Chapter 46: Almost a One-Shot Kill
The next day, Tatsuro woke up as usual, looking at Shura who was still asleep in bed. He smiled, not wanting to disturb them, and quietly got up, put on the clothes from the bedside, and got out of bed. After washing up, he made a large bowl of goat's milk and then left, taking the already chipped blade from beside the door before he went.
Today was the sparring match with Fushiguro Megumi. He wondered how much Megumi had grown in the past half-month, but at least he himself wouldn't be as passive as last time. He planned to overwhelm him in close combat!
5:30 AM.
Normally, everyone might still be asleep at this hour, but with a spectacle to watch today, and a chance to learn something, the group had woken up even earlier than Tatsuro. They were already seated by the training grounds ten minutes prior, ready to observe.
Fushiguro Megumi was currently in the training grounds, warming up. From his confident expression, one could tell.
This time, victory was certain!!
Panda yawned and asked, "Maki, who do you think will win this time?"
"I don't know. Tatsuro's eyes are too strong. Even though I've trained Megumi for half a month, it's not guaranteed he'll have an advantage."
Zenin Maki analyzed, holding a wooden staff, "However, based on what we saw last time, Tatsuro's cursed technique has a major drawback: he needs to perform hand seals quickly, meaning for at least 1-2 seconds while he's activating his technique, he can't use his hands to attack."
Okkotsu Yuta chimed in, "So, if he gets tied down in close combat, Tatsuro won't be able to use his cursed technique?"
"That should be it. Who knows for sure," Zenin Maki smiled and said no more.
Inumaki Toge just sat there, watching Fushiguro Megumi warm up, without saying anything. He couldn't really join the conversation anyway.
As for Gojo Satoru... he hadn't come. He was still in bed, fast asleep. He had merely informed everyone of the sparring time; knowing the outcome already, there was no need for him to watch.
Tatsuro arrived at the training grounds and, seeing Fushiguro Megumi ready in the field, called out, "You're here quite early. Want to make a bet?"
"What kind of bet?" Fushiguro Megumi asked, somewhat curious. He had actually been planning to propose a bet himself, but Tatsuro had beaten him to it.
"If I win, you'll lend me your dogs unconditionally. If I lose, you don't have to call me 'brother' anymore. How about it?"
"Lend... lend your dogs?" Fushiguro Megumi's mind blanked for a moment.
"That's right, your Divine Dogs. If I want them, you give them to me."
Tatsuro walked into the training grounds, carrying his blade, and took a stance, waiting for Fushiguro Megumi's reply. Honestly, Megumi's two dogs were indeed impressive. Last time, they had cornered him, making him incredibly passive. If used to train Shura, they could definitely lead to rapid improvement.
"Of course, no problem."
Fushiguro Megumi readily agreed. After all, this bet didn't seem to have any downsides for him. If he needed them, he could just summon them back. Besides, he had already figured out Tatsuro's weakness, and with half a month of training from Maki-senpai, he was confident he could suppress him!
"Then... begin!"
As soon as Tatsuro finished speaking, Fushiguro Megumi pressed his hands together, forming a dog-head shape, and charged towards him, shouting:
"Divine Dogs, surround him!"
Two shikigami, one black and one white, emerged from his shadow and rushed towards Tatsuro, who had already drawn his blade.
Fushiguro Megumi didn't stop there; he prepared to summon Nue next. As long as he didn't give Tatsuro the chance to unleash a large-scale attack technique, he had nothing to fear. The simplest and most brutal method was to overwhelm him with numbers!
"Tch, trying to stop me from using my techniques and overwhelm me, huh?"
Tatsuro smirked. Although he knew it was ninjutsu, in their eyes, it was a cursed technique—a rather strange one. It didn't matter what he called it; he might as well go with the flow.
Cursed energy surged into his pupils. His black pupils turned red in an instant; the Sharingan activated in a second. Red cursed energy briefly surfaced around his body before dissipating, his physique enhanced.
His right hand tightened its grip on the hilt, veins bulging on his arm. He forcefully threw the blade at Fushiguro Megumi, who was in the middle of summoning a shikigami.
"Swoosh—"
The long blade instantly broke through the wind barrier, shooting out explosively.
The two Divine Dogs, seeing the long blade speeding towards their master, halted their chase and turned their heads, howling a warning.
"What the hell!!"
Ultimately, he still lacked real combat experience. He hadn't expected that a blade could not only be swung but also thrown like a spear!
The long blade instantly pierced the Nue that was about to emerge. After a mournful cry, the owl-like shikigami didn't appear, and a pool of red blood remained on the ground.
"Nue..."
Before he could finish his word, he heard two dog barks. Fushiguro Megumi looked up to see Tatsuro seizing the moment of the Divine Dogs' distraction, gripping their throats.
What had Tatsuro gone through in this past half-month?
He himself had been training too, so why was the gap widening? All his tactics had been completely seen through. He had lost from the moment he made his move...
"Well? Still want to fight?"
Tatsuro wasn't applying much force to the Divine Dogs' throats at that moment, and they were very cooperative, their paws planted on the ground, not daring to move.
His training with those soldiers these past days was no joke. Although he'd use cursed energy for overwhelming power if he couldn't win, he had learned their underhanded tactics very quickly and naturally knew how to counter the current situation.
Summoning shikigami always required a split focus. The moment Megumi thought his summoned Divine Dogs had him pinned, he had already lost.
Fushiguro Megumi remained silent. Although he had another shikigami, it seemed useless for turning the tables now. He had thoroughly lost...
"I... I admit defeat..."
As soon as he said it, Tatsuro released the white dog's neck, grabbed the black dog, and left directly, saying, "Then this Divine Dog will be with me today. You can summon it back tonight. Bye!"
"..."
The black dog was internally protesting. It didn't want to go with this big demon. It turned its head to look at its master and companion.
Both of them tacitly looked to the left, pretending not to see it.
"Woof~ Woof~ Woof~! (Save me! Master! I don't want to go!)"
"No, you go on peacefully, Black Dog," Fushiguro Megumi thought silently.
"Go on peacefully, companion. As long as I'm alive, it's fine," the white dog mourned silently.
"That ended so quickly, it was over in an instant," Okkotsu Yuta commented, not having fully understood what had happened.
"Tatsuro-kun has gotten so strong, in various ways," Panda said. Inumaki Toge added in agreement, "Salmon."
"That guy Tatsuro, just how many taijutsu skills did he copy during that half-month away?" Zenin Maki said, troubled. "He learns everything just by looking, and he's so hardworking. How can I even dislike him?"
"Yo! Is Maki in love? Want me to help you ask Tatsuro-kun what type he likes?" Panda said, ready for gossip.
"Love, my foot! I'm just complaining that he learns too fast," Zenin Maki said, hitting Panda on the head with her staff, then continued to sigh, "If only I had eyes like that."
"That's impossible, Maki. You can't use cursed energy," Panda's words instantly hit Zenin Maki's sore spot. She raised her staff and shouted, "I've decided, I'm definitely going to slaughter you today! Not even the Washington Convention can save you!!"
"Maki can't use cursed energy?" Okkotsu Yuta asked, somewhat puzzled.
Inumaki Toge: "Salmon."
Facing Toge's reply, Okkotsu Yuta didn't understand and didn't know how to respond.