Kakashi launched his first probing attack!
Striking suddenly from Shinichi's blind spot, his short sword moved without a sound. Like a venomous snake, it lunged toward the elbow joint of Shinichi's sword arm at an incredibly wicked angle.
Shinichi didn't attempt to block the lightning-fast thrust with his longer blade; he knew he might miss.
Instead, he chose the most direct response. He took a sudden, sharp half-step back. Driving power from his waist, he used the momentum of his retreat to launch a heavy, sweeping horizontal slash. He was using offense as his defense, the arc of his katana covering every possible path Kakashi could use to close in!
The slash was incredibly heavy and surprisingly fast, howling with wind pressure!
Kakashi's pupils shrank. He instantly aborted his thrust and, without hesitation, leaned backward and spun. Like a willow leaf caught in a gale, he narrowly allowed the katana's edge to graze past his nose.
He didn't try to parry the heavy blow, nor did he give Shinichi the leverage to follow up. With a light tap of his foot, he slid away in a completely different direction.
After being completely overwhelmed in their first Taijutsu bout, Kakashi was acutely aware of Shinichi's inhuman physical strength.
Therefore, as this second kenjutsu duel began, his strategy was crystal clear: stay mobile, hunt for openings, aim for a one-hit kill, and absolutely never give his opponent the chance to leverage his massive strength advantage.
And so, the first exchange passed within a hairsbreadth, but without a single clash of steel.
But soon, Kakashi's offensive rolled in like an endless tide.
His silhouette darted left and right. His short sword sometimes thrust forward like lightning, and other times sliced softly like a gentle breeze toward Shinichi's knees, wrists, ribs, and other vulnerable areas.
His swordplay was fluid, erratic, and utterly unpredictable. His footwork was exquisite. He perfectly utilized the agility of his short blade and his own immense speed, displaying the signature speed and adaptability of the Hatake Kenjutsu to their absolute limits.
Shinichi, on the other hand, was like a solid reef amidst a raging rapid. He didn't move much, but every step he took was planted with absolute stability. He abandoned the idea of chasing Kakashi's ghost-like movements and instead focused entirely on defensive counterattacks.
As he swung his katana, he no longer pursued the perfect execution of kendo forms. Instead, his strikes morphed into the most efficient means of blocking and driving his opponent away.
Every swing carried massive, crushing weight and kicked up gusts of wind. He wasn't aiming to land a hit; he only wanted to force Kakashi back, preventing him from getting close enough to string together his intricate combos.
Rip!
The short sword sliced past Shinichi's arm, tearing his clothes. However, he instantly tensed his muscles and shifted slightly, shedding most of the force and leaving only a shallow scratch.
Whoosh!
Shinichi slashed back, but Kakashi had already leaped away, leaving the katana to cut only through a lingering afterimage.
Swish!
Kakashi rolled in low across the ground, slashing his blade upward. Shinichi snapped his knee up violently, deflecting the blade with an iron-hard knee strike while simultaneously smashing the pommel of his sword down to force Kakashi back.
After several exchanges, a bizarre equilibrium settled over the field. Kakashi's offensive was like a torrential storm, but just as he was about to land a lethal strike, Shinichi would always neutralize the attack or force him back using pure, raw strength and an almost instinctual defensive intuition.
On the sidelines, the students didn't dare breathe, their eyes glued to the fight.
The two homeroom teachers, Sensei Matsumoto and Sensei Inoue, were even more tense. They leaned forward, their eyes locked onto every single movement like hawks.
Chakra was already surging quietly through their bodies, ready to intervene the exact second the spar threatened to result in a severe injury—or worse.
He's fast, but!
He's not as fast as me! And he's not agile enough!
Maybe if I try this...
A sharp glint flashed in Kakashi's eyes as his plan set in. He was no longer satisfied with merely probing and dancing around the edges. He paused for a fraction of a second, then exploded forward with a burst of speed far exceeding anything he had shown so far, transforming into a straight, blinding silver flash aiming for a lethal thrust!
Finally took the bait!
A smirk tugged at the corner of Shinichi's mouth. At the exact moment Kakashi pushed his speed to its absolute peak—when his initial momentum was spent, his secondary momentum hadn't yet kicked in, and his trajectory was impossible to alter...
Shinichi moved!
> [Agile (White): Your physical movements are more nimble than ordinary people, granting a minor boost to your physical coordination and movement speed.]
It was true that he only had a single White-tier [Agile] trait providing a minor boost to his flexibility and speed. To any observer, speed wasn't his strong suit.
But traits were only equipment. The interface didn't display the baseline stats he had painstakingly built through years of grueling training.
Furthermore, backed by his terrifying baseline physical constitution and the active enhancement of chakra, Shinichi could achieve miracles in speed through sheer, explosive power!
Bang!
The dirt beneath his feet exploded outward!
He didn't retreat. He didn't block. Instead, with a burst of speed that rivaled Kakashi's thrust, he charged directly into the incoming silver flash.
His katana transformed into a precise, blindingly fast upward slash, condensing every ounce of his bodily strength and speed!
It was a reactionary strike, yet it seemed to have predicted everything. The edge of the blade was aimed perfectly at the space right at the tip of Kakashi's incoming thrust, targeting the joints of his sword arm!
It was a perfectly calculated interception!
If Kakashi's speed was like a ghost—elusive, unpredictable, and constantly shifting...
Then Shinichi was like a heavy, violent typhoon. The eye of the storm was calm, but the moment it unleashed its power, it destroyed everything in its path.
And this was the moment of eruption!
Kakashi's pupils shrank to pinpricks as he faced the incoming blade, which was moving faster than he ever could have imagined.
He wanted to change his technique. He wanted to dodge.
But moving at his absolute maximum speed, his body was nearly impossible to control. All of his momentum and power were fully committed to the thrust.
Retreat? Too late!
Dodge? The katana had already locked down every possible angle!
Cancel the attack? He had already lost his center of gravity!
He had no choice but to take the hit head-on!
CLANG!!!
The short sword and the katana finally collided in an unavoidable, earth-shattering clash!
The sound was deafening, far louder than any of their previous exchanges! Sparks exploded from the point of impact!
Kakashi felt an irresistible, tidal wave of raw power smash violently against his blade. His arm went completely numb. The short sword in his hand vibrated so violently it nearly flew from his grasp. His center was thrown wide open, exposing a massive, fatal flaw!
Now!
A freezing glint exploded in Shinichi's eyes. The violent typhoon finally shattered its restraints, transforming into an apocalyptic tsunami!
He took a heavy step forward, his aura surging to its absolute peak. Holding nothing back, he brought the katana crashing down with brutal, overwhelming simplicity!
There were no flashy techniques. There was only the purest expression of absolute power and speed!
And Kakashi, once again, vividly experienced the exact same suffocating, relentless, storm-like pursuit that had crushed him in their first bout!
Clang!
The first strike! It blasted away the short sword Kakashi had barely managed to raise in defense!
Thud!
The second strike! The blunt back of the katana smashed brutally against Kakashi's hastily raised arm, pulling a groan of pain from his lips and entirely shattering his defense!
Swish!
The third strike! The freezing steel of the blade came to a dead stop, pressing firmly against the skin of Kakashi's throat, sending a bone-chilling cold through his veins.
The violent storm had erupted in an instant, and it vanished just as abruptly.
Once again, Shinichi's weapon rested steadily against Kakashi's throat.
The training grounds fell into an absolute, suffocating silence. It was as if all sound had been vacuumed from the area.
The only thing remaining was the katana—the absolute symbol of total victory—reflecting the cold, unforgiving sunlight.
At this moment, there was no longer any room for debate regarding the victor.