Chapter 426

“A fine young man.”

“This kind of will to fight for survival was rare even in our time.”

Rydfield nodded slightly.

Zoro’s performance far exceeded his expectations.

Even though he had already assessed Zoro’s strength during their earlier standoff, the sheer will to gamble his life for victory still moved him deeply.

Kaido was utterly envious:

“If he were willing to submit to me, the position of second-in-command of the Beasts Pirates should be his.”

“Twenty years ago, Momonosuke was no more than this.”

“No!”

“This brat is even more outstanding than Momonosuke was back then!”

Recalling that figure, Kaido instinctively reached up and touched the scar on his chest.

Twenty years had passed, yet the scar left by Momonosuke still occasionally ached faintly.

In Kaido’s eyes,

as a ruler, as a man, Momonosuke was undoubtedly a failure.

But as a swordsman, leaving such a scar upon oneself was proof of Momonosuke’s strength!

And Zoro surpassed him even further!

“The Round Table Knights—Pirate Hunter—Roronoa Zoro, is it?!”

“I’ve memorized that name!”

…

“That guy… is strong!”

Luffy’s expression turned unusually serious.

He clenched his fists, repeatedly pondering in his mind what the outcome would be if he faced Zoro’s slash…

After a long period of thought,

Luffy still found no way to counter it, so he gave up thinking and said with casual ease:

“Forget it.”

“I’ll figure it out naturally during the fight.”

Kid stared in shock:

“You really think you can defeat those two monsters?!”

“No.”

Luffy scratched his nose.

“Then why the hell are you so relaxed?!”

Kid was nearly broken.

Born in the South Blue, he had fought his way through countless battles to enter the New World; every opponent he faced either fled or knelt in surrender.

Even with exceptions like Kizaru, Kid still believed he would not lose to any rival of his generation.

But today, his confidence had been shattered one after another.

Whether it was Blackleg Sanji just now, or Zoro, who had lost but still earned honor, both had raised the ceiling of the new era beyond his comprehension.

Wait a minute!

The man now ruling Britannias, who climbed to the title of the world’s strongest by standing on Whitebeard’s shoulders, is barely in his twenties.

Yet in age, he’s not much different from me.

Thinking of this,

a look of defeat surfaced in Kid’s eyes, his fists clenched tightly beneath his sleeves.

In the corner,

Sabo, wearing a hat, kept glancing over, his gaze fixed on Straw Hat—filled with concern, pride, and an emotion he could not name.

But

he also knew clearly that this was not yet the time to reveal himself.

…

A few minutes earlier.

East Blue.

Shima Village, Ichiro Dojo.

Shimotsuki Koushirou and his disciples watched the projection with rapt attention.

Their vision was fixed solely on Zoro, wielding three swords in battle against Mihawk!

The blades moved too fast to trace, the airborne slashes raged wildly as if ready to obliterate everything, and the tangible Haki between the two warriors left every apprentice breathless!

The blade, moving too fast to trace, the wild, destructive air slashes threatening to obliterate all, and the palpable Haki between them left all the apprentices awestruck!

“It’s… it’s… it’s…”

One apprentice gaped, stammering, unable to form a single coherent sentence to describe his awe.

One apprentice stood with mouth agape, stammering, trying to describe his shock but unable to utter a single complete sentence.

Another apprentice spoke, eyes shining as he stared at Zoro on the screen.

As the most outstanding disciple in Ichiro Dojo’s history, Zoro had become the idol of every apprentice.

Many had already decided that after graduation, they would follow Zoro’s path, challenging their way from the East Blue all the way to the New World!

Even to challenge the man standing at the very top!

This was the romance of a swordsman!

Shimotsuki Koushirou glanced at his disciples and smiled warmly.

He vaguely remembered that even among his students, Zoro had been the most stubborn, the most obstinate, the most resolute.

Perhaps only such a person could reach this height?!

Perhaps only thus could one reach such heights?!

Koushirou murmured:

“He may already be stronger than the one from the Momonosuke family!”

“He may already be stronger than the Kozuki clan’s one!”

Koushirou saw far more than the apprentices did; while amazed by Zoro’s growth, he also felt deep concern for his student.

After all, his opponent was Mihawk!

The former world’s strongest swordsman!

Only those who had lived through Mihawk’s era understood just how powerful he was—a dominance so overwhelming it made every other swordsman of his time seem dim.

“Will Senior Zoro surpass the former number one?!”

“Zoro-senpai, are you about to surpass the former number one in the world?!”

The apprentices stared wide-eyed, afraid to miss a single detail of the battle.

All the apprentices stared wide-eyed, afraid to miss a single detail of the battle.

Zoro unleashed the Ghostly Nine-Sword Style, transforming into a six-armed, three-headed Shura form before their eyes.

The Ichiro Dojo erupted in exclamations!

But just as everyone believed Zoro was about to win, the tide turned instantly—in a mere instant, Mihawk was wounded, yet Zoro lost his ability to fight.

Even the Wado Ichimonji, passed down from Shimotsuki Koushirou, shattered with a crack!

The dojo fell silent; everyone stared at the scene, struggling to accept it.

Shimotsuki Koushirou’s gaze remained fixed on the Wado Ichimonji in Zoro’s hand.

Watching the broken blade fall to the ground, Koushirou’s eyes held both pride and sorrow, finally dissolving into a quiet whisper:

“Has the Wado Ichimonji become too slow for your pace?!”

“Has Wado Ichimonji already fallen behind you?!”

“This blade was never meant for you—it was a gift I prepared for Kuina.”

“The Kokujo I intended to pass to you chose not you, but another man.”

“The Kanenaga I intended to pass on to you did not choose you—it chose another man.”

Koushirou’s gaze fell upon the Murasame clamped between Zoro’s teeth, and he exclaimed in surprise:

“So this monster chose you? It suits your nature perfectly.”

“So it chose this monster? How fitting for your nature.”

“But as your teacher, let me forge you one final blade—this will be…”

“Your graduation gift.”

With this thought settled,

Koushirou made his decision, gave a few instructions to his disciples, then picked up the bouquet beside him and walked toward the hill behind the dojo.

Koshiro had made his decision; after giving a few instructions to the students present, he picked up the bouquet beside him and walked toward the hill behind the dojo.

…

Marineford.

A group of Marine Vice Admirals stared in silence at Zoro, drenched in blood yet still standing in the arena.

The entire corps of Marine Vice Admirals stared in silent awe at Zoro, drenched in blood yet still standing in the arena.

The list of sixteen contenders for this Martial Arts Tournament had long been placed before them on the meeting table.

"Roroonoa-Zoro."

"Known as the Pirate Hunter, he was active three years ago in the East Blue, hunting pirates for bounties and defeating every well-known swordsman in the East Blue."