On the Going Merry, two young swordsmen who had not seen each other for a long time were catching up.
As the two of them toasted and exchanged drinks, several empty rum bottles lay scattered across the deck. By all appearances, they were having a thoroughly enjoyable conversation.
"Whew, the rum on this island really tastes fantastic." Zoro let out a satisfied beer burp, wiping the corner of his mouth.
"Hahaha, you're still as fond of liquor as ever."
Sitting opposite him, the purple-haired youth filled Zoro's cup back up, saying with a chuckle, "These bottles I bought are just common street goods. Those truly fine vintages are all reserved for auctions, and I certainly can't afford them."
While raising his cup, Zoro quietly gazed at the purple-haired youth's face. That resolute countenance, well-weathered by the elements, gradually overlapped with the childhood friend in his memories, causing Zoro to involuntarily reveal a look of reminiscence.
"I really never imagined that I would run into you here... Saga."
Saga and Zoro had trained together at Koshiro's sword dojo during their childhood. Aside from the deceased Kuina, the green-haired swordsman's closest friend had been Saga.
The two of them had once operated as bounty hunters together in the East Blue. However, during an accident, Saga had lost his right hand in order to save Zoro. Ever since then, Zoro had never seen his good friend again, until today.
"Yeah, destiny always enjoys playing jokes on people."
Saga let out a soft chuckle. He lifted his head to look up at the top of the Going Merry's mast, where the black flag bearing a straw-hatted skull fluttered crisp and loud against the sea breeze.
"Moreover, I didn't expect that the once-famed 'Pirate Hunter' of the East Blue would now actually become a pirate with a bounty of 63 million Berries."
"I really wonder what kind of impressions Master will have after seeing your wanted poster."
"Uh..." Zoro was temporarily at a loss for words. He remembered that this good friend of his used to hold quite a prejudice against pirates. Thus, the green-haired swordsman took a sip of liquor and counter-questioned:
"What about you? Are you still a bounty hunter right now? And..."
Zoro shifted his gaze once more toward the other person's right hand, which wore a black leather glove. "...What's the deal with your right hand?"
"Oh, you mean this?"
Saga took off the leather glove and rolled up his sleeve, exposing a mechanical arm that gleamed with a metallic luster. The sci-fi nature of this prosthetic limb caused the green-haired swordsman to involuntarily raise an eyebrow.
"Zoro, I wonder if you've ever heard of the Falcone Family."
"..." A certain marimo's expression instantly became highly spectacular. He thought to himself: Not only have I heard of them, but not long ago, our ship's long-nosed fellow literally one-shot the eldest young master of that family with his slingshot!
Saga, however, did not notice Zoro's peculiar reaction and continued explaining on his own: "This mechanical armor is the latest product developed by the Falcone Family. Its arm strength is fully fifty times that of a normal human!"
Zoro looked thoroughly astonished. One had to know that a Fish-Man's arm strength being ten times that of a human was already staggering enough, yet this mechanical armor was fully five times that of a Fish-Man. Just how terrifying must that power be?
"And it is precisely by relying on the formidable power of this mechanical armor combined with my own swordsmanship that I became a Marine Commander of the G-2 Base."
Clench! Saga's mechanical right hand squeezed tightly, and the immense force squeezed a dull sonic boom straight out of the air in his palm.
"Which means, you're a Marine now?"
Looking at his childhood friend with an exceptionally complex gaze, Zoro asked in a low voice, "Then did you come this time to capture me and my crewmates?"
The moment those words left his mouth, the originally amicable and harmonious atmosphere on the Merry instantly vanished without a trace. A faint scent of gunpowder permeated the air. It felt as though in the very next second, swords would flash and shadows of blades would erupt between these two old friends who had just been drinking and laughing together!
Saga took a sip of liquor without answering, his eyes drifting imperceptibly toward Zoro's waist. He noticed that this fellow still kept his swords attached to his person even when meeting an old friend.
("You must firmly bear in mind that as an excellent swordsman, you must maintain a clear head at all times and be prepared to engage in battle at any moment.")
This sentence suddenly echoed within the purple-haired youth's mind. It was the teaching Koshiro had given to their fellow disciples back at the dojo.
(No wonder Master always said you were the disciple he was most satisfied with, and even passed the Great Grade Sword Wado Ichimonji down to you.)
(But what a pity, Zoro. Right now, it is I who am stronger...)
Feeling the immense power coming from the mechanical armor, a mysterious smile couldn't help but surface at the corner of Saga's mouth. Following that, he drained the liquor in his cup in one gulp and smiled:
"How could I? I didn't even know I would run into you here. I came to Hannabal for a completely different mission."
"Oh, I see." Hearing this, Zoro instantly relaxed and grinned.
The atmosphere on the deck returned to harmony.
"Right, Zoro. Isn't your dream to become the world's greatest swordsman?"
Saga suddenly recalled something. "I obtained a piece of intelligence stating that a while back, the world's greatest swordsman, Hawkeye Mihawk, apparently paid a visit to the East Blue."
"Yeah, I know. I even issued a challenge to him back then," Zoro said with a calm face.
"What?" The purple-haired swordsman somewhat doubted his own ears.
Without speaking a word, Zoro pulled up his clothes. On his sharply contoured muscles, a massive scar that practically split his entire torso into two halves was shocking to behold.
Saga sucked in a breath of cold air. Even without witnessing it with his own eyes, seeing this scar allowed him to imagine just how tragic a battle his good friend had experienced at that time.
"At that time... was it the first time you felt yourself to be so incredibly weak?" Filling both of their cups with rum in turn, Saga's eyes looked a bit dazed.
Zoro gulped down some liquor and nodded.
"Heh, I felt the exact same way back then."
Saga let out a bitter laugh. Gazing at his mechanical right hand, he murmured, "When I first entered the Grand Line, I despondently discovered that I wasn't worth a damn thing in the Marines."
"I tried hard too. When my right hand was gone, I trained bitterly in left-handed swordsmanship. But no matter how hard I tried, there was not the slightest result. It wasn't until Dr. Ziegler installed this mechanical arm for me that I gained a new lease on life!"
"She truly is an angel!" Saga looked thoroughly excited, his gratitude toward that Dr. Ziegler apparent beyond words.
"An angel? Sounds like someone pretty impressive."
Zoro, however, was somewhat indifferent. After all, during their time on Skypiea, he had seen a whole bunch of "angels" running around with wings.
"Yes, she is exceptionally formidable. Don't look at Dr. Ziegler just because she's a woman—her medical skills are profoundly exquisite, and she is a premier scientific research staff member of the Falcone Family!"
Saga said in an deadpan manner, "Furthermore, it's said that there was a ninja from Wano Country in Marine Headquarters who was on the verge of death, with the vast majority of his bodily organs already necrotic. Yet, Dr. Ziegler miraculously brought him back to life, and transformed him into a powerful cyborg using mechanical armor technology!"
"Let me give you a piece of advice, Zoro." The purple-haired swordsman suddenly shifted the topic. He weighed his words carefully before continuing, "Just like the example I cited earlier, there are actually many ways to become stronger. You don't necessarily have to be so rigid all the time."
"Rigid? Saga, what are you talking about?" Zoro's brow furrowed slightly.
"What I mean is, if you want to become stronger, you don't absolutely have to bitterly cultivate to improve your level of swordsmanship. I have personal experience regarding this point."
Saying this, Saga brandished his mechanical right hand. "A formidable weapon, a Devil Fruit, or installing mechanical armor like me can all allow your strength to achieve a qualitative leap rapidly. Since borrowing external strength is far more efficient than cultivation, why must you restrict yourself to cultivation..."
"Enough!"
Zoro suddenly interrupted Saga's words with a darkened face. "Saga, my dream is to become the world's greatest swordsman, that's correct. But if one could defeat Hawkeye just by relying on an invincible sword or a hand made of scrap iron, then I would rather not hold this title of number one under heaven!"
The Three-Sword Style swordsman lifted his head, staring straight into the eyes of this friend he hadn't seen for many years. He suddenly felt that the other person was so incredibly foreign.
"It seems you really have forgotten Master Koshiro's teachings from back then. A swordsman's true strength does not lie in the sword in their hand."
"Heh, you fellow are still as stubborn as ever." Seeing that the opponent did not appreciate his well-intentioned advice in the slightest, Saga couldn't help but feel a bit of anger welling up in his heart.
He shook his head, then stood up and walked slowly toward the ladder. As he walked, he said without turning his head back:
"Zoro, for the sake of our many years of friendship, I will give you one final piece of advice: absolutely do not participate in that 'Dead End Race.' Leave this island with your companions immediately."
"Otherwise, I will use the sword in my hand to make you understand just how utterly fragile the 'strength' that you and Master believe in truly is!"
The green-haired swordsman quietly watched his childhood friend's figure walk further and further away, his mood exceptionally heavy.
Because Zoro knew perfectly well in his heart that just as past times would never flow backward, the bosom friend of his childhood would also never return.
"Tch, bring it on then. Do you think I'm afraid of you, kid?"
Zoro exposed his trademark wicked grin. Then, tilting his head back, he drained the rum in his cup in one gulp.
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