Recaps

After losing to Roy, Shanks reflected on the need to grow stronger and vowed not to lose again. The Red Hair Pirates found a starving girl named Uta on a deserted island, and Shanks brought her aboard.

• Shanks discussed his defeat by Roy with Beckman and admitted he needed to catch up to him.
• Beckman warned Shanks that the Red Hair Pirates’ foothold depended on the balance among the emperors.
• Shanks vowed that he would not lose the next time he met Roy.
• The Red Hair Pirates spotted a faint trace of life on a deserted island.
• Shanks found a starving girl in the bushes, learned her name was Uta, and took her aboard for food.

Uta recovered aboard the Red Force, learned to sing, and was adopted by Shanks. A month later, Shanks led the Red Hair Pirates in attacking a CP0 ship to steal its Heavenly Tribute, and he found the Gum-Gum Fruit in the cargo hold.

• Uta slowly opened up after the ship's musician played guitar, then began learning to sing from him.
• Shanks adopted Uta as his daughter and named her the Red Hair Pirates' musician.
• Yasopp spotted a CP0 warship carrying crates marked as top-secret and as Heavenly Tribute.
• Shanks decided to steal the Heavenly Tribute, and the Red Hair Pirates attacked and overwhelmed the CP0 agents.
• Shanks opened a crate in the cargo hold, found the Gum-Gum Fruit, and felt a strange sensation when he touched it.

Shanks stole the Gum-Gum Fruit from a World Government ship, while Who's-Who joined the Beasts Pirates and was promoted to the Flying Six. Three months later, Who's-Who focused on killing Shanks, and the Ark Maxim crossed the Calm Belt as Tesoro complained about being barred from training the Kuja Pirates.

• Shanks and the Red Hair Pirates seized the heavenly tribute, including the Gum-Gum Fruit, and escaped toward the East Blue.
• Three months later, Kaido promoted Who's-Who to the Flying Six and ordered him to press Hachinosu for Seastone weapons and watch for Red Hair.
• Who's-Who left the banquet hall, unfolded a wanted poster of Shanks, and revealed his intent to kill him.
• Tesoro rode aboard the Ark Maxim above the Calm Belt and complained that the Kuja Pirates had not let him train them.

After three months of training on Amazon Lily, Roy spotted a Revolutionary Army ship in the Calm Belt and descended with his crew to meet Dragon. Roy and Dragon warmly renewed their alliance, then Dragon invited him into the cabin to talk.

• Roy's crew joked about Tesoro's harsh training methods while reflecting on their three months as instructors on Amazon Lily.
• Roy sensed a Revolutionary Army ship near a Sea King nest and recognized its thorn-entwined sword flag.
• Roy ordered Tesoro and the others to prepare, and the Ark Maxim descended toward the ship carrying Dragon, Ivankov, and Karasu.
• Roy greeted Ivankov and Karasu, then shook hands with Dragon and discussed their alliance and Hachinosu's support for the Revolutionary Army.
• Dragon invited Roy and his crew into the cabin to talk.

Roy revealed that he had used the Heavenly Tribute money to supply resistance forces across the Four Blues, then chose to travel with Dragon to the East Blue. He set his sights on Shimotsuki Village, where he planned to visit the Isshin Dojo and meet Koshiro, Kuina, and Zoro.

• Roy told Dragon that Tesoro had exchanged the Heavenly Tribute money for food, medicine, and weapons for resistance forces in Affiliated Nations across the Four Blues.
• Dragon explained that he was heading to the East Blue to receive food and inspect Revolutionary Army branches, and Roy decided to go with him.
• Roy sent Tesoro, Savi, Charon, Kazami, Van Augur, and the scientists back to Hachinosu aboard the Ark Maxim.
• As the Revolutionary Army ship sailed toward Reverse Mountain, Roy told Dragon he wanted to visit Shimotsuki Village and the Isshin Dojo.
• Dragon confirmed that Shimotsuki Koshiro was an important Revolutionary Army supporter, while Roy said he wanted to meet a few kids there.

Roy arrived in Shimotsuki Village with Dragon and learned that Shimotsuki Koshiro’s village supported the Revolutionary Army. At the Isshin Dojo, Koshiro briefly reacted to Roy with sharp scrutiny before hiding his response.

• Roy told Dragon that Shimotsuki Koshiro was a descendant of the Shimotsuki Clan and promised not to harm him or the clan.
• Roy traveled with Dragon’s ship across the East Blue and reached Shimotsuki Village on the evening of the third day.
• Dragon explained that Shimotsuki Village aided the Revolutionary Army through Koshiro and the village’s own network.
• Dragon took Roy to the Isshin Dojo, where Koshiro greeted them and briefly studied Roy with a sharp, assessing gaze.

Roy visited Koshiro’s dojo in Shimotsuki Village with Dragon and criticized its gentle training. After watching Kuina repeatedly defeat Zoro, Roy went to the rear courtyard and challenged Zoro’s stance, leaving the boy demanding to know who he was.

• Roy introduced himself to Koshiro and said he had come to look around the dojo while passing through the East Blue with Dragon.
• Roy criticized the dojo’s training as too gentle, and Dragon confirmed that Roy’s methods on Hachinosu were much harsher.
• Roy sensed Kuina defeating Zoro again and correcting his sword technique while the other boys laughed.
• Roy asked Koshiro’s permission to watch the children train and headed to the rear courtyard.
• Roy called Zoro’s opening stance ridiculous, and Zoro turned to demand his identity.

Roy visited Koshiro’s dojo and corrected Zoro’s sword technique before Zoro challenged him for Shusui. Roy accepted the match and countered Zoro’s fierce opening strike with a precise flick of a bamboo twig.

• Roy pointed out that Zoro had left his center exposed by stepping too far forward, and Zoro was stunned by the accurate criticism.
• Koshiro introduced Roy to Kuina and Zoro, while Kuina noticed her father’s wary tone.
• Zoro challenged Roy to a match and demanded Shusui if he won; Roy asked what Zoro would wager if he lost.
• Roy accepted the challenge and faced Zoro with a scrap of bamboo as Zoro charged with a powerful strike.
• Roy flicked the bamboo twig against the weakest point of Zoro’s wooden sword.

Roy defeated Zoro with a bamboo branch and offered him a chance to learn from him while he stayed in Shimotsuki Village. He told Kuina that the sword dao depended on will, not gender, leaving her to reconsider what her father had taught her.

• Roy disarmed Zoro with a quick strike to his wrist and explained that Zoro’s grip was too stiff.
• Koshiro introduced Roy as a friend of Dragon’s, and Roy stopped him from scolding Zoro.
• Roy offered Zoro another pointer if he corrected his grip before Dragon left Shimotsuki Village.
• Kuina asked whether Roy had used sword dao, and Roy told her that it made no distinction between men and women.
• Zoro practiced his grip while Kuina sat silently beneath the eaves.

Roy watched Zoro train through the night and saw him and Kuina continue their daily matches, which Kuina won. Afterward, Kuina confided her fear that being a girl meant she could never become the World's Greatest Swordsman, leaving Zoro struggling to answer.

• Roy watched Zoro repeat his sword strikes for hours, correcting his grip after Roy's advice.
• Kuina slipped into the courtyard, and she and Zoro began their 2,002nd match beneath the moon.
• Kuina defeated Zoro again, pointing out his stiff sword hand and poor stance as he insisted on trying again.
• After their 2,004th match, Kuina asked Zoro whether a girl could become the World's Greatest Swordsman and told him her father believed she could never achieve it.
• Zoro fell silent, shaken that someone as gifted as Kuina had been told she could not reach her dream.

Roy helped Kuina regain hope in becoming the World's Greatest Swordsman by challenging the belief that girls could not become strong and explaining her father's fear for her safety. Kuina recommitted to her dream, while Roy arranged to give Zoro pointers the next afternoon.

• Zoro angrily told Kuina that her gender did not diminish his respect for her strength or his determination to surpass her.
• Roy cited Big Mom and Boa Hancock as examples of powerful women and asked Kuina whether she still believed girls could not become strong.
• Roy explained that Shimotsuki Koshiro was trying to discourage Kuina because he feared she would be hurt if she pursued her dream at sea.
• Roy urged Kuina to earn her father's acknowledgment through her own strength, and she resolved to keep practicing.
• Roy told Kuina to send Zoro to him the next afternoon for pointers, and Zoro agreed despite protesting about their bet.

Kuina asked Roy about powerful women who had forged their own paths, then confronted Koshiro and asked him to teach her advanced, battlefield-ready swordsmanship. Koshiro admitted Roy understood his fears and began explaining the dangers he had witnessed at sea.

• Dragon organized the grain shipment from Shimotsuki Village and asked Ivankov to contact the Baratie about serving as a supply transfer point.
• Roy told Kuina about Momousagi Gion, Charlotte Linlin, Hancock, and the female warriors of Hachinosu, strengthening her resolve to become the World's Greatest Swordsman.
• Kuina went to Koshiro and asked him to teach her the swordsmanship used on a real battlefield.
• Kuina told Koshiro that Roy had explained his warnings came from fear of losing her, not disbelief in her talent.
• Koshiro admitted Roy was right and described the dangers he had encountered across the sea, from slave ships and wrecked pirates to the weak having no right to cry in the New World.

Kuina challenged Koshiro’s belief that girls could not become the World’s Greatest Swordsman, leaving him unable to answer as she pursued her dream. Roy stayed in Shimotsuki Village and watched as Kuina went out into a storm toward Koshiro’s treasured whetstone, beginning the supreme staircase incident.

• Kuina told Koshiro that losing her dream would make her feel as good as dead, and Koshiro asked for more time to think.
• Roy stayed behind after Dragon’s fleet departed and told Koshiro he was interested in Kuina and Zoro’s potential.
• Koshiro confronted Roy about his intentions, and Roy said he wanted to keep the two gifted students from being wasted in East Blue.
• During a torrential storm, Roy sensed Kuina leave her room and head for the dojo storeroom.
• Kuina entered the storeroom to use Koshiro’s heirloom whetstone to sharpen the Wado Ichimonji.

Kuina nearly fell to her death while retrieving the whetstone, but an invisible force caught and lowered her to safety. After she recovered, Koshiro went to thank Roy, whom he suspected had used telekinesis to save her.

• Kuina slipped on the wet stairs and fell headfirst while holding the whetstone.
• An invisible force stopped Kuina's fall and gently lowered her to the warehouse floor.
• Koshiro rushed in, checked Kuina for injuries, and learned that a force had caught her.
• Koshiro realized Roy's telekinesis had likely saved Kuina and comforted her as she cried.
• After Kuina went to sleep, Koshiro went to the guest room and bowed to Roy.

After Roy saved Kuina, he urged Koshiro to stop suppressing her dream and offered to take her to Hachinosu to train under Dracule Mihawk. Koshiro agreed to let her go, but Roy then proposed making Kuina’s death look convincing.

• Koshiro thanked Roy for saving Kuina, and Roy warned that denying her dream could lead to more accidents.
• Roy offered to take Kuina to Hachinosu so she could learn swordsmanship from Dracule Mihawk.
• Kuina revealed she had overheard them and begged Koshiro to let her pursue her goal of becoming the World's Greatest Swordsman.
• Koshiro accepted Kuina’s choice and comforted her as they embraced.
• Roy proposed faking Kuina’s death, leaving Kuina and Koshiro stunned.

Roy proposed faking Kuina’s death to turn Zoro’s rivalry with her into a lasting drive to become stronger, and Kuina and Koshiro agreed. After the staged announcement at Isshin Dojo, Zoro reached Kuina’s memorial altar and refused to believe she was dead.

• Roy explained that Zoro might despair if he learned Kuina was training under the World's Greatest Swordsman, and proposed making him believe she had died.
• Kuina agreed to the plan, and Koshiro accepted Roy’s proposal to stage her death and give Zoro Wado Ichimonji at the funeral.
• At dawn, Koshiro carried the supposedly dead Kuina from the storeroom, and the news spread through Isshin Dojo.
• Zoro learned from a junior disciple that Kuina was dead, ran to the memorial hall, and insisted the news could not be true.

After Kuina’s staged death, Zoro mourned her and renewed his vow to become the World’s Greatest Swordsman. Kuina left Shimotsuki Village with Roy, who secretly gave Zoro training knowledge, and Roy planned to stop at Foosha Village before heading to Hachinosu.

• Zoro accepted Wado Ichimonji from Koshiro and vowed at Kuina’s memorial tablet to become the World’s Greatest Swordsman.
• Zoro trained with his wooden sword throughout the night while Kuina watched from behind a screen with Roy.
• At dawn, Koshiro gave Kuina provisions and a letter for Dracule Mihawk, then embraced her as she prepared to leave.
• Roy secretly placed physical training methods and swordsmanship insights into the sleeping Zoro’s mind.
• Roy and Kuina departed Shimotsuki Village, and Roy said they would visit Foosha Village to meet a future Pirate King.

Roy flew Kuina toward Foosha Village while explaining the dangers of the New World and the powerful forces based on Hachinosu. Kuina eagerly accepted the challenge of training there under Dracule Mihawk and Savi.

• Roy lifted Kuina above Shimotsuki Village with Telekinesis and let her admire the island before flying toward Foosha Village.
• Roy explained how the New World’s hazards and powerful rulers made it far more dangerous than the East Blue or Paradise.
• Roy told Kuina that Hachinosu was the stronghold of one of the Emperors and described its defenses and core officers, including Bullet, Red Count, Tesoro, Crocodile, Moria, and Kuma.
• Kuina eagerly accepted the danger of Hachinosu after learning that Dracule Mihawk would be her swordsmanship instructor.
• Roy explained that Savi would train Kuina’s physique, Six Powers, Fish-Man Karate, and Armament Haki.

Roy explained why he was helping Kuina and passed swordsmanship and martial arts knowledge directly into her mind as they flew toward Foosha Village. They arrived at dawn, and Roy brought her down beside a wooden house before she could ask about the Pirate King.

• Roy told Kuina that her potential and his resources had led him to offer her a chance, and he wanted to see what she and others he helped would achieve.
• Roy gave Kuina detailed swordsmanship and Six Powers training insights to prepare her for training on Hachinosu.
• Kuina asked Roy about Foosha Village and the Pirate King, but he refused to give her a hint.
• Roy and Kuina reached Foosha Village at dawn and landed beside a wooden house before Kuina could finish her question.

Roy visited Rouge in Foosha Village with Kuina, and learned how she was getting by and how Buggy and Shanks had visited. Their conversation was interrupted when Ace woke up, recognized Roy, and excitedly declared that he wanted to become a pirate like him.

• Roy and Kuina visited Rouge, who welcomed them into her home and asked about Roy's travels.
• Rouge told Roy that she helped Makino at the tavern, that Buggy had narrowly avoided Garp during a visit, and that Shanks often brought supplies and money.
• Roy and Rouge discussed Shanks's recent presence nearby before Rouge invited them to Makino's tavern.
• Ace came out of the inner room, recognized Roy, and eagerly asked about his adventures and whether he could teach him.
• Ace said he wanted to be a pirate like Roy, but someone suddenly called out his name.

Roy met Luffy at Rouge’s home, where Ace introduced his younger brother and Luffy eagerly questioned Roy about Shanks and the New World. Over breakfast, Kuina watched the brothers’ chaotic behavior and struggled to reconcile Luffy with Roy’s prediction that he would become Pirate King.

• Luffy stormed out of bed to complain that Ace had woken him before dawn, and Ace bonked him on the head for his rude behavior toward Roy.
• Ace introduced Luffy to Roy, and Luffy excitedly asked about Roy’s exploits, his fight with Shanks, and whether he could beat Garp.
• Rouge explained that she cared for Luffy and that Garp kept trying to train Luffy and Ace to become Marines.
• Rouge served breakfast, and Ace and Luffy fought over the food while asking Roy questions about the New World.
• Kuina stopped eating as she watched the brothers’ table manners and compared Luffy unfavorably to Zoro.

Kuina observed Ace and Luffy training in the mountainside clearing, studying their contrasting skills while wondering what Roy meant by the Pirate King. After their training, Roy accompanied Rouge to Makino's bar in Foosha Village.

• Ace invited Kuina to watch him and Luffy train, and Roy encouraged her to go.
• Kuina observed Ace and Luffy run and spar, noting Ace's disciplined Marine-style training and Luffy's instinctive speed and ability to learn from repeated falls.
• Ace and Luffy finished training and headed to the stream, while Kuina remained unsure how either boy related to the Pirate King.
• Roy walked with Rouge through Foosha Village toward Makino's bar, where Rouge planned to help with the lunch rush.

Roy visited Rouge at Makino’s tavern, where Luffy, Ace, and Kuina later reunited with Shanks and the Red Hair Pirates. Shanks and Roy discussed his trip and a locked chest containing the Human-Human Fruit, Model: Nika, as Roy waited to see what would happen next.

• Roy sat in Makino’s tavern while Rouge helped behind the bar, and Makino recognized him without asking questions.
• Luffy, Ace, and Kuina arrived at the tavern, then rushed to the harbor when a horn announced Shanks’s return.
• Shanks reunited with Luffy and Ace at the harbor, and the Red Hair Pirates gathered at the tavern.
• Uta introduced herself to Kuina while Luffy and Ace joined the crew’s noisy celebration.
• Shanks asked why Roy was visiting, and Roy noticed the locked chest holding the Human-Human Fruit, Model: Nika.
• Shanks said he had defeated Cipher Pol 0 after they fought to the death, while Roy chose not to press him further.

Higuma and his mountain bandits barged into Makino’s tavern and provoked the Red Hair Pirates, while Roy watched the confrontation unfold. The chapter ended with Shanks calmly bending down to pick up the broken bottle after Higuma drenched him with liquor.

• Roy and Shanks quietly discussed the locked chest containing the Gum-Gum Fruit, which Roy knew was the Human-Human Fruit, Mythical Zoan, Model: Nika.
• Higuma arrived with his bandits, demanded all the tavern’s booze, and challenged Makino when she said they were out.
• Shanks politely offered Higuma an unopened bottle and apologized for the shortage.
• Higuma smashed the bottle, splashing Shanks with liquor as Roy used a Telekinesis: Barrier to protect himself from the glass and drink.
• Higuma invoked his eight-million-Beli bounty and accused Shanks of looking down on him, while Shanks calmly crouched to pick up the broken glass.

After Higuma and the mountain bandits left, Luffy angrily questioned why Shanks had tolerated the insult, while Roy watched without explaining. Still upset, Luffy opened Shanks's treasure chest and ate the strange fruit inside.

• Higuma threatened Shanks with his sword, mocked the Red Hair Pirates as cowards, and left the tavern with his men.
• Luffy shouted at Shanks for not fighting back, while the crew laughed and teased their captain.
• Kuina wondered why Roy had not intervened, and Roy told her there was no rush.
• As the tavern returned to its lively mood, Luffy sulked and noticed Shanks's partly open treasure chest.
• Luffy opened the chest and bit into the strange purple fruit as Roy watched, sensing that the fruit's appearance had been destined.