"Steady your mind. Don't let the pain break you. Compress your Ki again and again, until it feels like your body will split. Push to your limit, then strike at the barrier inside. Stronger… always stronger. That's the price, Kuina. It's only pain."
My voice was steady, though inside I was wound tight as a drawn bowstring. Kuina sat cross-legged in the center of the room, drenched in sweat, her small face crimson with exertion. Her breath came ragged, her lips trembling, but her eyes burned with iron will.
The training chamber stank of herbs and steel. Her thin white training robe clung to her like a second skin, soaked through, exposing every tremor of her young, straining body. Veins bulged at her temples as she fought against the invisible wall inside herself, the limit that marked the edge of one stage and the next.
"Stronger…" Kuina muttered through gritted teeth. Her fists clenched so tight her nails broke skin. "I have to be stronger. I won't fall behind. I won't leave his side. Swordsmanship's peak—I'll climb it even if it kills me. Pain is nothing. NOTHING—AAAHHHH!"
Her cry tore through the room. Her body shuddered violently. Heat surged off her skin like she was burning alive.
I cursed under my breath. Every muscle in me screamed to intervene, to stop it, but I knew I couldn't. This was her fight, her trial. If I interrupted now, I'd only cripple her path forever.
"Hold on, Kuina…" I whispered, fists clenched. "Come on, girl. Bite through it."
Her body convulsed, back arching, and then—
She coughed, a spray of blood painting the floor.
"Kuina!"
I moved instantly, catching her as she collapsed. Her body was hot as fire against my arms, slick with sweat, trembling uncontrollably. My heart lurched at the sight of her pale lips, her eyelids fluttering. For a moment, fear stabbed through me like ice.
Then her lashes lifted, and those dark eyes focused on me. She smiled—weak, but triumphant.
"Jin… I… did it." Her voice was barely a whisper. "I broke through…"
Relief surged so strong I almost laughed. "Good. That's all that matters." I brushed the damp strands of hair from her forehead. "You're drained. Don't fight it. I'll get you into the medicine bath we prepared."
"Mm… thank you, Jin." Her smile lingered for a heartbeat longer before she let go, slipping into unconsciousness.
I exhaled, steadying my own racing pulse, then lifted her into my arms. She weighed nothing, fragile as a feather, yet the heat radiating from her was enough to burn.
When I stepped out of the training room, the others were waiting—Makino, Tina, and Kuma.
Makino's eyes went wide. "She fainted? Jin, you said the risk wasn't serious!"
Tina's fists tightened, concern flashing beneath her Marine-trained composure. Even Kuma set down his weights, watching silently.
"She's fine," I said quickly, adjusting Kuina's limp form in my arms. "This is normal. Her energy and body are simply exhausted. But she did it. Kuina's advanced—she's reached Anjin stage."
Makino's shoulders sagged with relief. Tina's lips parted in surprise. "She… broke through?"
I gave a wry grin. "That stubborn girl forced it. Nearly tore herself apart, but she made it."
Without waiting for more questions, I strode past them into the adjoining bath chamber. Steam coiled from the great wooden tub, the liquid inside dark with herbs I'd spent weeks preparing.
Setting her gently on the bench, I worked quickly, stripping the sweat-soaked robe from her trembling body. Modesty had no place here—this was survival. Her skin was flushed, fever-hot, every line of her lean frame taut with strain. Carefully, I lifted her again and lowered her into the steaming bath.
The water hissed against her overheated skin, herbs seeping into every pore. She sighed in her sleep, tension easing from her brow.
I crouched beside the tub, brushing her damp hair back, my palm lingering against her cheek. "Rest, Kuina. You've earned it."
When I stepped back into the courtyard, the night air hit me like a splash of cold water. Makino and Tina were waiting by the fire, their expressions still edged with worry.
"Jin," Makino asked softly, "when it's my turn… will it be that painful too?"
Her voice was calm, but I caught the flicker of unease beneath it. She wasn't a fighter by nature. She feared pain more than death.
I gave her a reassuring smile. "Not like Kuina. You're walking a different path. Your foundation isn't hardened through brutal training like hers. Your barrier will be thinner. It'll hurt, sure, but not like what she went through tonight."
Makino exhaled slowly, relief softening her features.
Tina, on the other hand, leaned forward, eyes sharp. "So that's the hurdle? This is the wall your method makes us face? What happens after? What's the real change once you break through?"
I studied her for a moment. Tina was different—war had already carved her, made her familiar with suffering. Pain wouldn't break her, not when vengeance still burned in her chest.
"It's not something you need to worry about yet," I said. "For now, your job is simple: soak in the medicine bath every two days. Let your body reshape itself, cast off the weakness of ordinary flesh. That's the real prize—remaking yourself so that your strength is equal to any man's. That was Kuina's first step too."
Tina frowned, clearly dissatisfied.
I smirked. "Don't pout. In just three months, look at yourself. You're not the same woman who came crawling out of the Navy. Your body's stronger, your senses sharper. You've gone from barely using 'Shave' to pulling off the first steps of Geppo. That's not progress?"
Her cheeks colored slightly. "Tch. You nag worse than an old aunt."
Makino laughed softly, handing each of us a cup of fruit wine. "Every time, you two are like this. Do you ever stop bickering?"
"Thanks, Makino." Tina accepted her drink, muttering, "At least you don't yap like him."
"Careful," I warned with a grin, clinking my cup against hers. "Or I'll make you spar Kuina again once she wakes up. Let's see who nags then."
Tina rolled her eyes, but a faint smile betrayed her mood.
I finished my drink and rose, stretching. "Kuma. Walk with me."
The giant perked up instantly, setting aside his weights.
I turned to Makino. "Two hours. Then bring Kuina out of the bath and put her to bed. She'll sleep through till morning."
Makino nodded gently.
As Kuma and I stepped out into the cool night, I caught Tina's voice behind me, muttering into her cup. "Small man, always acting like a big one."
Makino chuckled at her side. "Then why don't you ever say it to his face?"
Silence. Then a tiny, flustered huff.
I didn't hear Makino's next laugh, but I didn't need to. I knew that tone.
Kuina floated in dreams, cradled by heat and herbs. But outside, the game was only beginning.
I looked at the stars burning over Windmill Village, violet eyes glinting. Kuina had broken through. Tina was changing. Makino was readying herself, even if she didn't admit it yet.
The pieces were moving.
And I was no man's pawn.
Not Sengoku's. Not Garp's. Not the World Government's.
This was my board. My game.
And soon, the seas would learn what it meant to gamble with the Gambler King.
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T/N :
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