Recruit Luffy at the start and build the strongest navy.

"Heh~"

Kuina chuckled softly, looking at Zoro with a detached gaze.

He gestured with his fingers twice and then spoke:

"Zoro, this is the 1823rd time you've said that!"

"Except for the first time, when have you ever not said this before a challenge?"

"But it seems like you're always just talking nonsense!"

Upon hearing this, Zoro's face flushed red, and he shouted at Kuina with his neck bulging:

"This time is different!! I've undergone rigorous training, and I'm sure I can defeat you this time!"

Kuina's expression remained unchanged; she simply spoke calmly:

"You've said that hundreds of times already!"

"You're not tired of saying it, but I'm already tired of hearing it!"

"Come on, let's finish this quickly!"

As she spoke, Kuina raised her wooden sword, her gaze fixed indifferently on Zoro.

Sensing Kuina's indifferent gaze, Zoro instantly turned red and roared:

"Kuina, I'll make you pay for underestimating me!!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Zoro stepped forward, brandishing his wooden sword and charging towards Kuina with a roar.

Reaching Kuina, he slashed down with his sword, accompanied by a sharp gust of wind.

Many dojo students around couldn't help but gasp in surprise, shocked by the power of Zoro's strike.

Although Zoro is much younger than them, none of them are a match for him.

Similarly, Zoro is no match for Kuina!

Kuina slightly turned her body and easily dodged Zoro's downward slash. Then, she swung her wooden sword horizontally at an extremely fast speed.

Snapped! !

The sound of wooden swords clashing rang out, and a look of surprise appeared on Kuina's face.

After noticing her attack, Zoro forcibly reversed the trajectory of his sword, blocking her attack instead.

Seeing Kuina's expression, Zoro couldn't help but feel smug.

"Kuina! I told you, I've trained hard, and I'll definitely defeat you this time!!"

Kuina smiled too, her gaze still calm, and said softly:

"Zoro, are you getting so cocky just because you blocked one of my attacks?"

"You want to defeat me? You're still too green!!"

As soon as she finished speaking, Kuina sheathed her sword and swung it again, this time attacking Zoro's armpit at an incredibly tricky angle with incredible speed.

Zoro's expression changed, and he immediately used his wooden sword to defend himself. Just as Kuina's wooden sword was about to hit him, he finally managed to block it in front of him.

But ultimately it was a bit rushed and strenuous, and the parry was not of good quality. Although he managed to block it, he was still knocked back several steps by the force of the blade.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Kuina rushed forward and stood in front of Zoro, giving him no chance to catch his breath, and slashed down with her sword again.

Zoro hastily defended himself and barely managed to block the attack, but the wooden sword that followed made his expression change again.

*Clap clap clap clap!*

The sound of wooden swords striking each other rang out. Zoro was forced to retreat under Kuina's storm-like attacks. Before long, he was struck by a sword, which sent him flying and crashing heavily to the ground not far away.

Before he could get up, Kuina held the wooden sword to his side, her gaze as indifferent as ever, and spoke softly:

"You lost!"

"I……"

Zoro hesitated, looking at Kuina with resentment, then suddenly let out a sigh, his voice muffled as he slumped like a wilted eggplant:

"I lost!!"

However, this surge of energy lasted only a moment. Zoro quickly rallied, his gaze fixed intently on Kuina. He clenched his fist, seemingly both to bolster his own morale and to deliver a threatening speech to Kuina:

"I'll definitely win next time!!"

Kuina sheathed her wooden sword and said:

"You've said that many times before!"

After saying that, Guina turned and left.

Squeak!

A voice rang out, and the doors of the dojo were pushed open.

In an instant, everyone's eyes turned toward the doorway, including Kuina, who had turned to leave. She stopped and looked around curiously.

Under everyone's gaze, a delicately sculpted little boy stepped in.

Everyone just looked at him, and he just looked at everyone.

After a while, someone finally reacted, came to the boy, squatted down, looked at him, and said:

"Little friend! You've come to the wrong place!"

"Outsiders aren't allowed to enter our Yixin Dojo! Where do you live? I'll take you home!"

"Thank you for your kindness, sir, but I'm here to find someone!"

"Huh?! Who are you looking for?"

The boy pointed a finger at Zoro and said in a low voice:

"Him! And..."

Then he pointed to Kuina on the other side and spoke again:

"she!"

The boy was Kyle, and he had also heard the system notification in his mind when he saw Kuina.

[Ding! Key figure contacted, recruitment mission generated!]

[Recruiting the genius Shimotsuki Kuina!]

[Loading genius files, loading...]

[Shimotsuki Kuina, Zoro's childhood friend and swordsmanship rival, defeated Zoro 2001 times and made a pact to compete for the title of the world's greatest swordsman, but unfortunately died young. Her sword, "Wado Ichimonji," became Zoro's lifelong belief and a symbol of his destiny.]

[Recruitment Reward: Sword Technique "Purple Thunder Seven Strike"]

【Purple Thunder Seven Strike: The embodiment of heavenly punishment thunder. Its blade combines the "violent destruction" and "divine speed and ferocity" of thunder, each strike pursuing ultimate penetration and annihilation.】

A slight smile crept onto Kyle's lips.

Another double-yolk egg!!

Come on over, recruit two, and you'll make a killing!

Zoro also knows a bit about Kuina, his childhood friend Kael.

However, he always felt that the other party's death was somewhat hasty. He wondered if it was because of plot reasons, and whether it was a motivation for Zoro to become stronger.

Otherwise, it would be really hard to explain why the other person would fall down the stairs and die.

What? An insurmountable staircase, is it? Anyone who falls will die?

As the daughter of Shimotsuki Koshiro, the head of the Isshin Dojo, Kuina started practicing swordsmanship at a young age. Although she is young, many adults are no match for her in terms of strength.

It's worth noting that Zoro lost to her a total of two thousand and one times in the original manga.

Such a person would die instantly if they fell down the stairs.

I... I don't know how to say it!

However, Kyle didn't know the specifics of the original story, as there was very little information available.

But he didn't care about any of that. All he knew was that Kuina was now one of his recruitment targets.

Therefore, the fate of Guina in the original story cannot be repeated for her.

As Kyle sized up Kuina, Kuina was also looking at Kyle. Gazing at Kyle's smooth, rosy face, an idea inexplicably sprouted in her mind. She took a step forward and walked towards Kyle...