One Piece: The sky is azure, I just time-traveled today.

Page 44

When did bookworms become this strong in this world?!

Kuina sheathed her sword, shook her wrist, and commented with lingering satisfaction, "Hmm, this newbie is a bit more resilient than you, and knows how to cooperate, but his strength is even worse."

Robin closed the book, adjusted his glasses, and concluded: "The tactical intent was clear, but the execution was poor. Overall score: failing grade."

Ace & Sabo: "..." (That's incredibly hurtful!)

Looking at her son's yet another crushing defeat and his equally disheveled friend, Lu Jiu felt a pang of heartache mixed with a strange urge to laugh. She shook her head, glanced at the still composed Liu Jiu beside her, and said helplessly, "This child... really..."

Liu Jiu's gaze lingered for a moment on the two dejected boys in the center of the open space, his lips twitching almost imperceptibly, before he turned away.

"gone back."

Rouge took one last look at Ace and Sabo, sighed softly, and then left with Liu Jiu.

Ace lay on the ground, staring at the sky with a blank look in his eyes, as if he were contemplating life.

Sabo finally stopped hiccuping, but he felt as if all his bones had been removed, slumped there, his eyes vacant, muttering, "Hands... so many hands... and they can tickle..."

Kuina grew impatient and poked Ace's calf with her bamboo sword: "Hey, are we still going to fight or not? If not, we're going back."

Robin had reopened the book, seemingly having lost interest in the "wound" before him.

Sabo jolted awake, as if grasping at a straw, struggling to sit up straight. He couldn't just give up like this! It was too humiliating! Especially losing to two women (even though one of them attacked in an extremely unsportsmanlike manner)!

His mind raced. He couldn't win a fight; that violent woman's wooden stick was incredibly strange, clearly from a martial arts school; and that bookish guy's magic tricks were impossible to defend against. He had to change course!

"That doesn't count!" Sabo retorted, trying to regain his composure. "You...you got the advantage because of your superior abilities! If you're so capable...if you're so capable, let's compete in something else!"

"Oh?" Kuina raised an eyebrow, showing interest. "What kind of competition? Is it to see who can read faster?"

She glanced at Robin deliberately.

Robin didn't even look up: "If they want to compete in this, I can let them watch for three days first."

Ace & Sabo: "..." (They feel insulted again!)

"Who wants to compete in reading!" Sabo retorted loudly. He took a deep breath and said what he considered the safest and most manly thing to do: "Let's compete in hunting!"

He pointed to the surrounding dense forest, full of confidence: "Let's see who catches the biggest and fiercest prey before sunset today! Do you dare?"

This is his and Ace's home turf! They've been through so much in the mountains since they were kids, chasing rabbits and wild boars. They know this mountain like the backyard! They refuse to believe they can lose here!

Upon hearing this, Ace perked up, sprang to his feet, and chimed in, "Right! Let's have a hunting contest! The loser... the loser has to acknowledge the other as the boss! From now on, they have to call him 'Big Brother'!"

Kuina and Robin exchanged a glance.

Kuina's eyes held an indifferent look, as if to say, "What's the point of comparing these things?"

Robin's eyes flashed with a thoughtful look, then he nodded slightly to Kuina.

“Fine.” Kuina nonchalantly hoisted her bamboo sword. “Let’s have a match. But…”

She gave a wicked smile. "If you lose again, you're not allowed to cry!"

"Who cries?!" Ace and Sabo shouted in unison, feeling their manly dignity had been severely challenged.

"Alright! It's a deal!" Sabo, fearing the other party might back out, immediately finalized the agreement. "Meet here before sunset! The winner will be decided by the size and ferocity of the prey!"

“No problem!” Guina readily agreed.

The four split into two groups and quickly disappeared into the dense forest.

Ace and Sabo, as if returning to their own territory, moved nimbly and with sharp eyes, began searching for traces of large prey. Overflowing with confidence, they felt victory was within their grasp.

Meanwhile, Kuina and Robin...

Kuina, carrying her bamboo sword, strode forward, complaining, "Hunting? Too much trouble! Fighting is much more fun!"

Robin followed her at a leisurely pace, his gaze sweeping over the surrounding vegetation and ground markings. He said softly, "Kuina, there's movement behind the bushes about 300 meters to the left. It's quite large; it seems to be a wild boar."

Kuina paused, looking at Robin in surprise: "How did you know?"

Robin pointed to his eyes and the few small hands that were faintly visible in the surrounding trees: "Observation, plus a little bit of 'scout'."

Kuina grinned: "Not bad, you bookworm! Let's go!"

She instantly became motivated and silently crept towards the direction Robin pointed.

Sure enough, they hadn't gone far when they heard grunting sounds coming from behind the bushes, along with a strong smell of wild boar.

Kuina's eyes sharpened, she lowered her body, and slowly raised her bamboo sword...

Meanwhile, Ace and Sabo on the other side also spotted a burly wild boar wallowing in the mud.

"Found it! It's huge!" Sabo whispered excitedly.

"Watch me!" Ace gripped the hose tightly, his eyes gleaming with determination.

Both sides locked onto their targets almost simultaneously.

A hunting duel concerning men's dignity has officially begun!

As the sun slowly sets, it paints the mountains and forests in a golden-red hue.

In the open field, Ace and Sabo returned, panting, dragging a rather sturdy wild boar that had been knocked unconscious. Both wore smug smiles; despite a few more scrapes and bruises, the sight of their spoils made them feel confident they had secured their victory!

"Hmph, let's see what they can hunt!" Ace smugly snorted.

Just then, Kuina and Robin returned.

Kuina remained as relaxed as ever, barely breaking a sweat. Robin followed quietly behind her.

The "prey" they brought back instantly froze the smiles on Ace and Sabo's faces, their eyes widened in disbelief, and their jaws nearly dropped to their feet—

That wasn't a wild boar, nor was it a leopard.

It was... with its limbs broken, bound tightly with vines, and still emitting threatening growls...

A giant adult bear?!

Its enormous size, its sharp claws and teeth, its ferocious aura... compared to the wild boar they dragged back, it was nothing!

Kuina planted the bamboo sword in the ground, clapped her hands, and gave a "kind" smile to the dumbfounded Ace and Sabo:

"So? Do you submit? Call me Boss?"

Chapter 47 Daily Sparring

Two months flew by amidst the chaos of the Corpo Mountains.

Ace and Sabo had a very fulfilling two months – their main activities were getting beaten up and figuring out how to get beaten up in a way that wouldn't look so bad.

Their daily fights with Kuina had become a regular occurrence, though it was always one-sided beatings. They felt uneasy if they didn't go to the open space behind the mountain every day.

After several painful lessons of being unable to get close to him, Ace and Sabo reached a consensus: this nerd is weird, we can't mess with him, we can only avoid him!

They even thought they were quite kind.

"We're men, we won't stoop to the level of a weak woman reading a book!"

Sabo said to Ace in a serious tone, selectively forgetting the time he almost laughed himself to death.

Ace nodded in agreement: "That's right! Our goal is to defeat that violent woman!"

So, whenever they went to fight Kuina, they would deliberately ignore Robin, who was reading a book, as if she were some untouchable taboo.

Robin was happy to have some peace and quiet, sitting in his usual spot with a book, occasionally glancing at the battle, or using his abilities to help Kuina by handing her water or picking up a fallen bamboo sword, keeping his deeds and fame hidden.

That afternoon, in an open space.

Ace and Sabo worked together seamlessly, with one attacking the top lane and his water pipes whistling through the air, while the other ambushed the lower body and used his steel pipes to sweep the ankles.

The experience of being beaten up over the past two months, along with their crazy extra training in private, has clearly paid off. Their offensive is noticeably more aggressive than before, and their attacks are much smoother.

Kuina initially appeared completely at ease, wielding her bamboo sword and precisely parrying and counterattacking.

"Snap!" The hose was blocked from Ace's path.

"Bang!" The steel pipe that Saab was knocked back.

But gradually, she noticed that the two boys were a little different today. Their attacks were more cunning, and their defense was more tenacious, especially their desperate spirit, which forced her to concentrate a bit more.

"Tsk, you've improved." Kuina muttered, then flicked her wrist, and the bamboo sword suddenly sped up!

"Whoosh whoosh!"

Bamboo shadows fluttered, the attack was as swift and fierce as a storm!

Ace and Sabo suddenly felt immense pressure, and new red marks began to appear on their bodies, causing them to grimace in pain. However, the two of them gritted their teeth and refused to back down an inch!

"Sabo! To the left!"

"Ace! Watch out above!"

They reminded each other and their teamwork became increasingly skillful, managing to withstand Kuina's fierce attack!

A flicker of surprise crossed Kuina's eyes, which was quickly replaced by an even stronger fighting spirit. It had been a long time since she'd encountered an opponent who could make her take things even slightly seriously!

"Not bad! That's more like it!"

With a sharp shout, her footwork suddenly shifted, and her figure flickered like a ghost! The bamboo sword was no longer just for blocking and striking, but carried a more ferocious slashing quality! Although it was still a bamboo sword, the sound of it cutting through the air sent chills down Ace and Sabo's spines!

"Oh no! She's serious!" Sabo exclaimed.

"What are you afraid of! Let's fight her!" Ace roared and charged forward.

The water pipe and the bamboo knife collided violently!

Ace felt an immense force far greater than before, his hand throbbed with pain, and he nearly dropped the water pipe! He was jolted backward!

Seeing this, Sabo hurriedly launched a surprise attack from the flank, attempting to relieve the siege of Wei by attacking Zhao.

However, as if Kuina had eyes in the back of her head, her bamboo sword swirled and struck Sabo's wrist at an incredible angle!

Sabo cried out in pain as the steel pipe nearly hit the ground.

The situation reversed instantly!

Kuina pressed her advantage relentlessly, her bamboo sword transforming into afterimages that completely enveloped the two! Each collision sent numbness through Ace and Sabo's arms, and each strike sent excruciating pain through them!

Despite their best efforts, the two could barely protect their vitals and were forced to retreat in disarray.

In the distance, Robin had closed her book at some point, her gaze focused intently on the battle. She could sense that Kuina had truly used a significant amount of her strength this time.

Ace was caught off guard and was struck hard in the chest by a bamboo sword. He immediately lost his breath and staggered to the ground.