“Close combat?
He’s choosing close combat?”
“Is he completely reckless?
The man can’t even form hand seals — why not use ninjutsu!”
Ōshima and Ono had dropped their hope of watching Yuu fail.
They had assumed that arrogant as he was, he would still rely on ninjutsu — most likely the Uchiha’s signature Fire Style — forcing Sōrō to dodge and giving them the perfect opening to strike.
Instead, Yuu had chosen the most foolish possible path, making it nearly impossible for them to step in.
“Ha!” Sōrō roared.
“Uchiha brat — you dare meet me blade to blade?
How little do you think of the Seven Swordsmen’s title?”
Yuu gave no answer.
His mind was already running through every angle the system had laid out for him.
Some distance away, Minato’s team watched closely.
“Hey Obito — is your brother actually good at close combat?” Rin asked.
“Close combat?
Uh… I’m not really sure,” Obito stammered, glancing nervously at Minato.
“But… he should be strong, right?”
He had barely ever received direct training from his brother.
“You don’t know?” Rin stared at him in shock.
Minato and Kakashi both fixed their gaze on Yuu.
Neither was weak in melee — but when Yuu lunged with nothing more than a plain, straightforward kunai thrust, both lowered their expectations sharply.
“Ugh — just a basic stab?” Ōshima groaned.
“This kid’s taijutsu must be terrible.”
“Terrible’s one thing — he might not even walk away alive,” Ono added, growing genuinely worried.
“Sensei — what do you think?” Obito called through the fog, unable to see clearly.
Minato did not answer — but he drew his own kunai, clearly ready to intervene at any moment.
Unlike Ōshima and Ono, he would not judge by appearances alone — yet he still thought Yuu had been far too reckless.
Charging a long‑sword‑wielding opponent head‑on with nothing but a kunai, no feints, no diversionary ninjutsu… it was far from the smartest choice.
“Obito,” Kakashi said flatly.
“Your brother’s close‑combat skill is likely very poor.
Everyone in the shinobi world knows: against a taijutsu master, use ninjutsu.
If you must close in, use stealth — substitution, clones, anything to hide your true intent.
Matching weapons head‑on is the worst possible move.”
“The worst possible?” Obito asked, disbelieving. New chapters come out on g.com first.
“Kakashi is right,” Minato added quietly.
“In any straight fight, the longer weapon always holds the advantage.
With a shorter blade, you must rely on surprise.
To meet his blade directly — your brother is giving up every edge he has in raw strength.”
After hearing Minato‑sensei’s explanation, Obito and Rin understood at once.
“Does that mean… my brother will fall behind?”
Minato nodded gently.
“From what we can see, yes.
And even though he has lost one arm, his greatest skill — swordsmanship — has barely diminished at all.
In fact, relying entirely on it may make him even deadlier in close‑quarters combat.”
Obito watched his brother charge forward and shouted instinctively: “Brother, look out!”
Whether the distance was too great or he simply did not hear, Yuu paid no heed — he kept advancing without hesitation, driving straight in with that same plain thrust.
Swish!
Sōrō’s blade sliced down from above, as if intending to split the approaching Yuu clean in two.
“Very steady, disciplined form,” Minato noted.
“He is forcing your brother to change his stance, and trying to overpower him in a contest of strength.
With only a kunai in hand, your brother is at a clear disadvantage in raw power.”
Kakashi nodded in full agreement, sharing exactly the same assessment.
On the field, Yuu saw the strike unfold exactly as it had appeared in the predictive vision drawn from his system.
Drawing on Minato’s own fighting style and the principles of Jeet Kune Do he had learned from Master, he decided to turn Sōrō’s very move into an opening.
And exactly how to do it was already clear in his mind.
Clang!
Clang!
Clang!
The sharp sequence of impacts took Sōrō completely by surprise.
He had fully expected Yuu to block desperately under the pressure — instead, Yuu slowed just enough to slip past the blade by a hair’s breadth, and his kunai struck dead‑center on the flat of the sword.
The timing was impossibly precise, as if he had known exactly where the blade would land long before it fell.
Sōrō could not believe his fastest strike had been read so perfectly.
Now Yuu was breaking his force with a single point; the immense momentum made the heavy sword waver uncontrollably in his grip, and he stumbled backward.
Sōrō hesitated only a moment.
Whether it was pure luck or true mastery of timing, caution won out — he would take one step back first.
The power of his strike had been cut short, and his body had not yet gathered new strength for the next; fighting on now would only work against him.
“Good judgment on his part,” Minato said.
“But Obito — I take back what I said earlier. This chapter is updated first at g.com.
Your brother may be exceptionally skilled in close combat indeed.”
Minato placed himself in Yuu’s position; if it were him, he would press forward relentlessly, deny the enemy any chance to rebuild momentum, match speed with speed, pull the fight into his own rhythm, and seize the upper hand.
“If it were me,” Minato said aloud, I would keep closing the gap, never giving him room to shift.
The best way is to keep thrusting, forcing him to keep blocking.
Use that single point to break his surface — not only erasing his strength disadvantage entirely, but turning it against him.
No sooner had the words left his mouth than Yuu did exactly that, pressing forward without pause, giving Sōrō not the slightest chance to change his stance.
“Teacher, you’re amazing!” Rin gasped, eyes shining with admiration.
Obito felt the same — it was as if Minato could see the future itself.
“Obito, Rin,” Minato said calmly, “every ninja fights in their own way.
Just because it does not match my analysis does not mean it is inferior.
There are many other valid approaches.
It simply means your brother’s style is very similar to mine.”
“Are there other ways to do it?” Obito asked.
“Certainly — you could use a clone to mask your approach and strike from behind.
That is a favorite tactic for many, meant to confuse the enemy’s reading.
You must keep that possibility in mind as well.”
Minato continued: “This Kirigakure deserter chose the most stable response precisely because he feared your brother might use such a clone trick.
He will not rush or overcommit — at the very least, the weight of impact when blades meet tells him whether he is striking flesh or shadow.”
“Now it all comes down to who forces the other to flinch first.
Your brother holds the edge.
If this keeps up, the deserter will inevitably suffer — his chance of victory shrinks by the second.
I never expected him to deliberately draw the enemy’s greatest strength into such a brutal, close‑quarters exchange right from the start!”
Obito listened, still a little lost and unable to follow all the details — but reassured that his brother seemed to have the upper hand, he kept watching.
Minato and Kakashi exchanged a glance; both wondered what they would do if they stood in Yuu’s place right now.
“Those shifts in position — timing and angle are flawless,” Kakashi murmured.
“True mastery of melee.
And that first thrust?
It was never reckless — it was entirely intentional.”
Like Minato, Kakashi reached the same conclusion — then his eyes widened in disbelief as he watched Yuu move.
“That is Hatake clan technique.
Why does he know our family’s style?
Did Father teach him?
But he is Uchiha…”