Even Inosuke, who was lying in the corner minding his own business, quietly tidied up his "pigsty" and scooted back two meters.
Shinazugawa coughed awkwardly. He tried to indicate that what just happened was an accident. He explained that when he was little, he was very good at pulling radishes, and he was just demonstrating that skill. After all, he thought massaging was just pulling on shoulders. How hard could it be? But who knew? He had messed up big time.
Shinazugawa scanned the three remaining brothers nervously. "You all saw that was an accident, right? So... who's next?"
No one spoke. The air fell into an awkward silence.
Shinazugawa tried again, this time a bit sheepishly. "It's fine, I've already learned how to massage. I'll make it up to you all next. Are you sure you don't want to try?"
The three Tomioka brothers shook their heads in unison. Their refusal was very direct.
A vein throbbed on Shinazugawa's forehead. "Are you all scared?" Still, no one spoke.
Shinazugawa's short temper flared up instantly. He pointed directly at the person closest to him and said, "You! You're the second brother, right? You come!"
After he finished speaking, before Tomioka Jiro could even resist, a scarred hand reached out toward him. Just as Shinazugawa's "demonic claw" was about to touch Tomioka Jiro... Just as Tomioka Jiro was about to fall into despair... A figure suddenly appeared behind Shinazugawa.
This figure was handsome and tall, like a ray of dawn in the darkness. Jiro instantly saw hope before him.
Slap! A hand grabbed Shinazugawa's wrist, stopping him.
Su Chen's voice rang out from behind the Wind Hashira. "Shinazugawa, who taught you to train like this?" "Do you think this is training? This training intensity would kill a dog, wouldn't it?"
Hearing this, Shinazugawa turned his head angrily. When he saw the newcomer was Su Chen, he immediately became furious. "I am the Wind Hashira! By rights, you should call me Lord Wind Hashira!"
Su Chen was a bit speechless. "I haven't joined the Demon Slayer Corps yet, so why should I call you that?"
Su Chen glanced at the Slayers squatting in the corner. Then, he remembered the small cart Kanzaki Aoi had pushed away earlier. He immediately had a guess in his mind.
Su Chen stroked his chin, his suspicious gaze darting back and forth across Shinazugawa's face. "Shinazugawa, you... you wouldn't be imitating my massage techniques, would you?"
"What did you say?!" Shinazugawa's heart skipped a beat. He blurted out as if a cat had stepped on his tail, "How could I imitate you! I have my own set of training methods!"
"Oh," Su Chen said indifferently. "Then what is your self-created rehabilitation training?"
"What is it? Heh." Shinazugawa smiled somewhat disdainfully. He then pulled out a wooden sword from somewhere and rested it on his shoulder. He said spiritedly, "Of course, it's the Infinite Onslaught Training! This is the only way to ignite the patients' passion for slaying demons!"
"You really are..." Su Chen was a bit flabbergasted. The Infinite Onslaught Training was a training method Shinazugawa created for the Demon Slayer Corps. During the Pillar Training in the original story, only members of at least Rank Kinoe or Kinoto could even reach that stage of training. So, there was a problem. The patients currently in rehabilitation at the Butterfly Mansion had only recently recovered from serious illnesses. Their bodies had not yet fully recovered. To have them wield swords and attack at this moment was clearly too hasty. This was like a tutoring institution training an elementary school student, and you immediately ask them to do advanced math problems. It would be a miracle if they could do it!
Seeing Su Chen's scrutinizing gaze, Shinazugawa said somewhat defiantly, "Su Chen, what are you doing here anyway? Have you already finished with your patients?"
Su Chen shrugged. "Of course I'm done. Why would I be as slow as you?"
"What? That fast!" Shinazugawa looked astonished. The next moment, he quickly shifted his gaze to Su Chen's training area. He saw that the four Demon Slayers Su Chen was responsible for were currently meditating. Next to them was a table filled with empty medicine cups. Shinazugawa's eyes widened. Had Su Chen's patients already completed the reflex training and the 'cat and mouse' training?
Shinazugawa then glanced at the patients he was "leading." There was no comparison. Three were huddled in corners. One was lying in a "pigsty." And another one was in the Butterfly Mansion's "ICU." This scene made Shinazugawa's eyelids twitch. He couldn't understand why Su Chen could do something that he, Shinazugawa, couldn't.
Finally, Shinazugawa couldn't help but ask Su Chen, "Su Chen, how exactly did you do it?"
Su Chen raised an eyebrow. He was surprised that Shinazugawa would directly ask for his opinion. He shook his head and calmly said, "Shinazugawa, actually, compared to clearing the stages, I care more about the patients' recovery status." "Since you are standing here as a doctor today, you must think about things with the purpose of healing," Su Chen continued. "If you neglect a doctor's work for the sake of competition, you will accomplish nothing in the end." "So, treat your patients with sincerity, and sooner or later, that sincerity will be returned."
"Returned...?" Shinazugawa said thoughtfully. At that moment, he realized for the first time the gap between himself and Su Chen.
At the same time, after Su Chen's speech... The eyes of the other Slayers in the training ground also lit up. The members couldn't help but exclaim: "Wow! Brother Su Chen is so great! He really does have us in his heart!" "I hope Lord Wind Hashira can also understand Lord Su Chen's painstaking efforts. Maybe Lord Wind Hashira will treat us like people from now on!" "No, I must stay in the Butterfly Mansion a little longer. I want to see Lord Su Chen every day!" "Brother is so handsome, I love him so much!"
Everyone was moved by Su Chen's words. The phrase "treat with sincerity" touched the hearts of so many Demon Slayer Corps members. Most of them were orphans, gathered here because of their hatred for demons. Su Chen's care made them feel a long-lost warmth. This feeling of tenderness was something they had only experienced from their parents or older siblings before. The members' eyes couldn't help but well up.
Even the Tomioka brothers behind Shinazugawa had teary eyes. "Mr. Su Chen is truly too great!" "Yes! If Mr. Su Chen had arrived any later, we would have gone to the infirmary to join our eldest brother." "Wuwuwu, Mr. Su Chen is truly our benefactor!" The three brothers were almost crying from emotion at this moment.
No wonder the Insect Hashira, Lady Kochou, is willing to spend time with Mr. Su Chen!Mr. Su Chen is genuinely very gentle! If only they had been a little braver, a little more resolute in refusing when Shinazugawa first chose them! Then they wouldn't have to risk their lives playing with this fool, the Wind Hashira! They had already resigned themselves to their fate, because they had chosen Shinazugawa themselves. But Mr. Su Chen still hadn't given up on them.