Engetsu!

The night sky stretched overhead like a black canvas, stitched with stars and bathed in the luminance of the moon. Its glow washed over the 10th Division's practice ground, setting the stage for an encounter both intimate and intense. Kazuki and Isshin stood across from each other, Zanpakuto in hand.

"Ready?" Isshin asked, breaking the silence.

Kazuki took a deep breath, feeling the power of his Zanpakuto resonate with him. "Always."

A seamless dance unfolded as they lunged at each other, swords clashing in a symphony of sparks and reverberating metal. Their movements were fluid and almost poetic—an artwork of skill and power. They parried and dodged, each seeking an opening, an opportunity to press the advantage.

"Nice move," Isshin said, sidestepping a particularly forceful strike from Kazuki. "But you're not gonna catch me that easily."

"I wouldn't dream of it," Kazuki retorted, spinning around to land a strike that Isshin narrowly deflected.

The two warriors locked blades, their eyes meeting for a fleeting second. Then, with a simultaneous grunt, they disengaged, each taking a few steps back to gain some breathing room.

"So," Isshin began, lowering his Zanpakuto to his side. "Feeling a little more comfortable with your Zanpakuto now?"

Kazuki lowered his weapon too, exhaling softly. "Much more than when I started, thanks to you."

"You were a quick study," Isshin said. "It wasn't hard to show you the ropes."

"But it was you who did. That means a lot," Kazuki said, a touch of earnestness in his voice.

Isshin chuckled. "No need for sentimentality. We're still in the middle of a duel."

With that, Isshin lunged forward, faster this time, initiating a new round of clashes. Kazuki met him in the center, and their swords sang once again, filling the night with echoes of steel against steel.

As they fought, the air around them seemed to pulsate, almost as if it was alive. Their spiritual pressure intermingled, invisible waves that pushed against one another, each trying to overcome the other.

"You've got a strong spiritual pressure, Kazuki," Isshin said, blocking a diagonal slash.

"And you've got decades of experience," Kazuki replied, narrowly dodging a counter-attack. "It's a fair match."

Although Isshin was grinning, he couldn't shake the sense of astonishment at Kazuki's rapid progress. For a young man who had yet to officially graduate from the Academy's advanced classes, Kazuki's talent bordered on the unnatural. Fighting him without resorting to the true form of his Zanpakuto felt like a self-imposed handicap.

"All right, let's up the stakes," Isshin said, taking a deep breath as he prepared to invoke a Kido spell.

A blue aura gathered around his outstretched hand. "Hado Number Thirty-One: Shakkaho!"

A blazing sphere of red energy burst forth, speeding towards Kazuki. But before it could make contact, Kazuki intoned, "Bakudo Number Thirty-Nine: Enkosen!" A shield of rotating energy materialized in front of him, dissipating the fiery assault.

"Not bad," Isshin acknowledged, but he was already weaving another incantation under his breath. "Bakudo Number Twenty-One: Sekienton!" A cloud of red smoke erupted, obscuring Isshin's location.

Kazuki closed his eyes for a moment, attuning himself to the spiritual pressure around him. With a swift motion, he appeared behind Isshin, using Shunpo—a high-speed movement technique. "Hado Number Four: Byakurai!" A bolt of white spiritual energy shot from his fingertip, narrowly missing Isshin but forcing him to abandon his smokescreen.

Isshin chuckled. "Quick reflexes. But how about this? Hado Number Fifty-Eight: Tenran!" He swung his Zanpakuto horizontally, generating a cyclone that screamed toward Kazuki.

Kazuki dodged to the side with Shunpo, evading the brunt of the attack but feeling the winds clip his shoulder. "So, you're not holding back on the Kido."

"Neither should you," Isshin said, lunging forward with his blade.

The two combatants locked into another melee. As their swords clashed, each slipped in and out of Shunpo bursts, making them appear as mere blurs in the moonlit night. The ground beneath them was scored with the residual energy of their swings, and the air was thick with the tension of their intertwined spiritual pressures.

"Your footwork's gotten much better," Isshin noted, dodging a low swipe aimed at his legs.

"You're getting better at predicting my movements," Isshin commented as he feinted left, only to be met with a perfectly timed block from Kazuki.

"That's the point, isn't it?" Kazuki retorted, his sword making a swift arc in the air as he aimed a slash at Isshin's midsection. Isshin parried skillfully, his blade colliding with Kazuki's in a shower of sparks.

Without losing momentum, Isshin disengaged and vanished with a burst of Shunpo, reappearing behind Kazuki. But Kazuki had anticipated the move. Utilizing Hoho—high-speed footwork—Kazuki turned on his heels and parried Isshin's overhead strike, locking their blades together in a brief standstill.

The moonlight cast flickering shadows on the ground as they continued their duel. Each movement was a blend of skill, speed, and spirit. Isshin deflected a horizontal slash from Kazuki, who responded by quickly stepping back and creating distance between them.

Using that brief respite, Isshin extended his palm, focusing his energy. "Hado Number Twelve: Fushibi!"

Flames erupted from his palm in a narrow stream, roaring toward Kazuki. Instead of forming a Bakudo, Kazuki utilized Shunpo, disappearing in the blink of an eye. He reappeared behind Isshin, aiming a swift but forceful jab at his back. Isshin twisted his body just in time, letting the blade barely graze his robes.

Isshin grinned, pleased with the challenge. "You're making this interesting."

Kazuki flashed a confident smile. "Then let's not disappoint each other."

Their swords met again, creating a series of sharp clangs that echoed through the night. Every thrust, parry, and counter displayed an adept understanding of swordsmanship and spiritual pressure. Isshin made a slicing motion toward Kazuki, who ducked and sidestepped, letting the blade pass harmlessly above his head. In a fluid countermove, Kazuki aimed a low kick at Isshin's knees, forcing him to stagger back.

Isshin looked at Kazuki with a twitch as he said, "You really left me no choice. How will I raise my head after this?" Then he called out, "Engetsu!"

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