The winter passed quickly.
Before long, spring arrived.
Ron had spent three months in the dojo.
His body had grown taller, now almost the same height as ten-year-old Kuina. His frame was strong and well-proportioned, full of vitality and energy.
As Koushirou would say: "A body to be envious of—a monster's physique."
"Four hundred and twenty-four, four hundred and twenty-five, four hundred and twenty-six..."
Ron was doing one-handed push-ups with three fingers in the backyard, sweat dripping from the tip of his nose.
"Ron," Koushirou called out as he walked down the corridor. "Have you seen Kuina?"
"She went to practice her swordsmanship by the waterfall, I think," Ron replied.
"Why do you ask, Master?"
"Nothing urgent, just some new students in the dojo. I thought I'd ask her to help teach them," Koushirou said.
Ron thought for a moment, pressed down with his fingers, stood up, and looked at him. "How about I go instead?"
"You'd be a great help!" Koushirou said happily.
Ron followed Koushirou to the front yard of the dojo, where a group of kids around seven or eight years old were making a lot of noise. Some had already picked up bamboo swords and were fooling around.
Koushirou cleared his throat.
The kids who noticed him immediately quieted down, shouting in unison, "Hello, Master!"
The rest of the kids looked on curiously.
"Hello, everyone," Koushirou said with a smile. "Some of you are new disciples. Welcome to Isshin Dojo. I'm the master here, Koushirou Shimotsuki. In this place, I'll teach you swordsmanship and train you to become steadfast swordsmen."
...
While Koushirou introduced the dojo to the new students, a few children curiously looked at Ron standing beside him.
After finishing his introduction, Koushirou smiled at the children and said, "Now, Ron will be your sparring partner."
Ron stepped forward with his bamboo sword.
His eyes scanned the children, but he didn't see the green-haired kid.
"Hasn't he arrived yet?" he thought to himself.
"Huh? Isn't Kuina supposed to practice with us?" one of the children, Umi, looked at Ron, sized him up, and asked with doubt in his voice, "Your name is Ron, right? I've been at this dojo for two years. How long have you been here?"
"About three months," Ron replied.
"What? Only three months?!" Umi exclaimed, his mouth wide open in disbelief. Then he grinned. "You've only been here three months, and you think you can spar with me?"
The other children also looked at Ron with skepticism.
Ron remained calm.
"Tell you what, Umi," Koushirou smiled and said, "You like my real sword, don't you? If you can force Ron to take one step back during the sparring, I'll give you that sword."
"Really?!" Umi's face lit up with excitement. After seeing Koushirou nod with a smile, he eagerly turned to Ron and said, "Alright, let's do this!"
Inside the dojo, Koushirou and the children knelt on the floor, watching Ron and Umi standing in the center, each holding a bamboo sword.
As Umi looked at Ron's calm expression, he suddenly felt nervous, sweat forming in his palms.
He shook his head to refocus.
"It's just one step back, right? There's no way this new guy is as strong as Kuina."
Pumping himself up, he charged at Ron with a loud shout, raising his bamboo sword high.
In the next instant—smack!
Umi's sword was knocked out of his hand, and his entire body was sent flying backward, crashing heavily onto the floor.
Lying there, Umi stared blankly at the ceiling, completely bewildered.
What just happened?
What hit me?
How did I get thrown across the room?
The surrounding children were also stunned.
"What just happened?"
"Did he even strike?"
"No, I couldn't see it at all..."
Koushirou took a sip of tea, smiling inwardly as he thought: So clean and precise. What a beautiful strike.
Come to think of it, has his speed increased?
"It's not over yet!" Umi shouted, refusing to accept defeat. He grabbed his bamboo sword and charged at Ron again.
Smack!
"Ouch! It's not over—"
Smack!
...
A few moments later, Umi lay sprawled out on the ground, bruised and defeated, with an expression of utter despair.
"How...how is he this strong?"
The other children, looking at Ron, who hadn't even broken a sweat, were filled with awe.
"I'm heading back," Ron said to Koushirou.
Koushirou smiled and nodded.
As soon as Ron left, Umi jumped up and rushed to Koushirou. "Master! Did that guy really only join three months ago?!"
"Yes," Koushirou replied.
"How old is he?"
"I believe he's nine this year, a year younger than Kuina," Koushirou answered after thinking for a moment.
"Same age as me..." Umi muttered in despair.
"Haha, don't be so down," Koushirou laughed, getting to his feet. "Even Kuina isn't a match for him."
Umi froze. Then, in shock, he exclaimed, "What?! Even Kuina can't beat him?!"
His jaw nearly dropped to the floor.
"That's right. When he first arrived, Kuina lost to him in two strikes. Even though she's gotten much stronger, I'd say she can barely withstand one or two of his moves now."
Koushirou sipped his tea.
"Nani?!" Umi and the other children were so stunned they could barely speak.
"No way! Kuina, who can even defeat adults, can't beat him?!"
"Who is this guy?!"
...
After seeing Kuina challenge Ron with their own eyes and getting disarmed in two strikes, the children were thoroughly convinced.
From that day on, the nickname "Monster Ron" quickly spread among the children as their private name for him.