DISCLAIMER: I OWN NOTHING, EXCEPT RAGNAR AND ALL VIKINGS IN THIS STORY! ONE PIECE BELONGS TO EICHIRO ODA, VIZ MANGA, TOEI ANIMATION AND FUNIMATION ENTERTAINMENT/CRUNCHYROLL LLC


Chapter 19: The Three-Sword Style's Past! Zoro and Kuina's Vow!

It was a clear and sunny day over Shimotsuki Village, and as he stood atop a great hill overlooking the valley below, the young boy called Roronoa Zoro knew exactly what he planned to do today. He was going to prove his worth to the world!


In the local dojo, the master swordsman, Shimotsuki Koushirou, was instructing another lesson in proper technique to both boys and girls. He couldn't help but feel a sense of pride. Ever since his father established this dojo after coming all the way from the Land of Wano, this village had its own tradition of East Blue samurai ready to defend their island home from pirates.

"Hey! Anybody wanna come out?" A voice suddenly called out, and Koushirou turned to see the boy, Zoro, at the front entrance. He was wearing a dirtied white polo shirt and a pair of denim overalls, with a blade of grass in his mouth like a toothpick. "I'm here to challenge your dojo, so send someone out to face me! I'm ready to fight!"

"Is that so?" Koushirou chuckled, "A dojo challenge is quite rare these days, young man."

"Don't patronize me just because I'm a kid," Zoro replied, "In the next village over, I'm unrivaled!"

"Very well then, I accept your challenge," said Koushirou, who was patient enough to humor the boy.

"If I win, then your dojo is mine!"

"And if you lose? What will happen then?"

"I'll…uh…I'll join as one of your students! How about that?" Koushirou only laughed in amusement.

"That sounds very fair to me," then he turned towards the dojo proper, "Kuina! It appears this young boy wants to challenge you." All at once, the boys parted, and a young girl with short black hair emerged. She wore a pink sleeveless shirt and the standard green hakama, holding a shinai in her left hand.

"You called for me, father?" she asked, as she saw the boy, who was infuriated at this point.

"I have to fight her!?" Zoro growled, "You mean you're not gonna fight me yourself!? Do you know who I am!? I'm Roronoa Zoro! Son of the great samurai Roronoa Arashi!"

"Well then, young Zoro, you're in for quite a challenge," Koushirou explained, "Kuina may be just a girl, but she's stronger than any adult among us. As her father, I can attest to this without bias." Zoro and Kuina only stared at each other, seemingly as if they were sizing each other up.

"Fine, I'll fight her," the boy grumbled, reluctantly he would fight her.

"Excellent. Please, come inside and prepare," said Koushirou as Zoro took off his boots and made his way inside. He was then led to a barrel full of shinai.

"Can I use as many of these as I want?" He asked.

"Of course you may," replied the sensei. Zoro then spat out the blade of grass he held in his mouth, and grinned cockily. When he was ready to fight, he was holding as many shinai as he could in both of his hands, and three of them in his mouth! "Very well, let us begin!" Koushirou declared. The other boys looked on in confusion. How could this outsider wield that many shinai? Either he had nerves of steel or he was a total fool. Zoro and Kuina only followed Koushirou's instructions, bowing first before the Gods, and then to each other. Each time Zoro bowed, one of the shinai he held in his mouth, dropped to the floor. "Begin!" Koushirou declared, and the match was on: Zoro with his improvised fighting style, and Kuina with both hands on her lone shinai like the onna-bugeisha her ancestresses were. Whatever the outcome, it would surely be a decisive one. Either a boy would become the new sensei, or he would become a new student.

Kuina made the first move, striking down for Zoro's head, but he instinctively blocked her with his many shinai. Even though he claimed to be undefeated in the next village over, the way he struggled marked out the obvious: he was only bluffing. That seemed evident as Kuina struck him in the chest, causing him to drop his shinai as he skidded across the dojo floor. Yet still, he refused to stay down. He was going to fight, and he was going to win! Quickly, he rose to his feet and picked up two fallen shinai in his hands. Both Kuina and her father were amazed by the stance he took. Was this boy secretly a master?

"So, I take it that you've studied the Two-Sword Style, have you?" Kuina asked, somewhat intrigued.

"No way! This is the first time I even held a shinai before!" Zoro admitted.

"Is that so, now?" Koushirou asked, still smiling.

'Dammit! I know I'm strong!' Zoro thought angrily, 'My dad died protecting our village from pirates! I'm the descendant of the great samurai Ryuma! I refuse to lose to a mere girl!' Then he charged forward, ready to strike, but in so doing, he left himself wide open. Kuina raised her shinai and only exploited this, striking the boy on the head once more. Now, the outcome was decisive: Zoro had finally lost, and he finally accepted it as he lay flat on his front.

"This match is over! Kuina is the victor!" Koushirou declared. Kuina then approached her sparring partner and placed the tip of her shinai on the floor.

"Unbelievable, I swear, this boy's like a wild boar," Kuina muttered, then looked at her father, "So much for being undefeated the next village over. Father, he's an amateur, and he's too young to have even learned the Two-Sword style."

"What…did you…say!?" Zoro growled, grasping the tip of the shinai with rage. Yet at seeing his resolve, Kuina couldn't help but smile. He may have lost to her, but he showed determination. She respected that…in fact, she admired it.

"Y'know, we can go again, if you're still ready to lose," she told him mockingly.

"No…you beat me fair and square. A loss is a loss," said Zoro, reluctantly admitting that she defeated him.

"It is wise to accept defeat gracefully," said Koushirou, "And now…"

"Now, I'll join as one of your students!" Zoro interjected, rising to his feet, glaring at Kuina with a fire in his eyes, "And you. I want you to know: I'm gonna train with everything I got, day and night, and someday…I promise I'm gonna beat you! Count on it!" Seeing his resolve so assured, Kuina only smiled at her new rival.

"You're certainly welcome to try…" she only told him, then departed, feeling as if this boy was only bluffing again.


And so, for an entire year, Zoro trained himself to where he would one day be able to best Kuina once and for all. He went above and beyond what was expected of him, even using his free time to perfect his fighting styles. By the end of summer, he moved on from using only one shinai, and by autumn of that year, he was lifting rocks from streams with only his teeth. He even trained barefoot with two shinai in the dead winter, his feet ice cold in the snow. Koushirou had to even bring the boy inside after nearly catching hypothermia! By spring, the boy was even carrying his classmates on his back during sunset runs, all to build up his strength and stamina. He was determined to finally defeat Kuina. He was so obsessed with this goal, he didn't even know she was watching him from afar.


By midsummer, the boy was a master at the Two-Sword Style, and amazed everyone of his classmates by how he was able to defeat the adults now! Kuina couldn't believe her eyes, was this boy actually going to be better than her someday? She couldn't let him tarnish her reputation. And so, she too trained hard and with all her power. Each time she and Zoro sparred, she proved she always could best him time and time again.

Then, one day, the result was the same, with Zoro flat on his back and Kuina pointing the tip of her shinai at him in triumph.

"The match is over!" The referee declared, "The victor is Kuina with 2000 total victories and no losses." Zoro was frustrated. How could he still lose to her after all this time!?

"You're weak, Zoro. Nothing ever changes," Kuina told him with a confident grin, "You may be able to beat the adults, but compared to me, you're still pathetic. Even with only two swords, a weakling is still a weakling." Then she turned to accept her victory and departed, riling up the anger of the other boys. Just because she was the only girl didn't mean she could chastise one of their strongest students.

Yet Zoro only picked himself up, dusted himself off, and acted as if nothing ever happened, in spite of the red bruise on his face.

"I'm impressed. You've grown so strong since you first came here, Zoro," said Koushirou as he walked behind his pupil, "And yet, you continue to lose every match against Kuina."

"Sensei! Are you giving her special training?!" A student asked, "She might be your daughter, but that's not fair!"

"You shouldn't cheat!"

"Calm down, boys. I've done nothing of the sort," Koushirou explained, "You see, Zoro may have indeed grown stronger, but in all that time so too has Kuina." Hearing this, Zoro only turned and exited the sparring room for the gardens.

"I'm gonna go wash up, Sensei," he declared, and made his way over to the well. As he washed the blood and dirt off his face, Zoro couldn't help but look at his reflection in the water. Even if his sensei was right, his pride wouldn't stand for the fact that Kuina still defeated him. "Dammit! Why can't I beat her!?" He growled to himself, "Why!? Why!? Why!? I'm the son of a samurai! I have to be the strongest swordsman in the world! So why can't I beat her!?" Wiping the water from his face with a towel, he finally came to an ultimatum. "That settles it! Tonight, we're fighting again!"


That evening, Koushirou and his peer met over a moonlight cup of sake.

"It's only been a year since Zoro joined us, and the boy's progress is nothing short of spectacular," said the man, "He trains so much more than the other students, that it's incomparable! That must be what drives his progress, but it seems that the boy is no match for Kuina."

"You're right. As her father, I couldn't be prouder of her," said Koushirou, "Outside of Wano, onna-bugeisha face immense obstacles, and Kuina has shown that she is a capable warrior…but even for her skill, she is still only a child. As such, I still cannot trust the inheritance of this dojo to her, not when she is still unprepared." Koushirou couldn't have suspected that his own daughter was listening. After all she had accomplished, he still saw her as his little girl.

'Damn it! Father can't do this! He can't!' She thought, distraught at hearing the news, 'I have to become the world's greatest swordswoman! I just have to! Then he'll finally see I'm ready.' Angered by what she heard, Kuina tearfully left towards the outskirts of the village, the light of the full moon illuminating her path.


On that same night, Zoro raced with a passionate fire in his heart towards the dojo, with two actual swords in his hands. That was when he spotted Kuina, sitting on a rock near the rice paddies. By the time he approached her, she noticed the swords in his hands.

"It's late out, Kuina. Shouldn't you be in bed?" He asked, confused as he saw her wipe her eyes. Had she been crying?

"Funny. I was about to ask you the same thing," she replied, glaring back at him, "What are you doing out at this hour, and why are you holding those? You know the dojo's rules about handling weapons unsupervised."

"Shut up! I've come to challenge you to your 2001st fight, and this time, it's gonna be the last fight you and I will ever have! This ends tonight! So c'mon, fight me with a real sword! You do have one, don't you?"

"Real swords?" Kuina asked, surprised that Zoro would even suggest such a thing, but it didn't matter, and the smile she gave him proved it. "You're on! Just give me a moment." She then went to the storehouse of the dojo's estate, and saw what she was looking for: a katana with a white hilt cord and scabbard. She knew all too well the history of that sword even as she grasped it in her hands, looking at her reflection in the blade. "The Wado Ichimonji…" she muttered.

The two met again in an isolated plain, far from prying eyes. No one was going to see this duel, not this time. Honor was at stake. They both only stared at each other for what seemed like a minute, and then Zoro made the first move, charging straight at Kuina. Instantly, she parried the first strike. Then came the second strike, which managed to cut at her bangs, but she counterattacked without hesitation, forcing Zoro on the backfoot. All throughout the night, the valley rang with the sound of steel clashing against one another, and seemed to be indecisive. Neither Zoro nor Kuina could deliver the finishing blow, but as the duel wore on and the moon began to sink, Zoro's energy was waning. The lack of sleep was finally getting to him. Yet he still refused to back down.

"A real sword is heavier than a shinai, isn't it?" Kuina asked, smiling as she knew that victory was hers, "Well, well. It seems you still lack the strength to beat me."

"SHUT UP! JUST SHUT UP!" Zoro screamed, but he failed to notice that Kuina was now sprinting straight at him. Zoro's astonishment lasted only for an instant, and cost him the match. Kuina swung her sword upwards, knocking the two blades straight out of his hands, and sending the poor boy tumbling to the ground onto his back. He could only watch in horror as Kuina gripped her sword with the blade facing downwards. She wouldn't dare kill him, would she? Even he knew what would happen if word got out about that! Zoro only closed his eyes, anticipating the moment where she would finish him…but it never came. He never felt death's embrace… the boy only opened his eyes, and saw Kuina's sword right next to him, while she stood on top of him.

"Win…number 2001!" She exclaimed with a smile, as the two swords he wielded landed with the tips in the ground. Even with real swords, she still managed to defeat him. Zoro couldn't help but feel immense shame. He only covered his eyes and wept, unable to live up to his father's legacy.

"D-Dammit!" he sobbed, "This…This sucks! I hate it!" Kuina only looked down upon her classmate, her rival, and as she sheathed her sword, she only frowned.

"I'm the one who should be crying out of frustration, not you," she told him. Zoro only calmed down, and looked up at Kuina, "When girls grow up, it's natural for us to develop into physically weaker beings than men. Even you will catch up to me soon enough. I always heard you tell me that you're gonna be the world's greatest swordsman. When I told my father I wanted to be a swordswoman like those Viking shieldmaidens I always heard of…he said I could never be like them. And I know it! I know, I'll never be as good as they are, but…it's just so frustrating!" Then she turned to look at the boy with tears in her eyes. "You're lucky, Zoro. Being born as a boy. All I ever wanted was to become a great samurai and a swordswoman. But my father still thinks of me as his little girl…" Her voice trembled as she took her shirt off, revealing her chest wrappings and minor cleavage. "My breasts have even started developing…If only…if only I'd just been born as a boy!" Yet as she dropped to her knees, weeping, Zoro couldn't stand for what he saw.

"Don't you dare say something like that after you beat me!" He yelled, "You don't have the right to whine like that, because it's not fair to me! You're my goal, do you know how this makes me feel!? Boy-this, girl-that! Are you gonna keep going on about that crap after I beat you someday, like skill is irrelevant!? That's just an insult to all of the training I've been pouring on every day! So don't you dare say that crap in front of me, not ever again!"

Kuina only looked on in shock. She'd never seen Zoro yell at her with such passion and conviction. He was right. The fact that she would eventually become a woman was neither here or there. She still managed to defeat him fair and square, like she always had now for 2001 times. She only looked at Zoro as if she reached a verdict as he walked towards her with his hand held out toward her.

"Now promise me this," he told her, "Promise me that someday, one of us will be the world's greatest samurai. We'll compete and see who gets there first!" She still couldn't help but admire his conviction, his resolve to one day beat her.

"You dummy…you're still so weak," she muttered, then she only hugged him, as if he was like her younger brother, smiling happily. "It's a promise." Zoro only hugged her back, confident that they would someday meet again. And with that act, the two collected the two remaining swords, and began their long walk back to the dojo, as if nothing had ever happened. Yet Zoro was right…it was the last time they would ever fight together…in more ways than one…


The next day, close to sunset, Zoro was out in the dojo grounds. He was holding a dumbbell in his mouth as he used a tree to lift two massive boulders with his arms. He resorted to some intense muscle building exercises.

'I have to get stronger! I have to, so I can hold more swords!' He thought, driven on by the vow he and Kuina made the night before, 'If two's not enough, then I'll use three!' Yet all at once, he noticed three of his classmates nearby, and the looks on their faces was grim. "What do you guys want?!" He asked bluntly, but he wasn't expecting what he heard next.

"Kuina…Kuina is dead, Zoro."

Hearing those words, he dropped the dumbbell from his mouth, tears forming on his eyes. She died?! It couldn't be true! It just had to be a lie! He ran all over the dojo grounds, searching for her, until finally, as he came upon the estate, he froze…Kuina's lifeless body was resting in her bed, a shroud over her face, while clothed in white as her family was gathered around her. Instantly, he knew the boys were telling the truth.

"You promised! You promised we'd compete together!" He cried as he rushed in, Koushirou and the other students holding him back as he wept. "What was it all for!? Dammit, Kuina! You…You were supposed to…You broke our promise!" Noticing that Zoro was inconsolable at this point, Koushirou only motioned for the adults to get the boy out of the room. The sensei needed to be alone to grieve his daughter. Yet even so, Zoro couldn't help but listen in as the adults talked about how she died.

"They said she slipped and fell down the storehouse stairs."

"The storehouse? What was she doing there?"

"Apparently, she was looking for a whetstone for her favorite sword."

"Why would she need that for?"

"I don't know…"

"She was still only a child. She showed such promise."

"Who knows why anyone does anything. There's no way to rationalize it."

"Guess there's no way of knowing what's waiting for you around the next corner.


The days that followed the funeral were nothing short of agonizing. Consumed by grief, Zoro took out his sorrow in his training. In sparring matches against adults, he attacked with even more ferocity and savagery, it looked as if he was fighting with the ferocity of a tiger. One such match ended with him sending his opponent skidding across the floor! In his free time, he trained with two shinai against a tatami mat, all while holding a dumbbell in his mouth, striking harder than he ever had. He even still lifted boulders from streams with his teeth, but that afternoon, as he tried to lift it up, he couldn't help but feel as if Kuina was watching. Turning round, he only saw nobody. The poor boy only groaned and cried out in rage, shame, and grief, as if he never had before, so loudly that it reached even the dojo.

As the sun began to set that day, Zoro returned to striking the pel, hitting three tatami mats at once with his two shinai, the dumbbell in his mouth just barely staying together as he bit down so hard on it, it would almost snap! Finally, in a single blow, he struck all three mats so hard, the poles holding them up snapped in two, as if the shinai themselves were actual swords. Sensing someone was behind him, he turned, only to find his beloved Koushirou sensei holding the sword Kuina wielded that same night. Instantly, Zoro recognized that sword as the dumbbell fell from his mouth.

Koushirou took the boy to a sanctuary within the dojo. There, he saw the images of proud samurai clad in armor fighting both against each other and against bandits and pirates. In the center of the room was a shrine, and an altar, and adorning it…a picture of Kuina. To the right sat an impressive display of armor. It had to have been worn by Kuina's grandfather.

"It may appear otherwise to the blind eye, but people are quite fragile creatures," said Koushirou, "Kuina…she told me about the promise you two made before she died. You have to know; she was just as competitive as you once. Ever since she was seven and heard sagas of those Viking shieldmaidens, she practiced in this dojo, achieving strength that surpassed many adults. Yet as time wore on, it was evident that the power she wielded caused her to grow arrogant. Then you showed up last year, Zoro. As you grew stronger every day, Kuina felt compelled to practice even harder, so as not to lose to you, so as not to lose to a boy…and yet, she often told me how deeply she was impressed by your training, and how far you were willing to go. She admired you, Zoro, and I thank you for this. Through you, and the bond you two shared, she began to devote herself to becoming the world's greatest swordswoman. Despite being your sensei…I was, first and foremost, her father. And as any parent would for their child, I am bound by my emotions as well as by my blood. When I look at you now, Zoro, I can tell…you're lonely and you're hurting inside. I know just how you feel."

Hearing those words, Zoro couldn't help but cry. Kuina actually admired him? She even praised him? Her father never told him any of that before. It was so touching; he couldn't help but miss her. His mind recalled back to that night they made their promise to each other. Even now, he could still feel as if she was hugging him, even as the tears fell from his face onto the hardwood floor.

"Sensei…I ask of you…" he sobbed, his whole-body trembling as he spoke, "Please…let me…have her sword."

"Kuina's sword?" Koushirou asked, initially confused by this request.

"I'LL GET STRONGER! STRONGER THAN SHE EVER WAS, YOU HEAR ME!? STRONG ENOUGH THAT MY NAME REACHES UP TO THE HEAVENS!" Zoro roared, his conviction now set, "I am going to become the World's Greatest Swordsman! I promised her…! I promised…! I did…" Koushirou only turned to see his star pupil sobbing like a baby, and only smiled sympathetically. Through him, Kuina would live on. Zoro would fulfill their promise, and she would be with him every step of the way.

"Very well, then. My daughter's sword is yours," he said as he handed the boy the Wado Ichimonji, "I leave her spirit and her dreams in your hands." Zoro only grasped the sword, astonished for an instant. The boy looked to his sensei as if he'd reached a verdict, then burst into tears, and clasped his surrogate father close. He vowed that he would fulfill the promise he and Kuina made for her, and he would keep that vow.


Years passed, and Zoro grew from a boy to a man. He came across his old training grounds in the garden, facing the two stones he used to lift as a boy. In his teeth he grasped the Wado Ichimonji, while clutching the two swords he once wielded that fateful night duel in his hands. With a single strike from all three blades, he struck the giant boulder, cutting through the ropes, and splitting the stone in five parts. He was now ready!

Zoro made his way to the Shimotsuki Clan cemetery, paying his respects at the site of Kuina's grave. He couldn't help but feel as if she was standing right beside him, a grown woman at this point.

'Kuina…I promise, I'll return someday,' he thought, 'And when I do, it'll be as the world's greatest swordsman. Count on it!'

"It's been eight years since you joined us, Zoro," said Koushirou, noticing his former pupil with pride, "You're finally going to set out on your own?"

"Yes, sensei," Zoro replied, turning to smile at his mentor, "…to fulfill a promise!" As he smiled, his right hand sitting atop the Wado Ichimonji, he only bowed in respect and departed.

"Zoro!" Koushirou called out, his smile growing wider, "Take care." Zoro only turned back and smiled at his sensei one last time.


These memories rang through Zoro's mind as he lay aboard the deck of the Going Merry, asleep, yet content. Even as he rested, he couldn't help but feel Kuina's spirit was with him, sitting by his side and smiling as she placed her hand on his forehead. She wouldn't have cared if he was a pirate now, so long as he kept their promise alive. He had so much to tell her about when he returned, but somehow, he felt that he already knew that, only hoping that she would watch over him wherever she was, on his next voyage…


A/N: This time we get an in-depth look into Zoro's backstory, as well as a mention for the first time of both Wano and the Shimotsuki Clan!

Now, since this is about Zoro, I figured it was only right that instead of Viking lore, we instead focus on the samurai. As samurai clearly exist in the One Piece universe, it's only right we establish some context about them. Now, I mentioned that Zoro wants to live up to the legacy of his father, right? Why did I mention this? Well, in the manga, it's mentioned that Zoro's father died fighting off a band of pirates that came to ransack Shimotsuki Village. With that in mind, I felt that it would drive Zoro towards his goals, so that he could be able to live up to his family's legacy. Back in Feudal Japan, the only way to become a samurai was to be born into that class, and as Zoro is a descendant of Ryuma, that means he too is technically considered one as well.

I also mentioned the term onna-bugeisha. In Japanese, that means "female warrior", which was an instance in Feudal Japan. There were actually women who donned armor, took up weapons and fought as samurai. One such example was Kaihime, who was a retainer to the Hojo Clan during the Sengoku Period. She even fought at the Siege of Odawara Castle in 1590, against the armies of Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Although the Hojo were defeated, Kaihime became one of Hideyoshi's wives. Another example of these lady samurai is Maeda Matsu, who was the wife of Maeda Toshiie - a famed retainer and ally of Oda Nobunaga. After Nobunaga's downfall in 1582, Matsu donned armor and fought alongside Hideyoshi in his campaigns to unify Japan.