One Piece: Seeing Proficiency Made Me a Legend

In the back courtyard of Isshin Dojo, Dongze sat across from Koshiro.

Seeing the resolve in Dongze's eyes, Koshiro sighed softly. He knew how determined the young man was. Then again, that was true of all swordsmen.

Better to stand firm than bend for what you wanted!

"I see. All right."

The next day, Koshiro gave the dojo's students a day off and took only Kuina and Zoro to an open clearing behind the mountain.

Kuina already had an inkling of what was coming, and reluctance flashed deep in her eyes. Zoro, on the other hand, looked irritated. He thought this was a waste of his time.

When they arrived, they found Dongze waiting for them.

"Dongze!"

"You idiot!"

"Hey, old man! What did you bring us here for?"

"Dongze is about to set sail. Before he leaves, I'm going to give him a lesson. I hadn't planned to show you two this sort of thing so soon."

"Then why bring us along, old man? Are we supposed to fight him first?"

Zoro pulled the sword from his waist as he spoke, ready to charge over and take Dongze on.

Seeing Zoro get so worked up, Dongze felt helpless. They had trained at the same dojo, after all. He had been thinking about how bad it would look for him if Zoro sailed out one day, ran into Hawkeye, and got beaten senseless. He wanted to broaden Zoro's horizons first.

He had forgotten how stubborn the kid was.

But now was not the time to fight them.

Dongze narrowed his eyes. An overwhelmingly powerful burst of Conqueror's Haki swept out, then vanished just as quickly.

Looking at Moss Head sprawled on the ground, gasping for air, Dongze let out a small breath of relief. The power was useful, but raising its proficiency was painfully difficult. He still couldn't control it well, so he had released it only for an instant to keep its effects to a minimum.

Even so, it was more than Zoro and Kuina could bear. Both of them went weak at the knees in an instant.

"Impossible!"

"I can't even stay on my feet in front of him?"

"Has the gap grown again?"

Zoro stared at Dongze in disbelief. He had always thought he was close to catching up, yet one look from Dongze had knocked him flat. His whole body felt weak, and he couldn't even stand.

He glanced sideways at Kuina and saw she was no better off. She knelt on the ground, trembling uncontrollably.

"Damn it! What the hell was that?"

Zoro shouted in frustration, unable to make sense of what had happened.

Koshiro sighed softly at the sight. He did not know whether letting Zoro and Kuina witness this today was a good thing or a bad thing.

"Conqueror's Haki. It's a mysterious power found on the seas, and one you haven't encountered yet."

"Watch this fight carefully, both of you. Even across the Grand Line, I believe Dongze is among the strongest at his age. If you want to pursue the pinnacle, he'll be the one to aim for."

Koshiro drew Wado Ichimonji and stepped in front of Dongze.

"Let's begin, Dongze."

"Forgive me."

Dongze drew Forgotten Dust and stamped hard on the ground, using the Shave he had developed himself. His figure flickered and vanished from Zoro's and Kuina's sight.

A flash of admiration crossed Koshiro's eyes.

"Six Powers—Shave?"

Koshiro showed no sign of alarm. A shimmering current of Haki wrapped itself around Wado Ichimonji.

Ryuo gleamed around the blade with a mysterious light. The chilling power it gave off made Zoro and Kuina, still on the ground, feel as though their souls were trembling.

At that moment, the dojo master they saw every day suddenly seemed like a stranger.

Neither of them could have imagined that the father and teacher who always wore a gentle smile possessed such power.

"Father! What is that?"

"Armament Haki. Ryuo."

A Flying Slash tore through the air. The ground shook, and Dongze, who had just appeared in midair, was sent flying.

The slash continued on, carving a trench through the sea nearby nearly thirty meters wide and a kilometer long.

Zoro and Kuina were almost too stunned to think.

Their mouths hung open. They could barely form a sentence. It was the first time either of them had seen a slash fly through the air.

A single strike had split the sea for nearly a kilometer. Its power was like a natural disaster.

Was this really Koshiro, the man who sat smiling in Isshin Dojo every day?

"This..."

Before they could take it in, they saw Dongze running back through the air. They froze again.

Koshiro explained with a rueful smile, "That's Geppo. Once your body is strong enough, you can catch the air off guard, kick it a couple of times, and do the same."

His breezy explanation nearly made Zoro and Kuina explode. Catch the air off guard and kick it? Did he think it was alive?

After landing, Dongze tightened his grip on his sword, his eye twitching. "Old man, you nearly killed me just now. I thought this was supposed to be a sparring match!"

He had not expected Koshiro's Armament Haki to have reached the level of Ryuo, much less for his Observation Haki to be so terrifyingly advanced.

Koshiro had predicted his movement and sent him flying with a single slash.

But when Dongze thought about it, that made sense. A dragon did not keep company with snakes. Someone like Dragon, one of the world's foremost powers, would hardly befriend an ordinary dojo master.

But I can't fall behind!

As he spoke, darkness slowly spread over Forgotten Dust in his hand.

Seeing the change, Zoro and Kuina froze. "Could it be...?"

This time, it was Koshiro's turn to be shocked.

"Impossible!"

"Armament Haki!"

He had never imagined Dongze could awaken Armament Haki at his age.

In truth, Dongze had his Golden Finger to thank. After he had dealt with the bandits' second-in-command, a prompt had suddenly appeared: Armament Haki (locked), proficiency 0/1,000.

Before taking Koshiro's slash, he had not actually unlocked Armament Haki. But Koshiro had certainly been generous with his power: that slash had been infused with top-tier Ryuo.

A single blow had filled all 1,000 points needed to unlock it.

To be honest, the slash had left Dongze reeling. He had assumed Koshiro would hold back, but when the moment came, the man had even used Ryuo, as if he were afraid one strike would not beat the stuffing out of him. It was ridiculous!

No wonder the sly old man had sounded so strange earlier, saying this lesson would leave a lasting impression. Was this how he taught his students?

This might have been a lesson delivered with ill intent!

If Dongze had not used Forgotten Dust to divert the slash slightly, that one strike might have killed him outright.

His panel now read Armament Haki: 1/1,000,000.

Dongze sighed at the sight of the progress bar.

This was his second skill with a million-point proficiency requirement.

The first was Conqueror's Haki. He had worked himself to the bone for nearly a month and raised it by fewer than ten points. It had almost broken him.

That was one reason he wanted to set sail.

After that slash, Dongze understood why Koshiro had spoken as he had. A slash of that caliber, along with Koshiro's Observation Haki and Armament Haki, was more than Dongze could withstand right now.

As expected of a Great Swordsman from Wano Country!

Fortunately, after Dongze spoke, Koshiro began to hold back deliberately. The point of the fight was not to kill his beloved pupil, but to broaden Zoro's and Kuina's horizons.

With his life no longer in danger, Dongze relaxed and began showing everything he had learned during this time.

He used Mantra, Six Powers—Shave, Geppo, and Armament Haki, followed by his three sword techniques: Sword-Draw Technique, Hundred-Pace Flying Sword, and Taiji Sword. Finally, he used the Flying Slash he had learned during this very match.

His slash was still weak, though. It traveled only a dozen meters or so, scattered too widely, and posed little threat.

"Hey, Moss Head! Has that rotten Dongze really gotten this strong?"

They had always known Dongze was far stronger than they were, but they had never understood by how much. Seeing it for themselves nearly drove both of them to despair.

Kuina was subdued, but Zoro's eyes blazed as he muttered, "What terrifying power. Is this what a Swordmaster can do? Am I really that far behind the strong? Just wait. One day, I'll cut every last one of you down!"

At Kuina's words, Zoro seemed to spring back to life. "Like hell, you she-dragon! I'll be the one to beat him someday!"

Perhaps Zoro's defiance stirred her, because Kuina shouted back, "Bullshit! I'll be the one to beat him!"

The sparring match lasted the entire morning. By the end, Dongze lay sprawled on the ground without an ounce of strength left.

"I didn't think the gap would be this big!"

Koshiro sheathed his sword and walked over. "Keep at it, Dongze. With your talent, you can pursue the title of World's Strongest! The current World's Strongest Great Swordsman is one of the Shichibukai: Hawkeye, Dracule Mihawk!"

Seeing the hope in Koshiro's eyes, Dongze nodded gently.

He stared up at the sun directly overhead, his gaze drifting as he looked at his panel.

For one last check before he left, he went through his proficiencies from top to bottom.

Iron Head Skill: max;

Iron Crotch Skill: max;

Basic Swordsmanship: max;

Sword Forging: max;

Sword technique—Sword-Draw Technique: max;

Sword technique—Hundred-Pace Flying Sword: 5,000/10,000;

Sword technique—Taiji Sword: 5,000/10,000;

Mantra: max;

Spear Technique: 1,200/1,000,000;

Six Powers—Shave: 25,000/100,000;

Six Powers—Geppo: 15,000/100,000;

Observation Haki (awakened): 1,200/1,000,000;

Armament Haki (awakened): 150/1,000,000;

Conqueror's Haki (awakened): 500/1,000,000;

Slashing (unlocked): 150/1,000,000;

Sword Intent (locked): 0/1,000,000;

His gains from that match were staggering, but he had taken quite a beating too. Koshiro would not strike to kill, but that did not spare Dongze the bruises.

Seeing the satisfaction Koshiro could not quite hide, Dongze was certain the old man had just vented every bit of frustration he had bottled up over the past six years.

A Tentative Route, and an Encounter with a Pirate Crew

"Zoro, he's gone."

"Yeah."

"What terrifying sword techniques. He's forging a path of Swordsmanship no one has walked before. That boy will be known across the seas one day."

Thinking back on the fight, Koshiro was filled with emotion. He had never expected that strange sword to wield such power in Dongze's hands.

The final, deadly strike—Hundred-Pace Flying Sword—kept replaying in his mind. Each time he recalled it, it amazed him anew.

Partings were always painful. Dongze had not said goodbye to anyone at the dojo. He left in a small boat with the first light before dawn.

They knew Dongze was leaving. How could they have truly slept through it? No one liked goodbyes, so they had all silently chosen not to speak.

Dongze was fifteen that year, and his journey had officially begun.

Working the oars, Dongze broke into a grin. His seafaring proficiency had finally lit up: Boat Handling, 10/1,000.