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The crowd buzzed with disbelief. A ten-year-old had just defeated one of the Hei members without breaking a sweat. The victory felt too effortless, too overwhelming to accept.
Naoya simply waited on the field, calm and poised. This was only the first participant he defeated; now, even more difficult ones will appear.
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Kagenori's wrinkled face creased slightly in astonishment, not because of Naoya's victory, but because of what he'd seen.
"Naobito....that boy's Projection Sorcery....was it faster than yours?" asked Kagenori in seriousness.
The surrounding Zenin elders turned toward them, wide-eyed. Even they had failed to follow Naoya's movements, though that was expected, few could track Naobito, the "fastest sorcerer of the era."
But if his son had surpassed even that…
"Yes. His Projection Sorcery is faster than mine," replied Naobito with a smirk.
"Ho~ so was 24 frames per second not the limit?" asked Kagenori.
"Probably not. Even I had a hard time believing when I first saw him," replied Naobito with a sigh.
"How fast is his Projection Sorcery?" asked Kagenori.
This made the elders and the Zenin family members focus intently on Naobito.
Naobito frowned for a bit and then sighed.
"I don't know..." replied Naobito, feeling a bit embarrassed.
"You don't know? What does that mean?" asked Kagenori in slight displeasure.
Naobito sighed. "…That idiot son of mine won't tell me. When I asked, he said, 'Where's the fun if I spoon-feed you the answer?'"
This made the Zenin family members blink in surprise.
"...Looks like your son is not that disciplined," quipped Ogi.
"You are spoiling him too much. Want me to discipline him in your place?" asked Jinichi Zenin with a mocking smile.
Naobito glared at the two of them.
Kagenori remained silent for a moment, then chuckled.
"The boy isn't wrong. Why should he reveal his hand to those slower than him?"
The elders frowned but stayed silent. They couldn't deny the truth. Even so, none wanted to admit they were slower than a ten-year-old.
Contrary to his thoughts about Naoya's arrogance. Naoya already told Naobito about his increasing speed; however, the two also discussed that the fact that both techniques complement each other and boost each other should remain a secret, lest the others become too wary of his growing limits and decide to end him.
Kagenori glanced at the Zenins near him and sighed.
"Send the next one," ordered the old man.
Naobito nodded and got back to announcing.
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Ding~
>Defeat 1 Grade-1 sorcerer (1 point)[Collect]
"Naoya, do you wish to continue?" asked Naobito.
"Yes", replied Naoya, and got ready to fight once again. There was an unbearably long pause before the announcement. He saw his father talking with the other Zenins, but didn't know what they were talking about. Hopefully, not something relating to him.
"Kaito. Go to the field," said Naobito and glanced at the man named Kaito.
A man with a well-built body and a short ponytail nodded and walked towards the field.
Kaito, a branch family member, carried himself with pride. He had fought his way past many main family Zenins to earn his place in Hei.
He looked at Naoya with wariness; the boy was vastly stronger than what the members of Hei thought of him. Zenins don't focus on other clan members unless they threaten them, and Naoya, who was just a kid right now, not even worth considering for the position of Clan Head, was not on anyone's radar.
Naoya saw Kaito approach the field; however, for some reason, the man was continuously clapping his hands and chattering his teeth. As Kaito got closer, Naoya also noticed him stomping his feet a little harder on the ground.
"Um? Kaito-san?" called Naoya.
The man looked at the boy but didn't stop clapping or chattering his teeth.
"Are you cold? Your teeth are chattering?" asked Naoya with concern. He didn't want to catch the man's cold and get sick himself.
"..."
Kaito looked at the kid's concerned face and didn't know how to respond. From his face, he could tell the kid was worried about him.
He stopped chattering his teeth.
"My Cursed Technique is called 'Recoil Burst'. It lets me store kinetic energy, and I am doing just that," explained Kaito, fulfilling Naoya's curiosity while also revealing his hand and initiating the binding vow that increased his cursed energy output.
Naoya sighed in relief.
He could now fight without fear of catching the man's sickness.
"Ready?" called Naobito, making Naoya draw his wooden spear from his shadow.
"Worrying about your opponent....such weak mentality...." muttered Kaito coldly.
Naoya looked at the man in surprise.
'When did I worry about my opponent?' thought Naoya, but swiftly shook off those thoughts once Kaito took a stance as well.
"Start!!!" declared Naobito.
Naoya instantly coated his spear with cursed energy and threw it toward Kaito.
Kaito raised his arms, cursed energy flaring to intercept and absorb the spear's kinetic force
However, his eyes widened in shock when Naoya vanished from his spot as well.
He looked around, trying to find the kid, but didn't see a glimpse of him anywhere.
While he was distracted by Naoya's disappearance, the spear appeared near Kaito, who simply side-stepped to dodge the incoming attack.
However, the moment the spear brushed past him, Naoya emerged out of the spear's shadow, shocking Kaito as well as the other Zenins watching the fight.
His limbs, covered in cursed energy, blurred with the activation of his projection sorcery.
Continuous attacks rained down on Kaito's body, who was sent flying by the onslaught of attacks.
Naoya, still at his spot, grabbed the spear that was flying away from him, gave it a twirl and threw it at the airborne Kaito.
"You brat!" roared Kaito, unleashing his stored energy.
[Recoil Burst]
A simple wave of his hand launched a powerful energy wave towards the spear, destroying it on impact.
"I liked that spear…" Naoya muttered, disappointed, before lunging forward again.
Kaito landed on his feet and activated his cursed technique once again.
[Recoil Burst]
Kaito swung his arm, launching another wave of explosive force. Naoya sprinted in a zigzag, frame by frame, dodging each blast with fluid precision.
Seeing his attacks being dodged, Kaito turned around and attacked the kid once again.
However, the moment he turned his face, a strong punch coated in cursed energy struck his cheek, sending him skidding through the field.
Kaito winced in pain from the impact and glared at Naoya, ready to attack him again with his cursed technique, but Naoya was nowhere in sight.
"Looking for me?" taunted Naoy, emerging from Kaito's shadow and appearing behind him.
Before Kaito could react, he got suck into a frame.
The cursed energy around Naoya's fist intensified as Naoya used 35 of his 36 frames to run around and gain momentum before punching through the stopped frame in his 36th frame.
Kaito, thrown out of the frame, his body rolling limply.
He struggled to get up and glared at Naoya.
Naoya, however, was already in motion. His attacks must have given a lot of kinetic energy to Kaito, and he wasn't going to check if he was right or wrong.
Naoya jumped on the fallen Kaito and landed on his back.
"Agh!!!"
Kaito groaned in pain from the impact but smirked. He was going to blow up the entire stored kinetic energy in one go.
Naoya, however, was faster and stuck him in a frame once again.
Cursed energy now coated his legs as he stomped 36 times in succession on the man's back, causing him to scream in pain.
Once the 36th stomp ended, he trapped him in frame once again and repeated the process.
By the third turn, Kaito was already unconscious.
Naoya looked at the man whom he stood upon with his feet covered in cursed energy.
Once he made sure that the man did not move, he sighed and jumped off Kaito's back.
"...winner Naoya!!!" declared Naobito, still in shock by his son's brutality.
The other Zenins were no different. They murmured uneasily. Projection Sorcery was already feared, and now it seemed even more monstrous and brutal in the hands of a child.
The other members of Hei looked at Naobito. If Naoya could overwhelm a man twice his size, what could the special grade 1 and bigger version of him do?
They gritted their teeth; the position of clan head seemed to slip out of their hands ever so slightly.
At this moment, the prowess of Projection sorcery was even more solidified.
Kagenori, though, was more impressed with Naoya's shadow stealthiness and its combination with Projection sorcery.
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Naoya looked at the unconscious and injured Kaito and used his cursed technique.
[Round Deer]
A majestic, glowing green deer came out of Naoya's shadow.
"Senzu, heal him, please."
The deer nodded as a faint glow came out of his body.
The injuries on Kaito's body started to heal immediately, and in seconds, the man looked brand new.
"Thanks, Senzu," said Naoya and patted the deer, who smiled and jumped back into the shadows.
The other Zenins looked at Naoya questioningly. Why would he heal an enemy?
Kagenori had the same thought; however, unlike the other clansmen, he could openly ask.
"Naoya," called Kagenori.
Naoya looked at the old man and wondered how the man's voice still sounded so dignified despite his age.
"Why are you healing him?" asked Kagenori.
"...I injured him. I healed him," replied Naoya with a shrug.
"Do you heal every enemy you fight?" asked Kagenori with a frown.
"No."
"Then why are you doing it now?"
"Hm? He is part of the family, not an enemy," replied Naoya with a straight face.
Kagenori stared at Naoya for a while and gave a nod before looking towards Naobito.
"Start the next match."
Naobito nodded and turned towards the next participant.
"Tachi Zen-"
"I forfeit," said the man with a huff of anger.
All of them looked at him in surprise. Taichi was a man with a strong hatred for Projection Sorcery since this technique was the reason why he was not the fastest member of the clan.
And right now, the same person forfeited a match against a projection sorcery user.
Tachi himself was angry at his choice, but he knew that thinking with his pride here was not the answer at the moment.
He was slower than Naobito, and his son was even faster than him. He was not going to make a fool of himself by fighting a losing battle.
"...Next participant then.... Mako Zenin"
The man stood up and walked towards the field without saying anything.
Some servants hurriedly walked out of the field, carrying the unconscious Kaito.
"Ready?"
Mako took his stance.
"My technique is called [Cursed Reversal Field]. Inside the field, the properties of cursed energy are revered," explained Mako, successfully activating the binding vow by 'revealing his hand'.
Naoya nodded and took his stance as well. His spear was destroyed, so this time he took out a wooden sword from his shadow.
"Somebody bring the boy a spear," ordered Kagenori.
All of them looked at the old man with mild surprise. The old man is looking after someone. This was a rare occurrence.
"It's fine, Grandpa! In an actual battle, I won't get extra weapons from someone if mine are destroyed. I am quite good with swords as well," replied Naoya with a smile and swung his sword around.
"....Haha, is that so? Then start the battle," said Kagenori with a chuckle.
The entire family froze.
The old man laughed. And not while mocking his opponents. A genuine laugh.
Naoya nodded and got into his stance once again.
"S-Start!!!" declared Naobito, still a bit flustered by his father's laugh.
[Cursed Reversal Field]
Mako activated his technique instantly, and thanks to the binding vow, the usual 2-meter radius of his 'zone' expanded to 3 meters.
Naoya already had a grasp of the man's cursed technique and coated his body in cursed energy, reinfocing himself and using his projection sorcery to gain speed while moving haphazardly to confuse Mako.
Mako tried to catch Naoya's figure but failed miserably.
The moment Naoya entered his 'zone', he felt his curse technique stop since all his cursed energy changed into reversed cursed energy.
Still, he was done speeding up and struck Mako with full force with his wooden sword.
"It's useless, in here you are not reinforced by cursed energy. With your feeble str-" said Mako with a mocking tone.
His sentence ended with a choked grunt as Naoya's sword hit him again, sending him tumbling.
"Was that feeble enough for you?" asked Naoya with a smirk and activated his technique once again, once Mako took the 'zone' with him.
He sped up once and approached Mako with his increased speed.
Mako looked at the incoming kid and frowned. His wounds were visibly healing because of the reversed effect of his cursed energy inside the field.
Naoya's cursed energy surged around him, though it didn't boost him since it got converted to reversed cursed energy.
However, because of that, Mako did not dare deactivate his cursed technique and boost himself as well, since he knew the moment he did so, Naoya's strengthened blow would strike him.
Naoya's sword struck him once again and sent the man rolling.
Naoya didn't give him time to recover. He slammed Mako down, straddled him, and began beating him relentlessly.
"Yo-" glared Mako, but before he could speak further, Naoya started brutally attacking him with his sword.
This was the method Toji taught him to use against those who heal rapidly or those who piss you off too much.
Naoya's sword continued to rain down on Mako. Blood spilt out of the wounds on his face. His nose broke and healed again, and again.
Mako tried to attack sometimes, though his non-strengthened strikes didn't cause Naoya any pain at all.
Each strike echoed across the field.
Zenins are known for their no-mercy mindset, but seeing one of the top Zenins being on the receiving end of that brutality made them feel uncomfortable.
The audience fell silent, horrified and mesmerised. Even Naobito winced. The "un-Zenin" child was perhaps too Zenin when it came to combat.
"Give up!" yelled Naoya and stopped for a bit, and looked at the man below him. His own face and clothes had some drops of blood that fell on him, but that didn't faze him at all.
"Nev—"CRACK!Naoya shoved the sword into Mako's mouth.
"Give up, or I'll break your jaw. You'll heal....but it'll hurt every single time," he warned coldly. "Raise your hands by the count of three. Or I'll start."
If he wanted to, he could use his shikigami, but he didn't want to reveal his shikigami unless necessary.
Mako's eyes widened.
"I will count to three. Raise your hands in surrender. Try anything else and jaw-breaking time," said Naoya, his sword moving ever so silently, threatening to break the jaw any moment.
Mako stared at the kid and nodded, and raised his hands after seeing the cold look on his face.
Naoya smirked and looked towards Naobito.
"....winner Naoya," said Naobito weakly.
Even the people from his own generation weren't this brutal when they were Naoya's age.
"...You raised him quite well," muttered Kagenori with a smirk.
Naobito and the other Hei members looked at the clan head.
"The decisive mindset to not hold back against an opponent and the wisdom to not escalate things any further than necessary. Both things being present in a sorcerer, and that to a 10-year-old one is quite rare," praised Kagenori.
They dumbly nodded but still felt that Naoya was just brutal. Naobito, who knew that Naoya could have easily ended the fight with his shikigami, remained silent.
"Send the next one," ordered Kagenori.
"Ranta Zenin," called Naobito.
A relatively younger man stood up and walked to the field where Naoya stood waiting for the next opponent.
"Ranta nii-san. Go easy on me," asked Naoya with a smile.
"Same here, Naoya. You are stronger than I thought. Don't be that brutal on me," asked Ranta with a helpless smile as well.
Being the closest in terms of age in the clan, Ranta and Naoya naturally bonded during the clan meetings, and much to Naoya's surprise, Ranta was not a typical cold-blooded Zenin as well. He was a normal person with substantial cursed energy and a cursed technique.
"Ready?" called Naobito.
Naoya dropped his sword in his shadow and took a stance.
Ranta looked surprised but thought that it was Naoya's way of going easy on him.
"Start!!!"
[Paralyzing Gaze]
Not wasting even a second, Ranta activated his technique, freezing Naoya in place.
Naoya, however, expected that and used his [Ten Shadows Technique] to hide inside his shadow and break free from the Paralysis.
Ranta narrowed his eyes. He could feel that the paralysis was lifted, and now he waited for Naoya to jump out of his shadow so that he could freeze him again.
The shadow rippled, seeing which Ranta got ready to use his technique.
But instead of Naoya, the one who jumped out of the shadow was a rabbit that had been frozen, but after that, the entire demon army came out of the shadow and blinded Ranta's vision. The rabbits rushed towards Ranta like a tsunami.
Ranta cursed, summoning cursed energy reinforcement to fend them off. But they kept coming, overwhelming him.
He barely noticed Naoya emerging silently from their shadows, blade pressed to his neck.
"Move, and I slice," Naoya whispered.
Ranta stiffened, then sighed. "I surrender."
The rabbits vanished. The crowd blinked at the sight of Naoya standing behind Ranta with a short sword to his throat.
"Winner Naoya!!!!" declared Naobito.
Finally, a non-brutal fight.
Naoya lowered his hand, seeing that Ranta turned around and looked at the kid.
"Looks like you are now higher ranked than me," said Ranta with a smirk.
"You can call me senpai now," Naoya grinned. "Or boss. Boss works too."
"Yes, yes, little boss," said Ranta with a chuckle before he left the ground.
"Haruto Zenin," called Naobito.
"I forfeit," came a lazy yawn from the sidelines.
He was a man who was lazy by nature and couldn't bother much about his rank going down by 1.
The rest of the Hei looked at him with a frown but didn't say anything.
"That concludes the Hei Initiation Ceremony, then. Naoya Zenin, from now on, you are the Rank 5 of the Hei squad!!!" declared Naobito.
The crowd erupted into applause.
Naoya grinned and bowed dramatically.
The day had gone better than expected. Honestly, he'd thought he'd have to face the Special Grade 1s too, but if fate gave him a lighter workload, who was he to complain?
A day with fewer fights was, after all, a good day.