Dragon's and Koshiro's expressions suddenly turned grave the moment Lin Mo's Haki grew stronger.
The same thought flashed through both their minds: This kid had gotten stronger!
He hadn't even done anything. They had only tested each other's Haki for a moment, yet the kid's strength had somehow increased!
Had something suddenly clicked for him?
The appreciation in Dragon's eyes gradually turned to longing as he looked at Lin Mo.
He finally understood what Koshiro had meant last night when he called Lin Mo a miracle.
The boy was only ten, yet he already possessed such astonishing talent and strength. One day, he was bound to become someone who could turn the tide in any situation.
Letting him slip away would be the Revolutionary Army's greatest loss.
At that thought, Dragon couldn't help saying, "I understand that you want freedom without restrictions. But you're only ten. You're still a child. Traveling alone is too dangerous. Join the Revolutionary Army, and at least until you've fully grown, we can offer you protection."
"No." Lin Mo's stance remained firm. "I don't need protection, and I won't join any faction. Nothing you say will change that."
"Lin Mo."
"I'm leaving." Lin Mo stood, cutting Dragon off, and walked straight out of the wrecked tearoom.
Koshiro made no move to stop him.
Dragon rubbed his head. "That kid really won't listen to reason..."
"Haha." Koshiro smiled. "Lin Mo knows his own mind. Persuading him won't be easy."
In the courtyard.
Zoro, whom Lin Mo had sent flying with one punch, had landed directly across from the tearoom door.
His whole body aching, he tried several times before he managed to get up. He had just muttered, "Damn, he hits hard," when he looked through the open door.
There, he saw Dragon's and Lin Mo's Haki collide.
"Huh?" Zoro froze in shock.
He didn't come to his senses until Lin Mo walked out of the tearoom as if nothing had happened.
Zoro watched Lin Mo's retreating figure, his eyes flickering.
His grip tightened around his bamboo sword.
Shimotsuki Village: The Results of His Guidance
The next day.
Lin Mo left Isshin Dojo early in the morning and headed into the valley near Shimotsuki Village for his usual hunting practice.
This time, though, he had a little "tail" behind him whose tracking skills left much to be desired.
Zoro's talent and strength had yet to match Kuina's, but he was unquestionably the earliest to rise, the latest to sleep, and the hardest-working trainee at the dojo.
Normally, he would have been drilling the basics at the dojo right now.
Today, however, he had decided to sneak after Lin Mo into the mountains to train.
He watched Lin Mo a hundred meters ahead, walking faster and faster into the depths of the valley.
Zoro's gaze hardened. "If you won't take me, I'll follow you myself!"
A few minutes later, he was chasing at full speed, gasping for breath, while Lin Mo pulled farther and farther away. When he finally lost sight of him, Zoro wasn't discouraged in the slightest. If anything, he grew more excited. "That's Lin Mo for you. He's so fast I can't catch him even when I give it everything I've got. Amazing. Tomorrow, I'll catch up to you!"
In fact, Lin Mo had noticed Zoro following him long ago. He simply didn't want to be bothered, so he had shaken him off.
After hunting, Lin Mo brought his catch back to Isshin Dojo.
That afternoon.
Lin Mo took his empty Wine Gourd to the tavern.
The moment he entered, voices rang out around him.
"The kid who beat Kuina is here!"
"Hey, kid, how did you beat Kuina? Come on, tell us!"
"I think his name's Lin Mo. I've never seen you before. Which village are you from?"
"Hey, don't ignore us! Did you come to Shimotsuki Village on your own?"
Lin Mo silently walked to the counter and set down a handful of Beli alongside his empty Wine Gourd. "Fill it."
The Tavern Owner gave an awkward smile. "Sure. Just a moment."
After filling the Wine Gourd and handing it back, he asked, "Kid, have you become Koshiro's student?"
"No," Lin Mo replied casually.
Carrying his full Wine Gourd, he calmly left the tavern amid the patrons' disgruntled voices.
The Tavern Owner smiled helplessly. "What a character."
Back at the dojo.
As Lin Mo passed the training ground, Kuina suddenly called out to him. "Lin Mo, let's have another match."
Losing their last fight—and Wado Ichimonji—had hit her hard.
She hated it.
But the gap in their strength was plain to see, and she had to accept it.
That didn't mean she was giving up.
Kuina had decided to keep challenging Lin Mo.
She refused to believe she would keep losing forever.
Unlike the battle-hungry Kuina.
Lin Mo had no interest in wasting time fighting her.
He walked right past her without a word.
That was his answer to her challenge.
When he ignored her, Kuina hurried after him. "Lin Mo, I'm seriously challenging you. Why won't you answer me?"
Once again, silence was her only reply.
Lin Mo had no intention of engaging with her.
"You—!" Kuina's temper flared.
"Kuina." Zoro appeared just in time to stop her from going after Lin Mo. "Let's have another match."
"I want to fight Lin Mo. Move!"
"If he wanted to fight you, he would've gone into the dojo already," Zoro said. "Pestering him won't help."
He knew that from experience. It was why he dared say it.
Kuina stopped, her face darkening. She tightened her grip on her bamboo sword and stared stubbornly at Lin Mo's back. Only after a long moment did she turn and walk away.
Zoro stayed where he was.
Kuina gritted her teeth. "What are you standing there for? Didn't you want to fight me?"
"Yeah! Coming!" Zoro immediately followed.
The match was over in minutes.
As always, Kuina won.
But this time, Zoro blocked several of her attacks in a row and nearly landed a hit.
Two days ago, he wouldn't have had a chance of hitting her at all.
Was it a coincidence, or had his swordsmanship improved in just two days?
Kuina felt increasingly unsettled.
She had seen how hard Zoro had worked over the past year. To keep him from surpassing her, she had pushed herself just as mercilessly, working twice as hard whenever no one was watching.
Even so, every time they sparred, she could feel him slowly closing in. The gap between them kept shrinking.
Before, his progress had been gradual. But over the past two days, his swordsmanship had clearly reached another level. Was someone coaching him?
Kuina put away her bamboo sword and stared with mixed feelings at Zoro, whom she had knocked to the floor.
Zoro got up and brushed the dust from his clothes. Without a word, he began replaying Kuina's attacks in his mind. In the past, he would never have done that.
Koshiro walked over with a smile. "You lost again, Zoro. You really have gotten stronger, though. Your progress these past two days has been especially impressive."
As soon as Koshiro finished speaking, the other children crowded around.
"Teacher, you haven't been giving Kuina secret training because she's your daughter, have you?"
"That's not fair!"
Koshiro gave a helpless smile. "No, no. I wouldn't do that. Zoro has grown stronger, but Kuina has been getting stronger too."
"I'm going to wash my face." Zoro didn't linger in the dojo. He turned and headed for the back courtyard.
After washing his face, he made a decision: tonight, he would challenge Kuina one last time!
That night, as Kuina passed the tearoom Koshiro had hastily repaired, she overheard something that struck her hard.
Her father, Koshiro, believed a girl could never become the World's Greatest Swordsman.
She knew that, as a girl, she might genuinely lack certain advantages boys had as swordsmen. But she didn't want to believe it. She refused to accept it. Why couldn't a girl become the best in the world?
Kuina sat beside a path through the village fields, silently trying to work through her feelings alone.
Then Zoro came along.
"What are you doing here?" Zoro asked.
Kuina wiped her nose with a handkerchief. "I should be asking you that. What are you doing here so late?"
"I'm here for our 2,001st duel. This will be our last!" Zoro said earnestly. "Let's settle it. Fight me with real swords."
Kuina paused, then the corner of her mouth lifted. "All right."
She had meant to face Zoro with Wado Ichimonji, but now she had to borrow someone else's sword instead.
On an open stretch of grass.
The two faced each other and readied themselves to fight.
A gust of wind swept past.
Gripping a real sword in each hand, Zoro attacked first.
They exchanged blow after blow. Whenever Kuina seemed on the verge of winning, Zoro clumsily found a way to dodge at the last possible moment.
"Hah!" Kuina spotted an opening and rushed in. Swinging upward, she tried to knock both swords from the visibly exhausted Zoro's hands.
As though he had known she would make that move, Zoro instinctively stepped back half a pace.
Real swords were far heavier than bamboo ones, and he was wielding two. He was burning through his stamina much faster than Kuina.
If he couldn't beat her with strength or endurance, he would have to rely on his swordsmanship—or read her moves, find an opening, and turn the match around.
That instinctive step let Zoro evade Kuina's strike by a hair. Then, for the first time, he spotted an opening in her defense, to her astonishment.
Without hesitation, Zoro gripped his sword and swung its blunt edge at Kuina's arm.
Disbelief flashed through Kuina's eyes. She reacted at once and blocked the blow, then struck upward again, finally knocking Zoro's sword away.
Zoro collapsed onto the ground, panting.
Though she had won, Kuina felt no joy. If her reaction had been half a second slower, she would have lost!
Zoro had truly caught up to her!
Shimotsuki Village: Two Little Followers
Beep! Kuina's fate of dying has been changed. Check-in progress +10%. Current total progress: 80%. Reward: Swordsmanship level +1. Current Swordsmanship level: Lv5.
Before you continue