Five years!
From the day he learned of Hatake Kakashi's birth, that figure had become a mountain he had to cross in his plan.
And for this battle, his tactical core was extremely clear and ruthless: hand-to-hand combat, close range, suppression—leaving the opponent absolutely no space to use ninjutsu.
From the very start, the fight was dragged into a rhythm he dictated. The burst speed far beyond expectations threw Kakashi off balance, followed immediately by heavy blows that completely overwhelmed him in terms of strength.
Throughout the entire exchange, he pinned his opponent in the mire of close-quarters combat with a storm of taijutsu, cutting off any chance to form hand seals or retreat.
Not to mention the five elemental releases—even the most basic Clone Technique or Substitution Technique failed to find the slightest opening to be used.
This was neither an accident nor a stroke of luck, but a long-planned strike aimed at weaknesses, magnified to the limit through his own unique advantages.
The sunlight remained scorching, and the shock lingering in the air gradually gave way to a complex mix of emotions.
Watching the calm, black-haired boy in the arena, many people, for the first time in a real sense, stripped the name Higashino Shinichi away from the category of "the hardworking top student" and placed it somewhere that demanded a fresh reassessment.
"Shinichi! Shinichi! Shinichi!!"
Ishizuka Ryū was the first to snap out of the shock. He waved his fists and shouted with all his strength. The cry was like a spark dropped into boiling oil, instantly igniting Class Two's ranks!
"He won! Shinichi won!"
"That was incredible!"
"Shinichi! Shinichi!"
Cheers, shouts, and incredulous exclamations erupted from the Class Two camp, forming a glaring contrast with the deathly silence on the other side in Class One.
Quite a few Class Two students felt honored by association, their faces lit with excitement, while most of the Class One students were still mired in a massive cognitive shock—dazed and confused.
"How is that possible? How could that bastard Kakashi lose…?" Obito murmured blankly.
The roaring cheers jolted awake the two homeroom teachers who were likewise in shock. Fumio and Class One's Teacher Inoue quickly exchanged a glance. He took a deep breath, stepped forward, and prepared to fulfill the referee's duty and announce this outcome that had taken everyone by surprise.
"Wait a moment, teachers."
Shinichi's clear voice rang out again as he neatly slid the kunai back into the ninja tool pouch at his thigh.
He looked at Kakashi as he slowly got to his feet. The same gentle smile that made people feel at ease still rested on his face.
"Kakashi, you still haven't used your real strength yet, have you?"
He paused, his tone carrying a kind of guiding certainty: "I've heard that White Fang-sama's swordsmanship is unmatched in the shinobi world—a sword master who struck fear into countless enemies. As White Fang-sama's son, your swordsmanship must be very strong as well, right?"
As he spoke, Shinichi walked over to the weapon rack to the side and took a samurai sword from it.
But victory alone was not enough!
Not nearly enough!
He wanted no talk of flukes, luck, or an opponent's carelessness—no way for his win to be summed up as some accidental victory gained because the other side underestimated him.
What he wanted was an indisputable, all-around victory—one that crushed his opponent in the field where the opponent ought to be strongest.
Guiding everyone's attention to swordsmanship was precisely the next step he had carefully designed.
If the father was a top-tier sword master who shook the entire shinobi world, then the son should naturally have inherited astonishing talent in swordsmanship—this was the most natural association people would draw.
Especially in this world where bloodline came first.
Even though for the past few months Kakashi had defeated every opponent with a very casual attitude, and no one had ever seen him use a sword in actual combat against an enemy, that did not prevent everyone from believing that, as White Fang's son, Kakashi with a sword was his complete form—his true strongest stance.
Never mind whether that was really the case: once public opinion and impressions took shape, they became reality.
He wanted the fact that "Higashino Shinichi defeated Hatake Kakashi"—and that it was "defeating Hatake Kakashi at his strongest"—to be nailed firmly into the depths of everyone's cognition.
"Then, Kakashi, could you let me witness the bearing of White Fang-sama's swordsmanship?"
Shinichi took a deep breath, slowly drew the samurai sword in his hand, and said seriously, "And let me truly experience all of your strength."
This line, too, was a step Shinichi had carefully designed. Through it, he subtly placed a heavy choice and expectation on Kakashi's shoulders without a word.
Given Kakashi's pride as a genius, and the deep-rooted reverence and protective devotion he held toward his father, Konoha's White Fang, it was almost impossible for him—after the other party had so solemnly issued a challenge through swordsmanship—to use ninjutsu in the next match. He would see that as a form of disrespect toward his father's swordsmanship.
Shinichi had calculated precisely this point. He intended to keep pulling Kakashi into a domain where he held a greater advantage—pure physical confrontation and cold-weapon exchanges.
At the same time, it avoided the possibility of Shinichi capsizing in the gutter because the opponent used ninjutsu.
Naturally, the swordsmanship Shinichi had learned at the kendō hall was inferior to the blade techniques Kakashi had been taught under Konoha's White Fang.
But in the clash of weapons, the overwhelming strength brought by Innate Divine Strength, the comprehensive physical improvements from Swordsmanship Apprentice, the additional damage tolerance and endurance provided by Tenacity, the flexibility and speed enhanced by Agility, and so on, still gave Shinichi a tremendous advantage in terms of physical attributes.
On the field, everyone's eyes and expectations were focused on the silver-haired prodigy who had stood up again.
"Alright!"
Kakashi slowly raised his head. Those eyes that always carried a hint of laziness and detachment finally sharpened.
He said nothing more, simply drawing from the ninja tool pouch at his lower back a short blade whose size suited his height and arm span extremely well.
The two faced each other once more at the center of the field. The second bout was about to begin.
"Shinichi! Hold steady!"
"Come on, Shinichi, you can definitely win!"
Cheers erupted again from Class Two's ranks, but this time the voices held less wild abandon and more tense anticipation.
On Class One's side, the deathly silence was finally broken.
"Kakashi! Go!"
"Let him see White Fang-sama's swordsmanship!"
Among them, Obito—who earlier had even cheered for Shinichi in reverse—was now shouting the loudest and most urgently, his face flushed red: "Damn it, Kakashi! You're a genius! Stop holding back! Show all you've got—win this, no matter what!"
On the field, Kakashi seemed completely oblivious to the clamor behind him. With a slight turn of his wrist, he shifted the short blade from a standard grip to a reverse grip better suited for thrusts and deceptive changes, his body angling slightly to the side.
In the next instant, he moved. His figure suddenly blurred, as if transforming into a silver line skimming low across the ground.
At extreme speed, using irregular, broken-line footwork, he circled Shinichi, searching for an angle to cut in.
Shinichi stood steady at the center, gripping his blade with both hands, his gaze calmly tracking that streak of silver.
He knew perfectly well that although his systematically trained swordsmanship fundamentals were solid, in terms of finesse and variation they were certainly inferior to Kakashi's White Fang blade techniques, passed down through family lineage.
His chance of victory lay in dragging the fight into the rhythm he excelled at most—using strength to break skill, using simplicity to shatter complexity.
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