Vila

Facing Vila, the Sun Pirates weren't really trying to overthrow the country. With the Sun Pirates' reputation, the moment they showed themselves, the World Government would crack down on them hard.

Tiger's plan for Vila was to seize ships, destroy the slave-catching crews, free the local slaves, and hold off the national defense forces. At most, they could buy half a day to a day...

The more slaves who escaped, the better. The Sun Pirates wanted to do more, but there was only so much they could manage.

Travel and communication were difficult on the Grand Line, and the information they'd gathered couldn't be that precise. So after landing, their first priority was to scout the terrain, assess the situation, and seize enough ships!

First, this would give the slaves brought from elsewhere a chance to escape. Second, they could strike at the forces behind slavery and wreck this trading post. And third... even if some slaves couldn't get away, at least they'd have planted the seeds of freedom. Perhaps one day, those seeds would bloom.

Before, Sig might have thought the Sun Pirates were acting too hastily. Maybe those people could survive a few more years as slaves under their masters' whips, but if the world remained in turmoil, even more people might suffer...

But Sig had been a slave himself. There was no way he'd think that now!

The Sun Pirates' meeting didn't last long. Sig figured they'd make more detailed plans when they got closer to Vila.

This was the Sun Pirates' first operation targeting an entire country.

[Sea Circle Calendar, May 3, 1506.

3000 Air Straight Punches completed √, 3000 Water Straight Punches completed √.

I should be able to see the Prison Demon in a while. I can get more familiar with my Devil Fruit ability...

My interactions with the Prison Demon also seem to help me act as the Listener.

If I had to sum up what it has in common with the world of Mysteries, I'd guess it's that both involve communicating with hidden powers to gain superhuman abilities.]

[Sea Circle Calendar, May 4, 1506.

√, √.

After I told my companions a few days ago that Vila Island was our target, everyone got excited and started gearing up.

The Fish-Men who used to sneak onto the deck to cry at night haven't done so for the past few nights. Maybe having a goal has helped them hold on to their convictions?]

[Sea Circle Calendar, May 6, 1506.

Today I raised the target to 1600 watts! √, √.

At my strongest, I can already throw a Water Straight Punch with 1800 watts of force. It nearly killed me, but now I can prove that my Fish-Man Karate is nearly at the sixtieth degree!

The training in Water Seven, especially the repeated punches against the waves of the Sea God Pilgrimage at the end, helped me improve at an incredible pace. I've nearly finished digesting the strength I'd yet to develop.]

[Sea Circle Calendar, May 10, 1506.

√, √.

My progress in Fish-Man Karate has settled down to a normal pace.

Though Boss Jinbe says my current rate of progress is already extremely fast, I think I should make better use of my strengths and develop the abilities of the "Spectator-Visionary" and "Reader-White Tower" Pathways further!

The reason my Fish-Man Karate improved so quickly was the physical enhancement from the "Sailor-Tyrant" Pathway, along with the Sea Power resonance from the "Bard-Sun" Pathway.

The "Secrets Suppliant-Hanged Man" Pathway has also given me better control over my Devil Fruit ability, further improving my combat strength.

But for now, the "Spectator-Visionary" Pathway has only given me the beginnings of an improvement to my Observation Haki, while the "Reader-White Tower" Pathway has so far... just made me smarter?]

[Sea Circle Calendar, May 14, 1506.

3000 Air Straight Punches completed, 3000 Water Straight Punches completed...

I still have no idea how to use the "Spectator-Visionary" and "Reader-White Tower" Pathways to improve my combat ability. But I've kept acting as a Telepathist and Reasoning Trainee, step by step.

Comforting confused mermaids has become a reliable way to act as a Telepathist.

Actually, that's closer to acting as a Sequence 7 "Psychiatrist." Only the way I assess their emotions while comforting them has given me a sense of how to act as a "Telepathist." Besides, I still can't use Psychological Suggestion, so all I can do is be a sympathetic big brother.

There's a similar difference between the Sequence 8 "Reasoning Trainee" and the Sequence 7 "Detective." Compared with the more advanced "Detective," the key to acting as a "Reasoning Trainee" is sorting through the process, not reaching a conclusion!

Today, I pieced together the clues and found the guy who'd been sneaking the takoyaki Hachi made. My acting progress went up...]

[Sea Circle Calendar, May 15, 1506.

I didn't train today.

The Marines cornered us, and we fought a major battle...

I really wanted to keep that Rear Admiral locked up forever, but Boss Tiger stopped me.

I'll never forget what he said. The Marines may already know that Boss Tiger refuses to kill. After the man was defeated, he still kept saying things like, "Don't think beating us a few times is enough. The Celestial Dragons won't let these slaves go. The World Government's Absolute Justice will always prevail."

I could feel that Boss Tiger was the one his words had wounded most deeply.

The first thing I'll do when I reach Sequence 7 is heal Boss Tiger's wounded heart!]

[Sea Circle Calendar, May 19, 1506.

√, √.

I still haven't figured out how to use "Telepathist" and "Reasoning Trainee" to directly improve my combat ability. But I've made further progress in Armament Haki. After trying over and over today, I managed to use Armament Haki without needing to work myself into a rage.

That probably has something to do with what happened in Water Seven, though I can't tell yet whether I unconsciously touched on the essence of "anger" or simply gained a deeper understanding of Armament Haki.]

[Sea Circle Calendar, May 25, 1506.

√, √.

The Sea Bass docked at the Galadi Archipelago today. We're about to fight the local kingdom on Vila Island, so everyone's been holding back. Even Arlong and Hachi didn't go ashore to have fun.

I was still the one responsible for finding out what was happening on the island...]

[Sea Circle Calendar, May 26, 1506.

I'm hiding in an inn in town. To stay safe, I didn't train.

I learned some bad news today—the Log Pose for Galadi Island would take nearly half a year to record!

We obviously don't have that kind of time. I went back to the ship and asked Boss Tiger for funds. Tomorrow, I'll buy a ready-made Log Pose on the black market.

Newcomers have to wait for their Log Pose to record, but for people who live here, Log Poses are expensive and can be sold at a markup after just three months. Naturally, quite a few people make a business of it.

But the World Government forbids the private sale of Log Poses, whether Log Poses or Eternal Poses!

After all, groups without permission aren't allowed to go to sea. Anyone who does is treated as a pirate... So of course they'd keep the Poses under control.

But this sort of business doesn't require much skill, so it can't be stamped out. You can still find them for sale at high prices on the black market.

Since I went to the black market alone, I inevitably got fleeced. I swallowed my anger and didn't make a scene.

I also found a lead at the black market on a slave-catching crew heading to Vila...]