Feint
At the Hatake family's training ground, two dark figures clashed again and again, the clang of steel ringing through the quiet yard.
Shirō and Kakashi were sparring under the watchful gaze of Sakumo, who occasionally pointed out their shortcomings with a calm but sharp eye.
After replenishing his medicine at the hospital, Shirō had come to Sakumo for further training. Kakashi happened to be there as well, so the two naturally ended up sparring, with Sakumo observing and correcting them.
This was purely a test of skill. Otherwise, Kakashi would have stood no chance against Shirō—his age and current physical ability simply couldn't keep up. Still, thanks to the solid foundation Sakumo had laid for him and his natural talent, Kakashi's swordsmanship was already exceptional for his age.
He was only a step behind Shirō, who carried the unfair advantage of "experience." Even so, it was remarkable progress. After all, in the original timeline, Kakashi had already made Chūnin at this age. His ability was nothing to take lightly.
---
In the arena, Shirō tilted his head back slightly, his right hand sweeping upward with Gandiva in a sharp strike.
Kakashi reacted instantly. Using his smaller frame to his advantage, he ducked low and slashed back with his short blade.
Shirō wasn't surprised. They had sparred too many times for such a move to catch him off guard. Calmly, he brought his left-hand blade, Mojie, across to block Kakashi's counter. At the same time, he twisted his right wrist, sending Gandiva spinning outward like a returning fang.
Kakashi's instincts screamed. He immediately retreated, waiting until Gandiva snapped back into Shirō's hand before charging again. He knew better than to let himself be caught in that technique. If Shirō had been using his black-and-white chakra-forged blades, Kakashi wouldn't have stood a chance. Even Sakumo admitted that move was difficult to break head-on.
Seeing his trick ineffective, Shirō abandoned the Crane Wing Triple Strike. The technique relied on paired blades—true "husband-and-wife swords"—that pulled toward each other. Without them, once the opponent recognized the pattern, they could break free by retreating. Kakashi, sharp as ever, had already adapted.
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From the sidelines, Sakumo occasionally nodded in approval. For Kakashi to fight on par with Shirō at his age was already impressive.
And Shirō too was doing well. His fighting style was built around close-range weapons, but in truth, his greatest reliance was on Ninjutsu. That was why Sakumo had planned a dedicated Ninjutsu development regimen for him.
Still, from Sakumo's much higher perspective, both had plenty of flaws to correct.
Neither Kakashi nor Shirō cared about that now. Kakashi was determined to defeat this older disciple who always ruffled his hair, while Shirō simply didn't want to be embarrassed by losing to a kid. Both fought with everything they had.
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Then came the turning point.
Shirō suddenly forced Kakashi's short blade aside, pivoting on his right foot and swinging a left kick toward Kakashi's ribs.
With a puff of white smoke—bang!—the target vanished.
"A Shadow Clone?" Shirō's eyes narrowed.
They had agreed to restrict themselves to sword-related techniques, and only Shadow Clone qualified as directly applicable to taijutsu and kenjutsu. Kakashi must have concealed his hand seals perfectly—Shirō hadn't seen a thing.
But his overextended kick had left him wide open.
As expected, Kakashi emerged from his blind spot on the left, short blade arcing down toward Shirō's exposed side!
Without hesitation, Shirō swung Gandiva across to intercept. The block worked, but the angle left him off balance. He fell sideways, suspended awkwardly in mid-air.
Kakashi saw his chance. Before Shirō could recover, he flicked his wrist and hurled his blade straight at him.
The strike hit true—until bang! white smoke erupted.
"A Shadow Clone?!" Kakashi's eyes widened. His heart tightened, and he immediately dropped low, spinning to cover his back with a kunai drawn from his pouch. His reaction was sharp—just what Shirō wanted.
Because the moment Kakashi turned, Gandiva was already at his throat.
From behind him came Shirō's steady voice.
"You lose."
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