One Piece: I Can Copy Any Talent

Those two talents were too good to pass up. Noil had to get them both.

Mihawk put away his Black Blade and gave the young man an appreciative look.

With Swordsmanship that strong, he would surely make a worthy opponent someday.

Mutated Talent

Though Hawk-Eyes had held back considerably, he had still shown plenty of his skill as a swordsman.

Mihawk made no effort to hide his admiration as he asked, "Young man, what's your name?"

"Noil."

Mihawk committed the name to memory, then nodded. "I look forward to seeing what you become."

"You might just turn into an interesting opponent."

Noil looked at him with absolute confidence. "Of course. It won't be long before I beat you with a sword!"

Mihawk scoffed. "Big words."

Even if Noil used every ability he currently had, he might not beat Hawk-Eyes.

The foremost swordsman, capable of clashing with the Four Emperors, was not someone he could overcome just by piling up Devil Fruit powers.

Mihawk took two bottles of wine from his little boat, sat down on the spot, and beckoned. "Let's have a drink."

Noil paused, then smiled. "Sure."

They had met through their swords. Now they sat on the ground, drinking together.

Only when Robin saw them talking after their fight did she finally relax.

To be honest, though, the way men made friends baffled her...

The two drank and discussed Swordsmanship. As the strongest swordsman, Mihawk had plenty to teach Noil, even in his offhand remarks.

Before long, an even more exciting system notification rang out.

"Befriended an important figure. Rewards issued: Universal Talent Copy Card ×1, a Famous Sword exclusive to the host ×1, Swordsmanship +30."

A Famous Sword just for me?

Noil turned his attention to the system space. Sure enough, a sinister-looking sword had appeared there.

Its hilt was dark red and black, while strange characters etched into its scabbard seemed to seal away something terrifying.

The sight of that striking Famous Sword made Noil itch to draw it and try it out.

But with Hawk-Eyes right there, he could hardly pull a sword out of thin air.

Noticing that Noil seemed distracted, Mihawk asked, "Where are you headed?"

At the mention of it, Noil frowned. "Sky Island. We haven't even found a way up yet."

"Sky Island..."

Mihawk thought for a moment, then took a compass from his pack.

An Eternal Pose? Noil recognized it and looked at Mihawk in confusion.

Mihawk handed him the Eternal Pose. "They say there's a current near this town that shoots straight into the clouds. Supposedly, someone reached Sky Island that way."

Town?

Noil accepted the Eternal Pose and checked the place name on it. He did not recognize it.

He had never even heard of the town.

Noil thought it over. Luffy and the Others had reached the sky by riding the Knock Up Stream near Jaya Island, a route that was practically a death sentence.

But he remembered an old man on Sky Island saying there was another way in, one that was a little safer than the route from Jaya Island.

Could the place Hawk-Eyes had given him be that route?

Noil gripped the Eternal Pose. Whether it was dangerous or not, he would find out when he got there.

Noil thanked Mihawk, who was getting ready to leave.

Mihawk had not managed to fight his old friend on this trip, but he had met a young swordsman who might one day threaten his position.

The journey had not been a waste after all.

Noil walked alongside Mihawk with an arm slung over his shoulders, as if they had been friends for years.

The aloof Hawk-Eyes nearly cut down the overly familiar man.

Why are all the friends I make such idiots?

While Mihawk was puzzling over that, Noil placed two Copy Cards against his back.

World's Greatest Swordsman and Supreme Sword Heart—two superb gold-quality talents were his!

After watching Mihawk drift away in his little boat, Noil hurried to deal with his overflowing talent slots.

"System, replace Sole Focus with World's Greatest Swordsman."

He first replaced the white talent that had been with him for so long. But when it came to Supreme Sword Heart, he hesitated.

He had originally planned to replace either Way of the Haki Sword or the Bear-Bear Fruit.

On second thought, Noil decided to try the new talent fusion feature instead.

He had not used it once since the system upgraded.

Besides, two gold-quality sword talents were about the best fusion pairing he could hope for.

"Fuse Supreme Sword Heart with World's Greatest Swordsman!"

After a spell of silence, the system completed the upgrade as Noil waited expectantly.

"Talent fusion complete. The new talent has become a permanent talent."

Noil eagerly checked it. The talent slot had once shone a brilliant gold.

Now a faint, inky black light threaded through the pure gold glow.

A string of new information appeared before his eyes.

"Supreme Swordsman: ink-gold quality, a mutation of gold quality. Combines the traits of World's Greatest Swordsman and Supreme Sword Heart. Swordsmanship potential beyond compare.

When using Swordsmanship, all attributes, including speed, strength, and stamina, increase. In combat, there is a chance to kill an opponent instantly, depending on their strength. Defeated enemies may be left with inner demons, depending on their willpower, hindering their growth."

Noil stared at the gleaming ink-gold talent. It was his first time seeing a mutated talent, and he was stunned.

Fusing two gold talents had produced an even stronger super talent!

It had the abilities of both gold talents, plus boosts to every attribute, instant kills, and the power to leave inner demons behind.

Noil quickly asked, "System, didn't you say gold was the highest talent quality? Where did ink-gold come from?"

The system replied at once. "Gold is the highest talent quality, but fusing two gold talents can cause a mutation, producing ink-gold quality. Mutated quality still falls under gold quality."

"Only the host can possess talents of this quality. No one else in this world can."

Hearing that he alone could have an ink-gold talent, Noil relaxed.

He had thought the system's fusion feature was nothing special. Now it looked like a god-tier ability.

With this mutated talent, Noil was certain he could surpass Hawk-Eyes as a swordsman before long, provided he trained hard.

I'll need to plan my future talent fusions carefully, he thought, excitement surging through him.

Right. There's also the Famous Sword the system gave me.

Noil took the wild-looking Famous Sword out of the system space.

It felt cold in his hand. Even before drawing it, he could sense the murderous intent within.

He slowly drew the blade. Like its dark red and black scabbard, the blade was washed in black as though painted with broad strokes of ink.

Red lines traced one ferocious face after another across its surface, like the wailing demons of a legendary hell.

An evil air washed over him. Even though the system had already bound the Famous Sword to him, Noil could still feel its unruly arrogance.

Noil admired his new weapon and soon got a rough sense of its nature.

The thing was like a gifted but rebellious child. It refused to obey and even tried to make trouble for its owner.

This was clearly a cursed sword that would be hard to control, but Noil was not worried.

What did you do with a child who kept acting up?

Pin him down and flick him where it hurt. He would behave soon enough...

Noil's Origins

No matter how domineering a cursed sword was, it was still a weapon.

A good one cut wherever its owner pointed.

Noil raised the cursed sword and slashed fiercely toward the sea, sending out a wave of Sword Aura.

The black-and-red slash struck the water, leaving a whirlpool that lingered for a long time.

As if it had sensed its master's strength, the cursed sword quieted down. Noil looked at the weapon in his hand as the system displayed its description.

"Famous Sword Demon Moro: a cursed sword custom-made for the host by the system. It can grow stronger as the host's Haki grows.

When stained with blood, the blade can repair itself and nurture a soul-shaking ghostly aura.

It has a blood-draining trait. Any wound it inflicts lets it draw stamina and mental energy from the enemy, then pass them to the host."

Noil gave Demon Moro a shake. It really was a dangerous cursed sword.

The Skillful Grade Blade Qingxing no longer suited Noil all that well, and Demon Moro had arrived at just the right time.

Even before growing stronger, Demon Moro was far sharper than Qingxing.

Noil removed Qingxing and fastened his new favorite, the cursed sword Demon Moro, at his waist. He instantly felt like a different man.

As for the out-of-favor Qingxing, Noil retired it to a fine sword case for safekeeping.

Noil was not skilled in Two-Sword Style, and he preferred the clean decisiveness of One Sword Style anyway.

With a new destination in mind, Noil returned to the ship and set sail, following the Eternal Pose Hawk-Eyes had given him.

Robin looked at Noil in puzzlement. He had gone ashore and come back with a new sword?

But Noil would not explain when she asked, so Robin set her questions aside.

Everyone had secrets. Robin still did not understand how Noil knew so much about Poneglyphs.

Now that they had a lead on Sky Island, Noil's mood had improved considerably.

The Eternal Pose pointed toward Xiting Island, which was not far from their original destination of Jaya Island, so they did not need to change course much.

During the voyage, Robin used the whitening lotion Noil had given her. Her once-tanned skin grew fairer and even softer to the touch.

Don't ask how Noil knew. It had cost him three days of doing the laundry.

Under the bright sun, Noil practiced his Swordsmanship with Demon Moro, full of enthusiasm.

His mutated talent had made his progress astonishingly fast, but Noil still needed to train diligently.

Plenty of people had squandered great talent...

Robin found a place to sit, opened a book beside her, and began writing something.

Sweaty from sword practice, Noil came over bare-chested and asked curiously, "Are you looking something up?"

Robin nodded and handed him a towel. "I want to find out more about the Noytem Kingdom."

Noil wiped away his sweat. "What's the Noytem Kingdom? Why are you researching it?"

Robin looked surprised. "You don't know about your homeland?"

Homeland?

Noil shook his head in confusion. "I was born in the East Blue."

Robin pointed to the pendant around his neck. "That pendant was made using a craft of the Noytem Kingdom's royal family."

"Huh?"