Chidori

"Chidori..."

Maud studied the long sword resting on the table.

A row of diamond-shaped patterns was engraved on the hilt. The scabbard was a deep blue all over, long and sleek with a rich texture, while irregular white "" patterns were arranged across its surface.

The interweaving of blue and white gave it a profound air at first glance.

After studying it for a while, Maud suddenly grew curious about the blade inside the scabbard.

Sunny, on the other hand, had no interest in the sword. She focused on cleaning out the bottom of her bowl, not even letting a tiny shred of scallion escape.

Saul slurped up a large mouthful of steaming noodles, then turned his head toward Maud. "What? Want to try how it feels?"

Maud nodded instinctively. "Yeah. The sword looks really well-made. I wonder what it feels like to hold."

"Heh heh. You won't know until you try."

Saul freed one hand, picked up Chidori, and held it out.

Maud's eyes lit up at the sight, and he reached out to take Chidori.

At that moment, Saul's smile vanished. He reversed his grip and used Chidori like a stick, rapping Maud on the forehead.

"You need to devote yourself wholeheartedly to whatever you do. You haven't even gotten started with guns, and now you're interested in swords?"

"..."

Rubbing his forehead, Maud stared speechlessly at Saul, who had been grinning a moment ago but now wore a completely expressionless face.

Was it really necessary? He had only wanted to look at the sword.

Knowing how sensitive Saul was about such matters, Maud had no intention of talking back.

He had still been considering whether to write down a second request tonight when Saul happened to bring back Chidori from the auction.

That was why he really wanted to personally experience the allure of a famous sword from the One Piece World.

He never expected Saul wouldn't even let him touch the sword.

Saul clearly hated anything related to swords, yet he was so enthusiastic about collecting famous blades.

Maud had no idea what was going on inside the old man's head.

Maud glanced at Chidori, which Saul had placed back on the table, feeling rather disappointed.

But soon, he remembered that this famous sword would be placed on the shelves, and that Saul went to Flower Street for morning training almost every day...

Without revealing anything, Maud withdrew his gaze and began making a little plan.

At that moment, he failed to notice Saul's meaningful look, which seemed to say: Give it up, brat.

The next day.

At dawn, a thin mist filled the air.

The air was saturated with salty moisture.

Maud woke from his sleep, put on his weights, and immediately rushed to the shop.

"How can it not be here?!"

Looking at the shelves, which were just as unchanged as the day before, Maud's expectations fell through, leaving him deeply disappointed.

Hearing Maud's voice, Sunny came over from the corridor and looked at him in confusion.

"What are you doing?"

"Nothing."

Maud answered perfunctorily.

He didn't want to explain, but Sunny glanced at the shelves, then recalled Maud's behavior the previous night. She immediately guessed what he was thinking.

"Don't even think about it. How could Saul put a sword he wants to collect on the shelves for sale? He doesn't need those famous swords to make the shop look impressive."

"Oh, I see."

Maud was even more disappointed.

He had been holding on to the faint hope that Saul might keep the sword for a few days before putting it on the shelves. Sunny's words instantly shattered that hope.

"Saul keeps all the swords he bought at high prices in his own room. But I advise you not to try anything foolish. Even if an ant entered his room, Saul would know."

Sunny glanced at the disappointment on Maud's face and headed toward the kitchen.

"Breakfast will take a while longer. Clean up the shop first, then come over."

"Okay."

Maud answered listlessly, then looked back at the shelves.

Although there were many long swords displayed there, none gave him the same eye-catching feeling as Chidori.

The difference between them could only be described as the difference between heaven and earth.

After all, a great reputation was never unfounded.

As one of the Good Fast Swords among the Fifty Crafts, Chidori was incomparable to the blades on the shelves—not to mention the aura possessed by a Good Sword, its quality alone was enough to surpass them.

In reality, however, the swords on the shelves weren't bad either. Although they were far inferior to Chidori, the difference wasn't truly as vast as heaven and earth.

The feeling Maud had was mainly caused by the sword's reputation.

There was nothing he could do about it. He had been deeply influenced by the original work, so he naturally believed that only the nearly one hundred blades in the Supreme Grade and Skillful Grade categories were truly good swords.

But the world was so vast. How could there be only around a hundred good swords?

Even an average-quality long sword, if wielded by a swordsman skilled in Armament Haki...

After being nourished by Haki over a long period, it could become a fast sword without anyone noticing.

Although he couldn't touch Chidori, Maud instead found himself wanting to acquire a sword.

He would just have to acquire it secretly and hide it in his room.

Whenever he had nothing to do, he could take it out and get used to how it felt.

Once he had this idea, Maud was no longer in a hurry.

Copying the Notebook was more important, after all. He had to return it to Sunny after dinner.

No longer dwelling on Chidori, Maud cleaned the shop as quickly as possible. Then he asked Sunny for a new notebook.

It took him more than two hours to copy down all the information.

He had already remembered some of the information in the Notebook. After copying it out this time, certain details became even clearer in his mind.

Maud estimated that even without matching the information to wanted posters, he should be able to identify someone immediately as long as he saw their face.

For most of the day, the weapon shop remained as bleak as ever.

Not a single customer came during that time.

It wasn't until mealtime that Saul finally returned at a leisurely pace, carrying a jug of wine and reeking of alcohol.

As soon as he entered the weapon shop, Saul glanced at the weights on Maud's legs.

"I'm not eating lunch."

With that, he went straight upstairs to his room.

He had probably already enjoyed a hearty meal outside.

Watching Saul go upstairs, Maud returned to the shop and couldn't help glancing at the half-closed door.

He figured that once Saul fell asleep, he wouldn't wake up for several hours at least.

That meant Saul wouldn't be able to urge him to train that afternoon. Perhaps he could go out and look for prey.

Once the thought arose, Maud acted on it. He didn't plan to eat lunch anymore and went straight back to his room.

He took off the weights first and strapped the two flintlock pistols close to his body. As for Usopp, he decided not to bring him, since the signs of aging on the gun's body were too obvious.

"About five hundred thousand Beli..."

Maud counted his remaining private funds, then carefully placed them in his pocket.

He had casually searched this money from his prey after hunting them.

After making his preparations, Maud hurried downstairs and entered the shop.

"Sunny, I'm heading out for a while."

Maud quickly dropped the sentence, then gave Sunny no chance to respond. He opened and closed the door in one smooth motion and disappeared in an instant.

Behind the counter, Sunny stared blankly at the shop door. After a long moment, she gnashed her teeth.

"Maud!"

But soon, she recalled how fast Maud had moved when he slipped away.

"That can't be right. It's only been a few days..."

Sunny was bewildered.

Even with astonishing talent, how could he have improved so noticeably after wearing the weights for only two days?

Sunny couldn't figure it out no matter how hard she tried.

As Maud walked through the alley, he suddenly remembered that there were still several neighbors he hadn't visited.

But since he could visit them at any time, and he was pressed for time, he decided to leave it for next time.

"Come to think of it, this is my first time going out during the day."

Maud couldn't help sighing. He then began thinking about where to go.

The tavern was definitely his first choice.

Although it was a mixed crowd, the odds of finding suitable prey there were relatively high.

However, Maud also wanted to stroll around Cape Street during the day. There were other weapon shops too, as well as the place where Saul often trained in the morning... Ahem.

The more Maud thought about it, the more excited he became, and he unconsciously quickened his pace.

But in his growing excitement, he failed to notice the gaze fixed on him from behind.