Grind is My Ninja Way

In the blink of an eye, another half an hour passed.

*Clang*

Seimei pulled his short sword out from the chest of a Kirigakure Tokubetsu Jonin, letting his corpse fall to the ground, then looked around.

At this point, only a few Kirigakure ninjas were left besieging him, and at his feet lay over a dozen corpses.

Clearly, in the past half hour of chaotic fighting, the Kirigakure side had suffered heavy losses.

Shaking the blood off his blade, Seimei looked at the few remaining ninjas and said in a somewhat unsatisfied tone, "It seems you're a bit short-handed..."

Hearing Seimei's words, the expressions of the Kirigakure ninjas changed several times, but they didn't refute anything because it was indeed the truth.

More than a dozen of them had besieged Seimei and fought for over half an hour, yet Seimei was completely fine, while they had suffered heavy casualties.

Now, they were indeed a bit short-handed.

But no matter what, they couldn't let Seimei leave.

With this in mind, they were about to gather more people to besiege Seimei.

But at this moment, a whistling wind sound approached.

Seimei glanced to the side from the corner of his eye, then took half a step back.

The next moment, a large sword, like a door panel, swept past his eyes and directly pierced into the trunk of a nearby tree.

The blade met the tree trunk as if it were a hot knife cutting through butter, easily slicing into it without any resistance.

Its sharpness was evident.

Before anyone could react, another figure appeared in front of Seimei, sweeping out a kick aimed directly at Seimei's head.

Seimei reacted quickly, immediately raising his left arm to block the side of his body.

*Thump*

A dull impact sounded.

Seimei took the kick head-on. The newcomer's strength was immense, actually kicking him two or three meters away.

This wasn't the end. Just as Seimei regained his footing, the person threw another punch, aiming straight for his face.

Seimei tilted his head to dodge, letting the strong wind from the fist graze his cheek. He casually swung his sword in a diagonal slash, counterattacking the newcomer.

However, although the newcomer had a burly build, his reactions were not slow. With a slight twist of his body, he dodged the attack perfectly.

Then, he swept out another leg whip, again aiming for Seimei's head.

Seimei raised his arm to block again, then counterattacked in one fluid motion.

For a moment, the sounds of fists and feet hitting flesh rang out continuously on the field, and in the blink of an eye, the two sides had exchanged over a dozen blows.

*Thump*

Finally, after Seimei blocked another attack from the newcomer, the opponent temporarily retreated and jumped back a few steps to the side of the large sword.

Only then did the surrounding Kirigakure ninjas come back to their senses and address him, "Lord Mangetsu!"

That's right, the newcomer was none other than Hōzuki Mangetsu.

It had to be said that his combat experience and actual combat ability were both very strong.

No wonder a few months later, when the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist were beaten into a sorry state by Might Dai opening the Eight Gates, he could be one of the three survivors.

His strength was indeed not to be underestimated.

Although it was just a brief exchange, Seimei still saw some clues. Even without the 'Decapitating Carving Knife', his strength surpassed that of an ordinary Jonin.

If coupled with the incredibly sharp 'Decapitating Carving Knife', then his combat power...

Seimei glanced at the corpse of the Vice-Captain, which had been cut in half at the waist in the distance, and thought to himself, "Then even a skilled Jonin wouldn't be his opponent."

That's right, the Vice-Captain who had previously fought with Hōzuki Mangetsu was already dead.

Previously, Seimei had felt that he wasn't Hōzuki Mangetsu's opponent, and now it seemed that was indeed the case.

It was impressive that he had managed to hold on for so long!

Seimei sighed inwardly, retracted his gaze, and looked at Hōzuki Mangetsu again. The latter was also fearless, staring at him with cold eyes.

"Heh~"

Seeing this, Seimei naturally wouldn't be polite. He raised his hand and used the 'Genjutsu: Sharingan', then immediately threw a few kunai.

However, Hōzuki Mangetsu dared to look at him so brazenly, naturally having something to rely on.

He saw that the moment Seimei used Genjutsu, he pulled out the 'Decapitating Carving Knife' that was stuck in the trunk of the nearby tree.

Then, he rotated the large sword ninety degrees in his hand and plunged it deep into the soil, erecting it in front of him.

The wide blade of the 'Decapitating Carving Knife' happened to block his vital points.

The kunai thrown by Seimei hit the blade, making only a clanging sound.

Seimei wasn't too disappointed by this.

He kicked off the ground, his entire body shooting out like a cannonball, arriving in front of Hōzuki Mangetsu in the blink of an eye.

Then, the short sword in his hand thrust out, precisely passing through the semicircular gap near the hilt of the 'Decapitating Carving Knife'.

Behind it was Hōzuki Mangetsu's chest.

However, Hōzuki Mangetsu also reacted quickly.

He had just broken free from the Genjutsu's influence and, seeing this scene, casually tilted the 'Decapitating Carving Knife', causing Seimei's short sword to miss.

Not only that, he immediately lunged forward, charging towards Seimei's face with both his body and the sword.

Recalling the immense strength the opponent had displayed during their close combat earlier, Seimei decisively abandoned the idea of a head-on clash.

Moreover, the opponent was using the blade to ram into him, so he definitely couldn't engage in a direct confrontation.

Seimei tapped his feet on the ground and immediately leaped backward.

Hōzuki Mangetsu missed his charge and, without any pause, immediately swung the large sword in his hand, continuing to slash at Seimei.

Feeling the sharp aura emanating from it, Seimei didn't hesitate at all and immediately ducked, dodging the attack.

Then, the short sword in his hand thrust out, aiming for the opponent's heart while he was still recovering from the previous attack.

Sensing the danger, Hōzuki Mangetsu immediately stopped and turned sideways, narrowly dodging the sword.

Only then did Hōzuki Mangetsu become fully focused, and the gaze he directed at Seimei once again was filled with seriousness and caution.

He had naturally sensed the 'Wind Style: Spiraling Shuriken' that Seimei had used to kill Kaguya Shinnosuke earlier.

And being able to unleash a ninjutsu with such power, he originally thought Seimei was a ninja who specialized in ninjutsu.

Now it seemed that his swordsmanship was also not to be underestimated.

Although it was just a few sword strikes, it was enough to illustrate the point.

As for the corpses on the ground and the sword wounds on them...

Sorry, in Hōzuki Mangetsu's eyes, these people were just ants and cannon fodder. Their encounters weren't enough to serve as a reference.

Only now, after experiencing it firsthand, did he become wary of Seimei's swordsmanship.

However, it was just wariness. As for fear, that was far from it. When it came to swordsmanship or kenjutsu, he truly hadn't feared many people!

Moreover, good swordsman needed to be paired with a good weapon to display its full potential.

And obviously, the short sword in the opponent's hand was far inferior to his 'Decapitating Carving Knife'.

Therefore, he was fearless!

(End of this chapter)