Three weeks after entering the Jujutsu High, Nanami Kento and Haibara Yu realized why Geto Suguru had reacted the way he did.
Inside a building of the school, designed like a kendo hall, Nanami Kento stood in a spacious classroom.
In front of him was Zoro. As Nanami looked at Zoro, who was dressed just like him in kendo attire and holding two swords in his hands, he futilely smoothed a wrinkle on his own kendo uniform. After all, once he started rolling forward in combat, such a small wrinkle would mean nothing.
Knowing it was a meaningless gesture but unable to stop because of his nerves, he felt like a student biting their nails before an exam, unable to shake off the fear.
"Sigh…"
Taking a deep breath, Nanami firmly gripped a wooden sword with both hands. Even though Zoro was not directly in front of him and there was a fair distance between them, Nanami couldn't relax.
He knew from experience that such a distance meant nothing to Zoro.
'It's like standing in front of a mountain.'
A massive rock mountain whose summit was too high to see clearly.
Tsumiki, standing some distance away, was sweating profusely as she swung her wooden sword from above down. Seeing Nanami, she clenched her fist in encouragement.
"Fight on, Mr. Nanami!"
"Thank you, Ms. Fushiguro."
"Try to get hit less than yesterday!"
"...I'll try."
Nanami swallowed the rest of his words, unsure if it was possible.
Facing him, Zoro bowed politely in greeting. Nanami bowed in the same manner. As they straightened up and their eyes met, Nanami firmly gripped his wooden sword and aimed it directly at Zoro.
The duel began.
"Haah!"
Nanami charged with a shout.
Aiming for the head, Nanami swung his wooden sword down, but Zoro easily dodged by twisting his body. Whoosh, Nanami's wooden sword sliced through the air where Zoro had been. However, it hit nothing as Zoro had ducked.
Thwack! Nanami blocked Zoro's wooden sword aiming for his calf. The immense force from the clash of their swords contorted Nanami's face.
Crack! Zoro easily pushed aside Nanami's wooden sword and struck his thigh sharply. Nanami let out a small scream but did not falter and charged again.
Zoro's lips curled into a smile. It wasn't the first time Zoro had smiled during a duel; Nanami was hardly surprised. Zoro enjoyed the fight, especially when his opponent wielded a sword.
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
The exchange went back and forth endlessly. Neck, arms, shoulders, stomach, solar plexus, thighs. Zoro's wooden sword lightly touched Nanami's weak points. In contrast, despite hundreds of strikes, Nanami's wooden sword barely grazed Zoro's clothing.
"Pant, pant."
Dripping with sweat, Nanami breathed heavily. Seeing this, Zoro smirked and said,
"Tough, isn't it? Even a wooden sword has its weight."
Swinging it for a long time could be exhausting. Nanami, who had not trained in kendo for very long, was advised not to rely solely on physical strength during swordsmanship training.
Meanwhile, Zoro, wielding two wooden swords, was not sweating at all and looked fresh. His strength was remarkable, but it was also due to minimizing his movements.
Zoro swung his two wooden swords with great force. Faced with an unavoidable attack, Nanami hastily raised his sword to defend.
Crash!
"Argh!"
Sweat droplets fell to the floor, and both Nanami and his wooden sword were sent flying, suspended in mid-air. When he fell backwards and hit the ground, feeling dizzy, he opened his eyes to find Zoro already pointing his wooden sword at Nanami's forehead.
"You've practiced a lot."
His voice was subtly proud and boastful.
If the master in front of him hadn't been only six years old, Nanami might have been moved as well. Unfortunately, Nanami wasn't foolish enough to be unaware of the implications that a six-year-old had deeper practical swordsmanship skills than him.
"Damn it."
As if being a 15-year-old sorcerer wasn't enough, the cursed world of sorcery also exploited a six-year-old sorcerer as a child soldier.
Nanami habitually cursed the world of sorcery as he got up.
"There's still a long way to go."
"That's obvious."
Though diligent and talented, Zoro saw Nanami as a swordsman who had just started taking his first steps.
But the difference between someone who can take those steps on their own and someone who cannot is greater than one might think.
One step at a time is enough. That's how Zoro did it.
'The problem is that sometimes in real situations, you need to run, not just walk....'
But Toji had prepared for that. He trained them to instinctively move and run when necessary, in a very practical manner. He trained them harshly but meticulously, ensuring not to cause permanent injuries.
"You've also polished the basics."
"It's all thanks to the senior who taught me."
How to grip the wooden sword, movements while holding the sword, downward strikes, upward strikes, horizontal slashes, diagonal slashes. Techniques to predict, dodge, and block an opponent's attacks. Methods to seamlessly transition between dodging, defending, and attacking.
Nanami diligently learned all the basics of swordsmanship under Zoro's guidance. Zoro taught him step by step, like a master instructor at a kendo dojo.
'He's not quite like an ordinary kendo instructor though.'
Zoro gave no protective gear to Nanami and the training was incredibly rigorous. The swordsmanship taught was specialized for actual combat, particularly for striking down enemies, unlike the usual dojo training.
Nanami had no complaints. That was what he needed. Indeed, after learning swordsmanship from Zoro, Nanami could actively invoke spells against spirits.
"I have a question."
"Go ahead."
"You didn't get hit by my attacks at all earlier."
According to Gojo, Zoro has a unique skill called 'Haki' that allows him, even as a sorcerer, to sense and kill both spirits and people.
"Is it because of this 'Haki' that you were able to block and dodge all my attacks?"
"No. I don't need to use Haki to handle you."
Zoro stated the fact calmly. In fact, he hadn't used Haki in this duel. Maybe against Toji, but he could see all of Nanami's sword movements just by intuition.
Nanami hesitated, then laughed bitterly.
"...It hurts."
"Did it? Sorry."
"It's not something you should apologize for."
It's better to be bluntly shown the reality than to be falsely praised and led into thinking one is stronger than they are.
Above all, Nanami was not so immature as to speak ill of a mentor who had supported him wholeheartedly. This kendo hall too, was something Zoro had helped fund with his own money and the school's budget. It was heart-wrenching. Such is the cursed world of sorcery.
"I'm sorry."
"...? For what?"
"For not being able to do anything in return."
Both Nanami and Haibara were third-grade sorcerers. And as third-grade sorcerers, there really wasn't much they could do in the harsh world of sorcery. Instead, they had to rely on a six-year-old, calling him 'senior' because they were weak.
"..."
That's why the world of sorcery is so cursed. It doesn't protect a six-year-old child; instead, it burdens them even more.
As Nanami bowed his head in shame, Zoro calmly said,
"I didn't do it to receive something in return."
People being happy and smiling—that's what he likes. He wants to drink in such an atmosphere.
'I'd be even happier if friends and family were happy too.'
He definitely didn't want forced smiles like those he saw in his previous life in Ebisu Village.
The world of sorcery, where his friends and potentially his brother will join and where his father is already involved, is a place that piles up bodies if Zoro doesn't intervene.
Even in a place filled with the deranged like the world of sorcery, where colleagues die day by day, there aren't many who can genuinely smile.
That's why he cuts down spirits and saves sorcerers.
For a world where his friends and family can smile.
That's all he wants.
'...I hope my father can be happy too, if possible.'
Zoro laughed bitterly. That would probably be very difficult.
Since there's no Chie.
"If there's anything I can help with, please tell me, senior."
Zoro's eyes sparkled at Nanami's words.
"Buy me a drink."
"Absolutely not."
Nanami flatly refused. He wasn't so depraved as to offer alcohol to a six-year-old, and besides, he wasn't even old enough to buy alcohol himself.
Moreover, if he got caught buying alcohol for Zoro, he'd definitely be beaten to death by Toji. 100%.
Bang!
"Zoro-senioooor!"
"...Haibara?"
Nanami looked at his classmate who had just burst through the classroom door, covered in dirt, dust, and minor injuries. At best, he looked like a student bullied by thugs, and at worst, like a debtor punished by yakuza for not repaying loans.
"What's wrong?"
"I also want to learn swordsmanship from senior instead of Teacher Toji!"
Being beaten with a wooden sword by Zoro and flying away was a hundred times better. At least then he'd be wearing a cool kendo uniform. Getting hit by Toji was neither cool nor just painful.
Seeing Haibara sniffling, Zoro chuckled playfully.
"Father is also good at swordsmanship."
Perhaps because he learned from watching Zoro. Among weapons, Toji handled swords the best. Though that's only relative to other weapons; he was truly skilled in hand-to-hand combat.
"And you're more suited for hand-to-hand combat than swordsmanship."
Although Zoro liked swordsmen, he wasn't thoughtless enough to make every student entering the academy wield a sword. For Haibara Yu, hand-to-hand combat was more suitable considering his talents and how they meshed with his techniques.
Haibara, with dark circles under his eyes, shook his head vigorously.
"No! I want to learn swordsmanship from senior Zoro! He's better at it than Teacher Toji!"
"That's true."
"Teacher Toji can mimic any martial arts he sees. Can't he copy your swordsmanship?"
At Nanami's question, Zoro shrugged.
"Maybe, but it'll be difficult."
It's not just that Toji's understanding of swordsmanship is shallower compared to Zoro, but fundamentally, the styles they use are different.
'I use Three Sword Style.'
Currently, due to a promise with Toji, he's only using Two Sword Style, but Zoro's swordsmanship is essentially based on using three swords. A style that's complete when wielding three swords.
Toji, having strong jaw muscles, could use the Three Sword Style if he wanted to… But would he really choose to?
By the way, Zoro currently had only two baby teeth left. Once those two are gone, he could use the Three Sword Style.
Suddenly, Toji opened the classroom door.
"Found you."
"Aaaaaah!"
Haibara screamed and hid behind Zoro. Toji crouched behind Zoro and made a beckoning gesture like a grim reaper toward the trembling Haibara.
"Come here."
"Senior, can't you help me?"
"I'm going to eat and then go to school."
"What? It's 7 PM now?"
"...It's 'morning' 7 AM…"
Nanami corrected the sense of time for his classmate who had fled due to an all-night mission and excessive training. Zoro would soon eat and then catch the school shuttle bus.
Accepting his fate, Haibara stood up and said to Zoro,
"Have a good day, senior. And please get along well with my little sister too."
Haibara Yume could see spirits, and he worried she might be bullied. With Zoro around, he felt reassured.
Toji glanced at Zoro.
"You keep getting along with his sister?"
"Yeah. There's a sports festival soon, and we're doing tug-of-war with her class. We'll practice that and eat together."
Yesterday, he was all fired up about his class winning the tug-of-war… Unfortunately for Yume, with Zoro in his class, it was a foregone conclusion that Zoro's class would win.
He didn't plan to go all out, though. What if the kids got hurt?
Yume, with a keen sense of direction, could always find Zoro wandering around places like storerooms during school excursions. She would then guide him on the right path.
Yume was good at finding new paths and walking in a straight direction. In many ways, she had a sense of direction opposite to Zoro's.
Knowing this well, Toji said seriously,
"Yeah, keep being friends."
"...? Uh."
From a corner of the dojo, Megumi, who had been nodding off while watching Tsumiki, shuffled towards Zoro.
"Brother, hug before I go to sleep."
"Me too!"
Zoro set down his two wooden swords and hugged the two children who jumped into his arms. Between the smell of sweat and milk, there was the warm scent of spring.
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