Chương 221: Chapter 221: Three Years of Blood Profits!
"Brother Zoro, we're here!!!"
With a dull thud, the cargo ship slowly docked at the small port.
Johnny and Yosaku stood on the deck, shouting loudly toward the shipyard.
Under Ichiji's influence, Zoro and his crew had sailed swiftly, riding the wind and waves, eager to avoid any more trouble. In just three days, they returned from the Kingdom of Coast to Zoro and Kuina's hometown — Shimotsuki Village, with a ship full of gold, silver, and jewels!
"We've arrived?"
Zoro emerged from the cabin, a look of melancholy on his face.
The familiar scent of his hometown filled his nostrils, bringing back memories of his time with Kuina. Those were days of lost youth beneath the moonlight.
But fortunately, everything seemed to be looking up now.
"Wait for me, Kuina," Zoro suddenly grinned, his eyes filled with hope for the future.
With everyone's efforts, the treasure — piled high like a mountain — was packed into opaque sacks, unloaded from the ship, and loaded onto a large cart Johnny had rented. Of course, Ichiji, still their captive, was also stuffed into a sack and thrown on top of the cart.
"Let's go! Next stop, Isshin Dojo!" Zoro commanded, waving his hand. Under the guidance of Koby and Alvida, the cart quickly set off.
Under the shocked gazes of the villagers, the cart — laden with a mountain of goods — moved swiftly, disappearing from sight in no time, leaving only deep grooves from the wheels as evidence they were not seeing things.
...
...
Ten minutes later.
"Something terrible has happened! Something terrible!"
A frantic shout suddenly broke the peace in the Isshin Dojo.
"Huh? What's the matter?"
Koushirou Shimotsuki, who had been instructing his students on sword techniques, paused. A bright white light flashed on his glasses.
A boy, around twelve or thirteen years old, came running into the dojo, heading straight for Koushirou.
"Something terrible, Sensei! Pirates... Pirates have come to Shimotsuki Village!!!"
The boy clutched his chest, panting heavily, with an unmistakable look of panic on his face.
"What!?"
Koushirou's expression turned serious as he quickly asked, "Are you sure you saw clearly?"
"Absolutely! I saw them clearly!"
After catching his breath, the boy quickly described, "There's no mistake! That hideous face like a monster, it's definitely Alvida, the notorious pirate with a bounty of 5 million Beli, who disappeared from the East Blue for a long time!"
"Alvida?"
Upon hearing the name, Koushirou's tense expression relaxed, and he returned to his usual calm demeanor, squinting his eyes again. "So it's her... Is she in the village now?"
"Yes!"
The boy nodded quickly, still catching his breath. Seeing how calm and composed Koushirou remained in the face of such a terrifying pirate, he couldn't help but feel a sense of admiration. It had to be SenseiKoushirou, the teacher of Senior Brother Zoro — extraordinary indeed!
However, Koushirou's true thoughts at this moment were something the boy could never comprehend.
"At least it's not a major pirate!"
"If it's only Alvida's crew, I should be able to fend them off if I fight hard enough, right?"
...
...
Koushirou Shimotsuki, a once-famous young swordsman, had earned quite a reputation at sea. However, influenced by his father, Koushirou lacked ambition and wasn't particularly interested in Kenjutsu.
After finding love, he willingly gave up his pursuit of the sword, returned to Shimotsuki Village, and opened the Isshin Dojo, leading a quiet life. Compared to Usopp's irresponsible father, Koushirou had chosen a different path.
One abandoned his family for the sea, while the other abandoned everything else for love. In the world of pirates, it's hard to say who was right or wrong.
Nevertheless, Usopp's father, Yasopp, was forever marked as a "failure" as a husband and father.
Originally, Koushirou's life seemed destined for tranquility, but fate never gave a warning.
Koushirou's wife died shortly after giving birth to Kuina, and his beloved daughter also passed away in a tragic accident. Now, his only companions were his disciples, whom he taught in silence while protecting the small Shimotsuki Village.
Though his strength had declined due to a lack of rigorous training, Koushirou was still confident he could handle a low-level pirate like Alvida.
After retrieving his sword, Koushirou prepared himself and headed towards Shimotsuki Village. The dojo wasn't far from the village, and in just a few minutes, Koushirou spotted Alvida, who was pulling a cart piled high with goods!
There was no mistaking it!
Once you've seen that face, no man could forget it!
In some ways, Alvida had reached the limits of what a woman could look like.
"They really are pirates..."
"Are the goods they're pulling what they looted from the village?"
Koushirou muttered in a low voice. He lowered his center of gravity, placing one hand on his sword handle. Slowly opening his squinted eyes, a fierce, sharp gaze appeared.
Though the sword he held was far inferior to the Wado Ichimonji, one of the 21 Great Grade Swords, or even a Good Grade Sword, it was still enough to deal with minor pirates from the East Blue!
As Alvida drew closer, Koushirou's aura intensified. The battle seemed about to begin at any moment.
But suddenly, a voice both familiar and strange called out from behind Alvida.
Koushirou froze for a moment, looking past Alvida.
To his surprise, he saw a man with green hair waving at him with a silly grin on his face.
"Sensei!! I'm back!!!"
"Huh?"
Koushirou's expression shifted, going from fierce to peaceful in an instant, and then to complete surprise, his mouth agape and eyes wide.
"Zo... Zoro!!?"
"You actually managed to find your way home!!!!!!!?"
——
Ten minutes later, at the training ground of Isshin Dojo...
Under the admiring gazes of the young swordsmen, Koby and the others unloaded the heavy gold and silver treasures.
Meanwhile, inside the dojo's meeting room, Koushiro and Zoro sat cross-legged across from each other, each with a cup of hot tea in front of them.
"Have a taste, Zoro," Koushiro said. "It's been several years since you've had tea from Shimotsuki Village, hasn't it?"
"Yes," Zoro replied with a smile, sighing.
Back then, he had been so full of confidence. After defeating a pirate who caused trouble in Shimotsuki Village, he dreamed of claiming the bounty and challenging the world's greatest swordsman. Yet, fate took a different turn when he lost his way and couldn't find his way back home.
But those matters weren't today's concern.
Thinking about what he was about to do, Zoro's excitement got the better of him. Before Koushiro could inquire about his recent experiences, Zoro asked, "Sensei, did you watch the Pokémon League Conference not long ago?"
"Of course," Koushiro replied with a smile, clearly pleased. "I never expected the boy who used to cry for a sword would become a world-renowned figure."
"The children here at the dojo all want to follow in your footsteps and become three-sword style swordsmen!"
"Really? Hahahaha..." Zoro grinned brightly, feeling a bit shy at the unexpected compliment from his mentor.
But then he shifted the topic, adding with a smile, "Actually, all of this is thanks to you, Sensei, and to the Pokémon!"
"Pokémon? They certainly are an incredible power," Koushiro remarked, nodding thoughtfully.
However, living in the remote reaches of the East Blue, he had never seen a Pokémon firsthand. His knowledge was limited to what he'd read in newspapers over the past year.
Zoro chuckled softly before continuing, "Indeed, Pokémon are powerful, but that's not exactly what I'm talking about, Sensei."
"Hmm?" Koushiro responded, curious.
A faint smile played on Zoro's lips. "Since you watched the Pokémon League Conference, you must also know about the… big event that happened there, right?"
"Big event?" Koushiro looked puzzled. "What do you mean?"
For Koushiro, every event at the Pokémon League Conference seemed astonishing, leaving him unable to guess what Zoro might be referring to.
Without further ado, Zoro stated, "I mean the resurrection of Pirate King Roger!"
"Ah!" Koushiro's face turned serious.
"Yes, it was truly an event that shook the seas. I never imagined that dimensional merchants would wield such a terrifying power. Truly, they are mysterious beings from another world," Koushiro sighed.
"Exactly," Zoro agreed. "The dimensional merchants truly are omnipotent beings. But because of this, ordinary people like us now have newfound hope, don't we, Sensei?"
"Hmm?" Koushiro's expression froze. "New hope? You mean...?"
"To bring Kuina back to life!!!" Zoro exclaimed, his voice ringing through the small room for several seconds before finally reaching Koushiro's ears.
Suddenly, the entire room fell silent.
Only wisps of steam rose from the tea, obscuring Zoro's smile and Koushiro's astonished expression.
After a moment, Koushiro finally reacted. His lips trembled as he quickly asked, "What did you say!? Kuina... she can be resurrected, just like Pirate King Roger!?"
Zoro replied immediately, "That's right!"
Zoro's deep, rough voice now sounded more melodious than the sweetest song to Koushiro's ears.
Koushiro could hardly contain his shock. For many who were not traders, the resurrection of the dead seemed like a divine power that defied natural laws, something not easily accomplished even by dimensional merchants.
When Roger was resurrected, it had required one of Garp's rewards for achieving third place. So, many had believed that resurrection could only be granted under special conditions.
So hearing Zoro mention Kuina's possible resurrection threw Koushiro completely off balance. He reached out with trembling hands, grasped his teacup, and held it close despite the heat, as if trying to steady himself.
Seeing his teacher's excitement, Zoro reassured him, "You heard me correctly, Sensei! I've found a way to bring Kuina back to life!"
"Before arriving at Shimotsuki Village, I sent a trade request to the dimensional merchants. They should arrive soon!"
"At that time, I'll use the 5 billion Berries given to me by King Laurent to redeem the points needed to resurrect Kuina!"
Zoro's hands clapped onto his knees as he spoke, his excitement barely contained.
Now that he was back home and reunited with his teacher, he could no longer hold back the surge of emotion. He felt like a child again, his eyes growing wet.
But soon, those tears of longing were replaced by tears of joy, turning into a brilliant sparkle in his eyes, lighting up the small meeting room.
"Good... good... good..." Koushiro stammered, saying the word "good" repeatedly.
He drank the hot tea in a single gulp, as if hoping it would calm his racing heart.
The unexpected news overwhelmed even his typically composed demeanor.
However, despite his joy and shock, Koushiro quickly grasped the critical detail in Zoro's words.
Five billion Berries!
To Koushiro, this was an astronomical sum, beyond his wildest dreams, yet Zoro spoke of it with such ease.
His repeated utterances of "good" also reflected his pride and joy at his disciple's achievements.
"I really have taught an excellent apprentice," he thought to himself.
...
Time passed slowly.
Two hours later, in the indoor training room of Isshin Dojo...
Koushiro had given his students a rare day off to rest, but he, Zoro, Koby, and the others waited anxiously in the training room.
Minutes ticked by.
Soon, the appointed time arrived.
As a flash of white light appeared, a handsome and dashing figure materialized before Zoro.
"Mr. Zoro, I'm sorry to keep you waiting," James said with a slight smile, now dressed in his Team Rocket uniform. He ignored everyone else around him, focusing solely on Zoro.
"What would you like to purchase this time, Mr. Zoro?" James asked with a smile.
Since the end of the Pokémon League Conference, the sea had seen a new wave of trade activity.
Even though more than a month had passed, James and his colleagues were still very busy every day.
To improve trading efficiency, they had to sacrifice some aspects of their detailed service work.
But fortunately...
The traders did not require overly courteous service.
Hearing James's question, Zoro clenched his fists, glanced at Koushiro, and stepped forward.
"Sir James..." Zoro began, "I want to purchase Ho-oh's Feather and resurrect my deceased friend, Kuina!!!"
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