So, to learn swordsmanship at the dojo… why does it cost so much money?
Even if he sold himself, it wouldn't be worth that much—at least that's what Zoro was thinking right now.
His mind a tangled mess, Zoro trailed after Kuina, who was carrying the pouch of money, until they arrived before Shimotsuki Koushirou.
When Kuina placed the pouch of beli in front of him, even Koushirou was visibly surprised.
"I don't have any money!"
Zoro struggled with himself for a moment, then slumped in defeat as he blurted it out.
Both Kuina and Don looked at him in surprise.
"You're not like him. You don't need to pay."
Koushirou quickly saw through Zoro's misunderstanding and shook his head.
When he had first raised the subject of tuition, his true intent had already been made clear—and Don had understood as well.
This was not charity, but a transaction.
The student would pay, and in return, he would teach.
Nothing more, nothing less.
He could not read the heart of this boy named Don; the aura he carried was filled with contradictions. As for what the youth ultimately sought, that was beyond his grasp.
Zoro opened his mouth to speak again, but Kuina gestured for him to follow her out.
"Nine hundred thousand beli… that really is a hefty sum."
After a moment, Koushirou let out a soft sigh as he gazed at the neatly stacked money before him.
This wasn't an amount just anyone could casually produce.
"A strange aura, and the means to pull out so much money so easily… how very interesting."
The next day.
Don rose early, going through his personal warm-up routine before encountering the other students of the dojo.
Almost all of them were children from Shimotsuki Village. Most were about Kuina and Zoro's age, a handful closer to Don, and two young men looked to be in their early twenties.
The sudden arrival of this outsider naturally drew a lot of curiosity.
Especially during breakfast, when Don's astonishing appetite left everyone wide-eyed.
Though he ate at a steady pace, the food before him vanished with alarming speed. His appetite was already beyond that of any normal human.
Koushirou, eating nearby, watched with thoughtful eyes. His experience far exceeded that of these young disciples.
As expected, this boy called Don was no ordinary person.
Plop!
Zoro's eyes went wide as the piece of meat he was holding slipped from his hand. Drool slid from the corner of his mouth unnoticed.
"No wonder he paid so much… it's all for food expenses?"
He muttered absentmindedly.
Don, however, paid no mind to the stares. To him, eating well was essential—fuel for strength, fuel for training. He had no intention of starving himself while striving to grow stronger.
That breakfast scene alone had made everyone take note of the new student.
Not long after the meal, formal training began.
Every disciple, wooden sword in hand, practiced the fundamentals with strict precision.
Don showed no impatience.
Kuina stood nearby, correcting his stances and explaining the purpose behind each motion and how to properly exert strength.
Koushirou, watching from a short distance, studied Don carefully.
He had clearly practiced sword techniques before—likely self-taught, and without much real combat experience. Many movements were flawed, but not entirely useless.
From this alone, Koushirou could judge his foundation.
Before long, he turned away.
Kuina, however, remained patient, taking her role as instructor seriously and correcting Don with tireless dedication.
And Don, for his part, accepted her instruction without complaint.
The awkwardness he had once felt when practicing alone was beginning to make sense now.
He truly did have much to learn.
The morning was spent on fundamentals. The afternoon was reserved for free training.
Kuina and Zoro's battles continued as usual, while most of the others left. Only a few remained to train—and Don was among them.
He repeated the basic forms with calm persistence until everyone else had gone, leaving him alone.
Swish! Swish!
The whistle of wood slicing through air sounded in rhythm.
Don's expression remained composed, his breathing steady after a whole day of practice. The effort posed no strain to him.
Yet he could feel the refinement in his movements thanks to Kuina's corrections.
As long as there was progress, patience came naturally to him.
By the time Kuina came to call him for dinner, the sky was dark. She found him still training, each strike executed with textbook precision. Something unreadable flickered in her eyes.
"Training should be balanced with rest," Koushirou reminded calmly over dinner, when only four of them remained in the dojo.
"This is easy for me. I can feel my control over my strength improving."
Don knew the words were meant for him.
Koushirou paused, then glanced at Kuina and Zoro—who pretended to eat, but were clearly listening closely.
"In that case, if you can meet my standards within a month, I will teach you personally."
"Agreed."
Don nodded, then returned to his meal.
And so began his frenzy of training.
It grew so intense that Koushirou eventually asked him to train elsewhere, lest the other disciples be discouraged by the sheer disparity.
Even so, Kuina and Zoro found themselves swept up in the current, throwing themselves into their own relentless practice.
In the woods behind the dojo, Don stood with eyes closed, wooden sword in hand, fending off attacks from every direction.
Kuina and Zoro pressed him with four wooden blades, striking without pause.
Each blow landed painfully against his body, but Don ignored the sting, focusing his mind instead on sensing the approach of each strike.
He wasn't sure if this method would truly awaken Observation Haki.
But if Luffy had learned it under Rayleigh in a similar way, then why not try?
Even if it failed, at least Kuina and Zoro gained a sparring partner.
Huff… huff…
The two panted heavily, exchanging weary glances that reflected the same helplessness.
Yet in Kuina's eyes, there was more than fatigue—there was frustration.
The older she grew, the clearer the disparity became.
The difference between people… no, between men and women.
She had already felt it in Zoro's rapid growth.
Now, with Don, it was undeniable.
She could sense that he was holding back, striking with barely a tenth of his strength—yet even so, neither she nor Zoro could meet his blows head-on.
This was the difference.
A natural, inborn difference.
"There are countless women on the seas who stand among the strongest. Even among the Emperors of the New World, there is a woman at the very top."
Just as the weight of that frustration pressed heavier on Kuina's heart, Don's voice rang out.