Don't Let Pride Blind Your Eyes

"Also, your clan has plenty of strengths. At the very least, I know you haven't used your Sharingan yet. But even if you did, it would be useless. With your amount of Chakra, you'd probably be drained dry the instant you awakened it, Uchiha. Heh." Wu Liang glanced at Sasuke and sneered.

"What's wrong with the Uchiha? You still haven't said. Why are we about the same age, yet you're so much stronger than me?" Sasuke retorted indignantly upon hearing Wu Liang comment on his clan.

Seeing that Sasuke still refused to give up, Wu Liang said, "Uchiha brat, our clan is naturally superior to yours in the first place. We have more Chakra, stronger physiques, and besides, it's far too difficult for you people to awaken your eyes. Even if you possess the Sharingan, your lack of Chakra will severely limit you as you are now."

Sasuke's expression changed, and he snorted. "I may not be able to beat you now, but with my Sharingan, I'll surpass you sooner or later."

After hearing that, Wu Liang spat at Sasuke and said, "You? Let me ask you: when I was training, what were you doing? When I was practicing swordsmanship, what were you doing? Pretending to be deep in the classroom? I'm growing stronger every moment, but what about you? Kid, the Sharingan bloodline limit may make you powerful, but if someone with such a foundation doesn't know how to work hard, it's no different from living off their inheritance. You only know how to take pride in the bloodline your ancestors left behind, in the Uchiha's dignity and pride. What use is that? Let me give you some advice: don't let Uchiha pride blind your eyes. Rely on yourself."

Though Wu Liang was verbally tearing Sasuke down, he knew this guy truly deserved to be called the protagonist. All sorts of benefits had fallen into Sasuke's lap over the years—even Naruto's heart, his brother's eyes, Asura's Chakra, and so on. It made Wu Liang endlessly envious. But Sasuke was still weak now. There would not be many chances to tear him down like this, so why not stomp on him while he could?

After hearing Wu Liang's words, Sasuke fell silent. Once Wu Liang used Healing Technique to treat him, he finally said, "Thank you. Can I join you guys in the future?"

"Huh? Did I knock you stupid?"

After hearing Uchiha Sasuke's words, Wu Liang's first reaction was that he had beaten Sasuke hard enough to damage his brain. Someone as proud as Sasuke would lower himself to train with him? Though that was what he thought, his face remained expressionless as he said, "Aren't you afraid people will gossip? Our group has the famous demon fox, and Little Lee is also a civilian you look down on."

"You said earlier that the Uzumaki Clan has the same physique as you, and that demon fox is also named Uzumaki. Does that mean that goofy-looking guy is actually much stronger than me?" Sasuke sat up and looked at Wu Liang.

"Oh? You actually remembered that. I don't know whether Naruto has the same physique as me, but I do know he's definitely stronger than you right now," Wu Liang said seriously.

"All right, we can talk about it tonight. If you want to join us, wait at the village entrance at four tomorrow morning. I have to go to school now."

With that, Wu Liang headed toward the school. Sasuke thought for a moment, got up from the ground, dusted the dirt off himself, and followed Wu Liang.

They trained at school for the entire afternoon. Throughout it all, Sasuke acted as though nothing had happened. That acting was impressive.

That evening, after Wu Liang and Naruto finished eating, they went off to train separately. Ever since Naruto had learned tree climbing and water walking, he had declared that he would never again go with Wu Liang to Training Ground 3. There was no helping it—he had been beaten into submission.

When Wu Liang arrived at Training Ground 3, Maruboshi Kosuke was already waiting for him.

Wu Liang walked over to Maruboshi Kosuke and said, "Sorry to keep you waiting, Senior. My sincerest apologies."

Maruboshi Kosuke did not mind Wu Liang's lateness. Instead, he looked at the sword marks throughout the woods and said, "I truly didn't expect your talent for swordsmanship to be so high. How long was I gone? Yet the forest is already covered in sword marks. And it's obvious that only someone with an extremely solid foundation in the basics could have produced them."

"Very good. Then I'll teach you how to combine genjutsu with blade techniques." Maruboshi Kosuke looked at Wu Liang and said seriously, "Konoha-Style Willow is rated as an S-rank illusion blade technique because the effect that erupts when its two parts combine reaches S-rank. Taken separately, the genjutsu and blade technique are only around B to A rank. I haven't seen you use your own Konoha-style blade techniques, but once you master them thoroughly, their power should be no less than B-rank. The genjutsu portion, however, is the hardest, because it is an unsealed genjutsu. It requires exceptionally strong control over one's mental power. I'll demonstrate it once for you."

"Konoha-Style Illusion: Willow."

Maruboshi Kosuke cast a purely genjutsu-based Konoha-Style Illusion: Willow on Wu Liang. Since it was only a demonstration and he had no intention of attacking Wu Liang, Wu Liang was in no danger even after being drawn into the genjutsu.

Within Maruboshi Kosuke's genjutsu world, Wu Liang saw no difference from reality. That was because Maruboshi Kosuke had not launched an attack. As Wu Liang willingly accepted the genjutsu, Maruboshi Kosuke's figure became indistinct and flickering, though in reality he had not moved at all.

Wu Liang carefully experienced the genjutsu. Every detail, every fluctuation in his own mental power, was broken apart and reconstructed in his mind.

"Genjutsu Release."

Wu Liang disrupted the flow of his own Chakra, and the illusion shattered instantly. Actually, Wu Liang did not need to go through so much trouble. Since he had willingly accepted the genjutsu, he could only use the conventional method to dispel it. Otherwise, Maruboshi Kosuke's simple genjutsu, which was only around A-rank in power, could never have dragged Wu Liang into an illusion space. The passive skill of the Million-Year Wisdom Soul Bone was no mere decoration.

Seeing Wu Liang dispel the genjutsu so quickly, Maruboshi Kosuke asked, "Well? What did you understand?"

"In terms of sheer strength, this illusion space is roughly A-rank. The difficult part is making the enemy enter the illusion space in an instant, then following up with a certain killing blow. The blade technique and genjutsu are both extremely simple on their own, but the instant they combine, they can reach S-rank, because once you're caught, you die," Wu Liang said.

"Exactly." Maruboshi Kosuke said with satisfaction, "You really are a genius. And I can sense that your mental power is exceptionally high. If you had not willingly accepted my genjutsu, then my Konoha-Style Illusion: Willow would have had no effect on you at all.

"Also, you're right. The difficulty of Konoha-Style Willow lies in grasping the chance to cast the genjutsu. I was only able to quickly master this illusion blade technique because the Second Hokage personally taught me.

"Because your mental power is too strong, I can't demonstrate it on you. So let me give you a suggestion. In my experience, the moment you exchange moves with an enemy using blade techniques, cast the genjutsu at that instant. Then Konoha-Style Willow will have succeeded."

Wu Liang thought carefully for a moment before saying, "Senior Kosuke, the medium for your genjutsu should be that short sword of yours, right? And the structure of your genjutsu is simply to blend it into swordsmanship, confuse the enemy for an instant, then kill them with one strike. Am I right?"

Maruboshi Kosuke was somewhat surprised. He had not expected Wu Liang to so quickly analyze his habits and secret. He could not help but praise him. "That's right. As expected of a member of the Senju Clan, your mind is sharp. It's not that I don't want to construct a more sophisticated genjutsu, but only the simplest and most straightforward genjutsu can confuse an enemy. What I need to do is seize that instant of confusion and deliver a fatal strike."

Wu Liang nodded. "Senior Kosuke, what you said makes perfect sense. Genjutsu is meant to confuse people. Then take a look at my Konoha-Style Willow."

After saying that, Wu Liang drew the Certain Kill Sword and vanished in front of Maruboshi Kosuke. "Lunge Slash! Lunge Slash! Steel Fang Flash!"

The instant Wu Liang attacked Maruboshi Kosuke, he attached genjutsu to the Certain Kill Sword. That was why Maruboshi Kosuke saw Wu Liang vanish instantly. In truth, that was not what happened. The effect was simple: the genjutsu concealed the preparatory movement before Lunge Slash, making Wu Liang appear behind Maruboshi Kosuke like a ghost. Steel Fang Flash stopped in front of Maruboshi Kosuke's throat, but that alone gave him quite a fright.

Wu Liang sheathed his sword. Maruboshi Kosuke wiped away imaginary cold sweat from his forehead and said, "Senju brat, your comprehension is far too terrifying. I only explained the principle and how to use mental power, yet you were already able to develop your own Konoha-Style Willow blade technique. And your blade technique is even stranger. I still need a preliminary setup before activating my blade technique, but you need none at all. You trigger it the instant you draw your sword. Every strike carries genjutsu, one after another, so even if the enemy evades the first, they will unknowingly enter the second illusion. Am I really getting old, or are children these days all this frightening? Your Konoha-Style Willow blade technique has already surpassed mine. Continuing to call it by that name would only disgrace your swordsmanship. You should change it."

Wu Liang was stunned when he heard that. "Hey, hey, hey, don't think too highly of me. That move just now consumed a lot, okay? Even with a Chakra reserve roughly comparable to a Jonin's, I can barely keep up with the consumption. It can only be used on its own, and the effect isn't that great. After all, attaching genjutsu to every strike consumes far too much.

"As for changing the name, I already thought of one. Before combining it with genjutsu, I call the blade technique Phantom Shadow Swordplay, because even without adding genjutsu, I can still catch people off guard. Phantom Shadow Swordplay is known for its unpredictability.

"After adding genjutsu, I'll call it Konoha-Style Secret Sword Art: Phantom Flash. Also, do you want to see my swordsmanship without genjutsu added?"

After hearing that, Maruboshi Kosuke felt a little more balanced. Then he said, "Your swordsmanship is yours to decide. I'm still very interested in it, so go ahead and demonstrate it."

Wu Liang nodded, walked to the edge of the grove, and said, "Watch closely. Phantom Shadow Swordplay! Lunge Slash! Lunge Slash! Steel Fang Flash! Lunge Slash! Lunge Slash! Steel Fang Flash!"

In an instant, the sound of Wu Liang charging forward fearlessly and happily rang through the grove. As he slid back past Maruboshi Kosuke, he even swung out a wall of water, leaving Maruboshi Kosuke utterly dumbfounded.

Looking at Wu Liang after the demonstration, Maruboshi Kosuke muttered, "Your Phantom Shadow Swordplay alone is enough to rank among the finest A-rank blade techniques. You truly are a genius."

"Forget it, forget it. Young people these days are too discouraging. I should just go home, wash up, and sleep early." Deeply shaken, Maruboshi Kosuke greeted Wu Liang and left Training Ground 3.