Chapter 9

As Ian walked, lost in thought, he reached the entrance of the village and saw the people he had been hoping to find.

A group of seven or eight individuals was heading towards the village, and the one at the forefront was an incredibly tall man, standing at least two meters tall.

He was covered in a green cloak, but his face was exposed. In Ian's view, Ivankov's face took up half of his body.

To Ian, Ivankov's face seemed almost as tall as his ten-year-old self...

"Oh my goodness! Scared me to death!" Despite being mentally prepared, Ian was still startled by the imposing face.

Ivankov's eye sockets were heavily lined with eye shadow and mascara, and his huge mouth had purple lipstick, making him look like a ghost.

In the manga, Ivankov seemed exaggerated, but meeting him in person, Ian found him genuinely terrifying.

No wonder Shanks didn't take you to watch the ceremony. With that heavy makeup and that big face, how could anyone not notice you?

Following Ivankov, Ian noticed another person abandoned by Dragon: Bartholomew Kuma.

Kuma was even taller than Ivankov and also wore a green cloak, but on the cloak's hat were two round bear ears.

Your adorable bear-eared hat totally gives you away... Did you really think wearing the cloak would make you unrecognizable?

Indeed, Ivankov and Kuma were an unmistakable pair. They were so unique in appearance that no one else could match them.

The other members of the revolutionary army who accompanied them didn't stand out as much, although they were still cool in their cloaks. Ian could tell they were ordinary members.

As they noticed Ian, the revolutionary army members also saw him.

"Who's this black-haired kid?"

"Is it okay for a child to see us?"

The revolutionary army members whispered among themselves. However, Ivankov didn't pay much attention and approached Ian, bending down to examine him.

"Hey, boy! Your outfit… Are you studying at the village dojo?"

At this moment, Ian snapped back to reality and nodded.

"Your dojo is called Isshin Dojo, right?" Ivankov pointed to the crossed swords emblem on Ian's chest. "I think that's the name."

"How do you know?" Ian was curious. "Do you know Master Koushiro?"

Ivankov glanced back at Kuma, who remained expressionless, holding a book in his hands and looking quite focused. Then Ivankov turned to Ian, "You're right! Boy, you can say we know him!"

They know him? What does that mean? Ian didn't fully understand, but he didn't press further.

"Can you take us to your dojo?" Ivankov asked.

Ian hesitated. He wasn't sure about the relationship between his master, Koushiro, and the revolutionary army. Taking them to meet his master didn't matter, but he thought that meeting these outsiders was a rare opportunity that shouldn't be wasted.

So, he agreed with one condition, "Sure, but you have to promise me something!"

"What condition?" Ivankov was curious.

Ian looked at the other revolutionary army warriors behind him and pointed, "Simple, just let one of them have a sparring match with me!"

"What!?" The revolutionary army warriors were astonished, thinking they had misheard.

One of them even came forward and patted Ian's head, saying, "Kid, don't be silly. Take us to the dojo, and I'll give you some candy!"

Oh, come on! It's one thing for Master Koushiro to pat my head, but now you're treating me like a child too?

Ian swatted away his hand and eyed the sword at his waist, saying, "Alright, it's you!"

"Eh..." The revolutionary warrior was dumbfounded. He never expected a kid to be so assertive. He had no choice but to look towards Ivankov for help.

Ivankov glanced at Ian and saw that he was serious. He nodded, saying, "Don't hurt the boy."

The revolutionary warrior reluctantly agreed and stood his ground, not drawing his sword. He assumed a defensive posture, facing Ian, and said, "Alright, kid, come at me! I won't use my weapon, only my fists."

Ian wasted no time and charged forward, gripping the bamboo sword tightly.

During their first clash, the revolutionary warrior found himself struggling against Ian's speed. He barely managed to avoid Ian's strikes, almost breaking into a sweat.

Unfazed, Ian's long training at the dojo had turned swordsmanship into an instinct for him. When the warrior dodged his attack, Ian immediately seized the opportunity and struck him in the side.

The revolutionary warrior was no pushover, and he quickly dodged Ian's attack, countering with a kick aimed at Ian.

However, just as he kicked, he regretted it. Using all his strength against a kid? Did he really need to take this seriously?

But what he didn't know was that Ian was waiting for him to strike back. The [True . Flash] skill had a condition for activation – it required using it at the moment of the opponent attack. If the warrior continued dodging without retaliating, how could Ian use the skill?

Thus, when the warrior's kick was about to hit him, Ian seized the opportunity and activated the [True . Flash] skill.

In the blink of an eye, Ian vanished from his sight! No one saw how Ian moved his feet, but he suddenly appeared beside the revolutionary warrior, raising the bamboo sword high, and with astonishing speed, brought it down.

The sword moved at incredible speed, leaving behind a trail of light, like a fleeting thunder, before striking the warrior's back heavily!

The warrior was a tall and strong adult, but after taking that strike to his back, he felt an immense force crashing into him. Under this intense pressure, the bones in his back seemed to groan, and his body involuntarily fell forward. The moment he hit the ground, he let out a scream.

Ivankov, who was watching the fight, was now even more astonished. Not because a child defeated an adult, but because of what he sensed just now.

Spinning in place with his cloak, he couldn't help showing off his muscular thigh, clad in fishnet stockings. "Hey! There's a Haki aura! Has this boy awakened Haki at such a young age?"

Unfortunately, Ian didn't hear his exclamation. Instead, he was the one screaming in pain, as the successful use of the [True . Flash] skill had come with a severe, piercing headache. The pain was so intense that he couldn't even hold onto the bamboo sword.

He finally understood why the description of the [True . Flash] skill mentioned causing huge damage – it had fully depleted his 15 points of Mind at once. Moreover, when he used the skill, he felt some kind of force entwining around the entire sword.

That should be the power of Mind! It was because of Mind's presence on the sword that his strike managed to knock down an experienced member of the revolutionary army.

It felt quite similar to Busoshoku Haki, which is probably why Ivankov had exclaimed in surprise.

However, during his first use of the [True . Flash] skill and Mind ability, Ian couldn't control the Mind consumption properly. As a result, all of his Mind was drained, and he was left with a severe headache.

Ian sat down, clutching his head tightly, trying to alleviate the pain. To Ivankov, this seemed like a sign of Ian awakening Haki.