Hirako Shinji and Kasumioji Gojō stepped onto the stage.
Shinji glanced at Katori Nanatsuki, who was standing at the edge of the platform, and caught his teacher's encouraging gaze.
He took a deep breath to steady himself. He couldn't afford to lose this match—he needed to secure the first victory for Class Two!
"If you surrender now, it's not too late," Kasumioji Gojō said casually.
"Aiya, if I surrender, Katori-sensei would skin me alive. Even if I can't beat you, I've at least got to trade a few blows," Shinji replied with a grin.
Hearing that, Kasumioji Gojō didn't try to persuade him any further and simply took his stance.
Shinji also gripped his wooden sword with both hands and readied his own.
"Not bad, good spirit," said Swordsmanship department head Asido approvingly.
Ever since Ōmaeda Kishinosuke opened the first match with a strong performance, Class Two's students had been hesitant when facing off against students from Class One.
But Shinji, standing now on the stage, seemed to have a heart of steel. He looked calm and collected.
Not only that, but the corner of his lips was faintly curled upward, forming a subtle smile. Despite facing a strong and well-known opponent like Kasumioji Gojō, he showed not a hint of fear—on the contrary, he appeared completely relaxed.
"This Hirako Shinji is Katori-sensei's disciple, huh? What a shame he's from Rukongai and hasn't been training with Katori-sensei for long. I doubt he can beat someone like Kasumioji Gojō," said Danmu Zōsuke.
"Katori-sensei's disciple?" Swordsmanship department head Asido blinked, then recalled someone mentioning that the Katori-ryu Dojo—belonging to former Squad Eight Captain Katori Batsu'unsai—had started accepting disciples again. "Looks like the current head instructor of Katori-ryu is Katori-sensei. That means this battle might be worth watching after all."
Tsunayashiro Tokitani glanced disinterestedly at the two in the ring. He didn't believe a student from Rukongai could possibly defeat Kasumioji Gojō—one of the best in his class.
On the stage, Shinji looked relaxed on the surface, but in truth, he had already calmed his thoughts and was fully focused on observing Gojō's movements.
As Katori Nanatsuki announced the start of the match, Kasumioji Gojō lunged forward with explosive force. Years of foundational training allowed him to move at high speed without breaking form.
He showed no openings—he was already right in front of Shinji in a blink, thrusting his wooden sword directly toward Shinji's face with blinding speed.
Shinji's mouth curled into a wider grin, flashing a set of neat white teeth. With a flick of the wrist, he counter-thrust toward Gojō's throat.
Gojō's expression shifted slightly. He hadn't expected Shinji to choose not to dodge or retreat, but instead go for a blow-for-blow exchange!
If he didn't pull back, his sword might strike Shinji's forehead—but Shinji's would hit his throat first.
Because Shinji's arms were longer than his!
That small difference turned out to be decisive.
Gojō hesitated for a split second. His excellent fundamentals allowed him to react mid-move—he halted his advance, pivoted on one foot, and stepped to the left.
In an instant, Gojō's motion was like that of a snake, coiling and slithering past Shinji's thrust. He twisted, bringing his blade down toward Shinji's right shoulder.
However, Shinji's earlier thrust had been a feint.
He had gambled on Gojō switching techniques—and held back just enough strength to adapt. Almost the moment Gojō stepped with his left foot, Shinji flipped his wrist and turned the thrust into a rising diagonal slash.
Shinji had guessed right!
If Gojō had continued his attack, Shinji's blade would've struck his hand first—and under the rules of the match, even getting hit on the hand meant losing a point.
In that moment, it was as if Gojō had willingly thrown himself into Shinji's sword.
But Shinji's blade was already too close, and Gojō had no time to parry. His only option was to dive toward the ground in a desperate roll to dodge the slash.
But rolling wasn't a perfect defense!
Shinji spotted the vulnerability in Gojō's exposed form mid-roll and dashed in quickly.
One clean strike—direct hit to Gojō's back!
Despite several exchanges, Gojō hadn't managed to land a single blow. Instead, Shinji scored the first point. Both instructors and students watching were taken aback.
"Did this student really only train under Katori-sensei for two months?" Swordsmanship department head Asido's eyes lit up. He was a swordsmanship enthusiast himself and could tell at a glance that Shinji had strong fundamentals. His combat intuition was sharp too—otherwise, such precise timing would be impossible.
"Maybe not even two months. Last time we had dinner with Katori-sensei, he mentioned Shinji had only recently become his disciple. He's the last of the three students Katori-sensei accepted," Danmu Zōsuke said, jaw dropping in disbelief.
News of Katori Nanatsuki taking Kotetsu Isane as a student hadn't spread yet, so Danmu still thought he had only three disciples.
He knew about the three because he'd treated Katori Nanatsuki to a few meals to thank him for taking over Murata-sensei's class load. Katori later returned the favor by cooking at the dojo—where Danmu met the three disciples.
"Class Two has produced a genius!" Swordsmanship department head Asido praised. Then, a thought struck him, and he looked at Danmu Zōsuke. "You said Katori-sensei has three disciples. Are the other two also from your class? Are they geniuses like this too?"
"The other two are Chijō Kana and Muguruma Kensei. I don't know their actual strength—I haven't seen them train," Danmu replied.
Tsunayashiro Tokitani furrowed his brows slightly, a faint sense of unease creeping into his heart.
"Damn it!" Kasumioji Gojō got back to his feet, face flushed with frustration. He hadn't expected to end up in such a humiliating position.
He was one of the standout students of this class—his name was known even among upperclassmen.
He was a direct descendant of the Kasumioji family, being groomed for leadership. There was even a chance he'd inherit the family one day. And now, he'd made a fool of himself in front of a nobody from Rukongai.
If word of this spread to his clan, he'd be ridiculed!
Anger flared within Gojō. He began channeling his Reiatsu into his blade. He was planning to end the match with the same explosive force Ōmaeda Kishinosuke had shown earlier.
"I didn't want to show off, but fine—lie down and stay down!" Kasumioji Gojō snarled.
His Reiatsu surged violently as he unleashed a powerful slash at Hirako Shinji.