While Jesus Burgess's Strong-Strong Fruit is simple and brutal, any fancy techniques seem superfluous in the face of absolute power.
Each of his punches was incredibly heavy, striking Hancock's Armament Haki Haki-covered arms with a crisp, metallic clang.
But Hancock's counterattack was even more shrewd.
Her Haki had been cultivated to an extremely profound level; her Observation Haki allowed her to predict every attack from Jesus Burgess, and her Armament Haki formed an all-around protective barrier around her.
She incorporated the power of the Love-Love Fruit into every attack—not a simple, one-time petrification, but rather petrification power infused into her Armament Haki.
This forms a completely new integrated offensive and defensive model.
Any substance that comes into contact with her Armament Haki will be petrified instantly.
Jesus Burgess's right arm has been petrified three times.
Each time, his fist slammed into Hancock's defense, before he could even retract his fist...
He felt a strange power seeping in through the cracks in his Armament Haki, threatening to turn his entire arm to stone.
He had to use all his Armament Haki to shatter the petrified layer.
"I'm not fighting anymore!"
Jesus Burgess plopped down on the ground, panting heavily.
"You shameless woman! I missed a punch and my own hand turned to stone! How am I supposed to hit you now!"
Hancock retracted her fighting stance, crossed her arms, and looked down at Jesus Burgess:
"Whispering sound--!"
"It's because you're too weak."
Jesus Burgess was speechless.
Savi and Yamato, who were watching from the sidelines, both burst out laughing. Yamato, carrying his spiked club, looked on with envy.
" Hancock has improved so much in the last three years."
If it weren't for my Oni bloodline protecting me, I think I would have been caught up by her.
Savi shook his head:
It's not 'about to catch up,' it's 'already caught up.'
Her current strength is firmly at the level of a veteran Marine Vice Admiral.
With the combination of the Love-Love Fruit and Conqueror's Haki, even elite Vice Admiral are no match for her.
Hancock ignored their comments.
Her gaze swept across the training ground and landed on the towering palace tower in the distance.
There was a window there, facing the training field. Every time she trained, there was always a figure behind that window.
Lord Roy.
Three years ago, Roy gave her the Love-Love Fruit, arranged for her to undergo Bloodline Transplantation, and had a top-tier powerhouse like Bullet personally train her.
During those three years, every time she was knocked to the ground and in so much pain that she almost gave up, just thinking of the gaze from behind that window would make her grit her teeth and get back up.
And now, she's strong enough to stand beside Lord Roy.
She is no longer the little girl from Amazon Lily who needs protection, but a warrior who can share Lord Roy's burdens.
A faint smile unconsciously crept onto Hancock's lips, and in an instant, several new recruits who were training around her were all petrified and turned into statues.
Her face darkened, the petrification effect wore off, and she turned to leave. "You lot, go run fifty laps!"
On the other side of the training plaza, Trafalgar Law was sitting cross-legged on a boulder.
The demonic sword, Kikoku, lay horizontally on his lap, its blade gleaming coldly in the sunlight.
The power of the Op-Op Fruit silently unfolded, and ROOM enveloped the space within hundreds of meters around it.
Luo stretched out his hand, his five fingers slightly bent, and the Kikoku automatically sprang out from its sheath, hovering beside him.
A transparent hemispherical space unfolded around him, and all objects within the space were clearly presented to his perception.
Trafalgar Law flicked his finger, and a boulder was lifted from the ground into the air.
With another tap of his finger, the boulder was split into hundreds of fist-sized fragments, each with a smooth, mirror-like edge, without a single rough cut mark.
He raised his hand and waved it, sending pebbles raining down on the target in the center of the training field.
Every stone hit the bullseye precisely, leaving the target riddled with holes the size of fists.
"ROOM - Sweep."
Luo casually uttered the name of the move, withdrew his hand, and the Kikoku automatically flew back into his hand.
In the past three years, his medical skills have surpassed those of the vast majority of physicians on Hachinosu.
The foundational knowledge taught by Dr. Kureha, combined with Dr. Vera's toxicology and the power of the Op-Op Fruit, allows him to directly remove diseased internal organs without opening the skin.
They even performed remote surgery on the wounded while fighting on the battlefield.
"The power of the Op-Op Fruit has reached its limit."
Luo's fingers traced the back of the Kikoku Blade.
"Next, it's about continuing training and waiting for the Devil Fruit Awakening. Finally, it's about taking revenge on Doflamingo."
It's worth mentioning that Law's Op-Op Fruit domain is practically modeled after Roy's. Things like the gravity chamber and space-time manipulation are all based on Roy's Telekinesis Domain.
However, the limitations of the Devil Fruit's power mean that Trafalgar's "ROOM" domain is not as simple and easy to operate Roy's, and it also consumes a lot more stamina.
On the path outside the training plaza, Nicole Robin carried a thick ancient book and walked towards the library.
Over the past three years, her demeanor has undergone a significant change.
No longer as wary and defensive as when I was a child, but rather with a sense of composure and calmness.
Bullet's training has made her physical abilities far surpass those of an ordinary historian, and she has begun to develop dual-color Haki. Even without the aid of a Devil Fruit, she is a qualified warrior.
She has taken the development of Flower-Flower Fruit to a higher level.
From initially only being able to bloom within a few dozen meters, it can now simultaneously produce hundreds of arms from a kilometer away.
Each arm can independently perform physical techniques and Haki, making it equivalent to a mobile army of a hundred men.
But what she cherished most was the library on the island.
The treasure trove of Hachinosu contains a wealth of Poneglyph unearthed from ancient ruins.
For the next three years, Robin spent almost all his time studying these stones.
The Void Century, the Truth Behind the Great Kingdom, the Existence of Ancient Weapon --
These secrets, which the World Government has been trying so hard to cover up, are being pieced together bit by bit in her hands.
We are getting closer and closer to the truth of the final island, Laugh Tale.
"Sister Robin--!"
A clear, crisp sound came from afar.
Robin looked up and saw a little girl with pink hair running towards her.
Five-year-old Rebecca, dressed in tiny training clothes, carried a training sword almost as tall as herself on her back.
Her face was covered in sweat, but her eyes were bright and showed no signs of fatigue.
Rebecca.
Robin knelt down and wiped the sweat from her face.
"Is today's training over?"
"Hmm! Master Hawk Eyes said I've improved today! He taught me to predict my opponent's movements, and I dodged Kazami-nii's fast Kazami three times in a row!"
Rebecca's voice was full of excitement.
Although she is only five years old, this little girl's talent is astonishing.
Her father was Kyros —the Great Swordsman famous for his swordsmanship, who showed extraordinary talent in swordsmanship from a young age.
Having only been in Training Camp for a year, she was already able to withstand attacks from veterans several years her senior.
Although it was just a training match, the anticipation and reaction speed impressed Hawk Eyes, who even gave a rare compliment, saying "Not bad."