The East Blue, Fleet of the Plowshare Operation.
Another unrestful day, with news birds filling the sky, scattering newspapers.
Sakazuki emerged from his cabin, observing the stunned soldiers on deck and asking Enel and Barrett, who looked unconcerned:
"What's happened again?"
Enel shrugged:
"The Third Emperor of the Pirates has been born."
"The Beast Pirates, Kaido."
"He waged a great war against Charlotte Linlin and Heil Nock in the New World, seizing some territory."
"Not long after, the other two jointly acknowledged Kaido's Emperor title."
Barrett grinned, looking at the newspaper:
"This guy must be exhilarating to fight."
Gazing at Kaido's rippling, knotted muscles in the newspaper, Barrett felt a surge of eagerness.
Sakazuki took the newspaper handed to him by Enel:
"Has it reached this extent already?"
"Then your teacher, Vegapunk, won't be idle anytime soon."
He chuckled lightly.
Enel asked with some confusion:
"What's his relationship with Teacher Vegapunk?"
Sakazuki replied leisurely:
"Of course, there is."
"The relationship between a scientist and his materials."
"I captured this fellow once and sent him to Punk Hazard for experimentation."
"During that time, the research team collected quite a lot of his cells and flesh."
"But later, he 'accidentally' escaped."
Enel raised an eyebrow, "Good heavens... accidentally."
"That's interesting then."
"The flesh and blood of a Pirate Emperor, a unique material."
"It will likely be hard to fool them."
"Although those fellows in the science division are much dumber than me,"
"They are still scientists, and even if they proceed step by step,"
"Their research on lineage factors will eventually be exposed."
Sakazuki chuckled:
"Don't worry."
"Your teacher Vegapunk is the one who creates the textbooks."
"Whatever they research depends entirely on the textbooks he provides."
"He can easily lead them in the wrong direction, and they'll spend years researching it."
"There's no need to concern yourself with those matters."
"Instead, pay attention to what's in front of you, gather intelligence on the so-called 'Marine Hunter'."
"I haven't had time to deal with him these past few years, and he's become more active. Heh..."
As Sakazuki's gaze drifted, a massive headline on the third page of the newspaper read:
"Challenging the World's Strongest Swordsman! 'Marine Hunter' Dracule Mihawk Defeats Great Swordsman 'Fire Sword' Shuzou."
Each time he defeated a renowned swordsman, the title 'Marine Hunter' would be spread, and once he defeated all the renowned swordsmen, the title 'Marine Hunter' would transform into 'World's Strongest Swordsman,' rising to prominence by stepping on the Marines...
*Bang—*
The newspaper in Sakazuki's hand turned into a ball of flame and burned to ashes.
Suddenly.
Enel concentrated, looking at a small island not far away:
"Hm?"
There was a sharp sword intent there, affecting Enel's Kenbunshoku Haki.
Sensing Enel's anomaly, the other two also extended their Kenbunshoku Haki.
As if sensing their discovery, the sword intent quickly retracted, becoming undetectable no matter how they probed.
Sakazuki snorted:
"Truly a hidden dragon and crouching tiger."
"Where did this old man come from? This sword intent..."
"A hidden master... a Great Swordsman."
----
The East Blue, Shimotsuki Village, by the shore.
Watching the warship gradually sail away, the old fisherman sighed with relief:
"Really... I can't afford to be too complacent."
"I've forgotten the most basic vigilance."
"I must punish myself with three cups of sake tonight."
"No, I need to change locations."
He wasn't afraid of the warship itself, just the trouble.
Seeing that the warship wasn't coming to cause trouble, he breathed a sigh of relief.
If a fight were to break out, he certainly wouldn't be able to defeat the three people on board, but he could fight to the death and take down the weakest one, though no one would want to die...
It was also completely unexpected. After all, who would constantly maintain such a wide range of Kenbunshoku Haki?
Usually, the old fisherman would retract the sword intent on his fishing hook only when he saw passing ships approaching.
He hadn't expected to encounter an anomaly like Enel.
After all, not everyone possessed Enel's powerful mental fortitude and Devil Fruit ability, which allowed his Kenbunshoku Haki to cover thousands of meters, equivalent to full map vision without mana consumption – it was outrageous.
*Bang—*
A sound of a massive stone hitting the ground echoed.
"One thousand!!!"
"Done."
A young boy with green, moss-like hair stood behind a large rock.
Wiping the sweat from his brow, he ran to the old fisherman's side:
"I'm done, will you tell me today?"
The old fisherman clicked his tongue:
"You're lucky, kid. I was going to train you for a few more days."
"But something unexpected happened."
"A few days ago, I told you about 'Discarding Fame and Wisdom'."
"So today, I will tell you about 'What is a Sword'."
"So, in your opinion, what is a sword?"
The green-haired boy blinked, "What... I thought it would be like the samurai stories from the other day."
But since he was asked, he thought for a moment:
"A weapon?"
The old fisherman smiled:
"That's merely its form."
"Everyone's perception of a sword is different. Some believe:"
"A sword is the Way."
"A sword is Technique."
"A sword is Supremacy."
"A sword is Slaughter."
"And my belief is that a sword is..."
"Arrival."
"To the place where one slashes and attacks, death."
As the old fisherman uttered the last word indifferently, the green-haired boy felt a chill run through his entire body.
It was as if the person standing before him was not an old man, but a vengeful spirit who had slain countless people.
But the feeling vanished in an instant, as if nothing had happened.
He even wondered if he was dizzy from his training.
Seeing the stunned green-haired boy, the old fisherman smiled and took out two real swords from a cloth bag beside him, tossing them to him.
The green-haired boy hurriedly caught them, his eyes wide with disbelief:
"This... this is!!!"
The old fisherman smiled:
"It's for you, kid."
"I've taught you about 'What is a Sword'. Everyone's path is different."
"What you believe a sword to be is something you must comprehend yourself."
"I'm leaving."
He stood up and walked towards the village.
The green-haired boy looked up abruptly:
"Hey! Old man, you..."
He saw the old fisherman carrying his fishing rod and waving his hand, stopping his words.
Looking at this enigmatic old man, the green-haired boy felt confused.
But in the next moment, he was overwhelmed by the joy of receiving real swords.
Holding the swords with both hands, he looked at their sharp blades and, thinking of the 'Discarding Fame and Wisdom' the old man had mentioned, swung them forward:
"I'll catch!"
But he didn't feel any surge of power, as described in the old man's story.
"What... it's fake."
----
Night, Shimotsuki Village.
Inside the Isshin Dojo, the dojo master Koushirou Shimotsuki and the old fisherman from earlier were kneeling opposite each other at a tea table.
Koushirou Shimotsuki picked up the teapot and poured a cup of tea for the old fisherman:
"You're leaving again, Father?"
The old fisherman, Koushirou Shimotsuki, took a puff of his cigarette:
"Yes, I was accidentally detected by some Marines earlier today."
"It's better to be safe than sorry."
"It wouldn't be good to cause you any more trouble."
He looked gently towards Kuina's room.