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Chapter 17 — Edge of the Blade
The cooldown ended at dawn.
I didn't hesitate this time.
No wasted hours pacing, no overthinking.
If I wanted to survive the chaos that was coming, it wasn't enough to be stealthy or disciplined.
I needed to fight.
And not just brawl.
Not just swing a stick and hope it connected.
I needed to learn how to kill cleanly.
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Simulation Selection
> [Available Worlds Unlocked: Intermediate Tier]
Demon Slayer (Combat/Discipline)
Rurouni Kenshin (Swordsmanship/Precision)
Avatar: Advanced Sparring (Bending Focused)
The choice wasn't hard.
I didn't need flashy breathing styles or mystical techniques just yet.
I needed foundation.
> [Simulation Selected: Rurouni Kenshin — Kamiya Kasshin-ryū Dojo]
[Objective: Mastery of Sword Fundamentals and Precision Combat]
[Duration: 3 Years Simulated = 30 Minutes Real Time]
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Arrival
The dojo smelled of fresh wood and oiled bamboo.
A tall, stern woman with sharp eyes greeted me with the politeness of a swordmaster sizing up a new student.
"You wish to learn Kasshin-ryū?" she asked.
I nodded, bowing slightly. "Yes. Please teach me."
Her gaze lingered on me for a moment before she gestured to the rack of wooden swords.
"Then begin. Stance first. Without a stable stance, you have no blade."
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The First Year
If I thought stealth training was humbling, sword training broke me down even further.
Hours spent holding a stance until my legs trembled.
Repeating basic cuts until my shoulders burned.
Getting knocked flat in sparring again and again, wooden blade clattering against the floor.
"Your grip is too tight," Kaoru snapped one afternoon, yanking the bokken from my hands. "A blade isn't something you strangle. It's something you guide."
Every correction came with bruises.
Every bruise came with lessons.
And slowly — painfully — my movements began to smooth.
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The Second Year
I stopped thinking about every step.
Stopped counting every breath.
Instead, I moved.
Cuts flowed seamlessly, my footwork finding balance even on uneven ground.
In sparring, I started landing glancing blows, then clean strikes.
One night, Kaoru tested me without warning — a sudden downward strike aimed to rattle me.
I caught the attack, redirected the force, and stepped inside her guard in a single, clean motion.
For the first time, she smiled.
"You're beginning to understand," she said.
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The Third Year
The final year wasn't about drills or sparring.
It was about refinement.
Control.
Calm.
Awareness.
"Any fool can swing a sword," Kaoru told me during our last lesson. "But only those who understand their own fear can cut without hesitation. You've earned your blade. Remember what it cost you to get here."
When the simulation ended, her words lingered.
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Integration
> [Skill Integration Complete]
[Kasshin-ryū Swordsmanship (Basic): Learned]
[Combat Precision: +15%]
[Balance and Footwork: Enhanced]
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Reality Check
Back in my cramped room, I flexed my hand around the hilt of the cheap training sword I'd picked up weeks ago.
It wasn't a bokken.
It wasn't a katana.
But as I flowed through the opening stance, then into the first basic cut, my body moved with a confidence that hadn't been there before.
Not perfect.
Not unstoppable.
But sharper.
Cleaner.
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The Resolve
Floating Cloud City was still quiet.
The Xiao Clan still didn't know I existed.
But I knew it was only a matter of time before that changed.
And when it did…
I wouldn't be the boy hiding in the shadows anymore.
I'd be the blade waiting in them.
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