: Mihawk, a promise, Koshiro's appearance
"Hina, get back for now."
"Yes, Vice Admiral Xiu! Good luck!"
Hina gave him an adorable little cheer,
then immediately retreated to the side.
Just as Xiu was about to draw his sword, he seemed to remember something,
and stopped drawing it,
sliding Ryūjin Jakka back into its sheath.
Then he walked to the side,
and snapped a branch off a tree!
Across from him, Mihawk's brows furrowed deeply.
"Vice Admiral Xiu, what is the meaning of this?"
Xiu smiled and said:
"Mihawk, as you are now, you're not worthy of making me draw my sword!"
Mihawk snorted.
"There's a limit to how much you can look down on someone!"
"Even if you're fighting with a branch,
I won't hold back!"
Whoosh!
As his words fell, Mihawk appeared before Xiu in an instant!
"Flash!"
The Skillful Grade Blade in Mihawk's hand swept down!
In the time it took Hina to blink in the distance,
Mihawk's blade was already above Xiu's head!
"Xiu!!" Hina cried out anxiously,
even forgetting to use his title!
Yet at that moment, Xiu slowly
raised the branch in his hand.
Clang!
That supple branch actually
blocked Mihawk's blade!
"What?!"
A flicker of astonishment flashed through Mihawk's eyes!
In the instant Mihawk froze,
Xiu turned his wrist,
easily forcing Mihawk back.
Having retreated to his original position, Mihawk
still wore a shocked expression.
"How did you do that?"
Xiu chuckled.
"Exploration is part of a swordsman's spirit, too..."
"The answer to that question
is something you'll have to discover yourself."
In truth, the principle was simple.
Xiu had merely coated the branch in Reiatsu,
achieving much the same effect as Armament Haki.
But Mihawk, who was only seventeen now,
had never even left the East Blue,
let alone heard of Armament Haki...
Looking at Mihawk's bewildered face,
Xiu felt immensely satisfied.
So even you have days like this?! Heh heh!
However, clearly, this little setback
could not defeat Mihawk!
"Phew... Vice Admiral Xiu,
I apologize for my earlier behavior!
But!
I still want to see
just how great
the gap between you and me really is!"
Mihawk's voice was filled with determination!
He raised his Skillful Grade Blade beside his head with both hands,
a fierce aura spreading around him!
"This is my strongest move! Please show me what you can do!"
As his words fell, two swishes rang out!
Two intersecting wind blades slashed out in an instant!
"Night Flash-Cross Slash!"
Xiu's gaze sharpened,
and he held the branch at his side.
It was the opening stance of Iaijutsu.
"Support Slash!"
Immense Reiatsu fused with extreme speed!
A slash several meters long and one meter wide suddenly shot off the branch!
Boom!
There was no question!
The cross-shaped wind blades were as flimsy as a sheet of paper!
They disintegrated in an instant!
The slash hurtled toward Mihawk without losing any momentum!
Mihawk's gaze sharpened,
and he slowly lowered the blade in his hands!
He spread his arms, facing it head-on!
Slash!!
Across the front of Mihawk's body,
a long, bloody gash was carved!
Mihawk let out a muffled grunt,
the tremendous force driving him backward again and again!
"Aaaaaah!!"
Mihawk roared,
channeling all his strength into his feet!
At last, he endured the slash while remaining on his feet!
Xiu asked impassively:
"Why won't you fall?"
His chest heaving, Mihawk
endured the intense pain and said through gritted teeth:
"My goal is to become the world's greatest swordsman!!"
"How could a tiny setback like this
possibly bring me down!!"
A gleam flashed through Xiu's eyes.
"Very good."
"Dracule Mihawk, you have my recognition."
As Xiu's words fell,
Mihawk's vision went black,
and he passed out just like that.
"Vice Admiral Xiu! He's badly wounded!"
Hina hurried over from the side and said.
Xiu nodded slightly.
"Don't worry. Mihawk will be fine."
"At least, someone won't let anything happen to him..."
"Am I right, Mr. Koshiro?"
As his words fell,
from behind a nearby tree,
a figure slowly emerged.
The man wore round glasses,
and his ordinary face always bore
a faint, gentle smile.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to
spy on your fight."
Xiu waved a hand dismissively.
"You're too polite, Mr. Koshiro.
This is within your dojo's grounds, after all.
We were the ones who came in without asking first."
Koshiro smiled and walked over to Mihawk,
briefly bandaging his wound,
then adjusted his glasses and said:
"Your slash really was frightening, Vice Admiral Xiu..."
"I'll need to go back for some medicine to stop the bleeding completely."
"Would you care to come to the dojo for a chat, Vice Admiral Xiu?"
Xiu nodded slightly. "Sorry for the trouble, Mr. Koshiro."
With that, he waved his right hand,
and his Reiatsu lifted Mihawk.
A flicker of astonishment crossed Koshiro's eyes.
After all, he had never seen Reiatsu before...
After coming back to his senses, he turned to Xiu,
nodded and offered his thanks,
then led the three of them toward the dojo.
PS: I really want flowers and votes...
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