"Stop!"
Saga called a halt to their match and walked between them, nodding with satisfaction.
"Roy, you've begun to grasp the secret of 'Steel Cutting.' Mihawk, your swordsmanship has grown steadier too."
Saga took the Black Blade from Hawk Eyes and pointed it at Roy.
"Come on, use all your strength to take one of my strikes. Don't use your fruit ability."
Roy's expression grew grave. He gripped Frost Snow with both hands, concentrating Armament Haki along the blade.
Saga swung his sword casually. There was no flashy technique or powerful Haki behind it, yet the strike put Roy under pressure unlike anything he had ever felt.
"Clang!"
The instant the two blades met, an invisible force pierced his defense. Frost Snow nearly flew from his hands, and he staggered back several steps before regaining his balance.
"Willpower?" Roy had sensed Saga's conviction in his sword. "Then why do I swing my sword? Is it just because swordsmanship is cool?"
Roy thought back to his original goal. From the start, he had wanted to see this world, and for that he needed great strength, strength that feared nothing. Swordsmanship was both cool and powerful, so why wouldn't he learn it?
Looking at Frost Snow in his hand, Roy's face lit up with joy.
"Is this... the realm of a swordmaster?"
Feeling a flash of understanding in his heart, Roy walked to one side and swung Frost Snow. A crescent-shaped wave of sword energy shot from his blade, slicing through the trees in the jungle ahead before dissipating into the air.
Saga lowered his sword and stood still. "This is only the beginning. There is no end to the path of the sword. The farther you travel, the more keenly you feel how insignificant you are."
Just then, Stella came running over in a hurry.
"Roy, a pirate ship is approaching the edge of the island. I just got back from the White Dove, and it looks like they're planning to land!"
Roy sheathed his sword, a flicker of excitement in his eyes.
"They'll be perfect for testing the results of our training."
Bullet excitedly loosened his wrists, and Tesoro and the others prepared for battle as well.
Saga glanced at Mihawk beside him. It was time to let him see blood too.
"Roy, wait. Take Mihawk with you. Let him fight the pirates alongside you."
"Of course, no problem!"
Hawk Eyes silently tightened his grip on Black Blade Yoru and followed close behind Roy and the others.
"Remember, a swordsman's will can only be truly tempered in actual combat."
Saga's voice rang out behind them.
The group crossed the jungle and soon spotted the pirate ship pulling up to the shore. A skull flag hung from its sail.
"Looks like some unknown pirate crew. I've never even seen their Jolly Roger before."
Tesoro spoke after taking a look. He paid the most attention to outside affairs in the group, unlike Roy and Bullet, who did nothing but train and fight.
The pirates came ashore one after another. Their leader was a burly man with a face covered in scars. He looked around, his gaze finally settling on Roy and his companions.
"Hey! Brats, this island belongs to me now! Hand over everything valuable!"
After the scar-faced captain's arrogant shout, the pirates behind him raised their swords and began clamoring.
Roy stepped forward with a smile, Frost Snow trembling lightly in his hand.
"If you want treasure, you'll have to use your strength to take it!"
The scar-faced man roared and was about to charge forward when the fat vice captain beside him grabbed him.
"Captain, look! Isn't that kid the guy who got a bounty of five hundred million a while back?"
As he spoke, he pulled a stack of wanted posters from his coat, searched through them, and drew out a few. The scar-faced man took the posters and carefully compared them with the people before him. Aside from two of them, Roy and his companions all looked just like the pictures.
"Oh! Looks like you recognize us. Do you still dare to fight?"
Seeing this, Roy moved a little closer. He didn't want the pirates to run away just like that.
"Captain... let's get out of here."
"What are you afraid of? They're just a bunch of brats wet behind the ears. They got lucky and escaped from Golden Lion. If it had been me, I'd have taken Golden Lion down too."
The scar-faced man flung away the wanted posters, turned around, and shouted to his men.
"Men, take out those brats!"
With a roar, he brandished his enormous cleaver and charged at Roy and the others.
Roy turned to the group and said, "Leave the captain to me. You can divide the rest among yourselves."
"Just what I wanted!"
Before Roy had even finished speaking, Bullet charged into the crowd like a tiger among sheep, every move accompanied by the sound of rushing air. The pirates who came at him were sent flying one after another.
Roy could do nothing about Bullet's personality. Fortunately, he had left the captain for him.
Seeing Roy walk slowly up to him without any sign of caution, the scar-faced captain gave a savage grin and swung his cleaver.
"Brat, today I'll show you what a real pirate is!"
The pirate's nonsense left Roy speechless. He really had no brains at all. Didn't he find Roy's five-hundred-million bounty even a little strange?
As the cleaver came at him, Roy drew Frost Snow and raised it with an effortless motion.
"Clang!"
The cleaver snapped. The scar-faced captain stared dumbfounded at the broken blade in his hand, but before he could react, Roy's second strike was already upon him.
The strike seemed slow, yet it carried an unstoppable force. The scar-faced captain had just started to retreat when he found a gash across his chest, bright red blood spraying from the wound.
"What... sword technique is that?"
Roy lowered his sword and stood there, watching his opponent fall to the ground.
"Just a little something I figured out."
Elsewhere, Hawk Eyes looked a little unpracticed in his first real battle, but he quickly found his rhythm. Black Blade Yoru became a streak of black light in his hand, sending out a wave of sword energy with every swing.
Every pirate he encountered was either killed or wounded.
Savi also assumed his full beast form, transforming into a giant ape five meters tall. Following behind Bullet, he charged through the crowd, sending pirates sprawling wherever he went, overjoyed.
Pea stood at a distance. When it came to fighting, he preferred staying by Roy's side, but any pirates who approached were strangled by the vines he grew.
Tesoro headed for the shore, taking out the underlings who tried to flee back to the pirate ship with one punch apiece. Stella circled overhead, helping Tesoro seal off their escape.
The battle was completely one-sided, and before long, they had wiped out the pirates.
The group returned to Roy's side, Bullet looking displeased.
"Too weak. That didn't even count as a warm-up."
"That can't be helped. The stronger pirates have all gone to the New World. What kind of powerful characters could be left in the first half?"
Roy replied calmly, then glanced at Hawk Eyes.
He was silently putting away his sword, gazing thoughtfully at the mess covering the ground.
This was his first time taking part in a real battle, and his first experience of using swordsmanship in a fight to the death.
At some point, Saga had appeared at the edge of the battlefield. He watched his disciple with satisfaction. "How did it feel?"
"Completely different from practice, but... exhilarating."
"Remember that feeling. A swordsman's blade must see blood in the end."