Night.
Sparse stars hung in the sky. The sea breeze carried the sound of the waves.
After eating, Laino changed into a training uniform, grabbed a bamboo sword, and went outside to watch Zoro and Kuina spar.
Bamboo swords clashed, back and forth.
One-Sword Style Kuina versus Two-Sword Style Zoro had become the most common sight in the dojo.
In Laino's eyes, the intense and exciting fight was like a movie in slow motion, each move deconstructed and absorbed into his consciousness.
The [Sword Heart] talent was at work.
Like a sponge, he absorbed all the nutrients related to the way of the sword, turning them into his own strength.
He imagined himself as Kuina, dueling Zoro. Then he imagined himself as Zoro, dueling Kuina.
This state was wondrous.
Zoro and Kuina were almost evenly matched in speed, technique, and reaction. But in the end, the more experienced Kuina won by a narrow margin.
She remained perfectly calm, seized an opening in Zoro's defense, and sent him flying with a single strike.
"The 1836th time!"
Zoro struggled to his feet, glaring, his face a mask of defiance.
He had lost again.
Gritting his teeth, he shouted at Kuina, "Damn it, I will definitely defeat you!"
Kuina put away her bamboo sword. "I'll be waiting," she said calmly.
Turning around, she saw Laino at the side, and her brow furrowed.
Although Koshiro hadn't told her about Laino's situation, she could roughly guess.
Another rich person wanting to learn kendo but having no talent?
There were people like that every year, but almost none of them ever stuck with it.
"An exciting battle!" Laino came back to his senses and clapped his hands.
The current Zoro and Kuina were definitely stronger than him.
Seeing that he had changed into a training uniform, Kuina was a little surprised. "You're going to train?"
Laino smiled, "Of course. I'm too far behind. Only by working harder can I catch up. Please teach me! Teacher Kuina!"
Kuina was stunned for a moment, a little unused to the title, and said unnaturally, "Just call me Kuina."
Laino nodded.
Kuina seemed cold and aloof, but she had a good heart.
She reminded him, "The true way of the sword is tedious, boring, and arduous training, day after day for ten years."
"Those who can't endure hardship and have no talent will only give up halfway."
Laino said, "I believe I can!"
Kuina was noncommittal. There were too many people like Laino who made solemn vows at the beginning, were exhausted after two days, and disappeared within half a month.
"Zoro, take him to the beach for two laps first!" Kuina said.
"Eh?"
Zoro looked at Laino. Laino looked back. The two stared at each other.
"For kendo, physical fitness is important. When your fitness is up to par, I'll teach you swordsmanship, footwork, and breathing techniques."
Kuina wanted to test Laino's will first. If he couldn't persist, teaching him would be useless; he would leave sooner or later. Learning halfway and then leaving would instead damage the dojo's reputation.
Of course, her reason was quite valid. Without physical fitness, even the most amazing swordsmanship is useless.
This was also something that limited her. She could feel that as Zoro's skills improved daily, her own stamina and strength were becoming her weak points. It was getting harder and harder to beat Zoro.
Kuina gripped the bamboo sword in her hand tightly.
At the dojo entrance, Zoro had his hands behind his head, looking at Laino sideways.
"Hey, I'm telling you first, I won't wait for you. You have to keep up, I don't want you getting lost!"
Afraid I'll get lost? Laino's mouth twitched.
Zoro, who gave you the courage to say that? Could it be... his 'directionally challenged' attribute hasn't been activated yet?
That shouldn't be right!
Zoro bent his waist, flexed his knees, did some warm-ups, then took a breath and looked towards the beach. "Ready?"
Laino nodded.
"Run!"
As Zoro's voice fell, he pushed off with his back foot, creating a small crater, and then shot out like a cannonball with a "swoosh".
When Laino started running, he could only see the dust kicked up by Zoro.
Damn! Is this the strength of a top-tier talent in the One Piece world?
Laino was amazed.
After more than a month in the One Piece world, obtaining the [Gluttony] talent, plus constant training, his physical fitness had clearly improved. His current strength, speed, etc., had definitely reached the level of a world champion from his previous world, or even surpassed it.
But, in front of Zoro, it was like a joke.
How strong was the young Zoro? Just think about him training by pulling boulders weighing several tons. That tells you how formidable his physique is. But in the One Piece world, there were countless monsters with stronger bodies than him.
"Being born in the wrong body is a real disadvantage!"
Laino shook his head, not rushing to catch up to Zoro, maintaining his breathing rhythm, running forward step by step.
He wasn't discouraged. Didn't the weak Koby also firmly chase after Luffy's footsteps during his Marine training and gain a new life?
With a cheat system, would he be worse than Koby?
From the dojo to the beach, it was about 3000 meters.
When Laino had run 1000 meters, Zoro was gone.
"By now, Zoro should be at the beach, right?" Laino muttered.
When he reached the beach, the waves crashed on the shore under the moonlight, but there was no one there.
Where's Zoro?
"Hey, you guy, when did you get ahead of me?"
From behind, a surprised shout came.
Laino turned around. Zoro rushed out from the forest, a leaf stuck to his forehead.
Laino: -_-||
As expected. Zoro didn't even know he was lost.
How did he manage to get lost while running?
[Ding! Defeated opponent. Scanning talents: Sword Demon (A-Rank), Directionally Challenged (E-Rank), Monster Body (A-Rank)]
Laino was surprised to hear the system's notification. Was a race with Zoro also considered a battle?
If that's the case, then the system's definition of battle is quite broad!
Playing cards? Chess? A shouting match?
And, a single victory yielded three talents. Besides the comical [Directionally Challenged] talent, [Sword Demon] and [Monster Body] were both A-Rank!
A genius indeed. Many people don't even have one talent, but Zoro, not even ten years old, has three.
"But, why is Koshiro's [Sword Heart] S-Rank, while Zoro's is only A-Rank?"
"And Shanks's [Conqueror's Haki] was also only A-Rank, but according to the plot, Shanks's Haki is definitely in the top tier!"
"Could it be!"
"Right, age!"
"A person's talents are not set in stone. They can appear, grow, or even disappear with age."
[Please select one of the three talents!]
The system prompted again. Laino snapped back to reality and realized that he couldn't get all three talents; he could only choose one.
Only after acquiring a talent would he know its effect. It was a bit like opening a blind box. But from the names of the talents, he could make some guesses.
He definitely wouldn't choose [Directionally Challenged].
[Sword Demon] should be similar to [Sword Heart], or it could be that unique demonic aura that Zoro has.
[Monster Body] must refer to Zoro's monstrous physique, right?
"I already have [Sword Heart], so choosing [Sword Demon] again wouldn't be appropriate."
Laino made his decision.
[Ding! Congratulations to the host for copying Zoro's talent, Monster Body!]
[Talent Description: To rival monsters with a human body. You will be able to break the limits of the human body and achieve the extraordinary.]