Chapter 2 — The Sword That Devours
Year 1508.
Two years had passed since Ikari began training beneath Sakura's merciless guidance.
Two years of bruises.
Two years of exhaustion.
Two years of getting beaten unconscious in the name of "proper swordsmanship."
For Sakura, it was discipline.
For Ikari, it was suffering.
Not that he complained anymore.
Well—
Not loudly.
Meanwhile, Bepo had become a permanent resident of the dojo.
The young mink cried almost every day during training, yet somehow continued returning every morning with renewed determination.
"I'm going to die…" Bepo whimpered while lying face-first in the snow.
"You're still breathing," Sakura answered coldly. "That means you can continue."
"Sensei is a demon…"
"You said something?"
"N-Nothing!"
THWACK.
"Aghhh!"
Ikari burst into laughter while watching Bepo tumble across the snow.
"You cry too much, Bepo!"
"At least I don't laugh while getting beaten!"
---
The frozen field echoed with the sounds of clashing wood.
Ikari, now twelve years old, moved swiftly beneath the blindfold wrapped around his eyes. Snow shifted beneath his feet as Sakura attacked relentlessly from every direction.
THWACK.
WHOOSH.
THRUST.
Her strikes carried no pattern.
No hesitation.
No mercy.
Yet Ikari avoided them all.
Not through sight—
But instinct.
The moment Sakura's intent shifted, his body reacted naturally.
A strike from the left.
A thrust from behind.
A downward slash aimed directly at his shoulder.
He evaded each one cleanly.
Finally—
"Stop."
Sakura lowered her wooden sword.
Ikari untied the blindfold slowly. Sweat rolled down his face despite the freezing wind.
For a long moment, Sakura simply stared at him.
Then she nodded.
"It seems you've finally grown accustomed to Observation Haki."
Ikari's face brightened immediately.
"So I mastered it?"
"No."
The answer came instantly.
"You merely stopped embarrassing yourself."
His shoulders slumped.
"Observation Haki has many layers," Sakura continued. "Reading intent is only the beginning."
She rested the wooden sword against her shoulder.
"A swordsman satisfied with small progress will never reach greatness."
Ikari grinned anyway.
"Still sounds like a milestone to me."
Then his expression sharpened.
"…Does that mean I can finally wield Father's sword?"
Silence lingered briefly.
The winter wind howled softly through the trees.
Finally, Sakura sighed.
"Yes."
Ikari nearly jumped in excitement.
"But only under my supervision."
Her eyes narrowed sharply.
"I refuse to let that cursed blade devour you."
---
Inside the dojo, the atmosphere felt strangely heavy.
Bepo sat nervously near the wall while Sakura knelt before a long wooden box resting in the center of the room.
Slowly—
She opened it.
A sheathed katana wrapped in crimson cloth rested inside.
The moment Ikari saw it, his heartbeat quickened.
"The Rain Moon Kitetsu…" he whispered.
Reverence filled his voice.
"One of the Great Grade Blades…"
His fists tightened unconsciously.
"Our family heirloom."
Sakura's expression darkened slightly.
"That sword is alive."
Ikari blinked.
"Huh?"
"It chooses its wielder."
She carefully lifted the katana.
"And if it finds you lacking…"
Her eyes locked onto his.
"It will consume you."
Even Bepo shivered hearing those words.
Sakura extended the sword toward her son.
"Unsheathe it."
Ikari carefully accepted the blade.
Immediately, he felt it.
Not weight.
Pressure.
Like something inside the sheath was staring directly at him.
"Remember what we discussed," Sakura warned.
Ikari inhaled slowly.
"If things go wrong, I drop the sword immediately."
"Good."
The dojo fell silent.
Ikari's left hand gripped the sheath.
His right wrapped around the handle.
For a brief moment—
Nothing moved.
Then—
SHING.
The Rain Moon Kitetsu left its sheath.
A monstrous pressure exploded outward instantly.
The air itself grew heavier.
Ikari's eyes widened.
The sword screamed directly into his spirit.
An overwhelming force clawed violently at his body, dragging something invisible from within him.
Suddenly—
Black energy erupted around his right arm before flowing into the blade itself.
"Haki…" Sakura muttered quietly.
The katana vibrated wildly.
Ikari's arm rapidly thinned as though the blade were devouring him alive.
"Drop it!" Sakura shouted instantly.
But Ikari couldn't look away.
The sword challenged him.
Provoked him.
Demanded submission.
Veins bulged along his forehead as sweat poured down his face.
"You will obey me!"
The katana shrieked violently in response.
Black coating spread unevenly across the blade while his Haki surged uncontrollably.
Pain exploded through his arm.
Ikari immediately threw the sword away.
CLANG.
The moment it left his hand, he collapsed backward onto the floor.
His arm slowly returned to normal.
"That damned thing…" Ikari hissed between breaths. "It's insane…"
Bepo rushed toward him immediately.
"Ikari-senpai! Your arm turned into a stick!"
"It did not become a stick!"
SMACK.
Bepo yelped after getting punched lightly on the head.
"See? Completely normal!"
"Don't bully the poor bear."
Sakura picked up the Rain Moon Kitetsu carefully before resealing it inside the box.
Then she looked toward Ikari.
"Now you understand why I forbade you from touching it."
Her gaze lingered briefly on the sheathed blade.
"Only your father and I could wield that sword properly."
Ikari stared silently at his trembling hand.
"…It felt violent."
His eyes slowly sharpened.
"But I remember the feeling."
Sakura nodded approvingly.
"That was Armament Haki."
She raised her hand slowly.
"The most basic form is invisible. Most people cannot even perceive it."
A faint pressure radiated outward.
"But experienced users can sense its presence."
Then—
Black coating spread across her arm like polished obsidian.
"The next stage is Hardening."
Ikari stared in fascination.
"The same thing that happened earlier…"
"Correct."
His expression became thoughtful.
"…There's more beyond that, isn't there?"
A faint smile touched Sakura's lips.
"Good."
"In Wano, advanced Armament Haki is called Ryuo."
The snow outside the dojo trembled faintly.
"In the outside world, some call it Internal Destruction."
Ikari and Bepo listened carefully.
"There is another variation as well."
Sakura extended her palm toward a nearby training post.
Without touching it—
BOOM.
The wooden post exploded from the inside.
Bepo screamed loudly.
Ikari's jaw dropped.
"That technique," Sakura said calmly, "is called Emission."
For the next half hour, Sakura explained the principles behind Armament Haki while the two children listened without interrupting.
Eventually, she turned toward Bepo.
"You're still too young."
Bepo blinked.
"Huh?"
"Your body lacks the physical foundation necessary for Armament Haki training."
Instant depression consumed the young mink.
"So I'm weak…"
"You're six."
"…Oh."
Sakura pointed toward the running path outside.
"Continue your physical conditioning."
Then she turned toward Ikari.
"As for you…"
Ikari grinned excitedly.
"Let's start, Mom!"
THWACK.
"Agh!"
"It's sensei."
---
Ikari sat cross-legged in the snow and closed his eyes.
Cold wind brushed against his face while Sakura stood nearby with folded arms.
"Haki is spirit," she said calmly. "Do not force it."
Snow drifted gently around them.
"Let it flow naturally."
Ikari inhaled deeply.
Then exhaled slowly.
"Be water…" he muttered softly. "Let it flow…"
Because he had already mastered the basics of Observation Haki, sensing his own spirit came easier than expected.
He remembered the sensation from earlier.
The pressure.
The flow.
The violent surge from the Rain Moon Kitetsu.
Slowly—
Something stirred beneath his skin.
Sakura silently activated her Observation Haki.
"There."
A faint invisible coating formed around Ikari's right arm.
"Open your eyes."
Ikari obeyed immediately.
Through Observation Haki, he sensed the strange energy surrounding his arm.
Excitement exploded across his face.
"I did it!"
"Dispel it."
The coating vanished.
"Again."
It returned.
"Again."
The process repeated over and over.
Eventually, Sakura turned toward the dojo.
"Achieve ten successful manifestations out of ten attempts," she ordered. "Only then will your real training begin."
Then she walked away.
Ikari stared at his arm silently.
Instead of dispersing the Haki immediately, he sprinted toward a nearby tree.
BAM.
His punch cratered the trunk inward.
Yet his arm felt nothing.
The Haki disappeared instantly afterward.
Ikari grinned widely.
"So durability matters too…"
His smile widened further.
"If I train both at once… that's two birds with one stone."
He proudly pointed at himself.
"I'm a genius."
---
That night, long after dinner ended, Ikari stood alone outside the dojo.
Snow drifted quietly from the dark sky while moonlight blanketed Swallow Island in silver.
His right hand hovered above a bucket of water.
For the past two years, strange things had been happening around him.
At first, he ignored them.
Snow melting beneath his fingertips.
Metal becoming freezing cold without reason.
Steam rising from objects he touched whenever he became emotional.
Small things.
Impossible things.
Ikari frowned.
"…Again."
Slowly, he touched the surface of the water.
At first—
Nothing happened.
Then the bucket trembled slightly.
Thin frost spread across the surface instantly.
Ikari's eyes widened.
"It worked…"
The ice thickened rapidly before cracking moments later.
His concentration broke immediately.
Silence returned.
Ikari stared quietly at his hand.
"…What am I?"
The winter wind howled softly through the trees.
Then—
A memory resurfaced.
The strange fruit from years ago.
The swirling patterns.
The disgusting taste.
The silent forest.
Ikari's eyes widened slowly.
"…That thing."
Without hesitation, he ran back into the dojo.
Inside, shelves filled with old records and scrolls lined the walls. Most documented swordsmanship styles and Wano traditions, but hidden among them were journals gathered from wandering travelers long ago.
Ikari searched frantically.
Books scattered everywhere.
Scrolls rolled across the floor.
"Come on… where is it…"
Eventually—
THUD.
A worn journal fell from the shelf.
Ikari blinked.
The cover read:
Records of the Grand Line.
Curious, he flipped through the pages rapidly.
Sea kings.
Sky islands.
Giants.
Living skeletons.
Then—
He froze.
A familiar fruit illustration stared back at him.
Swirling patterns.
Unnatural shape.
His heartbeat quickened.
"…No way."
Ikari immediately read the passage beneath it.
> "Devil Fruits are treasures of the sea said to grant supernatural abilities to whoever consumes them…"
His eyes widened further.
> "In exchange, the eater loses the ability to swim and becomes hated by the sea itself…"
Silence filled the dojo.
Ikari stared blankly at the page.
Then his expression twisted slowly.
"…You've got to be kidding me."
---
The next morning—
SPLASH.
"AGHHHH!"
Bepo burst into laughter while Ikari flailed helplessly near the shallow shoreline.
"Ikari-senpai can't swim anymore!"
"Shut up and pull me out!"
Bepo grabbed him immediately and dragged him back onto shore.
Ikari collapsed onto the snow while coughing violently.
"…I hate that fruit."
Bepo tilted his head.
"What fruit?"
Ikari immediately sat upright.
"…Nothing."
His eyes narrowed thoughtfully.
For the first time since eating the strange fruit years ago—
Everything finally made sense.
The unnatural abilities.
The freezing and heating effects.
And most importantly—
Why the ocean suddenly felt like death itself.
Ikari slowly clenched his trembling hand.
"A Devil Fruit…"
Despite the frustration in his voice—
Excitement burned brightly in his eyes.
---
Months passed.
Ikari drilled Armament Haki into his body daily while continuing Observation Haki training every morning.
Eventually, he began coating weapons with Haki as well.
The process proved far more difficult.
"Haki must flow outward," Sakura explained while observing him train. "A sword is not part of your body."
Ikari understood that painfully well.
Whenever he attempted coating his cutlass, his control became unstable immediately.
Still—
The challenge only motivated him further.
He also experimented carefully with his newly discovered Devil Fruit powers.
Heating the blade proved dangerous since ordinary iron warped too easily.
So instead—
He focused on cold.
Thin frost formed along the edge of his cutlass whenever he infused it with his ability.
Each strike left frozen scars across nearby trees.
Still, the weapon couldn't withstand extreme temperatures for long.
For now, Ikari shelved the technique.
He would revisit it once his Haki improved further.
---
One snowy morning, Ikari and Bepo ran side-by-side around the island.
Their breaths formed white clouds against the freezing air.
Suddenly, Bepo looked toward him.
"What's your real dream, Ikari-senpai?"
Ikari slowed slightly.
"…Keep this secret from Mom."
Bepo nodded immediately.
For a moment, Ikari stayed silent.
Then he spoke quietly.
"Sometimes… I hear her crying at night."
Bepo's expression softened.
"She hugs Father's picture when she thinks nobody's watching."
Snow crunched beneath their feet.
"The story never made sense to me," Ikari continued.
"She says we were banished from Wano…"
His eyes narrowed.
"But I think we escaped."
A dangerous sharpness entered his voice.
"And I think Orochi killed my father."
Bepo's eyes widened.
Ikari stared toward the distant sea.
"So I'll become a pirate."
His fists tightened.
"I'll gather a crew."
"And someday…"
His voice lowered dangerously.
"I'll avenge him."
By the end of the story, tears and snot streamed down Bepo's face.
"Ikari-senpai…"
The young mink wiped his face dramatically.
"I've decided!"
Ikari blinked.
"I'll join your crew!"
Bepo pointed toward him proudly despite crying uncontrollably.
"And help you become the greatest swordsman in the world, Captain!"
Silence lingered briefly.
Then—
"Ika hahaha!"
Ikari wrapped an arm around Bepo's shoulders tightly.
"Then you'd better become stronger, First Mate!"
Hidden behind the nearby trees, Sakura silently listened to everything.
The cold wind brushed gently against her face as she stared toward the distant sea.
A single tear rolled down her cheek.
"…Fate always finds its way back…"
Her trembling fingers tightened around the old photograph hidden inside her sleeve.
"I miss you, Tempura…"