Come Dip Beans, Austin!

And so, the great battle lasted for three days, Austin's monstrous strength earned the recognition of everyone in Whitebeard's crew, He was sinister and powerful, clearly exceeding the standard.

Fortunately, by the fourth day, both sides finally ceased hostilities.

Each side took the supplies and treasure chests from their ships and began trading like street vendors.

The high-intensity combat and Haki training had also left Austin feeling a bit weary; he now needed time to slowly master and consolidate his skills.

However, he wasn't particularly interested in trading. After all, his entire fortune consisted of just one Devil Fruit, along with the daily Belly and treasures he received.

After browsing for half a day, he only managed to trade some of his treasures with Whitebeard's crew for a portion of Seastone, which would be convenient for making bullets or for other uses.

"Buggy, Shanks, are you two just going to stand there foolishly?"

Austin sat on a fallen tree trunk behind them, looking at the two with their hands on their hips and smug expressions, feeling a bit speechless.

"They've been staring at us! Austin."

"Is that so?"

Opposite them, "Little Marco," who had been taken down with a single shot, sat cross-legged with bandages wrapped around him. Beside him was a short, dark-skinned fatty, also heavily bandaged.

Marshall D. Teach!

One of the future Four Emperors, the treacherous Blackbeard.

However, what both of them were currently focusing on didn't seem to be Buggy and Shanks, but rather Austin, who was eating.

"Are those guys rookie pirates?"

Teach asked sternly, looking at the three of them.

"Yeah, they've been with the Roger Pirates for a long time."

As an old crew member who had followed Whitebeard from the beginning, Marco was quite familiar with the people on Roger's ship. He had known about the existence of the three youngsters for a while.

He just hadn't expected the black-haired guy to be so strong; it was completely beyond his expectations.

"How could this be... such a monster is just an intern on Roger's ship!?"

Cold sweat trickled down Teach's forehead. The wound on his left shoulder still ached intermittently; the internal damage was far more painful than it looked.

Meanwhile, the other two looked completely unremarkable.

How could there be such a vast difference between them?

His first encounter with Austin and the opponent's overwhelming strength had clearly left a significant psychological scar on him.

While the two of them were scrutinizing the trio, the trio was also observing the opposite side.

"Hey, Austin, Shanks, you've noticed it too, right!"

"Mhm."

"That guy, he hasn't slept at all during the ceasefires for the past two nights!"

"Why, is not sleeping a big deal?"

"No, it's said he hasn't slept since birth."

"That's a genuine monster!"

Hearing this, Austin's attention was drawn to something else entirely.

Buggy seemed to have been staring at Teach for three whole days. The thought sent a chill down his spine.

Austin couldn't say he disliked or liked Blackbeard.

After all, strictly speaking, Blackbeard's actions—being greedy for wealth, lustful, and stabbing people in the back—were more in line with the common perception of pirates.

Roger and Luffy, on the other hand, seemed more like travelers disguised as pirates.

The reason he had specifically targeted Teach with his shot earlier was partly to test the man's abilities. After all, leaving a scar on an adult Shanks' face was no easy feat.

However, judging by that shot, the current Blackbeard was still just a kid.

Austin had no interest in continuing to scare children.

He simply shifted his gaze to the top of a giant tree, where Roger, Whitebeard, and Oden were discussing matters, occasionally engaging in a brief argument.

Austin even saw spatial rifts shattered by their power...

"It seems the journey is truly entering its final countdown."

Slowly swallowing a gulp of juice, Austin mused.

"So, Oden has become a member of the Roger Pirates?"

As the Roger Pirates set sail once more, Buggy asked the samurai on board, sounding incredulous.

"Well... something like that. He's sort of on loan from Whitebeard."

Austin wasn't too surprised by this. On the contrary, he had an opportunity to continue asking Rayleigh about Ryuo.

Although he felt that the Ryuo he had learned through observation was no different from the genuine article, asking the original owner would always be more comprehensive.

What if there were some special techniques he hadn't figured out?

Austin held his sword and slowly walked towards Oden, who was at the center of the banquet.

He then slowly drew his sword, which startled Oden and all the crew members. The atmosphere became tense.

But to their surprise, Austin wasn't there to fight.

"Why are you all looking at me like that? I'm here to ask about Ryuo."

Phew~

Oden breathed a sigh of relief. He really didn't want to fight this bratty kid anymore. He couldn't hit him, yet he kept getting hit. It was torture for him.

There was nothing he couldn't teach about the application of Ryuo, which was a form of Armament Haki. After all, they would be nakama in the future.

However, after he asked Austin about his mastery of Ryuo, he was a bit stunned.

Austin simply extended his fist, and layers of red Armament Haki began to spread across his body.

Like flowing water, with a distant wave, the wine bottle in Oden's hand exploded into pieces.

"May I ask if there's anything that needs improvement?"

Austin smiled, completely devoid of the terrifying demeanor he had during their previous fight. "I figured this out myself during the battles a couple of days ago."

Hearing this, Oden could only open his mouth, not knowing what to say.

Because there was nothing he could teach. What Austin had figured out and displayed was the most authentic Ryuo Armament Haki.

Moreover, he even suspected if Austin had already known it and was now toying with him.

After all, Were there really people in this world who improved so quickly?

Was he even human?

Amidst Oden's silence, Austin was given the cold shoulder and left.

What the heck? He's still holding a grudge just because I annoyed him a few times with Future Sight?

So petty.

He's annoyed so many people with this move, yet Oden is the only one who reacts so strongly. Can't he look for the reason within himself?

After failing to get an answer, Austin could only silently leave the center of the banquet under the scrutinizing gazes of the crew members, as if they were looking at a monster.

Perhaps sometimes, being too outstanding also leads to isolation.

With no other options, Austin, bored, decided to find his two good buddies.

Using Observation Haki, he found the two of them at the stern, continuing their rigorous training.

To be honest, the training results of the two of them were no longer useful to Austin.

The things he had learned from Rayleigh and Roger had spoiled his appetite. Now, stealing Shanks' training methods through Observation Haki was completely useless to him.

So, it was better to rest for a while and train the range of his Future Sight, striving to increase it from three seconds to four seconds, which was more beneficial than anything else.

However, he didn't expect that upon seeing him, Buggy simply greeted him and continued to slack off.

But Shanks became energized.

He put down the dumbbell he was holding, and upon seeing Austin, his face was filled with surprise.

Then, with fighting spirit surging, he looked at Austin and drew the katana at his waist.

"Let's fight, Austin!!"

Austin: ???