Listening to Hawkins's story, Rorschach's mouth hung open.
It turned out that after Hawkins entered the Grand Line, he also went to places like Alabasta and Mock Town.
Because of his promise to Rorschach, he didn't form a pirate crew. Instead, he decided to travel around for a bit before making a decision.
Later, when he entered the Florian Triangle alone, he was attacked by Moria's Thriller Bark.
Under the siege of the zombie army led by Moria, Hawkins was no match for them. After being captured, his shadow was cut off, and then he was thrown out by Moria to drift around in the fog of the Florian Triangle.
Since people who have had their shadows stolen cannot survive in sunlight, Hawkins was constantly trying to find a way to get his shadow back from Moria.
It was at that time that he met Brook, who also wanted to get his shadow back.
In addition, when Hawkins entered the Grand Line from the North Blue, he had seen the whale Laboon and had heard Crocus tell the story of Laboon. So he told Brook that Laboon was still at the foot of Reverse Mountain, waiting for its companions to return and reunite.
A moved Brook decided to team up with Hawkins. The two hit it off and decided to go find Moria together to settle the score.
However, what they didn't expect was that for more than a month afterward, no matter how they searched in the Florian Triangle, they couldn't find any trace of the Thriller Bark.
It was as if Moria had left his lair and disappeared.
This made both of them feel a bit desperate.
They thought that they might become a ghost that could not leave the Florian Triangle, just like Brook.
But then one day, while the two of them were feeling depressed on Brook's broken ship, they suddenly found that the shadows they had been longing for had returned.
This made them both surprised and delighted. They didn't know if Moria had mercifully returned the shadows or if someone had defeated Moria.
After getting their shadows back, Hawkins felt that his strength was not enough. So he was in no hurry to continue his journey to the next location. Instead, he returned to Reverse Mountain with Brook.
After suffering through adversity together for a while, the two of them decided to start their adventure on the high seas again after seeing Laboon.
As for whether to form a pirate crew or do something else, Hawkins was also conflicted and had not made up his mind.
After listening to Hawkins's story, Rorschach couldn't help but recall the demon Oars that Moria had brought to Alabasta.
He had wondered at the time why the gigantic demon Oars would use Iai swordsmanship.
And after cutting with a single sword, he would sit on the ground and play with some clay.
Thinking of how Hawkins liked to play with tarot cards, Rorschach suddenly realized what was happening.
It turned out that Moria had put Hawkins's shadow into the body of the demon Oars.
Although a shadow does not have the memories of its owner, it can have some instincts and sometimes perform habitual actions similar to those of the shadow's owner.
Hibari looked at Hawkins with a strange expression and said softly, "Your guess is correct. Rorschach's brother did defeat Moria a while ago. I remember at the time, many shadows escaped from the zombie soldiers."
"So you were the one who defeated Moria." Hawkins looked at Rorschach, nodded, and said in a very mystical way, "This is a destiny tangled by cause and effect. If we hadn't met in the North Blue, there wouldn't have been this later cause and effect. Every event is determined by fate."
Rorschach rolled his eyes at him.
He thought that Hawkins would definitely get along well with the "Mad Monk" Urouge.
One was like a mystic, and the other was a genuine one.
However, Hawkins was right.
Destiny was indeed a very strange thing.
Rorschach never thought that by defeating Moria in Alabasta, he would have unintentionally rescued Hawkins.
This was also a way of repaying the kindness he had shown him when they were in the North Blue, fighting against Miguel Jones together.
He reached out and patted Hawkins on the shoulder with a hint of emotion. He asked with some anticipation, "Hawkins, since you haven't decided where to go, how about joining the Navy?"
He patted his chest and vowed, "Join the Navy, and I'll protect you! We'll go to the New World with Law and be stationed in one area. Getting promoted and getting rich will be right around the corner!"
Jonathan, who had been bickering with Crocus for a while, couldn't listen anymore.
"Hey, hey, hey, Rorschach, what kind of tone is that? It sounds like you're pimping. Isn't the Navy supposed to be a sacred and dignified force for justice? This guy's name is Hawkins, right? Hehehe, let me introduce myself. I am Jonathan Barnett, the president of the Hunter's Guild. I am the world's number one hunter who killed the great pirate Captain John. My nicknames are the Hunter King, the Scourge of Criminals, and the Hero of the Grand Line."
Jonathan rubbed his hands and stared at Hawkins with a grin. "How about joining my Hunter's Guild? We give preferential treatment to hunters above five stars. Not only do we not charge a handling fee for the bounty you earn, but we also pay you a salary."
Rorschach's eyes narrowed. "You old scoundrel, are you trying to steal my guy?"
Jonathan sat up straight and crossed his arms. "Don't say that, Rorschach. It's a fair competition. It's Mr. Hawkins's own will to decide where he wants to go. You can't force a fruit to ripen. Maybe he wants to join my Hunter's Guild?"
Rorschach was so angry. He pointed at Zoro next to him and said, "I recommended such an excellent talent to you, and you haven't even thanked me. Now you're trying to steal my guy right in front of me. In that case, I won't be polite either."
"What do you want to do? Kid, don't mess around. Don't think that just because you killed Shiki and Wang Zhi and became the third admiral candidate at Marineford, I'll be afraid of you. I'm the Hunter King!" Jonathan said with a wary look.
"What are you even saying? Am I that kind of person? It's a fair competition, isn't it?" Rorschach grinned and patted the small hand on his shoulder. "Hibari, give me Shusui."
Hibari's cheeks turned a little red when he patted her hand. She pursed her lips and took Shusui, which was hanging from her waist.
This national treasure of Wano Country, which Law had acquired from Ryuma's corpse, had not been used by anyone because Law already had his own famous sword, Kikoku.
Hibari thought the sword was very cool, so she brought it with her.
She didn't want to learn swordsmanship to become a great swordsman. She simply thought the sword was nice.
Besides, there were several other treasured swords in her house that were no less than Shusui, all acquired by Rorschach.
For example, the two Great Grade swords he took from Shiki, Otohime and the Dead Tree.
And the two long swords he snatched from King and Wang Zhi. Although Rorschach didn't know what they were called, they were definitely extremely rare and treasured swords.
Jonathan was also a man who knew his stuff. As soon as he saw Shusui that Hibari handed over, his blurry old eyes immediately widened. He quickly reached out with a whoosh and snatched Shusui from Rorschach's hand. His eyes gleamed as he held it and examined it.
"This... this is!" Jonathan's trembling hands held the scabbard of Shusui. He slowly drew the long sword and looked at the black and red patterns on the blade that resembled waves. His breathing became a little heavy.
"The treasured sword Shusui, one of the 21 Great Grade Swords, a national treasure of Wano Country, and the personal sword of the great swordsman of Wano Country from two hundred years ago, the 'Dragon-Slaying Samurai' Shimotsuki Ryuma. How is it? Is it a good sword?" Rorschach asked with a smile.
"Nonsense!" Jonathan completely drew Shusui from its scabbard and held it up in front of him, attracting the attention of Zoro, Hawkins, and Crocus.
Zoro's eyes were completely fixated on the black and red blade of Shusui.
"Zoro, do you like this sword?" Rorschach looked at Zoro with a smile.
Zoro's attention was completely captivated by Shusui. He subconsciously nodded and said in a dazed tone, "Who wouldn't like such a treasured sword? Especially for a swordsman, a good sword that fits one's hand can definitely improve one's strength by a large margin."
"Then it's a gift for you."
"Wh... what?"
Zoro was stunned, thinking he had heard wrong.
Then he saw Rorschach snatch Shusui from Jonathan's hand and toss it to him.
Zoro subconsciously grabbed the hilt of Shusui, performed a beautiful sword spin, pointed Shusui toward the sky, facing the rising sun on the sea, and looked at the irregular patterns on the blade, lost in thought.
Feeling the heavy weight of the long sword in his hand, Zoro looked at Rorschach in confusion.
"What do you mean? You want to give me such a valuable long sword? Why? Do we know each other? I don't think I've ever met you before."
Jonathan came to his senses and was shocked. He also looked at Rorschach and said, "Hey! Kid, you're not trying to use this Great Grade sword to lure Zoro into the Navy, are you? You're too despicable!"
"Is there a rule against it? If you have the ability, take out a Great Grade sword yourself. Hmph, I don't know what trick you used to trick Zoro from the East Blue, but you didn't even give him two Great Grade swords for self-defense." Rorschach chuckled.
Jonathan wanted to cry. He rolled his eyes furiously. "I don't even have a Great Grade sword myself. You're asking me to give him two? Can you even take them out?"
He pointed at the Wado Ichimonji hanging from Zoro's waist. "He's richer than me. At least he has one Great Grade sword on him."
"Eh, I really can. I have an Otohime and a Dead Tree at home..."
Before Rorschach could finish, Jonathan grabbed his hand.
"Rorschach!" He looked at Rorschach with pleading eyes and begged pitifully, "How about you give Otohime and the Dead Tree to me?"
"Are you out of your mind?" Rorschach shook off his hand and completely ignored him.
"Please! I'm a two-sword style user too. I've been coveting Shiki's two Great Grade swords for a long time. Right, I can buy them with money. Just name your price!"
"No! I want to keep them! They are my trophies."
"Please, sell them to me. I'll give you Selene..."
"Grandpa! What are you saying!" Selene stomped her feet in the distance.
"What? You don't want to?" Jonathan said in surprise.
"I... I do," Selene said, blushing.
Rorschach: "...What are you muttering to yourself? Who agreed?"
Zoro stared at Shusui in his hand, his eyes deeply captivated by the black and purple blade.
He immediately started to swing the sword, cutting horizontally, vertically, and diagonally in front of everyone. The sound of the wind whistled, and the sword flashes crisscrossed.
After only a dozen swings, a fine sweat broke out on Zoro's forehead. He felt as if he was swinging a house, and it was incredibly difficult.
"What a heavy sword! The density of this sword is probably unimaginably strong. With my current strength, I can't even swing it easily."
He placed Shusui on the ground and pressed down hard on the blade. The blade didn't move at all and pierced straight into the rock.
"The hardness of this blade is probably so great that even a dinosaur stepping on it wouldn't bend it by a millimeter, right?"
Zoro turned Shusui again, then reluctantly tossed it back to Rorschach.
Rorschach was stunned. "Hmm? You don't want it?"
"I can't accept such a valuable gift without any merit. I can't have your sword." Zoro's gaze became calm. He patted the three swords hanging from his waist. "Besides, I have my own swords."
"You should know how strong this sword is. Of the three swords you have, besides the Wado Ichimonji, the other two can't even be considered good swords. They are just ordinary steel swords, and they will break sooner or later," Rorschach said.
"I know, but..." Zoro wanted to say something else, but he saw Rorschach toss Shusui back to him again and couldn't help but frown.
"Just take it, Zoro," Jonathan said. "I can see that this sword is very suitable for you. For some reason, I always feel that the aura emanating from this sword is very similar to your aura, as if they come from the same source."
He pointed at Rorschach. "Don't be polite with this kid. He has several other Great Grade swords. He's a rich bastard."
"If you don't have anything nice to say, then shut your mouth. What do you mean by 'rich bastard'? Can you compare to me? A super-rich man with a net worth of trillions who owns hundreds of Hunter's Guild branches all over the world." Rorschach was unhappy.
Hibari pursed her lips and chuckled. She put her hand on Rorschach's shoulder, leaned in, and whispered in his ear, "Brother Rorschach, you might actually be richer than him. Have you forgotten that you still have hundreds of thousands of tons of gold in Skypiea?"
"Ahem." Rorschach was speechless.
He wondered if Akainu had gone to get that gold.
He couldn't contact the people on Skypiea because there were often thunderstorms on the White Sea, and the Den Den Mushi's signal was severely interfered with.
Zoro looked deeply at Rorschach, gripped Shusui tightly, and nodded. "Your kindness is greatly appreciated. So, I will accept it. Your name is Rorschach, right? Consider this a favor you have from Roronoa Zoro."
Rorschach's eyes lit up. He immediately sat up straight, about to speak.
Jonathan felt that something was wrong. He quickly stood up, blocked Zoro behind him, laughed loudly, and interrupted Rorschach's speech. He reached out and grabbed Rorschach's shoulder, saying loudly, "Rorschach, you've really made it big now, you know that? Your name has spread all over the world. I even saw news about you in the East Blue. The Navy's Supernova, the number one person of the new generation, the youngest vice admiral in Marineford history, the third admiral candidate at Marineford, the future 'Azure Scale' Admiral! The new Navy hero! You truly have a bright future ahead of you!"
"I would be very happy if you were a little more sincere," Rorschach said, rolling his eyes.
As the two of them were bickering, Brook's voice suddenly came from a distance.
"Who are you? Stop! Don't hurt Laboon!"
The people who were chatting in front of the lighthouse were stunned and looked over.
They saw a small coffin-like boat rushing down from the currents of Reverse Mountain toward the mouth of the sea.
Laboon was very happy to be reunited with Brook. It happened to be in front of the small boat, happily splashing in the water.
One could imagine how big the splashes of water would be from a whale as gigantic as a mountain.
So, when the several hundred-meter-high giant wave slammed toward the coffin-like boat that was rushing down from Reverse Mountain, the man who had been sitting on the small boat with his arms crossed opened a pair of golden hawk eyes. He stood up tall, reached behind him, and drew a black crucifix-shaped sword that was longer than an average person. He slashed at the falling giant wave and the splashing whale.
Looking at the terrifying slash, which was several hundred meters long, that flew from that black sword, Brook's mind went blank.
He didn't understand what was happening today. Why was he meeting so many terrifying swordsmen and powerhouses here?
He thought that old man was already powerful enough, but the man with the hawk eyes who suddenly appeared had the sharp aura of a world-splitter with a single casual slash.
If he didn't block that terrifying flash of light, Laboon would surely be split in half!
Brook, who did not want to see Laboon die, immediately let out a desperate cry.
"Help!"
Thank you for your subscriptions, monthly votes, and donations. Speaking of which, Kuma is so miserable. Oda is just torturing him. It's a human tragedy.
End of Chapter)
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