Somewhere in a secluded alley, scarcely any pedestrians passed by.
Beneath the black streetlamp, the two stood several meters apart. Each drew a bamboo sword and assumed a starting stance.
"Please!"
Chunyi shouted softly, instantly shattering the silence. He moved, and the bamboo sword in his hand shot forward like a spirit snake, its momentum fierce as it cut through the air with a whoosh.
Smack!
Next instant, Chunyi stared blankly down at the bamboo sword lying on the ground.
When?
"Want to try again?"
"Again!" Chunyi gritted his teeth, picked up the bamboo sword, and gripped it tightly.
He had held back just now to test his opponent. If he went all out, surely he wouldn't—
Smack!
The bamboo sword fell from his hand again.
After tumbling several times, it happened to stop beside Chunyi's foot. He stood dazed for a long while before his knees slowly buckled, leaving him half-kneeling on the ground as he stared at his bamboo sword in a daze.
How, how was this possible?
At Isshin Dojo, he was the strongest among the disciples of the past two generations, practically holding the position of senior disciple. Sometimes, he even served as an assistant instructor, helping Koshiro teach the younger children.
If not for that,
he would never have been so confident as to set sail alone for Asagiri Island, attempting to claim the Kendo Tournament championship and restore the Sakura Garden's reputation.
But...
The burly boy standing opposite him was clearly two years younger than he was.
Yet Xia Nuo's attainments in swordsmanship had already reached a realm Chunyi could neither fathom nor see through, like an insurmountable mountain.
One move. He had needed only one move.
He had been defeated utterly, without even earning the chance to see his opponent's blade trajectory and block it.
At that moment,
he seemed to hear his confidence in the way of the sword shattering like glass, cracking apart bit by bit.
Opposite him,
Xia Nuo sheathed his bamboo sword and swept his gaze over Chunyi, taking in every reaction.
Tch, was I too cruel to him?
However, telling him the truth now—that he actually knew nothing about swordsmanship—would probably hurt him even more.
He would wait until the tournament ended and explain everything if he got the chance.
"We should go."
Xia Nuo lightly patted his shoulder in consolation, then led the way toward the inn.
On the way,
Chunyi failed to recover from the blow for a long time and walked with his head lowered morosely. Xia Nuo, meanwhile, focused his attention on the System Panel he had just opened, his eyes thoughtful.
[Name: Xia Nuo (Siano)] [Age: 13] [Height: 176 cm] [Strength: 2.2] [Agility: 2.0] [Stamina: 2.1] [Spirit: 1.4]
This was the first time he had checked his current panel data since ending his closed-door training that afternoon.
Every basic attribute had risen substantially compared with before his breakthrough.
"2.0 seems to be a critical threshold. Those who can cross it are practically a different species from the ordinary people of this sea."
Xia Nuo reached this conclusion.
Compared with Chunyi, the greatest difference lay in strength, which he set aside for now.
Even just their muscle reaction speed and dynamic visual acuity were on entirely different levels.
In his eyes, every movement from Chunyi drawing his sword to thrusting it forward looked as if it were in slow motion.
Frame by frame, he could find the most suitable moment, press pause at will, shift from defense to offense, and break his opponent's attack.
In the manga, Zoro's battle with Hawkeye at the Baratie Restaurant was somewhat similar.
Before Hawkeye drew Black Blade Night to show his respect, the clash in which he fought Zoro with a small knife could not be considered a duel between swordsmen at all.
In Zoro's eyes, Hawkeye's swordsmanship had been so extraordinary that he could easily defeat him even with a small knife.
But from Hawkeye's perspective, it was the same as Xia Nuo's current view while defeating Chunyi. It had nothing to do with swordsmanship—it was simply a dimensional crushing by a higher-level species against ordinary humans.
It would have made no difference if he had replaced the small knife with a toothpick, or with his own finger.
When the gap was too great, overwhelming strength could break through every technique.
Xia Nuo closed the System Panel and glanced at the thin boy behind him, who looked as if Perona's ghosts had swept over him. He pondered inwardly.
"Although Chunyi has immersed himself in swordsmanship since childhood and is a little simple-minded, he isn't someone who lacks self-awareness."
"When he said he would compete for the championship, it wasn't empty bravado. He truly had the confidence to do so."
He could easily defeat Chunyi with a single sword strike by relying on the enormous gap in their physical abilities.
Then, presumably, the gap between him and the other contestants would be just as enormous.
The East Blue was, after all, the weakest sea.
There wasn't even a true swordsman remaining here.
No matter what dark horse emerged in this Kendo Tournament, he should be able to handle them with ease, without worrying about his poor swordsmanship being exposed.
With only one day of delay, he could take five million Berries for free and help Chunyi in the process. However he looked at it, it was a win-win.
A day and two nights passed in the blink of an eye.
Before they knew it, the day of the competition had arrived.
At seven in the morning, Chunyi finished getting ready and walked out of his room. He found that a figure was already training in the empty courtyard downstairs.
"Three hundred, three hundred and one... Oh, you're awake."
Xia Nuo brought his legs together, flipped backward with a smack, and landed steadily. He picked up a towel to wipe away his sweat and said with a smile, "I've got my things ready too. Shall we go?"
"Yeah!" Chunyi nodded forcefully.
From the night before last until now, his state of mind had gradually recovered quite a bit.
In particular, Xia Nuo had gone to train by the sea alone before dawn yesterday and had not returned until midnight. Even Chunyi had been impressed by that level of diligence.
If his opponent had endured days like this from childhood and also possessed a talent for swordsmanship, then being defeated by one move did not seem quite so difficult to accept.
Chunyi took a deep breath, his eyes shining as he gazed toward the enormous banner faintly visible in the distance.
He had no chance of competing with Mr. Xia Nuo for the championship, but today was a day he had dreamed of for a long time. He had his own battle to fight!
Asagiri Island was higher in the north and lower in the south. The Seven Great Dojos were all in the northern part of the city, arranged in a line down the slope. At the end of their convergence lay the broad, round-moon-shaped plaza in the city center.
By now, the plaza was already packed with people and buzzing with activity.
Nearly a hundred temporary wooden platforms were scattered throughout the area. Long lines stretched from the registration booths, while staff in dojo uniforms hurried busily back and forth.
The enormous banners hung at the four corners, the pale pink decorations everywhere, and the cherry blossoms drifting on the wind created a strong festive atmosphere.
On the second floor of a nearby café, two cups of Cappuccino steamed on a table.
"Boss, that kid is here." On the right side of the round table, the tall swordsman wearing a White Fox mask looked toward Chunyi, who had just followed Xia Nuo into the plaza, and spoke in a low voice.
"Mm, I see him."
The middle-aged man seated opposite him was dressed luxuriously. He glanced over before withdrawing his gaze.
He lightly tapped the tabletop with his index-finger knuckle and said calmly, "That muscleman with him looks young. What exactly is his identity? Have you found out?"