Naruto : The System Files

Chapter no.31 Herald of Hephaestus

"This is the first time I'm experiencing this," I thought, gritting my teeth as I maintained my focus.

Sword duels were intense, and every move had to be precise.

With a resounding boom, Tenten and I both stepped back, granting ourselves a brief respite.

The tension hung heavy in the air as she lunged forward again, her katana slicing through the air with lethal intent.

I found myself driven back, each block and parry I performed pushing me further toward the defensive.

Tenten's strategy was clear; she was trying to control the flow of the fight, dictating the pace and direction with her aggressive approach.

I kept my footing light, shifting my weight from one leg to the other, ready to change direction at a moment's notice.

My arms worked in tandem, my right hand gripping the katana firmly for slashes and cuts, while my left hand assisted in guiding the blade for more controlled blocks.

As Tenten's blade came at me in a diagonal slash, I sidestepped, redirecting her momentum to throw her off balance. This opened her up for a counterattack. Seizing the opportunity, I aimed a quick thrust towards her side, trying to slip past her defenses. But Tenten was quick to recover, twisting her body to let my blade slide harmlessly away, her counter-move a mere blur.

My movements melded agility with precision, narrowly dodging Tenten's relentless strikes.

In a fierce display of her skill, Tenten's blade sliced through a display stand, severing it cleanly in half.

Debris clattered to the floor, yet she didn't pause, her katana a continuous blur as she pressed her assault.

As Tenten executed a complex wrist twist, her katana arced swiftly towards my head. Reacting in the nick of time, I raised my sword, the guard intercepting the blow.

The force jolted me backward, but I quickly regained my balance and countered, my blade sweeping upward to leave a shallow cut across Tenten's shoulder.

"Do you want to continue?" I asked, my concern breaking through as I noticed her determination not waning.

Her eyes narrowed, flames of determination igniting within them. She responded with an Iai attack—a swift draw-and-cut technique from the scabbard—that caught me off guard. The sheer power of her strike overwhelmed my defenses, pushing me back and nearly toppling me over.

Switching tactics swiftly, I dropped my katana and unleashed a barrage of shurikens and kunai. Tenten, with astounding speed, sliced through each one, her katana moving in a rhythmic, deadly dance.

Not done yet, I threw a scroll towards her, which she instinctively cut, releasing a billowing cloud of smoke into the air. I seized the moment and lunged forward from behind the smokescreen, but Tenten was ready. She parried my attack, yet the force of the master strike sent her skidding across the shop floor. Using her katana, she managed to stop herself, digging the blade into the ground to halt her backward momentum.

I let my katana glow with an ominous energy as I issued a stern warning, "Defend or else, you'll die."

"Why didn't you use your last attack?" Tenten asked, dusting herself off as she rose from the debris.

"Last thing I checked, a weapon specialist isn't limited to a katana," I shot back, knowing full well Tenten had more tricks up her sleeve.

Without a moment's pause, Tenten hurled her katana straight at me. I raised my own blade in response, clashing against hers mid-air, sending a shower of sparks flying around us. Before I could regain my footing, Tenten unfurled two scrolls, each spilling forth a dense cloud of smoke that swiftly enveloped the area.