We all remember Zoro’s sensei don’t we? But we do not know how strong he really is, do we? Here are a few points that might enlighten us on this subject:
In Zoro’s flashback during his fight against Mr. 1, we see his sensei explaining to him that in this world live swordsmen who cannot cut a thing, yet the exact same swordsman can cut steel with the exact same sword. As Zoro figures out during the fight, his sensei was talking about the breath of objects, and that a swordsman who can hear a certain object’s breath can cut it at his own will, no matter how hard it is (probably). Zoro’s sensei proceeds to slash his sword at a piece of paper, though does not succeed to cut it. He explains that a sword that harms anything, but cannot protect a thing, is not a real sword to him.
It is safe to assume that at the time of the flashback, Zoro’s sensei was a lot stronger than him, yet he failed to cut the paper. Apparently, according to Zoro’s reaction after the demonstration, even he could cut paper. It is preposterous to assume that Zoro could cut a piece of paper yet his sensei, who was much stronger than him at the time, could not. This got me thinking… Looking back at the sensei’s statement about swordsmen who cannot cut anything but can cut even steel with the exact same sword, it seems quite clear to me that Zoro’s sensei can indeed hear the breath of objects, and even at his own will, not just at the brink of death. Yet Zoro only succeeded in hearing the breath of objects at the brink of death. Seems to me like even now, Zoro’s sensei is still a lot damn stronger than him.
Your thoughts?