Boom!
On the calm, tranquil sea, a Sea King hundreds of meters long broke the surface.
Its body was covered in black and purple stripes and bristling with spikes, while its two enormous eyes took up half its head.
The towering spray crashed back into the sea, sending out waves that rocked the warship.
Cool seawater rained down on the soldiers as they swayed on their feet.
Aboard the violently rocking warship, Sakazuki stood as steady as a mountain.
Looking at the swaying soldiers before him, he spoke in an impassive voice:
"Next is the third stage of Armament Haki: External Release."
As soon as Sakazuki finished speaking, he raised his hand and aimed at the head of the Sea King that had just burst from the water.
A pale column of force shot from his palm toward the Sea King's head.
Before the creature could react, the column struck straight into its chin.
It blasted open a bloody hole dozens of meters across, and the creature lost consciousness before crashing toward the sea.
The enormous Sea King's corpse slammed into the water, throwing up waves several meters high.
Blood and chunks of flesh poured endlessly from the wound in its chin.
Every soldier in formation stared blankly at that enormous, bloody hole, unable to recover from the shock for a long time.
"And the fourth stage: Internal Destruction."
Sakazuki's voice rang out.
Only then did everyone notice that, as the blood and chunks of flesh spilled out,
they could just make out that the enormous Sea King's head was hollow inside.
"Gasp!"
"That!!!"
"Can a human really do that?!"
"That's incredible!!!"
"I have to learn that move!!"
"Whoa!!!"
The stunned soldiers came back to their senses and could not help murmuring in amazement.
At the same time, they imagined how impressive they would look once they learned that move.
"All right, get back into formation."
Interrupting the soldiers' awed chatter, Sakazuki continued:
"Those are the applications and power of Armament Haki at its different stages."
"What you need to do now is master coating first."
"Hands, legs, head, torso."
"Only once you can coat your entire body can you move on to the next stage."
"Now pair up and start fighting."
"Only one of you gets to stay standing."
It was as though they had all been given a shot of adrenaline.
A little flame seemed to burn in everyone's eyes.
They shouted in unison:
"Yes, sir!!!"
Clang! Clang! Clang-
The sound of metal striking metal rang out incessantly.
It was a rather unconventional symphony.
Watching the soldiers throw themselves into training, Sakazuki nodded in satisfaction.
Then he summoned his adjutant and navigator.
"Have you determined our current position?"
The navigator pulled out a nautical chart and his calculations.
He showed them to Sakazuki.
"Reporting, Vice Admiral Sakazuki. We have."
"We're near the edge of the Calm Belt, judging by our position on the chart, the direction indicated by the Log Pose, and its faint response."
"We're approximately twenty-four nautical miles inside the edge of the Calm Belt."
"How are the engine room repairs coming along?"
"Emergency repairs are still underway. Some of the damaged sections are too troublesome."
"They need to be dismantled completely for repairs."
"Get it fixed as soon as possible."
"There'll be extra food tonight."
After hearing his adjutant's report, Sakazuki nodded and gave a few instructions.
The weather on the Grand Line was unpredictable. Yesterday morning had been bright and sunny, only to turn into a violent storm in the blink of an eye.
Wave after wave had battered them, and after furling the sails, they had pushed the engines too hard while battling the storm.
The engine room had been damaged outright, leaving the ship surging forward out of control. To their surprise, it had plunged straight into the Calm Belt.
They had only managed to stop after draining most of the fuel.
Evening came, and the sun sank in the west.
In the warship's dining hall, the exhausted young men were frantically stuffing meat into their mouths.
Sakazuki stood on deck, gazing into the distance and enjoying the peace.
Whoosh!
Suddenly, something whistled through the air, and Sakazuki frowned.
"Shave."
His figure vanished in an instant.
He appeared beside the mast, his palm coated in Armament Haki.
A thunderous crash startled the soldiers aboard the ship.
The alarm sounded, and they rushed out of the cabins, ready for battle as they searched for the point of impact.
Looking at the large section of arrow shaft that had fallen onto the deck, Sakazuki raised his left hand, waved it behind him, and said:
"It's nothing."
In his right palm, however, lay an arrowhead crushed into a lump of iron.
"Prepare for battle."
Before you continue