Location: Calm Belt Outpost – Marine Science Division
A secure marine science facility deep in the Calm Belt buzzed with tension. The floor vibrated as something enormous docked beneath the surface.
"The Mythblade has returned…"
Dr. Vegapunk's assistant muttered under his breath while scanning Toni's bounty notice.
Inside a heavily shielded vault lay shattered fragments of other Mythblades—ancient and dormant. But when Toni's image appeared, the vault's sensors lit up for the first time in centuries.
"Tenryūzan has awakened… and it's remembering the others."
Location: Oro Jackson – Three Days Later
The ship sailed peacefully through warm currents, the fog long behind them. Shanks and Buggy were training, clashing swords with gusto, while Toni meditated on the forecastle with Tenryūzan across his lap.
His Observation Haki now stretched to cover half the ship at rest. He could feel every heartbeat, every shift in the wind… even the tension in Rayleigh's pacing steps.
Suddenly—
A presence pierced the sea like thunder.
A single soul, burning brighter than any he had ever sensed.
Toni stood instantly. "Someone's coming."
Before he could alert the crew—
A slash of air cut across the sea.
A man appeared on the deck as if birthed from lightning. Tall, cloaked, with layered scars across his face and a wide-brimmed hat. His eyes, one blind, the other burning yellow, scanned Toni with quiet judgment.
Rayleigh stepped forward sharply, hand on blade. "You… I thought you were dead."
The man grinned. "You think too much, Dark King."
Roger narrowed his eyes, serious for once. "Kurodan… the Sword Burial Man."
Buggy choked on his apple.
Shanks raised a brow. "Who's that?"
Rayleigh's voice dropped. "A former member of the Rocks Pirates. The only man who ever broke a Mythblade with his bare hands."
Kurodan – The Blade Breaker
Kurodan stepped forward, boots silent. "I heard a ghost walks the sea again. Carrying that cursed sword."
Toni stood calmly, Tenryūzan held loose in his grip.
"You've come to test me?"
Kurodan grinned. "No. I've come to teach you."
Everyone froze.
"What?" Buggy stammered. "But you were Rocks' butcher—!"
"I was," Kurodan said flatly. "But I've seen what those swords do to men. They don't just cut flesh. They cut time. Memory. And they burn out their wielders before they ever grow old."
He looked at Toni.
"You're the youngest to ever awaken Tenryūzan. You have maybe two years before it consumes you."
Toni flinched, but held eye contact. "Then I have two years to master it."
Roger laughed. "That's my boy!"
Kurodan slowly unsheathed a blade made of bone and steel—chipped, but still deadly.
"Let's see what you've got."
Training Duel – Toni vs. Kurodan
They clashed.
The first strike shattered the air.
Kurodan fought like a hurricane—unpredictable, brutal, and entirely without mercy. He didn't hesitate. Every slash carried decades of battle experience. His blade didn't hum—it screamed.
Toni kept up at first. Observation Haki guided him. His reflexes were sharper than ever. He struck back, slicing wind currents, matching footwork.
But Kurodan adapted.
With every exchange, the veteran anticipated Toni's moves.
Slash—block—feint—strike.
Toni was forced back, bleeding from a gash above his eye.
"You hesitate," Kurodan barked. "Still holding back the blade's true will."
"I won't let it control me!"
"Then it will betray you when you need it most!"
Kurodan's next swing disarmed Toni—Tenryūzan went flying, embedding into the mast.
Toni fell to one knee.
Kurodan stood over him.
"Pick it up. Or die."
Toni reached for the sword—but paused.
His fingers trembled.
Suddenly—he let go of fear.
Not with strength.
But with surrender.
"Tenryūzan. If you really are memory incarnate… then remember this. I am not a puppet. I am your wielder."
Tenryūzan shone.
The sword flew back into his hand—by itself.
Toni stood—calm.
Kurodan smiled. "Now you've begun."
Aftermath
The crew stared in awe.
Rayleigh crossed his arms. "I never thought I'd see the Blade Breaker become a mentor."
"I'm not doing it for him," Kurodan said, turning away. "I'm doing it because what's coming makes the God Valley Incident look like a tavern brawl."
Roger tensed. "You mean—"
Kurodan vanished in a flash of air, but his words remained:
"He's moving again. The man above the Gorōsei.
And Toni's sword is the only one that ever cut his shadow."