Law: Don't Cry Again!

Early the next morning, Van brought Law and the others to Shimotsuki Dojo, immediately drawing a crowd.

"Why is there a white bear? It walks just like a person."

"Look, look, it can even blush! I wonder if it can talk."

"I saw it in the newspaper. It seems to be called the Mink Tribe. Maybe it was born from a human and a bear?"

"Nonsense! If that were possible, then..."

Faced with the children's chatter, Bepo wanted to loudly refute them, but he did not quite dare. He could only lower his head and pretend not to notice.

Kuina curiously touched his shoulder, then asked Van, "What's his name? Is he here to learn swordsmanship too?"

"He's Bepo. He's the same age as you, though he should be a few months younger."

"As for swordsmanship, only Law needs to learn it. There are no such requirements for the others."

Van smiled and added, "I'll pay the tuition in full. Just give them a place to train."

"If they're eating and staying at the dojo, the tuition won't be cheap," Kuina said playfully. "Only that idiot Zoro had his fees waived because Father took a liking to him."

She was joking. Aside from Zoro, quite a few gifted but impoverished students had their tuition reduced or waived.

Kozaburo had established the dojo to teach swordsmanship, so that successful disciples could give back to their hometown, protect the island, and keep its people safe.

Koshiro had inherited his father's work. Naturally, he would not treat the dojo or swordsmanship as tools for making money. Even though he truly needed a great deal of money these past few years, he would not betray his original intentions.

"It's fine. I can afford the tuition. Please look after them from now on," Van said politely.

"That's my duty, as long as they're not as troublesome as Zoro."

The moment Kuina finished speaking, the green-haired boy came rushing over.

"Kuina, I challenge you!"

"I'm busy right now!" Kuina rubbed her forehead in frustration. "I'll come find you later, okay?"

Zoro looked dissatisfiedly at Van's group, then his attention was instantly caught by Law.

More precisely, by the Kikoku in Law's hand.

"Hey! You carry a real sword with you. You must have trained in swordsmanship, right? Want to spar?"

"Not interested." Law lightly shook his head.

It was not that he looked down on Zoro. He simply thought that he was several years older, and winning would be unfair.

"Scared?" Zoro provoked.

"Kid, you're pretty cocky."

"Law just doesn't want to bully you. If you're asking for a beating, you can come to me."

Shachi and Penguin stepped forward without the slightest fear.

In fact, after more than half a year of training, they had even killed pirates with their own hands. They truly were not afraid of Zoro.

After all, they were one or two years older than Law. Their advantage in size and strength was far too obvious, and nine-year-old Zoro would have a hard time standing up to them.

"Zoro, they haven't officially joined the dojo yet. If you want to spar, you should at least wait a while."

Worried that Zoro might hurt someone, Kuina immediately stepped in to smooth things over.

"How about it? We can treat it as an entrance test."

Van loved watching the excitement. He patted Law on the shoulder and pushed him forward.

At that moment, Koshiro emerged from the inner part of the dojo. With just one glance, he understood what was happening.

A faint smile hung on his face as he said, "Use bamboo swords instead."

"You heard him, right?"

Zoro looked excited, completely unaware of what he was about to face.

"Don't cry later!"

Law handed Kikoku to Baiyan for safekeeping, then took the bamboo sword Kuina handed him.

"Watch yourselves!" Van egged them on. "You'll be close fellow disciples from now on!"

Law had spent two and a half years with the Donquixote Family, where everything he learned had been killing techniques. Afterward, he had focused on swordsmanship and trained for more than half a year.

In terms of combat experience, he might have surpassed every disciple in the dojo. Let alone Zoro alone, even Zoro and Kuina together would have a hard time defeating him.

Law nodded, then looked at Zoro coldly. "You're too weak. I'll let you strike first!"

"You're only a few years older! Don't look down on me!"

Zoro gripped his two swords tightly, leaned forward, and charged at Law.

When he closed the distance, he leaped high into the air and brought his sword down in a diving slash.

That strike contained all his strength. In the past, Kuina would always choose to evade it and rarely take it head-on.

"I'll finish you in one strike!"

Law did not move from where he stood. His right hand suddenly swung his bamboo sword in an upward horizontal slash.

Bang!

The bamboo swords collided. The irresistible sideways impact forced Zoro's body to tilt uncontrollably in midair, while the sword in his right hand flew from his grasp.

Immediately after, Law's sword struck the sword in Zoro's left hand as well. Zoro held onto it this time, but his body was completely thrown off balance.

How could the gap be this huge?

Zoro's mind went blank. Even after he crashed to the ground, his face remained full of disbelief.

"Is that enough?" Law sheathed his bamboo sword and looked at Koshiro.

"Overcoming skill with strength, one force conquering ten techniques. Is that the swordsmanship you have chosen?" Koshiro asked.

"No. My swordsmanship exists to defeat my opponents. I will never confine myself to a particular school at any time," Law explained. "I'm much stronger than him, so this was the fastest way."

"Mm." Koshiro nodded with a smile. "That's a very good idea."

"Strength... Women are naturally weaker than men. Does that mean I'm destined never to reach the pinnacle of swordsmanship?"

Kuina raised a hand to cover her budding chest, silently grieving. Why was I born a woman?

She had long felt a sense of crisis. She believed that someday, she would likely lose to Zoro because of the difference in their bodies. Law's appearance was now powerful proof of that.

She could currently defeat every child her age in the dojo. With her swordsmanship skills, she could even defeat some adult disciples with average talent in sparring matches.

But against a genius like Law, the difference in age was an insurmountable gulf.

Before they became adults, neither she nor Zoro would be likely to defeat him.

"You seem to like challenging people. If you're not afraid of getting hurt, you can come find me anytime."

Law walked over to Zoro and extended a hand toward him.

"Just wait! I'll definitely defeat you someday!"

Zoro spoke fiercely, but his body was honest. He did not refuse Law's goodwill.

"Kuina, show the new disciples around the dojo and arrange their accommodations."

After leaving the welcoming work to his daughter, Koshiro looked at Van and continued, "If there's nothing else, I'll have a disciple take you to see the village chief. You can ask the villagers to help you build a house."

"They'll be training here for at least three years. This is the tuition. If it isn't enough, I'll make up the rest later."

Van took out the ten million Beli he had prepared beforehand and stuffed it into Kuina's hands without giving her a chance to refuse.

It looked like a lot of money, but in truth, each person's monthly expenses came to less than fifty thousand Beli. It was not much at all.

"Father?" Kuina hesitated.

"Accept it." Koshiro smiled gently. "Mr. Van doesn't seem short on money."

"Law, you're the leader. Take good care of everyone, especially Baby-5," Van instructed. "Once I've built the house, you can come back to live there too."

"Don't worry, Brother Van!" Law nodded heavily.

He knew Baby-5's psychological flaw very well. The night before, Van had specifically warned them to guard against others exploiting it to cause trouble.

"Since I've taken them in, I'll ensure their safety."

Koshiro turned to look behind him and instructed, "Zoss, take Mr. Van to see the village chief."