Chapter 126: Sparring
In order to prepare himself for the inevitable confrontation with Minato Namikaze, Ishiro relentlessly sought sparring matches with Kitsuchi and Shiden.
Though both could tell Ishiro had something in mind, they didn't press for answers. After all, any improvement in Ishiro's strength would ultimately benefit the village.
Despite getting beaten every day—sometimes multiple times a day—Ishiro felt nothing but satisfaction. It wasn't every day he got the chance to spar against experienced veterans whose power matched his own.
Back when he was a genin or chūnin, there were indeed veteran ninja to learn from, but their talent and insight were limited. The feedback he received back then was shallow and scattered.
Now that he was an elite jōnin, however, those he crossed blades with were without exception geniuses. And it was these experienced geniuses who could offer the kind of guidance he truly needed.
Over a full month of sparring, Ishiro's combat instincts grew exponentially. Many of the tactical reactions that previously required thought now occurred to him instinctively. His ability to react without conscious thought had become battle-hardened.
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"Earth Style: Earth Flow River!" Kitsuchi launched a powerful A-rank Earth Style technique. Recently, only A-rank techniques could pressure Ishiro.
Facing the rushing torrent of mud and rocks, Ishiro calmly responded with, "Earth Style: Earth-Style Wall."
Thanks to his fast hand seals, he summoned a massive stone wall just in time and leapt atop it using Body Flicker Technique, neutralizing the attack with practiced ease.
"Earth Style: Mountain Soil Technique!" Kitsuchi followed up immediately. Given the terrain, Ishiro had nowhere to run. Attempting to flee would only mire him in the stream of mud and rocks.
The overwhelming coverage of high-level jutsu gave the target no room to escape.
Still calm, Ishiro knelt atop his stone wall and performed another jutsu: "Earth Style: Crumbling Rock Technique!"
Instead of breaking the wall into numerous fragments, he split it into four large slabs and hurled them toward predetermined points in the terrain.
Using Body Flicker again, he stepped across the airborne slabs and escaped the danger zone.
Kitsuchi responded quickly, using a faster B-rank jutsu: "Earth Style: Earth Dragon Bullet."
A dragon-shaped mass of earth shot toward Ishiro at breakneck speed, too fast to dodge.
Surprised by how quickly Kitsuchi cast such a powerful jutsu—only three hand seals—Ishiro gripped his sword.
With a horizontal slash, he unleashed over a dozen sword strikes, each one laced with blade energy. While he didn't destroy the earthen dragon, he disrupted its momentum enough to dodge at the last second.
This technique, inspired by Moonlight Hoshikage, was one he had finally mastered under Shiden's tutelage.
It allowed him to bypass the limitations of his less agile swordsmanship. Even if he couldn't match other swordsmen in finesse, he could now stop B-rank techniques with brute force.
Taking the chance, Ishiro closed in again.
Kitsuchi, however, had already widened the gap.
"Water Style: Driving Rain Technique!" Ishiro cast a rapid-fire spread of water-pressure lines over Kitsuchi's position.
Kitsuchi countered. "Earth Style: Multi Earth-Style Walls!"
Then, he quickly added, "Earth Style: Earth Clone Technique."
Ishiro responded in kind. "Water Style: Water Clone Technique."
While his clone ran up the stone wall to confront Kitsuchi, Ishiro cloaked himself in a camouflage jutsu and disappeared.
The earth clone burrowed underground with "Hiding Like a Mole Technique," vanishing from sight.
Ishiro's water clone surged over the first wall and spotted Kitsuchi. Without hesitation, it cast, "Water Style: Violent Water Wave!"
The massive torrent swept up Kitsuchi, who disappeared in a puff of smoke.
"A shadow clone… Not even a real one," Ishiro muttered.
From behind a wall, a stone spear struck the water clone. Pierced, it burst into water.
"Earth Style: Headhunter Jutsu!" Ishiro's earth clone dragged Kitsuchi's real body down into the ground.
But the texture of the captured body revealed another clone.
"So that's a third one…" Ishiro rolled aside, evading a barrage of shuriken from the real Kitsuchi, now fully camouflaged.
"Camouflage Jutsu?" Ishiro quietly observed.
Kitsuchi hadn't used any hand signs—using a jutsu would break the camouflage. Instead, he used projectile attacks to test if Ishiro's visible clone was a fake.
Three volleys later, Ishiro's earth clone noticed a faint glow: explosive tags on the stone wall.
"Earth Style: Earth-Style Wall!" The clone raised a barrier behind itself, but not fast enough.
Pierced by several senbon, it turned to stone—a failed transformation clone. A moment later, the explosive tags ignited.
BOOM!
"Water Style: Water Cutter Technique!"
Ishiro had already completed the 31 hand seals needed for this jutsu, his seal speed vastly improved through recent training.
Though he didn't attack, Ishiro had finally forced Kitsuchi into a position where he could.
But since Kitsuchi was still hidden, and Ishiro didn't want to accidentally cause real injury, he called the match.
This was his cleanest fight yet.
For the first time, Ishiro hadn't been beaten swiftly. He had fought an experienced elite jōnin to a standstill, showing off everything he had learned.
Having tempered himself through relentless practice, he now stood at a new threshold.
It was time to challenge Minato Namikaze.
Ishiro shared his plan with Kitsuchi and Shiden. Neither objected.
Before, Ishiro's lack of combat experience would have made such a duel suicidal. But now, his skills had improved enough to stand a chance.
In Ishiro's eyes, Minato was the future Fourth Hokage. But to others, he was merely a talented young man, on par with Iwa's own Ikura.
And Ikura, thanks to his pedigree and performance, was a top candidate for the Tsuchikage title. By comparison, Minato's fame was still limited.
If not for Ishiro's special interest, Kitsuchi and Shiden wouldn't have given the matter much thought.
Just in case, Ishiro entrusted his three disciples to Kitsuchi's care. After months together, he had grown attached to them. If anything happened to him, they needed proper guidance.
All three showed promise. With proper development, they could become future pillars of the village.
Having spent every day watching Ishiro challenge two top-tier elites, the three had grown immensely.
Especially Tomoe—her background limited her worldview, but that was changing.
As for Kawakita, exposure to Shiden's swordplay had shown him a clearer path forward.
The future looked bright for all of them.
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