Himura Battousai
Copyright© 2007 by Trojan_85
Chapter 129: Shukuchi
Soujirou: Oh? I missed. (swinging his sword onto his shoulder) Oh well. Next time I'll have you.
Sanosuke (thinking, amazed): He's fast! That was as fast as Kenshin's godspeed. No... unless I'm going crazy, that was faster than... (shaking his head violently) No way! Nobody on earth could be faster than Kenshin. (aloud) Hey, what was that he just did?
Yumi (also stunned): I don't know...
Sanosuke: What!? You were the one yapping about how good he is!
Yumi: That's what Lord Shishio says! This is the first time I've seen the boy fight!
Sanosuke: So what're you--
Kenshin:... Shukuchi.
Sanosuke & Yumi: Huh?
Kenshin: That which surpasses godspeed. The extreme godspeed Shukuchi.
Soujirou: Oh, you know it? You really are a swordsman to the bone. I didn't know what it was called either until Mr. Shishio told me.
Houji (pouring wine): Shukuchi? So there's his natural gifts and his suppressed emotions. This is Soujirou's third strength?
Shishio: Yes.
Shukuchi--a rare body technique by which one springs from initial speed to top speed through great strength of the legs, penetrating the range of your opponent in an instant. It is spoken of widely among the schools. To the layman, it looks as though the distance between the two fighters had suddenly shrunk, hence the name. Shishio: They say the Mouri no Sanbonya could do it, but all three of them together could never touch Soujirou.
Houji: So Shukuchi is speed that the eye can't follow--that's what he can do.
Shishio: No. That's Battousai's godspeed, at its best. Soujirou's ultimate godspeed Shukuchi is speed the eye can't even see.
Soujirou (smiling): But, Mr. Himura. That wasn't the real Shukuchi just now. To be precise, that was three steps before the Shukuchi. That's why you could see and avoid it. In Shingetsu, I compared you with Senkaku and guessed it would be enough to bring you down, but, I'm sorry, I seem to have misjudged you. This time, let's try two steps before the Shukuchi.
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