69novels Page 84
Page 84
Hirano Tetsuro snapped out of his daze and turned to look at the doorway.
Backlit, a blonde girl stepped into the dojo.
She exuded an almost dazzling youthful aura from head to toe. Just by standing there, she seemed to have her own spotlight, causing all the students in the dojo to involuntarily stop their practice and turn their gaze to her.
However, Tetsuro Hirano's honed martial arts intuition keenly detected a completely different aura beneath that dazzling exterior.
Like an untamed wild beast, dangerous, fierce, and aggressive.
This girl is definitely not a simple character.
Chapter 95 Let's just keep bluffing to the end.
Yatohime's sharp gaze swept across the entire dojo.
On the solid wood floor, a dozen students are practicing their daily routine.
The man referred to as "Teacher" was standing on the sidelines, holding a bamboo sword.
He was tall, but his face showed an undeniable haggardness, with heavy dark circles under his eyes.
Despite his efforts to straighten his back, a lingering sense of dejection still permeated his entire being.
"Are you the instructor of this dojo?"
With one hand on her hip, Yatohime's clear voice echoed distinctly in the empty dojo, "I heard you're an eighth-dan in kendo, so I've come here specifically to learn from you!"
One of the students immediately showed anger on his face and stepped forward, saying, "To deal with someone like you, there's no need for Master Hirano to personally take action!"
"I'll fight you!"
“Nishimura,” Tetsuro Hirano raised his hand to stop the impulsive student, his voice tinged with weariness but still maintaining the dignity of a teacher, “she’s here to see me.”
He did not choose to have a student take his place.
As an eighth-dan kendo master, he has reached a certain level in kendo and can roughly judge a person's strength by the "aura" they exude.
Just as an official's aura stems from power, a wealthy businessman's aura stems from wealth, the aura of those engaged in competitive sports comes directly from their own strength.
The stronger a person is, the more imposing their aura becomes, naturally suppressing those with weaker auras.
For example, when an international football superstar stands on a university field, his opponents are likely to be intimidated by his powerful aura, becoming hesitant and only able to perform at 30% of their potential.
Tetsuro Hirano knew that none of the students present had a stronger aura than the blonde girl in front of him.
Even in his extremely poor mental state, he didn't know if he could withstand the other party's aura, which was like that of an untamed wild beast.
Just then, Aozawa and Hoshino Saori walked into the dojo a step later.
Upon seeing Hirano Tetsuro, Aozawa immediately remembered that this was the unfortunate fellow who had been tortured and interrogated by Ueno Yuuma.
Was his loss of energy and spirit related to that experience?
Qingze thought to himself.
If this competition doesn't work, what methods can be used to reignite this person's fighting spirit?
He couldn't help but start thinking about alternative plans.
Yatohime deftly took off her shoes and stepped onto the wooden floor of the dojo.
Tetsuro Hirano stepped forward and said politely, "Please put on your protective gear."
"it is good."
This time, Yato-hime readily agreed, unlike when she refused to wear protective gear during her last fight with Hori Mio.
After all, the opponent is an eighth-dan kendo practitioner, so we still need to be cautious.
However, Yato-hime didn't have a kendo uniform and could only borrow Hori Mio's kendo protective gear.
Although there is a height difference between the two, the prominent dimensions of certain parts unexpectedly "even out" the difference.
Hori Mio's protective gear looked even a little tight on Yato-hime.
Hori Mio looked at the breastplate that was stretched bulging on Yatohime's chest, and her lips twitched slightly, almost imperceptibly.
Yato-hime changed into her protective gear and walked out of the changing room.
In the center of the dojo, Tetsuro Hirano was already dressed and waiting quietly.
The trainees knelt neatly around the perimeter of the venue, holding their breath and concentrating intently.
Qingze did not choose to kneel, but instead casually leaned against the wall with his arms crossed in front of his chest, adopting the posture of an observer.
Standing on the sidelines, Hori Mio succinctly announced the rules: "The game will be played on a 3-point scale, and the first player to reach 2 points will win."
I'll start counting to three.
one two three! "
As soon as she finished speaking, Hori Mio quickly retreated to the sidelines.
"noodle!"
Hirano Tetsuro roared first, his feet moving forward rapidly, his bamboo sword whistling as it slashed straight at Yatohime's face.
"noodle!"
At almost the same time, Yatohime roared, her voice like the cry of a dragon and the howl of a tiger, making people's eardrums tingle.
Her bamboo sword lacked any fancy techniques; she relied solely on her astonishing arm strength and speed to fiercely meet the attack.
Snapped!
The two bamboo swords clashed fiercely!
Hirano Tetsuro was astonished to discover from the force transmitted through the sword that he was actually weaker than the girl in terms of arm strength.
He immediately changed tactics and switched to a defensive stance.
Yatohime roared repeatedly, her bamboo sword transforming into a series of afterimages, raining down like a storm, rapidly switching between her face, chest, waist (and forearm).
Crackling!
The bamboo swords collided at high speed, producing a series of dense and crisp popping sounds, like popping beans.
With his mental state in extremely poor condition, Hirano Tetsuro's defense quickly showed a slight opening under such a rapid offensive.
"noodle!"
Yatohime seized the opportunity and struck his headgear with her bamboo sword with precision and weight, producing a muffled "bang".
Hori Mio immediately announced loudly, "Yato, one!"
"Hmph, everyone says you're an eighth-dan in kendo, I thought you were really that good," Yato-hime casually slung her bamboo sword over her shoulder, tilted her head, and spoke with undisguised disappointment and provocation, "but when it came to actually fighting, I felt like I wasn't even as good as Hori-senpai."
I really don't understand why she thinks I'm no match for you.
These blunt words were like a needle, making Tetsuro Hirano's cheeks burn.
He subconsciously glanced at Hori Mio outside the arena, and saw that her face was full of tension and worry.
Looking at the other trainees, their eyes were filled with shock and disbelief, as if they could not accept that the teacher training program had lost a point first.
As a teacher trainee... I'm truly unqualified...
Tetsuro Hirano felt a moment of disorientation.
He knew that in the eyes of many outsiders, he was one of the few eighth-dan kendo practitioners who had not been challenged and defeated by Sasaki Mine.
Many people believe that this is because his strength is enough to make Sasaki Mine wary.
But he knew in his heart that this was not the case.
His strength was far from being enough to make that person feel troubled.
As for why Sasaki Mine didn't challenge him, Hirano Tetsuro had never been able to figure it out.
But at this moment, looking at the girl in front of him fighting with instinct and brute force, he suddenly understood.
Sasaki Mine is an incredibly pure swordsman, so pure that he can abandon all worldly ties such as humanity, family, and love in pursuit of the ultimate swordsmanship.
That extreme purity enabled him to achieve astonishing success in swordsmanship, and also gave him an almost harsh standard for judging "sword" and "swordsman".
Sasaki Mine must have already seen through his hidden cowardly nature.
They believed he was...unworthy of being an opponent.
Yes, a guy like him, who only makes a show of bravado, is so insignificant and pathetic in front of that "demon" who purely pursues the way of the sword.
Hirano Tetsuro gripped the bamboo sword tightly, his gaze refocusing on Yato-hime ahead.
His gaze became exceptionally firm at that moment.
But... since we've been bluffing for so many years, let's keep bluffing!
For those students who still believe in him, for those children who truly love kendo...
As a teacher at Xuanwu Hall, he absolutely cannot fall here, he absolutely cannot lose!
"noodle!!"
Tetsuro Hirano suddenly let out a thunderous roar and launched an attack.
His sickly aura vanished instantly, replaced by a sharpness like a sword being drawn from its sheath.
A look of surprise flashed across Yatohime's eyes, then she laughed excitedly, "Haha! This is more interesting!"
Her bamboo sword once again struck the opponent like a storm.
However, Tetsuro Hirano nimbly dodged the powerful blow.
Since he was at a disadvantage in terms of arm strength, he abandoned the idea of head-on confrontation and instead began to use exquisite swordsmanship techniques.
His moves became increasingly difficult to discern, seemingly attacking the left while actually striking the right. Through this masterful skillful maneuvering, the straightforward Yatohime suddenly found herself struggling to defend herself.
While her strength and speed are astonishing, they are not yet at a level where she can completely overwhelm the skills of an eighth-dan kendo master.
"noodle!!"
Hirano Tetsuro spotted a fleeting opening, shouted, and his bamboo sword, like a venomous snake emerging from its hole, struck precisely at Yatohime's headgear.
The force was applied, and Yato-hime involuntarily took a step back.
Hori Mio excitedly shouted, "Hirano Normal School, a first-year student!"