The news swept through the land of Wano with the speed of wind.
Kurozumi Orochi is dead, and his killer is the new Shogun.
The reactions to the new were... mixed.
Not at the first part, obviously, there was literally not a single person on Wano who felt sad about the death of Orochi. The closest thing to mourning the late Kurozumi got was from Fukurokuju, the leader of Oniwaban shinobi squad, and even that was less about Orochi himself and more about the man dying under Oniwaban's watch. A matter of wounded pride, mixed with the knowledge that the throne of Shogun was no longer occupied by such an easily manipulated man.
No, what divided people's opinion was the second part of the news. There were quite many who saw Retsu Kaioh as a peerless hero for killing Orochi, and that was before they learned about how this man had fought the emperor Kaido to a standstill. Yet the fact that he was now also in a partnership with said emperor after their battle and was sitting on the throne of Shogun at the behest of Kaido made them question.
Had they merely swapped one tyrant with another?
Many believed the answer was yes, either out of a sense of betrayed hope or a perpetual state of pessimism after years under Kaido's rule. Yet there were still those who prayed for this new ruler to be the answer for their prayers. A just ruler who would treat them right.
And this man that they were placing their hopes in was...
"Lower your stance!"
...currently bullying the most beautiful woman in the land.
At least that was the way Komurasaki, true name Kozuki Hiyori, felt as the man kept yelling at her about how her 'horse stance' was sloppy and not low enough. An opinion that her currently burning legs were very much not believing.
When Retsu Kaioh had declared that he would make her a warrior capable of going against Kaido's Flying Six, Hiyori had not been sure what she was supposed to think.
There had been the bowel moving terror at having Kaido's attention on her along with the feeling that Retsu Kaioh must have been drunk and that she was going to die because of it. But there had been one other thing.
Hunger.
An insatiable hunger that arose when shown the smallest possibility that the killer of Orochi was not simply talking out of his ass. That he actually might be able to make her strong enough to defeat some of the strongest warriors under Kaido's control and being given the chance to demonstrate it by defeating, perhaps even killing, one of the people who had spent years tormenting her people.
Perhaps that was why she had shown up for the 'training' rather than run away and get a new identity as Denjiro had been begging her to do so. To satiate that hunger and obtain power, to be like her father.
Except she was simply standing with her knees apart and her rear slightly lowered as if she was sitting on something. Ah, so that was the reason it was called 'horse stance'. She was imitating sitting on a horse.
"Lower!" Unfortunately, her moment of eureka made her falter in her stance and got herself a chop on the head.
"Your focus is all over the place." Retsu Kaioh said with a sigh before looking down at her. "Stop, we shall continue with the next exercise." He then took a wooden sword and threw it at her, making her scramble trying to catch it while her legs were cursing her for sudden movement.
"You will do a hundred perfect swings. Every time your swings are not satisfactory, you shall begin again." He said as he took a wooden sword himself. "Like this." And he then swung it down with two hands, creating a gust of wind that blew Hiyori's hair back.
"Now you." He said and Hiyori wondered if he was actually expecting her to create gusts of winds herself. If so, he was going to be very disappointed.
Yet she had already experienced that Retsu Kaioh cared little for her thoughts, so she simply took a deep breath and raised her wooden sword before bringing it down.
She did it once, then twice, and then thrice. This went on for a few minutes before...
"Stop." Her teacher raised a hand before moving closer to her. "Do one more swing."
She did it.
She was not sure what exactly it was that her teacher had problem with but the expression on his face seemed far more intense than usual.
"I thought you had potential." Oh, he was giving up on her.
Oh well, that was actually kind of a relief; even if she was disappointed şn herself for thinking it. Perhaps he would choose someone else to train for the execution that he dressed up as a bet. She would at least write a proper song for the next poor...
"But I had not expected this kind of natural talent."
...huh?
"Do one more swing." He requested, his tone almost gentle, and she did so with some hesitation; unsure of what he really wanted.
"As I suspected, you have an instinctive understanding of relaxation." He said with a nod.
"Relaxation?"
"Mitigation, if you wish to call it something less absurd." He sounded amused. "It's the very essence of martial arts and self defense, as contradictory as it might sound."
"In the midst of battle, one subconsciously hardens all of their muscles. Yet the relaxation is one of the greatest tools one can have for both defense and offense!" He declared, his voice loud, as if daring the world to deny his claims.
And yet, Hiyori was still unsure. Even if the words were coming out of the mouth of a warrior powerful enough to match Kaido, they still sounded nonsensical.
"You doubt my words." Hiyori's head snapped to Retsu with her eyes wide, denial ready behind her lips. No matter the circumstances that led to her current situation, Retsu was her teacher. To openly declare doubt his words... there had been blood feuds between masters and former apprentices due to such disrespect.
"It is fine." And yet he simply sighed. "While it is the duty of a student to trust their teacher, it is also the duty of the master to show themselves worthy of such trust." He declared before turning around. "Follow me."
----------
They left the training area in the Shogun tower and walked to the gardens behind the structure. Hiyori had heard that this garden was once one of the most beautiful places in the capital, that the very name of the 'Flower Capital' was given due to the beautiful flowers that belonged to the Shogun family.
That garden was no more.
Instead it had become a place where the members of the Beast pirates would gather when they were in the capital and not causing misery to the citizens.
"Retsu-san? Why are you here?" The highest ranking of them currently here, Page One of the Flying Six, ran up to them and asked.
To be honest, Page One was probably the one member of the Beast pirates that she had the best impression of. Sure, he still caused damage and was not shy about abusing her citizens but there had been multiple rumors about whenever his sister Ulti would destroy someone's house, Page One would appear in the middle of the night to help the people rebuild. All the while muttering apologies with dead eyes, or so she had heard.
"Page One, thank you for your time, I require your help in demonstration for Komurasaki's training." Retsu said as he gestured towards her and Page One's face flushed immediately and he averted his gaze.
This was another reason she had a better impression of Page One compared to the rest of his crew. He did not make those weird and disgusting faces whenever he saw her like the others.
"U-Um, sure. What do you want me to do?"
"I need you to punch me in the face."
"...what?" Page One looked confused, to which Hiyori could relate.
"I intend to show my new student how one can use the art of relaxing in self defense. Please, do not hold back." Retsu said as he simply lowered his arms and stood still, waiting to be punched.
"Umm, are you sure? I know that you did fight Kaido-san to a standstill, but I wouldn't wanna hurt you." Page One said, half sincere and half agitated at the fact that Retsu was seemingly deeming him a weakling that he could use for training.
"There is no need to worry." Retsu said as he closed his eyes. "Your punch shall do no damage, and I shall demonstrate my point."
Hiyori could practically hear the bulging of the veins on Page One's forehead. It seemed like the Beast Pirate decided to take Retsu's offer. He draw his fist back and with a flex, it was covered with the trademark black of the Armament Haki covering the fist.
"You asked for it!" With which Page One landed a devastating haymaker right on Retsu's cheek and Retsu spun.
There wasn't a word that could better describe what was happening. Before their eyes, Retsu Kaioh was spinning in air from the force of Page One's fist. None could avert their eyes as Retsu kept spinning for a whole second, that felt like an eternity to those watching, in the air before he slowed down and landed solidly on his feet with no sound.
And no damage.
"Thank you, Page One." Retsu expressed his gratitude by clasping his hands together and gave a small bow to Page One, whose earlier rage had been forgotten and replaced by bewilderment.
"This is the defensive art of relaxation, Komurasaki." Retsu said as he turned to face her. "Defensive Xiaoli, it's a martial art where the user completely relax their body to the point where they become akin to a feather in the wind. When used by a master, it can stop damage from punches, kicks and even slashes." Hiyori was listening, but she was far more preoccupied with trying to fully comprehend the sheer ridiculousness of what she had just witnessed.
"And now for our next lesson." Retsu raised a fist and declared. "Offensive Xiaoli." And then he slowly lowered his body until the knuckle of his fist was just about to touch the ground.
And then...
*CRACK*
...huge cracks appeared on the ground, all of which were connected at the point Retsu was touching.
"Whenever one outputs an extraordinary force, they must relax for a moment." Retsu declared. "Offensive Xiaoli is the art of ultimate relaxation right before the impact, allowing far greater force to be generated."
"Komurasaki, in our training you displayed aptitude for relaxation. Which makes you perfect for the sword style that you are going to be learning." He said and for the first time, a genuine smile blossomed on his face.
"This style is considered by many to be the strongest sword style, that is because it was developed by a swordsman above any other. A man who was once titled Tenka Musou, Unparalleled Under the Heavens." He then offered her back her wooden sword, and he also gave her one more. One that was far shorter than the other.
"I shall teach you, Niten Ichiryuu."
---------
For those who like my stories, please check out my Patreon where one can become a patron and get the right to vote for which of my stories will get a guaranteed update for the next week or even vote for which one of my snippets will become proper stories and now even get to see my Patreon exclusive lewd short stories that will come out at least once a month! Not to mention every patron is a sign of support for my, in my opinion, subpar stories to get better! Also you guys can get to see my new patron only story, Imprisoned.
patreon.com/user?u=25343580