Your Sword Still Has a Long Way to Go~

"Who are you calling Moss Head?!"

Zoro jumped up with his wooden sword raised, his face flushed red like a little green-maned lion with its fur bristling.

Ron looked down at his bright green hair, his eyes crinkling with amusement. "Oh, seaweed can talk?"

"Bastard! I challenge you to a duel!"

Koshiro adjusted his glasses and stepped in with a smile. "Zoro, this is Rear Admiral Ron from Marine Headquarters."

"So what if he's a rear admiral?!"

Zoro slung the wooden sword over his shoulder and stuck out his neck. "Anyone who picks up a sword is a swordsman!"

The amusement in Ron's eyes deepened. That was more interesting than Zoro's earlier shouting.

"All right, I'll give you a chance."

Zoro quickly picked up the other two wooden swords from the floor. He clenched one between his teeth, gripped one in each hand, and planted his feet in a Three-Sword Style stance.

Ron raised an eyebrow. "Three?"

"That's right! Three-Sword Style!"

"You haven't even mastered one sword, and you want to play with three?"

Even the tips of Zoro's ears turned red with anger. He charged across the floor, all three swords whistling through the air as they slashed at Ron from every direction.

Ron casually drew an ordinary wooden sword from a nearby weapon rack. He used neither Haki nor his fruit, and even restrained his strength to an ordinary level.

Smack.

Zoro's vision blurred, and he took a solid hit to the forehead.

"Ow!"

He landed on his backside, and all three wooden swords went rolling across the floor.

"Damn it!"

Zoro scrambled to his feet and picked up his three wooden swords again.

"Again!"

This time, he deliberately raised his arms high to guard his forehead.

Smack.

The wooden sword went around his guard and struck him squarely in the middle of the forehead again.

On his third attempt, Zoro simply lowered his head and charged, intending to get close and slash wildly.

Ron moved half a step to the side.

Smack.

The same spot again.

Zoro clutched his forehead, practically bursting with anger.

"I was watching your sword the whole time! Why couldn't I block it?!"

"Because you were only watching my sword, not your own feet."

Ron used his wooden sword to point at the floor by Zoro's feet. "Every time, you just charge straight ahead. Before you even get there, your feet have already given away where your next strike is going."

Zoro instinctively looked down at his right foot, his face full of disbelief.

"And why do you keep hitting me on the head, just like Kuina?!"

Ron thought for a moment, then answered with a perfectly serious face. "It's convenient."

"Aaah! I'm going to beat you!"

Kuina had been covering her mouth and snickering nearby, but as she watched, her smile gradually faded.

She could see it clearly. Ron barely moved his feet, yet every time, he managed to make Zoro's swords miss by just enough.

His wooden sword wasn't fast either, yet it always struck the place Zoro would have the hardest time defending before he could recover from his attack.

There were no unnecessary movements, and not once did he meet Zoro's swords head-on.

"Zoro, take a break."

Kuina picked up her wooden sword and strode into the center of the floor.

"I'll go!"

Koshiro looked a little surprised, but he didn't stop her.

Ron looked at her and teased with a smile, "I hear this Moss Head has never beaten you?"

"Hey!!" Zoro jumped up and down in anger.

Kuina straightened her back and nodded seriously. "Not once."

"Over two thousand times?"

She nodded again, her expression solemn.

Ron grinned. "Then let me see what someone with two thousand wins can do."

Kuina held her sword in both hands and gave him a proper bow.

"Please instruct me."

The moment their wooden swords first crossed, Ron noticed the difference.

When Zoro struck, he wanted nothing more than to knock his opponent flat with every blow.

Kuina, on the other hand, kept her eyes on Ron's shoulders and toes, taking small, steady steps.

She didn't rush to attack, waiting instead for her opponent to reveal an opening.

Zoro stood to the side, watching with a hand on his forehead. He noticed that every time Kuina took a step back, Ron made a slight adjustment to his stance.

"Are you two going to fight or not?"

"Quiet!"

Kuina snapped without looking back.

Probe, withdraw, change steps, probe again.

Ron deliberately left a slight opening on his right side.

Kuina's gaze shifted, but she didn't thrust immediately. Instead, she made a slight feint first.

When she saw Ron turn his wooden sword to block, she flipped her wrist and changed to a diagonal slash, aiming straight for his side.

Ron's eyes lit up.

"Not bad."

He withdrew his probing strike and gave his wrist a gentle turn.

Smack.

His wooden sword tapped Kuina lightly on the shoulder.

"You lost."

Kuina was breathing hard, but her eyes shone even brighter.

"Again!"

"All right."

This time, Ron didn't rush to finish the match.

"Don't lift your back heel before you strike."

Kuina immediately adjusted her footwork.

"Don't let your center of gravity follow your sword. Let the sword follow you."

Clack, clack, clack, clack—!

The wooden swords met in a rapid series of blows.

Kuina blocked three attacks in a row, but just as a hint of delight appeared on her face, Ron's sword slipped through a gap in her guard and stopped beside her neck.

"See? You anticipated the first strike, but forgot I could change my move."

"Got it!"

They exchanged another dozen or so moves before Ron ended the match with a clean block and counterattack, tapping her lightly on the wrist.

Kuina looked down at the wooden sword in her hand.

She had clearly seen that last move.

But by the time she tried to block, Ron's sword had already stopped against her wrist.

She gritted her teeth and looked up again.

"I definitely saw you turn left just now."

"Seeing it doesn't mean you have time to react."

Ron raised a hand and gently lifted the tip of her sword. "Your hands were already preparing to block to the right, but your waist and feet were still where they were."

"A swordsman never swings a sword with just his arms."

Kuina took her stance again as he had instructed and tried swinging her sword twice. Sure enough, her movements were much smoother.

Ron nodded. "That's it. It's still early, so don't rush to get faster."

"Again!"

Zoro, who had long since grown impatient, charged over with his sword raised.

"Me too!"

Ron looked at the fuming Zoro on his left, then at Kuina on his right, her eyes shining, and smiled.

"Aren't you tired?"

"No!"

The two children answered in perfect unison.

"All right, come at me together."

The result was even livelier than expected.

Zoro charged fiercely, while Kuina held steady, planning to wait until Zoro forced an opening before attacking.

But Ron moved just one step, putting Zoro's body directly in the way of Kuina's angle of attack.

"Zoro, stop running around!" Kuina shouted.

"You're the one running around!"

Smack! Smack!

With two soft smacks, each of them took a hit to the forehead.

Before long, Zoro's head was covered in bumps. Kuina had blocked most of the attacks, but her wrists had been struck until they were sore and numb.

Ron put the wooden sword back on the weapon rack.

"All right, that's enough for today."

"We'll continue tomorrow!" Zoro shouted immediately.

"Me too!" Kuina chimed in right after him.

The smile on Ron's face stiffened.

Oh no.

These two brats are even harder to deal with than the three in Garp's family.

That evening, Koshiro invited Ron to have tea beneath the veranda.

"Your swordsmanship seems to combine more than one style, Rear Admiral."

"The foundation was taught to me by Teacher Zephyr."

Ron cradled his teacup, the rising steam softening his features. "Later, one of the fastest people in the world taught me how to seize the right moment and judge distance. After that, I worked out Spatial Swordsmanship on my own."

"Spatial Swordsmanship?"

"A sword doesn't necessarily have to strike from where its wielder stands."

Koshiro looked thoughtful but didn't press further.

He rose and took a sword from the sword rack.

A wooden practice post stood in the courtyard, and several parasol tree leaves were spiraling down through the air.

Koshiro slowly drew his sword.

Swoosh!

The blade flashed.

The wooden post split silently, its cut surface smooth as though it had been shaved.

Yet a falling leaf that happened to drift past the blade landed on the ground completely unharmed.

Ron's gaze sharpened slightly.

"Rear Admiral Ron."

Koshiro sheathed his sword. "Do you think the sharper a sword is, the closer it comes to the pinnacle of the way of the sword?"

"Of course not."

"Oh?"

"Cut what you want to cut, and protect what you want to protect."

Ron looked at the fallen leaf lying quietly on the ground. "A sword shouldn't decide what to cut for its wielder."

Koshiro's eyes lit up.

"It seems you understand the sword better than I imagined, Rear Admiral."

"Understanding is one thing. Actually making every strike go exactly as you wish isn't so simple."

Ron stood up with a smile. "Shall we give it a try?"

Koshiro smiled as well. "Please."

Each holding a wooden sword, the two stood facing each other in the courtyard.

Neither used Haki or a fruit ability.

Clack!

The two wooden swords crashed together!

Ron turned his wrist, sending his blade straight for Koshiro's shoulder.

Koshiro, however, turned sideways half a step ahead of the strike, letting it miss as it brushed past his sleeve.

Ron was just about to change his move when the other wooden sword darted toward his wrist.

He immediately pulled his sword back to block.

Clack! Clack!

The two exchanged blows faster and faster, their wooden swords sometimes colliding, sometimes brushing past each other.

After several exchanges, they both stepped back.

Ron glanced down at his wooden sword.

"I thought I could reach you with that last one."

Koshiro smiled.

"I almost didn't dodge it."

"True."

Ron shook out his wrist.

"I could clearly see an opening, but whenever I actually swung at it, I was always half an inch short."

Ron smiled and cupped his hands.

"Thank you for the lesson."

"Likewise."

The two put away their wooden swords and returned to the veranda.

In the distance, Zoro was still gritting his teeth and swinging his sword.

Koshiro watched him from behind and smiled.

"That boy really is talented."

"Quite talented."

Ron nodded.

"But Kuina is no slouch either. Her sword strokes are much steadier than his."

"Kuina..."

Koshiro was silent for a moment, then sighed softly.

"It's a pity she's a girl."

At the corner of the veranda.

Kuina was carrying fresh tea and had just reached the corner when she heard her father's words.

She stopped dead in her tracks.

Her fingers gripped the edge of the tray tightly.

Hot tea sloshed out and splashed onto the back of her hand.

But Kuina seemed not to notice.

She stood there motionless, her head lowered.