CHAPTER 94: CHAPTER 94: WEAK POINT STRIKE?

Zenitsu was eventually brought back inside and laid down in a room.

The pain from his training and the kick from Sosuke both needed time to heal before he could calm down.

In the living room, Jigoro brewed tea.

The three of them each took a cup, sipped simultaneously, and let out satisfied sighs.

Jigoro turned to Sosuke. "I apologize. My disciple seems to have caused you some trouble."

Sosuke shook his head. "I’m more curious about what’s going on with him."

He already knew the situation, but at this moment, he felt he had to make conversation.

"Zenitsu... is a very kind and talented child."

As expected, the seemingly fierce old man immediately opened up when talking about his disciple. "When I first met him, he was at the lowest point in his life. After I found him and brought him back, he’s been training with me ever since. But despite his natural talent, he’s always lacked confidence in himself. I’ve had to resort to strict methods to make him complete his training."

At this point, a proud smile crept across his face. "Though every session is grueling, he always manages to complete the tasks I set for him. What he truly lacks is self-confidence."

"Confidence... is that it?"

Sosuke glanced behind Jigoro and nodded slightly. "I’ve heard that good children should be praised often. It helps build their confidence."

Jigoro considered this carefully. "That makes perfect sense."

Then he asked, "When are you two planning to have children?"

"..."

Sosuke suddenly didn’t know how to answer.

Kanae looked bewildered, wondering how the old man’s mind had suddenly jumped from one topic to another.

"Alright, you two can stay in that room for now," Jigoro said, abruptly standing up. "Get married soon. An old man like me still hopes to see new life born. Now, you’re free to do as you please. I need to go check on my good-for-nothing disciple."

With that, he turned and entered Zenitsu’s room.

Sosuke and Kanae exchanged glances, feeling like they were suddenly left with nothing to do.

After putting their belongings in the room and tidying up, they stepped outside.

They began by taking a stroll around the area.

This wasn’t the deep, dense forest of Mt. Sagiri; a town was just a short distance from their residence.

The surrounding area was mostly flat, offering views of various types of trees.

As they strolled along, they soon came across a peach orchard.

Looking at the scene, Sosuke suddenly felt a pang of envy for the Thunder Pillar’s retired life.

He casually chatted with Kanae, occasionally closing his eyes in thought. Suddenly, he turned to her.

"I think I’m starting to grasp that feeling."

Kanae’s eyes lit up. She knew exactly what he meant.

Ever since leaving the Rengoku family estate, they had been traveling diligently, but Sosuke had never forgotten his pursuit of that fleeting sensation.

Hearing him say this now meant he had finally made progress.

"What makes you say that?" Kanae asked.

Sosuke pointed to a stone by the roadside. "What do you see?"

"Hmm... If I answer this question, will you mock me?" Kanae paused, but still replied earnestly, "It’s a stone."

"But not just a stone," Sosuke said, approaching the rock. It was small, even smaller than the one in the Rengoku family’s courtyard.

He stood beside it for a moment, silent, before speaking. "What I sense is a whole—a remarkably strange whole! Solid, resilient, nearly indestructible."

"Yet within this solidity lies a fragility, a vulnerability that permeates its entire structure..."

He paused, as if organizing his thoughts. Even he seemed unable to explain what he was saying, given the apparent contradiction.

He shook his head. "It’s like threads... threads that bind everything together. They twist and intertwine, forming a solid whole, yet a single fragile thread remains exposed. To destroy it, one only needs to attack that thread with sufficient force..."

As he spoke, he suddenly reached out and gently tapped a specific spot on the stone.

The force he used was minimal, yet in the next instant, the stone cracked and shattered in his hand.

One strike, stone shattered!

Sosuke suddenly had a flash of insight. "It’s like the human body’s pressure points—the vital points! I found the stone’s vital point, so even a small amount of force could easily reduce it to this state."

Kanae, who had studied medicine, immediately understood what Sosuke was trying to convey.

After a moment of silence, she asked, "Is this limited to stones?"

"...For now, yes, it’s limited to stones," Sosuke sighed. "After all, this isn’t the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception."

"What eyes?" Kanae blinked, sensing something terrifying in Sosuke’s words.

"Ahem, it’s a technique I read about in some obscure books."

"You should read fewer strange books," Kanae said with a gentle smile, then nodded. "So, the next focus should probably be... how to transfer this ability from stones to other entities. Like Demons?"

"Exactly!"

Sosuke’s eyes flashed with excitement.

At the same time, he gained a clearer understanding of his ability.

He didn’t know if it had emerged naturally, as he’d speculated, from his deep mastery of weapons and profound understanding of things.

But now that he possessed this extraordinary power, he would claim it as his own and ultimately transform it into a combat technique uniquely his.

This would undoubtedly require time and accumulation.

But once perfected, it would grant him unparalleled offensive power.

"At the very least, it could become a weakness-targeting technique, capable of delivering critical strikes. And if I apply it to my Nichirin Blade, it might truly become my ultimate trump card."

With this realization, Sosuke’s spirits soared.

Overjoyed, he couldn’t resist sweeping Kanae into his arms and spinning her around three times.

Kanae was startled at first, but she soon burst into laughter.

Her laughter carried far on the wind, but suddenly, it stopped, a flicker of confusion in her eyes.

For a fleeting moment, she sensed something watching them from deep within the forest.