"An unyielding will."
Hawk Eyes slowly pulled the small dagger from Zoro's chest, drawing a spray of blood.
He took a step back, shedding his casual air. For the first time, he looked at Zoro as he would an opponent:
"Boy, state your name!"
Enduring the sharp pain in his chest, Zoro assumed his stance again. He gripped his swords in both hands, Wado Ichimonji clenched between his teeth, every word ringing with force:
"Roronoa Zoro!"
"Roronoa Zoro..." Hawk Eyes quietly repeated.
Then, beneath the breathless gazes of hundreds around them, he slowly extended his right hand and grasped the enormous black blade on his back, the weapon that symbolized the world's strongest.
"Hum—!"
The instant Black Blade: Yoru left its sheath, a terrifying sense of oppression swept across the entire Baratie.
It was the pressure of a Supreme Grade Sword, and the aura of the World's Greatest Swordsman.
"I will remember you, strong one I have not seen in a long time!"
Holding the Black Blade, Hawk Eyes angled its tip toward the sea. "Then... as a courtesy between swordsmen, I shall see you off with this world's strongest Black Blade—Yoru!"
"Then... I gratefully accept!"
Zoro drew a deep breath, pouring every ounce of strength, every drop of blood, and every shred of his spirit into the Three Swords in his hands.
He began rapidly spinning the two swords in his hands, his entire body seeming to transform into a storm.
"Three Sword Style ultimate technique—"
Hawk Eyes vanished in an instant, becoming a streak of black flowing light.
Zoro moved as well, charging without hesitation toward that flowing light capable of cleaving heaven and earth!
"—Three Thousand Worlds!!!"
"Clang—!!!"
The two figures crossed in midair.
Time seemed to freeze at that moment.
The waves stopped crashing, and the seagulls stopped crying.
"Crack! Crack!"
The crisp sound of breaking shattered the dead silence.
The two ordinary Katanas in Zoro's hands were instantly broken into countless fragments beneath the edge of Black Blade: Yoru, scattering through the air like butterflies.
At the same time, a massive bloody gash across Zoro's chest split open, blood spurting out like a fountain.
"Thud."
Zoro dropped to one knee, and the broken swords slipped from his hands.
"I lost..."
"I never imagined... that I would lose!"
He slowly sheathed the only undamaged sword, Wado Ichimonji.
"So this is... the power of the world's strongest!"
Zoro slowly rose to his feet.
He turned around, then made a move that none of them had expected.
He spread his arms wide, openly bared his chest, and faced Hawk Eyes calmly, a fearless smile on his face.
Hawk Eyes tilted his head slightly, a trace of confusion flashing through his golden eyes. "What are you doing?"
Zoro grinned, revealing blood-covered teeth as he spoke words that would shake the entire Great Sea:
"A wound on the back... is a swordsman's shame."
Hawk Eyes' pupils contracted sharply.
The next second, an expression of immense admiration curled across his lips.
"Splendid!"
"Swish—!"
Black Blade: Yoru carved a bleak, beautiful black arc through the air, slashing mercilessly toward Zoro's completely unguarded chest!
"Splurt—!"
Blood instantly stained the sky red as Zoro's body flew backward like a broken string kite, crashing heavily into the Great Sea.
"Zoro!!!"
The sight made Luffy, who had been suppressing his emotions all this time, feel as if his eyes were bursting.
"Bastard!!"
Luffy let out a grief-stricken roar, his arm stretching out as he prepared to charge forward and fight Hawk Eyes to the death.
Just then, a powerful hand firmly pressed down on Luffy's shoulder.
"Calm down, Luffy!"
Ronan's voice boomed beside Luffy's ear like a great bell.
"Let me go, Ronan! Zoro, he..." Luffy's eyes were bloodshot as he struggled desperately.
"Your heart is in turmoil!"
Ronan shouted, "Use your Observation Haki and feel it! Zoro isn't dead! He isn't even seriously hurt!"
"W-What?" Luffy froze, his struggling coming to a halt.
He tried hard to steady his breathing and sense what was happening.
Sure enough, within the seawater dyed red by blood, Zoro's presence was weak but still burned stubbornly, and his heartbeat remained strong.
"Zoro... is okay?" Luffy said blankly.
"Of course he is."
Ronan released him and looked at Hawk Eyes as he sheathed his sword, a sharp gleam flashing in Ronan's eyes.
"Besides Hawk Eyes showing mercy... have you forgotten what Zoro went through this past week?"
Thirteen Protectors Hard Qi Training, Second Stage—Bronze Skin Iron Bones.
Hawk Eyes watched as Johnny and Joseph hurriedly pulled the fallen Zoro from the water.
He looked at the young man covered in blood, surprise flashing through his eyes.
"A formidable body..."
Hawk Eyes lowered his gaze to his Black Blade.
As the World's Greatest Swordsman, his control over strength had long reached the finest degree.
Although he had avoided the fatal points with that slash, he knew exactly how much force it carried.
Yet the feeling when the blade edge cut into Zoro's body had surprised him.
It was not merely the resistance of muscle.
Zoro's skin was as tough as cowhide, his muscles as firm as steel, and even his bones were astonishingly hard.
It was a physique hardened through practice, far beyond that of an ordinary person.
"Was he naturally gifted... or had he practiced some special Physical Technique?"
Hawk Eyes silently praised him.
It was precisely because of that absurdly powerful body that the slash had only cut through flesh and skin, without damaging his internal organs or foundation.
"Are you his companions?"
Hawk Eyes turned and looked toward Ronan, Luffy, and the others standing on the deck.
"Thank you... for watching from the sidelines until the end."
Hawk Eyes' voice rose as he looked at Zoro. Carrying the expectations of an elder toward a younger generation, it echoed across the entire sea area:
"It is still too early for you to die!"
"I am Dracule Mihawk! See yourself clearly, see the world clearly, and grow stronger!"
"No matter how many years pass, I will wait for you here, in this strongest position!"
"Young man with a powerful heart and resilient body... surpass me! Roronoa Zoro!!"
Those words were like startling thunder, proclaiming the beginning of a New Era.
Under everyone's gaze, Zoro lay on the deck, wrapped head to toe in bandages as blood still seeped through them. With difficulty, he raised the only sword in his hand—Wado Ichimonji.
Its tip pointed directly at the vault of heaven, glinting brilliantly beneath the sunlight.
Tears slid from the corners of Zoro's eyes, mingling with blood as they flowed down.
He cried like a child, yet made the most solemn vow of a man:
"L-Luffy... Ronan..."
"I made you... worry, didn't I..."
"If I don't become the World's Greatest Swordsman... you'll be in trouble, won't you?"
Zoro used every last ounce of strength to roar:
"I... I will never lose again!!!"
"Until I defeat him and become a Great Swordmaster... I absolutely! Absolutely will not lose again!!!"
"Do you have any objections, Pirate King!!!"
Luffy looked at his companion swearing an oath with his sword raised, and broke into his brightest smile.
"Shishishi! None!!"
Ronan stood to one side, watching the scene, his heart surging with emotion.
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