Naruto: My Progress in Konoha.

"Shikotsumyaku…"

Uchiha Haruki muttered as a flash of blue light burst from both his blade and his body—Shun Sword Technique activated. In the blink of an eye, he appeared beside Hotaro Kaguya.

Swish—

A gleam of his blade sliced through the air.

Clang-clang-clang—

The harsh screech of metal on bone echoed out as Haruki's sword slashed toward Hotaro's neck—but was intercepted by his raised forearm.

The long blade clashed against the bony protrusion covering Hotaro's arm, emitting a bone-chilling grinding sound.

However, unlike his previous encounter with Morinosuke Kaguya, where his strikes couldn't pierce the bone armor, this time was different—thanks to the rare weapon, the Kusanagi Sword.

Crack—!

The bone on Hotaro's forearm shattered under Haruki's wind-style chakra-enhanced blade, revealing raw flesh beneath.

Unfortunately, the momentum behind the strike was largely spent after breaking the bone. Though Haruki tore open Hotaro's skin, he failed to sever the bone entirely.

Feeling pain shoot through his arm, Hotaro licked his lips and grinned menacingly.

"Not bad. You've got some skills… but—"

"Don't underestimate the power of the Kaguya clan!"

With a sharp roar, Hotaro activated his Shikotsumyaku. The shattered bone reformed, regrowing instantly, and the torn flesh healed rapidly.

Then, leaping backward to create distance, he launched ten finger bones like bullets, forcing Haruki to retreat and stop his pursuit.

Immediately after, Hotaro stretched out his left hand—

From his palm, a sword hilt sprouted.

Gripping it with his right, he wrenched free a pristine bone sword, white as ivory.

All this happened in a flash.

Hotaro cracked his neck, eyes narrowing as he looked toward Haruki and the blade in his hand.

"Now then, kid... it's time to have some real fun."

With that, he charged forward, his bone sword slashing down on Haruki.

Clang—!

Haruki parried with his own blade, the two weapons colliding with a sharp metallic ring.

This time, even with Wind Chakra enhancing his sword's sharpness, he couldn't break through Hotaro's bone sword.

That alone was enough to prove just how durable this new weapon was.

Realizing Haruki couldn't shatter his blade, Hotaro finally relaxed—and began his onslaught.

His strikes came fast, and from twisted, unexpected angles.

Before one strike finished, the next was already primed—pressuring Haruki to defend rather than attack.

This fluid chain of rapid strikes—Haruki recognized it.

He'd seen it before in his battle against Morinosuke Kaguya.

It was one of the six secret techniques of the Kaguya clan, paired with their Shikotsumyaku:

Dance of the Camellia.

This technique emphasized speed and unrelenting pressure, overwhelming opponents into exposing an opening—then striking the killing blow.

If Haruki didn't have the Sharingan, lightning-fast reflexes, and excellent swordsmanship, he likely wouldn't have lasted this long.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Their blades met in a constant barrage of ear-piercing clashing sounds, as rapid and dense as falling rain.

Their speed continued to rise.

At this point, the battle was far beyond what the average eye could follow—it was a blur of flickering steel and chakra.

Now, it was simply a matter of who would fall behind first.

One second…

Two seconds…

One minute…

Two minutes…

The high-intensity battle raged on for a full five minutes.

And then—it happened.

Haruki's blade grazed Hotaro's bone sword and sliced across his body.

Though his bone armor blocked most of the impact and prevented serious injury, the strike was a sign:

Hotaro could no longer keep up.

His face twisted into a deep scowl.

Dance of the Camellia—his strongest technique—had been defeated.

The psychological blow was massive.

In contrast, Haruki's eyes gleamed with confidence, his aura surging.

He unleashed his full strength.

Swordsmanship, Illusion Sword Technique, Shun Sword Technique—Haruki deployed all of them in rapid succession, launching a relentless barrage of attacks.

Hotaro was overwhelmed, forced to retreat. The barrage of sword flashes disoriented him completely.

If not for the bone armor covering his body and his rapid regenerative ability, he would've been sliced down already.

But even so—this couldn't go on forever.

Shikotsumyaku was powerful, but regenerating bones and enhancing durability burned through chakra quickly.

Once his chakra ran dry, no amount of bone armor would save him.

Realizing this, Hotaro abandoned his attempt to match Haruki's swordplay.

Instead, he began manipulating his entire skeletal system, rotating between five of the clan's six secret techniques, using the full power of the Shikotsumyaku.

Why only five?

Because the final technique—Dance of the Early Fern—was so advanced that only Kimimaro could wield it.

No other Kaguya alive had mastered it.

Even with five, Hotaro's transitions weren't as smooth or balanced as Morinosuke's.

Back then, Haruki had to avoid Morinosuke's sharpest moves.

But now, against Hotaro, he could fight head-on—even exploit gaps during technique transitions to counterattack.

Of course, this was partly because of the experience he'd gained fighting Morinosuke.

But it was also clear—Hotaro simply didn't carry the same pressure.

And now, Haruki had a better weapon in his hands.

Maybe… there's no need to drag this out any longer.

With that thought, Haruki spotted an opening.

He parried Hotaro's slash with a powerful strike, using the recoil to lunge in close.

In his left palm, a glowing orb of spiraling chakra began to form.

Unmarked Ninjutsu: Rasengan!

BOOM—!

Haruki slammed the Rasengan into Hotaro's chest.

The dense sphere of chakra exploded on contact, blasting Hotaro backward.

THUD!

He crashed into the ground.

CRACK—CRACK—CRACK!

Bones shattered audibly—his chest armor fractured completely.

His flesh beneath twisted unnaturally, blood seeping from warped, jagged gashes.

Despite the bone armor, Haruki's Level 6 Rasengan had done serious damage.

If Hotaro hadn't reacted at the last second—enhancing his bone defenses—he would've been critically wounded, or even killed outright.

Still, it wasn't enough to take him out.

To Haruki's surprise, Hotaro stood back up shortly after.

Bruised. Battered. Bleeding.

But still standing.