Snow Hashira vs Wind Hashira

The frozen battlefield crackled under the pressure of Shirayuki's technique.

CRRRRACK...

Ice continued spreading across the ground like a living thing.

Frost climbed over rocks.

Grass disappeared beneath layers of white.

The air became painfully cold.

Sanemi pulled against the ice trapping his legs.

Nothing happened.

The frozen restraints didn't budge.

A vein appeared on his forehead.

He pulled harder.

Still nothing.

"Tch!"

The Wind Hashira's irritation quickly became anger.

Then anger became shouting.

"OI!"

"What kind of stupid technique is this?!"

He yanked again.

The ice held firm.

"The hell did you do to my feet?!"

The other Hashira silently watched.

Nobody dared interrupt.

"GET ME OUT OF THIS CRAP!"

Shirayuki stared at him.

Expressionless.

Sanemi kept yelling.

"This better not be the best you've got!"

"COME ON!"

"FIGHT PROPERLY!"

"STOP JUST STANDING THERE!"

The battlefield became quiet for a moment.

Then Shirayuki spoke.

"You talk too much."

Silence.

Complete silence.

The world itself seemed to stop.

Everyone froze.

Even Sanemi.

Mitsuri's thoughts:

She actually said it.

Obanai's thoughts:

That took courage.

Shinobu's thoughts:

Ara ara...

How unexpected.

Muichiro's thoughts:

She's right though.

Several Hashira immediately looked away to hide their reactions.

Because—

She was absolutely correct.

Sanemi talked a lot when he was angry.

A dangerous amount.

For a second nobody could believe Shirayuki had actually said it out loud.

Then—

A twitch appeared on Sanemi's face.

Another.

And another.

The smile that followed was terrifying.

"Oh."

His voice was low.

Dangerously low.

"Oh, so the snow brat can talk."

The atmosphere immediately became heavier.

Mitsuri took a nervous step back.

Shinobu sighed.

Now you've done it.

Sanemi's grip tightened around his sword.

His muscles tensed.

The veins on his arms bulged.

"Say that again."

Shirayuki tilted her head slightly.

"You."

A pause.

"Talk."

Another pause.

"Too much."

The spectators nearly died on the spot.

Even Giyu looked mildly surprised.

Sanemi's eye twitched violently.

Then—

His grin widened.

"Fine."

A powerful gust exploded around him.

Wind pressure erupted outward.

The ground shattered.

The ice around his legs began cracking.

CRACK.

CRACK.

CRAAAAACK!

Shirayuki's eyes narrowed slightly.

The frozen restraints were breaking.

Sanemi roared.

"Don't underestimate me, brat!"

BOOOOOM!!

A massive burst of force exploded from his body.

The ice shattered into thousands of pieces.

Sharp frozen fragments flew across the battlefield.

Several spectators instinctively raised their arms.

Sanemi finally stepped forward.

Free.

Completely free.

A savage grin stretched across his face.

"There."

He rolled his shoulders.

"Now we're actually fighting."

The ground beneath his feet exploded.

BOOM!

He vanished.

Mitsuri gasped.

"So fast!"

In an instant Sanemi appeared directly in front of Shirayuki.

His sword descended with monstrous force.

CLANG!

Ice erupted upward just in time.

The blade slammed into a thick frozen wall.

The impact shattered it instantly.

But Shirayuki was already gone.

Sanemi clicked his tongue.

"Fast."

For the first time since the fight began—

He sounded impressed.

Shirayuki landed several meters away.

Snow drifted around her.

Her expression remained unchanged.

Yet everyone watching could tell.

The battle had just entered a completely different level.

And for the first time—

Sanemi looked genuinely excited.

Not annoyed.

Not angry.

Excited.

Because Shirayuki wasn't running anymore.

She was preparing for the next form.

Sanemi charged forward once again.

The battlefield shook beneath his feet.

"STOP RUNNING AND FIGHT PROPERLY!"

"You really do talk too much."

Before anyone could react—

Shirayuki vanished.

Sanemi's eyes widened.

Fast.

Too fast.

She appeared behind him in an instant.

Using his own momentum against him, she twisted, grabbed his arm, and threw him to the ground.

BOOM!

Dust exploded into the air.

The watching Hashira froze.

Sanemi found himself pinned flat on his back.

Shirayuki held both of his wrists firmly against the ground.

No matter how hard he struggled, he couldn't break free.

The strength hidden inside her small frame was absurd.

For several seconds neither of them spoke.

Then Shirayuki calmly tilted her head.

"So?"

Sanemi glared at her.

"Now what, Mister Loud?"

The spectators immediately went silent.

Mitsuri covered her mouth.

Shinobu's shoulders shook slightly as she fought back laughter.

Obanai looked like he had just witnessed a miracle.

Sanemi opened his mouth—

Then closed it again.

For the first time since the battle started, he had absolutely nothing to say.

The realization only made him angrier.

"Tch."

Shirayuki stared at him.

Waiting.

"..."

"..."

Finally Sanemi clicked his tongue.

"Fine."

The words sounded painful.

"You win."

Shirayuki blinked.

"You surrender?"

"Yeah."

His eye twitched.

"I surrender."

A moment later she released him and stepped back.

Sanemi immediately stood up and dusted himself off.

The battle was over.

Shirayuki looked at him calmly.

"Next time, don't pick fights with me."

The Wind Hashira scowled.

She continued.

"You're my senior, so I was respectful."

A brief pause.

"Next time I might not be."

Several Hashira nearly choked.

Even Sanemi looked stunned.

Then, without waiting for a response, Shirayuki turned around and began walking away.

Just like that.

No celebration.

No pride.

No reaction.

She simply left.

Behind her stood a collection of stunned Hashira.

The silence lasted three whole seconds.

Then Obanai smirked.

"Oh?"

Sanemi immediately sensed danger.

Obanai crossed his arms.

"How does it feel?"

"..."

"Getting thrown around by the new Hashira."

Sanemi's eye twitched.

Obanai continued mercilessly.

"Not just defeated."

"Pinned."

"Completely."

"Couldn't even get up."

"Shut up."

Mitsuri looked away to hide her laughter.

Shinobu failed completely.

A soft giggle escaped her lips.

Then Giyu spoke.

"I warned you."

Everyone looked toward him.

Sanemi narrowed his eyes.

Giyu remained expressionless.

"I made the same mistake."

The room became interested immediately.

"You did?" Shinobu asked.

Giyu nodded.

"When we were training."

Sanemi stared.

Giyu looked completely serious.

"She beat me too."

Several Hashira blinked.

"Although..."

Giyu paused.

"I surrendered before she had to throw me."

For a moment the battlefield was silent.

Then Mitsuri burst out laughing.

Even Shinobu couldn't stop smiling.

Obanai smirked.

"Poor Sanemi."

That was the final straw.

A dangerous aura erupted from Sanemi.

Everyone immediately stopped talking.

He slowly turned around.

The look in his eyes promised violence.

Nobody volunteered another joke.

"Tch."

Sanemi started walking away.

As he left, he continued muttering complaints under his breath.

"Annoying brat..."

"Creepy snow girl..."

"Second Tokito..."

The others watched him disappear into the distance.

And for once—

The loudest Hashira had absolutely no comeback.

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