And so, a peculiar sight appeared: the girl leaped and danced in mid-air on the tips of her toes, while Domon stood firmly on the ground with both feet. Two extreme styles thus met.
Clang!
Swords clashed, and at the same time, the sword energy carved into the floor exploded, sending countless water droplets flying from the ground into the sky, forming a yin-yang symbol.
The two were in a stalemate. Shiki could have directly crushed him with her powerful elemental power, but if she had done that, she wouldn't have come to meet the challenge.
This was a duel of swordsmanship; elemental power was merely an auxiliary.
"Ryougi, ever since your battle with Fujiwara, I have specifically studied your sword dance. While you were handling matters, I have rehearsed it thousands of times in my mind."
"Your sword dance is formidable, but with just that, you won't be able to defeat me!" Mr. Mikato said in a deep voice.
The only reason he invited the girl was to personally witness the inescapable sword art. If he couldn't witness the General's Musou no Hitotachi, then surely he could at least witness this!
For that single strike, Mr. Mikato had made thorough preparations. He didn't want to, and couldn't, be defeated by the girl's sword dance!
"Unleash it, that almost divine strike!"
Facing Mr. Mikato's low roar, Shiki closed her eyes, then quickly opened them again. If the other party wanted to see it, then she would just perform it.
No Self activated, and Shiki's entire body erupted with a strong electro element, pushing Mr. Mikato away. Immediately after, she placed her katana to the right side of her cheek.
"Secret Sword!"
'Yes, yes, that's the one!'
Mr. Mikato's eyes widened. In a trance, he seemed to hear the chirping of swallows flying by.
'Swallows? Why... why would I think of swallows?'
Under the high sun, the training ground mysteriously darkened, as if suddenly plunged into night, though this scene was only for Mr. Mikato.
One strike.
Shiki slashed from the right side towards Mr. Mikato's left abdomen.
Two strikes.
From above, she cut towards Mr. Mikato's left shoulder.
The final strike.
This one slashed from the left side towards Mr. Mikato's right chest.
Shiki avoided all vital points. She simultaneously delivered three slashes at the same time, and what was reflected in Mr. Mikato's eyes were three spiral-like golden sword lights.
"Tsubame Gaeshi!"
"Pfft!"
Three snowflakes bloomed simultaneously on Mr. Mikato's body. He lost this battle, and lost very thoroughly, because he simply had no ability to withstand three strikes at once.
There was a fundamental, chasm-like difference between the two. At first, he only thought it was speed, but only when facing it personally did he realize it wasn't speed, but swordsmanship that transcended time.
Three strikes in an instant, coming from three different directions, leaving nowhere to hide.
"Heh heh heh hahahaha *cough* *cough*..."
Mr. Mikato, severely wounded, lay on the ground, but he was laughing happily. For the sake of being the world's best swordsman, he had defeated countless opponents.
This wish was both his driving force and his shackles, and now these shackles were finally severed by the girl before him.
"Thank you, Ryougi..."
"No need to thank me. That technique you used to block my sword dance was very interesting."
Ding.
Shiki sheathed her Kujikanesada, then turned and walked out of the training ground. The Foot Soldier, who had surrounded them, automatically made way, which was the deterrence brought by her strength.
The strength she had displayed so far was exactly the same as what she showed in the Meikyo Shisui-ryu dojo. Fujiwara had directly collapsed under the sword dance's assault, while Mr. Mikato had completely withstood it.
Shiki had to admit one thing: putting aside Tsubame Gaeshi and her powerful electro element, at the same power level, Mr. Mikato was stronger than her.
Although she didn't know the name of that move, it was clearly the Crystalize of Mr. Mikato's swordsmanship.
As the saying goes, let you be as wild as you want, I shall flow like water.
Perhaps as long as one's power level remained within the realm of mortals, no one could break Mr. Mikato's defense.
But he was old after all, and his physical strength was not what it used to be. If there were too many people, Mr. Mikato would surely be the first to give out.
Mr. Mikato's entire life was immersed in swordsmanship. In his youth, he pursued fierce waves, but as his body declined, Mr. Mikato focused his energy on technique, later even founding the Meikyo Shisui-ryu.
By virtue of his own strength and prestige, Meikyo Shisui-ryu quickly became the largest sect in Inazuma. Of course, the establishment of this school also had something to do with Tejima, who was far away in Konda Village.
However, Shiki didn't know any of this, but she decided to ask Tejima about it when she returned. Who would believe that such an almost identical deflection stance had no relation!
Indeed, the path of the sword leads to the same destination, but after such a long period of transmission and differentiation, such almost identical moves are rare.
Deflection is not a simple swing; it requires long-term practice and specialized guidance. Shiki also knew it, but she just hadn't encountered a situation where she needed to use this move.
After Shiki walked out of the Tenryou Commission training ground gate, the group of Foot Soldier quickly lifted Mr. Mikato onto a stretcher. However, at that moment, Mr. Mikato reached out and motioned for everyone to stop.
Then, he unfastened the Vision from his waist and solemnly handed it to the Hatamoto.
"Thank you for your leniency towards me. As agreed, my Vision is now yours."
"It's what I should do. After all, we don't want to use force."
The Hatamoto accepted the Vision. He greatly respected Mr. Mikato, this highly respected master. Over the years, Meikyo Shisui-ryu had contributed a lot of active forces to the Shogunate. For both emotional and logical reasons, he would agree to the other party's request.
Besides, it wasn't a difficult task; it was just delivering a message.
"What are you standing around for? Quickly take Mr. Mikato to see a doctor!"
The Hatamoto shooed away the Foot Soldier, then took out the Vision Hunt Decree list and crossed out Mr. Mikato's name.
At this point, the ninety-eight Visions scattered among the populace had been collected. If nothing unexpected happened, the next step would be the Visions of the Three Commissions.
If the Visions among Inazuma's populace accounted for five-tenths, then the Visions of the Three Commissions accounted for the remaining five-tenths.
Especially the Tenryou Commission, which commanded the army, possessed the most Visions, followed by the Yashiro Commission, and then the Kanjou Commission located in Ritou.
From previous events, it could be seen that Hiiragi Shinsuke's hair was cut, yet there were still no samurai with Visions to protect him; he could only make deals with the Fatui.
The Tenryou Commission, on the other hand, frequently had to fight against ronin, and many people obtained Visions on the brink of life-and-death crises.
Moreover, if they were to be confiscated, the Tenryou Commission would certainly be the last. After all, if the Visions were collected, what would they use to counter other Vision wielders?
Of course, there would also be some exceptions, such as defying orders or helping others escape.
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