"Hahaha, everyone, drink all you like today! This one's on me!"
"This is a rare occasion! My grandson is finally joining Headquarters. If Sengoku knew I was bringing back a swordsmanship genius, he'd probably crush the teacup in his hand!"
"Luffy, I told you, no alcohol! You can only drink milk. Have a taste of my Fist of Love! From now on, follow Bai Yu's example and train hard to become a pillar of the Marines."
"With you joining and bringing some fresh blood into the Marines, I won't have to worry about throwing my weight around anymore!"
Hearty laughter echoed through the tavern.
After downing several mouthfuls of liquor, Garp soon noticed Bogard standing behind him.
"What's wrong? Didn't you say you were going to teach Bai Yu both types of Haki? Back so soon? Don't tell me that brat got conceited over his talent, refused to listen, and drove you away in a huff?"
"Don't bottle it up. Just tell me. I'll go beat him within an inch of his life right now!"
As he spoke, Garp rolled up his sleeves and prepared to charge outside.
"No, Mr. Garp. I'm not qualified to teach Bai Yu."
Bogard hurriedly stopped him, a rare trace of a wry smile appearing on his face.
"Mr. Garp, have you ever seen a true genius?"
Garp was dumbfounded.
It was the first time he had seen so many expressions on the usually aloof, steady Bogard's face. He seemed like an entirely different person from the stone-faced man Garp remembered.
Precisely because of that, Garp was even more bewildered as he said,
"Bogard, what do you mean?"
"I just asked Makino. She said Bai Yu comes to the tavern every day to mooch drinks and has never left Windmill Village. He must have taught himself swordsmanship, so he does count as a genius."
"But you don't need to look like that, do you?"
Garp was also very interested in how Bai Yu could unleash such a powerful Flying Slash. Otherwise, he would not have gone to Makino for confirmation so quickly.
But no matter how great Bai Yu's talent for swordsmanship was, surely it could not leave Bogard as listless as a sick cat?
"Miss Makino, a glass of hard liquor, please."
Bogard made the rare request for a drink, then tossed it back under Garp's gaze, which looked as though he had seen a ghost.
After the liquor burned its way through his gut and his head cleared a little, he spoke solemnly.
"Mr. Garp, I did go to teach Bai Yu both types of Haki just now, but something terrifying happened."
"I want you to tell me exactly how long it took you to learn Armament Haki back then."
Armament Haki?
Garp frowned. Everything Bogard had done today completely overturned his understanding of the man.
For precisely that reason, Garp set aside his usual flippancy and said,
"I remember it took five days to get a feel for the energy, and ten to fifteen days to gain a basic grasp of using Armament Haki."
"As for Sengoku, that fellow's a little smarter than me. He probably took thirteen or fourteen days."
"Are you suddenly asking because your initial conversation made you think Bai Yu's more talented than me?"
"How long do you predict he'll take?"
Bogard held up one finger, making a rare show of keeping him in suspense.
"One month?"
Garp raised an eyebrow. Seeing Bogard shake his head, he quickly added,
"Ten days? That really would make him more talented than Sengoku and me. Looks like I've recruited a true genius for Marine Headquarters this time."
"One explanation!"
Bogard spoke solemnly.
"That brat only listened to the explanation once before he used Armament Haki."
"My god, do you know how I felt just then?"
"As his instructor, I'd prepared a bellyful of words, planning to give that brat a proper scolding and some guidance."
"I still had a stern face on, ready to lecture him. Do you know what he said to me?"
"'Mr. Bogard, I think I've already learned it!'"
Bogard grew more agitated as he spoke.
The normally stone-faced man had long since lost control of his expressions, and spittle flew.
He practically wanted to grab Garp and shake him.
If there had to be a phrase to describe it,
this was probably the ultimate scene of social death.
The smile froze on Garp's face.
"Bogard, you really aren't suited to joking. Let's not tell jokes like that."
"Tell me the truth..."
As he spoke, Garp stared fixedly at Bogard.
Seeing that Bogard's expression remained solemn, Garp's hand trembled, and he crushed his glass outright.
A moment earlier, he had been wondering whether Sengoku would crush his cup when he heard about Bai Yu.
Now, it seemed he had done the honors first.
"Come on, I'm going to see that brat right now! Bogard, you'd better not be lying to me, or I'll kick you into the sea!"
Garp roared and charged out of the tavern, completely disregarding his Young Master Zhao image.
His only thought now was to confirm as quickly as possible whether what Bogard had just said was true.
Bogard hurried after him as well.
Faced with Bai Yu's astonishing talent for learning, he now had only one thought.
To regain a little sense of his worth as an instructor by teaching Observation Haki.
At the pier, Bai Yu plopped down on a reef rock. After casually taking a swig of liquor, he slowly closed his eyes.
With the help of the Talisman of Insight, learning Observation Haki still came as naturally as water flowing into a channel.
He only had to give it a little thought.
The sense of energy within his body turned into a vortex, sweeping outward with Bai Yu at its center.
Ten meters, twenty meters, thirty meters... a hundred meters...
Only after its range covered a thousand meters of the sea ahead did Bai Yu stop it.
It felt like having the entire situation in his grasp.
With Observation Haki's ability to detect things, Bai Yu could clearly sense the presence of every creature in the sea.
How many fish there were, how many shellfish, and so on-even the breathing presence given off by the submerged reef rocks could not escape Bai Yu's perception.
His intuition also told Bai Yu that farther out, in deeper waters, there was a fierce presence more powerful than the other sea fish.
If his guess was right, Bai Yu believed that presence probably came from the Lord of the Coast.
At that moment, Bai Yu finally understood why the two types of Haki had become the standard dividing the first and second halves of the Grand Line.
For anyone, mastering both types of Haki was a qualitative leap.
Splash!
A sea fish burst straight out of the water.
The stone pinched in Bai Yu's hand shot out, instantly piercing its body.
And the motion did not pause in the slightest. The dozen or so pebbles he had been holding shot toward the water one after another.
Just as they approached the surface, before the stones that had no targets and would otherwise have fallen into the sea,
fish soon leaped out one after another.
They collided directly with the stones he had flicked out.
Bloody water splattered, and the fish plunged headfirst onto the sea's surface.
In just a few breaths, twenty or thirty fish had died.
Only when the last stone pierced the last fish did Bai Yu slowly open his tightly shut eyes, a trace of delight flashing in the depths of his pupils.