The meeting

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Edited/

Rewritten Chapter:

The meeting had begun, and a sense of unease lingered in the air. Something within me whispered that this gathering would not bring good news. As I entered, my instincts grew stronger, my apprehension intensifying.

Master's countenance spoke volumes—pain and sorrow etched across his face. The room was filled with familiar faces, but one notable absence sent shivers down my spine. Rengoku was missing. Worry consumed me until Master's voice shattered the silence.

"My dear disciples, I bear grave tidings. Our beloved comrade, Rengoku, has departed from this world."

Time seemed to stand still as shock coursed through my veins. I crumpled to the floor, my knees aching, and my head pounding with disbelief. The world spun around me, a vortex of emotions engulfing my being. "WHAT?!" Sanemi's voice pierced the air, his disbelief echoing my own. Shinobu's somber words followed, expressing our collective loss. "We will miss him dearly," she uttered. "May his soul find eternal peace."

Speech eluded me, trapped within the depths of my sorrow. Rengoku, the one who had shown me kindness, the one who had believed in me—how could he be gone? Why did fate relentlessly strip away those I held dear? First my parents, then my sister, Makomo, Sabito, and now Rengoku. What more did I have to lose? How much more could I endure?

Gradually, I realized that the others had departed, dismissed by Master. I remained on the floor, grappling with the weight of my grief. Master's voice broke through the haze.

"Giyuu."

I looked up, meeting his gaze.

"...Yes, Master?"

"You are dismissed."

"Oh?" I managed to respond, my voice laden with numbness. "Thank you, Master. Have a pleasant day."

As I walked out of the meeting room, a profound sense of disbelief accompanied my every step. I couldn't fathom it—Rengoku's absence, the void he left behind. Life seemed to revel in tormenting me. The mission with Shinobu in the mountains had already shaken me, claiming so many lives, but Rengoku's departure pushed me beyond the threshold of despair.

Was every person I grew close to destined for an untimely demise? If that were the case, perhaps the ultimate release lay in taking my own life. The thought whispered darkly in my mind, a desperate response to the pain that threatened to consume me.

 The thought whispered darkly in my mind, a desperate response to the pain that threatened to consume me

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