Training and Swordsmanship Sparring (Please Bookmark, Follow, and Vote)

Early the next morning.

Perhaps the excitement of having just learned swordsmanship had yet to fade, but Taiichi got up especially early today.

He strapped the short sword to his back and stepped out of his room. The sky outside was only beginning to brighten as Taiichi rushed toward the training grounds by the river. The riverside was especially quiet in the early morning. Schools of fish occasionally drifted through the water, their pale moon-white tail fins stirring the reflected starlight into fine silver grains. A few insect calls occasionally came from afar, yet they could not break this tranquility.

When Taiichi arrived at the riverbank and took in the serene scenery, he felt refreshed as well. He began with some warm-up exercises. After loosening up his body, he reached behind his back and drew the short sword in reverse grip.

The newly purchased short sword flashed with a cold gleam as it left its sheath. Dewdrops clinging to its spine fell into the river, startling several silver fish away. He adjusted his grip as described in the Hatake Style Basic Swordsmanship scroll. The red mark on the birchwood handle fit perfectly against the web between his thumb and forefinger—the key points Kakashi had taught him last night became even clearer in the morning breeze.

The trajectory of his first few swings was still somewhat stiff, and the sound of the blade cutting through the air resembled a blunt weapon scraping across cloth. On his thirty-seventh diagonal slash, the edge suddenly gave off a clear tremor, and the cloud patterns on the blade flowed beneath the dawn light. Taiichi sensed with delight that his center of gravity was naturally shifting along with the minute movements of his wrist, as though the blade and the bones of his arm were gradually becoming one. Beads of sweat ran down his taut jaw and dripped onto the iron guard, yet he continued repeating the slashing motions like a machine, allowing numb soreness to spread from his knuckles to his shoulder blades.

[You practiced Hatake Style Swordsmanship. Related comprehension increased!]

[Your skill Hatake Style Swordsmanship has improved. Experience +1]

[You focused on practicing Hatake Style Swordsmanship. Genin class experience +1]

In the river's reflection, the youth's figure overlapped with the swaying reeds. As he completed his thousandth swing, the morning light pierced through the thin mist and gilded the blade pale gold. Several neatly severed blades of grass trembled in the morning breeze amid the slanted cuts along the bank.

After the thoroughly satisfying workout, a fine sheen of sweat rose from Taiichi's entire body. Seeing that his swordsmanship was about to level up, Taiichi suppressed the urge to continue practicing it and turned to ninjutsu instead. It could not be helped. There was only so much time, and he had to train everything, so he could only allocate some time to each. Whenever this happened, Taiichi thought of the Shadow Clone Technique. He wondered when he would be able to learn it.

Taiichi stood on the riverbank and rapidly formed hand seals: Rat—Tiger—Dog—Ox—Rabbit—Tiger. He completed all six seals in two seconds. That was not a slow speed, but compared to Uchiha Itachi's seven seals in one second, it was nothing worth mentioning.

"Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique!" Taiichi spat out twelve Fireballs in a single breath. They formed groups of three and flew in a triangular pattern toward four directions. The Fireballs struck the distant water, sending up vast clouds of mist.

Taiichi was fairly satisfied with the results this time. Whether in casting speed, power, or control, it surpassed the level of an ordinary Genin.

With that thought, Taiichi formed hand seals again. It was still the Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique, but this time, instead of spreading them apart, he controlled every Fireball to strike the same location. Dull booming sounds rang out continuously as that patch of water was hammered into a sustained depression.

Next, Taiichi cast the few ninjutsu he knew in rotation until his chakra was nearly depleted. He did not deliberately refine chakra, instead allowing the Chakra Refinement Technique to operate instinctively within his body. Though this meant his chakra recovered more slowly than if he concentrated on it, it placed no strain on his body. After all, this was Konoha, not wartime. Safety was still somewhat guaranteed. It did not matter if his chakra recovered a little slower.

After finishing his morning training, Taiichi strapped the short sword back on, returned home to wash up and eat, then prepared to head to school.

Ninja Academy, classroom.

The moment Taiichi stepped into the classroom, he drew the attention of many classmates. After all, Taiichi had come to school with a sword on his back today, which was vastly different from usual.

"Taiichi, are you learning swordsmanship?" Shizune, who was sitting nearby, pointed at the sheath on Taiichi's back and exclaimed.

Before Taiichi could answer, Guy had already rushed over like a whirlwind. The sweat on his green jumpsuit had not yet dried, so he had clearly gone running laps around the school again. "Wow!" His eyes shone as he stared at Taiichi with the sword on his back. "You're planning to carry a sword from now on, aren't you?"

Kakashi also walked over from the side and carefully examined Taiichi. A muffled comment came from beneath his mask. "The handle angle has been adjusted by five degrees. It's more suitable for reverse slashes." He noticed Obito stumble when he squeezed into the crowd and got caught on the sheath, and the corner of his mouth lifted slightly. What a living treasure.

"What's so impressive about that?" Obito grabbed his Headband to steady himself. "Our Uchiha Style Swordsmanship is far more powerful!" He deliberately tossed a Kunai into the air, spun it three times, and caught it. "See that? This is what real—"

"Idiot." Kakashi casually cut in from beside him. "Last week, you stabbed your own Headband while practicing Shuriken. Have you forgotten?"

Rin hurriedly tried to smooth things over. "Obito is pretty amazing too. Didn't he use the Great Fireball to pierce three targets before?" She then turned to Taiichi, took some Medicine from her medical kit, and shook it in her hand. "If you practice with a sword on your back, your shoulder muscles can easily become strained. Do you need me to teach you how to use heated herbs for a compress?"

"Thanks, but there's no need. I know a little Medical Ninjutsu too," Taiichi replied with a smile.

Even Kakashi was startled this time. No one knew when he had quietly learned Medical Ninjutsu as well. Everyone else wore expressions as though they had seen a ghost.

"That's amazing!" Guy's eyes filled with tears. "Taiichi must be working hard where we can't see him. My youthful blood is burning!"

"Hey, hey! Is that really the point?" Asuma poked his head out from the back row, half a french fry still dangling from his mouth. "I heard the Iai Slash of Hatake Style Swordsmanship can split open a waterfall. When will Taiichi show us what he can do?"

Yūhi Kurenai, who had walked over, tugged on Asuma's sleeve. "Idiot! True swordsmanship needs to work with chakra flow to unleash tremendous power. Do you think this is some kind of street performance? Besides, Taiichi only just started learning!"

"My mistake," Asuma quickly apologized.

Taiichi looked at the two of them suspiciously. When had they become so close? But he soon stopped thinking about it. It had little to do with him anyway.

"Actually..." Taiichi lightly stroked the cloud patterns on the sword guard, the coolness of the metal seeping into his fingertips. "When I first learned the basics yesterday, I even rubbed blisters into the web of my hand." He gave Kakashi a grateful smile. "Thanks to someone correcting my posture by tapping me with a Kunai handle."

Guy suddenly slapped both hands on the desk, and the loud bang startled everyone. "Decided! When we spar in taijutsu tonight, I'll use the Leaf Whirlwind I just learned against your new swordsmanship!" His thick black eyebrows nearly flew off his forehead. "Burn, my youth!"

Everyone broke into a waterfall sweat.

"Count me in too!" Obito did not forget to join the commotion. He jumped onto a desk and pointed at Kakashi. "I want to spar with Kakashi."

"If you don't mind losing again, I have no objections," Kakashi said casually.

The classroom erupted in laughter. Morning light streamed through the windows, edging the youths in gold. Taiichi tightened his grip around the sword handle. The metal gradually warmed with his body heat, like the warmth given by these noisy companions.

With the ring of a bell, the day's lessons officially began.

As the exams drew near, the number of theoretical classes at the academy had clearly decreased, and the curriculum leaned more toward practical lessons. Things such as Ninja Tool Throwing and combat drills had become much more prominent. The differences between students also became more apparent—those with clan inheritances and those without, those who trained diligently and those who slacked off.

That was why Kakashi could enroll at age five and graduate at six, while some people had to attend for the full six years before graduating.

After school, the few companions who had arranged to spar headed to the small woods.

Once they arrived, Obito was the first to shrink back. The more boldly he had spoken that morning, the more he backed down now. Still, he could not withstand everyone's urging, and in the end, Obito fought Kakashi anyway.

Obito opened with a Great Fireball. Its power had clearly improved compared to last time, but Kakashi remained calm. Without even using ninjutsu, he sprinted quickly to the side, avoiding the Great Fireball's range before rapidly closing in and engaging Obito in close combat. Obito had already paused slightly after casting ninjutsu. Once Kakashi got close, he became even more flustered. Within a few exchanges, Kakashi seized an opening and knocked him down.

Meanwhile, Taiichi and Guy also began fighting. At first, Taiichi had wanted to duel Guy with swordsmanship, but after only a couple of exchanges, he had no choice but to abandon the sword and switch to his fists. After all, his swordsmanship was only at the rookie level after one day of learning. Holding a sword instead hindered his performance. Once Taiichi discarded the sword, he quickly reversed his disadvantage, and in the end, narrowly defeated Might Guy with a hook punch.

After the fight ended, Taiichi picked up the sword he had just thrown aside and said with some self-mockery, "If I want to fight with a sword, I still need a lot more practice!"

His companions laughed kindly as well.