One Piece: Nobody knows Devil Fruits better than me.

Chapter 74 The Twelve Zodiac Signs of Frostmoon Village, the Pig!
Donghai Shuangyue Village, an open space outside the village.

"Qiang!"

The sound of a sword being drawn rang out.

"Chi!" "Chi!" "Chi!"

The sound of the chopping fell.

A huge rock, suspended in the air, was neatly cut into four pieces by the swordsman in front of him.

But strangely, although it was cut into four pieces.

But the swordsman actually only made one strike—he held a sword in each hand and another in his mouth.

The swordsman had green hair, a white shirt with a green belly band, a headscarf tied around his left arm, and three gold earrings on his left ear.

That was a unique sight, even in the vast ocean.

"too strong!"

"As expected of Zoro's Three-Sword Style!"

"I want to learn the Three-Sword Style someday!"

"He's practically a monster! Zoro might even surpass the Gym Leader in the future!"

Beside the swordsman, a group of children were making a fuss.

They were all wearing the same dojo uniform, with a symbol of two crossed swords on the left chest.

"Hey"

After hearing their words, Zoro sheathed his three swords and smiled as he listened to the noise from his junior brothers beside him.

He did not deny what the children said about being 'better than the curator'.

Even though the other party was his mentor and the person he respected most.

But
"To become the world's greatest swordsman, you have to surpass everyone else."

His hand unconsciously touched the second katana with a white hilt at his waist, his eyes flashing with determination.

That was a promise he made to his deceased best friend.

"But Brother Zoro, you're about to set sail, right?"

At that moment, a child asked curiously.

"Hmm—it's been eight years since that guy. It's time to test my sword."

Zoro nodded.

What are you planning to do at sea?

"I'll become a bounty hunter. Searching the world for strong opponents to fight should make my sword even stronger."

Zoro's words carried a hint of anticipation.

After years of hard work, the swordsmanship finally has a chance to be displayed, and anyone would look forward to it.

"Searching for strong individuals all over the world? Well—didn't pirates just raid this place not long ago?"

"Yeah, didn't those pirates say they'd come back before the dojo owner chased them away? Zoro, why don't you go find them first after you set sail and chop them all down!"

Upon hearing these words, some children looked on with admiration.

However, some people expressed doubts.

Of course, they weren't doubting Zoro's swordsmanship, but rather...
"Bounty hunter... If it's you, Zoro, you'll definitely get lost, right?"

"definitely will!"

"Absolutely, it might not be found for many years."

Upon hearing this, Zoro's eyes widened instantly: "Huh? What are you kids talking about? How could I possibly... um!?"

He stopped abruptly halfway through his sentence, his expression turning somewhat serious.

Because at that moment he could see—at the end of the road on the other side of the village, a person appeared.

Zoro could see the other person's appearance from a distance.

It appeared to be a tall man wearing a top hat and a peculiar pig-head mask on his face.

"This guy"

Zoro's expression turned somewhat serious.

Frostmoon Village is not a very large village, and there are usually very few outsiders.

Moreover, Zoro's swordsman's intuition told him that the man was not an ordinary passerby.

"You all stay here and don't move around."

So, Zoro said something to the children behind him, then leaped over the rubble in front of him and walked toward the man.

"Hey, you're a new face, aren't you from around here?"

He grinned at the man and said.

"."

He then noticed that, although it was a very short time, the other person seemed to pause slightly when they saw him.

This made Zoro even more suspicious—could this guy be a member of the group of pirates who were driven away a while ago?
“What you say is true, sir. This is indeed my first time visiting your village.”

The man wearing a pig-face mask spoke politely: "I'm here to discuss a business deal."

"Business talk?"

Zoro grinned. "Where do you want to talk—I know the village well, maybe I can take you there." "It's a place called Isshin Dojo. I have an appointment with its owner, Mr. Shimotsuki Koshiro, to discuss business."

"Qiang!"

As soon as the pig finished speaking, Zoro bent down and drew his sword.

"Sorry, pirate."

He was almost certain of his judgment: "I don't recall the teacher ever discussing business with anyone. Dual-wielding Eagle Wave!"

He drew his sword and then suddenly slashed out.

However, upon closer inspection, it becomes clear that he was swinging the back of the blade when he made the strike.

Clearly, although he already believed the other person was a pirate, he didn't intend to indiscriminately attack anyone until he was certain.

But
"clang!"

The back of the knife easily struck the man's neck.

Zoro was certain he had struck his opponent, and he unleashed his full power.

But the opponent did not fall.

No, to be precise—he didn't even feel the slightest tremor from the other person.

"Young man, this is not a good idea."

The next moment, however, he saw the indifferent eyes beneath the other person's mask.

"If you lay a hand on people who come to discuss business, it will be difficult to do business."

"Also, I think I just heard you say something about seeking out strong opponents to fight—it's a good idea, but..."

He gently reached out and flicked Zoro's forehead.

"There are many monsters in this sea. If you draw your sword on anyone you see, you'll die."

"boom!"

A tremendous force erupted instantly, and Zoro felt as if he had not been struck by a finger, but by some kind of blunt weapon with immense power.

He was sent flying backwards instantly.

But
"It's unlikely he'd collapse like that."

He forced himself to stay awake in mid-air, then suddenly stood up again.

"clatter!"

As he landed, his hand was already on the remaining two knives again.

"Ha ha."

His forehead was completely bruised and swollen, but he didn't care at all.

He didn't know what had just happened, nor how the force of the opponent's casual flick could be so enormous.

But at least he knew something.

The opponent seems very strong.

Then
"Perfect, then use me to test my knife."

He pulled out all three knives at once and put one in his mouth.

"Three sword styles."

But just as he was about to make another move, a hand pressed down on his shoulder.

"Zoro, stop!"

The familiar voice made Zoro instinctively stop.

He turned his head and, sure enough, saw a familiar figure—a man wearing a gray kimono and round-framed glasses who looked very gentle.

"teacher?"

That was his teacher, Shimotsuki Koshiro, the master of the Shimotsuki Village Isshin Dojo.

"I have been waiting for you for a long time. I apologize—my disciple was a bit rash. Thank you for your mercy."

Koushirou ignored Zoro and instead looked at the man wearing the pig-head mask, speaking softly.

".ha?"

Zoro was taken aback by these words.

He immediately realized that the other person was actually someone the teacher knew.

"No, that's not right."

But then Zoro realized that something seemed wrong.

Because at this moment, Koushirou's expression was noticeably more serious than usual—no, to be precise, this was the first time Zoro had ever seen Koushirou so serious.

Clearly, he might know the other person, but they certainly aren't friends.

And at this time.
"It's alright, Mr. Koushirou."

The man wearing the pig-head mask said elegantly, "I'm here to discuss business, not to cause trouble."

At this point, he smiled and took off his top hat: "Let me introduce myself."

"My name is 'Hai Zhu' and I am a blacksmith."

(End of this chapter)