"Clang!"
The slender rapier in her hand was sliced cleanly in two. The exquisite strike the girl had launched with all her might was effortlessly parried by Kirito and shattered before it could land.
"..." She stared blankly at the broken sword in her hands, expression dim, her gaze lowering slightly. Her silver teeth bit down, and she whispered softly, "So this is the power of a ninja? Is swordsmanship in this era... nothing but a decorative show?"
"Swordsmanship is definitely not just a show," Kirito replied calmly. Then, as if remembering something, he added, "Also, I'm not a ninja."
Faced with her quiet despondence, Kirito felt a touch of realization. To be fair, the girl's swordsmanship was quite good. At least in terms of technique, she was not far off from him. But no matter how refined one's skills were, no matter how intricate the technique, they could never make up for a huge gap in raw ability.
From the system's perspective, this difference could be boiled down to basic stats: strength, endurance, agility, and stamina.
Her swordplay was commendable. In a straightforward duel of technique, her refined form could even suppress Kirito's assassination-based style. However, in actual combat, her strikes were simply too weak to land a blow. That was because Kirito's personal stats far surpassed hers. No matter how exquisite her technique was, if her blade could be broken, it meant nothing.
Kirito had simply used his speed and brute force to cleave her sword apart. Once the weapon was destroyed, any further swordplay was meaningless.
Defeating her in one move didn't mean Kirito was overwhelmingly strong, it just meant his opponent was too weak. Even with impressive sword technique, she was still, objectively, weak. And looking across the entire shinobi world, Kirito himself wouldn't rank too high either.
Putting aside the arsenal of weapons from the Armory System and focusing purely on his personal attributes: his stamina was about on par with a Genin, strength slightly below Chūnin level, endurance had been improved through two previous bonus stat allocations, giving him physical toughness that barely scraped the top-tier of Chūnin, and lastly, the only stat he could truly take pride in: agility.
In terms of agility, Kirito was at elite Jōnin level. With the bonus from the conceptual gear Gale Boots, his peak movement speed in non-combat states could even exceed the average Jōnin!
...
"Kirito-kun, please, teach me how to train my swordsmanship!"
"Princess, I've already told you, my swordsmanship is nothing special. It won't help you get stronger."
After regrouping with Guy and the others, Kirito finally learned the identity of the girl in question. She was, in fact, the very person they were tasked with escorting, the princess of the Land of Fire.
After receiving a grand send-off from the high officials of the Land of Fire, the group departed from the daimyō's estate and began their journey to Konohagakure.
But no sooner had they exited the estate did the princess step down from her luxurious carriage and latch herself onto Kirito, pestering him to guide her training.
"Ohoho~" Lee's eyes lit up with youthful flames at the scene, overflowing with energy. "This is the spirit of youth! Even a noble princess desires strength! From today on, I'll add 500 more push-ups to my routine!"
"How did this even become about push-ups..." Tenten muttered in exasperation. Her gaze drifted toward Kirito, lips pursed, and she grumbled under her breath, "What the heck happened... why does it seem like the princess has taken quite a liking to Kirito..."
"Kirito-sensei, please just call me Asuna," the girl said sincerely, without a hint of jest.
"Don't call me sensei, Asuna," Kirito replied with a frown, equally serious.
Neji, who had remained silent until now, couldn't help but twitch slightly at the exchange. After a moment's thought, he muttered, "He refuses to be called 'sensei,' but casually calls a princess by name..."
Of course, Neji didn't realize this was simply Kirito's nature. He was naturally carefree and paid no attention to social ranks or status. Even as a member of the Hyuga branch family, scorned as a "failure" and subject to endless ridicule, Kirito never cared in the slightest.
That wasn't because he was particularly tolerant, or spineless...
Rather, as Tenten, who understood him well, knew, Kirito simply didn't waste energy on things he wasn't interested in. It was this unrestrained and indifferent personality that had, over time, won her favor.
So when Kirito casually called the princess by name, Tenten didn't bat an eye. She just strolled over, elbowed him lightly in the chest, and teased with a grin, "Well, well, look at you. You sure move fast, already getting cozy with the princess~"
Kirito responded with a mischievous smirk and retaliated by gently pinching her smooth chin. "Is that so? My lovely shopkeeper isn't so different either, huh?"
"Eek~!" Caught off guard by his masculine presence at such close range, Tenten reflexively took a few steps back. Her cheeks flushed a deep red, and she swatted away his hand with an angry glare. "Kirito, you bastard! You dare joke around with me like that?!"
Kirito just shrugged. "Isn't this just fair payback?"
But their carefree banter didn't go unnoticed. Standing nearby, Asuna felt a faint pang of irritation. With her noble status, she was always treated like a jewel to be admired. Yet today, in front of Kirito, it was like none of that mattered.
Still, she couldn't deny the fluttering in her chest.
Kirito was the only person she'd ever met who didn't act fawning or fearful around her. In fact, he didn't treat her any differently from anyone else. And perhaps, in that moment, she felt something she'd never felt before.
Like she had made her first... real friend.
Something that no one else could ever understand.
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