Chapter 34

Luo En leaned against the railing and gazed up at the star-strewn sky.

"Only five days? I thought much more time had passed. I hope my father and Zoro are well."

Guina gazed at the distant sea, feeling a pang of nostalgia for that dojo.

She turned her head toward Luo En and asked:

"Where is your hometown?"

"I don't know."

Luo En stared at the stars above, raised his hand upward, and whispered: "Perhaps it's somewhere as far away as the stars."

Guina watched his profile for a long while.

When Luo En turned his head, she immediately looked away and changed the subject:

"By the way, your slash today… did you reach the Realm of Intention?"

Luo En shook his head: "No."

"It looks like you reached the Realm of Intention, but you didn't— it's just the effect of combining swordsmanship with breathing techniques."

"Can breathing techniques be used with swordsmanship?"

Guina was startled; she had learned some basic breathing techniques from Luo En.

Hearing her words, Luo En froze for a moment: "I never told you?"

Guina puffed out her cheeks.

After a moment of thought, Luo En gave her a sheepish smile:

"It seems I really forgot to tell you."

…

Two days later.

The ship arrived at an island.

As Luo En helped Guina disembark, he spotted several familiar figures.

The revolutionary leader, Dragon, wrapped in a black robe.

The towering Borsalino Bear.

"Who are they?"

Dragon cast his gaze toward Luo En and Guina.

Under that gaze, Luo En instantly felt an oppression unlike anything he'd ever experienced.

So strong!

At least hundreds of times stronger than he was now!

Luo En immediately judged the vast gap in strength between them.

"They're Koushirou's student and daughter. He asked…"

Ivankov explained the full story to Dragon.

Dragon nodded: "I see. I understand."

He looked at Luo En and Guina and said: "We've received much kindness from Koushirou. This island is currently dangerous. If you're willing, you may join our ship to the next island."

"Dangerous?"

Ivankov blinked, then realized, his expression turning grave as he asked Dragon: "Has the Goa Kingdom decided to act?"

Dragon nodded: "They've decided to burn down the entire slum district."

"What?!"

All of Ivankov's revolutionary comrades behind him were stunned, then their faces filled with fury.

"Those nobles!"

A young revolutionary in a black robe clenched his fists, teeth gritted in hatred.

"We can no longer change this country—but at least we can save more lives. That's our purpose here."

Dragon said gravely.

Guina, gripping Wado Ichimonji, sensed the shift in atmosphere and moved closer to Luo En, whispering:

"Something huge seems about to happen on this island. Should we disembark here?"

Luo En said nothing, pinching his chin as he thought silently.

If he remembered correctly,

the fire in the Goa Kingdom slums occurred during the childhood of Monkey D. Luffy, Ace, and Sabo—it was the event that drove Sabo to despair of the nobility, flee home, and nearly be killed by the Celestial Dragons.

The Goa Kingdom today is undoubtedly extremely dangerous.

Bringing Guina along would carry risk.

As he pondered,

Dragon, Borsalino Bear, and other revolutionary officers had also learned from Ivankov and Haku that the ten-year-old black-haired boy carrying a blade was extraordinary.

Many eyes, curious, turned toward him.

"That sword… isn't that Wado Ichimonji, the ancestral blade of the Shimotsuki family of Wano, one of the Twenty-One Great Katanas?"

A middle-aged swordsman in a black robe among the revolutionaries stared in astonishment at Guina's Wado Ichimonji.

"That sword is worth at least ten million Berries. How could Koushirou let his daughter take it to sea without fearing it would be lost?"

"The Twenty-One Great Katanas?"

His companion, upon hearing this, looked surprised, then pointed at Lei Qie on Luo En's back and asked: "What about that sword the boy is carrying on his back?"

The swordsman stared closely—could not discern anything from the hilt alone. He shifted position, circled behind Luo En, and when he saw the white scabbard wrapped in golden thunder markings, he gasped sharply, pupils contracting violently.

"Impossible?!"

Startled by his voice, everyone turned to look at him at once.

"Koala, what's wrong?"

Dragon asked.

"No, it's nothing. I was just a bit too surprised seeing the sword on that boy's back."

Koala hurriedly replied.

"A sword?"

Ivankov and Hack and the others looked at the sword on Luo En's back.

"What's so strange about that sword?"

26. The eve of the great fire in Goa Kingdom, chance encounter with Sabo (6/5)

"If I'm not mistaken."

Koala's eyes burned with fervor as she gazed at the Lei Qie on Luo En's back:

"That sword should be the one that vanished from the world for several hundred years — one of the Twenty-One Great Grade Blades, known as the famed blade that can cleave through Lei Ting — Lei Qie!"

The Revolutionary Army members were all startled.

Even Dragon and Bartholomew Bear gave the sword on Luo En's back a second, longer look.

"I never expected this sword to appear in the world again."

Koala couldn't help rubbing her hands together, her gaze fervent.

Ivankov stepped forward, stood behind Luo En, cut off her line of sight, and bent down to say: "Koala, don't you go getting any ideas about Luo En-boy's sword."

"I wouldn't dream of it! I just want to look a few more times, that's all! This is a famed blade that vanished for several hundred years — a famed blade. To a swordsman, it's like an unparalleled beauty. How could anyone hold themselves back from looking?"

Koala said urgently.

"Luo En."

Kuina tugged at Luo En's sleeve. "How about we just disembark here."

Luo En came back to himself from his thoughts. Hearing her words, he was momentarily stunned, then nodded: "All right then, we'll disembark here."

He turned his head to look at Dragon, Ivankov, and the others and said: "We've decided to disembark right here."

"Luo En-boy…"

"Since you've made up your minds, we won't try to keep you."

Dragon looked at Luo En and said. "On this island, you'd best be careful."

Luo En nodded.

Just as he was leading Kuina down the ship to leave, Bear, draped in a black cloak, walked up in front of the two of them.

Kuina looked at the enormously built Bear before her and couldn't help leaning closer to Luo En.