Trackless Toka

The instant she thought over what that was….


A sudden wind roared, and Shizuku saw Touka's figure brandishing Narukami before her eyes.


Shizuku goggled at that sight, and almost screamed. It was understandable, because in a blink, the enemy who had to be tens of meters away had gotten close enough to extend a hand and touch her with their sword.

"Guh―!"

But even if she was surprised, she didn't freeze up. Shizuku threw her body backward without breaking her fall or any thought, and evaded the sword flash that was swung in a horizontal line. And then like that she turned her body, and placed her left hand on the ground. From the palm of that left hand, high pressure water exploded outward, pushing her body far from Touka.

It was simply a composed judgment that didn't stop at evasion. However, that was Shizuku generally using her reason and somehow decisively acting with composure. Right now, her head was half-panicking.

The reason, I don't understand it!

She couldn't understand what was occurring. Her gaze could not have slipped for even a moment. Despite that, Touka had shortened a distance some tens of meters without a sound or sign, and abruptly appeared before her eyes.


「Oh, contender Kurogane! She just made a dangerous evasion just now! Even though she was able to cope with contender Toudou's movement, what the heck happened just now!? It looks like she's somehow lost concentration, but…!」


I've lost concentration?

To the voice of the live broadcaster, Shizuku knit her brows in puzzlement. It was impossible for her to lose concentration in the middle of the match. However, the words of the live broadcaster made what looked like that apparent to everyone else. That she had overlooked Raikiri, who just now made an attack.

Even though that kind of thing couldn't have happened.

In any case, it had been unfavorable just now. She had to concentrate so that it'll never happened again. Shizuku told herself so strongly, and gathered her awareness into her eyes.


The next instant, her eyes that swung downward saw the blade of Narukami approaching.


"…Uu!?"

It cut deeply into Shizuku's clothing, and she had no time to dodge or think.

「Aaaaahhh! Contender Kurogane Shizuku took a hit from Contender Toudou's sword just now! And it was quite deep! Could this be a fatal wound!?」

However, the instant that everyone thought the match was decided, Shizuku's body suddenly turned pale, turned to ordinary water, and spilled onto the ring. And the real Shizuku was already behind Touka, standing quite a large distance away in the arena.

「I-It was some kind of water clone! Contender Kurogane has avoided Raikiri's sword splendidly… no!」

The live broadcaster's voice suddenly cut short. Why? Because the scarlet color flowing across Shizuku's left hand was visible.

「Blood is dripping from her left hand! She wasn't able to dodge perfectly! In the end, Contender Kurogane was struck! The first one to get in a damaging hit in this match is 'Raikiri', Contender Touka Toudou!」

"Kuh…!"

I didn't see it at all.

Shizuku moaned as she held the light wound on her left arm. She didn't know what kind of mechanism had been used. What kind of method was used to move invisibly, Shizuku completely could not comprehend it. However, the scarlet flowing down her left hand told her only a single certain truth.

I can't catch the movements of this enemy…!

Right. In this instant, it was obvious to anyone's eyes that the even struggle between these two people was broken.

- Volume 3, Chapter 1
[Toka using trackless step against Shizuku twice in a row, even when she's explicitly focusing her attention on her. Shizuku in the same fight is shown to have enough skill to control every molecule of a 30 metre water wall simultaneously]
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Once the struggle for supremacy was broken, in the situation afterward, Touka pressed forward just like that. Shizuku started a one-sided defensive battle, and ran around the ring single-mindedly. However, the pace of the pursuing Raikiri was swift, and her own reaction was slowed by the burden generated from her evasive movements. She was gradually becoming tired, and now if she was pressed she'd be driven to exhaustion repeatedly to the degree of collapsing.


「What's going on? Lorelei and Raikiri seemed to be even matched in the beginning, but now Lorelei is running around, and it seems that's the best she can do. Why in the world has the balance up to now become so different!?」


The bewildered live broadcaster hadn't grasped that Shizuku had lost sight of Touka. Because of that, she couldn't comprehend why the match up to now had progressed so one-sidedly. However, there was one truth everyone at this battlefield could understand together. That was―who would be the winner of this fight.

「Even though it's fine for her to surrender already….」

「Guess this was a heavy opponent for a first-year after all.」

「Even though I thought there was a possibility she'd be able to compete….」

「Well what? Gonna leave?」

「Yeah, I figure the match is already decided. She's really strong, that Prez is.」

The venue whose atmosphere was cooling; the enthusiasm from the start was nowhere to be found. That was how it was. If one thought about it, no matter how exceptional she was, she was still a first-year. Was there a reason for Hagun's best knight to lose to that kind of opponent? There had been an off-the-mark enthusiasm, but that kind of apathetic atmosphere now drifted through the venue.

In the middle of that, Stella asked Ikki in a moaning voice.

"…Hey Ikki. How is Shizuku doing?"

"How, meaning?"

"I can tell by looking. It's obvious that her response to her opponent's movements worsened all of a sudden."

"It's just as Stella-chan says. Even though the President is moving normally, it looks as if she can't see it."

Arisuin also felt that there was a problem with Shizuku's movements. And of course, Ikki did too. But Ikki could already see a few more things than the other two.

"…It's exactly like that, probably."

"Eh?"

"Shizuku really can't see her. I've also seen something like this once before."

It was that time before his debut battle, when he met the Yaksha Princess Nene Saikyou at the reception desk.

"That time, Saikyou-sensei got right in front of me in an instant. Even though I didn't let her out of my line of sight for even a moment, she got to my chest before I knew it. Right now, Raikiri is probably using the same body technique, I think."


"Ahaha. As expected of Kuro-bou. You noticed it after all, huh?"


- Volume 3, Chapter 1
[Toka using trackless step consecutively to roll Shizuku. All Shizuku can do against it is run away and defend desperately, but Ikki sees through it straight away]
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"…Hey, Nene-sensei. The thing that Ikki noticed, is what he's saying correct?"

Saikyou-sensei confirmed Stella's question with a nod.

"Yep. That is an ancient Japanese martial arts technique called Trackless Step that merges breath control and footwork. Or something like that―"

"…Eh?"

In an instant. Saikyou who had to be at least five meters away from Stella reappeared very close, and―raised Stella's plump breasts from below while rubbing them.

"Eek!?"

- Volume 3, Chapter 1
[All skill bby]
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Ignoring the two noisy people, Kurono asked something of Ikki.

"Kurogane. Someone like you has already seen through how Trackless Step works, right?"

To that inquiry, he nodded.

"Somewhat. If you tell me to do the same thing, I could probably do it."

"Hey Ikki, what is this Trackless Step?"

"Let's see, humans are nothing more than animals, and like a machine they can't process all the tiny details that they see and hear, and the brain certainly can't consciously recognize all of those sights and sounds. After all, if they processed and analyzed everything they see and hear, the brain will burn out. Therefore, the human brain will toss low-priority information into the unconscious, and abdicate recognizing them in order to ease the load on itself. This thing called Trackless Step is a martial arts technique that applies peculiar breath control and footwork to slip its user's existence into the opponent's unconsciousness. As a result, even though Shizuku can still see Toudou-san, she has become unable to recognize that fact. Even though the brain and the eye can capture Toudou-san's movements, they can't be processed because the consciousness is classifying them as unnecessary information, to the degree that a life-threatening danger can approach to little more than a blink away.

"Spot on. You understood it well."

Kurono praised him as if in admiration, because there were no faults in Ikki's answer that divulged the mysterious mechanism that was assaulting Shizuku.

Right. There was only unconsciousness within.

The opponent was making everything about herself imperceptible by shifting her breath and body a half-step, and by sliding into that interval, she had dodged the awareness locking onto her. That was the mechanism behind the old-style footwork Trackless Step.

"Because I've already seen that body technique once."

Moreover, Touka's Trackless Step had great flaws compared to Saikyou's. Because of that, Ikki was able to see through the mechanism.

- Volume 3, Chapter 1
[Trackless Step explanation, Ikki being able to do it after seeing it twice, and confirmation that despite Toka being able to use it at will, she's not that great at it]
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While patting Saikyou's long-sleeved kimono noisily, Kurono leaked out her honest opinion that "that person is as unfrank about her feelings as ever" about Saikyou who for some reason was becoming irritated, then once again turned her gaze toward Ikki.

"Well even so, if you can see the mechanism so clearly to that extent, it should be understandable to you. Trackless Step can't be broken by your little sister."

"Eh―!"

The declaration of those words, they were the truth of Shizuku's hopeless defeat. It was Stella and Arisuin who raised surprised voices upon hearing them.

But Ikki, though he had a bitter expression, didn't show surprise. Why? Because he had reached that conclusion a long time ago.

"…Really, Ikki? There's no way for her to break Trackless Step!?"

"No, there's a way to break Trackless Step with your own body. It's enough to just voluntarily shift your attention to the unconscious. However, that's easier said than done."

For example, imagine that there was a man thrusting a gun in front of one's eyes. And that man is obviously showing hostility, and pulling the trigger with his finger. In that kind of situation, just about anyone would have his eyes glued to the muzzle. It would be natural, because it was one's life being threatened. Under that kind of situation, would anyone take heed of the man's earring? Would anyone care who the earring's maker was? There was no way anyone would care. No one would consciously recognize inconsequential information, probably. However, in order to break this Trackless Step, one has to take his eyes from the muzzle and focus on the earring beneath that serious situation. That was the task of shifting one's attention onto the unconscious.

"Shizuku is right now exactly in an exchange for her life. In this situation where her opponent is intentionally slipping from her consciousness, it's training in its own way, and if she can't gain free control over/of her own body and consciousness, she won't be able to do it."

For example, if this was someone like Ikki or Stella, even that was probably possible. Because these two people, from the process of learning martial arts, had established almost complete control of their bodies. However, Shizuku was different. She was the best when it came to magic control, but as for controlling her physical body, she was a novice. Therefore, rather than thinking it was an oversight, she would try and concentrate. As a consequence, her field of vision would narrow, and the darkness of her unconscious would deepen. It would give birth to a perfect vicious circle.

- Volume 3, Chapter 1
[The super easy way to break Trackless Step. Also, confirmation that Ikki and Stella could do it pretty easily. Though, as Ikki and Stella have both failed to do so against it, you must know that this is the way to break it before you'd be able to do so]
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Of course even Ikki didn't want to imagine Shizuku's defeat. But it was sad that Shizuku and Touka, these two B-Rank knights, had too much of a difference. Whatever additional effort Shizuku tried to start making, she simply couldn't ever make an effective attack on Touka.

And that was with her forte of long range. In a fight without the evenness that comes from distance, the match would become complicated. It would probably be impossible to have a victory in a situation where she's completely pinned down.. Without a doubt, she was being maneuvered into a fatal distance. And that was Raikiri's range.

- Volume 3, chapter 1
[Shizuku didn't lose immediately because she was stronger at range. If Shizuku wasn't and the fight stayed in CQC, it would be impossible for Shizuku to win purely through the strength of trackless step]
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"How should I put it, it's instead the opposite. Because Shizuku-san was an opponent who couldn't be dealt with by ordinary means, there was no way I could accept her challenge while wearing my glasses. If I didn't improve my perception's accuracy by cutting off my eyesight, matching an opponent of Shizuku-san's class would've been very difficult.

"Perception, you say… what do you mean by that?"

"Me, I become able to sense the subtle signals of my opponent's body moving by cutting off my eyesight. Such a thing is a practical application of the ability to use lightning, you know?"

As Touka said. Humans are living machines. Their movements are based on autonomic transmission of signals coming entirely from the brain. Being able to perceive those signals was extremely beneficial.

The opponent's movements from the signals running down his nerves,
The opponent's line of sight from the signals controlling his eye muscles,
The opponent's mental status from the signals in his inter-cranial matter,
One could understand all of them quite distinctly.

"That sort of information, it's the opponent's true and naked feelings that can't be falsified. The opponent's state of mind. How the opponent is planning to act next. There are many things I understand beyond what the eye is limited to seeing in the opponent in practice. And if I grasp those things, reading and analyzing what my opponent is thinking becomes very simple. Thus I can see through both traps and surprise attacks."

"…I see. That's how Touka-san was able to avoid Shizuku's surprise attack, then?"

Touka nodded "yes" at Stella's words.

"That's my Noble Art, Reverse Sight. I suppose it resembles Worst One-san's Perfect Vision, yes? Although if Worst One-san's Perfect Vision is the fruit of discernment, mine is an ordinary cunning. …Well, that's how it is, but it's not like I never ease up on an opponent, you know?"

- Volume 3, Chapter 1
[Toka's Reverse Sight is directly compared to Perfect Vision in terms of ability]
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