Sword insight in the rain

With the sparring match over, the picnic on the Riverbank grew lively again.

The scorch marks left by the lightning still gave off a faint burnt smell. Sasuke had already sat down on the other side of the fire and was looking down as he dealt with the sleeve torn by the lightning Senbon.

Sakura crouched beside him to check his wounds.

Naruto, meanwhile, acted as though he had been the winner, weaving through the crowd with a skewer raised in his hand and occasionally imitating the way Cangyue had sheathed his sword.

"Flying Bird Breaks White Plum!"

The wooden stick swept through the air, nearly smacking Kiba in the head.

Kiba leaned back and kicked Naruto in the backside.

"Stay away from my grilled meat!"

Naruto stumbled forward, but kept his skewer firmly protected without losing a single piece.

Cangyue had already returned to sit by the fire.

The Flame and Thunder Swords lay across the ground beside him, their scabbards still dusted with fine sand from the riverbank.

"Want some?"

Ino offered him a plate of freshly grilled meat.

"Thanks."

"Tch, I just grilled too much."

Cangyue did not argue.

He accepted the plate with a smile and bit into a piece, but his gaze rested on the flames.

The fight had not been difficult for him to win.

Still, Sasuke's attacks after activating his Sharingan had given him some new ideas about the angles of his sword strikes.

Especially the ability of those eyes to track movement.

If he faced opponents with greater speed and sharper judgment in the future, relying solely on his swords' power might not be enough.

Holding the bamboo skewer, Cangyue unconsciously turned his wrist.

The tip sliced through the air with a faint swish.

Might Guy happened to approach just then.

He glanced at the bamboo skewer, then at the two swords beside Cangyue.

"Cangyue, that was an excellent match."

Might Guy gave him a thumbs-up, his teeth flashing in the sunlight.

"Especially that final strike! Your timing, angle, and power were all superbly controlled!"

Rock Lee nodded vigorously beside him.

"Releasing several lightning Senbon while moving at high speed, and avoiding Sasuke's vital points at the same time-that's certainly not something you can do simply by relying on a weapon!"

Tenten came over as well.

She had little interest in how Cangyue trained, but she could not stop thinking about his two swords.

Cangyue had only used some of the Thunder Sword's abilities during the match, while the Flame Sword had remained in Sasuke's hand from start to finish.

That meant the Flame and Thunder Swords surely had other tricks when truly used together.

"Cangyue, how exactly do you practice swordsmanship?"

Tenten pointed to the swords beside him.

"No one teaches that at the Ninja Academy."

Her remark drew everyone else's attention.

Naruto ran over with grilled meat between his teeth and plopped down opposite Cangyue.

Kiba and Choji edged closer too.

Though Sasuke remained on the other side of the fire, he stopped fussing with his sleeve.

Cangyue popped the last piece of meat into his mouth and set down the bamboo skewer.

"I practice Dream Training."

Naruto blinked.

Rock Lee straightened up.

Tenten waited a moment, but no further explanation came.

"That's it?"

"That's it."

Cangyue picked up the teacup beside him and slowly took a sip.

Kiba looked down at Akamaru in his arms.

Having just eaten his fill, Akamaru was curled into a ball, dozing.

"You can train while sleeping?"

Kiba lifted Akamaru slightly in his hand.

"He sleeps so much every day. How come I've never seen him learn any amazing ninjutsu?"

Akamaru opened his eyes and gave an indignant bark.

Choji swallowed his grilled meat and earnestly raised another question.

"Do you need to eat your fill before Dream Training?"

"Hey, that's not the point!" Sakura could not help saying.

Shikamaru lay in the shade of a tree with his hands behind his head.

He could not even be bothered to open his eyes.

"That just sounds like an excuse for sleeping in class."

"But Cangyue really is strong," Ino countered.

Shikamaru rolled over.

"Being strong and being able to train in your sleep are two different things."

Rock Lee, however, looked increasingly serious.

He looked at Cangyue, then at his own hands.

If even sleeping hours could be used for training, wouldn't that give a person several more hours of practice than everyone else each day?

Over several years, the gap would grow unimaginably large.

Might Guy had evidently thought of this too.

Master and student both lit up at once.

"Guy-sensei..."

"Lee..."

Their clenched fists bumped together.

"Youth must never stop burning, even in sleep!"

Shikamaru finally opened his eyes and watched them with a complicated expression.

He suddenly felt that things were heading in a troublesome direction.

A notification appeared before Cangyue's eyes.

[Valor Points +11]

At the increase, his hand paused slightly around his teacup.

Just saying I train in my dreams stirred up this much emotion?

Cangyue glanced around.

Kiba clearly did not believe him and was trying to wake Akamaru.

Choji was still considering how full he ought to be before bed.

Sakura's face was full of doubt.

Tenten stared at the two swords, seemingly hoping to find the answer in the weapons.

Might Guy and Rock Lee had already begun discussing how to keep their bodies training while asleep.

Even Sasuke, who had been pretending not to care, had glanced over several times.

Since they were so interested, ending it with a single remark would be something of a waste.

Cangyue set down his teacup and picked up the Flame and Thunder Swords.

Clang!

Both blades slid half an inch out of their scabbards at once.

Everyone fell silent.

Rather than demonstrate a sword technique, Cangyue walked to an open patch of ground a little farther from the fire and planted one sword in the soil on either side.

Then he shook out the hem of his clothes and lay straight down.

He rested his head on his arms, his legs loosely crossed.

He closed his eyes.

And stopped moving.

The grilled meat between Naruto's teeth slowly drooped.

Kiba froze halfway through lifting Akamaru.

Choji stopped chewing.

They waited a while, but Cangyue still showed no intention of getting up.

"Is he..."

Ino ventured.

Shikamaru took one look and closed his eyes again.

"Sleeping."

"Of course I know he's sleeping!"

Ino pointed at Cangyue on the ground.

"I'm asking why he suddenly lay down over there!"

As though he had heard her question, Cangyue spoke with his eyes closed.

"The battle just now granted me a little insight."

He adjusted his arms to make his improvised pillow more comfortable.

"I must enter my dreams to contemplate sword intent."

With that, his breathing gradually slowed.

Silence fell over the riverbank.

Sasuke looked at his torn sleeve, then at Cangyue lying on the ground.

Fighting me actually gave this guy new insights into swordsmanship?

His instinct told him Cangyue was talking nonsense.

Yet the two swords planted in the ground kept him from dismissing those words entirely.

Tenten walked halfway around Cangyue.

She waved a hand before Cangyue's eyes. When he gave no response, she lowered her voice and called his name again.

"Cangyue?"

Cangyue did not even twitch an eyelid.

Rock Lee held his breath, as though afraid of disturbing some special form of training.

Might Guy crouched nearby and observed him for a moment, his expression growing solemn.

Cangyue's breathing was even, his shoulders completely relaxed. He really did seem to have fallen asleep.

But how could someone who had just finished fighting fall asleep at will?

[Valor Points +8]

They had increased again.

With his eyes closed, Cangyue immediately felt reassured.

Looks like this approach really works.

The more he said, the easier it would be to expose a flaw.

Explaining nothing would instead leave the onlookers to speculate for themselves.

As for contemplating sword intent in his dreams...

That can wait until I wake up.

Wind blew in from the river.

The treetops swayed continuously, their branches and leaves rustling against one another.

A shadow quietly veiled the sunlight.

Shikamaru noticed the change first and opened his eyes to look at the sky.

The sky, fairly clear just moments earlier, was now blanketed in dark clouds.

Muffled thunder rumbled in the distance, and a heavy dampness filled the air.

A raindrop landed at the edge of the fire.

Then more drops pelted the riverbank.

"It's raining!"

Sakura had just risen when the suddenly intensifying rain came pouring down.

The coals hissed furiously, and white smoke swiftly billowed up.

Everyone sprang into action.

Choji snatched up the plate piled with grilled meat, shielding the food with his body.

Kiba rolled up the picnic blanket spread on the ground. Akamaru bit down on the other end, and they dragged it toward the edge of the woods.

Ino and Sakura lifted the grill together.

Tenten picked up the cage holding their mission target to keep the kitten inside from escaping in the confusion.

"There's a tarp over there!"

Might Guy looked where Iruka was pointing and immediately dashed into the woods.

Rock Lee followed close behind.

Before long, master and student returned to the riverbank carrying wooden poles and a tarp.

The poles were driven into the ground one after another, and the ropes were quickly pulled taut.

Neji secured the corners, Iruka brought in the last of the ingredients, and Sasuke piled the firewood that was still dry at the back of the tent.

Working together, they soon had a makeshift tent up.

The fire was rekindled at the edge of the tent, too.

Naruto wiped the rain from his face and took stock of the food, then suddenly felt something was missing.

He turned toward the others.

"Where's Cangyue?"

The tent instantly fell silent.

Everyone looked out through the curtain of rain.

Cangyue was still lying in the same spot.

The downpour washed over the riverbank, soaking his clothes through.

His black hair clung to his forehead, and rainwater streamed down his cheeks.

The Flame and Thunder Swords remained planted on either side of him, their contrasting sheens visible beneath the gray sky.

A faint white mist rose around the Flame Sword.

A tiny arc of electricity occasionally flickered across the Thunder Sword's surface.

Yet Cangyue remained motionless.

Kiba was silent for a moment before speaking slowly.

"Don't tell me he actually fell asleep?"

"Who sleeps in a downpour?" Ino pressed a hand to her forehead.

Naruto had already rushed to the edge of the tent, cupping his hands around his mouth.

"Cangyue!"

"Get in here out of the rain!"

The rain roared.

Cangyue gave no response.

"Cangyue!"

Naruto called again. When Cangyue still didn't move, he immediately made to rush out into the rain.

Might Guy reached out and stopped him.

"Wait."

He gazed at Cangyue in the downpour, his expression solemn.

"He said earlier that he wanted to comprehend sword intent in his dreams."

"But he'll get sick!" Naruto said urgently.

Might Guy didn't answer.

At that very moment, a gust of wind swept across the riverbank.

The Thunder Sword planted to Cangyue's right suddenly trembled faintly.

Humm-

Fine arcs of electricity crawled along the scabbard before quietly dissipating into the rain.

Cangyue's eyes remained closed.

He seemed unaware of the cold, or of the wind and rain around him.

His breathing remained slow and steady.

The voices inside the tent gradually faded.

Everyone watched that figure through the curtain of rain.

Their doubts remained.

But when someone truly lay motionless in a downpour, that absurd claim of "Dream Training" seemed to take on a certain inexplicable significance.

[Valor Points +17]

Cangyue almost failed to keep the corners of his mouth from lifting.

Here it comes again.

Even more than before.

He had only intended to deepen their impression of him. He hadn't expected a bout of rain to double the effect.

In that case, I'll just keep lying here.

Until the rain stops, I'm not getting up.

As for comprehending sword intent...

I've already got it!