Encountering Zoro

Moss Head was no pushover. If Rubick had to classify him like a game character, he would have been an agility hero.

To Rubick, Moss Head's swordsmanship was plain and unadorned: cuts, chops, and thrusts. It looked simple, but he was incredibly fast. He had taken on more than a dozen men alone and killed seven or eight of them.

Moss Head flicked his sword, sending the blood flying off its blade. It was clearly a fine sword; not a drop clung to it.

"Hey, you're the only one left. If you don't show me what you've got, you'll be the next one lying here."

Moss Head pulled the scabbard from his waist and sheathed his sword.

He wasn't stopping, though. He dropped into a horse stance, holding the sword almost parallel to the ground, its hilt pointed at the captain of the Wild Boar Pirates.

An iaijutsu slash?

Rubick was increasingly sure Moss Head was Zoro. There weren't many people who used katanas in the pirate world, especially in the East Blue.

The captain of the Wild Boar Pirates wiped blood from his forehead. When he had tried to ambush Moss Head earlier, Moss Head had kicked off his hat, and the hard sole of his boot had scraped his scalp open.

"One-Sword Style: Iai—Lion's Song!"

Rubick's eyes widened. Moss Head flashed past his opponent so quickly that Rubick couldn't even see him draw his sword.

In a few breaths, Moss Head was behind his opponent. Still in his horse stance, he slowly sheathed his blade. Only when it slid home with a click did blood gush from his opponent's abdomen.

"My god! That's Monster Zoro for you. The strike was over before I could even see it."

At that shout from someone in the crowd, Rubick knew for certain: Moss Head was Roronoa Zoro of the Three-Sword Style.

"The patrol's here!"

At the shout from outside, more than half the onlookers scattered.

Zoro paid them no mind. He hoisted the dead pirate captain onto his shoulder and started walking.

"Hey, Zoro! You've gone too far!"

A patrol leader stepped out and blocked Zoro's path. "Who said you could kill people here? Do you know our business has dropped by a third in the two weeks since you arrived?"

Of course some of the people who came to the island were pirates. Even the marines stationed there left the well-behaved ones alone. But Zoro had arrived and gone on a killing spree, killing several pirate captains right on the island.

What, did Zoro think this place was a training ground where he could grind for experience?

Zoro gave him a disdainful glance. "He's a pirate. I'm a bounty hunter. Killing him is only natural."

The leader pointed toward the docks. "Get out. You're not welcome in Giantwood Village. Don't expect to come ashore again."

The leader wanted to curse him out. If Zoro wanted to kill pirates, why not wait offshore until they left Giantwood Village? Then he could kill as many as he liked. Why insist on doing it on the island?

If the Giantwood Village Shipwright Alliance couldn't keep this place neutral, pirates would stop coming to do business. How much could they earn just building patrol boats for the marines and fishing boats for ordinary people?

Zoro said nothing. He had insisted on killing pirates on the island because he was broke. He had no money to repair his swords, buy two more, or even eat.

At the docks, people parted at the sight of Zoro carrying a corpse, afraid he might cut them down too.

Zoro dropped the corpse on the ground and rolled his neck. "You've followed me all this way. Might as well show yourself."

Rubick smiled. "I just saw how skilled you were and wanted to get to know you."

"Do you have a boat?"

"Of course!"

Out on the boundless sea, Zoro rowed in frustration. The boat was tiny: two sacks of food sat at the stern, the pirate captain's corpse lay in the middle, and with Rubick and Zoro aboard, it rode dangerously low in the water.

"Damn it. I shouldn't have made a deal with you."

Rubick chuckled. "No one else wanted to make a deal with you."

"I'm done rowing. Time for a break!"

Zoro opened a sack at the stern, took out some biscuits, and started eating.

Rubick said evenly, "I wouldn't recommend the biscuits. We don't have any water aboard."

Zoro wasn't bothered. "So what? I drink seawater all the time."

Rubick struck up a conversation. "Your name's Zoro? How did you become a bounty hunter? I've been thinking of becoming one myself. I've only got forty thousand Beli."

Zoro swallowed a dry, hard biscuit, leaned over the side of the boat, and actually took two gulps of seawater.

He leaned back against the sack. "Lend me your forty thousand. Once I buy two more swords, I can use my Three-Sword Style at full strength. Then I could take on a pirate with a ten-million-Beli bounty. After I kill one, I'll pay you back four million."

"Don't get ahead of yourself. I barely know you. Besides, won't this guy bring in four million?"

"That'll only cover food for a few months."

Zoro asked, "What's your name, anyway? Why do you want to be a bounty hunter?"

Rubick told his backstory without missing a beat. "I'm from the Grand Line. My travels have brought me to the East Blue, and I'm looking for companions to adventure with on the Grand Line. I'm also hoping to find my way home. Honestly, ever since I left my country, I haven't been able to find my way back."

Zoro fell silent for a moment, then sighed. "Come to think of it, it's been a long time since I left the Dojo, and I haven't found my way back either."

"So you're terrible with directions? The East Blue isn't even that big, and you still can't find your way back?"

Zoro flared up. "You're no different! What gives you the right to say I'm terrible with directions?"

"But my country is surrounded by thick fog. It's only natural that I can't find my way back after leaving. I'm not the first, and I won't be the last."

Zoro fell silent again. "Fine. The truth is, I left the Dojo to find someone. You're from the Grand Line. Have you heard of the World's Greatest Swordsman, Dracule Mihawk?"

"I know who he is, and I know where to find him."

Zoro lit up. "Really? Take me to him! I'm going to defeat him and become the World's Greatest Swordsman!"

Rubick waved a hand. "Forget it. You wouldn't last one move against him."

"Don't try to scare me. I've trained with swords since I was a child. I don't believe I'd lose to him."

"Can you cut through iron?"

Zoro stared at him. "Cut through iron?"

Rubick decided to hit Zoro where it hurt. "On the Grand Line, cutting through iron is entry-level for a swordsman. At your current level, you haven't even left the beginner village."