NOVEL WEB Chapter 83: Zangan Dojo
The dojo chosen by Shiyu Uchiha was known as the Zangan Dojo. Its master was a famed swordsman named Matsunaga Jun. Within its walls were nearly a hundred people—mostly his disciples, along with others who had traveled from various regions of the Land of Iron to study swordsmanship.
Samurai, after all, had been oppressed by ninjas until only their last remaining stronghold was left. Therefore, they held no narrow attachment to their techniques and instead maintained an open and inclusive tradition. Anyone with genuine dedication to sword arts could come and learn.
According to the records in his possession, this man's sword style was bold and sweeping, yet exceptionally sharp. His strength was on par with an average Jonin from Konoha and ranked among the top five swordsmen in the Land of Iron. Moreover, he had a strong passion for guiding younger generations—an attitude that made this place Shiyu Uchiha's first destination.
So it was that early the next morning, Shiyu Uchiha set out. Since his purpose here was to seek instruction rather than challenge the school, he followed the formal process, passing through three preliminary trials before being granted proper entry into the dojo.
To Shiyu Uchiha, these three trials aligned closely with the progression of Genin, Chunin, and Tokubetsu Jonin in ninja sword rankings—a system used to measure martial skill. Given that his sword techniques already surpassed even those at the Tokubetsu Jonin ranks, he passed them effortlessly.
Upon entering the dojo, Shiyu Uchiha keenly sensed a unique spiritual ambiance within, faintly exuding a piercing sharpness.
It was a lingering spiritual essence born from the collective convictions of countless sword practitioners. As someone with strong spiritual perception, Shiyu clearly felt it. After contemplating it briefly, he felt that just this one insight alone made the journey worthwhile.
Initially, he had intended to issue a challenge. However, upon meeting the swordsman, he gave up that thought. From the man before him, Shiyu sensed a cultivation stage he himself had yet to reach—the state of Man and Blade Unity.
Even before any battle began, he could feel the difference between them. Though somewhat disheartened, he accepted the reality without difficulty; deep down, he had expected such a gap.
Politely bowing, Shiyu addressed the master: "Master Matsunaga, greetings. I am Hino Homura, a traveler from another country. I've come to the Land of Iron to hone my sword techniques and hope you will grant me your guidance." With that, he bowed respectfully.
Although uncommon, this wasn't rare either, so the students of Master Matsunaga weren't particularly surprised. They simply gave Hino Homura a few curious looks because he came from overseas and was so young.
Then, another student stood up beside Master Matsunaga and, after offering a bow toward the master, spoke: "I would like to accept his challenge on your behalf. Please allow me this honor."
Just as Shiyu Uchiha assumed Master Matsunaga would agree, the master instead looked at his disciple and said, "You are no match for him. In fact, except for your eldest senior who has gone to the sacred mountain, none of my students can defeat this young man."
After speaking, Master Matsunaga rose to his feet and walked over to stand directly before Shiyu Uchiha, ready to personally guide and instruct him himself. This level of attention Matsunaga gave Shiyu caused many eyes to turn toward him.
Among them, the Master's disciple who had risen showed the most interest in Shiyu Uchiha. Naturally, since he considered himself quite skilled, it bothered him greatly to realize his abilities still lagged behind a young man's—but he dared not argue with the Master, and obediently returned to his seat.
Then both Shiyu Uchiha and Master Matsunaga simultaneously drew their blades from their scabbards. The Master gestured for Shiyu Uchiha to strike first.
Knowing he was outmatched, Shiyu Uchiha didn't bother with false humility, so immediately launched an attack. After channeling chakra into his tanto, he slashed directly toward Master Matsunaga while keeping some strength in reserve, ready to adjust should anything unexpected happen.
Seeing Shiyu Uchiha's slash, Master Matsunaga nodded slightly, showing satisfaction with Shiyu Uchiha's fundamentals, then raised his sword to parry.
The two quickly exchanged blows within the courtyard. In the blink of an eye, dozens of strikes had already passed between them before they paused briefly. Their speed was incredible—those slightly weaker would have struggled to even track the clash of their sword techniques.
Even that disciple who earlier harbored doubts about Shiyu Uchiha's strength no longer felt uncertain. If it were him facing off, he probably would've already fallen far behind Shiyu Uchiha's pace.
Then Shiyu Uchiha heard Master Matsunaga say, "Your basics are quite solid. Now, show me your true strength."
Shiyu Uchiha simply replied, "Yes," and immediately a burst of flames erupted on his blade, activating the Uchiha Style Chakra Flow Physical Taijutsu known as [Sword Flashing Flames].
However, Shiyu Uchiha had altered this technique significantly in his hands. He had constantly refined it by adding his own insights, so much so that it had long deviated from its original form, making it nearly unrecognizable to others.
Once again, Shiyu Uchiha pressed forward aggressively. At the same time, Master Matsunaga also manifested his chakra nature transformation. Waves upon waves appeared on his blade, along with another indescribable change that Shiyu Uchiha perceived through his sensory abilities but couldn't clearly identify, clashing violently against Shiyu Uchiha's sword.
After several impacts, if not for increasing his chakra output, the flames on Shiyu Uchiha's sword would've been extinguished. He felt a strange energy radiating from the opponent's blade—a feeling similar to ocean waves, layer upon layer, giving him the unsettling impression he might shatter at any moment.
Therefore, Shiyu Uchiha hesitated no further, deciding to unleash his full power. Stepping back momentarily to catch his breath, he increased his chakra output, intensifying the flame on his blade before transforming it into the [Flaming Blade Variation] and slashing it forward at Master Matsunaga.
At this point, as soon as Shiyu Uchiha retreated, Master Matsunaga detected his intention but remained calm, instead of pursuing, he chose patiently to maintain pressure, allowing Shiyu Uchiha space to act freely.
When Shiyu Uchiha slashed out the [Flaming Blade Variation], he simultaneously severed the wavelike chakra on the master's sword. Yet, this cost less than a third of the chakra Shiyu Uchiha had expended.
The final two energy slashes collided—Shiyu Uchiha's Flaming Blade Variation shattered completely. He was struck by the residual wave of that rippling chakra-energy slash, but fortunately managed to block part of the impact with his tanto at the last moment, and Master Matsunaga had pulled back his full strength somewhat. Thankfully, he walked away with just a few ruffled feathers and no real injuries.
In fact, according to Shiyu's original estimation, he shouldn't have even been this disheveled. However, the moment the residual energy struck, his mind was overwhelmed by an unrelenting oppressive force—a will as unyielding as steel—which created a temporary gap in his defenses. Fortunately, the residual energy lacked sufficient power, so the damage was limited to just minor disarray.
"Figure out where you went wrong," Master Matsunaga said before departing, and Jun had a private courtyard prepared for Shiyu Uchiha.
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