On the first day of school, Toji left home with Megumi and Tsumiki, escorting Zoro to the school gates.
From the beginning, there was no thought in Toji's mind of making Zoro go to school alone to foster independence. One can't have a missing child from the first day of school.
Zoro was already excessively independent as it was.
At the school gate, Toji gave Zoro one last look-over. Zoro, dressed more neatly than usual, furrowed his brow, uncomfortable in his clothes.
"Got your books?"
"In the bag."
"How about your indoor shoes?"
"Right here."
"The presence of mind not to get lost in school?"
"Listen, I'm not a three-year-old, you know?"
"Right. You're six."
Toji adjusted the straps of Zoro's brand-new randoseru, barely believing it. Zoro was actually going to school.
"I'm taking you today, but from tomorrow, take the shuttle bus home. You'll take it to come here too."
"Where do I catch it?"
"In front of the house. Ask the teacher when you leave school."
Though it's rare for a shuttle bus to run right up to one's home in private schools, Toji had made arrangements beforehand.
'Unless that school didn't have a shuttle bus to begin with.'
It wasn't difficult for Toji to slightly alter the existing shuttle routes with a little 'persuasion.'
"If you can't find your classroom, make sure to tell a teacher. I've already given them a heads-up."
"Who do you think I am?!"
"Ah."
"Big brother, you can't even tell left from right. Make sure you help! You need to."
"...Tsumiki, you."
"Hehe."
While Toji had a response for anything, he found it hard to say much to the beaming Tsumiki.
Toji squatted down to look Zoro in the eye and spoke earnestly.
"My marimo, you're supposed to stop fights, not start them."
"…?"
"You can only hit one person, and if the police or teachers catch you, it's a hassle. Better to break it up and hit both sides."
"Is that what you say to your son on his first day of school?"
Zoro looked at Toji incredulously, while Tsumiki blinked innocently beside them.
"Is that so?"
"No, absolutely not, Tsumiki."
Zoro was horrified and covered Toji's mouth.
"Don't fight. What's with these kids."
Whether they were first graders or the oldest students in sixth grade, to Zoro, they were just little kids. Fighting them wasn't even a possibility.
Toji made a muffled noise, and Zoro removed his hand.
"Don't fight with the teachers either. That would be a bit tricky to handle."
"Got it."
"I don't expect you to stay quiet, just stay safe, please."
"You're overprotective, you know that."
Toji didn't respond. He couldn't not know.
Zoro had grown a lot over time. While not as robust as Toji, he was well-built and significantly taller than his first-grade peers. He looked more like a ten-year-old than a six-year-old. To anyone else, Zoro seemed like no easy target.
…But that was just the surface.
Toji tilted his head. As someone who had been an assassin, he was acutely aware of the recent changes in Zoro.
'He doesn't show any weaknesses.'
While the new students and even the likes of Gojo Satoru had weaknesses, Zoro showed none. What appeared like weaknesses were no different than jumping into a beast's maw.
It was lethal to walk in unaware. Centuries of instincts warned Toji.
Disliking his own physical weakness, Toji knew his strength well. There were few sorcerers who could stand against him. The only one who could definitely beat him was Gojo Satoru.
And Zoro had grown strong enough to be a threat to Toji's life.
And he was still growing. With every mission, every wound, his movements became more fluid.
Toji watched all this keenly, aware.
Yet he couldn't let go of his worry.
'My marimo is directionally challenged.'
Even in a safe place, he could walk into danger. On missions, he had encountered curses and sorcerers in just such a way.
And to Toji, Zoro's fighting style was risky and nerve-wracking.
In fact, Zoro was frequently injured on missions. Partly because he restrained his use of haki to improve his physical strength and sword skills, and partly due to his fighting style.
'Zoro's style of combat is different from mine or Gojo's.'
Unlike Gojo, who used limitless to ensure most attacks didn't even reach him, or Toji, who gathered extensive information on his opponents to force them into disadvantageous positions, Zoro did not adopt these strategies.
Stubbornly straightforward in battle, his only method of attack was the sword strike.
'He's slower than the technique merits, so he chooses to block rather than dodge.'
Since he often couldn't dodge in time, he'd take or block enough attacks until he could deliver a powerful strike.
'He gets hit a lot until he can land a strike.'
Of course, this was only true when facing an opponent with skills or traits comparable to his own. The likelihood of encountering such an opponent in school was very low, but Toji couldn't be complacent.
The world had never been on Zenin Toji's side.
Zoro paused, sensing the desperation and anxiety barely concealed behind Toji's playful facade.
"I'll be careful."
"Please do."
There wasn't much left in Toji's world that had collapsed once. It might seem excessive to others, but clinging desperately to what little meaning remained was natural for him.
Another loss was not something Toji could endure.
"Take care!"
"Bye-bye, big brother."
"Bye-bye," Megumi murmured as Zoro hugged his tightly. He giggled in response to the usual words of affection whispered by Zoro.
"Tsumiki. You too."
"I love you." Tsumiki's brown eyes widened then softened at those words.
Zoro turned to look at Toji, who shook his head.
"No need to say it to me."
He knew without it being said.
"———."
Seeing Zoro whisper the same words to Toji that he had to his siblings, Toji smiled. Such a stubborn kid.
Whish! Toji ruffled Zoro's neatly combed hair. Annoyed, Zoro pushed his hand away.
"Have a good day."
"Yeah."
Zoro turned and walked away confidently. Tsumiki suddenly exclaimed, watching Zoro go.
"Brother! Not that way, turn right!"
"…Ah?"
The school Zoro attended turned out to be… ordinary. Perhaps because it was an expensive private school, the class sizes were smaller, and the students all wore costly clothes, but beyond that, it wasn't much different from any other school.
He wandered a bit looking for his classroom, but fortunately, a homeroom teacher found Zoro in the hallway and kindly led him there, so he avoided being late on his first day.
"Since it's our first day, how about we all introduce ourselves?"
"Yes! I am! 6 years old! My name is Miyaki Fuzuki! Uh... I like dango and strawberries!"
"Well done. Everyone, let's clap! Now, who's next?"
"Yes! My name is Sato Ayako…"
The children took turns introducing themselves, their voices squeaky like little ducklings.
'Fighting with these kids?'
Ridiculous. Zoro secretly clicked his tongue. It seemed they would burst into tears with just a poke.
"Next is... Zenin Zoro. Would you like to introduce yourself?"
Zoro stood up at the teacher's request. With all eyes in the classroom twinkling at him, he said calmly,
"I'm Zoro. Nice to meet you."
After his brief introduction, Zoro sat down again. The homeroom teacher, taken aback by the succinctness, suggested,
"Um, Zenin-kun. Maybe you could tell your classmates a little more about yourself so they can get to know you?"
Something else? Zoro tilted his head, unsure what else to say. A nearby child boldly asked,
"What do you like?"
"Swords."
"So, um, are you good at fighting?"
"Yeah."
I wouldn't be doing it with you guys though. Zoro kept that thought to himself.
"Then, can you beat a T-Rex?"
A cheeky question from someone. Zoro nodded, having actually slain a dragon in his past life. But that child stuck out his tongue at Zoro.
"Liar. T-Rexes are super strong!"
"I'm stronger."
"Okay, that's enough from both of you."
The teacher intervened in their conversation. She seemed exasperated but managed a smile when her eyes met Zoro's.
"It seems Zenin-kun knows how to use a sword. That's impressive. Everyone, let's give him a round of applause! Now, who's next?"
She quickly moved things along, getting the next child ready for their introduction.
After the introductions, the children didn't really speak to Zoro. They seemed awkward and a bit scared.
'Understandable.'
Zoro, too big to be just six years old, looked more like he was eight or ten. His size and slight muscular build would seem immense to children his age. He knew well that his appearance could even unsettle adults.
Unconcerned, Zoro watched the teacher try to explain things as simply and clearly as possible, and then he yawned loudly. There really wasn't much for him to do or learn, so he used his arms as a pillow and took a nap.
"Zoro, want to try this problem?"
"64."
"…That was quick. Have you already memorized the multiplication table?"
"Yes."
Despite often blatantly sleeping through class, when teachers asked Zoro questions about the lesson, he answered without hesitation. Zoro wasn't particularly bright, but elementary school first-grade problems were a breeze.
After several such instances, the teachers stopped questioning him much. And so, his first day at school passed without incident.
…If only he hadn't spotted a curse on the roof of the cafeteria at lunchtime, it would have continued that way.
While waiting in line to enter the cafeteria, Zoro sensed the presence of a giant centipede curse. It was big, but not particularly strong—probably a grade four, at most grade three.
The centipede curse hadn't noticed Zoro yet and was hissing at other children. Zoro clicked his tongue.
'It'll charge if it sees me.'
It was one thing to grab a curse in front of unknowing non-sorcerer kids and teachers; they'd think he was punching the air.
'But I can't just ignore it.'
Just as he thought that, the centipede curse's eyes met his. It leaped off the roof and scurried towards him.
'Can't help it.'
Zoro stepped out of line and charged at the approaching curse, his hand wrapped in Haki.
Crack!
The centipede's head split cleanly in two, killing it instantly. Of course, since the kids couldn't see the curse, it looked as though Zoro had suddenly run forward out of line.
"Teacher! He's cutting in line!"
"Zenin-kun, you can't do that."
"It wasn't cutting…"
"Then what was it?"
"I was... never mind."
Zoro quietly moved to the back of the line. Explaining he had been catching an invisible centipede would be pointless—no one would believe him.
'Looks like I'll be eating late.'
Not that he minded. Whether he ate early or late didn't really matter.
Just then, a child poked Zoro's back with a finger. Turning around, he saw a short-haired girl wearing glasses and a hairpin decorated with flowers.
She opened her mouth with a clear voice and chattered,
"Hey, what did you just do?"
"…?"
"It wasn't cutting in line, was it?"
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