Whatever wild ideas Zoro was cooking up, his swordsmanship was beyond question.
Going all-out, every second of the duel piled pressure on Hiroto until it felt unbearable. Soon he could think of nothing else, only Zoro's blades filled his vision.
Tiger Hunting of the Three Sword Style, Nigiri of the Two Sword Style, Lion Song of the One Sword Style...
Every technique was a lethal threat, forcing him to meet them head-on with Steel-Severing Slash.
It wasn't surprising.
[Swordsman] formed the very bedrock of Hiroto's sword-based combat strength.
At first, it had been forged from the memories of more than twenty sword-wielding enemies devoured in an instant.
Then, as Hiroto kept hunting, it steadily evolved.
Just as Hiroto himself said: a step above the basics, versatile enough, but nothing more.
And now he was facing swordsmanship that simply crushed his own.
Blades clashed in mid-air, scattering sparks.
Hiroto's shirt was soaked through with sweat, pupils locked on the chaotic flashes of steel before him.
Zoro attacked like a man possessed, switching from Three Sword Style to One Sword Style with perfect timing. Each strike was a harbinger of Hiroto's defeat.
A moment's slack and he would lose on the field of swordsmanship.
Yet thanks to Steel-Severing Slash and Zoro's apparent wish to understand it, Hiroto never actually lost. Instead, as the fight dragged on, he used Steel-Severing Slash less and less.
He began to grow used to the pressure, even dismantling Zoro's attacks, discarding every superfluous move from his own like pruning a tree.
Imitate, learn, compare, refine—past effort and memorized sword forms surfaced in a flood.
Like forging metal: crude ore sifted, ground, refined into workable iron.
At last, it became the cornerstone of Hiroto's personal sword path.
[Entry Update – Swordsman → True Sword Master]
[Entry: True Swordsman]
[Quality: Blue]
[Type: Special]
[Effect: Proof you have stepped beyond mere sword technique into the realm of swordsmanship. Your blade is the entry itself.]
[Cost: None]
[Note: The more you swing, the fiercer this sword becomes.]
As the prompt appeared, Hiroto's swordsmanship completed its final metamorphosis.
He began to understand the weapon in his hands—not a mere tool for killing, but a partner that walked beside him.
An extension of limb, a vessel of will, the very edge bared when ambition showed itself.
Correspondingly, his swordplay shifted as he crossed blades with Zoro.
A core he had never possessed now formed. Fancy variations were cast aside, every ornate sequence abandoned.
He chased the brutal combination of speed and force, no longer confined to orthodox swordsmanship.
There was only one goal.
Cut down the foe, shatter every obstacle, stamp his will upon the world—just like Hiroto himself.
'Changed… stepped up, no longer a lifeless thing.' Zoro sensed the shift.
Or rather, in the clash of steel, he felt the messy swordsmanship take shape bit by bit. It now had its own core instead of being patched together.
Yet the feeling was odd—almost as if this sloppy swordsmanship was Hiroto's true level, being hammered into its current form under pressure.
Much like how Zoro tried to decipher flying slash from Hiroto's strikes.
Except Zoro gained nothing, as though he'd walked down the wrong path. While Hiroto sharpened a style that belonged to him alone.
So…
He must be telling me: to learn flying slash, I have to learn from the blade as he did.
But I still haven't seen his real sword—this level isn't enough.
Another clash rang out and amid the tremor of steel, Zoro suddenly leapt back.
"I get it. If you still think that's not enough, then here's my ace."
Hiroto: "???"
What do you mean you 'get it'?
"Against a swordsman like you, bringing this out is only right."
Zoro set his three blades spinning like a pinwheel, a whirlwind spiralling around them.
It was a brand-new ultimate move, many details still rough, yet the strongest and surest technique he had.
This strike would force the man to draw his true blade.
"What's that?" Johnny gulped.
"Must be Zoro's finishing blow." Yosaku held his breath, eyes glued to the two fighters.
Though Zoro claimed the man hadn't gone all-out, it looked to him like Zoro had the upper hand.
Now he was bringing out his ace—this would decide everything.
He believed Zoro would win.
'Here it comes.'
Seeing Zoro's stance, Hiroto's gaze turned razor-sharp.
Three Thousand Worlds was Zoro's early-series trump, ordinary swordsmen couldn't even see the slash.
For Hiroto, a newborn swordsman, there was no technical path to victory. His advantage in raw stats wasn't overwhelming.
Then… go all-out!
Hiroto's sword wasn't pure, he never intended to rely on the slash alone.
Steel was an extension of will, not the other way round. The entry was part of his strength and merged into his technique.
Blade slid into sheath as Hiroto crouched, hand clamped on the hilt, ready for a quick draw strike.
The wind that had circled the battlefield now howled like a typhoon.
At the same instant, Zoro stamped forward, his three spinning blades becoming a streak of light.
Three Sword Style Secret Art: Three Thousand Worlds!
One Sword Style: God Slaying Spear!
Strength nearly spent, Hiroto's sword burst into a straight line of light. It shot forward at terrifying speed, the focused slash spiralling like a drill.
Dead ahead waited the Three Sword Style secret too swift to see.
Shhk—
God Slaying Spear pierced Three Thousand Worlds.
Zoro froze. Blood gushed from his mouth, countless slash wounds appearing over his body.
Worst of all, a fist-sized hole had been driven clean through his chest.
Blood poured out in streams.
The two ordinary blades he'd raised to block shattered into a dozen pieces, only Wado Ichimonji stayed whole.
He had lost.
"Zoro!" Johnny yanked out his cutlass, face pale.
Yosaku felt a hand clench his heart.
Lost.
Never-before-defeated, monster-strong Zoro had lost.
His opponent had still not shown his full strength, no one even knew if that cut had been serious.
Just moments ago, Yosaku had been sure Zoro would win. Now he knew he was too weak to grasp what Zoro had seen.
But no matter what, they couldn't let that terrifying man kill Zoro.