Chapter 149: Chapter 149: Thirty consecutive draws, two Blueprints!
"Breathing Forging Method: Water Drop Hammer!"
Soma placed the metal ingot on the forging table.
Swinging the hammer, he exerted force downward.
"Ding!"
The sound of metal collision rang out.
Resonating throughout the entire forging room.
"This Zudomon's Hammer forging is indeed an extremely demanding task."
"Compared to smelting, the forging process is even more difficult."
"Besides requiring Chakra, it also demands a great deal of physical strength."
"In terms of forging difficulty, it may not be the highest-grade ninja tool encountered currently, but due to the abundance of materials and large size, it will undoubtedly require much more time."
Moreover, this is the first ninja tool Soma has explicitly crafted for his own use before forging it.
Therefore, Soma strives to make this ninja tool as perfect as possible.
"Considering the time, Ao-senpai should be giving that Skillful Grade Sword I crafted to the lower-ranking guard members soon."
"This should bring me some reputation."
In the competition for the Skillful Grade Sword, amidst situations involving Ao, Daida, and others, Hoshigaki Ryukame emerged victorious.
A broad sword slung over his shoulder.
In the training grounds.Facing him was Daida.
In terms of strength, Daida is undoubtedly a level above Ryukame. However, at this moment, Ryukame managed to withstand Daida's attacks. Gripping the Broad Sword, he shifted from one hand to two. Tightening his grip on the Broad Sword's handle.
"Clang!"
Daida's Kunai clashed against the blade of the Broad Sword. Ryukame pushed forward, blocking the Kunai. At the same time, he gathered strength in both hands. In the next moment, as Daida withdrew his hand, Ryukame's Broad Sword had already swung out.
Through his handling during the block, it seemed he had reinforced the speed of his attack, catching Daida off guard. The blade of the Broad Sword grazed Daida's ninja garb, leaving a gash.
Daida's pupils contracted slightly.
"This method of attack is the first time I've seen it."
"Prepare to strike while defending."
"Enables faster strikes."
"Other Ninjato can hardly achieve this."
"But this sword can."
However, Daida was keenly aware.
This Broad Sword is just a Skillful Grade Sword, not a Zanpakuto.
"Is this ability due to this Ninjato, or because of Ryukame himself?"
Soon, Daida realized it was both.
Ryukame seems very suited to the Broad Sword.
And the Broad Sword also fits Ryukame very well.
Clearly a Ninjato, yet excels particularly in defense.
"In addition, the sharpness and durability of this Broad Sword are unmatched by other Ninjato."
"So this is the Skillful Grade Sword forged by Chief Uehara."
"Not as good as a Zanpakuto, but much stronger than other Ninjato."
Daida marveled inwardly.
"If Chief Uehara could forge more Skillful Grade Swords..."
But then, Daida realized it wasn't possible.
Soma's time is limited.
Forging Zanpakuto, acquiring materials, improving forging techniques, and personal strength training.
It can be said that Soma's schedule is very packed.
Being able to forge Skillful Grade Swords requires carving out time.
If any of the time allocated above is reduced for forging Skillful Grade Swords, it would not be appropriate.
This is one of the reasons why Soma does not forge too many Skillful Grade Swords.
Another reason is that if too many Skillful Grade Swords are forged in a short period, the reputation gained from them will diminish greatly. After all, Skillful Grade Swords are different from Zanpakuto.
Zanpakuto is special and unique.
Once it appears, it evokes fear and becomes a hot topic.
If there are too many Skillful Grade Swords, people will become tired of them aesthetically.
Human nature is greedy.
Once the demand is satisfied, the appetite grows larger.
Instead of manufacturing a large number of Skillful Grade Swords in a short period of time to gain a lot of reputation, it is better to use Skillful Grade Swords as a means of gaining reputation in the long term.
Therefore, Soma combined the forging of Skillful Grade Swords with the Sword Forging Competition.
Daida looked at the Kunai in his hand.
There were already obvious notches on it.
"Come again."
Daida threw away the Kunai in his hand, took out a new one, and rushed towards Hoshigaki Ryukame again.
"Ding!"
"Ding!"
"Ding!"
Soma finished forging and flexed his sore arms. He arrived at the training ground and happened to witness such a scene.
It made Soma inexplicably feel somewhat familiar.
"Ao-senpai."
"Soma."
Ao turned to look at Soma.
"I didn't expect that after Hoshigaki Ryukame got that Skillful Grade Sword, it would have such an unexpected effect. The design of that Skillful Grade Sword and Hoshigaki Ryukame's fighting style fit together very well."
"By the way, Soma, what is the name of that sword?"
Ao asked.
"Broad Sword,"
Soma said, "To be honest, I didn't expect Ryukame to be able to use such techniques just by getting it."
"Sensei told me before that this type of sword technique can only be wielded by ninjas extremely skilled in defensive swordsmanship. Even in the samurai era, very few mastered it."
"This technique is called 'Stable Rock.'"
Ao's eyes brightened.
"'Stable Rock,' indeed, like a massive stone, sturdy and unyielding."
Daida's attacks were quite fierce.
However, Ryukame stood like a giant rock, steady and unmoving.
Defense first, then attack.
While defending, prepare to attack.
Thus, the speed of his attacks is rapid.
This is something other ninja tools cannot achieve.
Even among Ninjato, the long sword type, it's difficult to accomplish this.
Of course, it also demands exceptionally high requirements from the user.
Even now, handing this Broad Sword to any other guard member nearby would be impossible.
"Let's stop here."
Daida stopped.
Continuing further, Daida feared he might lose control of his strength, potentially gravely injuring Ryukame.
Currently, Daida is restraining his own strength while sparring with Ryukame.
"Thank you for the guidance, Squad Captain Daida."
Daida nodded slightly.
Ao stepped forward.
"Ryukame, how is it?"
"It's going well."
Ryukame tightened his grip on the Broad Sword.
"It feels much more comfortable than the Ninjato I used before."
Soma approached.
"Chief Uehara."
Soma nodded.
"It seems, Ryukame, you have a great affinity with the Broad Sword. Mastering the 'Stable Rock' technique without any instructor, developing in this direction, perhaps you could even revive the Stable Rock Style."
"'Stable Rock'?"
Hoshigaki Ryukame paused.
"It's the technique you just used, Ryukame, defending against the opponent's attacks while preparing to counterattack."
"Using defense as the primary strategy for counterattack."
Soma explained.
Ryukame showed a contemplative expression.
"So that's called 'Stable Rock.' Chief Uehara, thank you. I'll definitely work hard."
Ryukame felt his heart beating rapidly.
Previously, Ryukame primarily used long swords.
Even though he was skilled in defense, long swords couldn't be used this way.
But this time, when he got the Broad Sword and faced Daida's attacks, Ryukame naturally had this feeling and used it subconsciously.
Upon hearing Soma's words, Ryukame learned that this was actually a style of swordsmanship.
If he could revive this swordsmanship style, then perhaps he could leave a mark in the history of Hidden Mist Village, or even in the history of the ninja world.
This was something Ryukame had never dared to think about before.
Therefore, Ryukame was very grateful to Soma.
However, this wasn't all due to Soma's efforts.
In the ninja world, there are also Ninjato similar to the Broad Sword.
For example, the Executioner's Blade.
It's just that no one has used the Executioner's Blade as a defensive type of Ninjato.
Ryukame has never obtained the Executioner's Blade.
To bring about the Stable Rock Style, both the Broad Sword and Ryukame are indispensable.
Both are crucial.
It even requires some luck.
However, many people would attribute the emergence of the Stable Rock Style to Soma.
This has brought Soma a considerable increase in reputation.
In fact, this has been a pleasant surprise for Soma.
Nearby members of the guard team began discussing.
"The Stable Rock Style sounds very powerful."
"It is indeed formidable. Ryukame's strength is still quite a bit below Squad Captain Daida's, but just now, he managed to block all of Squad Captain Daida's attacks."
"Even if Squad Captain Daida wasn't using full strength, it still proves Ryukame's strength in using the Stable Rock Style sword technique—extremely strong defense and rapid counterattack speed."
"That's right. And according to Chief Uehara, the Stable Rock Style is a complete swordsmanship style. Ryukame has only grasped a bit of it by chance."
"If Ryukame continues to develop further, his strength will inevitably increase."
"Many things were lost in past wars."
"Some of those things are actually quite good."
"Swordsmanship techniques are all from the samurai era, but they can be combined with ninja techniques."
"That's the case in Konoha."
"The Hatake Clan and Gekko Clan are good examples of combining Kenjutsu with ninja skills."
"If Ryukame can develop the Stable Rock Style Kenjutsu well, he might not be weaker than the Gekko Clan and Hatake Clan in terms of Kenjutsu. And with Chief Uehara crafting Skillful Grade Swords, he might even surpass them."
Soma looked at the increasing reputation numbers, revealing a smile.
"267."
"Because Ryukame inadvertently grasped the Stable Rock Style Kenjutsu, it's more than I expected."
"Now, I'm only a little over 200 reputation points away from reaching 3000."
...
Three days later,
Soma entered the forging room.
"3018!"
"Finally reached it."
Nikkari Ao'e's first display brought hundreds of reputation points, but that surely isn't the limit. As long as Ameyuri is on the battlefield, she will fight against those from Hidden Sand.
Soma was slightly excited.
"I wonder what will be different about this thirty consecutive draws."
Soma looked at the Lottery machine on the semi-transparent panel in front of him.
"Thirty consecutive draws, start!"
In the next moment, the roulette of the Lottery machine began to spin rapidly.
[Physique +1!]
...
[Spirit +1!]
[Thug Recruitment Token X1!]
[Physique +1!]
...
[Sword of the Darkness Flame Blueprint (Yellow) X1!]
...
[Derfflinger (Sword of Wisdom) Blueprint X1!]
Before Soma could look closely at the specific blueprints, he only felt a rush of heat flowing into his body as numerous randomly assigned attribute points infused into him.
Then it erupted.
All at once, more than 20 attribute points.
Combined with the accumulation from before, Soma felt as if his basic attributes had broken through a bottleneck.
"Jonin, here I come."
Soma extended his hand, clenched his fist, and smiled.
"Finally, my basic attributes have reached Jonin level."
"And with my proficiency in Water Release, my overall strength has directly reached Jonin level."
Soma sensed a subtle pressure dissipate from his body.
"As a Jonin in overall strength, I now have decent self-defense capabilities in this era of the ninja world."
"Plus Pioggia, God's Hand, Garden Box..."
"And the soon-to-be-completed Zudomon's Hammer."
Zudomon's Hammer, defined by the system as a Blacksmith tool.
But since Zudomon Beast can use it as a weapon, Soma certainly can too.
"For an Elite Jonin to defeat me wouldn't be an easy task."
"Even if it's a Kage, in an environment suitable for me, I can still protect my own life."
Soma raised his hand.
Performed hand seals.
"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Jutsu!"
A water dragon swiftly appeared.
Its head raised, appearing fierce.
"Go!"
In the next moment, the water dragon lunged forward.
"Boom!"
A powerful shockwave erupted along with the sound.
"Compared to before, the upper limit of my Water Release that I can use now is clearly much higher."
"Because I have more Chakra."
"In this way, my efficiency in forging will also be higher."
"Chakra Smelting Technique, Breathing Forging Method, Sage's Polishing Technique, all will see efficiency improvements."
Soma's eyes flickered.
"For now, the threats to me would be the major Ninja villages and the Akatsuki Organization."
"But, Forging Island is in the core area of the Hidden Mist Village."
"To come here is no easy task."
"Once here, facing the guards of Forging Island, and being possibly one of the top Jonin, threatening my life is difficult."
"Uchiha Obito, Sarutobi Hiruzen, Shimura Danzo, the Fourth Raikage, Killer B, Minato Namikaze..."
"They couldn't do it."
Soma carefully felt the changes in his body, then shifted his gaze to two blueprints.
"Derfflinger, Sword of Wisdom."
A wave of information entered Soma's mind.
"From the world of 'Zero no Tsukaima'."
"The rapier used by Saito Hiraga."
"It has two abilities."
"First, it possesses wisdom, can think, and speak."
"Second, it can absorb energy from attributes like earth, fire, water, and wind."
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