The Opportunity? I Don't Need It

Three years was that long?

Hancock opened her mouth, but she did not voice any doubts.

Because Mr. Mihawk before her was a renowned great swordsman.

Naturally, he had better judgment than she did when it came to swordsmanship.

If Mihawk said three years, it was probably true.

Although Junichi was only fifteen and would only be eighteen three years later, an eighteen-year-old great swordsman would already be astonishing.

But compared to his progress in the two types of Haki...

It seemed far too slow.

"After all, every living creature possesses the power of Haki, but only a select few can make it down the path of swordsmanship," Rayleigh said slowly, summing it up.

Hawkeye nodded, agreeing with that statement.

Hancock grew even more discouraged. Her heart began to waver as she leaned toward the idea of three years.

The next day.

Junichi woke early. After breakfast, he set out to continue his training.

After swinging his sword all afternoon yesterday,

he had already found the feeling. If nothing unexpected happened, he would max out the proficiency today.

"Let's begin."

Arriving at his training spot, Junichi drew his blade and focused completely.

Swish!

New Uchiha Style Swordsmanship flowed from his hands.

[You practiced New Uchiha Style Swordsmanship once. Proficiency +1]

[You are practicing Secret Technique: Flying Slash. Proficiency +1]

Amid the sharp whistles of his blade slicing through the air,

proficiency notifications occasionally flashed across the panel.

And so,

the entire morning passed swiftly.

As noon approached,

Junichi became increasingly immersed.

Something within his heart was stirring, like gold washed clean of dust, about to reveal itself.

[You are practicing Secret Technique: Flying Slash. Proficiency +1]

"You're too impatient." A voice suddenly came from behind him.

Junichi did not turn around.

His Observation Haki had already caught the presence. It was Hawkeye Mihawk.

"There's little point in grinding away at this hurdle. What you need is completeness of the heart." Hawkeye walked over, his expression serious as he advised, "I suggest you put aside swordsmanship for now."

"You're holding on too tightly."

"Letting nature take its course is the proper way to break through."

Junichi turned a deaf ear and simply continued swinging his sword.

Ripples suddenly spread across the lake of his heart.

That thing buried deep within him was rapidly rising to the surface.

[You are practicing Secret Technique: Flying Slash. Proficiency +1]

"Looks like you don't intend to listen."

Seeing this, Hawkeye shook his head. "Then I won't say more. I was stubborn once too. This is probably a stage every swordsman must go through."

With that, he turned to leave.

"Oh, right. I came to tell you that it's time for lunch."

Leaving those words behind, Hawkeye headed toward the small boat by the shore.

Junichi ignored him and merely slowly slashed his blade.

This slash suddenly seemed to touch something. A realization burst forth from his heart and wondrously merged into the blade.

It caused what should have been an ordinary slash to suddenly surge tremendously in power.

Riiip!

The air was torn apart like cloth.

"Hm?"

Hawkeye immediately stopped and turned back in surprise. "That slash?"

He keenly sensed the unusual nature of that attack.

[You practiced Secret Technique: Flying Slash once. Proficiency +1]

[Ding!]

[Your Secret Technique: Flying Slash has met the proficiency requirement and has automatically advanced.]

[Flying Slash: Special (max level upon entry)]

Boom!

Junichi's mind shook violently, and water splashed within the lake of his heart.

A sincere heart, perfect as the moon, rose from beneath the water and hung high in the air.

In an instant,

an incomparably lucid sensation filled both body and mind.

His true heart hung high, forever illuminating his spirit and dispelling all concealment.

The realm of a great swordsman!

Junichi's gaze changed, becoming gentle and tranquil, with no trace of urgency or repression remaining.

His spirit stretched loose, and his heart relaxed.

His entire being found a relaxation unlike anything before.

It was as though all things were reflected in the lake of his heart and could no longer stir his emotions.

"Junichi!?"

Hawkeye stared at Junichi in shock.

This feeling, this lucid aura, was clearly the mark of a great swordsman!

But how was that possible?

No one could break through to the realm of a great swordsman through nothing but relentless training.

Otherwise, so many swordsmen would not have remained trapped before this threshold for their entire lives.

Breaking through this realm required experience and enlightenment!

"Mr. Mihawk, I have grasped the secret of Flying Slash," Junichi said slowly, his voice clear and a smile on his lips.

He turned toward the sea and lightly swung his blade.

Just as Hawkeye had done yesterday.

Screech!

The casual slash erupted with terrifying power, violently tearing open the air.

Whoosh!

An arcing slash wave shot forth and landed on the seawater ten meters away.

Boom!

The surface of the sea exploded, sending up a spray of water.

"Flying Slash..." Hawkeye's eyes widened in disbelief. "It really is Flying Slash—the realm of a great swordsman!"

Though it was a very weak Flying Slash, it was still a Flying Slash!

This was irrefutable proof of the realm of a great swordsman!

Junichi had actually broken through this barrier by force through relentless training alone, without needing experience!

"How did you do it?" Hawkeye looked at Junichi, his eyes filled with incomprehension.

This overturned the consensus of the swordsmanship world for thousands of years!

"It's actually not difficult."

Junichi chuckled and shared his realization. "The purpose of traveling is to let swordsmen encounter different people and events, shatter the filters of the past, and find their true hearts."

"But finding one's true heart does not necessarily require traveling."

"Some people are naturally clear-hearted, while others understand exactly what they want before becoming swordsmen."

Junichi pointed at himself.

"I am the latter."

"Before I comprehended Flying Slash, I already knew what I wanted."

"So breaking through this hurdle was very easy."

Those words were not false.

After comprehending Flying Slash, Junichi had gained his own understanding of this realm.

Just as the human body possessed an instinct for self-preservation,

that instinct limited the upper bound of one's strength.

The human heart also had subconscious thoughts that unknowingly suppressed oneself.

If a swordsman was someone who broke through the body's self-imposed limitations,

then a great swordsman was someone who broke through the self-imposed limitations of the heart.

Once he understood this,

the realm of a great swordsman was no longer some vague, elusive "opportunity," but a concrete and repeatable path.

"So that's how it is?"

Hawkeye listened in a daze, his expression changing several times.

He knew Junichi was right.

It corresponded with some of his own realizations.

But his insights had been scattered and unsystematic, whereas Junichi had dissected the essence with the precision of a scalpel.

"The secret of the great swordsman realm, something countless swordsmen have pondered fruitlessly, has been completely exposed by just a few words from you..."

Hawkeye looked at Junichi with a complicated gaze.

"Could it be that you're the reincarnation of some Sword Saint from history?"

"Hahaha, how could that be?" Junichi could not help laughing. "I just have a tiny bit more talent for insight and a tiny bit more thoughtfulness, that's all."

As he spoke, he held up a tiny gap between his fingertips.

Hawkeye's mouth twitched slightly.

More than a tiny bit?

The difference was simply as vast as heaven and earth!

"Your talent is more monstrous than any monster," Hawkeye sighed from the bottom of his heart.