Chapter 13: The Gap Between You and Me

Ryujiro was only 7 years old!

And compared to Ryujiro, Sasuke was still weaker than him in every aspect.

"Ryujiro, fight with me," Sasuke said.

"Why?" Ryujiro asked.

"I want to know the difference between us," Sasuke replied.

Ryujiro sighed helplessly.

Sasuke was clearly looking for trouble. Ryujiro led Sasuke to the forest where he often trained.

"Why is this place like this?" Sasuke asked, looking at the deep crater ground and the dense forest cut by sharp weapons, his face filled with shock.

"Look, Sasuke," Ryujiro said.

"This is the difference between you and me."

With that, Ryujiro drew his sword, and struck a simple yet powerful slash.

Sasuke hadn't even realized what was happening.

A dazzling dark red sword aura, like a tsunami engulfing everything, swept through, overturning everything in its path.

"Boom!"

The sword aura surged, overwhelming everything in its path. The terrifying force shattered the earth.

The endless land trembled because of this dark red sword aura, and the vibrations in the forest startled countless birds.

The terrifying force submerged everything, leaving behind a deep trench ten of meters deep on the ground, like a torn wound.

As the dust settled and the mist dispersed, Sasuke widened his eyes in horror, staring at the split ground before him.

Sasuke was completely stunned.

"Do you understand now? This is the difference of strength between you and me. There's no need for a fight," Ryujiro said calmly.

"I have things to attend to. Goodbye."

With a farewell, Ryujiro left Sasuke, who was still bewildered.

Sasuke collapsed to the ground, trembling uncontrollably.

"Is this a joke? How could he have such power!"

"Is that ninjutsu? A-rank, or S-rank?"

"The gap between him and me is so huge. Can I ever catch up to him?"

Clutching his fists in frustration, Sasuke couldn't accept always lagging behind Ryujiro.

But when he saw the deep carvings on the ground, he felt even more hopeless and powerless.

The gap was too enormous.

---

In the following days at the ninja academy, Ryujiro continued to send his shadow clones to attend classes. 

Each clone alone was strong enough to compete with low level Jonin.

The difference in strength was only because the clones didn't have a sword.

If the shadow clones also wielded swords, they might even be able to take on Jonin.

[Character Template: Dracule Mihawk]

[Character Unlock Progress: 35.5%]

Now Ryujiro had successfully mastered the essence of the swordsman. 

Although his Armament Haki and Observation Haki had not yet reached their peak, his Armament Haki was enough to cover his upper body.

Training Haki was simple: Ryujiro pushed it to its limits time and time again, constantly surpassing himself.

Only by doing so could he rapidly improve his Haki.

In his mental space, Mihawk had transformed into his version. He wore a black tricorn hat adorned with white fur, and a wine-red patterned shirt.

A small cross-shaped knife hung from his chest, and Ryujiro vividly remembered Mihawk's quirky expression when he took out the knife.

"The Strongest Swordsman in the World."

In his mental space, Ryujiro felt a heavy pressure. Indeed, the pressure of being the strongest swordsman was like a mountain pressing down on him.

However, Ryujiro had an idea, one he had never considered before.

Could his mental self use ninjutsu and Shadow Clone Jutsu? Ryujiro had never attempted such a thing before.

It seemed that chakra still existed.

"Let's give it a try."

Ryujiro formed hand seals.

"Boom!" Another figure appeared beside him, and Ryujiro's expression changed.

Just creating a shadow clone hugely depleted his chakra, showing that there were still limitations in the mental space.

But even creating one shadow clone was enough.

Strongest Swordsman!

Let me test my skills!

"Clang!"

Mihawk's sharp eyes showed no emotion.

Accompanied by a sword cry, a green sword aura, dozens of meters high, swept towards Ryujiro like a fierce storm.

Damn!

Feeling the intense danger, Ryujiro knew that the gap between him and Mihawk of this era was huge.

Ryujiro dodged the green sword aura, while his shadow clone searched for an opportunity.

Seizing the moment when Mihawk was vulnerable, a red black sword aura surged forth.

"Clang!"

With a casual raise of his hand, Mihawk easily deflected the sword aura from Ryujiro's shadow clone, causing it to explode above them.

.....

In the Hyuga family's dojo, Hiashi watched as Ryujiro, holding his sword, emitted a terrifying aura.

What on earth is this kid doing?

He's just standing there with his eyes closed holding a sword, but why does his aura fluctuate like that? Especially at that moment, Hiashi even felt a sense of threat.

"Father."

Hinata called out, then looked at Ryujiro and said, "Ryujiro is training again."

"Training?"

"Is this what he does for training?"

Hiashi couldn't help but ask in confusion.

"Yes, Father. Ryujiro's training has always been like this. Besides sparring with us, he spends more time contemplating swordsmanship in his own world."

"Isn't this meditation?" 

Hinata shook her head.

"I used to think so too, but every time Ryujiro enters this state, his strength increases significantly."

"This is a secret of Ryujiro's strength."

A secret?

Hiashi furrowed his brow in contemplation. Could there be a bloodline limit that helps in his training?

But Ryujiro is just a commoner. His parents, both Jonin, had no such bloodlines.

This kid is indeed extraordinary.

Will his swordsmanship bring about a new White Fang that will terrify other ninja villages?

In the mental space, Ryujiro only saw a flash of sword light, and he returned from the mental space to reality.

Ryujiro gasped for breath, sweat covering his forehead as he knelt on one knee.

Was his stamina depleted to such an extent?

Hiashi was surprised; indeed, as Hinata had said, meditation definitely wouldn't cause Ryujiro's chakra to plummet so suddenly.

And he looked so exhausted.

Truly the world's greatest swordsman. Even though Ryujiro used the same techniques, he could still be easily countered by Mihawk.

Ryujiro wasn't just learning Mihawk's techniques without purpose; he also combined ninjutsu to create new sword techniques.

The power of the Strongest Swordsman's sword aura was dozens of times stronger than his own!

Just one strike was equivalent, no more than the power of an S-rank ninjutsu, which was thrilling to think about.

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