At that moment, the passage gate on one side of the arena slowly opened under the focus of countless gazes.
The clamor fell silent in an instant. All discussion and noise seemed to be wiped away by an invisible hand, leaving only the faint whistling of wind passing through the massive ring-shaped stands.
The first to emerge was a tall, burly figure, dressed in a dark, simple samurai outfit, a long blade hanging at his waist.
Alone, with steady steps, he walked into this vast and grand arena capable of holding tens of thousands.
Isshin of the Ashina style—just like that, without any buffer—was exposed to the blazing noon sun of Konoha and the tidal wave of attention from all sides.
The light outlined his sharp facial features and broad shoulders.
He slowly raised his head, his gaze calmly sweeping across the densely packed crowd in the stands. Those eyes were filled with anger, curiosity, and disdain.
Faced with a pressure that would suffocate an ordinary person, there wasn't the slightest hint of timidity on his face. Instead, he bared a grin—pure, wild, and unrestrained—his white teeth flashing under the sunlight.
"Now this is more like it."
Isshin's voice wasn't loud, yet it carried a strange penetrating force, clearly reaching every corner of the suddenly quiet arena.
The show was finally about to begin.
Let this match, watched by all, become my final—and most crucial—whetstone before the storm of the Third Shinobi War descends. Through it, I'll gain the insight and transformation I need.
To set this stage, I've practically bet my entire life savings—royalties from serialized manga, rewards painstakingly earned from missions, even the consultation fees from treating patients at the hospital...
No!
Don't think about it!
The more I think, the more it hurts!
He took a deep breath, completely casting aside stray thoughts. His gaze sharpened like a blade as he looked toward the passage where his opponent would soon appear.
At this moment, he was only "Isshin of the Ashina style"—a foreign swordsman who craved strong opponents and did not hesitate to spend heavily for a single battle.
On the high platform, the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, also truly set his eyes on the young samurai in the arena for the first time.
Yesterday, it had only been words and photos in a report. Now, seeing the real person, a strange feeling surfaced in his heart.
Odd—this young man gave him a subtle sense of familiarity and an indescribable closeness?
Not just him—his two advisors beside him seemed to feel the same.
Homura pushed his glasses and asked in a low, puzzled voice, "Hiruzen, have we seen this samurai somewhere before? His face is unfamiliar, but his bearing… it feels somewhat familiar."
The Third Hokage nodded, equally puzzled.
"I have the same feeling, but I'm certain—I've never seen this man before."
Koharu frowned slightly as she carefully observed Isshin below, then snorted coldly.
"Putting on an act, just a show-off. Let's see how Shinku exposes him later."
At that moment, the passage on the opposite side of the arena opened, and Yūhi Shinku, dressed in the standard Konoha jōnin flak jacket, with a steady and restrained demeanor, slowly walked out.
His appearance immediately drew far more enthusiastic cheers and support from Konoha's side of the stands, forming a stark contrast to the silence when Isshin entered.
"Konoha jōnin, Yūhi Shinku."
"Land of Iron, Isshin of the Ashina style."
The two stood facing each other at the center of the arena, exchanging names and schools according to simple etiquette.
A seasoned jōnin referee quickly entered the field, confirmed both sides' identities and the rules, and succinctly declared: "The match begins!"
The moment his voice fell—
Boom!
The ground beneath Isshin's feet suddenly exploded into a web of cracks. His entire body shot forward like a heavy shell fired from a cannon, carrying a sharp howl that tore through the air and a suffocating gale, charging straight at Shinku!
That instant burst of absolute speed and raw power far exceeded what had been seen the day before. It was as if an ancient beast, completely enraged and freed from all chains, was charging forth—its most primitive physical brutality alone enough to make the front-row spectators feel a suffocating pressure rushing at them.
"So fast! So terrifying!"
"Is this guy a monster?!"
"Shinku-sama, be careful!"
A wave of mixed cries of shock and concern erupted from the stands.
In the ninja clan viewing area, the head of the Uchiha Clan, Uchiha Fugaku, had his originally calm black eyes instantly replaced by a crimson hue. Three tomoe slowly rotated within them. His expression remained blank, but his Sharingan had already locked onto that violent figure in the arena.
Not far away, in the Hyūga Clan section, clan head Hyūga Hiashi and his brother Hyūga Hizashi also silently activated their Byakugan, fixing their gaze on the battlefield.
In the arena, facing this collision capable of splitting stone, Shinku's eyes remained as calm as still water. His body moved like a willow in the wind—at the last possible instant, he drifted aside and avoided it.
The cold gleam of the katana brushed past the edge of his clothing, the wind it carried making the hair on his forehead flutter.
One strike missed—Isshin's follow-up was unbelievably fast. His large frame displayed agility and coordination completely at odds with its size. His blade did not pause in the slightest, transforming into a continuous stream of cold light that enveloped Shinku.
Shinku had already retreated, his hands flicking rapidly as several kunai tied with explosive tag were thrown with precision toward Isshin's path of pursuit and the openings at his sides.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The explosive tags detonated in succession. Firelight and smoke instantly swallowed that section of the field. The audience's hearts leapt to their throats.
"Did it hit?"
"With that kind of explosion, it should—"
Before the smoke even cleared, that burly figure burst out like a demon god!
His clothes were scorched and torn in multiple places. The exposed skin showed clear burn marks and charred patches, yet his movements were completely unaffected. His gaze instead grew even sharper and more savage, once again triggering a wave of stunned, incredulous cries from the stands.
"My god! He's fine?!"
"Is his body made of iron?!"
"I told you—this guy's a monster!"
Shinku's expression did not change, as if he had expected this.
Relying on his rich experience and superb Body Flicker Technique, he maintained a subtle distance from Isshin at all times—like navigating a small boat on a stormy sea. Though it looked extremely perilous, he always managed to avoid the deadly blade at the most critical moments.
He did not clash head-on. Instead, he used various projectile techniques and ninjutsu to patiently maneuver, wear down, and observe.
Isshin, meanwhile, seemed utterly tireless. His offensive surged like a tidal wave, each wave fiercer than the last.
The wind of his blade howled, carving trenches into the ground. His fists and kicks were so fierce they made the air explode with sound.
The entire central area of the arena turned into a storm of flying sand and dust—a stage for the unrestrained release of his personal power.
"Too strong… Shinku-sama is completely suppressed!"
"He can only dodge—there's no chance to fight back!"
"Isn't Shinku known for genjutsu? Why isn't he using it?"
"You think genjutsu can be cast just by opening your mouth? With that samurai chasing so closely, when would he have the chance?"
"Besides, ordinary genjutsu probably wouldn't work anyway."
Uchiha Fugaku's three-tomoe Sharingan closely tracked every movement of both fighters, trying to analyze Isshin's swordsmanship and taijutsu. Yet he found that while the techniques appeared broad and unrestrained, their transitions and variations had no fixed pattern—purely instinct-driven, making them impossible to dissect using conventional theory.
"This kind of speed, strength, and explosive power…" Fugaku narrowed his eyes slightly. "Since when did the Land of Iron produce someone like this?"
"His chakra… is extremely vast," Hiashi said in a low voice.
Hizashi added, "His body—his muscle fiber density, his bone strength… it's not human. Tanking explosive tags and ninjutsu isn't just chakra-based defense—his physical body itself is comparable to refined ninja tools. This samurai… is no ordinary opponent."
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