When Vic found Kuina, she was practicing swings with her little bamboo sword. After more than a year of Vic feeding and training her, Kuina was in excellent health. She had never been sick, was much stronger than other children her age, and had a sturdy constitution. Vic was very pleased with the results.
"Kuina-chan, come here a moment," Vic called to her with a smile.
"Coming!" Hearing Vic call, Kuina tucked the bamboo sword into her belt and trotted over.
"Senior Brother, do you have something tasty again? Hee-hee!" Sweat beaded on Kuina's forehead, and her little face was slightly flushed. She must have been practicing hard.
"Haha, no, no. Didn't you eat it all ages ago? You little glutton!" Vic laughed and patted Kuina's head.
"I made you a new bamboo sword. Your old one's gotten a little short, so use this one from now on. It'll be easier to handle!" Vic placed the bamboo sword in Kuina's hands.
Kuina was delighted to receive it. Vic had made all her bamboo swords for her.
"There's something I need to tell you. I'm leaving-leaving here, leaving Shimotsuki Village!" Vic's smile faded, and he spoke seriously.
"Then you have to bring me something tasty when you come back, hee-hee!" Kuina thought Vic would be back in a few days, just like before, and spoke with an innocent expression.
"No, Kuina. I have a feeling it'll be a long time before I can come back this time. From now on, be good at the dojo. Once you're a little older, make sure you read the booklet I left you often. When I come back, I hope to see a confident, strong, cheerful Kuina." Vic placed his palm on Kuina's head and smiled.
"No, no! I don't want you to leave! I want to stay with you forever, boo-hoo!" Kuina, who was a little over four, understood what Vic meant. She flung the bamboo sword far away, rushed over, and hugged him, bursting into tears.
"I don't want the sword anymore! I don't want you to leave me, boo-hoo! You big idiot! Idiot!!!" Kuina was heartbroken. She thought the bamboo sword was a farewell gift, and she didn't want to part with him, so she had thrown it away.
"Kuina, all good things must come to an end. People meeting and parting is just the way of things. When you grow up, you can come find me, or I can come find you so we can meet again. You're still young, but you'll understand when you're older. Besides, I'm not leaving forever!" Vic comforted her.
Kuina said nothing, sobbing against him. After a while, she raised her tear-streaked little face and looked at Vic.
"Promise me you'll come see me. If you don't, I'll come find you. That's our promise!" Kuina looked at Vic with an unusually serious expression.
"Mm, I promise," Vic said, looking at Kuina. "But I have a promise for you too. When you grow up, I'll forge you an unparalleled blade that suits you perfectly and will stay by your side. And you'll work hard to become an unparalleled female swordmaster worthy of that blade, trampling countless swordsmen underfoot. That's our promise. Can you do it?"
"Mm, I can definitely do it!" Kuina's face was serious.
"All right, then I'm going. Don't cry now!" Vic smiled and wiped the tears from Kuina's face with his sleeve. Then he went over to the bamboo sword she had thrown, picked it up, and ran his hand over the whole thing before returning it to her. Kuina didn't throw it away again. Instead, she hugged it tightly.
Vic also said goodbye to Kozaburo, packed some clothes and personal belongings, and headed for the shore with two swords at his waist.
When he reached the shore, Buck had yet to leave and intended to give Vic a ride. Vic declined his offer and flew into the sky as Buck and the others stared in stunned silence.
Traveling through the sky for long periods was exhausting, so Vic sometimes ran across the water instead, which took less energy. For someone as strong as him who had not eaten a Devil Fruit, the chances of something going wrong in the four seas were slim.
That day, Vic's Observation Haki detected a ship, and he decided to stop for a rest and get something to eat. As he drew near, the corner of his mouth curled up. It was a pirate ship, so Vic could enjoy another free meal.
The pirates aboard had already spotted Vic running across the sea, but he was so fast that he had jumped aboard before they could react.
Quite a few people were standing on deck when he boarded, all looking at him with suspicion and uncertainty. He was dressed like a swordsman, was very handsome, and had an outstanding bearing. If he had appeared near the Sabaody Archipelago, he would definitely have attracted human traffickers.
"What are you staring at? Hurry up and bring out the best food and drink you have! I've been hungry all day," Vic called brazenly to a man who looked like the captain. He didn't take this pirate crew seriously. How many people in the East Blue could he take seriously now, anyway?
The captain was tall and burly, his body over three meters tall and covered in muscle. He was absurdly imposing, and by East Blue standards, he was fairly formidable.
The captain was furious at Vic's words. He was Baiyisi, captain of the Fierce Tiger Pirates. He had never suffered a defeat since making his debut, and his bounty had reached twenty million Beli. Yet someone in the East Blue dared to treat him with such disrespect. Wasn't he asking to die? Although this man gave him a sense of danger, he was angry, and he no longer cared about anything else.
Baiyisi charged straight at Vic, his enormous fist hammering toward Vic's face. With Observation Haki, how could Vic let him land a hit? Even without it, Baiyisi couldn't have hit him, but Vic was in the habit of keeping his Observation Haki active now.
"Brat, die!" Baiyisi seemed to see Vic's head bursting open under his punch, and a savage smile spread across his face.
Vic didn't dodge. When the fist was a meter away, he threw a punch of his own. Striking second but landing first, he hit Baiyisi's fist squarely. Their fists collided, and Vic didn't budge an inch. Baiyisi, meanwhile, flew backward and smashed into the cabin, sending a shower of wooden planks flying.
The lackeys aboard were dumbstruck. They had seen their captain fight before; he could easily knock over a house. Yet now he had lost in a contest of strength. They felt as though they were watching a performance, and their captain had put one over on them.
"Did the captain skip lunch?"
"Bullshit, I saw him eat! The captain got some for free on the island, so his legs went weak and he couldn't keep his footing!"
"No, no, the boss thought the mood on the ship was too gloomy and wanted to liven things up. That has to be it!"
"Why do I feel like the mood's even worse now?"
Vic didn't press his advantage. There was no need to do that against an opponent of this level.
"Hey, I told you to prepare some food. Didn't you hear me? Do you want me to throw you overboard to feed the fish?" Vic said to the lackeys. Just then, a noise came from the cabin, and a tall figure rose to its feet.
"Brat, I'll make you kneel and beg me. I'll make you regret ever being born," Baiyisi said threateningly as he stood up.
He walked slowly toward Vic, his figure growing larger and taller. Yellow-and-black fur sprouted over his body, and the arm Vic had just dislocated recovered. By the time he reached Vic, he was over five meters tall, and the ship trembled under his footsteps.
Baiyisi had completed his transformation. Yellow-and-black fur covered his entire body, and he had an enormous tiger head. He stood upright, his shirt torn apart by his expanding body, his legs bent backward as he stood on the deck.
"Oh, you're a Zoan Devil Fruit User. Not bad, you look pretty imposing. I just wonder whether you'll turn out to be a big cat or a little kitten!" Vic said nonchalantly, a faint smile on his face.
"So you know a thing or two. You've even heard of Devil Fruits. That's right, I'm a user who ate the Zoan Cat-Cat Fruit, Model: Tiger. Prepare to die!" Baiyisi knew he was no match for Vic in his normal form, so he had gone straight into his human-beast form.
Without another word, the two went straight into a fistfight, blow after blow thudding without pause. Vic wanted to test the raw strength of his body.
Not bad. He was stronger than this Zoan user, and he hadn't even used his full strength, merely striking back casually.
Vic figured this Zoan user would probably have ranked near the bottom on the mysterious island. After testing him for a while, Vic had a rough idea of his strength. He wasted no more time and drew Yubashiri from his waist.
"Wave Breaker!!!" Vic murmured. A dazzling white light flashed and vanished, and Yubashiri was already back in its sheath, as though it had never been drawn.