As a swordsman, encountering an opponent who relies purely on brute strength is inevitable.
Ryoji had understood this principle long ago. He had once studied the philosophy of Tai Chi— a martial art that uses softness to overcome hardness— and found a way to integrate its principles into his own swordsmanship.
Against opponents with overwhelming power, he often employed this technique.
Yet, he had never given it a formal name.
After all, it was derived from Tai Chi, which already had an established identity, such as the Tai Chi Sword. Claiming it as his own creation would have felt arrogant and unnecessary.
Fortunately, Kurashiki Kuraudo's strength wasn't overwhelmingly superior to his. The gap in skill between them was significant, allowing Ryoji to use precision and technique to redirect force— turning an opponent's power against them, much like using "four ounces to move a thousand pounds."
If Kuraudo's strength had been dozens of times greater than his own, this battle would have ended long ago.
"However, I've figured out your secret." Ryoji narrowed his eyes, his sharp gaze locking onto Kuraudo.
"Oh?" Kuraudo let out an amused hum.
"The last two strikes— by all logic, you shouldn't have been able to dodge them. And yet, you not only evaded but counterattacked at the same time. From my perspective, that wasn't a trap to lure me in, which means you don't have precognition. Nor do you seem to rely purely on intuition…" Ryoji paused, then smirked slightly. "Which means your ability is something else entirely."
Kuraudo's lips curled into a grin, intrigued.
"If I'm not mistaken, your trait is quite simple— an extraordinary neural response speed." Ryoji's voice was firm, his confidence unwavering.
"That's the real reason you were able to fight on equal footing with Ayatsuji Kaito."
Ayatsuji Kaito was a swordsman of exceptional skill, recognized as one of the strongest in Japan.
Ryoji had studied his matches and understood that if Kaito had been in peak condition, defeating him with just a wooden sword should have been impossible. In fact, Kaito had the potential to completely overturn the fight.
Yet, Kaito lost to Kuraudo, despite Kuraudo having no formal sword training. Part of that was due to his heart condition, which had weakened him. But the other, more significant reason—
Was Kuraudo's inhumanly fast neural response speed.
The difference in raw physical ability between them wasn't enough to tip the scales. In a battle of pure swordsmanship, Kaito's technique should have more than made up for any slight physical disadvantage.
Just as Ryoji now suppressed Kuraudo through sheer skill alone.
"The human nervous system has its limits. No matter how much you train, there's a cap on how fast your reflexes can be. For most people, reaching a reaction speed of 0.1 seconds is already near the peak of human potential.
But you…" Ryoji's eyes sharpened. "Your neural response speed is at least 0.05 seconds— far beyond human limitations."
Neural response speed— also called reflex speed— measured the time it took for a person to perceive an event, process it, and execute a response.
Ryoji was naturally gifted, with reaction times faster than most.
Yet, no matter how high his potential, he was still bound by the limits of human biology. His reflex speed currently ranged between 0.12 and 0.13 seconds.
By contrast, Kuraudo's had already entered the realm of superhuman ability.
A reaction speed of 0.05 seconds meant that in the same span of time where an average fighter could make a single move—
Kuraudo could make two.
Or even three.
That was the key behind his unorthodox movements— the reason he could counter Ryoji's attacks from impossible angles and block strikes he should never have been able to see coming.
Because in battle, reaction speed was the foundation of everything.
No matter how much you trained your body, refined your technique, or mastered tactics—
If your reactions were too slow, none of it mattered.
To Kuraudo, the flow of combat was like playing rock-paper-scissors in slow motion. Every movement of his opponent was processed before they even completed it, allowing him to act with near-perfect anticipation.
"Hahaha! Correct!" Kurashiki Kuraudo let out a hearty laugh, his expression utterly carefree.
"Heh… To think you managed to see through my Divine Speed Reflex on our very first fight— you're the first in history to do that. I'll give you credit for it!" His grin widened, filled with confidence. "But so what? Even if you understand it, what can you do? This isn't some sword technique or a learned ability. It's my innate skill! There's no counter to it!"
Divine Speed Reflex wasn't a technique that could be overcome through strategy or training.
It was a talent— something he was born with.
As far as Kuraudo was concerned, that made it absolute.
"Hmm." A cold chuckle interrupted his thoughts.
"So that's what you think, huh?" Ryoji's voice was laced with amusement. "You believe that just because you have Divine Speed Reflex, you're untouchable?"
"Let me tell you something interesting… Reflex speed is just another form of speed. And as long as it's speed—" Ryoji's gaze sharpened. "—it belongs to me."
Kuraudo's grin stiffened.
'What the hell was this guy saying?'
"Speed is his domain"? What does that even mean?"
"Setting: Neural reaction speed. Target: Kurashiki Kuraudo." Ryoji silently activated his ability. Then, he opened his eyes.
Kuraudo felt a chill crawl up his spine.
Up until now, Ryoji's gaze had already been unnerving— razor-sharp, as if it could dissect every flaw in an instant.
But this time, it was different.
Now, his eyes looked like they could pierce through reality itself.
"...Then show me how you plan to counter Divine Speed Reflex!" Kuraudo's grin faded as he gripped his weapon tightly.
With a powerful swing, he slashed his white-bone katana.
In an instant, the blade of his Device, Orochimaru, twisted like a serpent. Then—
It stretched.
The sword extended unnaturally, slithering toward Ryoji in an unpredictable arc!
This was Kuraudo's true Device— the Snake Bone Blade!
But that wasn't all.
Combined with his sword technique ability, he could freely manipulate the blade's movements, making its attacks completely erratic and impossible to predict.
"Snake Bite!"
The extended blade lashed out from two angles, moving even faster than before. With Divine Speed Reflex, he could execute two slashes in the blink of an eye—
To the untrained eye, it looked like two enormous serpents striking at the same time.
An ordinary swordsman would have panicked, unable to tell which strike was real and which was a feint.
But Ryoji—
He simply focused his gaze on the snake to his left, causing Kuraudo to flinch.
"You—!?"
He immediately noticed where Ryoji was looking and his eyes widened.
"He saw through it?!"
Gritting his teeth, he pushed forward.
"Then how about this?!"
He sped up his blade once again. The two serpent-like slashes suddenly split in mid-air—
And became four.
Four deadly strikes, striking from four different angles, their venomous fangs ready to tear Ryoji apart the moment they made contact.
There was no way to dodge them all.
But—
Ryoji's eyes moved again.
He locked onto the serpent in the upper right.
"...Again!?" Kuraudo felt a chill run down his spine.
This isn't possible! There was no way this was just intuition. If Ryoji was simply relying on instinct, his body would have moved first. But instead—
His eyes had already locked onto the real blade.
Which meant—
He was reacting in time! But that didn't make sense!
Based on everything Kuraudo had observed from their fight so far, Ryoji's neural response speed shouldn't be fast enough to do this!
"Since that's the case—!" Kuraudo clenched his jaw.
He refused to accept it. His Divine Speed Reflex was absolute. And he was about to prove it. Pushing his reflexes to the limit, he unleashed the strongest technique in his arsenal.
"—Yamata no Orochi!"
(End of Chapter)
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