My Gang of Swordsmen

Chapter 643: Chapter 5: Training in Iaido and the Demon Sword Vishnu

”Here you are again for a chat today.”

Aoto took several deep breaths, trying hard to forget the awkward incident that had just happened between him and Kiryu, and smiled:

”Boss Kiryu, my visit today is actually to share some good news with you—my body has completely recovered. I believe I am now ready to start Iaido training.”

”Oh?”

Kiryu raised an eyebrow, then shifted his gaze, carefully appraising Aoto from head to toe.

”Seems like you’re not just talking nonsense... hehehe.” After a few low chuckles, Boss Kiryu said seriously, ”So, what do you intend to do now? Do you want to start Iaido training today, or would you prefer to wait a few days?”

”I want to start training today.” Aoto replied without a second thought.

Kiryu didn’t hesitate or waste words.

Seeing Aoto’s response, his lips curled into a slight smile as he slowly stood up...

”Then... come with me, let’s go to the courtyard.”

...

...

The small courtyard of Thousand Affairs House became lively once again with the arrival of Aoto, Mukiwa, and Kiryu.

Mukiwa obediently stood at the edge of the courtyard, watching.

Aoto and Kiryu stood side by side in the center of the courtyard, with a rolled-up bamboo mat about 5 centimeters in diameter standing upright before them.

”Mr. Tachibana, without going into detail, you should already know that both our sword and scabbard are curved, with a certain degree of curvature.”

”Iaido is about utilizing the curvature during the draw to create instantaneous explosive power, enhancing the speed and power of a slash.”

Kiryu explained the principles of Iaido to Aoto, who had never encountered it before, in a calm and measured manner.

Aoto, standing beside Kiryu, listened intently with a solemn expression.

”This skill pursues only one realm—’one-strike kill.’”

”If the sword leaves its sheath, it must draw blood.”

”The most important aspect of Iaido is the stance.”

”If the stance isn’t correct, everything else is meaningless.”

”Without a proper stance, not only is it impossible to channel the body’s power smoothly to the sword, but it also undermines another advantage of Iaido.”

”Another advantage?” Aoto asked in confusion.

Kiryu immediately provided an explanation.

”Apart from the destructive power of the slash, Iaido has another fearsome aspect that intimidates opponents—it’s difficult for them to discern the distance of your draw.”

”During an Iaido execution, you either carry the scabbard by hand or have the sword strapped at your waist.”

”Whether holding the scabbard by hand or directly strapping the sword to the waist, the sword naturally extends backward.”

”Thus, without drawing the sword, it’s hard for the opponent to accurately estimate the sword’s length, making it difficult to precisely predict your attack distance.”

”Conversely, you know how long your sword is and understand the breadth of your attack distance. Therefore, once the battle begins, it’s obvious which side holds the advantage and can control the battlefield.”

”My Flowing Light, compared to other Iaido styles, places the most emphasis on the force brought by the weight of the sword when drawing.”

”This is the secret to why my Flowing Light possesses such strong speed and power.”

”Our sword is very heavy; when drawing it with force, if you’re not holding it properly, the sword may be flung from the scabbard due to its own weight.”

”But conversely, if you can utilize the weight of the sword, you can significantly increase the power and speed of your slashes.”

”So in simple terms, Flowing Light is a Iaido technique that emphasizes using the sword’s weight.”

”Whether you can master Flowing Light... depends on your understanding and application of the sword’s weight.”

”Now, I’ll demonstrate Flowing Light, watch my movements closely.”

With that, Kiryu casually spread his feet, and placed his left hand on the scabbard at his waist, with his relaxed right hand resting gently on the sword hilt.

Seeing this, Aoto hurriedly stepped aside, creating a distance from Kiryu.

The sword at Kiryu’s waist was the same one seen during the battle against Scythe Weasel, with both hilt and scabbard in alternating black and purple, and the blade reflecting a strange purplish light in the moonlight.

Kiryu steadied his breath, lowered his body’s center of gravity, relaxed his shoulders, and stabilized his legs, while staring at the rolled bamboo mat before him.

As Aoto blinked, Kiryu drew his sword.

Closed eyes, opened eyes... it was only such an extremely short moment, yet the scenery had changed.

The bamboo mat had a small section missing, with a cut so neat it was astonishing.

Kiryu exerted his energy, twisted his waist, strode forward, and crouched, with a flash of the sword, dimming the ground—all this happened in that instant.

The severed section of the bamboo mat flew across, landing at Mukiwa’s feet.

Kiryu, maintaining the stance of the draw, held his sword high.

The sword’s blade, with a large arc, glowed purple in the sunlight.

”Well? Did you see clearly?”

Although Aoto’s inadvertent blink occurred at the moment Kiryu drew his sword, relying on the outstanding dynamic vision brought by ”Eagle Eye,” Aoto managed to barely see the movements accurately.

Aoto nodded: ”Yes... I saw it roughly.”

”Good, as long as you saw it clearly.”

Kiryu flipped his right hand gracefully, performing a stylish sword flourish, then reversed the grip to sheath the sword.

”Now, try to mimic my movements and use Iaido to cut that bamboo mat.”

Distractedly, Aoto nodded—his focus was entirely on Kiryu’s right hand and the sword at his waist.

——What a dazzling sword sheathing...