At that moment, a figure hurriedly pushed open the tavern door.
As soon as the newcomer entered, he sat down at the table with the most people. As though he had just received some hot news, he exclaimed excitedly, "Have you heard? Kuina, who has never lost at Isshin Dojo, was defeated by an outsider yesterday!"
Chapter 8: Shimotsuki Village: Zoro's Enthusiasm
"What? Kuina actually lost to an outsider?"
"Really? Did you get it wrong? Kuina is incredibly strong. I remember that over the past few years, everyone who came to challenge the dojo was defeated by her. How could she possibly lose?"
"But there's nothing strange about her losing. She's only eleven, after all. There are still plenty of adults stronger than her."
"Yeah, exactly. Losing once is no big deal. Kuina is still young. The person who beat her must be an extremely powerful adult."
Although everyone was shocked that Kuina, who had never lost, had been defeated, they felt relieved when they remembered that she was still young.
However, the person who had brought the news shook his index finger and said, "No, no. The person who defeated Kuina wasn't an adult, but a brat carrying a Wooden Sword. I heard that brat might even be younger than Kuina."
As soon as he finished speaking,
the noisy tavern fell silent.
A few seconds later, cries of shock erupted everywhere.
"What? A brat younger than Kuina defeated her? Are you sure that's true?"
"How is that possible? How could Kuina lose to a brat? That brat must have cheated!"
"Hey, hey, we're not that easy to fool. If you spread false news, watch out—we'll beat you up!"
Seeing that nobody believed him, the bearer of the news said helplessly, "I'm telling the truth. Kuina really did lose to that brat, and she even gave him her beloved sword."
"Liar! Kuina treasures that sword more than anything. How could she give it to some brat from out of town?"
"Exactly. Something must have gone wrong somewhere. We're not that easy to fool!"
Just as everyone was arguing noisily and unable to reach an agreement,
Lin Mo hung the Wine Gourd filled with wine around his waist and jumped down from the high stool.
In full view of everyone, he calmly walked step by step toward the tavern exit.
The moment he pushed open the tavern door and stepped outside,
someone shouted, "Look at that brat's swords!"
Everyone's gaze focused on Lin Mo.
When they saw that Lin Mo really was carrying both a Wooden Sword and a real sword at his waist—and that the real sword looked especially familiar to them—they all widened their eyes. Their faces were filled with the horror of seeing a ghost.
"Eh? Isn't that Kuina's sword?"
"Really? Kuina actually lost to a brat younger than her?"
"Who exactly is that kid? He actually defeated Kuina, who had never lost. That's incredible!"
"Ah! I was mocking him just now. He wouldn't hold a grudge against me, would he?"
Completely ignoring the commotion behind him, Lin Mo left the tavern without looking back.
Over the next few hours,
the news that Kuina of Isshin Dojo had been defeated by an outsider brat spread throughout Shimotsuki Village.
Lin Mo had originally planned to quietly complete his mission and then leave in peace.
But now, he had suddenly become the center of attention in Shimotsuki Village.
To avoid trouble, it seemed he would have to spend less time walking around the village in the future.
Lin Mo went straight back to Isshin Dojo.
As soon as he entered the rear courtyard,
Zoro came running toward him excitedly.
"Lin Mo!" Zoro said enthusiastically. "I heard you went into the mountains to hunt this morning. Were you training? Take me with you next time you go into the mountains."
Lin Mo: "..."
Not again.
This annoying guy...
Lin Mo walked past Zoro speechlessly.
Zoro didn't mind Lin Mo's indifference in the slightest. Instead, he stuck to him like a piece of gum and continued pestering him. "I've finished my basic training for today. Why don't we go into the mountains to train right now?"
In response to Zoro's 'enthusiasm,' Lin Mo continued to ignore him.
Seeing that Lin Mo still wouldn't answer, Zoro persisted and followed him. "Lin Mo, didn't you say that one should counter every move? Just thinking about it isn't enough. You still have to keep fighting stronger opponents to understand it, right? So I've decided that besides challenging Kuina every day, I'm going to fight you too!"
Lin Mo suddenly stopped walking.
He was intensely resistant to the idea.
"Don't come looking for me!"
Zoro stopped as well, his face full of confusion. "Why?"
Lin Mo answered directly, "I'm busy."
"Eh?" Zoro asked in surprise. "You still think I'm too weak and don't want to fight me?"
Lin Mo couldn't be bothered to explain further. "That's right."
With that, he continued walking forward.
Zoro stared at Lin Mo's back, tightening his grip on the bamboo sword in his hands. After hesitating for a moment, he suddenly shouted and charged at him. "If you won't fight me, I'll keep attacking you! I'll definitely make you draw your sword! Ha—take this!"
Sensing the killing intent rapidly approaching from behind,
Lin Mo didn't even turn his head. He dodged left and right a few times, effortlessly avoiding all of the other boy's attacks.
Then, when the boy charged in front of him, Lin Mo swung a punch and sent him flying into the courtyard.
Lin Mo glanced at the person lying dozens of meters away, unable to get back up despite trying.
Let's see how you follow me now.
Lin Mo chuckled and continued walking.
As he passed the tearoom, Koshiro's voice came from inside. "Lin Mo, come in for a drink. I'd like to introduce you to someone."
Lin Mo stopped and turned to look. Sitting across from Koshiro was Dragon, who had arrived the previous night.
Dragon's identity was no trivial matter. For him to appear in Shimotsuki Village at this particular time definitely wasn't a coincidence. Perhaps interacting with him could even trigger progress toward completing the mission.
After thinking it over, Lin Mo entered the tearoom and sat down beside Koshiro.
Koshiro asked with a smile, "Would you like some tea?"
"No need. I have wine." As he spoke, Lin Mo picked up his Wine Gourd, pulled out the stopper, and took a drink.
Koshiro introduced him with a smile. "Lin Mo, this is my friend, Dragon."
Lin Mo nodded politely. "Hello."
Dragon asked with interest, "How old are you?"
Lin Mo replied casually, "Ten."
"Quite a tolerance for alcohol." Dragon gave him a half-smile. "Koshiro told me your Swordsmanship is pretty good."
"It's all right."
"How modest." Dragon carefully sized up Lin Mo and continued, "Although you only revealed a little just now, you used Observation Haki to dodge that brat's attacks, didn't you?"
At that, Lin Mo looked up at him and calmly replied, "That's right."
It wasn't exactly a secret that needed to be kept.
"As expected, you're even more interesting than I imagined. But I feel as though you're still missing something." After saying that, Dragon curled the corner of his mouth. His expression suddenly changed, and a flash of golden light burst from his eyes. Immediately afterward, a powerful aura spread out from him, enveloping the small tearoom in an instant.
Chapter 9: Shimotsuki Village: Dragon's Probe
From the moment Dragon saw Lin Mo in the village the previous night, he had realized that the child was far from ordinary.
At only ten years old, he possessed Swordsmanship capable of defeating Kuina in an instant. What was more, he had just revealed a trace of Observation Haki. It was clear that the child had excellent talent and was a promising seedling.
But Dragon always felt that something was missing. He felt that the child's strength didn't end there.
Thus, he decided to use Haki to probe Lin Mo's true abilities.
When Koshiro realized that Dragon was actually using Conqueror's Haki to test Lin Mo, his expression immediately stiffened. "Dragon, Lin Mo is still just a child!"
"Don't worry. I know what I'm doing." Dragon kept his eyes fixed on Lin Mo.
Lin Mo met Dragon's sharp gaze without the slightest fear.
The moment he sensed that the other man had released Haki to test him, there was already nothing left for them to say.
Even if Dragon's probe was merely the tip of the iceberg and carried no malice,
Lin Mo silently replaced the stopper in his Wine Gourd.
He narrowed his eyes slightly.
Immediately afterward, an equally powerful aura erupted from his body and collided with the Haki Dragon had released.
A powerful shock wave surged sideways when the two Conqueror's Haki collided. With a loud crack, the tea table in front of the three of them shattered into countless fragments. Even the walls surrounding the tearoom were shaken by the destructive shock wave, splitting into countless dense cracks.
Neither Lin Mo nor Dragon had released their full strength.
"Interesting. As expected, you didn't disappoint me." Dragon's smile deepened. He was just about to increase the output of his Conqueror's Haki to see Lin Mo's limit of endurance.
At that moment, Koshiro suddenly grabbed each of them by the shoulder and stopped them in time. In an displeased tone, he said, "Enough! Are you two trying to destroy my dojo? Stop right now!"
Although he was shocked that Lin Mo also possessed Conqueror's Haki, this wasn't the time to be surprised.
A collision between Conqueror's Haki was no joke.
The entire dojo, or even the whole of Shimotsuki Village, could be destroyed if something went wrong.
He could tell that neither of them had used their full strength. It had only been a tentative exchange, yet it had already caused such massive destruction. If he didn't stop them, destroying the tearoom would be the least of his concerns. If the children training in the dojo were injured, the consequences would be disastrous.
Koshiro's words made both of them withdraw their Haki at the same time.
Dragon said apologetically, "Sorry. I lost control for a moment."
Koshiro sighed helplessly. "You two really know how to make people worry. Dragon, why are you, an adult, arguing with a child?"
"Haha." Dragon chuckled, then turned to Lin Mo and asked, "Lin Mo, do you know about the Revolutionary Army?"
Lin Mo stared at Dragon speechlessly.
Of course I know...
Could this guy be about to extend an invitation to me?
Before Lin Mo could answer, Dragon continued, "This is a world where the strong prey on the weak. There are too many incompetent rulers, causing countless powerless people to suffer. The Revolutionary Army exists to overthrow the Celestial Dragons' unequal rule over the world, free the oppressed, and make this world more harmonious, equal, and free."
After a brief pause, Dragon continued, "Koshiro told me you want to become a traveler. What's so good about being a traveler? You're simply wasting your talent. Why not join the Revolutionary Army and overthrow this gradually rotting world with me, bringing light back to it? What do you say?"
"Not interested." Lin Mo replied bluntly. "Whether it's the Revolutionary Army, the Marines, or Pirates, I'm not interested in any of them. I only want to be a free traveler without restrictions. No matter how righteous the things you plan to do in the future may be, they have nothing to do with me."
Lin Mo had just finished speaking.
System Notification Sound: Ding-ding! You exchanged blows with Dragon, Leader of the Revolutionary Army. Mission Progress +10%. Current total progress: 60%. Reward: Conqueror's Haki level +1. Current Conqueror's Haki level: Lv. 3.
In an instant, Lin Mo's entire presence rose considerably as his Haki strengthened.
Before Lin Mo had time to rejoice, the System Notification Sound rang out in his mind again.
System Notification Sound: Ding-ding! You rejected Dragon, Leader of the Revolutionary Army's invitation. Mission Progress +10%. Current total progress: 70%.
After freezing for a moment, Lin Mo couldn't help feeling delighted. His mission progress had actually increased by 20%!
It seemed his guess had been correct. Dragon's appearance hadn't been accidental. Interacting with him really did trigger progress toward completing the mission.
However, although his mission progress had increased twice in succession, he had only received one reward.
After thinking it over carefully, an idea emerged in his mind.
The rewards from the mission should be related to the people he encountered. Moreover, each related person could only provide one reward.
Before you continue