"Two nichirin blades?"
Kiyokawa Izumi smiled and said, "In the battle against the Upper Ranks, I realized that nichirin blades are actually very fragile.
Unknown Blood Demon Arts and attacks beyond imagination could potentially break a nichirin blade.
A swordsman who loses their weapon will have their strength significantly reduced.
Even if they can use someone else's nichirin blade, it won't feel as comfortable... So, I asked my Swordsmith to forge an extra one for me."
There wasn't a complex reason, nor was he trying to emulate Miyamoto Musashi by creating a technique style similar to Niten Ichi-ryu.
It was simply to increase the margin for error and, by the way, confuse the enemy—when you see a swordsman carrying two blades, wouldn't you be wary of the second nichirin blade that hasn't been unsheathed yet?
Would you divert part of your attention to guard against a possible Dual-Wielding Style?
Kiyokawa Izumi was actually not good at using two nichirin blades simultaneously.
It wasn't that he couldn't.
It just didn't fit his fighting style.
While suppressing the Sound Hashira, he didn't forget to answer his questions.
Kiyokawa Izumi didn't choose to compete in strength with this person; his arm strength might be above the Serpent Hashira's, but compared to the Sound Hashira, he was still far inferior.
The wooden sword he swung had already turned into afterimages, sharp and swift, clearly attempting to suppress the Sound Hashira with speed.
'Are you being too relaxed and letting your guard down against the enemy behind you?'
"Serpent Breathing, First Form: Winding Serpent Slash!"
Iguro Obanai, rotating counter-clockwise and swinging his blade, his wooden sword was like a twisting venomous snake, the trajectory of his swing unpredictable in the air.
'No wonder I always felt a chill on my back; it turns out I'm being entangled by a venomous snake. If I let my guard down because of it, I'll be bitten hard.'
As it turned out, it was impossible for Kiyokawa Izumi to ignore the Serpent Hashira behind him.
'First Form: Night Crows Shadow!'
Can a crow looking down from a low altitude notice a venomous snake ready to strike?
And can it dodge a fatal and unpredictable attack?
The feeling of being light as nothing, yet cutting through everything, resurfaced in his heart. Although the blade was swung completely silently, it stirred up the surrounding air.
At this moment, Kiyokawa Izumi even felt that even if he was using a wooden sword, it would be enough to cut through a boulder much larger than himself.
A slight crack was left on the haori patterned with black and white stripes.
'The stirred-up wind increased the attack range, somewhat similar to Sanemi.'
Within a small space, the figures of the three people constantly crossed and overlapped. The naked eye of an ordinary swordsman wouldn't be enough to see their movements clearly, let alone keep up with their reactions.
"Since we've fought to this extent, how about we all get a bit more serious?"
Kiyokawa Izumi was the first to pull away. As he retreated steadily, he suddenly spoke.
Perhaps they were worried that his body, having just recovered, wouldn't be able to withstand such high-intensity combat.
In short, neither of the two in front of him had shown their full strength, which gave Kiyokawa Izumi the feeling of being looked down upon.
'Fourth Form: Five Senses Reflection: Myriad Phenomena of the Forest!'
The extended torrent of the five senses converged at this moment, just like a puzzle being completed.
But just this level was not enough!
'Third Form: Soundless Nine Strikes!'
His breathing rhythm was undergoing a noticeable change, and a large amount of air was inhaled into his lungs.
The previously crude breathing method was corrected.
The long-awaited battle also made his heart beat faster and faster, like a war drum being beaten.
Hot blood flowed rapidly through his body, and a large amount of oxygen was transported to his entire body.
His lung capacity also significantly increased at this moment, reaching 1.5 times his usual level.
This was certainly not his limit, but if he wanted a sustained burst, he had to exercise restraint.
He couldn't treat his body like a sponge, squeezing it recklessly with crude methods.
He might be able to squeeze out more water from it, but it would also cause great damage to his body.
At this moment, Kiyokawa Izumi's physical functions were undoubtedly significantly improved.
'Instant Approach!'
Under high-speed propulsion, Kiyokawa Izumi's center of gravity was pressed very low. As he looked up and met the Sound Hashira's gaze, his speed was so fast that the latter was somewhat unaccustomed to it.
Because a very large change had appeared in him in an instant, when he changed his breathing rhythm.
And because his Breathing Technique was extremely good at hiding his presence, even though he was right in front of him, he wasn't able to detect it in time.
A venomous snake seemed to suddenly spring up from a blind spot, biting hard toward Kiyokawa Izumi's neck. Looking closely, it turned out to be a wooden sword.
The tricky and vicious attack had already landed. Iguro Obanai, who instantly realized the feel was wrong, subconsciously pulled away and became alert.
The reason he suddenly struck was only to help the Sound Hashira out of a predicament.
That strike just now had only hit an afterimage.
It was as if he were being watched by a pair of invisible eyes; no matter how tricky or hidden the attack was, it would be detected by him.
Kiyokawa Izumi could not only see everything and have time to react, but he was even trying to deceive their vision—what he could do now was no longer just perception.
This guy would also deliberately leave some openings, trying to tempt his opponents to launch an attack.
Once an opponent fell for it, they would be countered by him in an instant.
This was the visual deception he deliberately caused.
"Sound Hashira, what are you still preparing?"
Obanai, feeling a great threat, said with slight dissatisfaction.