There are fundamental differences in physical constitution between men and women—especially when it comes to strength.
Under the same conditions, men will generally be stronger.
There aren't many female members in the Demon Slayer Corps, and among the Hashira there are only three. Excluding Kanroji Mitsuri, whose physique is exceptional, the remaining Kocho sisters are not known for their physical strength.
Kocho Kanae's strength is only slightly better than her younger sister's, but it still can't be called impressive.
Even among swordsmen below Hashira level, it's easy to find quite a few who are physically stronger than the two of them.
Because of this, when it comes to demon slaying, training methods for male and female members are actually somewhat different.
Men tend to focus on building muscle and emphasizing raw power.
Women, on the other hand, focus more on flexibility, favoring speed and agility.
The Flower Breathing that Kanao inherited from Kanae is a derivative of Water Breathing and does not demand much raw strength.
Water Breathing emphasizes smoothness and adaptability, and can be said to be a style suited to most women.
Yuko couldn't bring herself to ignore Kanao's request—this child rarely spoke to her at all.
"Rengoku should be coming today…" Yuko pondered for a moment before saying, "If you don't mind, Kanao can train here with Rengoku."
Kanao's control over her body was actually better than Tanjiro and the other two, and her mastery of Constant Concentration was also more refined.
She used a derivative of Water Breathing, and her combat ability was no weaker than Tanjiro's.
In fact, the gap in strength among these few was quite small. Even Tanjiro—who had advanced to Hashira level after defeating Lower Rank Five—didn't hold a decisive advantage.
It was just that this generation of Hashira was terrifyingly strong.
These were people who could rival the first generation of Hashira—no, rather, they had surpassed even the Hashira of the Sengoku era.
Not everything is stronger just because it's older.
"…Okay." Kanao's eyes brightened slightly, and she nodded with a gentle smile.
This child rarely initiated contact with others. If greeted, she would smile politely in response.
But when it came to active conversation…
Yuko had once tried to speak to her first and ended up frightening her so badly that she stood there frozen, sweating all over, unable to move. In the end, Yuko herself had been startled too, and the two of them stood staring at each other in the corridor until Shinobu happened to pass by and took Kanao away.
After that, Yuko rarely dared to approach Kanao on her own. But after Kanao interacted with Tanjiro and the others during their rehabilitation following the Mount Natagumo battle, she had changed noticeably.
Yuko didn't know what exactly had happened, but it was probably Tanjiro's influence. Was this the legendary "protagonist charm"?
Something the Kocho sisters had never managed to do had been accomplished by a complete outsider.
"You're here." A gentle voice sounded from the distance. Shinobu smiled slightly as she looked at the three kids training desperately in the corner of the courtyard. "You're all full of energy."
Kanao turned her head and greeted her.
"Sister Shinobu."
Yuko: "…Shinobu."
Shinobu came over and sat down on Yuko's other side, forming a two-sided "Kocho sandwich" with Kanao.
Yuko's body stiffened slightly. If she had known, she would've shifted over and leaned against a pillar.
Ever since speaking with Shinobu in the dream on the Mugen Train, she hadn't been quite right.
As the saying goes, what you think about during the day appears in your dreams at night.
Enmu might be able to fabricate dreams, but he couldn't deceive the dreamer's heart.
Yuko's hesitation was proof enough—she probably did have some kind of special feelings toward Shinobu, but instinctively she didn't want to think about them.
That was why she felt so unsettled.
Fortunately, with three people sitting together—none of whom were particularly good at starting conversations—even Shinobu couldn't really get a topic going.
The three of them sat on the veranda basking in the sunlight, looking peaceful and serene.
If one ignored how stiff Yuko's posture was.
"Is anyone home?!"
A loud, enthusiastic voice came from outside.
Yuko had never liked overly enthusiastic voices this much before. She let out a breath of relief and jumped down from the veranda.
Rengoku Kyōjurō was very straightforward. He immediately bowed deeply—ninety degrees—to Yuko.
"Miss Yuko, sorry to trouble you!"
"It's fine," Yuko waved it off.
Rengoku glanced around.
"So we'll be training here?"
"That works."
The courtyard of the Butterfly Estate was large. Tanjiro and the others were training near the edge, leaving plenty of open space—as long as she didn't use something like Moon Breathing with its massive-scale techniques.
"Then I'll be in your care!" Rengoku bowed deeply again.
It actually made Yuko feel a bit embarrassed.
"Wait a moment." She returned to the veranda and untied the Nichirin Sword at her waist.
Shinobu reached out, and Yuko instinctively handed it to her. By the time she realized what she was doing, Shinobu was also just about to withdraw her hand.
Feeling resistance from Yuko, Shinobu looked at her in confusion.
"Yuko?"
"…It's nothing." Yuko quickly let go of the sword and returned to the open ground.
After standing there for a moment, she realized she'd forgotten something and turned back toward the veranda.
Kanao was looking at her with an expression full of anticipation.
This child… she really doesn't take initiative at all.
Yuko sighed and waved at her.
"Come here, Kanao."
"…Okay."
Only then did Kanao hop down from the veranda, walking briskly over to Rengoku.
Yuko explained briefly, "This child also wants to try awakening the mark."
Rengoku's eyes lit up. He gave Kanao a thumbs-up.
"I see! Let's work hard together!"
Kanao: "..."
Two socially awkward people meeting—exactly that kind of situation.
Yuko's mouth twitched as she looked at Rengoku.
"I'll say this again—awakening the mark means you won't live past twenty-five. Rengoku, are you prepared for that?"
Both Yuko and Ubuyashiki had emphasized this before.
Even so, in a formal setting, Yuko would always ask again out of respect for their decision.
Rengoku waved his hand without the slightest hesitation.
"Of course!"
"I understand—"
"That's not fair! Why do they get to do it?!" Inosuke suddenly shouted, nearly flipping over the three Butterfly Estate girls on his back.
He dashed over like a gust of wind, the blue eyes of his boar mask staring straight at Yuko, white steam puffing from his nostrils.
"I want in too!"
Yuko: "..."
She had completely forgotten about his personality.
"Inosuke, you can't make things difficult for Miss Yuko," Tanjiro rushed over and grabbed him.
Zenitsu used all his strength as well.
"That's right, you idiot—get back here!"
Yuko sighed.
"It's fine."
Zenitsu turned to her.
"Miss Yuko, I'll drag him away right now!"
Yuko scratched her ear.
"I mean—it's fine. You three can join as well."
She had no intention of being accused of favoritism.
"Awesome!"
"Really?!"
"Eh?!!"