"What?"
Carina and the other two cried out in unison.
"Lord Bai Yu, you're joking, right? If you only have a fifty percent chance, why are you still sitting here drinking so calmly?"
Nami hurriedly pressed him.
She still bore the fate of Cocoyasi Village on her shoulders. Faced with Bai Yu's uncertainty, she dared not gamble recklessly.
"Do I look like I'm joking? If he were any other ability user, I'd be completely confident I could thrash him."
Bai Yu took another swig without a care and said,
"But he's a Clang-Clang Devil Fruit User, with tough defenses comparable to steel. As I am now, I can't cut steel!"
"That's why, half a day ago, I told you to head to Shimotsuki Village first. I plan to learn Cutting Iron before I cut down Treasure."
"A guest from the Grand Line should be quite worth cutting."
Carina and Nami stood rooted to the spot in shock.
Watching Bai Yu make this last-minute grab at the Buddha's feet, had they placed their bets on the wrong person?
"Bai Yu, did you say we're heading to Shimotsuki Village?"
Zoro's expression froze, and he hurriedly asked,
"Aside from a small, inconspicuous dojo, there aren't any Swordmasters there who know Cutting Iron, are there?"
As a resident of Shimotsuki Village, Zoro had spent a long time there.
Unfortunately, he had never heard of a Swordmaster who knew Cutting Iron.
More importantly, Bai Yu actually planned to learn Cutting Iron in such a short time.
Was this a joke?
"Heh, Zoro, some people keep their mountains and waters hidden. You're simply not strong enough to even be worthy of making them get serious."
Bai Yu smiled, took a swig, and raised an eyebrow.
"I can sense an island's presence. If Nami hasn't steered us wrong, we should have reached Shimotsuki Village."
With those words, Bai Yu turned and walked out.
Zoro froze for a moment before quickly following.
He was now desperate to find out who the Swordmaster who knew Cutting Iron, as Bai Yu had mentioned, was.
As soon as they reached the deck, a familiar little island soon came into view.
There were quite a few familiar faces on the dock, too.
"Senior Brother Zoro, you've been missing for half a year! You're finally back! Teacher mentions you all the time."
"Teacher once said Senior Brother Zoro is the strongest swordsman in Shimotsuki Village."
"No, Teacher said Senior Brother Zoro is the strongest in the East Blue..."
Voices fawning over him rang out across the dock.
As the only peculiar swordsman who used Three-Sword Style, Zoro was quite well known in Shimotsuki Village.
Normally, this sort of flattery would have been quite pleasing.
Unfortunately, standing beside Bai Yu now, Zoro felt his face twitch with pain.
"Heh, Zoro, looks like you've really won the people's hearts in Shimotsuki Village."
Bai Yu smiled and leaped ashore, his Observation Haki sweeping outward like a surging tide.
It instantly covered the entire island.
Among the many powerful presences, he instantly caught a concealed aura.
"Found him. I'll go on ahead."
Bai Yu opened his eyes, fixed on the direction of Isshin Dojo, and vanished on the spot with Shunpo.
"That's where Teacher is?"
Zoro's expression froze.
In his eyes, his teacher was just a goofball who couldn't even cut through a leaf.
Yet now Bai Yu had set his sights on him.
Could his teacher really be a reclusive Swordmaster who knew Cutting Iron, just as Bai Yu had said?
A jumble of thoughts flashed through his mind, and Zoro hurried after him.
Meanwhile, inside Isshin Dojo.
A group of seven- and eight-year-old children in kimono swung their bamboo swords under rhythmic guidance.
Wearing glasses, Koshiro smiled with gratification from the side.
As a teacher, nothing was more worth celebrating than seeing his students achieve remarkable results.
But just as that smile appeared on his face, a gleam flashed through Koshiro's eyes, and he quickly returned to his kindly manner.
"Telin, lead everyone in continuing their training. I'm stepping out for a moment."
"Yes, Teacher!"
After a slightly older child readily agreed,
Koshiro slid the main door open and walked out.
Looking at Bai Yu standing outside the entrance, dressed entirely in white, his expression darkened slightly before the sword at Bai Yu's waist quickly drew his attention.
"A blood-red scabbard and hilt, and a sinister aura rushing straight at me. Young man, is the sword at your waist a cursed blade?"
"As expected of Mr. Koshiro, seeing through this blade's nature at a glance. I'm afraid only that foolish disciple of yours would think his teacher is a goofball."
Bai Yu smiled, took a swig, and patted the Demon Sword Murasame at his waist.
"I came this time simply to learn Cutting Iron, and to challenge you while I'm at it."
"Challenge me? Why would you challenge me?"
Koshiro's expression froze as he spoke.
"Also, did you just say you've met Zoro?"
"It seems he lost the fight between you!"
"But I'd like to know how that foolish disciple of mine lost to you."
Bai Yu's sudden visit surprised Koshiro greatly.
However, his instincts told him the young man before him was dangerous.
So what Koshiro wanted most urgently was to determine whether Zoro was alive or dead.
"Don't worry, Mr. Koshiro. I'm a Marine. I don't slaughter innocents."
Bai Yu smiled and replied,
"As for why I want to challenge you, aside from learning Cutting Iron, the biggest reason is that you're one of the very few people in the East Blue worth cutting!"
Koshiro was a little slow to recover.
He had heard many reasons for challenging a dojo, but this was his first time hearing such a blunt, direct answer.
Yet as time passed, Koshiro's gaze gradually sharpened.
Especially as he watched the smile on Bai Yu's face grow increasingly cruel and bloodthirsty.
A long-absent fighting spirit actually began stirring in Koshiro's heart.
Just as Bai Yu had said, a Swordmaster who kept his mountains and waters hidden did not do so simply because he enjoyed solitude.
The biggest reason was that, on this sea, he could find no opponent worth drawing his blade against.
Masters were lonely!
Now, faced with Bai Yu's aura locking onto him,
Koshiro instead felt a long-absent exhilaration, like dead ashes flaring back to life.
"Kid, you really are different. You're the first of the younger generation who's interested me enough to fight."
Koshiro abandoned his usual kindly manner as he spoke.
"But precisely because you're different, I'll accept this challenge."
"As for weapons..."
"A wooden sword will do!"
Bai Yu tipped his head back and poured the entire bottle of strong liquor straight into his mouth.
His five fingers suddenly tightened, crushing the bottle in his hand with a crack.
His cruel, bloodthirsty smile bloomed fully.
The bloodthirsty beast hidden within him was unleashed outright.
"In the hands of the strong, a flower, a leaf, or a blade of grass is a deadly weapon. This wooden sword is more than enough for a spar!"
Boom!
Two immense waves of Sword Pressure erupted with Bai Yu and Koshiro at their centers.
The instant the red and white waves of energy collided, the tremendous gale they whipped up tore the dojo's roof clean off.
From a distance, a tornado seemed to have risen over the open ground of Isshin Dojo.