Why Is Someone Always Sneaking a Look?

But he did not refuse.

He had recently needed a strong enough opponent to test the practical results of Lightning Mode, his swordsmanship foundation, and his Lightning Ball practice.

The ordinary students at the academy were not good enough.

Might Guy was suitable for taijutsu training, but it was not yet the time to casually reveal his lightning abilities.

Kakashi was different.

He was a recognized genius, quick to react, strong in Swordsmanship, and far more battle-aware than others his age.

He was perfect for testing moves.

Fang Xu reached into his ninja tool pouch and pulled out a kunai.

Kakashi watched his movements.

"No Lightning Ball?"

Fang Xu tightened his grip on the Kunai.

"Depends on the situation."

Kakashi lowered his short blade slightly.

"Then I won't hold back."

Lightning began flowing through Fang Xu's body.

It did not erupt brutally across his entire body. Instead, following the method he had refined over the past few days, it focused on activating his ankles, calves, waist, back, shoulders, elbows, and wrists.

Fine arcs of electricity lit beneath his skin, blue-white sparks crawling up his arm and onto the Kunai.

Lightning Mode, activated.

Kakashi's exposed eye immediately turned serious.

"As expected."

The next instant, arcs of lightning blasted black marks into the dirt beneath Fang Xu's feet.

His body shot forward, faster and more abrupt than an ordinary Body Flicker.

The Kunai thrust straight at Kakashi's chest.

Kakashi raised his short blade horizontally.

Clang!

The sound of metal striking metal exploded.

The Kunai and short blade collided, sparks and electric arcs scattering apart.

Kakashi's arm went numb. He immediately twisted aside to disperse the force, then slashed his short blade diagonally toward Fang Xu's wrist.

Fang Xu shifted his footing, lightning stimulating his calves and forcibly making him half a beat faster.

The blade grazed past his sleeve.

He pressed down with his Kunai in a backhand motion, striking straight for Kakashi's shoulder.

Kakashi retreated half a step and flicked his short blade upward.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

They exchanged three blows in the blink of an eye.

Kakashi's Swordsmanship was steady, every block landing at the most effortless point.

Fang Xu's bursts were faster, Lightning Mode continuously increasing the speed of his attacks.

"More refined than in the alley."

Kakashi spoke quietly.

The Kunai turned in Fang Xu's hand as electric arcs flickered.

"You're tougher to deal with than I expected too."

Kakashi said nothing more.

He suddenly pushed off hard, his short blade sliding along Fang Xu's Kunai before the flat of the blade struck directly at Fang Xu's ribs.

Lightning flashed at Fang Xu's waist and back. He bent sharply aside to evade, while driving his knee upward and forcing Kakashi to withdraw his blade to block.

Bang!

The knee strike crashed against the side of the short blade.

Kakashi was jolted back a step.

Fang Xu did not give him the chance to widen the distance. His feet erupted again, and he pressed forward in a flash of sparks and lightning.

Kakashi raised his short blade horizontally. Rather than retreating, he advanced.

Kunai and short blade collided once more. A shrill metallic crash erupted with lightning, and the two figures became completely entangled in the center of the riverbank.

Clang!

The Kunai and short blade collided again.

Electric arcs burst along the metal edges. Kakashi's wrist sank, and his feet immediately slid half a step backward.

Fang Xu did not continue pressing him head-on. He stomped with his right foot, using the stimulation of Lightning Mode to shift sideways half a foot. His Kunai swept upward from below, targeting Kakashi's sword-wielding wrist.

Kakashi rotated his short blade and pressed down with its flat.

Clang!

Another crisp ring sounded.

The Kunai in Fang Xu's hand was forced aside, and the blade slid along to slash at his arm.

That strike was fast.

Against an ordinary student, it would already have cut open their arm.

Lightning flashed at Fang Xu's waist and back, and his whole body seemed to be yanked backward by a Root. The blade skimmed past his sleeve, cutting off only a small scrap of cloth.

Kakashi's eye widened slightly.

"You aren't simply using a Kunai."

Fang Xu did not stop moving, swinging down in a backhand diagonal slash.

"You noticed?"

Kakashi blocked horizontally with his short blade, his arm numbed by the impact.

"This is how Kendo generates force."

His tone was far more serious than before.

"You've studied the sword too?"

Fang Xu did not answer. His Kunai slid along the edge of the short blade as he stepped forward, his shoulder, elbow, and wrist exerting force simultaneously. With a mere Kunai, he forcibly produced the posture of a short sword's chopping strike.

Kakashi did not dare let his guard down.

He had assumed Fang Xu relied on the explosive power of Lightning Mode.

But after truly exchanging blows, he realized that was not all.

Fang Xu's close combat was not the wild stabbing and clumsy blocking commonly seen among Ninja Academy students.

There was structure to his footwork.

There was a path to every strike.

Every attack fought for distance, and every retreat retained an angle for counterattack.

His movements were still not smooth enough, and there were many flaws in the details, but the framework was already there.

He had entered the field.

Kakashi was somewhat surprised.

Fang Xu had clearly only been average at the academy before.

Lightning Mode could be explained as something he had developed after suddenly awakening a lightning affinity.

But what about Kendo?

Kendo was not something so easily concealed.

Whether someone had trained or not could be seen the instant blades met.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The two exchanged several more blows in the blink of an eye.

The short blade was longer, and Kakashi's Swordsmanship was steadier.

The Kunai was shorter, but Fang Xu relied on Lightning Mode to forcibly increase his speed.

For a time, the riverbank was filled with the sound of metal clashing.

Grass blades were crushed beneath their feet, and scorched footprints continuously appeared in the dirt.

Fang Xu's right arm went numb.

Kakashi was not faring much better.

Every time the short blade struck the Kunai, tiny currents of lightning crawled along the blade. It was not enough to rob him of movement, but it numbed his fingers and slowed his reactions by half a beat.

That half-beat could be fatal in close combat.

Several dozen meters away.

Hatake Sakumo stood amid the shadowed branches of a large tree, quietly watching everything.

He did not make a sound.

From the moment Kakashi followed Fang Xu, he had trailed them from farther away.

Kakashi wanted to spar, and as his father, he had no objection.

But even sparring between children required someone to watch their limits.

Especially since Fang Xu had changed too quickly lately.

Hatake Sakumo also wanted to see for himself just how far Naoto's son had come.

The result surprised him as well.

"Lightning-Attribute Nintaijutsu, Lightning Release ninjutsu, and Kendo."

Hatake Sakumo's gaze fell on the Kunai in Fang Xu's hand.

A Kunai was not a sword.

It was too short and too light, making many Kendo techniques impossible to use fully.

Yet every turn of Fang Xu's wrist, every pressing step, every withdrawal of force carried distinct traces of Kendo.

This was not random imitation.

He had truly touched the threshold.

"His foundation isn't deep, but his direction is correct."

Hatake Sakumo quickly assessed him.

"His timing is still immature, and his distance judgment is off, but his methods of exerting force are already right."

"If he really taught himself..."

He looked at Fang Xu with greater seriousness.

Then that was truly impressive.

Entering Kendo was not earth-shattering.

But for a Ninja Academy student without a teacher's guidance to train himself to this level showed exceptional comprehension.

Especially since Fang Xu was not training only in swordsmanship.

He was also practicing Lightning Mode, Lightning Release, and the Three Body Technique.

Even with his energy divided, he had still entered Kendo.

That talent was already enough to make Hatake Sakumo take notice.

"With a famous teacher to polish him, he won't be lacking in Kendo in the future."

At the center of the riverbank, the battle continued.

Kakashi suddenly accelerated.

His short blade slid along the Kunai, its tip circling past the front and slashing directly toward Fang Xu's shoulder.

The angle of that strike was extremely tricky.

Just as Fang Xu moved to block with his Kunai, he discovered that the short blade was only a feint.

The real attack was Kakashi's knee strike after he closed in.

Bang!