It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that Vic currently possesses combat strength at the level of a Yonko's vice-president. If he were to also develop Observation Haki that Future Sight, he would definitely be at the level of a Yonko's vice-president. The difference between him and Admiral would probably just be the quality and quantity of their Haki.
With Vic's physical talent and the aid of the Divine Staff, it probably won't take too long, but he will still need to accumulate experience continuously.
In the original work, King Luffy simply didn't have enough experience, Kaido could keep fighting and remained strong despite wave after wave of opponents. King Luffy, on the other hand, was knocked unconscious time and time again, and only defeated Kaido in the end after Awakening his Nika Form.
However, it's still unclear whether this was due to Nika Form or Kaido's exhaustion. If the two were to fight again, the outcome would be uncertain.
Therefore, Vic won't be the kind of guy who's only good for three seconds. He might have strong attack power and a Haki, but he just doesn't have enough buildup, and he'll be done for after a few moves!
In the open space in front of the cabin, Rebecca, who was attacking, stopped and looked at the path they had trodden out with surprise.
There was a rhythmic, familiar sound of footsteps on the ground.
" Wendy! It's Vic back, he's back!" Rebecca was overjoyed; her Observation Haki detected the familiar face.
"Really? He's finally back! He's made my Rebecca so thin these past few days, hehehe!"
Wendy knew that Rebecca had Observation Haki, so if she said it was Vic, then it must be Vic.
" Wendy, you're so annoying! You keep making fun of me!"
Rebecca blushed slightly; she certainly hadn't lost weight, and she knew Wendy was teasing her.
"Hey, not bad! You two worked really hard. I'll reward you today. How about Sea Kings feast?" Vic said with a smile as he walked out of the forest.
"Yes, of course we want it! We haven't had it for a month, and we can't catch those monsters now!" Wendy said nostalgically.
"I love anything Vic makes!" Rebecca said, staring into Vic's eyes.
"Haha, okay, then let's eat Sea Kings! It's been a long time since I've had any!" Vic exclaimed happily.
" Vic, it's been a month, you've turned into a middle-aged man, haha! We're going to Sabaody Archipelago tomorrow, we're not taking any middle-aged men with us! Hehe!" Wendy joked, looking at Vic's beard.
"Oh, I've been busy and haven't had time to deal with it!" Vic explained, stroking his beard, then used Life Return to make his beard grow back.
"What a convenient ability! When can we learn it? I also have some hair on my body that I want to get rid of!" Wendy exclaimed.
"It'll be soon. In a month, we'll take the graduation assessment from Recruit Camp, and then we'll be able to enter the Elite Camp for further training."
Rebecca replied with utmost seriousness, completely unaware that Wendy's words contained something quite extraordinary.
Vic stared at Wendy with a dark expression. Where had the dignified and elegant Wendy gone?
"Yes, it's already been half a year. We'll soon be official marines!" Wendy seemed to remember something, a hint of worry flashing in her eyes.
" Rebecca, you can get a new sword now. Here, this is a double-edged longsword I forged for you, Great Grade Sword, similar to the one you're using now. See if you like it!"
Vic unslung the sword from his back and handed it to Rebecca.
Rebecca held both swords in her hands and examined them closely. They were almost identical in appearance, except that the new one had more exquisite details, while the old one was somewhat worn. One was heavier than the other.
Rebecca handed her old sword to Wendy, then drew the new one.
A blue light shone on Rebecca's face as Rebecca slowly drew her sword fully, her smile growing wider.
A double-edged longsword with a single, entirely blue blade appeared before Rebecca's eyes. Like a piece of blue jade, it had no other colors or gradients; it was just one color, symbolizing purity.
Rebecca stared at the sword with a fascination, unable to come back to her senses for a long time, her mind seemingly merging with the blade.
" Rebecca, this blue is still not quite the same as Cast Blue Gold, but there's nothing else we can do right now. I hope you won't be disappointed!" Vic's words brought Rebecca back to her senses.
"I won't be disappointed, this is already very good, I like it very much, thank you! Vic!"
Rebecca stared at Vic with her bright, sparkling eyes, her gaze as turbulent as water.
"However, if you can use Armament Haki to turn it into Black Blade, then its color will be similar to that of Cast Blue Gold, a black with a hint of blue."
So, Rebecca, you've got to work hard. If you want that color, you'll need to Awakening your Armament Haki, and you'll have to nurture it with Haki for a long time, hahaha!!!
Based on the dark green color of Hawk-Eye's Black Blade Night in the original work, Vic deduced that Night was green before becoming Black Blade, as was Shusui. Even after becoming Black Blade, it still retained its original color, rather than being pure black.
Vic had two other purposes in doing this. One was to encourage Rebecca to Awakening Armament Haki. Since she wanted to have a sword of that color so much, she should work hard to Awakening.
The second method is to nurture the Black Blade, which requires releasing Haki over a long period of time. This long-term consumption of Haki is also a way of cultivating Haki. Vic wants to subtly make Rebecca's Haki stronger.
Vic won't tell Rebecca the secret directly, at least not now. If Rebecca were to be hypnotized by some fruit or become someone like Red Count who can see other people's memories, then the secret would be exposed.
Vic doesn't want to reveal this yet. Although he has the Divine Staff to help him cultivate Haki, there are too many restrictions. He can only use it after leaving Marine Headquarters. Right now, he can only use it briefly during Raiu.
" Rebecca, I'm so envious of you, having such a great weapon!" Wendy looked at Vic with a resentful expression.
" Wendy, don't look at me like that. All I know is sword forging. I'll find you a top scientist someday and have him upgrade your equipment!" Vic said, rubbing his nose.
"You said it yourself, and I've got it! I want the Supreme Great Gun!" Wendy said excitedly.
"Ahem, I've never heard of any supreme weapon. I'll find you a suitable Devil Fruit later!" Vic's forehead was sweating slightly; women certainly have a lot of demands.
" Vic, who is that knife for?" Rebecca saw the knife that had been taken off with her, a very beautiful knife.
"Well, let's wait for the right person!" Vic didn't say anything more. He looked up at the sky, as if he was thinking about something.
Seeing that Vic was lost in thought, the two women didn't disturb him and went to examine the sword.
" Rebecca, go and call Smoker and Hina over too, let's all have some fun together."
After regaining his senses, Vic told Rebecca and then went into the sea to catch fish.
I promised to reward the two girls, so I have to keep my word. Anyway, two more people won't make a difference, so I might as well invite them over to eat together.
Dinner was lavish; Vic had clearly put thought into it, as he hadn't had it for a month and was craving it.
Smoker and Hina were right on time; they arrived as soon as the food was ready—truly exemplary in their ability to be waited on hand and foot.
Vic suspects that Smoker Awakening Observation Haki; otherwise, how could it be such a coincidence?
"Hey, Smoker, it's been a month, you've really gotten manly, aren't you? You're starting to show your chest now, what's up? Graduating soon, letting loose?"
Vic noticed that Smoker was only wearing an outer coat and no inner clothes, which resembled his later appearance, and made a joke.
These words made Rebecca and Wendy blush slightly, and a blush also appeared on the sides of Smoker's nose. He was a little embarrassed, as no one had ever said that to him before.
"Stop arguing! I like dressing like this, and I'd dress like this even if I were a woman!" Smoker shouted, somewhat annoyed and embarrassed.
The girls all burst into laughter, with Hina laughing so hard she was shaking. She had never seen Smoker like this in the Elite Camp; he was a very proud person, and only Vic could make him show this kind of attitude.
"So this is the real Smoker! Promise me, if you ever become a woman, you'll never unbutton your clothes!"
Vic thought of Tashigi, the female swordsman who looked a lot like Kuina.
Smoker actually did switch bodies with Tashigi later, and even unbuttoned his shirt, giving those G5 bastards a real treat. I really want to punch them! What should I do?
" Smoker, how about we have a spar? Consider it your graduation exam, what do you say?" Vic smirked as he looked at Smoker.
"I'm not feeling well today, let's talk another day. Um... Vice Admiral Kuzan is at headquarters, why don't you spar with him!"
Smoker is now somewhat afraid of Vic. Ever since Vic mastered Armament Haki, he's been beating him up like a baby. Smoker is deeply hurt by this and wants Vic to suffer a bit at the hands of his new friend.
"Oh, Aokiji? I would indeed like to meet him, but I can't tomorrow. I have to accompany Rebecca to the Sabaody Archipelago tomorrow."
"I've promised her the amusement Paradise for so long, but we've been to Sabaody several times and haven't been able to go. It's almost become an obsession of mine. Let's go see Vice Admiral Kuzan when we get back!" Vic said to Smoker after thinking for a moment.
"Oh, are you going to the Sabaody Archipelago tomorrow? Hina wants to go too. Um, Smoker, how about we come along?" Hina's interest was piqued when she heard about going to an amusement Paradise.
Hina is not even twenty years old yet, so it's normal for her to have some interest in this area, but Smoker blushed.
"I'll go to Sabaody Archipelago with you, but I will absolutely not do any of those things, absolutely not!" Smoker said firmly.
Those entertainment facilities don't suit Smoker's boss-like image at all; he absolutely can't go on them, or his entire aura will be ruined.
"Okay, let's go together!" Hina said, her eyes darting around, a subtle smile playing on her lips.