Obito froze when he saw the one-tomoe Sharingan appear in Kiyohane’s eyes.
“Sha… Sharingan?!”
He shoved his yellow goggles up in disbelief and rubbed his eyes, making sure he hadn’t seen wrong.
The pattern in Kiyohane’s crimson eyes was unmistakably the Sharingan.
“How is that possible…?
I’ve never seen him in the clan!”
Obito was baffled.
The Uchiha all lived in the same district.
Everyone saw each other coming and going, so most of them were familiar faces.
Rin glanced at Obito and quietly explained, “You were late during Kiyohane-kun’s self-introduction, remember?
He said he lives with Lady Tsunade.
It sounds like he has deep ties to the Senju clan.”
“Senju?”
Obito frowned, trying hard to search through his little brain for anything related to that name.
“Wasn’t that clan dissolved years ago?”
He thought about it carefully, then suddenly seemed to remember something.
“Wait… I think my grandma told me about this before.
There was some huge rumor back then about a Senju and an Uchiha getting together or something…”
Obito scratched his head.
Those were just bedtime stories his grandmother had told him in passing.
He had been half-asleep at the time and barely remembered any details.
“Forget it.
Doesn’t matter.”
Obito shook his head.
He was a pure-blooded Uchiha and still hadn’t awakened the Sharingan, so how had Kiyohane, a mixed-blood, managed to awaken his?
While Obito was struggling with that thought, Kiyohane and Kakashi had already taken their stances.
Kiyohane was purely copying Kakashi.
He did not really know swordsmanship; he only had a faint understanding of it.
The reason he dared challenge Kakashi was the Sharingan.
On the day Kiyohane was born, he had already possessed the Sharingan.
At the time, both of his parents had been utterly stunned.
Kiyohane guessed it was because the Senju’s Yang Release and the Uchiha’s Yin Release had somehow fused together, causing him to be born with the Sharingan.
The Sharingan…
Kakashi’s thoughts sharpened.
He remembered that the Sharingan not only greatly enhanced dynamic vision, but also possessed abilities such as copying techniques and hypnosis.
Come to think of it, this was his first time fighting a shinobi who had awakened the Sharingan.
Although it was only a one-tomoe Sharingan, its dynamic vision was still enough to capture many subtle movements that ordinary people could not perceive.
He could not attack recklessly.
Kakashi made up his mind, tightened his grip on the branch in his hand, and maintained a defensive posture.
Kiyohane saw his caution and did not stand on ceremony.
He struck first.
The branch cut through the air, slashing diagonally toward Kakashi.
His movement was… inexperienced.
Kakashi easily sidestepped it, his brows furrowing slightly.
It felt like the person holding the sword rarely handled one at all.
Even the most basic way of applying force was somewhat awkward.
Strange.
Since he had awakened the Sharingan, his taijutsu and swordsmanship should not have been this clumsy.
Kakashi did not rush to counterattack.
He wanted to observe a little longer.
Kiyohane thrust his branch forward again.
This time, it was slightly better than before, but it was still full of openings.
Kakashi deflected Kiyohane’s branch.
The two continued exchanging moves for several rounds.
Considering that Kiyohane had barely studied swordsmanship, Kakashi chose a conservative fighting style.
Gradually, Kakashi noticed something was off.
Kiyohane’s movements were becoming smoother at a visible pace.
The awkwardness from his first swing was quickly fading.
He was still far from a true swordsman, but the speed of his improvement was honestly astonishing.
Kakashi could not help increasing his speed.
The branch in his hand moved with sharper, cleaner strikes.
And yet Kiyohane’s Sharingan spun rapidly, capturing every single one of Kakashi’s movements with perfect clarity.
Even if Kakashi was not using his full strength, this level of exchange still should not have been something a beginner could handle.
“Kiyohane, how long have you practiced swordsmanship?” Kakashi finally asked.
“I haven’t.”
Kiyohane shook his head.
“I just think swordsmanship is interesting.”
Kakashi’s movements paused slightly.
He had never practiced?
Then this was Kiyohane’s first time touching swordsmanship?
Kakashi looked into Kiyohane’s crimson Sharingan, and an indescribable feeling rose in his chest.
Was this the true power of the Sharingan?
Or was Kiyohane simply highly talented in swordsmanship to begin with?
Either way, it was astonishing.
After all, Kakashi had never seen anyone awaken the Sharingan at six years old.
Before Kiyohane could continue carefully observing Kakashi’s movements, a new trait arrived.
[Collectible trait detected: Swordsmanship Foundation.]
[E-rank Trait: Swordsmanship Foundation.]
[Effect: Your swordsmanship fundamentals increase by 10%.]
Kiyohane raised an eyebrow slightly.
The branch in his hand suddenly felt much lighter.
His previously clumsy movements became far more natural.
The swordsmanship details he had just observed through the Sharingan seemed to turn into physical instinct in that instant.
In Kakashi’s eyes, it was an entirely different scene.
Kiyohane’s learning speed had suddenly surged again.
At first, he could only defend passively.
Now, he was actually managing to launch a few decent counterattacks.
Was this guy really holding a sword for the first time?
Obito stared from the side, completely dumbfounded.
He tugged at Rin’s sleeve and said, “Rin, why can Kiyohane fight Kakashi back and forth like that?
That guy may be annoying, but his swordsmanship is seriously strong.”
Rin was not too sure either.
After hesitating for a moment, she said, “Maybe… Kiyohane-kun’s Sharingan is helping him?”
“Hmph!”
The moment Obito heard that, his energy came roaring back.
“Once I awaken my Sharingan, I’ll definitely be stronger than Kiyohane!”
The spar continued in the clearing.
But in the end, the scales were still tilted.
Even with the Sharingan’s support and the trait’s boost, the experience Kakashi had accumulated from practicing swordsmanship since childhood was not something Kiyohane could catch up to so easily.
Not to mention that Kakashi himself was a genius among geniuses.
Swish.
Kakashi’s branch tapped Kiyohane’s wrist.
The branch slipped from Kiyohane’s hand, fell to the ground, and bounced twice.
“I lost,” Kiyohane said calmly.
“As expected, you’re amazing, Kakashi.”
Kakashi only smiled wryly and shook his head as he picked up the branch Kiyohane had dropped.
“I’ve been practicing for years.
You only just touched swordsmanship for the first time…”
He did not finish the sentence, but his meaning was already clear.
Given the same amount of time, the result might be hard to predict.
At the side, Obito crossed his arms with an unconvinced look.
“Hmph.
I just haven’t gotten serious yet.
Once I awaken my Sharingan, I’ll be a swordsmanship genius too!”
Kakashi glanced at him.
Obito said that sort of thing who knew how many times a day.
Kakashi was already tired of hearing it.
So he replied flatly, “Whether you can even awaken the Sharingan is still a question.”
“What did you say?!”
Obito instantly flared up, veins jumping on his forehead.
Damn Hatake brat!
Naturally evil Hatake brat!
Wait, that did not sound like the right phrase for the Hatake clan…
The vocabulary in Obito’s head was a little scrambled, but he still glared fiercely at Kakashi.
Then he glanced at Kiyohane.
Kiyohane’s eyes had already returned to their normal black, and he was wiping his hands with a handkerchief.
A brat connected to the Senju had to be evil too!
Obito silently decided that Kiyohane also belonged in the category of “damn geniuses.”