Chapter 53: Aftermath in the Hotel

Chapter 53: Aftermath in the Hotel.

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In a random Hotel.

'After an exhausting fight, a good nap always feels great,' Ace thought, stretching his body as he woke up from his brief nap.

His body ached from exhaustion and soreness from the earlier battle. While he didn't get hurt much, dealing with Daki's annoying fighting style was quite exhausting.

Those jet streams she shot were fast as bullets, and were strong enough to pierce 5-inch steel. Deflecting them took a lot of strength, like stopping a speeding truck.

Combine that strength with hundreds of jet streams simultaneously coming at you, and you've got the toughest workout in the world. No wonder shounen MCs get a massive power-up after each big fight.

Now that he looked back at the fight, he was quite amazed at how many abilities Daki kept popping out like they were some snacks. And it seems in this world she was the more powerful one of the sibling duo.

After stretching his body, he walked to a nearby table and gulped down a whole jug of water, quenching his morning thirst.

"Ahh, Nothing tastes better than fresh water to quench thirst."

After having his fill, he walked to a nearby drawer, retrieved paper and ink, and began writing.

He detailed how he reached this point, narrating his journey and the discovery of the demon, and explaining the fight that happened between them.

Of course, he tactfully omitted the details about his nighttime activities. After that, he started writing about the description of her abilities he analysed from their earlier fight.

First- It was her ability [Mind Control]. He had confirmed she had it from her reaction, and looking back, he found it quite abnormal how effortlessly he succumbed to her influence. Initially, he chalked it up to his inner desires awakening at the sight of Daki, but with a clear head, he knew it was something Daki did or specifically her Blood Demon-Art.

Second- It was her original Blood Demon-Art, [Obi-Sash Manipulation], that basically got a significant upgrade . It became stronger, tougher, sharper, and more flexible. Most importantly, it gained an extra sub-ability, [Heavy Water Manipulation]. It gave her the power to control a specific type of water, which was denser and heavier than the usual. Her mastery over it was also very impressive, as she was effortlessly creating dozens of high-pressure jet streams and using them as a shield to defend against any attack.

He had to at least give credit to her; this Daki was a much improvement over the original. She didn't whine or lose focus even when her brother got killed right in front of her. All she showed was a concentrated hatred and coldness. He could respect that, even if it was directed at him.

Maybe that's why he spared her. If she hadn't displayed any hatred or coldness, even when her brother—the one who rushed him in a frenzy, thinking she was in trouble—died, then it might have been better for her to just perish there.

Ah~ got distracted again. Let's get back to analysing her abilities. So, where was I? Ah, right, her third and most annoying ability. Let's name it AquaForm Shifting.

Third- Her ability to transform any one body part she wanted into heavy water, known as [AquaForm Shifting], was the one ability that gave him the most trouble. Each attempt to slash any part of her body resulted in a seamless transformation into water. Perhaps, if he were using dual-wielding weapons, it would have been easier. And If he thought correctly, this ability should also be a sub-ability under [Obi-Sash Manipulation].

Since her sashes were naturally a part of her body, and considering she could turn them into water, it's logical to assume she could do the same with her original body. However, she seemed limited to only one part of her body. Otherwise, if she could transform her entire body, she might as well eat a Logia Devil Fruit and become invincible in this world.

Fourth- It was her [Third Eye] and [Blood Manipulation] abilities that were inherited from her brother. To be more precise, she awakened her own Third Eye using the Blood Manipulation demon-art.

If he had to theorise, he could say that since they shared biology with each other and even had a telepathic link, both of them had the potential to awaken each other's abilities. It seemed whatever determined one's blood demon art was the same between them, thanks to the effect of [Shared Biology].

.

.

.

Having fully described her abilities in the letter, Ace then took a small vial of blood from the drawer, which he had taken from Daki, and attached it to the letter before sealing it in the envelope.

Whistle~ Caw. Caw.

After a brief whistle, a dark crow entered the room. Ace affectionately petted its head with his finger before grabbing a piece of rice bread and tossing it into its mouth, prompting a content caw.

"Here, take this envelope and deliver it to Shinobu-chan, okay?" The crow nodded its head and then flew off, carrying the envelope in its beak.

"What were you writing in the letter?" A voice asked from beside him.

Turning around, he saw Hinatsuru standing beside him with a curious expression on her face.

If you were wondering why they were in the same room, it's because of his fight a large section of the houses and hotels was destroyed, forcing everyone into the few remaining ones. So, they could only find a single large room to stay the night. If they didn't secure this one quickly, they might have ended up sleeping outside.

They took the offer without much fuss, and it wasn't a big deal to any of them. All of Tengen's wives are literally ninjas; they're trained to live in such conditions. And they have become much franker with him after he saved them.

Maybe it was to curb their embarrassment because rather than rescuing him, it was him who saved them, and they couldn't even rescue him from atleast the demon bindings.

""Oh, this? It's a letter to the Insect Hashira about the report of how things have gone, along with some of her blood," Ace said, pointing to Daki.

"And when did you wake up? I didn't even notice," Ace asked while leaning on the wall. He was too busy writing the letter to notice.

"Uhh… I didn't sleep," she said, causing him to raise his eyebrows. She looked exhausted, though. Maybe it was a ninja thing.

Then Ace glanced at the other side of the room and saw Suma and Makio sleeping like logs. '...Maybe not,'

"You didn't sleep at all? What were you doing?" Ace asked.

Hinatsuru hesitated for a moment before replying, "I just didn't feel like it. Today was too chaotic for me."

Continuing, she added, "Besides, I don't need much sleep; I've even been trained to go without sleep for much longer." But her eyes kept alternating between Ace and the corner of the room.

Ace quickly identified her problem from her eye movements and said in a playful manner, "Scared of the sleeping beauty there?!"

"No! It's just… quite..."

"Don't worry, I understand. It would be quite hard to sleep in the same room with someone who had tried to kill you just a few hours ago, more so when she is a demon."

Hinatsuru nodded her head at his understanding words, then suddenly, as if remembering something, she asked curiously, "I didn't ask it before because of the fight, but how did you get captured by the demon with how strong you are?"

"Oh!.... About that. I was just acting. You know, to get some inside information. You should be familiar with those, right? After all, you are a ninja, aren't you?" Ace said while polishing his glaive. He quite liked cleaning it in his free time.

"There has been something strange going on with the demons in recent times. You can see it with Daki's case too. Do you think anyone would say she is the weakest Upper Moon?" Ace continued.

"And the acting included sleeping with her?"

Ace choked on his breath, hearing her question, almost dropping his glaive. He looked up to see her teasing smile.

"..."

"What do you mean? I don't understand it." He feigned ignorance, thinking she was testing him.

Hinatsuru rolled her eyes at his reaction. "Yeah… right." Then she dropped the topic as if she never asked the previous question and just looked at him polishing his glaive.

Seeing her acting like this, Ace couldn't help but say. "Would you believe it if I say that I didn't do it?"

"...Of course. Why would I not.. !" Hinatsuru agreed immediately, displaying an expression that said she believed him completely.

"..." 'At least try to be convincing, woman!. No one is going to believe you with that look,' Ace deadpanned.

Seeing his blank face, she stopped her acting and said, "Hehe, you don't have to worry though. We ninjas don't think much of it."

"What's important is you did stop her in the end, and it's not much to think about if you let loose sometimes, even if it's on a demon." Hinatsuru said.

".... Ohh really? That's quite an odd opinion to have from someone of the Demon Slayer Corps?" Ace asked, raising his eyebrows at her answer.

"Less odd than what you did, Ace-sama? Aren't you from HQ?" Hinatsuru retorted.

"Okay, quit teasing me now, or else I will get angry," Ace said with a fake serious face.

"Well, we as ninjas don't really care how things are done as long as the desired result is achieved. And sleeping with the enemy for the mission is quite a normal thing."

She quickly added another line, "But of course, we don't do that type of thing," likely to avoid being seen as a woman who sleeps with anyone.

She was being quite frank with him, even letting him know that she knew what he did. She could have easily blackmailed him with the information, considering the Corps had quite strict rules regarding dealings with demons.

If one want to understand how strict they were, you can easily see it when the Corps ordered Yoriichi- the strongest demon slayer ever to literally commit Seppuku after he failed to kill Muzan and allowed his brother to be demonised, despite being the one who taught them breathing techniques and was the only one capable of killing Muzan.

But, of course, if she were to somehow blackmail him and expect something in return, she wouldn't be successful.

As he doesn't really care about the strict rules of the Corps, as he is not really under them. His relationship with them is more like a partnership, where he helps the Corps deal with demons, and in return, they provide him with everything he needs.

It is them who need him, not the other way around, but it would still be quite a hassle to deal with, as he wouldn't want his relationship with Shinobu and Mitsuri to be jeopardised.

Ace nodded, appreciating her straightforwardness. "Thanks!. Though,I expected a ninja to try to blackmail me. It seems I was wrong there.

"What do you think of me?! How could I do that to our saviour?" Hinatsuru said.

"Ok, my bad for my assumptions," Ace said, lifting his hand up.

"Hmm," she nodded at his answer.

Continuing, Ace added. "By the way, for your information, one of the demon's abilities was limited mind control, so I was just caught in it, not that I deliberately wanted to do anything with her."

"..."

"I-I didn't know that…. I am sorry." This time it was her turn to be shocked, realising she wrongly accused him. She started fussing in regret as she realised the gravity of accusations for noble people like Hashiras.

"No problem. I don't mind, and you just didn't have the full information, so it's logical to think like that. And… I quite liked the act, so it's not wrong to say it like that." Ace joked with her since she tried teasing him before.

"Huh?! What?"

"Nothing. Haha"

"..."

"What are you guys talking about?" Suddenly, Makio's voice sounded. It seemed he had woken him up with his laughter.

All three of them had become quite frank with him, seeing that he was not the strict type and was quite carefree.

"Nothing. I was just asking about the demon," Hinatsuru answered.

"Oh," Makio nodded, not suspecting anything.

"You guys can order something for lunch. I am going. I need a bath urgently; all this dust and dirt is killing me," Ace said to them as he started walking away towards the bathroom.

"Bath? At noon?" Both of them looked at him with a strange gaze.

"Yes. What? Am I not supposed to do that?" Ace asked in a confused look.

"No no, it's just a bit odd timing," Hinatsuru said.

"Oh!" Ace nodded, suddenly remembering that Japanese usually bathe at night.

Seeing him gone, suddenly Suma woke up from her sleep, straight like a corpse standing up.

Then she quickly went to both Hinatsuru and Makio's side, who were talking with each other.

"When did you wake up?" Makio asked in surprise, as when she woke, she was still sleeping like a pig.

But Suma ignored her and looked at Hinatsuru, asking in a gulping voice, "Hina! Did he really do that?"

Hinatsuru was confused for a second about what she was talking about, but then it suddenly dawned on her. "You overheard us?!! Weren't you sleeping?"

"Uhh! I just woke up early because I was starving, not because I wanted to hear what you were talking about," Suma quickly explained.

"What are you guys talking about?!!" Makio asked in confusion. But again, she was ignored.

Hinatsuru gave a quiet stare at Suma, indicating that she didn't believe one word of what she was saying. "Promise me you won't tell anyone about it… not even Tengen-sama." She knew Tengen-sama had a duty towards the Corps, so she knew he might not be quiet about it if he found out.

"Promise, promise I won't tell. So, did he?" Suma quickly promised; she just wanted to know what happened. Learning secrets always sent butterflies in her stomach.

Hinatsuru took a moment to answer before saying, "Yes." She knew not answering her now would only make her more curious, and she might make things complicated in her curiosity.

"Ohhh!!… geez. He is sooo…." Suma blushed hearing the answer and covered her cheeks with her hands.

"Hey!! Don't yell," Hinatsuru quickly reprimanded.

BAM!!

Suddenly, Makio punched Suma's head hard and said, "Stop ignoring me! And what are you guys talking about? Don't keep it a secret from me."

"Why are you punching me!! Punch Hina if you want, she knows the secret!" Suma said with tears leaking out of her eyes.

"Hmph, I will punch whoever I want!" Makio said.

"You!! Meanie!"

"Can you stop your fight? You two are not children," Hinatsuru deadpanned at them and pinched both of their ears.

"..."

"..."

Only then did they stop their Banter.

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If you guys are thinking along the lines that Ace will Ntr Tengen. Dont worry, he wont.

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