The Terror of the Momo Fruit, Zefa Who Created an Era

"Wait."

Seeing that Rosen had just finished fighting World Destroyer and was already eager to begin the second round, Zefa immediately stepped forward to stop him.

"What is it, Teacher Zefa?"

Rosen was a little confused.

Didn't you tell me to come to Infinite Hell for an internship lesson?

Didn't you tell me to fight my way through Infinite Hell?

I've only just started dancing. Why did you suddenly stop me?

"Domino, clean up Wald's corpse."

Without explaining, Zefa instructed Domino to collect Bondy Wald's body, then turned and headed toward the Extreme Cold Hell on the Fifth Layer.

Seeing this, Rosen did not press the matter and simply followed.

As the Marines' foremost teacher, the only person comparable to Teacher Kai, Rosen believed Zefa must have had a deeper reason for doing this.

Borsalino shrugged and followed close behind.

Shiryu glanced once more at Bondy Wald's corpse on the ground. Seemingly thinking of something, he silently left Infinite Hell, leaving only the Sixth Layer's prisoners to discuss Wald's death and Rosen's strength in shock.

After leaving Infinite Hell, Zefa did not stop. He retraced his steps and arrived at an empty office that Domino had prepared earlier.

However, he did not allow Shiryu and Domino to enter with them, instead telling the two to wait outside.

"Miss Domino, please prepare some meat."

"Three hundred jin at minimum. It must be Sea King meat."

"As for Chief Guard Shiryu, do as you please. But unless it is something urgent, please do not disturb us."

After giving Domino his instructions, Zefa directly shut the door, leaving Shiryu outside.

Clearly.

After witnessing Shiryu discard his comrades like worn-out shoes in Extreme Cold Hell, Zefa had developed an aversion toward the chief guard.

Seeing this.

Shiryu had no intention of trying to curry favor with Zefa, but neither did he leave. Instead, he walked a short distance away and replayed the entire battle between Rosen and Bondy Wald in his mind.

The Conqueror's Haki Coating that had overwhelmed the Momo Fruit.

Still Blood Armor and Moving Blood Armor, which surpassed the four techniques of Armament Haki.

And the Weapon Fruit, which had remained completely unremarkable from beginning to end.

Those scenes flashed repeatedly before Shiryu's eyes like a revolving lantern.

With every replay, the shock in his heart grew stronger.

This was the first time.

For the first time in his life, Shiryu felt an emotion called fear toward someone weaker than himself.

Yes.

Fear.

"I wasn't wrong."

"During his battle with Bondy Wald, that man's Haki was constantly growing stronger."

"His experience in using every kind of Haki, his combinations of different techniques, the fusion of Paramecia Ability and Haki—everything, everything was improving at a maddening, unbelievable speed."

Shiryu took a deep breath.

After witnessing Rosen's battle with Bondy Wald, he realized that Rosen's terror did not lie in his current strength or abilities, but in his inconceivable rate of improvement, one that surpassed all common sense.

If Rosen fought World Destroyer again now, there would be no fierce battle at all.

There would only be a one-sided beating—or rather, a slaughter.

Meanwhile.

After closing the office door, Zefa looked at Borsalino, who was already seated on the sofa having Tea by the Fire with Rosen.

"If there's something you want to ask, then ask."

He was somewhat surprised.

Borsalino appeared approachable and easy to get along with, much like Kuzan, but in truth he was unfathomable, always giving people an ambiguous and elusive feeling.

At Marine Headquarters, while people did not fear and revere him as much as Sakazuki, no one dared entertain the thought of offending him.

It was exceedingly rare to see him getting along so harmoniously with Rosen as he was now.

At the very least, Zefa had only seen Borsalino act this way around the handful of people like Sakazuki, Kuzan, Garp, and Sengoku.

And compared to those people.

Borsalino seemed even more intimate and relaxed around Rosen.

As though they really were an upperclassman and an underclassman.

"Did Bondy Wald really fight Teacher Zefa, Vice Admiral Garp, and Teacher Sengoku before?"

"To be honest."

"With his level, whether he could even withstand one slap from Teacher Sengoku would be questionable."

When Borsalino poured him tea, Rosen politely tapped the table first. Then he raised the teacup and took a sip before speaking to Zefa.

He had seen Sengoku's Conqueror's Haki Coating and Sengoku's Great Buddha Form.

With that ruler-of-the-world bearing, one slap would leave even three World Destroyers tied together half-dead.

"Naval battles and land battles are different. Some Paramecia Users can unleash extremely terrifying combat power in specific environments."

"The environment of Impel Down, along with the fact that Bondy Wald had only just broken free from the ice and had no weapons in hand, actually limited the Momo Fruit's potential."

"Imagine this: you are aboard a warship in the vast sea, while Bondy Wald is several kilometers away from you—or even farther—and firing guns and cannons at you."

Zefa seemed to have expected Rosen's question and answered immediately.

"One bullet, enlarged a hundredfold in size and speed, could pierce through even a giant—no, even a large Sea King."

"One cannonball, enlarged a hundredfold in size and speed, could flatten even a mountain—no, even a small island."

"With bullets and cannonballs amplified a hundredfold like that, Wald could continuously bombard you with hundreds of shots from several kilometers away."

"When you withstand those hundredfold bullets and cannonballs and try to capture him, you would find that Bondy Wald's pirate ship could also increase its speed by a hundredfold at sea."

"What do you think?"

He looked at Rosen.

"Very terrifying."

Rosen simulated what Zefa had described in his mind.

The bullets of ordinary pistols and rifles on the Grand Line could already break the sound barrier.

After being amplified by the Momo Fruit, their size and speed increased a hundredfold. On a large battlefield, they were practically humanoid self-propelled missiles.

Especially in naval battles, whether one was an ability user or not, the ship beneath one's feet was extremely important.

Particularly in dangerous waters like the New World, losing one's ship meant that, for most people, death was not far away.

Not to mention that Bondy Wald could use the Momo Fruit's amplification to possess a pirate ship capable of increasing its sailing speed by a hundredfold at any time.

"Luckily, that guy relied too heavily on his Paramecia Ability. His Physical Techniques were poor, and his Haki was even worse. Otherwise, if he could use Armament Haki Coating Hardening on a bullet or cannonball enlarged a hundredfold, that would be unbelievable."

"If Wald had Haki at the level of a Yonko Commander, he would be even more terrifying. If he could go a step further and possess Conqueror's Haki, then he would be a monster like Shiki."

"Even without that kind of Haki, if he awakened the Momo Fruit, its amplification ability could affect others. Just imagine it—Kaido with his speed amplified a hundredfold and his body size amplified a hundredfold. What would that be like?"

Zefa shook his head.

In his view, the Momo Fruit, like the Float-Float Fruit and Tremor-Tremor Fruit, was one of the top-tier Paramecia Devil Fruits.

It was just that Bondy Wald, as its user, had severely lowered the Momo Fruit's upper limit.

He could not become as powerful as Shiki or Whitebeard.

"That's true."

Hearing this, Rosen understood the terror of the Momo Fruit even more deeply.

No wonder Bondy Wald's strength was nothing special, yet he had earned the title World Destroyer.

No wonder Bondy Wald was far weaker than the Yonko and Admirals, yet the World Government had still devised a scheme to eliminate him.

Getting stabbed in the back by a filial son had always been exclusive treatment for monsters at the Four Emperors level.

Like Whitebeard.

"As for why Wald could fight this old man, Garp, and Sengoku back then, isn't that simple? When Garp, Sengoku, and this old man fought Wald, we were not yet the Hero, Fleet Admiral, and Black Arm we later became."

"At that time, we were just like you are now—mere sprouts at Marine Headquarters."

"No, you are far stronger than we were back then."

Zefa shook his head.

"In this old man's era, Navy School did not teach Haki. It did not even teach the Six Styles. Only after graduation could we capture pirates, accumulate military merit, exchange that merit for training methods, and then figure out how to cultivate them ourselves."

"It was only after this old man retired and became an instructor at Navy School, carrying out a series of reforms to the school's system, that even ordinary-class students could now come into contact with Haki."

"That is why the few of us only began to emerge after the age of thirty. Just look at Garp. He truly made a name for himself only after turning forty, when he destroyed the Rocks Pirates."

Hearing this.

Both Rosen and the outwardly impassive Borsalino felt gratitude and admiration for the Marines' foremost teacher.

It was no exaggeration to say.

Zefa had truly created a golden age for the Marines through his own efforts.

"Alright, enough about the old era. Let's return to the internship lesson."

"You must be wondering, aren't you?"

"Clearly, after your battle with Wald, all Three Colors of Haki showed immediate improvement, yet this old man chose this moment to stop you."

Zefa did not dwell further on topics from the old era. Instead, he focused on nurturing a sprout of the new era like Rosen.

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