Chapter 170

[Next day]

Ken is sitting on the castle's roof, looking out onto the sea.

"You have been smiling a lot since you woke up. Did something good happen?" asked Mura.

"What's this? You're actually trying to start a conversation with me that has nothing to with our Captain, subordinate relationship."

"What do you mean, Captain? I always ask you how you are doing?"

"Asking someone how they're doing is a greeting. Most people don't really care if they are doing good or not. And it's not like someone will say anything other than that they are doing good."

"Then I'll make sure to get an honest answer out of you the next time I ask."

"Why are you making it sound like you'll torture the answers out of me?"

"Because I am. I'll use the torture method called tickling."

"Hahaha, you're always welcome to try."

"Captain."

Old man Shoichi suddenly appeared behind Ken.

"What's up, old man?"

"Kane's grandfather has found out that we kidnapped him, and he is coming this way. What should we do?"

"Who is keeping an eye on him?"

"Perona. She is using her hollows to spy on him."

"Get me his location."

"He is coming from your 4o clock. He'll be here in about an hour," said a hollow that suddenly appeared out of the ground.

"Perona, lead the way with your hollow. I'll be intercepting him before he makes it here. We were lucky last time that we managed to keep him away from the island. But now he is coming for his grandson, so he will definitely come straight for this island. Once he is close enough, we won't be able to stop him."

"Who are you taking with you, Captain? I'll immediately let them know." said old man Shoichi.

"I'll be going alone."

"But Captain, we don't know if he has backup or not. Last time he got teleported away, so maybe people can also teleport to him."

"Hm, that's true. Have everyone standby for battle. Now that Robert's Devil Fruit is awakened, he can teleport to me without seeing me. I'll use the emergency button in case something happens."

"I'll let everyone know." Old man Shoichi disappeared.

As Ken was about to follow the hollow, someone grabbed his arm. He looked at Mura with a confused expression.

"I won't leave you alone for even a second time. I'll stay out of your fight, but I will immediately step in if I see that you need help. I will not let you leave this island without me."

"You sure have a big mouth against your Captain. But I'm happy to know that you have my back no matter what. You can come with me, but if you hold me back, I will send you back immediately."

"Understood, sir!"

The three of them immediately left towards the Elder's position.

---

20 minutes later, Ken, Mura, and the hollow were standing/floating on an island covered entirely with a forest. Opposite of them is an old man with no hair in sight.

"To think that you would actually come to me yourself. What did you do with my grandson, you bastard!"

"A pedophile has no right to ask me anything. Mura, Hollow Perona, take a step back. I'll trust you guys to make the right calls if needed."

"Yes, Captain!"

They backed up, leaving Ken and the Elder alone. Ken unsheathed Shusui and looked at it with a smile.

"It's been a while since I've last seen you. You might have been on my waist the whole time, but I haven't seen you for years. So to celebrate our reunion, let's kill this prick," whispered Ken.

Shusui vibrated a little, letting Ken know that he is ready to slice up the old man.

"Good, now let's get this done."

Ken didn't waste any more time and immediately ran towards the Elder. The elder pulled out a new sword which is just as long as his old one but of a lower rank.

Ken appeared in front of the Elder. He was releasing a dangerous pressure that made even the Elder fear for his life for a second. But he quickly got his composure back and got ready to defend himself.

Ken slashed downwards towards the Elder, but the Elder managed to block it. The swing was so powerful that it created a crater underneath the Elder and made blood appear on the side of his mouth. Ken kept putting strength in his sword and managed to destroy the elder's block and swing fully down. But the Elder dodged at the last second before he got cut.

'This is the technique he used on Kaido. He slashes up and down several times, and the strength of each slash increases significantly,' thought the Elder.

He got ready to block the slash coming from under, but what he didn't expect was a sudden stab in his left shoulder.

'This bastard! The technique was just a distraction!'

Ken didn't let go of this opportunity and slashed downwards. Blood started spurting out of the Elders armpit, staining his white clothes red. His elbow was now half attached to his body. But the Elder just gritted his teeth and immediately went on the offense.

"Royal Dragon!"

A golden eastern dragon phantom appeared behind the Elder, releasing a crushing pressure. The golden dragon coiled towards his sword, making the sword glow with a golden light. The Elder swung his sword at an incredible speed towards Ken's neck.

"Clang!"

"BOOM!"

Ken blocked the attack by swinging towards it, which created a massive shockwave that uprooted the trees around them and sent them flying.

"Nice try, old man. But you'll have to do better than that if you want to beat me."

Ken pushed the sword away from him and kicked the Elder in his right side, sending him flying.

'Hm?'

Ken looked at Shusui with a surprised expression. He stopped hardening it with Haki and could see that a little part on the bottom of the blade remained black.

"Hahaha, it's about time, Shusui."

Ken hardened it with Haki again and ran towards where he sent the Elder flying. When he found him, he was surprised to see that all his injuries were gone.

"It seems like you still have some surprises up your sleeve. But tricks won't save you now."

A phantom of a Fallen Angel with one wing appeared behind Ken, which released a crushing pressure on the Elder.

"Don't think that you'll scare me with this! Im-sama's pressure is a hundred times greater!"

"Stop wasting your breath, old man. I'm getting bored, so let's end this with one attack."

"You foolish brat, be prepared to die by my sword!"

"Ancient Royal Dragon!"

A phantom of a black eastern dragon that is bigger and releases way more pressure than the golden dragon appeared behind the Elder. The pressure they are releasing is equal. Neither seemed to have the upper hand.

"Dragon's Roar!"

"Fallen's Rage!"

Their swords got enveloped by black energy. The ground around them couldn't support the pressure and started cracking. Random craters started appearing on the ground because of the pressure. Ken and the Elder disappeared. Their swords collided and the black energy fused with each other, turning into a big black ball around them.

"BOOOOM!!!"

The black ball exploded, creating a massive shockwave that destroyed everything in a 20 square kilometers (7,7 square miles) area. Perona's hollow got destroyed by the blast, and Mura had a hard time holding on.

The massive dust cloud that enveloped the clash suddenly got pushed away by an invisible force that wasn't the wind. In the middle of the clash was a giant crater that spanned 20 square kilometers and is 100 meters (109 yards) deep.

Ken was standing there with no one else in sight. He stopped the hardening on Shusui, but it remained pitch black, showing that Shusui has upgraded to the next rank and has become a Supreme Grade sword.

"Thank you, Shusui. And congratulations for probably being the first-ever sword to increase by 2 ranks," said Ken as he sheathed Shusui back in its sheath. But when he tried to walk, he suddenly started falling forward.

"Captain!"

Mura quickly appeared next to Ken and grabbed him before he fell. She put his arm around her shoulder to support him.

"Thank you, Mura. It seems like it was a smart choice to bring you with me."

"Where did he go?"

"I don't know. But I doubt that he'll make the cut for heaven, so he is probably in Hell right now."

"Wait, he is dead? But where is his body?"

"I turned it to dust."

"Even his sword?"

"Aren't I awesome?"

"You are more than awesome! You are the best, Captain!"

"Hahaha, that's what I like to hear."

"Do you need a lift home?"

Ken and Mura turned around, seeing Robert's head poking out of a shadow portal.

"Thank you, Robert."

"My pleasure, Captain."

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[Too strong? He won't be able to solo two Elders, but he is getting there. And now that Shusui is a Supreme Grade sword, he'll become stronger.]

Facts:

- In the Middle Ages, swords were made of steel and they were so sharp and heavy that they could cut a man in half.

- Toledo, in Spain was also one of the centers and was very famous for its steel swords. Legend says that, to test a Toledo sword, people would throw a silk handkerchief into and let it flow down onto the sword blade. A true Toledo sword would cut a handkerchief from the mere gravity.

- Swordplay was a privilege reserved for the upper class and from 1600-1789, 40,000 aristocrats in Europe lost their lives in sword duels.

- The samurai believed that in their sword lived their warrior spirit so they would often give names to their swords.

- The first samurai swords had a straight blade and were imported from Korea and China. Only later they were made curved because they could be drawn faster from the scabbard and had a far more effective cutting angle.