Chapter 73: A First Glimpse of Conqueror’s Spirit

If one remains confined for too long, they become naturally dazed—this perfectly described Mihawk's state. During the days of interacting with Mihawk, Chu Yi had long since noticed his pattern of living: aside from training in the way of the sword, he would quietly sit there, cradling his wooden blade in his arms, lost in thought. He was taciturn, and when spoken to, it often took him ages to respond—and his answer was usually to a previous question, not the one just asked.

Take, for example, the matter of Chu Yi being a Devil Fruit user...

Alright, Mihawk had only just now realized it, driving Chu Yi nearly mad with frustration.

Could his dazedness be any more pronounced? Was his mental reflex arc impossibly long?

As Chu Yi considered whether he should peel back Mihawk's skull to see if the young "Hawkeye" had something wrong with his brain, his mind flashed back to the day they first met, the conversation about swordsmanship. For a moment, Chu Yi forgot about the failed trigger for the Bullseye Fruit awakening material quest, and the matter of Mihawk's dazedness slipped from his mind as well.

That night, Chu Yi gripped the broken Asura Blade and sat cross-legged opposite Mihawk, who similarly held his fractured wooden sword. Curious, Chu Yi asked, "Mihawk, a master once guided my sword training, saying that if I wished to become one of the greatest swordsmen in the sea like you, I must first complete three steps: cut the wave with one stroke, break a ship with one stroke, and part the sea with one stroke. Do you think that's right?"

After Chu Yi finished, Mihawk responded with silence.

He remained silent for a long time before slowly raising his head and replying, entirely off-topic, "Chu Yi, your swordsmanship is intriguing. What interests me even more is your sword intent."

"Hmm... A very forceful sword intent. Excellent!"

Chu Yi's brow furrowed, dark lines appearing on his forehead. Clearly, he couldn't keep pace with Mihawk's conversational rhythm. With a sigh, he said, "Lately, while training, I feel I’m just a hair's breadth away from a breakthrough. Cutting the wave with one stroke is easy for me now, and for someone who hasn't trained long in swordsmanship, I've progressed rapidly. But I can't accept being stuck at this bottleneck. I'm so close to breaking a ship with one stroke. Mihawk, what do you think I'm missing?"

"Hmm..."

After Chu Yi spoke, Mihawk fell into contemplation, as if searching for the right words, making Chu Yi faintly hopeful.

Yet, after a moment, Mihawk looked at Chu Yi with curiosity and, as if talking to himself, said, "Strange, truly strange... Chu Yi, who taught you swordsmanship? Why... why does it always feel to me like you’ve got it backward?"

"Backward? What do you mean?"

Already feeling exasperated by conversation so out of sync, Chu Yi decided to follow Mihawk’s train of thought, hoping they might finally communicate properly.

However...

Mihawk was not a man who treaded the ordinary path!

After hearing Chu Yi's question, Mihawk suddenly looked up at him and said earnestly, "Chu Yi, what you're missing in swordsmanship is simply focus. When you wield your sword, if you can do so with pure concentration, undistracted by anything else, your realm of swordsmanship will advance to the next stage!"

Having said this, Mihawk gave Chu Yi a faint smile.

Yet, as Chu Yi gazed at that smile, he felt Mihawk was silently saying...

I'm answering your previous question!

Surprised? Happy?

Despite feeling as if "Hawkeye" was toying with him, Chu Yi didn’t give up seeking Mihawk’s guidance. The two continued their mismatched conversation deep into the night.

At this point, setting aside the difficulty of conversing with Mihawk in his dazed state, Chu Yi carefully observed Mihawk’s persistent "dazedness" and recalled the words he had spoken. Suddenly, a flash of insight appeared in Chu Yi’s mind.

But alas...

It vanished in an instant!

"What was that feeling? It was... so peculiar!" Chu Yi wondered.

"I clearly grasped something essential, yet it suddenly slipped away. Where did that insight come from?"

"Right! It seems... it seems to be because of Mihawk’s dazedness?"

Recalling how that epiphany had emerged, Chu Yi fixed his gaze on Mihawk, quickly catching the trace of understanding that had just surfaced.

Dazedness... Is it truly natural?

No!

What Mihawk exuded was not simple dazedness; it was as if he was constantly lost in thought or focused on something with unwavering concentration, which was why he gave off the impression of being an introverted recluse, naturally dazed.

Immersed in his own thoughts, absorbed in that focus, Mihawk had no mental capacity left to observe or consider anything else.

This was the main reason for Mihawk’s apparent dazedness. And this reason...

Could it also be what made Mihawk the future "Hawkeye," the world's greatest swordsman?

At that moment, completely ignoring the matter of the Flying Pirates being dispatched in a single stroke by Mihawk, Chu Yi quickly commanded his shadow clone to continue leading the group toward Fishman Island.

As for Chu Yi himself...

He instantly transformed into his Asura form, seeking to experience Mihawk’s state, slowly learning to emulate Mihawk’s dazedness.

But mimicking Mihawk’s state proved exceedingly difficult.

Staring at Mihawk, Chu Yi placed the Asura Blade across his knees and sat quietly like him. Before long, a wave of irritation surged in his heart, making him want to toss aside the blade and rid himself of such boredom.

Yet, relying on sheer willpower, Chu Yi forcibly suppressed the agitation within.

But the restlessness didn’t fade; it only grew more intense with every effort to subdue it.

Then, hours passed.

By now, Chu Yi’s irritation had reached its peak. He felt that if he couldn’t purge this feeling soon, it would drive him mad!

As the flames of frustration seemed to burn within his chest and belly...

Suddenly!

Mihawk turned and slashed his wooden sword at Chu Yi!

"Swish!"

The sword moved so swiftly that Chu Yi had no time to react. The strike landed right in front of him.

But when the blade fell, the expected torrent of sword energy did not surge forth. Seeing Mihawk lower his sword, Chu Yi, though surprised, didn’t stand to question him.

Because, as Mihawk’s sword came down, Chu Yi suddenly sensed the irritation in his heart vanish!

In an instant, the flames of frustration disappeared, replaced by a subtle coolness spreading through his body. As that coolness enveloped him, Chu Yi was struck by a feeling of inner calm, as tranquil as still water. It was a sensation like bathing in warm water—comfortable, but more importantly...

With all distracting thoughts purged from his mind, Chu Yi suddenly felt something inside him awaken!

Immediately...

"Whoosh!"

An invisible current surged from Chu Yi’s body, spreading outward.

Wherever this current reached, even the tiniest objects were perfectly reflected in Chu Yi’s mind, allowing him to perceive every detail of the pitch-black depths without relying on sight!

At the same time, as Chu Yi released that invisible aura, Tiger, whose expression had been gloomy, turned in astonishment to look at Chu Yi, then at Mihawk with the same astonished gaze.

At that moment, Mihawk regarded Tiger with a slight smile, saying nothing.

As for Chu Yi...

As the aura radiated from him, his state of tranquil focus was instantly disrupted by the strangeness of what he sensed.

Yet, having lost that wondrous feeling, Chu Yi was neither discouraged nor disappointed. He simply stepped forward and gave Mihawk’s shoulder a firm pat in gratitude. Remembering the sensation of "mind as calm as water" from his Asura form, Chu Yi hurried to dispel distracting thoughts and attempted to regain that state of pure concentration.

And so, as he trained, time began to fly by.

About two days later, Chu Yi’s shadow clone finally used the special effect of "Almighty Push" to guide the group to the outskirts of Fishman Island.

As Tiger looked ahead, his mood stirred as he saw their destination wrapped in a giant bubble, eager to tell Chu Yi they had arrived...

After two days of silence, Chu Yi, who had been as wordless and withdrawn as Mihawk, suddenly radiated that invisible aura once more!

"Tiger, do you think my Observation Haki can be considered..."

"A true mastery?"