Essentially, every year during the Land of Iron's Sacred Sword Festival, the general's office offers a renowned blade or treasure as a prize for the strongest samurai of that year.
A famous sword is nothing to the general's office, which controls the entire Land of Iron. However, using such an object to attract the strongest young samurai each year is a significant gain.
Because of this, the final day of the Sacred Sword Festival has come to be known as "the Day of the Sword." It's the day to see who can overpower the competition and claim the legendary blade!
The venue today was as crowded as ever. People in the Land of Iron loved swords, and with so many samurai, a grand event like this was always packed.
Even more so, because this year, the general's office was offering the divine sword, Ame no Murakumo. It was a once-in-a-lifetime chance to witness it; missing it would be a huge loss.
So, a huge number of samurai from all over the country, and even sword enthusiasts from other nations, had gathered in the Iron Forge City venue.
On the highest platform, where the view was best, two groups of impressive-looking samurai stood guard, protecting the area. The aged general of the Land of Iron sat there, a small table in front of him with tea and snacks.
At the center of the arena, on the combat stage, many powerful shinobi also stood guard. At the edge of the stage stood a solemn sword rack, where a magnificent tachi was mounted, radiating an imposing aura!
Unlike a standard katana, a tachi has a more pronounced curve in its blade and scabbard, resembling a crescent moon.
The scabbard of the suspended tachi was made of an unknown wood but was inlaid with glass and gold thread. It was wrapped tightly in what was said to be the skin of the Yamata no Orochi, peeled off by a legendary samurai who used this very sword to slay the beast. It was rumored that ordinary weapons could not even scratch it.
The handle was wrapped with a slightly rough ribbon and interwoven with gold threads, giving it an elegant and beautiful appearance. The rough texture made it less likely for the user's hand to slip.
A small portion of the blade was unsheathed, revealing a cold glint. From what was visible, the blade seemed to be a polished silver-white, incredibly sharp. The thick spine of the blade looked like it could withstand immense force from the user, as if it was born to cleave through anything. The grain on the blade was a flawless, triangular pattern, exuding a sense of precision and craftsmanship.
Without a doubt, this was a legendary sword with both high collectible value and practical use. And this sword was the prize for the strongest samurai of the day: the divine sword, Ame no Murakumo!
Everyone in the audience had their eyes on the sword. People from the Land of Iron were obsessed with blades, and anyone who attended this event was surely a sword connoisseur. Not a single person in the vast arena doubted the sword's quality.
Just then, the sun reached its zenith. The iron gates at the north and south ends of the arena opened. From the gate directly below the general's platform, the general's personal disciple, the samurai Mifune, who held a high reputation and outstanding skill within the Land of Iron, walked out. He wore an imposing, famous sword at his waist and a layered green armor. With a serious expression, he took each step with a sense of ceremony.
Across the combat stage, facing the north gate, Mifune could vaguely see a figure also emerging from the opposite side.
The figure wore layered black armor, which seemed different and more refined than Mifune's. It lacked the bold, unrestrained aura of a samurai and had a subtle "finesse" more fitting of a shinobi.
But this didn't mean anything; clothing was just a personal preference. Many samurai didn't even wear armor. He couldn't see much else, but the person's short, spiky silver-white hair caught Mifune's attention, and he immediately confirmed that this was the strongest competitor he had been observing for the past two days, "Kōzuki Oden."
That's right, the person walking out from the south was Hibari. He strolled in casually, his hand on the katana at his waist. Whether out of habit or preference, the sword Hibari used was typically categorized as a "short sword," much shorter than a normal katana.
He didn't look back, saying to Orochimaru, who hadn't followed him out of the gate, "Just you wait. I'll take that divine sword, Ame no Murakumo, in a single strike!"
Orochimaru said nothing, simply standing by and watching. He was eager to see whose swordsmanship was superior: Mifune, the strongest of the Land of Iron's young generation, or Hibari, the "samurai."
Although his own loyalty lay with Hibari, he had a feeling that in terms of pure swordsmanship, Hibari might not be a match for Mifune.
Mifune had seen the divine sword Ame no Murakumo before, so he wasn't curious. But Hibari had only heard its name, never seen it. Now that it was displayed on the edge of the combat stage, he was very satisfied just from a single glance. The dark-toned blade had a quiet luxury that was exactly to Hibari's taste.
The only thing Hibari found a bit disappointing was that the Ame no Murakumo seemed a bit long—more than two, almost three, times the length of his short sword.
But it made sense. His own short sword was shorter than a standard katana, and tachi were always longer than katanas. It was normal for him to feel the Ame no Murakumo was a bit long in comparison.
"What are you thinking? From your expression, you seem disappointed with the divine sword Ame no Murakumo? Is it not to your liking?" Mifune walked onto the stage and asked curiously, seeing Hibari staring at the Ame no Murakumo.
Hibari smiled, folded his arms across his chest, and then raised a hand to his chin. He said, "I am a little disappointed. It would be perfect if the Ame no Murakumo were a bit shorter, more suited to me. Also, I'm more used to a short sword. With this length, I'll need to take some time to get familiar with it after I get it."
Hearing Hibari's words, Mifune burst out laughing, and his serious, formal demeanor vanished for a moment.
"Hahahaha, you're very confident, aren't you? I can't believe I, Mifune, would be so lightly regarded. The Ame no Murakumo is the divine sword that slayed the serpent Yamata no Orochi; it's naturally larger than a regular blade. Coincidentally, I have some experience using a tachi. Since you seem a little dissatisfied with the Ame no Murakumo, why don't you just let me have it?" Mifune said with a rare, joking tone.
Hibari waved his hand, smiling. "Oh no, no, I think this divine sword, Ame no Murakumo, is fated to be mine. Besides, so many masters are sitting in the stands. If anyone held back, it would be obvious to everyone. I don't think you're the kind of person who would want to win the Ame no Murakumo that way, are you? That would go against the samurai's code of honor!"
Mifune's lips curled into a smile upon hearing Hibari's words, and he replied, "You're right. Kōzuki Oden-dono, in this fight, I will use my full strength to defeat you honorably and claim this divine blade!"
Hibari's own lips stretched into a grin. He said, "Heh, what a coincidence. That's exactly what I was thinking!"
Thousands of people were watching from the stands. Blades have no eyes, and there was no referee on the stage, only Hibari and Mifune.
After they finished their pre-fight chat, Mifune took the sword from his waist and held it horizontally in front of his chest. Seeing this, Hibari also took his short sword and held it in front of his chest.
The two of them then tapped their blades together in perfect sync. The next moment, they both stomped their feet and quickly moved apart, and in the process, they both sheathed their swords back at their waists.
This gesture marked the "official" start of the fight.
According to the Sacred Sword Festival rules, the match began as soon as both competitors stepped onto the stage. But neither of them resorted to sneak attacks during their exchange. They were both honorable men, and in front of this immense crowd, anyone who did such a thing would bring shame upon themselves.
Unlike his previous matches, Hibari didn't make the first move. He had won every match with just one strike so far. But now, facing Mifune, Hibari could see countless openings from a shinobi's perspective, each one enough to defeat him.
However, these openings were purely from a shinobi's perspective. From a samurai's point of view, in terms of swordsmanship, Hibari couldn't find a single one.
In other words… he had no opportunity to strike first!
So, Hibari just rested his hand on his short sword, preparing to defend and wait for an opening, hoping that if Mifune made the first move, he might reveal a weakness. Usually, a person would have an opening when they attacked, so a perfect swordsmanship technique was impossible in theory.
In contrast to Hibari, who couldn't find any openings, Mifune felt a thousand curses running through his mind as he looked at Hibari. It wasn't that he couldn't see any openings; on the contrary, he saw far too many—from head to toe, Hibari seemed to be full of them.
If it were a normal person, he would have attacked already, but he had observed Hibari's past matches. This man had always won with a single strike, clearly a master. How could a master be full of openings?
So, seeing Hibari covered in so many openings, Mifune didn't dare attack, fearing it was a trap.
And so, the two of them entered a stalemate. Hibari kept his hand on his short sword, appearing very relaxed, while Mifune focused intensely, not daring to relax for a second as he stared at Hibari. Neither of them wanted to make the first move, and the atmosphere slowly grew silent.
The rest of the samurai and the audience didn't urge them on or make a sound.
The man named Kōzuki Oden had won every single match from the preliminaries to the finals with a single strike, so he was undoubtedly a master. And Mifune was the general's personal disciple, with a reputation to match, so he must be a master, too.
There must be a reason why two masters were in a stalemate. The audience must simply not be skilled enough to see it.
This was a valuable opportunity for everyone. If they could figure out why the two were in a stalemate, their swordsmanship would surely improve greatly!
So the entire crowd fell silent, not daring to make a sound, staring intently at Hibari and Mifune, as if trying to figure out what was happening.
Some older masters, who considered themselves more skilled than Mifune, were even using this as a test for their own disciples.
Only Orochimaru, standing by the iron gate at the south end, his arms folded, was utterly confused. He couldn't understand what these two were doing, and he didn't have much knowledge of swordsmanship.
Just then, Mifune couldn't take it anymore and decided to attack. After all, continuing the stalemate was not in his favor. This "Kōzuki Oden" radiated an air of vulnerability, which was much more relaxing than Mifune's intense state of "concentration."
It wouldn't matter for a short time, but over a longer period, he would tire himself out. So, Mifune quickly realized that this war of attrition would put him at a disadvantage and decided to break the deadlock.
Mifune's draw was incredibly fast. He had been in a state of absolute stillness, but the moment he decided to attack, he entered a state of explosive motion. He suddenly changed his footwork, stepped forward, and his sword was already unsheathed in a horizontal sweep.
This move was very simple, not a famous technique; almost anyone who knew how to use a sword could do it. Its name was "One Step."
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