'Why did it cost so much money to learn swordsmanship at the Dojo? wasnt it free?'
'Even if i sold myself, i wouldn't be worth this much, right?'
This was Zoro's current thought.
His mind in turmoil, he followed Kuina, who was carrying the money bag, and went to see Shimotsuki Koshiro.
Upon seeing Kuina present the bag full of Belly to him, Shimotsuki Koshiro also wore a look of astonishment.
"I don't have any money!"
Watching Koshiro count the Belly, Zoro's expression wavered for a few moments before he spoke dejectedly.
His words drew surprised looks from both Kuina and her father.
"You are different from him. You don't need to pay!" Shimotsuki Koshiro immediately saw through Zoro's thoughts and shook his head.
In fact, when he had mentioned tuition, he had already expressed his purpose, and this young man named Cyrus had actually understood his meaning.
That is, this teaching was merely teaching—a transaction.
The other party would pay tuition, and he would teach him swordsmanship.
Nothing more would be involved.
His purpose was that he couldn't see through this young man, whose aura was full of contradictions.
As for this young man's own plans, he had no way of knowing it.
Zoro was about to say more but was waved out by Kuina.
"9 million Belly, that's quite a large sum!"
A moment later, Shimotsuki Koshiro looked at the neatly arranged stacks of Belly before him and sighed.
This was not an amount that just anyone could produce.
"A boy with a strange aura, and he carry a lot of money with him. This is quite interesting."
...
The next day.
Cyrus rose early and warmed up according to his own training routine.
Then, he met the other students of the Dojo.
Ninety-nine percent of the students were from Shimotsuki Village.
Most were around the same age as Kuina and Zoro, with only a few about the same age as Cyrus, and two who looked to be in their early twenties.
Everyone was clearly very curious about the sudden appearance of Cyrus.
Especially at breakfast, when they saw Cyrus's astonishing appetite, everyone's eyes widened.
He didn't seem to be eating fast, but the food in front of Cyrus disappeared at a rapid pace.
An appetite like this was already beyond the scope of an ordinary person.
Shimotsuki Koshiro, who was also having breakfast, had a thoughtful look on his face as he observed Cyrus's situation.
Compared to these young people, he was naturally more knowledgeable.
Indeed, this young man was very special.
Plop!
Zoro stared at Cyrus with shocked eyes.
The piece of meat in his hand fell, and he didn't even notice the drool trickling from his mouth.
"No wonder he had to pay so much money. Is this for food expenses?" Zoro muttered to himself.
Cyrus, of course, paid no mind to the stares of those around him.
After all, for him, eating was the only way to get enough energy, and perhaps it would make his training more effective.
Of course, he also didn't want to train on an empty stomach.
The interlude during breakfast made everyone aware of this newly joined disciple.
Not long after breakfast, the formal swordsmanship training began.
Everyone, with wooden swords in hand, meticulously practiced the basic forms of swordsmanship.
Cyrus showed no impatience whatsoever.
Kuina was right beside him, teaching him the basic swordsmanship movements, correcting him as she taught.
Not far away, Shimotsuki Koshiro's gaze remained fixed on Cyrus.
He's practiced some swordsmanship, but it looks self-taught.
He hasn't even used it in a fight.
Many of his moves are a bit off-form.
Of course, that wasn't to say that off-form moves were useless.
It was just that they weren't as efficient.
But from this, one could also see Cyrus's foundation.
After watching for a short while, Shimotsuki Koshiro turned and left.
Kuina, however, was tireless.
She seemed to take her role as a temporary instructor very seriously, patiently explaining the purpose of the moves and how to exert force.
Cyrus, naturally, showed not a hint of impatience.
He now understood why his own practice of sword moves had felt so unnatural before.
All he could say was that he still had a lot to learn.
The morning was for basic training, while the afternoon was for free practice.
The battles between Kuina and Zoro continued as usual.
Most of the other disciples left the Dojo, but a few stayed behind to train, and Cyrus was naturally among them.
He continued to train, using the standard sword move stances.
He kept at it until everyone else had left and he was the only one remaining.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
The sound of the wooden sword cutting through the air echoed rhythmically.
Cyrus's expression was calm; a full day of training hadn't altered his breathing in the slightest.
This amount of exertion was no pressure for him at all.
But after Kuina's corrections, he could feel that there was indeed a proper technique to exerting force in the stances.
Since it was an improvement for him, Cyrus was very patient.
When the sky darkened and Kuina came to call Cyrus for dinner, she saw him still practicing with standard sword moves, an inexplicable look on her face.
"Training requires a balance between work and rest!"
That evening, with the other students gone, only the four of them were eating.
During a pause, Shimotsuki Koshiro calmly offered a reminder.
"This is very easy for me. I can feel my control over my strength improving."
Cyrus naturally understood that the remark was directed at him.
Shimotsuki Koshiro was taken aback.
He glanced at Cyrus, then his gaze fell upon Kuina and Zoro, who were pretending to eat but were actually listening with pricked ears.
"In that case, if you can meet my requirements within a month, I will teach you personally."
"Alright."
Cyrus nodded, then buried his head in his food.
In the time that followed, Cyrus entered a frantic "Evolution mode."
It even forced Shimotsuki Koshiro to make Cyrus train by himself elsewhere.
Otherwise, he was worried the other students would be too discouraged.
Of course, even so, Kuina and Zoro also entered a frantic Evolution mode.
In the woods behind the Dojo, Cyrus stood with his eyes closed, holding a wooden sword in his right hand to block the attacks coming from all around him.
Kuina and Zoro, with four wooden swords between them, were relentlessly attacking Cyrus.
Cyrus paid no mind to the pain of the wooden swords striking his body, focusing his mind on sensing the incoming blades.
He didn't know if this was the correct way to train Observation Haki.
But it seemed that this was the method Rayleigh had used to teach Monkey D. Luffy Observation Haki.
Whether it would work or not, there was no harm in trying. He could just consider it sparring practice for Kuina and Zoro.
Huff, huff, huff!
The two were panting heavily.
They glanced at each other, both seeing the helplessness in the other's eyes.
Of course, in Kuina's eyes, there was more unwillingness.
As she got older, she could feel the gap between people more and more.
Or rather, the gap between men and women.
She had already sensed it from Zoro's rapidly improving strength.
And now, this situation was even more obvious with Cyrus.
She could clearly feel that Cyrus was holding back at least ninety percent of his strength when he swung his sword, but even so, she and Zoro couldn't block his incoming wooden sword head-on.
This was the gap.
An innate gap.
"There are countless strong women on the seas. Even among the Pirate Emperors who stand at the very top, one of them is a woman."
Just as the unwillingness in Kuina's eyes grew stronger, Cyrus's voice suddenly rang out.