He used the same posture. The same angle for drawing the sword. Even the same force in every muscle.
Su Chen perfectly copied Kanao's movements.
"Flower Breathing, Fifth Form: Peonies of Futility!"
Clang, clang, clang, clang, clang, clang, clang, clang, clang!
Nine slashes, just as strong as Kanao's, came from Su Chen's wooden sword.
Their sword techniques collided, instantly stirring up a large cloud of dust.
Kanao landed on the ground. Because of the dust, she couldn't see Su Chen at all.
Just then, a wooden sword suddenly thrust out from her side. Kanao instinctively blocked the attack with her own wooden sword.
Clang!
The impact made Su Chen's arm go numb. Both of their wooden swords flew out of their hands.
At the same time, Su Chen's left hand shot out like lightning. Shadowless Hand activated!
His hand moved so fast it left an afterimage. It thrust forward and touched Kanao's chin.
The girl's eyes widened. She hadn't even reacted.
"I win," Su Chen's voice said from beside her ear.
Only then did Kanao wake up as if from a dream.
She had lost. And she lost in reaction speed.
"Oh my goodness! Kanao actually lost?!" Kanzaki Aoi's eyes widened, her face full of disbelief.
The three little girls immediately rushed to Su Chen's side.
"Kanao-nee-san even used a Breathing Technique, but she still couldn't beat Su Chen-gege!"
"Is Su Chen-gege really not Lady Shinobu's successor?"
"Oh my! Su Chen-gege, you're really amazing!"
Su Chen patted the girls' heads again, then looked up at Kanao. "Now, can you tell me why you were leaving just now?"
Su Chen's voice was very calm. He didn't raise his tone because he didn't want to pressure her.
Xiao Qing, Xiao Cheng, and Xiao Caihui's eyes were full of adoring stars. Su Chen-gege is really gentle! He's always thinking about other people's feelings.
Kanao was stunned. She didn't expect that this was the only reason Su Chen wanted to practice with her.
Out of habit, she pulled out her coin again, but this time Su Chen stopped her.
Under the sunlight, Su Chen gave her a warm smile. "Actually, I really want to hear Kanao's inner voice."
"Inner... voice?" Kanao froze. She didn't even realize she had just spoken out loud.
Su Chen continued, "Yes. I used to have a friend who always tossed a coin to make decisions. But the results weren't very good. She used it for everything. 'Should I eat?' flip. 'Should I sleep?' flip. In the end, she was so busy flipping the coin, a thief came and stole all her money!"
"Pfft!" Kanzaki Aoi, who was watching from the side, couldn't hold back and burst out laughing. Seeing everyone looking at her, she coughed. "Ahem, I think I forgot to hang out the laundry. I'll go first."
Kanao was very puzzled. She clearly didn't understand Su Chen's bad joke.
But she knew that Su Chen wanted her to speak.
What should she say?
Kanao fidgeted, her small face turning red with nervousness.
"I... can't speak..." After a long pause, a few words, quieter than a mosquito's buzz, came out of her mouth.
After saying this, Kanao quickly lowered her head. It seemed that sentence had used up all her courage.
Su Chen smiled. He picked up the wooden sword from the ground. "Let's play a game."
Kanao looked up at him.
"You slash at me one more time," he said. "If I catch it, you'll listen to your inner voice and say one sentence to me. If I don't catch it, then pretend I didn't say anything."
Kanao's eyes flickered. She seemed to be thinking. She remembered the strength Su Chen had just shown and then nodded lightly.
She turned to grab her wooden sword.
But Su Chen called out to her.
Kanao turned back. A Nichirin Sword with a flower-shaped tsuba (handguard) was offered to her.
"Use this," Su Chen said.
Kanao was stunned again. Isn't this my Nichirin Sword? Does he want me to fight him with a real sword?
Her mind was a bit muddled. She was worried she might accidentally kill him.
Su Chen smiled. "It's fine. If I can't block it, I'll dodge. After all, I'm faster than you, right?"
Kanao thought for another moment, but she wasn't good at overthinking. She suddenly swung her blade down.
At that moment, the world seemed to slow down for Su Chen.
This was his third time fighting Kanao, and his progress was huge. He realized that Kanao's movements were getting slower each time.
No! Kanao's speed hadn't slowed down. His own speed had increased.
In Su Chen's eyes, Kanao's movements, which were once extremely fast, now looked slower. He could even see the path of the white haori fluttering on her arm. He once again analyzed her attack, even faster than before.
The next moment, Su Chen moved.
He blocked upwards with his wooden sword. But because the sword was made of wood, Kanao's Nichirin Sword quickly cut right through it!
But in the next instant, Su Chen extended his right hand again.
Shadowless Hand!
Kanao's momentum from the swing was gone. His index and middle fingers shot out like lightning.
The cold, sharp blade landed steadily between his fingertips.
He had caught the slash with his bare hands!
Clink!
The blade gleamed, reflecting Su Chen's smiling face.
From start to finish, Su Chen's movements were fluid, without any pause. It almost looked like Kanao was cooperating with him, turning the fight into a performance.
The visual impact was too strong. The courtyard fell silent.
Everyone's mouth was wide open.
The three little girls had frozen in shock when they saw Su Chen's wooden sword break. Kanzaki Aoi also had a panicked look on her face.
But then, what did they see?
Su Chen had actually caught Kanao's Nichirin Sword with his bare hands!
Kanao stared blankly. She didn't understand how he could pinch her sword with just his fingers. This scene shattered everything she understood.
Su Chen smiled. "You see? The wooden sword couldn't do it, but my hand did. What does that show?"
Kanao was silent, still looking dazed.
Su Chen smiled. "It shows that a wooden sword is just an object. It's just like the Nichirin Sword in your hand. The sword only has great power because of you. The real power is inside us, isn't it?"
"Kanao, I won. We had an agreement. You have to say one sentence to me. Remember to listen to your inner voice!"
Su Chen's tone was gentle. His words made the girl's face flush.
"I..." Kanao's small mouth moved. Her heart felt very conflicted.
Su Chen continued to encourage her. "It's okay. You don't have to overthink it."
The sunlight landed on Su Chen's face, making him look exceptionally warm.
"After all, Kanao is very cute."
Thump... thump... thump...
Something in Kanao's heart seemed to stir for the first time in many years.
It felt like a string breaking, just as when she was abused by her parents in her childhood.
But it was different.
This time, a young man was reconnecting that string.