"After days of developing and practicing it, the technique finally took shape just now. But to perfect it, I still need to test it further. Your timing is perfect, Aoba. Would you help me see whether these final improvements worked?"
Sincerity shone in Yuhi Shinku's eyes, and his smile was exceptionally kind.
But to Kawaki Aoba, that expression sent a chill down his spine.
Suspicious, Kawaki Aoba studied Yuhi Shinku's face and eventually caught on.
Teacher Shinku was smiling, but Aoba could practically hear what he was thinking:
This brat's getting stronger too fast. If I don't teach him a proper lesson now, I might never get another chance.
Kawaki Aoba knew Yuhi Shinku had made up his mind. He was going to beat him black and blue today.
Since he couldn't avoid it, Kawaki Aoba decided to go all in. He could use the opportunity to test his Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist against Teacher Shinku's Chakra Cloak.
"Since you've put it that way, Teacher Shinku, I'd be a poor disciple if I didn't help." Kawaki Aoba accepted the challenge.
After rummaging through his ninja-tool pouch, Kawaki Aoba took out two Blue Potions, one large and one medium.
He handed the large one to Yuhi Shinku. He would drink the Medium Blue Potion himself in a minute, once Shinku had finished forming his Chakra Cloak.
At Kawaki Aoba's current size, a Medium Blue Potion was more than enough.
A minute later, Yuhi Shinku had stabilized his Chakra Cloak, and the sparring match between teacher and student officially began.
Yuhi Shinku struck first. He had been itching to take Kawaki Aoba down a peg for ages. Though he had accepted that the brat would one day become his son-in-law, something about it still rubbed him the wrong way.
More importantly, this might be his last chance to beat the boy up with a perfectly legitimate excuse. Yuhi Shinku intended to make it count and hold nothing back.
Perhaps this was a father-in-law's way of "doting" on his future son-in-law.
With the Chakra Cloak around him, Yuhi Shinku was considerably faster than usual. Fortunately, Kawaki Aoba tracked him with Observation Haki. Otherwise, even the Byakugan he once had would have struggled to follow Teacher Shinku's movements.
A crushing roundhouse kick swept in from the side. Its speed and power far exceeded Yuhi Shinku's usual level, making Kawaki Aoba's eyelid twitch. Before gaining the Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist, he would certainly have been sent flying by that kick.
Teacher Shinku knows I drank the potion beforehand. As long as he doesn't kill me, he's going to beat me within an inch of my life.
Kawaki Aoba didn't dare let his guard down. He twisted at the waist and raised an arm beside him. At the same time, vivid blue water-attribute Chakra flowed over the entire arm.
The raw physical strength of people in the Shinobi World couldn't compare with the martial arts masters of One-Punch Man. But ninja had an advantage over practitioners of pure martial arts: they could enhance themselves with Chakra.
Water-attribute Chakra was an especially perfect match for the Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist. Using them together was far more powerful than using the fist technique alone.
This wasn't something Kawaki Aoba had worked out for himself, though. It came purely from the instincts his body had gained along with the Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist.
Bang!
Yuhi Shinku's kick landed hard against Kawaki Aoba's Chakra-covered right arm.
There was no crunch of breaking bone, but Kawaki Aoba hadn't completely blocked it either.
The force of Yuhi Shinku's kick threw Kawaki Aoba off balance, spinning him more than 180 degrees on the spot.
His arms moved like flowing water, cutting through the air and sending ripples through it.
Wait.
Watching Kawaki Aoba move, Yuhi Shinku noticed something unusual.
Then Kawaki Aoba's right fist, glowing with blue Chakra, came around with the turn and drove toward him. Only then did Shinku understand.
Thud!
The force was the same, and so was the counterattack. But unlike Yuhi Shinku's strike, which relied purely on Taijutsu, Kawaki Aoba's punch carried a penetrating Chakra attack. The blue water-attribute Chakra punched straight through the layer of Chakra Cloak around him.
It resembled the Hyuga Clan's Gentle Fist, yet it was completely different. A single Gentle Fist strike certainly couldn't inflict this kind of damage.
Yuhi Shinku quickly pulled back and stared grimly at the sleeve torn from his left arm by Kawaki Aoba's attack.
In truth, if Yuhi Shinku had wanted to dodge, Kawaki Aoba's punch never would have hit him.
He had simply wanted to test the new trick his student had brought out.
But after feeling it firsthand, Yuhi Shinku found himself thoroughly disheartened.
Why does this student of mine keep pulling out ninjutsu and Taijutsu I've never seen before—and why are they all so effective?
This fist technique, in particular, wasn't there when we went on that mission.
Did he develop it just now? But hasn't he spent the past few days learning the Bringer-of-Darkness Technique from the Hokage's people?
There has to be a limit to how monstrous his talent can be.
"Aoba, what fist technique is that? Why haven't I seen you use it before?" Yuhi Shinku asked as he pressed his Taijutsu assault, still wrapped in his Chakra Cloak.
From how comfortably Teacher Shinku fought, Kawaki Aoba could tell he wasn't going all out.
Kawaki Aoba, meanwhile, used his newly acquired Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist to fend off Yuhi Shinku. Despite the considerable gap in their strength, he held his own by drawing on every Taijutsu move he had.
When the pressure eased for a moment, Kawaki Aoba found time to answer. "The fist technique I'm using, Teacher Shinku? I created it myself, of course. It does have something to do with the Hyuga Clan, though. Once we've perfected the Chakra Cloak, I'll explain."
What a brat!
Yuhi Shinku said no more. Instead, he began using his Taijutsu at full strength. He wanted to see just how good this fist technique Kawaki Aoba claimed to have created really was.
Kawaki Aoba might have devised plenty of seal-less ninjutsu, along with Taijutsu techniques like Shave and Finger Pistol.
But those were all straightforward attacks, nothing like a complete system of fist techniques. Yuhi Shinku refused to believe Kawaki Aoba could have created one from scratch.
Before you continue