In the backyard corridor of the dojo, three small figures sat.
From left to right, there were Kuina, Ron, and Zoro.
The three had blue short hair, black short hair, and a tuft of green seaweed-like hair, respectively.
"Ron, I didn't know you were so strong," Zoro said in surprise, "You don't even look much older than me. By the way, how old are you?"
Ron sat at the edge of the corridor, hands resting on the floor, legs dangling in the air. Hearing Zoro's question, he looked up at the moon and smiled, "I think I should be nine years old this year."
In the blink of an eye, almost a year had passed since he came to this world.
A lot had happened in this one year.
"Nine, huh, so you're a year older than me," Zoro counted on his fingers.
Kuina, resting her chin in her hands, puffed out her cheeks in frustration. "You're a year younger than me."
"Hey Ron, where's your sword?" Zoro asked curiously.
"It's in my room. I wouldn't carry it around in the dojo," Ron replied, laying back with his arms behind his head. He turned to Zoro and smiled, "Did you join the dojo as a new student this spring?"
"Yeah," Zoro nodded, his eyes full of fighting spirit as he looked at Kuina. "I swear, I will defeat her!"
Kuina glanced at him. "You? Defeat me?"
Her dismissive attitude instantly enraged young Zoro.
"What did you say!?" he shouted, jumping up angrily.
"Do you want to spar right now?" Kuina said with a smirk. "But no matter how many times you try, you won't beat me."
Zoro clenched his teeth, fists tightening in anger.
The two locked eyes, and it seemed like sparks were flying between them.
Zoro was lying on the ground in the courtyard, his bamboo sword flung far away.
"Hmph, you can't even hold your sword properly, and you think you can master two-sword style? I suggest you focus on building a solid foundation first," Kuina remarked.
After saying that, she looked at Ron, who was sitting under the eaves. "I'll be waiting for you tomorrow morning in the usual place."
Without waiting for Ron's reply, she grabbed her bamboo sword and left.
Ron stood up and looked down at Zoro, who was sprawled on the ground, and smiled, "Kuina might be a girl, but she's really strong. She also trains very hard. If you want to catch up to her, it won't be easy."
"You'll need to put in great effort and train even harder if you want a chance."
With those words, Ron walked away.
Zoro lay on the ground alone, staring at the sky.
"I lost again… Kuina is so strong, so strong that I can't even see any hope of winning. But Ron… he's much stronger than her. And he's only a year older than me…"
He gritted his teeth, clenched his fists, and slammed them against the ground in frustration.
"Damn it!!! Why is the gap so huge!!?"
Zoro trained harder than anyone else, quickly surpassing the new students who joined the dojo at the same time.
He challenged Kuina more than three times every day, only to be defeated each time. But after each loss, he would train even more furiously.
Within two months, he had already surpassed many senior students.
His skills improved rapidly, far beyond the level he was at when he first joined the dojo.
His determination and hard work earned him the respect of all the students, including Kuina, who began to take him more seriously.
As Zoro was training under a tree by lifting stones to build his arm strength, he saw Kuina walk by with her bamboo sword.
Without thinking, he shouted, "Kuina, let's duel!"
Kuina glanced at him. "I don't have time right now."
She was about to leave when a thought crossed her mind. She stepped back and said to him, "Come with me."
"Huh?" Zoro looked confused.
"Are you coming or not? If you don't, you'll regret it," Kuina said with a mysterious expression.
Zoro's curiosity got the better of him, and he immediately dropped the stone and walked to Kuina's side, following her towards the back of the dojo.
When they reached the clearing behind the dojo.
Zoro saw two figures, one large and one small, standing in the middle of the clearing.
"The master… and Ron?!" Zoro exclaimed in surprise. "Are they… dueling?"
Kuina nodded as she looked at the scene. "And they're using real swords."
"Huh?" Zoro's heart skipped a beat.
"This is the first time I've seen my father and Ron seriously fight. I heard it was Ron who suggested it," Kuina said, her expression serious as she watched the black-haired boy in the center. "Maybe this time we'll see his true strength."
"Huh? So when he fought you before, he wasn't using his full strength?" Zoro couldn't help but ask.
"Idiot, he fought me seriously, but of course it wasn't his full power," Kuina snapped.
"Before today, no one—not even my father—knew how strong he really was."
Once again, his understanding of Ron's strength deepened.
He widened his eyes, watching the fight intently, not wanting to miss a single moment.
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