscles. They had no explosive power but had high endurance.
Fast twitch muscles were the opposite, they contract faster. They were designed to produce a burst of speed or power but they fatigue quickly. Athletes like powerlifters and sprinters had more of these types of muscles. They had less endurance for sudden bursts of power.
Humans have both types of muscles in their bodies. But depending on how you train, you can have more of either one of these.
And as my eyes pierced through Tengen's skin and analyzed his muscles, I was surprised to learn that his body was made up of mostly fast twitch muscle. The ratio between them was so far apart that it should've been impossible.
It meant that he was extremely explosive but would not do well in a drawn-out battle.
My eyes continued, studying the exceptional mind-muscle connection of his body. His fingers had insane dexterity and the proportionate muscles on both arms told me that he could use them both. He was a warrior who used two swords.
I also noticed his freak liver and the large amount of white blood cells in his body which would explain his poison resistance. His quad muscles were ginormous but his calves were small due to his long Achilles tendon which was a tendon that helps with explosive power.
It was always incredible to lay my eyes upon such specimen. Humans who were just built different. Thier uniqueness was beautiful.
Instinctively, my eyes glowed and searched for weakness. The body contained the history of every experience someone had so I read those.
From his rigid thumb which was no longer as flexible as the rest of the fingers due to being constantly broken, to the small bruises on his pelvis region, my eyes searched for a weakness in his body. That was until my eyes travelled up to his face.
Gone was his friendly and joyous expression. His face held a dangerous edge and his eyes spoke of warnings.
Oops.
I blinked and stopped analyzing. Tengen was not like the other Hashira, he was a shinobi who had trained since he was a child so he felt it when my eyes searched for a weakness in his body.
He probably got serious when he saw me stare at each and every flaw and weakness his body held.
"That was not very nice." he said.
I'm sure it was not the best experience to have someone stare and pin down your weakness with their gaze. I'd imagine the feeling to be like someone staring at your insecurity.
I looked down, apologetic. "I'm sorry."
"..."
"..."
"Welp!! It's okay. I will excuse you this time hahaha." he laughed, "It's just been a long time since someone looked at me like that, sorry if I scared you kid."
Scared? I wasn't scared. I just finished pinpointing every part of your giant body I should aim for, to kill you.
Is what I would say if I was edgy like literally any main character of High school DxD fanfic on wattpad.
"It's nice to meet you again Mister Tengen."
"Just Tengen is fine. I already have such a fashionable name, no need to ruin it by adding mister." he said and flashed me a smile.
"Okay then, Tengen." I said, "By the way, you said you were expecting me but I wasn't informed anything about you. Is it a mission that requires two Hashiras?"
A mission that demanded two Hashiras, were we clearing a hideout of demons or fighting a lower moon or something?
"Hahaha, what do you mean a mission? Ah, you don't know since you are new but every month, the Master will give us a few days to rest so we are doing just that."
"Wait there are no mission?"
Was that why the Kusagai crow only said to go to the Noseki village and didn't mention anything about slaying a demon?
"No missions kiddo, it's a time to let loose!"
"Are the other Hashrias coming as well?" I asked, kind of expectantly.
"Well, they are all invited." he said, "But it's pretty rare that they attend. It's usually just me and one or two other Hashrias now and then. You see, they are quite serious about thier job and very uptight so they don't always take the chance for a break. Me on the other hand, I've never missed one."
My lips curved,
"I see." Literally because I don't hear.
Then someone called Tengen from a distance. He immediately turned around and I followed his line of sight to see a woman with black curly hair with bangs and blue eyes.
"Uzui!! We want to go to the hot springs already!"
It was one of his wives if I remember correctly. And need I say that she was extremely hot? She was thick as hell. She was exactly what you would imagine a sexy female shinobi specializing in seduction to look like.
"Okay, Suma! Go ahead I will be right there." Tengen said with a wave and Suma quickly left for the hot spring
He turned back to me, his smile was a little more genuine and brighter this time.
"Your wife?"
"Yeah, one of them." he said, "Did you see the joy in her voice? They are the reason why I never miss any breaks. They never get to have me all for themselves with all the work so any break I can get, I spend it with them." he flashed a smile.
"You're a lucky man." I said.
"Sure am! hahaha." he said, "Well, I have to go now. As you saw, they are waiting for me. Stay flashy kid, I will meet you again."
!!!!
My body tensed and I immediately created distance when I saw him inhale huge volumes of air in his body. His muscles contracted and got ready to explode with power.
*BOOOOOM!!*
Then he did explode out. A resounding boom erupted, breaking the sound barrier and even though I was deaf, I could tell by the vibration that it was extremely loud.
My eyes barely caught his body amidst the dust as he blitzed towards the hot spring. I was left in utter disbelief.
'The guy just used a breathing technique to have a flashy exit.'
I looked down at the small crater. Now there was a small crater on the dirt road of the village. It won't be hard to fix though.
I sighed. It seems all of the Hashiras were a bunch of unique characters. First, there was Sanemi with his anger issues, then Shinjuro with his depression and alcoholism, and Kanae with her 'ara~ ara~' vibe.
Finally, there was Tengen Uzui....I don't know how to describe him yet.
Anyways, armed with the new information that I was not on a mission and was meant to relax, I felt my body loosen up as a sense of relief washed over me.
If this was a break, let me enjoy it.
"By sleeping as much as I want." I said and then I walked around the town in search of the perfect nap place.
It did not take me long to find a small hill near the outskirts of the village which was perfect for a nap. It was extremely similar to the place Eren slept when he was a child. It had a gentle patch of green grass and a small tree provided the perfect shade under the warm sun.
I laid down at the place and gazed upon the vast blueness of the sky.
My thoughts went back to Tengen Uzui and his breathing style. He was the user of Sound Breathing and like I initially suspected, it would be useless for me to learn that breathing style.
It was quite similar to Thunder Breathing in their pattern but overall, it was a personalized breathing style meant for Tengen alone. It was a perfect fit for his body but it wouldn't be the same for me.
I was better off using Thunder Breathing.
I also learned that Sound Breathing would be virtually useless against me since it relied heavily on disorienting your opponent with loud sounds and vibrations.
It took advantage of the imprinted instincts of creatures. The ear was an important organ for not only hearing but for balance as well. That meant loud sounds could disturb the balance of beings, even demons I'd assume.
Another interesting fact was that humans instinctively flinch or react at sounds higher than 100 decibels even if they braced for it. I'd assume the sound breathing to take advantage of such things as well.
And there was the main strength of sound breathing which was its sheer speed.
....
Yeah, I was able to deduce all that with the things I remebered from the anime and from seeing him execute one form of sound breathing.
With such thoughts swirling in my mind and with Raven nestling beside me - to protect me - I closed my eyes to enter a world of absolute silence and darkness.
I was vulnerable.
But under the feeling of the warm sun on my skin and trusting Raven, I let sleep claim my consciousness.
..
..
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I woke up at night.
Which was by no means a new experience for me as a demon slayer. In fact, it was my new normal at this point.
I stretched under the moon and took some time to refresh myself before I entered the village again. The streets were softly lit up by the street lights and I head towards one of the onsen that I saw in the morning.
I reached the onsen soon enough and paid the owner before heading to the changing room to take off my clothes. After I was done, I headed into the hot spring and after cleaning myself with the water and soap, I stepped into the hot spring.
"Haaaa~ This is good." I said, " I can get used to breaks."
The water, almost too hot, burned away all of the fatigue that had built up in my body during the month as I sunk deeper and deeper into the water.
I opened my eyes and looked around the onsen - which by the way, I should've done before entering the hot spring.
That was when I experienced the classic anime 'walking in on someone at the hot spring' troupe but with a twist.
There was someone else in the hot spring. They were naked and with half of thier face submerged underwater as they blew bubbles.
I stared with a blank face
So here's the twist.
It was dude.
"It's a shock to see you here." I said, "Tomioka."
*bubbles* (You too)
I was disappointed that that I couldn't learn Sound Breathing but lady luck seem to be on my side. Because a wild Water Hashira suddenly appeared!!
it was high time I learned another Breathing Style and this was one I looked forward to the most.
Break's over I guess.
Water Breathing get!!
..
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Stones!!!
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