Kuina's fingertips hovered over the golden box. All she had to do was push forward slightly to touch the fruit that could change her destiny. But her hand did not move.
The fruit lay quietly in the box, its purple-black textures writhing like blood vessels, as if whispering, as if tempting. It was like an abyss, luring her to step into a place from which she could never return.
"If I eat it... am I still a 'swordsman'?" Her lips trembled slightly, her eyes full of conflict and hesitation.
"Kuina," Roy's voice sounded at this moment, his tone calm but with an undeniable firmness. "Eating a fruit does not mean you have betrayed your original intention in the path of the sword."
Kuina suddenly looked up, looking at those eyes that were as steady as the sea, as if seeking an answer from them. "What you pursue has never been to rely on any power, but how to win by yourself," Roy said slowly. "Eating a Devil Fruit will not change that."
"The reason I brought it to you is not because you lack diligence, talent, skill, or will—but precisely because you possess all of these."
"The only thing you lack is the physique to support you until the very last moment."
Gion stood to the side, listening silently, her eyes moving slightly, and did not interrupt. Roy looked at Kuina, his expression unusually serious. "I had originally considered other methods."
"Scientific modification? I completely disagree."
"'Life Return'? That's just a method of precisely allocating existing life functions through will." He slowly held up a finger. "It can let you use your physical fitness at 150%, but it cannot turn your 'physical fitness itself' into 150%."
"To put it another way, if the upper limit of your constitution is 1500."
"And those men with naturally strong physiques, like Zoro, his upper limit from the very beginning is 2000, or even higher."
Kuina was silent. Her fingertips tightened slightly, and that familiar unwillingness welated up in her heart again. "You try your best just to fight them to a draw."
"And the other person has only used less than seventy percent of their strength."
"This kind of unfairness is not because you are 'not working hard enough,' but because your innate body is 'not allowed'." Roy said softly, his voice calm with anger. He looked down at the fruit. "What you are born with cannot be changed. So, I just want to help you get back to the 'starting line' that should have been yours."
Kuina's eyes trembled slightly, her lips parted, but her throat was as if it were blocked, and she couldn't say anything. She looked at the Devil Fruit in the box, then at Roy, and finally asked in a low voice, "But if... I defeat someone with this power, does that still count as my win?"
Roy answered calmly, "Of course it does."
"Because what I'm giving you is not a cheat item that can 'instantly win'."
"The Vampire Fruit will not enhance your sword skills, nor will it automatically fight for you."
"It will only ensure that in every second of the clash of blades, you will not collapse and be forced to stop prematurely because of the innate gap in your body."
"You will still need to train your swordsmanship step by step and ultimately win with your own sword."
"It's just that this time, you won't have to be forced to stop for the ridiculous reason of 'lack of stamina' and being unable to continue to use your own sword style."
Roy gently approached, closed the box, but did not take it away. He looked her in the eye, his tone becoming gentle. "It is not your end point, not your answer. It is just the starting point for you to obtain 'fairness'."
"Eat it, and you can still choose not to use the fruit's power, and still fight with just your swordsmanship."
"But when you truly face those strong enemies, when you have to hold on until the very last moment—"
"It will give you the qualification to 'hold on'."
"The path of the sword you have to protect has never been polluted, because the hand that holds the sword has never let go."
Kuina stared at him blankly, as if she had truly understood the meaning of this fruit for the first time. Her fingertips finally touched the lid of the box, her fingertips on the cold metal surface, gently rubbing it. "It just gives me the qualification to 'compete fairly' with male swordsmen..." she murmured to herself, and in her eyes, that long-suppressed obsession seemed to have finally been loosened a little.
It was not submission, nor was it surrender. It was to complete, with a stronger posture, the height that a "pure sword" could not reach.
Roy did not rush her but just stood quietly to the side, as if watching a moment when a new chapter of fate was about to be turned. Gion looked at Kuina and said softly, "Kuina, this is your choice."
An evening breeze swept through the dojo, lifting the damp hair on her forehead and also stirring the long-unresolved obsession in her heart. Kuina slowly closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and finally—opened her eyes. At that moment, there was no more confusion in her eyes.
"I understand," her tone was low but firm, as if she had compressed the obsession of the past ten-plus years into one sentence. "If this can put me on the same starting line as them, and allow me to truly climb the pinnacle as a 'swordsman'..."
"Then I accept."
She no longer hesitated. She reached out and grabbed the eerie yet quiet fruit—and the moment she bit down, the air seemed to freeze. The pulp was cold and thick, and an indescribable energy instantly exploded in her body.
Kuina trembled violently and fell to one knee, her Wado Ichimonji held tightly in her hand, deeply embedded in the floor. Her pupils constricted suddenly, then slowly turned a deep red, like the cold blood of the moon, with a calmness that surpassed that of ordinary people. Her originally pale face, soaked with sweat, was now even fairer and more translucent, as if it had been dyed by the moonlight, exuding a strange, quiet beauty.
A faint stirring behind her back, as if some power were about to break through, but a complete bat wing did not actually appear—that restraint was as if even the will of the Devil Fruit had been tamed by her "will of the sword."
Gion had subconsciously gripped her Konpira but, seeing Kuina at this moment, her fingers slowly relaxed. "She was not swallowed by the fruit's will... she is suppressing it."
And Roy just quietly looked at her back, a slight smile on his lips. "Very good... it seems the fruit also recognizes your 'sword intent'."
Kuina slowly stood up and looked down at her own pale yet more powerful hands. She could clearly feel the unprecedented activity in her blood—her stamina, perception, regenerative abilities, and even every heartbeat were incredibly clear. It was as if all the heavy shackles had been loosened at this moment.
She suddenly looked up, her blood-red eyes locking onto Gion. Her voice was still clear but had a new, murderous quality from the dead of night. "Sister Gion, one more round."
"This time, I will not lose."
Gion was taken aback for a moment. In that instant, what she saw was no longer the once-lost girl but a true master swordsman about to break through the dark night. She chuckled lightly, drew her Konpira, and as the golden light flowed, her fighting spirit rose again. "As you wish."
The next moment, the two figures crossed again. This time, Kuina's sword was no longer just fast and precise but, amidst its sharpness, held a new, lasting fighting spirit and a complete conviction.
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