It was night.
The bright moon hung in the night sky, casting a silver glow across the sea.
On the deck, two small figures were leaning on the railing, gazing at the night sky and the vast ocean.
"Ron, how long have we been out here?" Kuina asked softly, resting on the railing.
"About five days, I think," Ron said, leaning against the railing and looking up at the stars.
"Only five days? It feels much longer. I wonder how my father and Zoro are doing," Kuina murmured, gazing into the distance, missing the dojo.
She turned to Ron and asked, "Where is your hometown, Ron?"
"I don't know either," Ron replied, stretching out his hand toward the sky. "Maybe it's somewhere as far away as the stars."
Kuina stared at him for a long moment. When Ron turned his head, she quickly shifted her gaze and changed the topic.
"By the way, that slash you performed today... did you reach the realm of Will?"
Ron shook his head.
"No. It looked like I reached that realm, but it wasn't. It was just the result of swordsmanship combined with breathing techniques."
"Can breathing techniques be used together with swordsmanship?" Kuina was a bit surprised since she had also learned some basic breathing techniques from Ron.
Ron paused for a moment and then scratched his head. "Did I never tell you that?"
Kuina puffed her cheeks.
After thinking for a moment, Ron gave her an awkward smile and said, "I guess I forgot to mention it."
...
Two days later.
The ship reached an island.
As they disembarked, Ron noticed a few familiar figures.
Dragon, the leader of the Revolutionary Army, cloaked in black.
And the towering figure of Bartholomew Kuma.
"Who are they?" Kuina asked.
Dragon cast his gaze towards Ron and Kuina. Under that gaze, Ron immediately felt an unprecedented pressure.
Strong!
Much stronger than he was now—by hundreds of times!
Ron instantly recognized the vast difference in their power.
"They are Koushirou's apprentice and daughter. He asked us to..." Ivankov explained the situation to Dragon.
Dragon nodded. "I see. We owe Koushirou a lot. There is some danger on this island. If you wish, you can join us on our ship to the next island."
"Danger?" Ivankov was startled and then looked at Dragon with a serious expression. "Has the Goa Kingdom decided on something?"
Dragon nodded. "They've decided to burn down the entire slum district."
"What?!"
The members of the Revolutionary Army, standing behind Ivankov, were shocked, their faces filled with anger.
"Those nobles!" a young Revolutionary Army member cloaked in black clenched his fists, grinding his teeth in fury.
"We can no longer change this kingdom, but we can at least save more lives. That is our purpose this time," Dragon said in a deep voice.
Kuina, holding her Wado Ichimonji, sensed the change in atmosphere. She moved closer to Ron and softly asked, "It seems like something terrible is about to happen on this island. Should we get off here?"
Ron didn't respond immediately, stroking his chin in thought.
If he remembered correctly, the fire in the slum district of the Goa Kingdom happened when Luffy, Ace, and Sabo were kids. It was the event that made Sabo give up on the nobles, leading him to run away to the sea, only to nearly be killed by the Celestial Dragons.
The Goa Kingdom was definitely full of dangers right now.
Taking Kuina with him might be risky.
As he was lost in thought, Dragon, Bartholomew Kuma, and other Revolutionary Army members were learning more about the extraordinary black-haired boy with a sword on his back from Ivankov and Haku.
Several curious glances were directed his way.
"That sword... could it be the Wado Ichimonji, one of the 21 Great Grade swords passed down by the Shimotsuki family in Wano?" A middle-aged swordsman from the Revolutionary Army, cloaked in black, looked at the Wado Ichimonji in Kuina's hands in surprise.
"That sword is worth at least ten million Berries. Isn't Koushirou worried about letting his daughter carry it on her journey?"
"21 Great Grade swords?" A companion next to him was surprised and pointed at the sword on Ron's back. "What about that boy's sword?"
The swordsman squinted, observing closely. At first glance, he couldn't make out much from the hilt. He shifted his position slightly to get a clearer look and gasped when he saw the white scabbard with golden lightning patterns.
"No way!"
His exclamation drew everyone's attention.
"Korv, what's wrong?" Dragon asked.
"Nothing... It's just that the sword on that boy's back... really surprised me," Korv quickly replied.
"Sword?" Ivankov and Haku turned their eyes to Ron's sword.
"What's so unusual about it?"
----------------------------------------------------------
T/N:
Access 30 chapters in advance on my Patreon: p@treon.com/elvenking20 (Replace @ with 'a')