39 Chapter 39

After the ten thousand sword exercises, Kyomu finally completed them just before the sun completely disappeared below the horizon.

Putting away his sword, Kyomu also breathed out a sigh of relief.

"Finished practicing?" Kakashi glanced sideways at Kyomu. "Do you want to test your practice results with me?"

"Want to spar?"

"Not really, I just want to see the effects of your ten thousand sword exercises you mentioned earlier, to see if it's as exaggerated as you claimed."

Seeing Kakashi take the initiative to be his "training dummy," Kyomu naturally wouldn't refuse.

"My strike might be too much for you to handle."

Kakashi sneered, "Do you think I don't know your swordsmanship level? Stop boasting!"

Indeed, Kakashi's swordsmanship level had always been superior to Kyomu's, there was no denying that.

But now, it's hard to say who is stronger.

Although it was just practicing ten thousand sword exercises, the strength of the passive skill "Mastery of Cold Weapons" lies in the absence of bottlenecks in practicing cold weapons.

No bottleneck means unlimited progress, which means that with each sword swing, Kyomu's sword power would increase.

Compared to diligence, it lacked a bit of comprehensiveness, but in terms of practice effectiveness, it gained a bit of professionalism.

"I'm not boasting." Kyomu shook his head seriously. "Step aside, let me cut a tree to show you the effect. Afterwards, you can decide whether or not to confront me head-on."

"What you said makes sense, then show me!" Kakashi obviously didn't believe it, feeling underestimated by Kyomu. "I want to see the results. Don't fail to surprise me and end up making me laugh instead."

"I'll definitely leave you speechless."

With a ninja knife in his left hand, Kyomu slowly approached a tree the thickness of two people. "Watch carefully, I'll only perform once!"

As his words fell, Kyomu took a step back with his left foot and slowly placed his right hand on the handle of the knife.

Inhaling, and at the moment of exhaling, Kyomu's right hand moved!

Time slowed down at this moment, the leaves that had just fallen from the tree seemed to be affected, freezing in mid-air without continuing to fall.

Meanwhile, Kakashi widened his eyes, watching the scene before him as if the door to a new world had slammed into his head, leaving him bewildered.

As the blade extended by half an inch, the air around it began to tremble, forming a vortex in an instant, gathering two centimeters in front of Kyomu's right hand.

As the blade extended another half inch, the vibrating air in front of the wrist formed a ripple, mutually vibrating while being compressed, with the moisture contained within condensing into a cloud-like appearance.

As the ninja knife was halfway unsheathed, a piercing sound came, the surrounding air turned into waves of wind, constantly gathering under the blade, the white cloud-like air wall in front becoming heavier.

The steel blade suddenly turned red as it was about to be fully unsheathed, as if it had been scorched in a furnace, glowing red-hot and dazzling!

"This..." Kakashi had just uttered a word when time seemed to suddenly return to normal around him. It wasn't time stagnation, but rather Kyomu's actions were performed at an extreme speed.

"How..."

Swish!~

The air wall in front, condensed by the white cloud-like appearance, was cut by the blade, cutting off the last two syllables Kakashi uttered, condensing into a crescent-shaped sword aura with a red leading edge, whistling through the air.

Without any chakra fluctuations, all that existed was the unique shockwave formed by the extreme compression of the surrounding air. And because of the speed being too fast, the friction generated fireworks began to burn, spreading from the tip to the end.

Boom!~

Like a crimson crescent moon, the sword aura soared into the sky, carrying the speed and distance of breaking the sound barrier, swiftly passing through the tree in front without any obstruction, continuing its forward impact.

At the same time, wherever the crimson sword aura passed, smoke billowed and debris flew on the ground. With the tremendous speed of the sword aura, wherever it passed through nothing will growth again.

From the second tree, to the third, to the fourth...

It wasn't until the seventh tree that its power began to diminish, only cutting halfway through before completely losing its momentum.

"...Amazing!"

Ding~

Kyomu sheathed his sword, pressing down the last two syllables Kakashi uttered, and looked at the magnificent scene before him, unable to help but nod.

This was, so far, the strongest attack he could make.

Boom boom boom...

At this moment, amidst the billowing smoke in front of Kyomu, six large trees toppled one after another, immediately drawing the attention of Obito, Rin, and Guy.

Without hesitation, they rushed over, only to see Kyomu standing with his sword sheathed, facing Kakashi with their eyes locked.

This figure, inexplicably, seemed quite handsome.

"Kakashi, convinced now?"

"How... how is this possible...?" Kakashi didn't answer Kyomu's question, just stood dumbfounded in place, murmuring the same phrase repeatedly.

Practicing mechanical sword exercises ten thousand times can achieve such an effect?

Then, his past self had wasted all his time on nonsense!

In fact, Kakashi's thoughts were a bit exaggerated. Although Kyomu had made some progress in his training, the ability to unleash such a powerful sword aura relied on the passive skill "Mastery of Cold Weapons."

A 200% increase in cold weapon power is no joke.

But Kakashi didn't know this, he just felt that this was Kyomu's true strength.

"Don't stand there dumbfounded, come over and help me." Aragami Kyomu stood straight, but his voice trembled.

"Why are you injured?"

"I've strained my muscles and my chakra is severely depleted. It's not a big deal, just need to rest for a while."

"Really..." Kakashi felt a little relieved, it wasn't a big problem indeed. "Why are you pushing yourself so hard?"

"No other reason, just wanted to see what your expression would be like when you doubted life." Kyomu smiled back.

"You rascal, even at this time, you still want to tease me." Kakashi pouted and couldn't help but shove Kyomu.

"Ouch..." Kyomu immediately cried out in pain. "Kakashi, you've killed me, don't you know that I'm in pain when I move now?!"

"Is that mess ahead... created by Kyomu?" Obito stepped forward stutteringly and asked.

"Of course it was me, did you think it was Kakashi?"

"Oh, that's alright then. It's a relief it wasn't Kakashi."

Kakashi's temple twitched. "Obito, what do you mean by that?!"

"No particular meaning, just feel more reassured if it's Kyomu who did it, but if it were you, I definitely wouldn't sleep tonight."

Obito was skilled at talking back, and Kakashi felt genuinely offended.

"Obito, I'll tear your mouth apart!" Kakashi couldn't hold back anymore. "Where am I worse than Kyomu?!"

"Well, don't argue for now." Might Guy stepped forward. "Kyomu, can you explain how you did that? The wreckage over there reminds me more and more of what my father told me about the Eight Gates..."

Might Guy's judgment was correct, Kyomu's previous strike did indeed bear a striking resemblance to the Eight Gates.

Kakashi and Obito stopped their bickering and both pricked up their ears, waiting for Kyomu's explanation.

"Whether it's with cold weapons or martial arts, as long as the speed is fast enough and the strength is sufficient, even a simple sword draw or a straightforward punch can transcend the ordinary and become a powerful technique capable of moving mountains and shattering rocks."

"Easier said than done!" Kakashi shook his head in frustration. "How fast does the sword have to be swung to achieve what you just did?"

"It's a talent you can only envy." Kyomu boasted a bit, then became serious again. "But haven't you forgotten about chakra, the force of nature?"

"Kyomu, are you saying..." Kakashi grasped a glimmer of insight, but couldn't describe it precisely.

"Chakra can enhance physical strength and speed, especially the activation effect of Lightning Release chakra, which is particularly significant." Kyomu looked at Kakashi. "This is something your family's Hatake Sword Style has applied in this regard."

"There's another possibility!" Might Guy suddenly interjected, his face full of excitement that couldn't be concealed. "The Eight Gates, there's also the possibility for the Eight Gates!"

"What's that?" Obito finally chimed in. "Is it a ninjutsu, taijutsu, or something else?"

"It's taijutsu!" Might Guy looked at the chaotic scene in the forest ahead, his eyes filled with flickering flames. "It's a forbidden technique of taijutsu that can make a person burst out with ten or even a hundred times their own speed, strength, and explosiveness!"

Waving his fist, Might Guy looked at the shadow of his fist he had just thrown, his eyes full of anticipation. "When speed, strength, and explosiveness are enough, my fist can also achieve the effect of Kyomu's strike!"

"You can do it?" Both Kakashi and Obito's eyes gleamed with excitement.

"Um... No, I can't..."

"Guy, you'll end up with no friends like this." Obito shrugged, "You shouldn't say it out loud, it just makes us feel bad..."

"But my father can!"

"Ah?"

Suddenly, hope shone in both Kakashi and Obito's eyes.

They couldn't acquire the unique talent that Kyomu possessed, but there was another way out, and they must seize it!

"Let's go, to Uncle Duy's house!"

Kakashi and Obito made a decision on the spot, grabbing Might Guy and running forward.

"Hey, what about me?!" Kyomu, left behind, shouted loudly from behind, "Wait, wait for me, I can't keep up, I can't move!"

(End of Chapter)