Chapter 115: Willing Prey
In a somewhat secluded training ground in the Hidden Cloud Village.
"Hah!"
The short blade in Samui's hand traced a sharp arc, producing a piercing whistling sound as it cut through the air.
However, after sheathing the blade, her brow remained tightly furrowed.
Her swordsmanship was more than enough to deal with Genin, and it was the foundation of her status as a Chunin.
But to rely on this to get promoted to Jonin was far from enough.
"Let's do one more set..."
Coming from an ordinary family, not to mention those secret clan techniques or Kekkei Genkais, she found it difficult to even obtain ordinary Ninjutsu.
The Village's resources were all skewed toward those with backgrounds or talent; an ordinary Chunin like her simply didn't make the cut.
All she could do was work twice as hard and hone her existing skills to the limit...
"Sister! Big news! Absolutely big news!"
Just then, her younger brother Atsui's loud voice instantly broke Samui's train of thought.
This brother of hers, who was all brawn, was drenched in sweat, his eyes gleaming with excitement.
"Atsui, how many times have I told you to stay calm while training?"
Samui shot him a cold glance, but she didn't stop the movements of her hands, continuing her basic slashes.
"I can't stay calm! There's a 'monster' at the plaza!" Atsui gestured wildly. "A Ronin named Yoriichi, his sword can breathe fire! No, wait, it can also breathe water and lightning! It's supposedly the " Demon Slaying Style ", a sword style used to kill demons!"
Samui finally stopped her movements, her blue-green eyes narrowing slightly.
"A sword style that breathes fire? The Kumogakure style of Chakra swords can do that, too. What's so strange about that?"
"No, it's different!" Atsui scratched his head in frustration. "It's not just a simple Chakra sword; that technique, which combines nature transformation with sword moves, is practically art! I saw with my own eyes that even the arrogant Oroi was taken down in one move!"
Samui's heart skipped a beat for no reason.
Because Oroi focused purely on swordsmanship and was too straightforward, his overall strength wasn't considered very high. But when it came to swordsmanship alone, he was top-tier among Chunin.
Especially his first three moves, which were fast and heavy; most Jonin would have to avoid them temporarily.
And this Ronin of the " Demon Slaying Style, " whom she had never heard of, could defeat Oroi in a single move...
Samui unconsciously tightened her grip on her short blade.
Her physical condition had now reached a bottleneck, and her Chakra levels were growing slowly.
Looking back, she had been treading water for the past few years, only able to watch as the geniuses from her cohort were promoted to Jonin one by one.
"Tell me more about that Ronin and the Demon Slaying Style in detail..."
Perhaps this was her chance to catch up to them.
Two days later, the Hidden Cloud plaza was bustling with noise.
A waist-high earthen platform had been forcibly raised in the center of the plaza; it was said that a few Earth Release Ninja, egging things on, had built it for this "Mr. Yoriichi" for the convenience of watching the show.
The platform was surrounded by people, and a few quick-witted guys had even started a betting pool.
"Place your bets! The odds for the next challenger lasting more than three moves are one to five!"
At this moment, "Yoriichi"—that is, Haruko—was sitting cross-legged in the center of the platform with his arms crossed, eyes closed to rest.
The katana was tucked at his waist, his red hair swaying slightly in the breeze.
'Sigh, this feeling of being watched like a monkey is really as tiring as clocking in for work."
If it weren't for fishing for the chakra metal in the hands of the high-level officials of the Hidden Cloud Village, he would be lying flat on his bed at the inn right now, or playing the third wheel for Asuma and Kurenai while they were on a date.
However, the sparring over the past few days hadn't been entirely without gain.
Through the polishing of actual combat, his level of Chakra sword usage and swordsmanship had indeed improved, and the "special effects" of the Demon Slaying Style were no longer just special effects; they were gradually evolving from flashy tricks into practical swordsmanship.
"Mr. Yoriichi! Please, you must spar with me!"
A Chunin leaped onto the platform, and Haruko rose to meet him.
"Water Breathing, Seventh Form: Drop Ripple Thrust."
The moment the fight started, the opponent was struck in a vital spot by a thrust from Haruko.
If it weren't for the fact that Haruko had delivered this strike with the scabbard on, this person would definitely have been a goner.
"I accept your concession."
His calm and indifferent attitude, combined with the backing of his strength, was exactly the stereotype people held for a "grandmaster."
"Another one-hit victory! This is just too strong..."
"Is this the Demon Slaying Style? I've never heard of it before, I didn't expect it to be so..."
In the crowd of onlookers, a lazy figure was trying to sneak away.
But his "Lightning" tattoo and that iconic folding giant sword were simply too conspicuous.
"Look! It's Lord Darui!"
"Lord Darui, go for it! Show this Ronin the power of our Kumogakure style!"
"Go! Go!"
Haruko followed the sound and couldn't help but brighten up.
'Finally, someone with some weight has arrived."
He had been "in business" here for two days, and challengers were endless, but most were Genin and Chunin; the Jonin were basically just watching.
Although it wasn't a burning emergency, his time in the Hidden Cloud Village was limited; he couldn't keep dealing with these small fry.
He needed an opponent with enough weight, preferably someone with some reputation in the Hidden Cloud.
This way, he could reasonably break this katana he had bought on a whim during the fight, then logically bring up the issue of "not having a suitable weapon," and subsequently induce these muscle-brained people to take out some chakra metal.
And Darui was the future Fifth Generation Raikage; although he was still young, his strength shouldn't be too bad, and his status in the Hidden Cloud was not low. He definitely had the ability to get chakra metal.
'Even if this doesn't work out, it doesn't matter; there's no harm in making friends through martial arts first."
"What a drag..." Darui walked onto the platform slowly and drew the long sword from his back. "My name is Darui. Although I don't want to fight, it seems I have no choice."
"Yoriichi." Haruko stood up, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword. "Please advise."
"Then... forgive me."
Darui's eyes instantly became sharp.
He drew his giant sword, and his entire aura changed abruptly.
When Samui squeezed into the crowd, she happened to see this scene.
The dark-skinned Ninja was like a black bolt of lightning, closing in on the side of the red-haired Ronin in an instant.
"That is... Lord Darui?"
"Clang—"
Sword met blade, and both sides retreated upon contact, each jumping away.
As a probing move, the two sides were evenly matched. However—
"What a hard blade..." Haruko whispered.
Darui grinned: "That's because this is a custom weapon with chakra metal added."
" chakra metal..."
Haruko's heart skipped a beat.
Wasn't this exactly what he wanted?
"Your strength is formidable; next, I will go all out." Haruko reset his stance, and Chakra wrapped around his katana.
"It's coming, it's coming! Can we finally see Mr. Yoriichi's full power!"
"Now this is interesting!"
The cheering in the crowd rose one after another, and the atmosphere was instantly pushed to a climax.
"Uh..." Darui scratched his head as if he were a bit troubled. "Could you please go easy on me?"
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