March 4, 1497, Age of the Sea Circle
Finally, after a month on this island, Orion t the Nad Characters training here.
Rob Lucci, Blueno, and Fukurou were about the sa age as him, while Yabra had already entered his teens.
These four boys were quite "peculiar," and he could understand why they were Nad Characters.
He had seen them during evening training, but hadn't been able to talk to them because they weren't very friendly. Here, everyone was focused on their own things, and it was hard to find soone like Gloriosa, who was so open and friendly.
In truth, Gloriosa was a rather strange existence in this place. Despite being a recruit just like him and the other children, it seed as if the instructors gave her preferential treatnt, as if she were more of a guest in this place, or an exchange student who didn't really belong here.
Now, a new morning training session was underway, and Orion was listening intently to the instructor's explanation of how to use the Six Powers.
Of the six powers the agents trained in, Orion had already learned one: Geppo. Although he had done so in a very rudintary manner, and there was still plenty of room for improvent.
In addition, he had the passive ability "Steel Skin," which made his defenses incredibly strong, similar to the effect obtained by using "Tekkai." He wondered what would happen if he superimposed the effect of Tekkai with his passive ability. Would it greatly multiply his total defense? Or would both abilities be redundant if used simultaneously?
Anyway, the ability he was most interested in was "Soru," as he had seen in his fights so far that, in addition to high attack power, great mobility was equally important.
The instructor's explanation ended, and all the recruits began practicing repeatedly, trying to reproduce what they had just seen.
Orion was also practicing seriously, trying to master "Soru," though without much success. Generally, a slightly talented person could take months to learn a single technique and use it in a rudintary way, while an untalented person could take years to learn it. On the other hand, a talented person could learn them quite quickly if they had the physical aptitude.
Mastering them was another thing, though; that could take years, even for a prodigy
Orion had been evaluated by the staff in charge of this training island, and his results had been very positive, indicating that he had great talent for using all Six Techniques.
He wasn't all that surprised to hear their assessnt of his talent, since he had expected it to be at least above average. After all, not only had he increased his innate talent several tis over, but his physical abilities were far above those of an average person, thanks to his passive abilities.
Still, he was pleased to know that his talent for mastering these physical skills wasn't as diocre as his talent for wielding Haki.
After a couple of hours, the recruits began sparring with each other. Gloriosa ran up, waving cheerfully like an eager puppy, and proposed sparring with her again, but Orion flatly refused. He wanted to try sparring with so of the other recruits present to learn more about them and get an idea of the group's overall abilities.
Gloriosa puffed out her cheeks angrily and loudly called him a coward, attracting the attention of all the recruits present, who moved back a little, afraid of being noticed by Gloriosa and dragged into a fight with her.
Orion simply ignored the girl and focused his gaze on a fight taking place in the distance.
Rob Lucci was sparring with Jabra, who had apparently developed a rivalry with the little boy half his age.
The two traded blows at full speed, and Jabra used Geppo to walk through the air and attack from above. Lucci easily dodged it using Soru, then attacked him with a barrage of Shigan.
Lucci's index finger moved so fast it could barely be perceived by Orion's superhuman senses.
Jabra used Tekkai, his specialty, to defend himself, but Lucci's finger pierced his defenses, and after a few monts, the teenager was lying on the ground.
Rob Lucci simply bowed slightly and left the place, ready to continue practicing on his own. At first glance, there was nothing unusual about him, but when Orion saw his eyes staring at Jabra's bloody wounds, he realized this kid wasn't as simple as he seed.
Not only was this little boy's talent recognized as the finest in the organization's history, but sothing about him made him uneasy. Orion had seen a similar look on the pirate "Scarlet Blaze" Blake. It was a look filled with ecstasy, almost bordering on intoxication.
A person who could make that kind of expression while hurting soone else couldn't be completely ntally healthy.
Orion made a ntal note to that effect. His intention was to free as many children as he could from the clutches of the world governnt, especially the Nad Characters, but if Rob Lucci turned out to be a psychopath, there wouldn't be much hope of achieving that goal. He had no tools to treat ntal illness, and he definitely wouldn't risk bringing a psychopath with him.
Jabra got up, cursing, very angry at having lost to little Lucci, and quickly treated his wounds and went to find soone else to fight. With his combat prowess, he could defeat most of the other recruits, and after such a humiliating defeat, it was best to crush soone else to restore his wounded pride.
Orion continued to look around and saw Blueno and Fukurou fighting each other. They had very similar power levels, making their fight evenly matched. They probably couldn't find another opponent more suitable to train the techniques they had learned.
The recruits training here had co at different tis and were of different levels, though their base power was enough to easily wipe out a small pirate crew like those that had attacked Pacific Town.
Generally speaking, the younger ones couldn't yet master all Six Techniques, and only the more talented ones, like Rob Lucci, could use them before entering their teens.
The slightly older recruits could already master so of the techniques, albeit very rudintarily, while the more talented ones, like Jabra, could use all of them, but not proficiently. Learning the Six Techniques wasn't that complicated, and a talented person could do it in just a few months, but mastering them completely took years of practice.
To graduate from this training island and successfully beco a Cipher Pol agent, it wasn't necessary to fully master the techniques, but only those who could do so could join Cipher Pol's elite divisions.
On this island, all agents were instructed in various areas of knowledge and also had to undergo intense physical training. However, not everyone had enough talent, physical condition, or perseverance to beco an elite agent. The vast majority of these recruits would end up belonging to the common divisions, and their primary focus would not be combat. Only geniuses like Rob Lucci and the rest of the Nad Characters would master all Six Techniques and beco elite agents.
Orion saw that there wasn't much additional information to gather for the ti being, and left the training camp. This had been his first class practicing the Six Techniques, and he was far from being able to use them, so there was no point in participating in practice sparring for the ti being.
He walked toward his house and noticed Gloriosa following him closely, looking bored.
“Why are you following ? Shouldn't you be training?” Orion said curiously.
“Hmm, it's really boring to participate in training, and it doesn't really matter whether I participate or not, so I think it's more fun to be with you,” the girl replied innocently.
Orion was able to glean a bit of information from her words, and confird that Gloriosa was a special existence in this place. The treatnt she received from the world governnt was not the sa as the other recruits.
Orion hesitated for a mont, but finally asked what was on his mind.
“Hey, Gloriosa, you... you're a Kuja, right?”
Gloriosa stopped and looked at him in surprise. Then she smiled brightly and approached him, putting her arm around his neck.
“Orion! Do you know the Kuja? Have you ever seen them? Is it true that they are a nation of won?”
Orion listened to the questions that sprang from the girl’s mouth like a machine gun, and imdiately understood that she didn’t co from the Island of Won.
“I’ve never seen them, but my master told about them. According to his description, the Kuja are a nation of won with a natural talent for using Haki, and who use snakes as bows…” Orion looked at Yara, who was coiled around Gloriosa’s body, staring at him with a stupid expression, which had no place on a snake!
“Oh, I thought you'd seen them with your own eyes. I've also only heard stories about Kujas, but I've never seen one in person,” Gloriosa sighed, her previously high spirits deflating with her sigh.
The two arrived at the apartnt they shared and continued their conversation after entering.
“Strictly speaking, I am a Kuja, although my case is a bit special,” Gloriosa said as she walked to her hammock and lazily lay down on it.
“I can't give you the details because it's a secret, but in the future, if you beco my husband, I will tell you.”
Gloriosa's voice sounded rather discouraged, as if she had suddenly been overco by great tiredness.
Orion had more doubts, but seeing the state she was in, he decided not to ask further.
He simply changed into his clothes, which were dirty from his training, and prepared to go out once more. He would explore the surroundings and familiarize himself further with this advanced zone before attending the afternoon theoretical classes.
Before he could leave the room, Gloriosa's voice echoed in the quiet room.
"By the way, I heard we'll soon have a new roommate. Apparently, he's the child of an agent, and he'll co directly to the advanced zone without going through any filters. I wonder what kind of person he is."
There was a certain curiosity in the girl's voice, which seed to have already left her bad mood behind. She was indeed quick to change moods. Perhaps she was naturally optimistic? Or did she simply not think things through?
Orion stopped and looked at the last empty room in the small apartnt. Having a new roommate wouldn't be a bad thing at all; perhaps Gloriosa could focus her attention on this newcor and no longer chase him around, constantly asking for a fight.
………………………………………………………………………………………
March 27, 1497, Age of the Sea Circle
Orion was fighting three recruits at the sa ti. This was one of the ways he'd found to train effectively, as over the past three weeks, his combat power had increased dramatically, and even these recruits from the advanced zone were no longer a match for him.
One of the recruits attacked him with his index finger, but Orion used Soru and easily dodged it. Then, without pausing for a second, he launched a Tempest Kick, which hit one of the recruits squarely, knocking him out.
The remaining two cooperated to attack him again. One of them could use Soru, and the other Shigen, so using their specific abilities, they tried to subdue Orion. However, it wasn't too difficult for him to counter their attacks, and within a few monts, all of his enemies were out of action.
Orion gave a small bow to show his respect for his fellow practitioners and left the practice field.
He walked toward a nearby stream, where he often went to practice his Observation Haki.
His training was simple: he simply sat by the stream with his eyes closed and ditated, trying to use his Haki to perceive the things around him.
This was a technique he had developed on his own, and he didn't know if it was the best way to practice, but at least he had noticed so progress in his familiarity with the use of Observation Haki.
Occasionally, he could perceive things around him, as if he were seeing them with his own eyes. It was a rather strange and novel sensation.
It was a sha that his teacher, Roger, hadn't taught him much about the use of Haki, after considering that he had no talent in that area. Perhaps in the future, he could find soone who could guide him in the use of Haki, although for now, he could only try on his own.
He had tried to ask Gloriosa, who was capable of using both Armant Haki and Observation Haki, but she had looked at him strangely and simply replied, "How to do it? I don't know. It's like you're asking how to breathe. It's not sothing I have to think about to do it"
Orion finally figured out what his master ant when he said that the Kuja were "very talented" in the use of Haki. It was simply pointless to compare himself to them!
Or perhaps it was Gloriosa who was particularly gifted in that area, and it wasn't necessarily sothing that extended to her entire race?
Orion didn't have enough information to make a definitive statent, since Gloriosa was the only Kuja he knew.
He thought that in the future, it would be nice to go to the Island of Won; it would surely be quite educational, from a purely academic standpoint, of course. Orion wiped the drool that had appeared at the corner of his mouth and looked at the system screen, still walking toward the stream.
Three new skills had appeared on the skill screen.
*
Shave (Soru) (Level 0)
Tempest Kick (Rankyaku) (Level 0)
Finger Pistol (Shigan) (Level 0)
*
He was truly happy with the progress he had made in just three weeks, and his ego, which had been suppressed by encountering all sorts of monstrous characters since he had arrived in this world, began to inflate a little.
He had to remind himself that he couldn't get complacent, and that he had to continue training hard and increasing his power without resting.
The reason he had been able to learn how to use three of the six techniques so quickly was largely thanks to his passive skill "Strong Body."
For example, a genius like Rob Lucci had a much higher comprehension than him, but didn't have the physical capabilities to match his genius. He had to train his body day and night until his physicality developed enough to match his great talent.
If Lucci had the sa physical ability as Orion, he could probably already use all Six Techniques, even if he hadn't fully mastered them.
Fortunately for him, Lucci and the other Nad Characters were still children or teenagers, and couldn't yet exert their full physical power. He didn't know how strong they would beco in the future, but at least for now, there was no way they could compete in combat against him.
Of the recruits on this island, only Gloriosa, who could use Haki, was capable of defeating him in combat, and that was only in unard combat. If he used his cutlass, it would be difficult to determine the winner, but it was likely he would erge victorious.
Orion arrived at the stream and began his Observation Haki training.
For over an hour, he sat there, ditating silently and trying to "see" the movents of nature around him.
Before his afternoon lectures were due and he had to depart, a notification sounded in his mind, interrupting his concentration and training.
Orion focused his mind on the system screen and saw the contents of the notification.
*The Nad Character Kalifa (3) is within the identification area*
Orion opened the system map and saw that a small dot had appeared and was moving in the direction of his current position.
Seeing the Nad Character's age, Orion raised his eyebrows and wondered if he was a new recruit.
"But... isn't he a little young to start his training?" Orion said in a low voice.
The youngest child he had seen in this place was five years old, and he already considered it to be too young, so Orion had doubts about what such a young child could do on this training island.
It would be difficult for him to undergo the training that the other recruits were doing, wouldn't it?
Orion shook his head and stopped thinking about it. Seeing the speed at which the dot on the map was moving, they would surely arrive in the next few days, and then he would have his answer.
He stood up and walked toward the ss hall, where he would try to talk to the other recruits and get to know them a little better.
Ti was passing quickly, and he couldn't stay on this island forever training. Soon he would have to start planning his escape from this place in detail and decide which of the recruits present he could take with him.
For now, he hadn't found even one person who was capable of being rescued "the easy way." The brainwashing and indoctrination these children had received wasn't sothing that could be undone without much effort, so getting them to cooperate with him to leave the island would be nearly impossible.
Only Gloriosa seed less indoctrinated, although he didn't know if she would agree to escape with him. The girl evidently had her reasons for being here, and she hadn't told him what those reasons were.
Orion sighed, wondering how his family was doing in Pacific Town. It had been a long ti since he'd seen them, and he wished he could return to his hotown soon.
He would have to hurry to complete his goals on this island.
User Comments
0 comments from readers