Removing the bandages from Ares's body allowed Captain John to see the full extent of his injuries.
He praised him sincerely. "Tsk, tsk... Your muscles are as sturdy as stone. Your body is already tough enough, and your recovery is far beyond that of ordinary people."
Aside from Linlin, Whitebeard, and a few others, Ares was one of the most physically powerful people he had ever seen.
That was also why Ares was known as a "monster."
As he applied the medicine, Captain John patiently explained, "If you want to improve your recovery, besides constantly strengthening your body through training and adaptation, there's another way!"
Those words instantly made Ares's eyes light up. He asked excitedly, full of interest, "What way?"
"The Devil Fruit!"
John spoke those four words before explaining, "As everyone knows, Devil Fruits possess strange abilities. Some special Paramecia should have healing effects."
"However, the more common ones are Zoan Devil Fruits. Zoan Devil Fruits allow people to possess the abilities of animals, and different animals possess different abilities."
"Most Zoan Devil Fruits can enhance recovery, though. The rarer and more powerful the Zoan Devil Fruit, the greater the improvement to one's recovery!"
"There are even Ancient Zoans and extremely rare Mythical Zoans!"
Seeing how tempted Ares looked, Captain John said, "This sort of thing is not easy to come by. Every Devil Fruit is extremely expensive."
"And Ancient Zoans and Mythical Zoans are even rarer—one can only encounter them by chance!"
"However, staying with the Rocks Pirates gives you a good chance of obtaining a Devil Fruit. Naturally, the person who discovers one first has the right to decide what to do with it."
"Ancient Zoans..."
"Mythical Zoans..."
Captain John also briefly told Ares about these exceptionally special Devil Fruits among the Zoans.
There were quite a few Devil Fruits, but spread across the entire sea, they seemed rather scarce.
There were still never enough to go around.
"Devil Fruits?"
"And Ancient Zoans and Mythical Zoans..."
Ares's eyes shone brightly. He yearned to obtain a Devil Fruit and make his body's recovery even stronger.
That would be of tremendous benefit to both his strength and his training.
Captain John picked up the bottle of liquor on the table and took a large gulp before pouring cold water over Ares's enthusiasm. "Once you eat a Devil Fruit, you can't swim in the sea anymore."
"Seawater will strip away your strength, leaving you weak all over and causing you to sink into the sea."
However...
His words clearly could not dampen Ares's anticipation and yearning.
Captain John shook his head and continued applying medicine to Ares's body, getting a good look at his hard muscles, whose sharply defined contours seemed to have been carved by knives and axes.
He clicked his tongue in amazement. "I wonder how many people would envy this sturdy body of yours. I also wonder which woman will be able to... enjoy such happiness in the future."
His gaze lingered on Ares's powerful muscles for two more seconds before he gave a sly chuckle.
After finishing with the medicine, John said, "With your physique, you should recover in four or five days."
"Go back and get some proper rest."
"Thank you." After thanking him, Ares left John's room, his mind filled with thoughts of Devil Fruits.
Watching Ares leave, Captain John suddenly drained the rest of the strong liquor in the bottle and laughed. "He became a pirate with a bounty of forty million berries as soon as he went out to sea..."
"How much will this guy's bounty be next time?"
Four or five days later.
Whitebeard, Golden Lion, and the other officers still had not returned.
Ares's injuries had completely recovered. He was at a place on Hachinosu Island where Golden Lion and Whitebeard often brought him to train.
There were no towering mountains on the island. The largest structure was Skull Castle.
Thus, the island only had a few small hills made entirely of stone, without a blade of grass growing on them.
"I can finally train."
Ares was extremely excited. For the past several days, he had only been able to imagine things in his mind and review the battle scenes from before, and he had been holding it in for a long time.
He raised his arm, his expression feverish, and muttered to himself, "I'll try slashing first!"
"The combination of speed and strength is important, as are explosive power and the ability to move the air."
"Then..."
"Slash!"
His arm, shaped like a hand blade, suddenly came chopping down.
A dazzling, sky-blue sword light shot out. Compared to other people's slashes, however,
Ares's slash was clearly much wider. It lacked enough sharpness!
Bang!
The slash struck the ground two or three meters away, sending up a pile of shattered stone and dust.
The result of the slash made Ares realize that his first attempt had failed!
What delighted him was that the slash's power had indeed increased significantly. His explosive power and ability to move the air had produced an effect.
Ares was filled with drive and passion. "I'll try a few more times. I'll definitely be able to produce a slash that can cut through a hill as effortlessly as Golden Lion's!"
He continued training tirelessly.
The rumbling sounds of explosions rang out without end!
He trained not only in slashing, but also in speed to strengthen his explosive power and in Body Arts.
He also trained his physical strength every day.
Ares neglected none of these things. He persisted in his usual arduous and savage training.
His efforts would not be in vain. With his powerful physique and talent, along with the replay function in his mind, he could accurately identify the flaws in his movements and correct them immediately.
This allowed him, after several days, to unleash slashes comparable to those made by wielding a sword!
After these days of training, the ground had long since become riddled with pits of various sizes. Now...
On the uneven ground, there was an additional slash mark several meters long and dozens of centimeters deep!
"This is a real slash!!!"
"Hahaha... I've finally learned it!!!"
Ares, drenched in sweat, could not help laughing happily. The joy and sense of achievement from successfully unleashing a slash with his arm for the first time completely enveloped him.
He had reaped the fruits of his hard work and was enjoying the results of his efforts.
Ares felt incomparably refreshed!
He raised his arm and followed the sensation of his previous swing—one more time!
Whoosh!!
The fierce slash seemed to tear through the air as it suddenly shot out, striking the ground and carving another mark into it.
Ares gave full vent to his feelings. A brilliant smile spread across his face as he raised his head and shouted, "I did it!!!"
"I successfully unleashed a slash!!!"
"Gyahahaha... Ares, I didn't expect you to actually learn slashing after not seeing you for more than ten days!" Golden Lion flew over laughing loudly, having appeared at some unknown point.
His face was also filled with intense laughter, as if he shared in the glory.
After all, Ares could be considered his disciple. Seeing his disciple truly comprehend Flying Slash in such a short time made him feel delighted from the bottom of his heart.
Awakened by the voice, Ares turned toward Golden Lion and said in surprise, "Shiki, you're back?"
Golden Lion also flew in front of Ares and lightly landed on the ground. His eyes were filled with satisfaction and appreciation as he said with a hearty laugh, "I'm back. You really gave me a huge surprise!"
"Not only did you become a pirate with a bounty of forty million berries, Blood-Hand Ares, you also comprehended the secrets of Flying Slash."
He immediately burst into hearty laughter and praised him. "Good! Good!"
"I, Golden Lion, truly didn't misjudge you. You, Ares, are a man born for the sword!!"
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