As their duel began, Sato heightened his senses to the limit, whether it was his sight, smell, hearing, or taste; all of them were doubled.
At the same time, his reflexes and physical abilities were also doubled.
Lastly, his focus and everything that helped him in the battle were also twice as strong!
Sato knew that he had to make his own choice, or else he would be forced to, but it was also because of that that he had to show he had value, potential, and was worth the investment and protection.
At the same time, it was because he knew Kiba was serious!
This guy didn't hold back and used all of his speed!
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
The sound of their clashing blades echoed like an explosion in the dojo, and each of the collisions shook everyone's hearts, no matter how many times they had seen it!
Speed.
Instead of a talent in the sword, Kiba's talent was more in speed.
As for Kiba's talent with the sword, while it might be cruel for Sato to say this, it was so-so.
Yes, Sato knew that his words might be weird since, as in the original story, Kiba was hailed as one of the strongest swordsmen, but he knew well that Kiba's strength came from the speed that came from a certain tool that he would explain later, and also the Sacred Gear.
As for how Sato could say that Kiba's sword talent was just so-so, it was because Kiba's origin came from the secret failed experiment of the church, known as the "Holy Sword Project," which was a secret project conducted inside the Christian Catholic Church that aimed to create swordsmen who could wield the Holy Sword Excalibur.
While he couldn't explain the details, he knew that Kiba had failed, along with the other participants. However, unlike the rest of the participants, who had passed away, Kiba lived and became part of Rias Gremory's group.
Still, once again, while Sato knew that it was rude, as Kiba had failed on that project, it meant that his talent, while it was quite good among many, wasn't to the point of being exceptional, so that he could become the legendary swordman that was written in history.
Nevertheless, it didn't mean that Kiba was an easy opponent since, like Sato, or many other characters in the story, Kiba also owned the Sacred Gear, but in this duel, it was impossible for him to use it since it meant that he would expose his identity, and the secret that he shouldn't expose.
Yet, even if Kiba didn't use his Sacred Gear, he was still strong, especially due to the increase in speed and physical ability that he gained after he was transformed into a certain race.
With that speed and physical ability alone, it was enough for Kiba to crush most of his opponents!
On the other hand, Sato knew that his talent was average, so-so, or ordinary. Similar to Kiba, it was impossible for him to become the best, but he had the Sacred Gear known as the "Twice Critical," which could make his talent twice as good and his effort twice as effective, and double his everything without being noticed by others.
At the same time, as everything about him was average, it meant that he didn't have anything that he was bad with, and as long as he tried harder, training with all of his might, he would be better than those who had a talent, or he would be even stronger as he had the "Twice Critical," yet the others didn't have it.
Still, like Kiba, who had only relied on his speed, physical ability, and his skill with the sword, without using his Sacred Gear, Sato was the same, as he hadn't given his all.
"Who is going to win?"
Yet, without a doubt, the battle between the two attracted the discussion of everyone who watched, especially the group of Sona and Rias.
"I think it's Kiba."
"Kiba-senpai will win."
"If Suzuki-kun becomes one of us, it might be different, but he is just a human, after all."
Yes, Rias, along with her group, believed that Kiba would become the victor, as they were well aware of the huge difference between a normal human and their own race.
Whether one wished to or not, the racial difference between a human and their race was too huge.
Even without a doubt, Sato was strong among humans and was also talented, but Kiba, who had given his all, wasn't an opponent that could be defeated by Sato, even if they knew Sato's talents were simply dazzling, yet—
"Has your knight won against him once?" Sona asked.
"...." Rias and everyone.
Yes, the truth was that Kiba had never won a single match against Sato.
Sato might be a human, and his speed might be lower than that of Kiba's, yet it didn't mean that he was weaker than Kiba!
Instead, Sona believed that Sato was stronger.
Why did she believe so?
It was a record, and a reality that had always happened, as they always had this conversation as Kiba and Sato had their duels, and the result had always been Sato's victory.
Currently, in this duel, Kiba might have the upper hand as he kept launching his strikes like bullets from a machine gun, ruthless, without giving any chance for Sato to rest, or even a moment to counter.
As long as Sato gave Kiba an opening, he would be struck down!
Yet, Sato never gave any chances for Kiba to strike him down; his defense was as firm and stable as ever.
Or rather, if it ended up in a battle of attrition where they bet on their stamina, without a doubt, Sato, who had better stamina, would be the victor.
Still, Sona believed that Sato wouldn't end this duel in a boring way, and as expected, she knew well that he had never let her down.
As their clashes continued, the sweat of their bodies had also drenched the flooring of the dojo, making it wet and quite slippery.
While Kiba had been focusing on launching strike after another, straightforwardly, giving his everything, and further increasing his speed, Sato had been using his brain, using his wit, and brought everything into his advantage, including the terrain, and positioning, so when everything was set up, he made an opening, which as expected made Kiba excited and quickly struck it down!
'He's the same as ever...'
Letting out a helpless sigh, Sato felt that Kiba was so naive that it made him speechless, and wondered when Kiba had ever tried to learn, as Kiba kept falling and falling from his tricks.
Like how a fish would open its mouth toward a delicious feed that tempted it, thinking that it had let its guard down, yet in the end, the fish was the one that was deceived and caught in the hook of the fisherman, Kiba, who charged forward toward the opening given by Sato, slipped as he didn't pay attention to the most slippery area where Sato had led him to.
Bang!
Kiba didn't even realise, and everything was too late, especially when his speed was too fast.
At the same time, Sato also used his Twice Critical to make the floor twice as slippery.
Then, as expected, Kiba slipped and fell directly on the ground with his entire body slamming into the wooden flooring. His head was dizzy, but as a blade was placed near his neck, he heard a voice that made him freeze.
"You lose."
In that single moment, Kiba lost and Sato won.
---
Instead of being overpowered from the beginning, this pace is nice.