Chapter 103: Yuan Zero Style

"Eat slowly; no one is fighting you for it."

Inside the room, the table was covered with empty large bowls enough for ten or twenty people, all of them just finished by Xiao Xiao Mili.

Such a bold way of eating, in Zero's eyes, was exactly how she should be.

He not only did not feel it was bad, but instead felt this was her true self.

Afraid Xiao Xiao Mili wouldn't get full, he gave her all of his own portions as well.

"By the way, Xiao Xiao Mili, what did that person you met look like?"

"Eh? Let me think..." Xiao Xiao Mili stopped eating and recalled that person's appearance.

"I remember he seemed to have dark-colored mohawk hair, and a scar extending to the tip of his nose on his right cheek."

"It's him..."

"Zero, do you know him?"

"Hmm... you could say so. I met him when I served as an examiner at Fujikasayama. If I remember correctly, his name is Shinazugawa Genya, the younger brother of Shinazugawa Sanemi."

"Eh?! Mr. Sanemi's younger brother?!"

Xiao Xiao Mili was somewhat surprised.

"But I have never heard Mr. Sanemi mention having a brother?"

"Not hearing about it doesn't mean he doesn't have one. Moreover, because of his adolescence, Shinazugawa Genya is not good at getting along with girls; he blushes if he gets too close to a girl.

So when you greeted him, he wasn't ignoring you; he just dared not communicate with girls."

"Really?!"

Hearing Zero's explanation, Xiao Xiao Mili finally understood that this was the case.

She had thought she was disliked, which was why the other person ignored her.

"Alright, don't think so much; if you don't eat quickly, it will get cold."

"Okay~ I'll continue eating! Ah-mu~"

It seemed something had been resolved with joy, and with Zero's company, today's meal was exceptionally delicious.

Suddenly, Zero noticed a few grains of rice at the corner of Xiao Xiao Mili's mouth, leaned in, and kissed them away.

Xiao Xiao Mili was almost scared, her face full of shyness.

"Zero, I..."

"You have a few grains of rice on your face; I'll wipe them off for you so they won't be wasted."

"Oh~" Just now, that series of actions by Zero, in Xiao Xiao Mili's eyes, made her think he wanted to...

While happy, she also felt a little disappointed.

But quickly, this small disappointment was scattered by the meal before her, and she continued to eat heartily.

After finishing the meal, Zero took out a bag of sakura mochi and held it out before Xiao Xiao Mili.

A small dessert after the meal.

Whoosh!

The wooden door was opened again.

Tanjiro, having just finished his hot spring bath, arrived right at mealtime.

"Tanjiro, you're back."

"Welcome back, Tanjiro."

"Yes, I'm back. By the way, Brother Zero, the person Young Lady Kanroji met is Shinazugawa Genya."

"Hmm, I already know that."

"Ah, so Brother Zero you knew all along."

"Tanjiro, don't forget I was an examiner at Fujikasayama."

"I see, sorry, I almost forgot."

Tanjiro scratched his head somewhat embarrassedly.

"Alright, let's eat together."

"Yes, Brother Zero."

After dinner, Tanjiro said he wanted to bring some food over to Shinazugawa Genya for him.

When the three arrived at Shinazugawa Genya's room, they found he was not there at all.

Having no choice, they could only give up for the time being.

At this moment, a female member of the Hidden arrived before Xiao Xiao Mili and said: "My Lord Kanroji, your sword is almost sharpened; please go to the workshop for the final adjustments."

"Oh my, it seems I must go. Zero, I really don't want to part with you; it's rare to be able to monopolize you alone for such a long time~"

"Little fool, there will be plenty of time together in the future; we won't be separated forever."

"That's true~"

Standing beside the two of them, Tanjiro felt that Zero was truly very doting on the person he liked.

He just felt that he himself seemed to be glowing a bit.

Finally, Xiao Xiao Mili leaned close to Tanjiro and whispered in his ear: "Tanjiro, I heard there is a secret weapon in this village that can make people stronger; you can go look for it."

After speaking, she ran back to Zero's side, dropped a kiss on his lips, and waved goodbye: "Well then, goodbye~"

"A weapon to become stronger? What is that? Do you know, Brother Zero?"

"I don't know; you need to explore that yourself. It's getting late, Tanjiro, you should rest early too; I'm going out for a stroll."

"Okay, Brother Zero."

After seeing Zero off, Tanjiro also prepared to rest well, to set out tomorrow to search for that weapon that can make people stronger.

After parting with Tanjiro, Zero came alone to the mountaintop and looked up at the starry sky.

"I wonder how Sister Luo Li and the others are doing..."

A gentle breeze blew, and he pulled his thoughts back.

Since he had already arrived at the Swordsmith Village, he might as well soak in a hot spring and relax properly.

Early the next morning.

Tanjiro, who had practiced Total Concentration Breathing all night, set off into the forest after enjoying a hearty breakfast.

He was searching for the weapon that could make one stronger, the one Xiao Xiao Mili had mentioned.

"I wonder what kind of secret weapon it is~ It must be a sword, right? Is it buried? This feels just like a treasure hunt!"

He had intended to use his nose to see if he could locate the so-called secret weapon.

However, the Swordsmith Village possessed natural hot springs that emitted a strong sulfur smell, so his nose had temporarily lost its sharpness.

"You're so annoying! Get lost right now!"

"You should stop it already; arguing here is a waste of time."

Just as he was thinking this, he suddenly heard arguing coming from not far away.

"Who is it?" Following the source of the sound, he slowly moved closer.

Standing before him was a young boy of about ten years old wearing a Fire Man mask.

And facing the boy was a youth with long black hair, the tips of which were tinged with green.

"I remember him; he seems to be a Hashira too. Who was it again... Oh right, he seems to be the Mist Hashira—Tokito Muichiro! So there is another Hashira in this village. Counting Brother Zero, three Hashira have already arrived."

Muichiro paid no mind to what the little boy in front of him was saying, extended his hand, and said, "Give me the key."

"I won't give it to you! This is the most important thing made by my ancestor! I will never hand it over to you!"

The little boy spread his arms to block Tokito Muichiro, as if protecting something.

Only then did Tanjiro notice that there seemed to be someone behind the little boy!

Moving forward slowly again, he discovered it was a figure with long red hair, wearing flower-patterned earrings identical to the ones on his own ears!

Clad in armor, with six arms, each holding a sword, standing behind the little boy.

"That is... a person? Who is it?"

Suddenly, an image of a person appeared in Tanjiro's mind; that figure was exactly the same as the one standing before him!

"This person... I have an impression of him! He is exactly the same as the person in the dream I had over a month ago!"

Boom!

"Hmm? What was that sound?"

Zero, who was wandering in the forest, heard a noise coming from not far away; it seemed like someone was fighting, but it didn't quite sound like it!

He decided to go over and see what had happened.

However, before he had taken a few steps, he discovered that Tokito Muichiro was there too.

In his hand, he was holding a sword, and at the hilt position was a broken wooden arm.

"Muichiro? Were you the one fighting just now?"

"Zero, you're here too. I was just training with a puppet."

"Is that so..."

"I have other matters to attend to; I need to find my swordsmith to forge a new sword. My sword was broken by the puppet just now, so I can only use this one for now."

Having finished speaking, Muichiro left without looking back.

Zero's eye twitched slightly; what kind of day was this today~ Everyone was dealing with almost the same thing.

Either a broken sword or a lost sword, it was really...

After complaining internally for a moment, he went to see what that so-called puppet actually was.

Just as he was walking, a light rain suddenly began to fall from the sky.

"What the hell kind of weather is this?! The rain just starts falling out of nowhere; Heaven is really just bored and messing around..."

He took out an umbrella to shield himself from the rain.

He arrived at the location of the fight.

He discovered a puppet with five arms lying on the ground, while a little boy stood beside the puppet, appearing to be in a daze.

It seemed that Muichiro had been fighting this puppet.

However, due to the erosion of time, combined with the fight just now, it was already in a state of severe disrepair.

A piece of its face had long been missing.

Out of curiosity, Zero used 【Analysis Glasses】 to analyze this puppet.

【Analyzing... analysis successful】

【Name: Yoriichi Type Zero】

【Era: Sengoku Period】

【Template: Yoriichi Tsugikuni】

【Introduction: This puppet, known as Yoriichi Type Zero, serves as a training dummy in the Swordsmith Village. It was modeled after Yoriichi Tsugikuni, the creator of the original Sun Breathing, perfectly replicating Yoriichi Tsugikuni's combat techniques.】

【Yoriichi Type Zero Structure:...】

Looking at this information, Zero fell into deep thought.

He never expected that such technology existed in this world; although it could not compare to the era of his own time, it could already be considered quite outstanding.

"Yoriichi Type Zero, huh..."

Kotetsu heard someone behind him say the puppet's name and turned around curiously to take a look.

But, he was quickly attracted by Zero's left hand.

He ran over to Zero, picked up his left hand, and examined it carefully.

"What an intricate and exquisite piece of technology! What on earth is this?! How did you make it? Why can it be mounted on your hand?!"

Xiao Tie seemed to have a mountain of questions.

"This is a dark-matter mechanical arm. My hand was bitten off when I fought a monster, so I developed this arm myself to replace my left hand."

After hearing this, a look of longing appeared in Xiao Tie's eyes. Though he didn't understand what Zero was talking about, it seemed incredibly impressive.

If he could grasp the principles behind it, could the 【Enichi Zero Type】 be perfectly repaired?

Maybe it could even become stronger than before?!

"Um, you…"

"Sorry, but I can't teach you this. Just the most precise, compact components alone number in the tens of thousands. Do you really think you could understand them?"

Zero saw what he was thinking and cut him off before he could speak.

"I see… By the way, my name is Xiao Tie. Thank you for letting me see something so exquisite."

Xiao Tie was a little dejected — such things couldn't be forced.

Zero glanced at the 【Enichi Zero Type】 on the ground, then at Tanjiro, and suddenly had a brilliant idea.

The repair method for the 【Enichi Zero Type】 had just been analyzed by the 【Analysis Glasses】.

He could hand it over to Xiao Tie, but nothing in this world is free — some things require a fair trade.

"Xiao Tie, I have a way to repair the 【Enichi Zero Type】, but…"

"Really?! You can repair the 【Enichi Zero Type】? But what? Tell me — as long as it's something I can do, I'll agree to it!"

"I just have one condition." Zero pointed at Tanjiro and said to Xiao Tie: "Use the 【Enichi Zero Type】 to train Tanjiro. When he manages to defeat the 【Enichi Zero Type】, I'll give you the repair method. Deal?"

Tanjiro: Σ(? д? |||)

Xiao Tie thought it over, made up his mind, and replied: "Alright, no problem! I was actually planning to do that anyway — if it weren't for that black-haired kelp-head earlier, I almost forgot!"

Then he turned to Tanjiro and said: "Mr. Tanjiro, thank you so much for earlier. From now on, use this to train and grow stronger. Please, become stronger than that pretentious little brat! I'll give you my full support!"

When Xiao Tie said this, one could almost see the ferocious face beneath his fire-man mask.

This gave Tanjiro an even worse premonition.

Afterward, Xiao Tie propped the Enichi Zero Type back upright, and turned the wind-up key on the back of its neck to activate it.

However, the Enichi Zero Type did not respond.

This left Xiao Tie a little disappointed.

It must have been damaged internally during the fight with Muichiro.

Clack! Clack!

Suddenly, the gears inside the Enichi Zero Type began to turn, and its body moved once more.

Five blades in hand, it assumed a combat stance.

It lunged forward, charging straight at Tanjiro!

"Waaaaaah!" Tanjiro hadn't even reacted before he was scared into stumbling backward, nearly getting slashed by the blades.

"Mr. Tanjiro, you have to get stronger, and then say this to that black-haired little brat: 【Is that all you've got, you useless trash! Your hair's too long — cut it, kelp-head! You shorty with stubby legs, ugly freak! Go commit seppuku, you shameless wretch!】"

Xiao Tie said this with a viciously sharp tongue.

He was deeply displeased with Muichiro's behavior earlier.

Zero: …

He felt personally offended, thanks very much.

Xiao Tie noticed the expression on Zero's face beside him and hurriedly explained: "Sorry, sorry! I was only talking about that black-haired little brat, not you."

"Don't worry, I don't mind. Once Tanjiro's training is done, I'll give you the repair method."

"Thank you! You're even better than that black-haired kelp-head little brat, just like Mr. Tanjiro!"

The rain stopped, and the sky cleared.

Xiao Tie hurried forward to shut down the Enichi Zero Type, swapping out all the blades for wooden hammers.

Meanwhile, Zero took out paper and pen from his 【Nano Space】, sat to the side, and began sketching the Enichi Zero Type's structure.

He also wrote out the repair method in detail, and noted the points to watch out for during the repair.

As for Tanjiro, over the following period, he began hellish training against the Enichi Zero Type.

Although the Enichi Zero Type only had five arms left, and its performance had dropped somewhat.

For Tanjiro at his current stage, it still wasn't easy to defeat.

Moreover, through the scan results from the 【Analysis Glasses】, Zero noticed something.

Hidden inside the Enichi Zero Type's body was a blade!

He didn't mention it — he'd wait until Tanjiro defeated the Enichi Zero Type.

【Douma and Hantengu will launch a sneak attack on the Swordsmith Village, and this time, it will make sure those two Upper Rank demons never leave alive!】