This Fight Was Worth It

Fang Xu raised his leg to block, but the impact still forced him half a step back.

Kakashi immediately pressed the attack, his short blade coming down from above.

Fang Xu gritted his teeth and raised his Kunai.

Clang!

This time, he blocked it.

But the edge of the Kunai was chipped by the short blade.

Fang Xu's arm trembled, and pain shot through the web between his thumb and forefinger.

"A blade really has the advantage over a Kunai."

Fang Xu let out a breath.

Kakashi did not relax.

"You can switch weapons."

"I didn't bring any."

Lightning flashed beneath Fang Xu's feet as he charged forward again.

The two exchanged more than a dozen moves.

The longer Fang Xu fought, the clearer it became.

Kakashi was far too steady.

He relied on Lightning Mode to increase his speed and explosiveness, allowing him to gain the upper hand for a short time.

But Kakashi's blade work, reactions, and combat judgment were all stronger than his.

If they continued fighting purely at close range, Kakashi would eventually find an opening.

Sure enough.

Kakashi tilted his short blade, suddenly avoiding the front of Fang Xu's Kunai and smashing the back of the blade toward Fang Xu's wrist.

Fang Xu had no choice but to withdraw his hand.

The next instant, Kakashi stepped in close, his short blade thrusting straight at Fang Xu's chest.

Fang Xu immediately formed hand seals.

Poof!

Haku mist burst out.

Two clones charged out from either side of him.

Kakashi's expression did not change as his short blade swept out.

The clone on the left was cut apart.

The clone on the right was also dispersed by a kick from him.

But in that brief instant, Fang Xu had already opened the distance, his Kunai stabbing forward again with lightning crackling around it.

Kakashi twisted aside to evade, then slashed back with his short blade.

"Finally using the Three Body Technique?"

Fang Xu's voice remained steady.

"If I didn't, you'd crush me."

Kakashi said nothing.

He suddenly pushed off with his feet, and his short blade became even faster.

Fang Xu used the Clone Technique to disrupt his line of sight, then used the Transformation Technique to briefly alter Kakashi's judgment of his position.

But Kakashi had far more experience than others his age.

Fake was fake. Clones had no weight.

The Transformation Technique could alter appearance, but it could not change the rhythm of one's footsteps.

In only a short while, Kakashi had seen through most of Fang Xu's supporting techniques.

"End it."

Kakashi spoke softly, his short blade slipping past Fang Xu's Kunai as the back of the blade swept toward his ribs.

The strike was too precise. Fang Xu could not avoid it.

Poof!

The instant the back of the blade struck, Fang Xu turned into a replacement log.

Kakashi's expression changed.

Substitution Technique!

"Behind me."

He immediately turned around.

Fang Xu had already appeared three meters behind him.

His hands rapidly formed seals.

Lightning-attribute chakra gathered in his palms, blue-Haku lightning instantly compressing into a sphere.

Crackle!

A piercing electrical blast erupted.

Lightning Release: Lightning Ball Technique!

At such close range, every hair on Kakashi's body stood on end.

This was not an ordinary sparring match with Kunai clashing together.

If that Lightning Ball hit him head-on, even if it did not kill him, it would leave him seriously injured.

Fang Xu did not hesitate. He flicked his wrist.

The Lightning Ball shot out with a roar.

Kakashi had no time to rush away and could only form seals as well.

Poof!

Haku mist exploded.

His body vanished instantly, leaving only a replacement log in his place.

Boom!

The Lightning Ball slammed fiercely into the replacement log.

The wood was blown into pieces on the spot. Charred fragments flew everywhere, while electric arcs scorched a patch of black marks into the grass by the riverbank.

Fang Xu landed, his breathing noticeably heavier.

Kakashi appeared some distance away, his chest rising and falling as well.

He glanced at the shattered replacement log, then looked at Fang Xu.

"That move of yours was pretty ruthless."

Fang Xu shook his numbed hand.

"That strike of yours just now wasn't exactly gentle either."

Kakashi fell silent for a moment.

That was true.

If Fang Xu had not used the Substitution Technique just now, even though Kakashi had used the back of his blade, Fang Xu's ribs definitely would not have felt good.

The two stared at each other from more than ten meters apart. Neither rushed in again immediately.

From their first clash until now, eight or nine minutes had already passed.

During those eight or nine minutes, neither of them had slowed down much.

High-intensity close-quarters combat consumed far more energy than ordinary training.

The hand holding Kakashi's short blade trembled slightly.

Tiny cracks had split the web between his thumb and forefinger from the impacts. His palm was numb, and even now, his fingers still tingled with residual electric pain.

Fang Xu was no better off.

He had maintained Lightning Mode the entire time, rapidly draining his stamina.

He had also used the Three Body Technique and Lightning Ball Technique in succession just now, costing him a considerable amount of chakra.

The electric arcs around his body were no longer as stable as they had been at the start.

If they kept fighting, it would no longer be a spar.

Kakashi slowly lowered his short blade.

"Stop."

Fang Xu did not immediately lower his guard.

Kakashi took a breath, his tone calm.

"Call it a draw."

Fang Xu looked at him for several seconds, then let out a breath as well.

"I'm almost at my limit too."

He dispelled Lightning Mode.

The blue-Haku arcs around his body gradually faded, and a clear wave of exhaustion immediately washed over him.

Fang Xu lowered his head and glanced at the Kunai in his hand.

The Kunai's edge had already gained several chips.

If he kept clashing head-on, this Kunai would probably be ruined.

He put the kunai back into his ninja tool pouch.

Kakashi also sheathed his short blade.

This fight had been well worth it for Fang Xu.

Those three punks in the alley could not test his limits at all.

But Kakashi was different.

Short blade, taijutsu, combat judgment, timing with the Substitution Technique—every aspect had put enormous pressure on him.

It was precisely that pressure that had allowed Fang Xu, for the first time, to truly link Lightning Mode, swordsmanship, the Three Body Technique, and the Lightning Ball Technique together.

Before this, he had only practiced them separately.

Lightning Mode was Lightning Mode.

Swordsmanship was swordsmanship.

Lightning Ball was Lightning Ball.

The Three Body Technique was the Three Body Technique.

But just now, he had needed to decide in an instant which one to use.

When to use Lightning Mode to rush in.

When to use swordsmanship to seize position.

When to use the Clone Technique to obscure his opponent's vision.

When to use the Substitution Technique to escape a fatal attack.

When to use the Lightning Ball to force Kakashi to use a substitution.

This sparring match had been more useful than ten days of training by himself.

Fang Xu also had a clearer understanding of where he stood.

Against ordinary students, he could already crush them.

Against a genius like Kakashi, he could fight to a draw, but he relied on the explosive power of Lightning Mode and ninjutsu.

If they fought using only pure Swordsmanship and taijutsu, he was still at a disadvantage.

He still needed to make up for his fundamentals.

Kakashi walked over, his expression somewhat complicated.

"Why have you been hiding your abilities at school?"

Fang Xu looked at him.

"I haven't deliberately hidden anything."

Kakashi clearly did not believe him.

"Lightning Mode, the Lightning Ball Technique, and that swordsmanship just now. You call that not hiding?"

Fang Xu shook his head.

"I only developed Lightning Mode recently."

"I only mastered the Lightning Ball Technique not long ago too."

"I really wasn't this strong before."

Kakashi stared at him for a while.

"Recently?"

"Yeah."

Fang Xu answered calmly.

"The war is coming soon. I don't want to die too quickly after graduating, so I've been training pretty hard lately."

Kakashi did not continue asking.

The explanation sounded reasonable.

But it was almost too reasonable.

An ordinary student felt pressure from the coming war, began working hard, then in a short time developed Lightning Mode, mastered Lightning Release ninjutsu, and even reached beginner level in swordsmanship.

If someone else had said that, Kakashi probably would not have believed a single word.

But Fang Xu's combat state just now had not seemed like that of an old hand.

Many details did carry the clumsiness of someone who had only recently begun.

Kakashi still had doubts.

But every ninja had secrets.

He himself was not someone who would reveal all his trump cards.

Since Fang Xu did not want to say more, there was no need for him to press the matter.