Koushiro watched the Empire's fleet sail away, his eyes filled with helplessness.
His two most prized disciples had been summoned by the Emperor just like that.
Could Zoro, now part of the Empire's Guard Army, still carry Wado Ichimonji and Kuina's dream with him and become the World's Greatest Swordsman?
What Koushiro hadn't expected was that Wang Shi knew about some of his dealings with the Revolutionary Army.
A shadow fell over his heart.
Now, all he could do was hope Wang Shi would spare Shimotsuki Village.
Looking at the Goa Empire's flag flying above the main building of Isshin Dojo, Koushiro gave a bitter smile.
Shimotsuki Village was now part of the Goa Empire, and Zoro and Saka had joined Wang Shi's ranks.
Wang Shi probably wouldn't make a move against Shimotsuki Village.
Aboard the Goa Empire's fleet, on the Exile Emperor.
"Zoro, these Imperial Guard uniforms are so cool!!"
Wearing a dignified, imposing black uniform, Saka excitedly shared his thoughts with Zoro in a low voice.
Goa Empire uniform
"They're pretty good."
Zoro wasn't opposed to the stylish uniform, and he liked the name of their unit, too.
An elite new force within the Guard Army.
"Don't think the Guard Army is full of weaklings!"
"Did you know the Four Emperors' Beast Kaido came from the army of the Vodka Kingdom? Heir to the Devil Bullet was a soldier in a warlike kingdom, too."
"And Jinbe, the Shichibukai known as the Sea Knight, came from the Royal Army of the Ryugu Kingdom."
"I'm going to build the world's strongest imperial army. Don't fall behind."
"The Goa Empire is advancing faster than you can imagine."
Wang Shi addressed the proud young men, who seemed to look down on the Guard Army and the Royal Army, in a leisurely tone.
Wang Shi's uniform
"What?!"
"People from the military became one of the Four Emperors and a Shichibukai?"
"Could we become great figures like them one day?"
"I heard the World's Greatest Swordsman, Hawkeye Mihawk, is a Shichibukai!"
At Wang Shi's words, Eric, Van Augur, Saka, and Zoro all grew serious.
Nami, Nojiko, Kaya, and the other girls felt a wave of fear and breathlessness just hearing those names that struck terror across the seas.
"People can rise to the top even if they start out in the military. Are you ready to fight your way there?"
Wang Shi looked at the eager Zoro. No wonder he was a swordsman who could awaken Conqueror's Haki; he had the unwavering resolve and sharpness to keep moving forward.
Van Augur and Saka's eyes were full of conviction, too.
Eric, on the other hand, seemed a little timid and unsure of himself.
"You have to take me to Hawkeye Mihawk!"
Zoro grinned, brimming with ambition. He had joined the Imperial Guard to follow Wang Shi's fleet and find the legendary World's Greatest Swordsman.
"Your conviction and will are impressive, but you're still too weak right now."
"Beat Eric and learn Steel-Cutting first. Then we'll talk."
As he was now, Zoro wasn't even strong enough to take one slash from Hawkeye Mihawk.
His limited experience in Shimotsuki Village had severely narrowed his horizons and kept this young dragon caged.
"I'll master Steel-Cutting. I swear!"
Zoro's eyes were filled with determination. He carried Kuina's dream and effort on his shoulders.
"Your Majesty, this kid thinks he can beat me? Is this a joke?"
Eric wasn't just being arrogant. In the East Blue, the Weakest Sea, he really didn't think much of a rookie like Zoro.
He wasn't afraid of Klahadore, with his 16-million-Belly bounty, or Krieg, with his 17-million-Belly bounty.
Only Arlong, the Fish-Man with a 20-million-Belly bounty, made him wary.
"I'll beat you."
Zoro could feel Eric's strength, but his gaze remained unwavering.
A Devil Fruit user who could casually unleash sharp wind blades.
His strength was already comparable to that of a swordsman capable of wielding Flying Slashes.
But Zoro wasn't afraid. His path to becoming the World's Greatest Swordsman meant cutting down every enemy and rival in his way.
"Hmph. I'll be waiting, brat!"
Eric snorted. The Mosshead's beastlike stare irritated him.
He wouldn't mind teaching the arrogant rookie a good lesson on his first voyage.
"Confidence is good, but too much of it is arrogance. Beat these two little cats first."
Wang Shi looked at Zoro and casually pointed to Sam the Siamese cat and Spotted Cat Buchi, the two pirate slaves.
Even two years later, Zoro had been injured by the Cat Brothers.
The Zoro of today would probably struggle to defeat them.
Still, what Wang Shi valued most was Zoro's talent and how quickly he could grow.
During the year or two he'd spent getting lost in the East Blue, he'd gone hungry every few days and survived by randomly capturing pirates.
That had indeed wasted a lot of time he could have spent training and growing stronger.
"Little cats?"
Zoro looked at the Cat Brothers, who wore Slave Collars. They certainly had the air of vicious pirates about them.
"The Cat Brothers. They have a 7-million-Belly bounty."
Saka, who'd once aspired to join the Marines, quickly recognized the two wanted men.
He could recognize almost every pirate and bandit in the East Blue who had a bounty poster.
"Go on, Cat Brothers. Show these rookies how cruel the sea can be."
"Jango, give them a boost."
Wang Shi knew that someone like Zoro, with both hard work and talent, needed to be pushed to his limits again and again to grow quickly.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Jango immediately hypnotized the Cat Brothers, making them go berserk and attack Zoro.
Now Jango and the others were desperate to earn Wang Shi's approval, shed their slave status, and become free men.
Wang Shi had given them a glimmer of hope.
If they performed well enough, they could do more than just get their Slave Collars removed—even their bounties might be rescinded.
How could that not drive them to give it everything they had?
Wang Shi had once considered keeping Klahadore as a pirate slave of his own.
But Sengoku the Buddha had been adamant: the scoundrel who had slaughtered an entire ship of Marines had to be executed.
So Klahadore never even got the chance to become a pirate slave. He was sent off with Captain Morgan and Captain Nezumi to face trial at Marine Headquarters and Enies Lobby.
After all, gaining the right to deploy troops from those Marine Branches in the Goa Empire hadn't come easily.
It had all come down to compromise and bargaining over power and interests.
The Cat Brothers' transformation into a frenzy made Zoro focus completely as he fought the two pirates with bounties on their heads.
Even Saka, standing nearby, was eager to join in. This was his chance to fight pirates for real.
The battle was fierce, and Eric and Van Augur got a rough idea of Zoro's strength.
"I thought he'd be stronger. This is it? And he's still acting so cocky?"
Seeing Zoro's performance, Eric scoffed.
He killed swordsmen and pirates of this caliber every year—he couldn't even count how many.
Wang Shi didn't stop Eric from mocking Zoro.
Maybe provoking and pushing Zoro would help him grow faster.
The battle finally ended with Zoro and the Cat Brothers all collapsing.
Zoro and Saka hadn't expected the Cat Brothers, with their mere 7-million-Belly bounties, to be so difficult to deal with.
They really had underestimated the cruelty of the sea.
The world of pirates wasn't child's play.
A real battle to the death was nothing like a dojo sparring match.
One mistake, and you could really die.