East Blue, unknown sea area.
The blazing sun hung high overhead. The sea breeze was no longer gentle, carrying instead a stifling heat.
It had been exactly three days since they left Cocoyasi Village.
The Merry sailed alone across the vast Great Sea, surrounded by nothing but the occasional flying fish leaping from the waves.
Yet the atmosphere on deck was even hotter than the blazing sun.
Bang—!!
An incredibly dull impact shattered the sea's tranquility.
A figure in a white shirt flew like a broken string kite, skidding several meters across the deck before barely coming to a stop against the main mast.
"Cough... cough, cough..."
Sanji curled up in pain. His once crisp, spotless shirt was now covered in dust, and several bruises marked his handsome face.
He gasped for breath as sweat dripped from the tips of his golden hair, spreading into a small dark stain on the deck.
"Get up, Sanji."
Ronan held the Zhangba Iron Spear in his hand, standing straight as a pine. His breathing was as steady as if he were merely taking a stroll.
He looked at Sanji in the distance. There was not the slightest hint of pity in his eyes, only the stern coldness of a strict teacher.
"Observation Haki isn't something you figure out with your brain. It's something your body has to 'hear.'
"When pain shuts down your five senses, your sixth sense will be forced to awaken."
"If you fall at this level, then forget about ever getting started with Observation Haki."
"Shut... shut up!"
Sanji gritted his teeth and shakily pulled himself upright against the mast.
With trembling hands braced against the deck, Sanji struggled to push himself up.
He gasped heavily, his lungs feeling as though they were on fire, but the visible eye beneath his hair blazed with an unyielding flame.
Ever since witnessing Ronan, Luffy, and Zoro's inhuman Thirteen Taibao Horizontal Refinement training three days ago, the proud cook's competitive spirit had been stirred.
He did not want to become the weak link on the ship, much less lose to that Moss Head he hated.
So, he had joined this hellish special training as well.
"Again!"
Sanji roared, his leather shoe stamping fiercely against the deck as he erupted forward with a sharp Neck Meat kick aimed at Ronan.
Ronan stood still, completely unmoving.
Only when the shoe came within three inches of his cheek did the Zhangba Iron Spear in his hand suddenly tremble.
"Collapsing Force!"
The spear shaft bent instantly, then snapped straight like a spring. The side of the weapon viciously struck Sanji's shin.
Smack—!!
Ronan had used a clever technique in that strike. The pain pierced to the bone, but it would not truly break it. It was just enough to stimulate the periosteum and muscles to the greatest extent.
"AAAAAH—!!"
Sanji let out a pig-slaughtering scream. The heart-rending pain twisted his face, and his attack collapsed instantly.
Immediately afterward, Ronan swept the butt of his spear sideways, striking Sanji across the waist and abdomen and ruthlessly slamming him onto the deck again.
"Too slow."
Ronan withdrew his spear and stood upright, giving his evaluation calmly. "Your kicks may be flashy, but the moment you attack, your killing intent is far too obvious."
"Before Observation Haki, that's the same as telling your opponent where you're about to kick."
Not far away, Nami and Usopp watched from beneath the shade of the orange trees, their scalps tingling.
"Too... too brutal."
Usopp swallowed, feeling as though his own bones ached faintly. "Is Ronan a demon? Sanji's a cook! What if he damages his hands?"
"Don't worry. Ronan knows what he's doing. He avoided the vital areas and his hands."
Though Nami said that, she still could not help shrinking her neck and sighing helplessly.
"The men on this ship... they're all hopeless masochists."
At the center of the battlefield.
Ronan looked at Sanji, who had collapsed again and whose chest heaved violently, then nodded. "That's enough for now."
"Observation Haki isn't something you can learn in two or three days. Luffy and Zoro took a week too. Your body has reached its limit. If you keep training, you'll damage your foundation."
Ronan pointed toward the kitchen, his tone becoming gentle again.
"Now, rest properly and fully circulate the breathing method of Thirteen Protectors' Horizontal Training. In half an hour... go make us some food. Everyone's hungry."
"..."
Sanji's body stiffened slightly as he lay on the ground.
Usopp's corner of the mouth twitched wildly as he could not help complaining.
"Hey! Isn't that too miserable?! He got beaten half to death, and he still has to crawl back up to cook?!"
Yet, to everyone's shock, Sanji really did struggle to his feet.
"Tch... you don't need to tell me."
Sanji brushed the dust from himself. Though his steps were somewhat unsteady, stubbornness shone in his eyes. "Letting the crew go hungry is a cook's failure."
After saying that, he dragged his battered body toward the kitchen with a limp.
Luffy and Zoro, who had long been waiting impatiently nearby, immediately rushed over.
Luffy cracked his neck, producing a series of pops, his face full of excitement.
"Ronan! Our turn! Our turn! Sparring with Zoro always feels like it's missing something. Your spear hurts more when it hits people, so we improve faster!"
Meanwhile, Zoro untied his shirt to reveal his lean, powerful muscles and mocked Sanji's back.
"Hey, Perverted Cook, how does it feel? If you can't take it, just cry. No one will laugh at you."
Sanji, who had just reached the doorway, instantly bristled. Like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, he jumped up and pointed at Zoro as he roared.
"You damned Moss Head!! Don't get cocky! Don't think you're stronger than me just because you started training a few days earlier!"
"Just watch. Tomorrow... no, tonight, I'll master Observation Haki! Then I'll kick you into the sky!"
"Hah? You looking for a fight, Curly Eyebrows?!"
"Come on! Who's afraid of who?!"
Ronan shook his head helplessly as he watched the two prepare to fight again.
This was the Straw Hat Pirates' daily life: chaotic, noisy, yet full of vitality.
Just as another "fierce battle" was about to break out on deck.
"Everyone—!! Come look at this!!!"
A shrill cry filled with shock rang out.
Nami was waving a brand-new newspaper and a Wanted Order in her hands as she jumped straight down from the railing.
"Something huge happened!"
Ronan, Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji, who had just been about to enter the kitchen, quickly gathered around.
"What is it, Nami?" Luffy asked curiously.
Nami viciously slapped a Wanted Order bearing Luffy's picture against his chest. "Look at this!!"
Everyone focused their eyes on it.
It was a standard Bounty Poster.
Luffy was still grinning carefree in the photograph, with the battlefield ruins of Arlong Park behind him.
Beneath the photograph was a dizzying string of numbers.
"Fifty... fifty million?!"
Usopp counted the zeros, his eyes nearly popping out of their sockets.
"Ones, tens, hundreds, thousands, ten thousand... It really is 50 million Belly!! Luffy! You've become a super wanted criminal!"
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