I became the Lord of the Eternal World in Tokyo.

One of them was the ronin who had trained for over ten years since childhood and fought on the battlefield for over ten years.

He simply cannot accept this fact.

If he accepts it, his previous worldview will be shattered.

So the ronin stared wide-eyed, bloodshot eyes, muttering repeatedly, "Failure, failure, give me failure, failure, failure..."

"Oh, it's finally here."

Uesugi Tetsu turned around and waved to Shiraishi, who had been forcibly dragged to the edge of the field by the two-foot-tall man: "Shiraishi, you go first."

Following his words, countless eyes focused on Shiraishi, who was still holding a half-eaten pastry in his hand and had his mouth agape.

He spoke as if no one else was around.

"Isn't this a good opportunity to test the results of my training these past few days?"

"Ugh?"

Shiraishi, who had been wanting to bury himself in the crowd and continue slacking off, got goosebumps all over from all those stares. His hand trembled involuntarily, causing the pastries to fall to the ground.

But he quickly squatted down, picked up the pastry, and popped it into his mouth.

In any case, the food itself is not wrong, and it should not be wasted!

After munching on the pastries, Shiraishi suddenly realized what Uesugi Tetsu had just said to him.

Then, he was pinned to the spot by the malicious gazes coming from all directions, unable to move.

"Let...let me try my hand at slashing? Now?!"

He stammered, racking his brains to come up with an excuse: "But boss, I don't have a knife."

"It's okay if you don't have a sword, just throw punches." Uesugi Tetsu asked the samurai Zanzemaru, "Is that right?"

Samurai Zanzemaru swayed, and replied in a deep voice.

"That is indeed the case."

Shiraishi stood there, drenched in sweat, wishing he could go back and slap his past self from a few hours earlier.

You, what kind of bullshit opinion did you come up with out of nowhere!

It's okay now!

Uesugi Tetsuya scrutinized the motionless Shiraishi and asked with a hint of doubt, "Shiraishi, are you scared just because there are so few people watching over you?"

"Afraid? What's there to be afraid of!"

Even though his fingers were so stiff he couldn't move them at all, Shiraishi still stubbornly kept calling out.

"Boss, don't underestimate me! I'm not afraid!"

"I think the toughest thing about you is your mouth."

Uesugi Tetsu walked over with a smile and a shake of his head, grabbed Shiraishi's slender wrist, and brought him in front of the samurai Zanzemaru.

Just as Shiraishi was about to turn and run away under so many stares, a gentle voice entered his ears.

"Come on, take a deep breath."

Shiraishi subconsciously followed suit.

Uesugi Tetsu said calmly, "If you can't even withstand this much pressure, how will you become a great ninja in the future?"

"A true ninja is one who remains unmoved even when a mountain collapses before him. Whether it is contempt, praise, or criticism and disdain from the outside world, it will only pass by like a gentle breeze, having no effect on him whatsoever."

In the heart of a great ninja, there is only a goal.

The warm, comforting energy traveled along with the words to Bai Shi's hands, easing the coldness and stiffness in him.

Uesugi Tetsu continued softly, "So, Shiraishi, what is your goal now?"

Shiraishi did not reply.

But Uesugi Tetsu felt the little hand slip out of his palm.

Immediately afterwards, Shiraishi's voice, which had gradually relaxed, rang out.

"Boss, I've noticed that you speak with such eloquence. People who are literate and educated are definitely different from a wild kid like me."

As he spoke, he took a step and walked up to the samurai Zanzemaru.

Shiraishi looked up at the samurai Zanzemaru, who was taller than two of him combined, and remained silent for a moment.

But the samurai Zanzemaru greeted him first, his voice calm.

"Greetings, Mr. Shiraishi."

"Forehead……"

Shiraishi, caught off guard, paused for a moment before quickly bowing and saying, "Lord Zanzemaru! Please enlighten me!"

"Lord Shiroishi, please feel free to use your full strength to verify yourself and set the standard for your path."

Samurai Zanzemaru gave a somewhat awkward chuckle.

"After all, my existence is for this purpose."

"Okay... okay."

For some reason, a strange sense of security welled up in Shiraishi's heart.

He glanced back at Uesugi Tetsuya standing behind him, took another deep breath, and used his Qi Gathering Technique to control his violently beating heartbeat.

Shiraishi clenched his fist tightly and struck a very strange pose according to the pattern in the manual.

"drink!"

A loud, energetic shout rang out, and Shiraishi's small fist landed at a tricky angle beneath Samurai Zanzemaru.

Samurai Zanzemaru swayed almost imperceptibly, then reported the number truthfully.

"Slashing power, 206 guan—that's right!"

Uesugi Tetsuya, standing behind, blinked in surprise, thinking to himself, "Not bad."

After only a few days of training, his fist strength has increased from a few guan (a unit of weight) for an ordinary child to almost half the initial strength of a two-foot-tall adult.

But the samurai around him who could easily slay hundreds or thousands of kan did not think so at all.

Then, wave after wave of laughter rose up.

Even the ronin who had been glaring with bloodshot eyes was now laughing, after all, he could cut down nearly a thousand kan with his eyes closed.

Shiraishi, who had just snapped out of his full-force punch, paused for a moment, then heard a deafening burst of laughter.

He blinked, looked down at his small, thin fists, and wondered to himself—

Am I... really nothing at all?

"Humph, a bunch of trash."

Shibata Katsuie snorted coldly, already gripping the hilt of his sword.

If it weren't for the Onmyoji Che in front of him, he would have definitely shouted angrily at those useless samurai who only dared to mock children.

This child looks pale and thin, probably not long ago he couldn't even get enough to eat... but now he can do 200 guan with one punch.

Shibata Katsuie couldn't help but mutter to himself, drawing the attention of the samurai in front who were bursting into laughter: "You think you can achieve this level after ten or fifteen days of training?"

He clicked his tongue, then reached out and gripped the samurai's shoulder tightly, causing the bones to crack and pop.

Shibata Katsuie said coldly,

Before you laugh at others, ask yourself if you deserve it!

……

"Will they still be able to laugh later?"

Uesugi Tetsu patted Shiraishi's slightly trembling head and said gently, "Two hundred kan is a very good result, even better than two feet."

"But don't get arrogant yet... Now, take two steps back."

As Shiraishi retreated to the edge of the arena without turning around, Uesugi Tetsu calmly drew Kaga Kiyomitsu, a sword that had been sealed in its crimson scabbard for a long time, from his waist.

"Xiao Jia, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."

Kaga Kiyomitsu, whose surface was covered in a viscous, pale color, trembled happily and emitted a clear, crisp sword sound.

The sound of the blades rippled like water, calming the restless atmosphere.

Stab it!

Then, blinding lightning emerged from Uesugi Tetsuya's hand, surged forth, and spread across the blade amidst a rumbling sound, illuminating every pair of eyes that looked in this direction.

In an instant, no one spoke, and no one laughed anymore.

The only sound in the air was the faint crackling of thunder.

Thunder, a terrifying force that has belonged only to nature since ancient times.

At this moment, it is being controlled by humans in the palm of their hands!

Every single person's face was filled with shock.

Because hearsay and seeing things with your own eyes are two completely different things!

pat.

The pale and austere Hannya mask appeared out of nowhere and landed on Uesugi Tetsuya's waist, making the samurai who were staring at him feel as if their hearts were being squeezed tightly at that moment.

A silent aura of authority spread.

'Onmyoji Che... truly lives up to his reputation.'

Uesugi Tetsu's face remained completely still, like a rock.

Uesugi Tetsuya, feeling his physical strength had been greatly enhanced once again, took three breaths to adjust.

Then, he once again adopted the classic three-stage thrust stance towards the samurai Zanzemaru, who was standing close at hand.

The Qi circulation suddenly erupted and spread, no longer hiding and clinging to the skin.

The intense, scorching aura surrounded Uesugi Tetsuya, rustling and crackling.

Crack!

As his spiritual energy rapidly depleted, the lightning surging on Kaga Kiyomitsu's blade grew thicker and brighter.

Shibata Katsuie stared at the scene, his back, also enveloped by the circulating qi, was already unknowingly covered in cold sweat.

"monkey."

His voice was dry.

"Now, I somewhat believe what you said about him being able to do it."

Fujikichiro simply stared blankly without replying.

He was so stunned by the sight before him that he couldn't move freely.

"breathe--"

The enormous breathing sounds, like those of a dragon and a tiger, grew increasingly intense.

Uesugi Tetsu lowered his eyes, recalling everything he had learned so far.

Ki Harmony Technique, Natural Mind-Control Flow, Corona Breathing Method, Five Thunder Techniques - Ki Harmony, Spirit Control Technique...

Countless fragments and memories flooded my mind.

Uesugi Tetsu gently placed them, drop by drop, along with his inner energy, onto Kaga Kiyomitsu's blade.

Only after personally standing before the samurai's sword, Zetsu, did Uesugi Tetsu realize that this was not a simple test of swordsmanship.

And just as the samurai Zanzemaru said—use it to prove oneself and set a guiding principle!

Put everything into this one strike!

Uesugi Tetsuya suddenly opened his eyes and took a step forward.

In that instant, the violent energy and lightning all contracted to the seventy-two-centimeter-long pale blade!

cut!

The dazzling light, so bright it was impossible to look directly at, transformed into a thin line of white light that flashed past and landed on the massive samurai Zanzemaru.