Haki Training, Kizaru

In any case, Naito and the other two packed their belongings, followed Zephyr to Red Port, and crossed Mary Geoise once again, heading straight for the New World.

While they were on the move, the World Economy News Paper brought the world some rather shocking news.

Thirteen years after the legendary great pirate Golden Lion, someone else had escaped from Impel Down.

This time, over a hundred people had escaped, an unprecedented number.

The newspaper gave detailed accounts of the major criminals formerly held on the sixth level, emphasizing how dangerous they were. Their new wanted posters were included as well.

For a time, the whole world was abuzz.

"Byrnndi World? Who the hell is that? Never heard of him!"

"I remember that name! Byrnndi World, the World Destroyer, a great pirate who ruled the seas over twenty years ago!"

"World's still alive? That guy attacked the Celestial Dragons! I thought he'd been executed long ago after the Marines caught him! He survived and masterminded this breakout himself? What a tenacious monster!"

"He attacked the Celestial Dragons? No wonder his bounty's the highest of the lot—a whole billion!"

"Nation-Stealing General Anthony and Swift Sword Salt are monsters too! They each have a bounty of six hundred million."

"Who's this Edward Weevil? His bounty's seven hundred million Beli, even higher than Anthony's and Salt's!"

"Whitebeard II? Is that nickname hinting at something? Don't you think he looks a little like Whitebeard?"

"Who's this woman? Her bounty's five hundred million. What kind of race is the Lunarian Tribe?"

"The Lunarian Tribe? Are there still survivors of that race?"

As people around the world discussed the news, the monsters residing in the New World saw the newspaper as well.

In the latter half of the New World, somewhere at sea, a great whale-shaped ship sailed quietly forward.

On the deck of the great ship known as the Moby Dick.

"This-"

Marco the Phoenix, commander of the Whitebeard Pirates' first division, looked at the wanted poster in his hand and couldn't help glancing up at Pops, the man he respected most.

He hesitated before speaking. "Pops, this Edward Weevil..."

Pops has a biological son?

But that can't be right. I started following Pops with my biological father nearly thirty years ago, and I've never heard anything about this.

The man seated in the spacious chair, Whitebeard Edward Newgate, held the newspaper in his hand, his gaze fixed on Miss Bakkin's heavily wrinkled face.

Why does she look a little familiar?

She looks a bit like Stussy.

But that woman Stussy is alive and well, and she's already a major figure in the New World's underworld.

Whitebeard shook his head. "Just some baffling people. Pay them no mind."

"Is that so?"

Marco nodded.

Still, this Edward Weevil really did look a lot like Pops, though he looked a little stupid in the photo.

Onigashima, Wano Country.

"Wororororo! King, so there are other survivors of your Lunarian Tribe!"

The burly man, who resembled a primordial beast, sat cross-legged on a cushion, laughing as he drank from a gourd.

Seated below him was King the Conflagration, one of the Beasts Pirates' All-Stars. Dressed in black leather from head to toe, he wore a black mask, with a pair of black wings on his back and flames blazing behind his head. He held a newspaper in his hands, his eyes fixed on the white-haired woman in the photo.

"I never imagined this either."

King's expression was deeply complicated.

He had thought he was the last Lunarian, but did he still have another member of his race out there?

"Wororororo!"

Kaido of the Beasts, the World's Strongest Creature, grinned. "That old hag Linlin will go crazy over her. King, tell me, should we go help your fellow Lunarian?"

King fell silent for a moment, then said calmly, "She may be of my race, but she's still a stranger. Lord Kaido, there's no need to clash with Big Mom over her."

"A stranger? Once she's one of us, won't she stop being a stranger?"

A cunning smile curled Kaido's lips. "King, what do you think about waiting until Linlin has driven them into a corner, then going to help?"

King was momentarily taken aback, then nodded slightly. "I understand, Lord Kaido."

Indeed, that fellow Lunarian's companions were unusually strong as well. If they joined the Beasts Pirates, Lord Kaido's power would increase greatly.

Whole Cake Island, Totto Land.

"A Lunarian! Mamamama! Besides King, there's actually a second Lunarian in the world!"

Charlotte Linlin, the world's strongest woman, had long since lost the beauty of her youth and was now nothing more than a fat old woman. Reclining in her spacious chair, she ate cake and laughed wildly as she read the newspaper.

"Katakuri, go yourself! Bring that woman before me!"

"Yes, Mama."

Yes, junior Kaido certainly understood senior Linlin.

Chapter 20: Haki Training, Kizaru (Please keep reading!!)

In the New World, at Red Port beneath the Red Line, a warship slowly sailed out of the harbor.

On deck.

Now that he was a headquarters major, Naito had immediately changed out of his ugly sailor uniform. He wore a loose black hoodie and dark gray knit joggers. If not for the Justice Coat draped over his shoulders, he would have looked more like a student who had just run out of school.

He looked at the man before him in some surprise.

Zephyr was doing squats with a barbell on his shoulders, much larger than the one Naito used for training.

The astonishing weight had caused the deck beneath Zephyr's feet to visibly sink. To keep it from breaking, Zephyr had even coated it in Armament Haki.

"Teacher Zephyr,"

Naito said with some feeling, "have I finally inspired you to start training properly? Well, as long as you're determined, it's never too late, no matter your age."

"Brat, if you've got nothing useful to say, shut up."

The corner of Zephyr's mouth twitched.

Now that he had decided to return to the front lines, he could no longer afford to slack off.

During his last encounter with Edward Weevil, Zephyr couldn't bear to imagine what would have happened if Naito hadn't been there.

When he had tried to intercept the escapees at the Sabaody Archipelago, he had also been stopped with ease, utterly unable to prevent their escape.

Though he had long felt he was no longer in his prime, only now did Zephyr realize just how much he had weakened.

This wouldn't do. His current strength was nowhere near enough.

Naito and the other two had chosen to follow him, and the Marines who joined the Marine Guerrilla Unit had chosen to follow him.

He couldn't betray their trust.

His current strength was indeed more than enough to deal with ordinary pirates, but as Sengoku had said, what if he really caught up with those escapees? Or even encountered the other monsters of the New World?

Could he protect his subordinates from those monsters?

The answer was probably a cruel one.

So Zephyr believed he first had to regain his former strength.

First, naturally, he had to renew his resolve. Then he had to awaken his body, which was on the verge of rusting.

"Hm? Wait,"

Zephyr said, suddenly sensing something was off as he looked at Naito's slouching figure. "What's with you today, brat? We're not far from G-1 Base, but knowing you, you should be training right now."

There was no doubt about how hard Naito worked. Unless he was so exhausted that he fell asleep, he was hardly ever seen resting.

"It's for training."

Naito yawned and said leisurely, "Teacher Zephyr, I want to learn more advanced Armament Haki techniques."

"More advanced Armament Haki techniques?"

Zephyr raised an eyebrow.

It seemed that the battle at the Sabaody Archipelago had dealt the proud boy quite a blow. Even after trying everything he had, he had been completely unable to do anything to his opponent.

"Then let me see how far you've gotten with your Hardening first."

"Got it."

Naito nodded slightly, and the next instant, his pitch-black fist slammed straight into Zephyr's chest.

Zephyr's body remained utterly unmoved.

"Oh!"

Naito looked a little surprised, his eyes widening. "Teacher Zephyr, that was a fast reaction."

His pitch-black fist had struck Zephyr's pitch-black chest.

Zephyr gave him a mirthless smile, released the barbell with one hand, and rapped Naito on the head. "I never said I'd be your target."

"Ow!"

Naito clutched his head.

That really was fast. He had barely been able to react.

"Still,"

Zephyr looked at Naito with growing approval. "You've become very proficient in Armament Haki Hardening. You're ready to master flowing and projecting Armament Haki."

The boy's physique was unlike that of ordinary people, but what was truly astonishing was his talent for Haki.

Tekkai and Kami-e of the Six Powers could be considered prerequisite skills for Armament Haki and Observation Haki respectively. Those proficient in the two techniques could use them to grasp Haki.

But that didn't mean everyone could awaken Haki less than two weeks after learning Tekkai and Kami-e, as Naito had.

After awakening Armament Haki, Naito had taken only two months to reach the threshold of Hardening. After that, he had mastered the technique in just over a week.

All told, it had taken him a little over two months.

And it had taken that long because the amount of Haki Naito possessed was far beyond that of an ordinary person, making it much harder to control. Otherwise, it would have taken him a month at most.

Only a little over four months had passed since he mastered Hardening, yet the strength of Naito's Armament Haki was already on par with that of veteran headquarters vice admirals-excluding Garp, Tsuru, and Gion.

And that was despite his having experienced almost no truly fierce battles.

"Listen carefully, Naito."

Zephyr put down the barbell and instantly put on his teaching face, entering teaching mode. "At their core, different levels of Armament Haki techniques require different levels of control."

He raised his right hand. In an instant, an invisible current flowed from his arm and wrapped around it. Then the current abruptly collapsed inward, condensing into a layer of pitch-black substance on the surface of his arm.

"I've already taught you coating and Hardening, so I won't go over them again."