An hour later.
Splash, splash, splash.
The sound of bodies hitting the water rang out again and again. Two marines and several unfortunate men from the Slave Ship threw the dead traffickers overboard.
The stench of blood
soon attracted plenty of carnivorous fish.
"Mercer, do you think we'll ever see each other again?"
At the railing on the topmost deck of the Slave Ship,
the four of them leaned against it. Hancock gazed at the water not far from the ship, where fins appeared and disappeared amid the churning waves.
"What's wrong?" Mercer glanced at her. "Can't bear to part with me?"
Hancock rolled her eyes at Mercer.
Then she said confidently, "I'll probably become the captain of the Kuja Pirates someday, assuming nothing unexpected happens. And your grandfather is a marine. Are you going to become a marine too?"
Mercer understood what she was getting at and was speechless. "Does being a marine mean you can't be friends with pirates anymore?"
"Who said that? Besides, my future self won't—and can't—become a marine. There's no place for me there."
"So, you'll be a pirate?"
"Maybe I will, maybe I won't. We'll see when the time comes. We won't know what the future holds until then."
"Whatever we say now is just empty talk."
Hancock pondered this, then giggled. "You're changing the subject."
"I asked whether we'd ever see each other again."
Mercer gazed at the distant sea, blue as a cloudless sky. "I think we will. If fate brings us together, we'll definitely meet again."
Hancock studied Mercer's profile. She had a question nagging at her, and since she did, she decided to ask outright.
"Why are you so strong? You're even stronger than the adult warriors of the Kuja. How did you do it?"
Mercer smiled. "Who knows? Maybe it's breathing."
"Breathing?" Hancock didn't quite understand. She puffed out her cheeks.
"If you don't want to tell me, then don't. Why fob me off with breathing, as if I don't know how to breathe?"
"Do you really know how?"
"Of course I do."
"Are you sure?"
"Do you actually understand that the breathing I'm talking about is the same thing you think of as breathing?"
"You talk in circles. You're making my head spin."
"Breathing isn't just the simple act of inhaling and exhaling. It's a way to sense yourself and understand nature."
"That makes no sense. I don't understand."
Hancock pouted. "Breathing is just breathing. You take in air and absorb oxygen. That's all there is to it. Unless that isn't breathing?"
"That is breathing,"
Mercer replied.
"But that's the kind of breathing you can do. I can sense the oxygen traveling through my windpipe and lungs into my blood, reaching every part of my body before it's expelled."
"By breathing consciously and refining each breath, you can gradually improve your control over your body."
Seeing Hancock stare at him as if he were speaking another language, Mercer grinned smugly. "It's no surprise you don't understand. If you did, you wouldn't have asked me."
"Are you calling me an idiot?"
"I didn't say that."
"But that's what you meant, isn't it?"
Hancock was getting frustrated. She thought Mercer was teasing her again, but some instinct told her he wasn't lying.
The two conflicting ideas collided in her mind, leaving her vexed.
"If you want me to believe you, then prove it. Let me experience this breathing you're talking about."
"Heh, in your dreams. This is obviously a training method. You think I'll teach you for free just because you asked?"
Mercer looked at Hancock as if she were an idiot. "Do you think I'm you?"
Crack!
Hancock gritted her teeth.
She felt a surge of heat rush to her head, and the next moment, the words escaped her mouth.
"If you can prove it to me, I'll do anything you ask."
Mercer chuckled and rolled his eyes at Hancock, sizing her up. "Do you have anything valuable to offer?"
Hancock immediately fell silent.
She stammered, unable to get the words out.
"How about this? I'll teach you Breathing Technique, and when we meet again in the future, you'll give me three Devil Fruits."
"If you can't give them to me the first time we meet, you'll owe me one more. If you still can't give them to me the second time, you'll owe me another. And so on. How does that sound?"
Hancock stared at Mercer in disbelief. "Are you charging me compound interest? Aren't you afraid I'll learn it and then avoid you forever?"
"Oh?" Mercer looked at her in surprise. "You're pretty clever. You actually spotted the loophole in my offer."
"Well? Do you dare?"
"You really aren't worried I'll avoid you later?"
"Learn it first." Mercer pursed his lips. "Maybe you're an idiot who'll never figure it out.
"Even if you do learn it and break your promise, it'll be pretty funny if the famous future captain of the Kuja goes out of her way to avoid me whenever she sees me."
"Who are you calling an idiot?" Hancock's head tipped back slightly, her chin raised. "I accept the challenge. It's only three Devil Fruits. Once I'm captain of the Kuja, I'll definitely be able to find them."
"You can start now."
Mercer raised his right knee and brushed his right hand along the side of his boot. A Surgical Knife appeared in his hand.
"First, I'll explain how breathing works."
Over the next ten minutes, Mercer explained Breathing Technique, starting with the basics and moving on to more advanced details.
To help Hancock understand, Mercer occasionally tapped points along the paths her breath traveled with the handle of his Surgical Knife.
Breathing wasn't all that complicated, but it required a special rhythm and cadence, and involved some knowledge of human anatomy.
"...Do you understand? Breathing isn't actually that complicated. It's even easier to get started with Observation Haki. By the way, do you know what Observation Haki is?"
After listening, Hancock's eyes glazed over, and she slurred her words as she protested, "I know what it is, but can't you explain it more simply? I don't understand half those medical 'terms' you used. Are you doing this on purpose?"
Mercer gave her an amused look. Just as he'd expected—she was being unreasonable.
"If you don't understand, then memorize it with your body,"
Mercer said. "You can start breathing now."
Hancock looked uncomfortable. Although she hadn't understood everything, she'd grasped the general idea.
She closed her eyes.
Inhale. Exhale.
As her chest and abdomen slowly expanded and contracted, she began to breathe in a way that was different from usual. Her heart raced, and she felt dizzy and light-headed.
She was about to speak when Mercer's voice came through. "Don't stop. This is normal. Once your original breathing pattern is disrupted, your body doesn't get enough oxygen. It's a normal physiological response.
"Keep going."
As he spoke, he spread his Observation Haki around Hancock, sensing the rhythm of her breathing. He opened his shoulder bag and took out a needle pouch. A few Silver Needles were pinned inside.
Mercer described the locations of the breathing points and used precise movements to insert the Silver Needles into Hancock's body one by one.
Like beacons, they guided her breathing deeper and deeper.
Time passed.
With Mercer carefully guiding her, Hancock followed the latest version of the Breathing Technique, devised by Kureha herself based on Mercer's method.
Hancock's breathing gradually adjusted. Somewhere in the haze, she seemed to sense something, but she couldn't make out what it was.
Half an hour later,
Mercer saw the sweat on her forehead and removed several Silver Needles from her heart, lower abdomen, lungs, and intestines.
As soon as he pulled out the needles, Hancock began gasping heavily, and her breathing rhythm immediately fell apart.
"Cough, cough, cough!"
She broke into a violent coughing fit.
Mercer put away the Silver Needles and watched Hancock's physical reaction with interest. The experiment had succeeded: the Breathing Technique could be taught quickly.
No, it wasn't really a shortcut. It was simply a way of deliberately deepening the body's memory of this breathing pattern.
If she didn't keep using the technique to reinforce that memory, she'd forget part of it in a few days.
After all, it took time and perseverance to go from one instinctive pattern to another.
After coughing for a while,
Hancock finally came around. Mercer explained the idea of "body memory" to her.
Pressing her lips together, Hancock stared at Mercer with a mixture of surprise and complicated feelings. "Everything you said was true.
"In that case, I'll keep my promise too."
Mercer nodded.
"Good. Then I'll look forward to seeing you again. Don't forget about my Devil Fruits."
Hancock lowered her head bashfully. "Sorry."
"I wanted to ask, can I teach this Breathing Technique to Sonia and Golde?"
"Do whatever you like. Whether you teach them, and whether they can learn it, is up to you."
"Besides, I didn't ask them to leave just now."
As he spoke, Mercer glanced at Hancock's two younger sisters beside her.
Just then,
"Look, Sister! Is that Water Seven over there?"
Sonia tugged at Hancock's sleeve and pointed at a speck in the distance. As time passed, it grew larger and larger, until a magnificent city on the water came into view.
From afar, waterways could be seen crisscrossing the whole city. Its overall structure was conical, with a huge garden-fountain-like building at the very top and center. It was beautifully designed, at once formal and romantic.
At that moment, the fountain was spraying water, and beautiful rainbows bloomed one after another in the sunlight.
"It's so beautiful!"
"I've never seen anything like it."
"Hancock, look. Isn't that your ship?"
In front of Water Seven's Number One Gate, Mercer spotted a vermilion two-masted sailboat beside a cluster of buildings.
It was shaped like an old-fashioned Chinese ship.
Antique and elegant.
There seemed to be two giant snakes in the water ahead of the bow.
Hancock followed Mercer's pointing finger and saw the ship.
Quite a few women in revealing clothes were aboard, and they had noticed them too.
"That's right. It's our Kuja ship."
As she spoke, Hancock looked at Mercer, a hint of reluctance in her eyes. She cleared her throat. "Well, we have to go."
"Okay. Safe travels."
As he spoke, Mercer looked at her face and suddenly smiled, the corners of his mouth lifting.
"Remember to use your head from now on. Don't get caught by traffickers again. You won't always be this lucky."
The sadness of their parting shattered at Mercer's words.
Hancock's little face darkened. "You could just keep quiet. I'm leaving, and you're not even going to give me a parting gift?"
It was a Kuja custom, meant to wish those setting sail a safe and smooth journey.
Hancock didn't know what had come over her, but the words suddenly slipped out.
"What about you?"
Mercer stared at her.
Hancock's face stiffened. She didn't have anything valuable on her that she could give as a gift.
Things grew awkward for a moment.
Seeing this, Mercer helped her out. He pointed to the hair falling beside her face, indicating the copper clasp on the lock of hair on her left.
Hancock blinked, then took off the copper clasp and handed it to Mercer. "Since you want it so badly, I'll give it to you, big brother."
Mercer accepted the tiny clasp, about the size of his little finger. A snake pattern was carved into it.
"Not bad. It's quite distinctive. In that case, I'll give you this."
Mercer held out the Surgical Knife in his hand. "It's my throwing weapon, and also a surgical tool. Let's trade."
He'd gotten the knife from Kureha, and it was excellent quality.
"You can use it to protect yourself."
Hancock took it. She'd handled it before: a very sharp, sturdy Surgical Knife that could pierce a person's skull if thrown with all her strength.
It also felt good in her hand.
She happily played with it for a few seconds, then winked at Mercer. "Now we really have to go. They've come to get us."
Mercer could see a small boat leaving the Kuja ship. A purple-haired woman was rowing it toward them.
"Then this is goodbye. See you later, all three of you."
"Mm. Take care."
He watched the three of them leap over the railing to the deck below, then jump from the ship into the small boat on the sea.
They were incredibly agile.
As the small boat sailed away, Mercer watched in silence. He had no idea when they'd meet again.
At that moment, on the small boat not far away, Hancock cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted,
"Mercer!!! I'll be stronger than you the next time we meet!!!"
The three sisters waved goodbye with all their might and laughed cheerfully. Mercer only looked away after they'd boarded the ship.
"Stronger than me? That's just wishful thinking."
"What's wrong? You can't bear to part with her?"
Bogard's voice rang out, amused.
Mercer turned to look at Bogard, who had appeared beside him, and sighed.
"Has no one ever told you?"
"Told me what?"
"I forgot."
"Damn brat, what's with saying half of something and leaving it at that? What happened next?"
Bogard was getting worked up.
Mercer sighed. "You're a lifelong bachelor. Don't go pretending to be some great romantic when there's no need. It doesn't suit your image."
Bogard's mouth twitched violently. He should've known better than to come over. Even if he had, he shouldn't have teased Mercer.
As Bogard stewed, Mercer spoke again.
"Yeah, you guessed right. I am a little reluctant to part with her. After all, she was the first playmate I've met who was around the right age. She's a bit dumb and foolish, but she's got a pure heart."
"Tch, you brat. Why are you acting all deep? That little girl's nearly ten years older than you. How is she your age?"
"Age isn't an obstacle. It's your mindset that sets the limits."
"Uncle, if you keep this up, you'll probably never find a wife. Even if the Marines start assigning wives in the future, I doubt you'll get a spot."
Sigh!
With a sigh that faded into the sea breeze, Mercer left, leaving Bogard alone, utterly bewildered.
Another day passed.
After taking a slight detour, they handed over the people from the Slave Ship to the nearest Marine base to be taken care of.
In the blink of an eye, the tenth day arrived, and an island appeared in the warship's view.
Morning.
The sun had just risen.
Garp and Mercer appeared on a small hill behind a seaside village on the island.
They didn't have to wait long.
A gust of wind swept through the world.
A tall figure cloaked in a military-green cape appeared.
At the same time—
"Waaah!!!"
A loud baby's cry rang out.
New author, new book! Please Follow-up Reading!
Please collect, recommend, and invest!
Before you continue