The Second Swordmaster

The chunin instructors at the Ninja Academy gave them a full month to learn how to tread water. During that time, quite a few students who had failed to qualify for the lessons secretly came to watch.

At this point, the brutal side of Kirigakure's Ninja Academy was revealed.

The students who had earned the right to learn water-treading as victors naturally stepped forward to defend their rights as winners. They joined forces and beat anyone who dared sneak over to learn black and blue, even warning that no one was allowed to secretly teach them, or they would all get beaten up!

It truly displayed Kirigakure's "unity and friendship" to the fullest.

However, Araki knew nothing about any of this. After spending three days thoroughly mastering water-treading, he never returned to that beach.

Compared to training alongside everyone else, he was more accustomed to practicing alone.

Moreover, having fully absorbed Asuna's swordsmanship, Araki was eager to learn new sword techniques.

The Consciousness Space was as empty, deep, and pitch-black as ever. Araki turned the page and first noticed that his information had changed again.

[Name]: Araki (Yachiru)

[Realm]: Swordsmanship Mastery

[Sword Techniques]: Combo Technique (up to eight consecutive strikes: Stardust Splash), Charge Technique (Flash Thrust)

[Other]: Chakra Refinement Technique, Clone Technique, Substitution Technique, Transformation Technique

"Ah, Swordsmanship Mastery. That realm sounds much better!"

Araki nodded and gave his evaluation with great seriousness.

"Alright, let's see who this second swordmaster is!"

He turned the page with his consciousness and saw the image of a swordmaster dressed in an ancient-style kimono.

The man had long reddish-brown hair tied into a ponytail. A cross-shaped scar marked his left cheek, and his reddish-brown eyes seemed to reflect mountains of corpses and seas of blood.

"Himura Kenshin! No, that's not right. This killing intent... this is Battosai the Manslayer!"

Araki's pupils suddenly contracted as he recognized the man before him.

Himura Kenshin, the fourteenth successor of Hiten Mitsurugi-ryu, had once joined the Kiheitai, which specialized in assassinations, and killed countless people. Because of his mastery of battōjutsu, he was known as Battosai the Manslayer. Later, with the establishment of a new era, he resolved never to kill again and became a wandering swordsman, his swordsmanship growing ever more profound.

Once Himura Kenshin had been manifested, he gave Araki no more time to think.

"Stake your sword and your heart on a life of battle!"

The swordsman in a red-and-white kimono gripped his scabbard in one hand and his sword hilt in the other, then charged at Araki at high speed without drawing his blade.

"Hmph, battōjutsu? Then let me see it for myself!"

Araki held his sword one-handed, pushed off with his feet, and launched himself forward at a speed no slower than his opponent's.

"Flash Thrust!"

When the two were about five meters apart, Araki exerted himself again. His speed suddenly surged, and he and his sword seemed to transform into a streak of light, piercing toward Himura Kenshin's chest with the force to penetrate anything.

Facing that lightning-fast strike, Himura Kenshin's expression remained as calm as ever. His foot suddenly pivoted, as though ignoring the inertia of his forward charge. His body twisted sharply, narrowly avoiding Araki's blade, then used the momentum of his rotation to draw his sword!

"Dragon Coil Flash: Whirl!"

That slash seemed to perfectly convert the kinetic energy he had accumulated during his charge. It was heavy and powerful, as if a true whirlwind had burst from the scabbard.

But Araki was no longer the rookie swordsman whom Asuna could instantly defeat.

The moment his [Flash Thrust] missed, Araki flicked his wrist and followed up with [Stardust Splash]!

The sword shadow that had originally resembled a single streak of light instantly split into countless images. Eight sword shadows appeared at once, once again enveloping all the vital points around Himura Kenshin.

Himura Kenshin swept his blade sideways, yet only managed to destroy three of the sword shadows. Left with no other choice, he could only continue receiving the attacks.

"Dragon Coil Flash: Wind Bind!"

"Dragon Coil Flash: Storm!"

Only after unleashing the complete three-hit Dragon Coil combo did he finally block all eight of Araki's sword shadows.

But at that moment, Araki silently thought:

It's not over yet!

[Stardust Splash] was not merely an eight-shadow combo. After that came its most powerful thrust, the truly deadly finishing move!

His movements suddenly accelerated. Taking advantage of the opening after Himura Kenshin had launched three consecutive strikes, he thrust out the sword of victory!

Clang!

Just as Araki saw the first glimmer of victory, a soft ring of steel suddenly reached his ears.

The sound was not especially loud or piercing, yet it seemed to strike some critical point. Araki's inner ear instantly throbbed with pain, and then he felt as though his entire body had lost control.

"No, it's not that I can't control my body. It's that I seem to have lost my sense of balance. I don't know how to control my body anymore!"

Although Araki calmly analyzed his current condition, it was already too late.

Himura Kenshin sheathed his sword, then drew it again with godlike speed. He slashed out a current of air that pulled Araki's body before him, then immediately delivered a second slash without leaving even the slightest gap!

"Amakakeru Ryu no Hirameki!"

Araki opened his eyes, rubbed his ears in annoyance, and muttered softly:

"That was cheating. We agreed to compare swordsmanship, but you even used sound to interfere!

"And that sword chime was way too powerful. It instantly shattered the semicircular canals in my ears and made me lose control over my balance.

"And at the end, he even used an ultimate move to finish me off like he was showing off.

"Hmph, if I hadn't lost control of my body, I really wouldn't be afraid of Amakakeru Ryu no Hirameki. Wouldn't a simple Substitution Technique have dodged it?"

After grumbling for a long while, Araki finally sighed.

"Looks like until I find a way to deal with that [Dragon Cry Flash], I can only get beaten up one-sidedly again. Still, this feels a little better than last time. Aside from Dragon Cry Flash, Kenshin and I seem about evenly matched? If I learned Dragon Cry Flash too..."

Araki glanced at the longsword in his hand, his face turning bitter.

"Why do Kirigakure's swords and blades almost never have scabbards?"

In truth, that was indeed the case. And it was not just Kirigakure—throughout the entire Naruto World, there were hardly any swords with scabbards. As far as he remembered, only Sasuke and Killer B carried sheaths. As for other ninja who had used blades...

Orochimaru's Kusanagi Sword had his own mouth as its sheath. The Second Hokage's Sword of the Thunder God did not have a scabbard either. Everyone else seemed to carry their swords on their backs, and whether they had sheaths made no difference, since they could not use them in battle anyway.

"Do I have to go to the Land of Iron to find a good sword with a scabbard?"

Araki slapped his forehead. "Forget it. A sword chime isn't only made when a blade is sheathed. I'll try flicking the blade first!"

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