Chapter 120: Hidden Weapons
The moment he saw Kumokawa walking in and sitting down with a smile, Musashi knew the purpose of this young man coming here.
Underneath that gentle smile, beneath that wide black robe, was the restless heart of a liger, which was thirsty for war.
He may not understand the principle of "a gentleman hides his weapon in his body and waits for the time to move. If the world has a way, he will see it, and if there is no way, he will hide it."
But he knew that an excellent swordsman only did two things in his life.
Sharpen the knife, and draw the knife.
Either sharpening the knife or drawing the knife.
Sharpening the knife means hiding the weapon in one's body, and taking out the knife means the time has come.
The young man in front of him thought that his knife had been sharpened, and now he wants to draw it.
Therefore, Musashi has been waiting for the moment when Kumokawa can't help but show his sharp fangs.
Now, this still young beast can't wait to bite the faith and flesh and blood that he relies on for survival!
but...
"Are you too dismissive of the sharpness that I have kept in the scabbard for decades?"
Looking at the smiling young man in front of him, Musashi's expression was no longer gloomy, and he smiled inexplicably.
He raised the warm tea cup and said with a bright smile: "The affairs of the country belong to the daimyo and to us. You are just a usurper. Do you want to test whether my sword is still sharp?"
There is still an unquenched flame in his eyes.
"Old man, please stop talking to yourself like a young man." Kumokawa said in a gentle and gentle tone, "My sword is not bad at all."
Both of them put their hands on the swords at their waists, and the moment they sank in, they seemed to draw their strength into the blade.
Between the two of them, a few clouds of smoke rose from the spout and spread out, and the two people on the left and right together formed a picture of extreme tranquility.
This is the real Iai. Unlike the sword-drawing technique, which is a combat technique, Iai is a real sitting technique.
Kendo adheres to the principle of "Zanshin", which means to be vigilant at all times, but Iai is slack and lazy, turning to the offensive at the moment of crisis.
Before the swordsman moves his sword, there is often such extreme silence.
There has to be something to break the dead silence.
Perhaps it is a fallen leaf that is plucked from a branch and floated to the mirror-like lake surface, or perhaps it is a drop of rainwater that fell from the eaves into strands and splashed at the feet of the two of them.
Or maybe the tea is boiling.
Ripples appeared on the two cups of tea, and the extreme silence turned into extreme movement in the ripples, and the whole picture had sound.
Woo!
On the fire, the tea in the teapot began to boil, and a faint whistling sound was heard, only to be overshadowed by the harsh neighboring sound.
Click! Bah!
Most of the old man's body had been buried in the soil, but the moment he pulled the sword out of its sheath.
The blood-thirsty sword, which had been tempered for a long time and had not drank blood for a long time, was unsheathed. The dark room was instantly dazzled by the bright light of the sword, and it seemed that you could smell the rich smell of blood oozing out of the blade.
But when Musashi looked at the person in front of him with concentrated eyes, his originally strong body suddenly became tense.
He saw a bloody blade, saw countless mountains of corpses and seas of blood, and smelled an extremely familiar smell.
It was the kind of murderous heart that would use a sword at all costs to completely deprive the enemy of its vitality and gnaw it away until death was stuffed into the opponent's throat and penetrated all the way into the stomach.
How could a young man in his teens be so happy to fight?
"Ha." Musashi smiled inexplicably, and the smile on that old face was extremely pure, blooming with strange vitality.
He might lose this battle today.
But this must be the most exciting battle in his life.
After laughing, Musashi drew his sword.
Visual inspection! Breathe! Carp mouth cut straight! Pay it forward! Cut it off!
Just like a compressed spring suddenly burst open and shot out, Musashi drew a hazy trajectory of the white horse flying through the gap, and cut out a stunning Iai that countless swordsmen could not catch up with.
Like the spring breeze that cuts through willow leaves, it slashes straight towards Kumokawa's waist!
Almost at the same time, Kumokawa also drew his sword.
At a terrifying speed that even Musashi felt unbelievable, he completed the visual and carp-kiri cuts, as well as the draw and cut.
Whoops! !
Their robes were blown taut by the wind, and the two voices were like swaying horses, making it difficult to distinguish the speed of the two.
Only two terrifying roars could be heard in the wind, and everything in front of the screams would be torn apart.
The next moment, the tea mist between the two was cut open by the light of the sword, and the two swords collided.
Bang!!
The shock of the impact was like an explosion, and even Yoshitaka, who was outside the house at the moment, could clearly feel the buzzing in his ears.
The sonic boom and wind pressure blast swept through the entire tea room.
Even the fire that warmed the tea was blown out, and the branches in the vase on the table withered and fell!
The tatami beneath the two of them could not withstand the force of the downward pressure, and it instantly collapsed into two pieces.
Under the dim light, Musashi's tiger's mouth had been split open, and blood was oozing from the deep gash. The handle of the sword was soaked in blood, and his wrist was slightly sprained.
But Musashi seemed to be unaware of the pain, gradually clenching the bloody palm, and his left hand had already touched his waist.
Clang!!
Kumokawa pressed down the sword mercilessly, and slashed towards Musashi with the heavy pressure without any loss of strength.
Musashi blocked the sharp sword with the scabbard that was aimed at his shoulder and resisted the sharp sword, but he was still forced to kneel on the ground, and blood flowed after the sword penetrated his flesh.
The next moment, Kumokawa narrowed his eyes and stepped back without hesitation.
Almost at the same time, Musashi's robe suddenly lifted up, revealing the second sword on his waist, which was shorter in comparison.
Bah!
Musashi pulled out the sword, the tip of the sword touched Kumokawa's forehead and cut into the air.
Kumokawa's green side face was illuminated by the clear light of the blade.
But without stopping at all, Musashi swung the sword again and slashed down diagonally, intending to cut Kumokawa in two from his neck to his left waist.
But before he could get close to his neck, Kumokawa stopped him with his sword and made a sharp sound.
"Tantō?"
Kumokawa was not surprised by this move.
The combination of two swords, one long and one short, is very common among orthodox warriors.
Samurai are not moral in their life-and-death sword fights. The two sides confront each other with swords, and pull out another sword to stab each other through. It is not considered a sinister method, and it is even completely in line with the samurai's method of winning.
However, when Kumokawa saw the sword in front of him clearly, he raised his eyebrows.
Although it is the same thing, to be precise, it is not tantō, but Kodachi.
"Two-sword style?" Kumokawa's tone was curious, and at the same time, he whirled his body and struck out with his elbow.
Musashi's raised knee attack also hit him at the same time.
Bang!!
Elbows and knees smashed together, making a crack of bones and raising sawdust from the ground.
The weaker Musashi's knees felt numb, and he staggered back a few steps to distance himself from him.
But he quickly adjusted, stood firm and looked at Kumokawa intently.
"No, this is Niten Ichi-ryū!"
Musashi raised his sword with his right hand, and held the small sword with his left hand in front of his chest. His posture became more condensed. He stared at Kumokawa and said in a deep voice: "The next step is to get serious."
He began to study swordsmanship when he was a child, traveling around the country and meeting various samurai swordsmen, and developed his own swordsmanship style. However, after obtaining the title of Sword Saint, he rarely used Niten Ichi-ryū.
Niten Ichi-ryū represents not only a kind of swordsmanship, but more like a spirit.
Do everything you can and have the determination to win.
But it's been a long time since anyone could make him feel victorious.
In the entire ninja world, he is the pinnacle of swordsmanship.
Whether it is the group of warriors from the Land of Iron or the young Hanzo today.
In the path of swordsmanship, he has gone even further than them.
But now, looking at the rising star in front of him who surprised him, Musashi rekindled the desire to win when he was young.
Come on, young man.
Even though my strength and speed have regressed a lot, I will never lose to you in terms of skill.
(End of chapter)