Mifune gripped his katana tightly, his aura soaring, concentrating all his chakra into the sword before charging at Shiyu with all his might, piercing through him at Shiyu speed.
"Flash!"
Logically, to counter a thrusting attack, Shiyu should have chosen the most powerful Shattering Blade Three Dragon God Strike. However, this Shiyu chose Dragon Flash, Iaijutsu.
Because the Three Dragons Divine Strike is stronger with each strike, it must be used in sequence to reach its strongest state. However, the Dragon Flash Iaijutsu is only a single strike, but this strike is an extremely powerful charged Iaijutsu.
When Shiyu was less than a meter away from Mifune, Shiyu had finished charging up his power. Shiyu his meteor sword, which was covered in sword energy, and slashed down with it.
Mifune's Flash and Shiyu's Dragon Flash collided. The Flash's penetrating power was immense, while the Dragon Flash's slashing power was equally formidable.
The Dragon Flash of light, and the sword energy could be felt even two meters away. Its domineering and destructive power made it seem as if it could cleave the sky.
"Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!" Sparks flew as their blades clashed against each other. Their movements were originally incredibly fast, but when they crossed paths and slashed at each other, it seemed as if their speed had been slowed down.
After leaping several meters, the two stood back to back.
"How is my swordsmanship now?" Shiyu asked casually.
You are second to none in this world, and no one dares to claim the first.
With a loud clang, Mifune's katana broke in two, and Mifune collapsed to the ground, unable to move.
Shiyu sheathed his meteor sword and slowly walked up to Mifune.
"Kill me... I would be honored to die by your hand! Before I die, I would like to ask you, what exactly is your sword?" Mifune asked a very meaningful question.
Shiyu replied, "What is a sword? A sword is the courage of all weapons. Its blade Dali, adept at slashing and cutting. It is a weapon that can defeat any enemy! But does the man Okatana or the sword control the man? I have thought about it before. To unleash the full power of a sword, both the man and the sword must exert force simultaneously."
"The sword and the person should be intertwined, each containing the other, a unity of person and sword. Don't you want to know the name of my sword?"
"My sword is made from meteorite iron and is named Shiyu!" Shiyu replied.
"Shiyu!?" Mifune was immediately taken aback upon hearing the name Shiyu.
"You're Uchiha Shigure, the boy known as the Light of the Shinobi World?! So, your sword... it was you. "Mifune fell silent once more.
"Yes, I am Uchiha Shigure."
"The Shinobi Village of the Land of Rice is my village. You declared war on me, so naturally I will fight back. You are the one who started this war! Isn't your belief to be one with your sword and to be loyal to peace?"
"Although you are very strong, my sword is me, just as invincible as I am. And in this battle, you lacked justice! That is the fundamental reason why I was able to defeat you!"
Under Shiyu's persuasion, Mifune gradually came to his senses.
"I'm sorry, Lord Shiyu. I was caught off guard and never expected that the Land of Iron would fall into such a huge trap. I even went so far as to declare war on you. I am truly sorry!" Mifune expressed his apologies.
Shiyu sensed a conspiracy.
"What happened? Can you explain this to me clearly?" Shiyu gave Mifune some chakra, Mifune immediately stood up and said, "Let's retreat first! Let's avoid losses among our men!"
"Alright!"
The connection between strong individuals is quite simple. After defeating Mifune, Shiyu discovered that there might be a conspiracy behind Mifune's attack on the Shinobi Village. Therefore, he naturally did not intend to fight the samurai of the Land of Iron to the death.
"Gentlemen! Obey my command! Retreat! Retreat!" After Mifune gave the order, the samurai passed the message among themselves before retreating.
"Everyone! This is Shiyu! Retreat immediately!" Shiyu's use of a sensory ninja to relay the message was far more efficient. Shiyu announced the order to retreat, everyone from the Shinobi Village evacuated the scene.
Shiyu then decided to first order the main force, including Kakuzu and Uchiha Masamune, to return to Shinobi Village.
Shiyu hurriedly summoned Uchiha Yoshiki, who was beside him, and told her about the battle. He then asked, "Yoshiki, the Land of Iron attacked our village and declared war. In my opinion, this is to divert our attention, so I sent my main force back."
After thinking for a moment, Yoshiki immediately advised, "There's no problem with doing this, but if the main force of the Land of Iron suddenly attacks us, can our advance troops hold them off?"
"Mifune won't do that. We've already arranged for me to go to his samurai camp to discuss things in detail."
Yoshiki then said, "Let's set aside the matter of Admiral Mifune of the Land of Iron for now. We should consider who exactly used the Land of Iron to attack us? What are their objectives? And why are they trying to restrict our development?"
"The Land of Rice is just a small country, and the Shinobi Village is currently just a small ninja village. Most people in other countries and ninja villages don't know that the Shinobi Village is under your control."
Shiyu also gained some insight after being reminded by Yoshiki.
"You mean to say that my existence and that of Shinobi are already seen as a threat by others?" Shiyu asked.
"Yes, whoever the enemy is, they are a terrifying force. If they can get the Land of Iron to attack Shinobi Village, they can get other countries to attack Shinobi Village too! And they may be secretly observing the situation, all to limit your development and prevent you from becoming too powerful."
"So, what do you think of this method?" Yoshiki quietly offered Shiyu a brilliant idea.
"Great!" Shiyu nodded and said, "Let's do it your way!"
After issuing the orders, Shiyu went to Mifune's samurai camp. Shiyu planned to have a detailed discussion with Mifune about the reasons why the Land of Iron attacked the Shinobi Village.
"Lord Shiyu, the reason we launched an attack on the Shinobi Village is because the Daimyo of the Land of Iron was assassinated," Mifune said.
"What!? Assassination? Does the Land of Iron even have daimyo? Aren't there only you samurai?" Shiyu asked.
"Every country has a daimyo, and we samurai are merely serving him," Mifune continued. "That day, the daimyo was assassinated, and the ninja who attempted to assassinate him was carrying a letter and a large sum of silver."
Shiyu nodded and said, "If I'm not mistaken, the Daimyo, after reading this letter, believes that my Shinobi Village is plotting to seize the Land of Iron, right?"
Mifune sighed and said, "Mr. Shiyu is known as the Light of the Shinobi World. He can even fight Tailed Beast head-on without being at a disadvantage. Why would he assassinate the Daimyo of my Land of Iron for no reason?"
"However, the daimyo issued an order to annihilate the Shinobi Village, which is why I led my men towards it, but only because I admire the way of the samurai."
"That's why I declared war first, and then launched the attack!"