Tanjiro managed to say two words before the person standing before him introduced himself:
"My name is Katsuzuka. I made and delivered the swords for Xander and Tanjiro Kamado."
"I am Tanjiro Kamado. Please, come in," Tanjiro replied, opening the door.
He called into the room, "Senior Xander , the swords have arrived!"
"I heard," answered Xander, coming out a bit puzzled, thinking to himself, "Didn't they say it takes fifteen days to forge them? Why twenty?"
Tanjiro and Xander watched as Haganezuko, with his back to them, took the long box off his shoulder and, preparing to open it, said, "This is the 'Sun Blade,' a sword crafted by me."
Seeing that their guest wasn't planning to enter the house, Tanjiro felt somewhat at a loss and continued, "Well, please, come in. I'll make you some tea."
Haganezuko didn't react to the invitation at all and continued as if speaking to himself, "The raw materials for the 'Sun Blade' are obtained on the sunniest mountain using 'Hot Red Iron Sand' and 'Hot Red Ore,' thus creating iron that absorbs sunlight."
"Really?" Tanjiro, seeing no change in Katsuzuka's demeanor, involuntarily responded to the blacksmith's words.
"After all, Sunshine Mountain is a place bathed in sunlight all day," Haganezuko said at this moment, pointing to the sun in the distance. Urokodaki Sakonji, who was in the wooden house, helplessly complained, "This person, as always, refuses to listen!"
Suddenly, Haganezuko sharply turned, bringing his face close to Tanjiro and Xander.
Seeing the grotesque mask on Haganezuko's face, Tanjiro flinched and stepped back, but Xander did not react.
"Hmm? Hmm! One is the Son of flames, the other, the owner of the Breath of Ice. Fire and ice—a quite unusual combination," Katsuzuka remarked with skepticism, pointing at Xander and Tanjiro.
"No, I'm the son of Tanjuro and Aoi," Tanjiro corrected and clarified.
"That's not what I meant!" Haganezuko pointed at Tanjiro's hair. "Your hair and eyes are red! Families working with fire will be very pleased if they have a child with such features, it's a favorable sign."
Saying this, Haganezuko poked Tanjiro's face with his finger.
"Oh, is that so? I didn't even know!" Tanjiro replied, bewildered.
"It seems your sword might turn red!" Haganezuko exclaimed excitedly, then looked at Xander beside him. "And, by the way, the creator of the Breath of Ice, I'm curious to see what color your sword will be."
"Well, we'll find out soon enough. Perhaps, Mr. Haganezuko ,you'd like to come in after all?" Xander said with a smile.
"Of course, I think Urokodaki is already eager to see the color of your swords, right?" Haganezuko shouted into the house. Urokodaki Sakonji, inside, responded in a muffled voice, "That's right."
After this, Haganezuko brought the forged Nichirin sword into the wooden house, with Tanjiro and Xander following him.
Once inside, Haganezuko sat next to Urokodaki Sakonji, while Xander and Tanjiro settled across from Urokodaki and Haganezuko .
Tanjiro was about to brew some tea when Haganezuko handed him and Xander their swords.
"Don't worry about the tea, just draw your swords! Nichirin swords are also known as color-changing swords, and they change color depending on their owner!"
Upon hearing this, Xander and Tanjiro drew their Nichirin swords.
A few seconds later, the blade of the Nichirin sword in Tanjiro's hands gradually blackened from the tip to the blade.
Xander's sword, on the contrary, gradually turned pure white.
Seeing Xander's sword become white was expected for Haganezuko. After all, he was a swordsman who used the Breath of Ice, and it was quite possible for the blade to turn white or light blue.
However, when he saw Tanjiro's sword turn black, Haganezoko involuntarily shouted. This result was certainly not what he had anticipated.
"Black!"
"Black?" Urokodaki Sakonji said very calmly.
Tanjiro couldn't help but feel nervous as Haganezoko was so surprised: "Well, uh, the black color—it's not bad, is it? Could it be an unlucky color?"
"No, it's not that, it's just that I've rarely seen such a deep black. It's the first time I've seen Xander's sword turn white. It might be related to the Breath of Ice he developed," Urokodaki Sakonji explained to Tanjiro.
Hagenezoko couldn't hold back his enthusiastic exclamation: "I thought I would see a bright red blade! Damn!"
Katsuzuka jumped up and hugged Tanjiro, then grabbed him tightly.
"Ouch! Mr. Haganezoko! Please calm down! How old are you?" — Out of respect for the blacksmith, Tanjiro didn't dare resist and could only let Haganezoko do as he pleased. In the end, he was the only one who ended up suffering.
Oddly enough, Haganezuko wasn't embarrassed at all and replied very seriously, "Thirty-seven!"