"Breathe in..." The speed boost from Thunder Breathing was nothing to scoff at. Kujo Tachibana drew a deep breath and used Water Breathing.
He swung his sword and raised it in front of him to block Kuwajima Jigoro's Nichirin Sword.
"Clang..." The two blades collided, sending sparks flying!
Feeling Kujo Tachibana's breathing, Kuwajima Jigoro's expression turned strange, as though he had something to say.
But Tachibana was no pushover, and Jigoro couldn't afford to get distracted and lose the air in his lungs.
He simply gripped the hilt of his Nichirin Sword with both hands and pressed down hard against Kujo Tachibana!
Feeling the force behind the blade in his hands, Tachibana couldn't help frowning.
This old geezer's crafty. He's using brute force to overpower me!
Picking on a fourteen-year-old kid!
He couldn't withstand the blow head-on—not unless he ignored his still-healing rib injury and unleashed all his muscles to resist it. But at the end of the day, this was only a spar.
Tachibana thought it over and decided not to stubbornly meet the blow head-on.
He simply lifted one foot off the ground and let go of his center of gravity.
He let Kuwajima Jigoro knock him back a step.
Everyone knew that unless you could fly, you should avoid having both feet leave the ground during a fight.
That was because you couldn't control your center of gravity while you were in the air.
Against a master of equal skill, that created an opening that could decide the outcome.
There were two reasons.
First, power came from the ground. Without a foothold, how could you unleash your full strength?
Second, gravity would pull you down whether you wanted it to or not.
(Being knocked away is a crowd-control skill, solid as a rock... Watch me fly like a frisbee...)
Tachibana was in that very "knocked away" state now, with both feet off the ground. The only difference was that he had prepared in advance.
His right leg would hit the ground in about 0.3 seconds.
But factoring in the time it would take to regain his center of gravity, it would take about 0.5 to 0.7 seconds.
For an ordinary person, that brief opening wouldn't even be enough time to react.
But Tachibana's opponent today was no ordinary person!
For Kuwajima Jigoro, the former Rumble Hashira and a master of Thunder Breathing, which granted him tremendous speed, was this fleeting opportunity really something he would fail to seize?
The thought flashed through his mind. Of course Kuwajima Jigoro would seize the opportunity!
This advantageous situation was one he had deliberately created.
But Kuwajima Jigoro's ultimate goal was simply to make Tachibana understand that he shouldn't push himself while injured!
More importantly, if you didn't listen to your elders, you'd learn your lesson the hard way!
"Thunder Breathing, First Form: Thunderclap and Flash!" Kuwajima Jigoro silently recited the name of the technique. Standing on one prosthetic leg, his whole body crackled with lightning.
At a speed no human could react to, he charged at Kujo Tachibana, who was still in the air!
"What! How is this possible!"
Kuwajima Jigoro stared in shock at the bizarre blade before him!
He realized that Kujo Tachibana's sword seemed to be "controlling" him!
When the blade pointed left, he charged left!
When it pointed right, he followed it to the right!
Watching Kujo Tachibana land safely, Kuwajima Jigoro lowered his Nichirin Sword and asked with a complicated expression, "How did you do that?"
Of course, he knew Tachibana's sword hadn't actually controlled him!
Rather, Kujo Tachibana had completely predicted his movements, so he could point his blade in front of Jigoro before he arrived.
Although Jigoro had the incredible speed of Thunder Breathing, he couldn't maintain perfect control while moving so fast.
And that was without even considering that he was missing a leg!
That was one reason Tachibana believed he still had a chance of winning.
Put simply, it was like driving a car in the modern world. At 120, 130, or 150 kilometers per hour on the highway, you might still be able to keep the car steady. But what about going 200 or 300?
Eventually, your reflexes and control wouldn't be able to keep up.
Kuwajima Jigoro had only two ways to avoid Tachibana's blade.
First, he could get even faster. He'd have to be so fast that Kujo Tachibana didn't have time to strike.
Second, he could master his current top speed and control his body perfectly.
If he could do that, Tachibana wouldn't be able to stop him either.
Of course, if Kuwajima Jigoro ignored all caution and fought to the death, he could still cut Kujo Tachibana.
After all, his burst of speed and strength far surpassed Tachibana's.
But this was only a spar. There was no need to take things that seriously.
Kujo Tachibana sheathed his sword, then casually draped his right arm over Kuwajima Jigoro's shoulder. Grinning, he said:
"Old man, want to learn? I'll teach you. Come on, let's talk while we walk."
The two of them had come to know each other through their fight, and with Tachibana's strength—he had slain Lower Moon Two—Kuwajima Jigoro didn't object. He let Tachibana put an arm around his shoulder as they headed for the kitchen.
Seeing that Kuwajima Jigoro was clearly eager to know more but too proud to ask, Tachibana smiled to himself and took the initiative to explain.
"The reason I could see through your movements was because..."
In the end, Kuwajima Jigoro couldn't hold back. Seeing Tachibana pause halfway through, he asked urgently, "Because of what?"
"Because I saw it!" Kujo Tachibana straightened his expression and answered seriously.
Kuwajima Jigoro froze at Tachibana's reply. Then he came to his senses, glared angrily, and shouted:
"Are you making a fool of me?!"
"Old man, don't get worked up. Let me explain." Kujo Tachibana hurriedly calmed the irritable old man down.
Then he explained the principles behind Supreme Territory and Transparent World, as well as how to enter that state.
As Tachibana spoke, Kuwajima Jigoro's expression gradually shifted from indignation, as if he were ready to start a fight at any moment, to curiosity, then from curiosity to astonishment!
Until finally, it turned to bewilderment...
Who am I? Where am I? What am I doing?
Looking at Kuwajima Jigoro's baffled face, completely unable to understand, as if he'd lost his mind and was struggling through a lesson, Kujo Tachibana could only smile wryly.
As expected, not everyone was Tanjiro. He had only needed to experience a single flashback.
After remembering what his father, Tanjuro, had said about entering Transparent World, he had briefly entered that state.
Tachibana had meant well. After all, Kuwajima Jigoro was missing a leg now. If he could grasp Transparent World—
It might not take him beyond his peak, but at the very least, it could minimize the impact of his missing leg!
(At the height of his career, Kuwajima Jigoro, the Rumble Hashira, was once hailed as the strongest swordsman of his generation!)
Unfortunately, it seemed Kuwajima Jigoro hadn't gained much from the explanation.
If Transparent World were that easy to master, it wouldn't be called the Supreme Territory!
It wasn't until Kujo Tachibana had finished his eighth bowl of rice that Kuwajima Jigoro finally came to his senses again!
"I remember now!" Kuwajima Jigoro said excitedly.
"Hm? What did you remember?" Tachibana was excited too. He thought Kuwajima Jigoro had made some major breakthrough after Tachibana's explanation!
"This state is called Transparent World! My teacher once told me about it!" Kuwajima Jigoro said earnestly.
"Right, and what else?" Tachibana asked expectantly.
"That's it!" Kuwajima Jigoro replied matter-of-factly.
Kujo Tachibana: "..."
So after all that, all you remembered was the name!
Kujo Tachibana couldn't help smiling wryly.
Seeing this, Kuwajima Jigoro simply laughed, folded his arms, and said smugly:
"All right, all right. I haven't learned what you taught me yet."
"But I have something I can teach you!"
Before you continue