A massive Marine battleship tore across the sea like a blade, splitting the waves and sending towering sprays of water into the air.
Smoker stood on the deck, both hands gripping the ship's railing so tightly that his fingers turned pale. The salty sea wind roared against his face, whipping his Marine justice coat violently behind him.
His gaze was as sharp as a blade, fixed firmly on the restless ocean ahead.
Around him, Marines moved in disciplined order across the deck, working and training without pause.
Smoker called over the navigator.
"How long until we reach Impel Down?"
"Reporting, Commodore Smoker. At our current speed, we'll reach Enies Lobby in about a day," the navigator replied calmly, adjusting his glasses. "Given Crocodile's cris, he may be transported directly through the Gates of Justice without trial. If we do that, we can reach Impel Down in about a day and a half."
"Move faster," Smoker said grimly.
"I've got a bad feeling."
He stared at the sky above. Thick storm clouds were gathering, the sea surging violently as if a storm was about to break.
At the sa ti, deep inside the ship's hold…
Crocodile's finger twitched slightly.
Then his eyes snapped open.
He imdiately scanned his surroundings with sharp vigilance.
"Where is this…?"
He tried to move his body, but suddenly a wave of weakness washed over him.
Only then did he realize—
His hands were cuffed and chained to a pillar.
The entire cabin had been deliberately flooded with seawater, the water level reaching up to his waist, leaving him drained of strength.
Clearly, this was a special prison prepared by Smoker specifically to suppress Crocodile's abilities.
"Luckily… no Seastone," Crocodile muttered weakly.
Otherwise…
His entire body suddenly turned jet black.
Armant Haki coated his body.
With a violent pull—
Crack! Crack!
The handcuffs shattered.
Crocodile leapt into the air and transford into a whirlwind of sand.
In the next instant, the two Marine guards outside the door were silently drained into shriveled corpses.
"…Damn it."
Crocodile dropped to one knee beside the doorway, clutching his chest and breathing heavily.
His wounds had only half healed, and breaking free had exhausted the last of his strength.
Under the constant soaking of seawater, even the simplest movent had drained nearly all his energy.
Finally, a swirl of yellow sand drifted away along with his last heavy breath.
But that amount of power…
Was enough.
Inside Mr. 1's prison cell, sand suddenly filled the entire room.
The Marines guarding the cell instantly withered into dried corpses.
"Mr. Crocodile!"
Mr. 1's expression turned excited.
"Are you still willing to fight for , Mr. 1?"
"As you command."
Mr. 1 imdiately knelt on one knee.
"Commodore Smoker!"
A Marine soldier ran over in panic.
"Crocodile—!"
"What happened?"
Smoker grabbed him by the collar, his voice heavy and sharp.
"He… he's gone!"
Instantly, the entire deck fell into a deathly silence.
"Commodore Smoker…?" Tashigi asked nervously, gripping the hilt of her sword Shigure tightly.
"To the cells!" Smoker roared.
"No need."
A deep voice echoed across the deck.
"I'm already here."
A man in a brown coat stepped into view, the golden hook gleaming on his hand.
Sir Crocodile.
Behind him stood Mr. 1 and several mbers of Baroque Works.
"How careless of you, Smoker," Crocodile sneered.
"If I were you, I'd be maintaining Observation Haki at all tis."
Then he chuckled mockingly.
"Ah… but I forgot."
"A re Marine commodore like you probably doesn't even know what Haki is."
"Hahahahaha!"
"Crocodile!"
Tashigi could no longer hold back her anger.
She dashed forward with Shigure.
But before she could reach him—
Mr. 1 stepped in.
His arms transford into blades as he easily blocked her strike. With a slight push—
Tashigi was sent flying backward.
"Sorry," Mr. 1 said calmly.
"I can't let you attack my boss so easily."
On the other side of the deck—
Smoke began pouring violently from Smoker's body. Veins bulged across his forehead.
As a direct student of forr Marine Admiral Zephyr, and a close friend of Kuzan, how could he possibly not know what Haki was?
But Smoker had always believed that his Devil Fruit power alone was enough to face any enemy.
"White Blow!"
"Sandstorm!"
White smoke and golden sand collided violently.
Smoke and sand swallowed the entire warship as the battle erupted.
Alabasta Royal Palace
Chopper was carefully grinding dicine with intense concentration.
"What an ingenious thod of preparing dicine… remarkable!"
An elderly man pushed up his glasses as he studied Chopper's work closely.
"It's perfectly logical… brilliant!"
"At such a young age too… I truly can't compare."
Chopper's face twisted in embarrassnt.
He shoved a chair beside him and pushed a cup of hot tea forward.
"Ugh! Stop staring at like that, you idiot!"
Then he dragged the chair fully aside.
"You jerk! Go sit over there already!"
The old man paid him no mind.
Turning to Vivi—who was wiping Luffy's face nearby—he asked:
"Should I interpret that as 'please enjoy tea while watching'?"
"I think that's exactly what it ans," Vivi replied with a smile.
She continued gently wiping Luffy's face, worry filling her eyes.
"Why hasn't he woken up yet… Luffy…"
She placed a hand on his forehead.
"Oh no… he's burning up again!"
Vivi hurriedly pressed a wet towel against his forehead.
A mont later—
Steam began rising from the towel.
In the Town
The citizens had already begun rebuilding.
"Hey! Anyone got more lumber?"
"I'm out too!"
"I still have plenty here! Take as much as you need!"
Sanji and Usopp walked down the street carrying supplies.
"This country is really resilient," Usopp said with admiration.
"That's because this country's princess is super cute!" Sanji replied, hearts glowing in his eyes.
"Speaking of which… Luffy still hasn't woken up."
"Who cares about that idiot…"
Outside the City
Zoro stood with both arms extended, supporting two massive boulders.
"Stay focused…"
"I need to use that power anyti, anywhere."
His thoughts drifted back to his battle with Mr. 1.
"But what exactly was that power?"
He also recalled Luffy's fight with Crocodile.
Luffy hadn't seed to do anything—
Yet that overwhelming pressure…
What was it?
Palace Study
Nami stood among piles of books.
Her iconic short orange hair was tied back, a few loose strands clinging to her sweat-damp forehead. Her orange top was dusted with sand, while the golden belt around her waist accentuated her slender figure.
Her erald eyes sparkled like stars as she absentmindedly twirled a pen between her fingers.
"So… I can really take all these books with ?" she asked King Cobra.
"Yes," Cobra replied calmly.
"I've already read them all."
"Thank you! Then I'll gladly accept them."
Nami flashed a bright smile.
Palace Stairway
Chaka stood blocking several Marines.
"I already told you—we know nothing. Go back."
"Lying won't help this country," a Marine officer said sternly.
"Harboring pirates is a serious cri."
Just then—
Sanji and Usopp returned from town and walked past them casually.
"Oh, welco back."
Since neither of them had bounties yet, the Marines failed to recognize their targets and allowed them to walk straight into the palace.
Chaka imdiately changed his expression.
"Oh? So you actually have proof pirates are in the palace?"
The Marines froze.
"Well… uh…"
They clearly had none.
Inside the Palace
"Ahhh! That was a great sleep!"
Luffy stretched lazily.
"Wait—where's my hat?!"
"My hat! Where's my hat?!"
Then—
Grrrrrrr…
His stomach growled loudly.
"I'm starving! Where's the food?! Where's breakfast?!"
"You're so noisy the mont you wake up!" Sanji complained.
"That's just how he is," Usopp said.
"Luffy is so cute!" Vivi said dreamily.
She quickly picked up his Straw Hat from the bedside.
"Here you go, Luffy. Food will be ready soon."
"Oh—and it's dinner ti now."
"You idiot," Nami snapped.
"You had a high fever for three days straight. It was really serious."
"Vivi and Chopper have been taking care of you the whole ti."
"Oh… really?"
"Thanks, everyone!"
"N-no… I should be thanking you instead—"
Before Vivi could finish—
Luffy suddenly pulled her into a hug.
"No problem!"
"We're crewmates!"
Vivi's mind instantly went blank.
Her moon-like face pressed tightly against Luffy's chest.
"HEY! LET GO, YOU IDIOT!"
Two furious voices exploded at once.
Sanji lifted his leg—
Only for a huge bump to instantly appear on Luffy's head.
"Idiot! Do you even know what you're doing?!"
Nami roared.
Luffy stared at her in confusion.
Pain?
That didn't seem to exist for him.
"Luffy!"
Zoro suddenly burst into the room.
"The power you used when fighting Crocodile—what was that?!"
"Hmm? Power?"
Luffy tilted his head.
"Oh, you an Haki?"
"Haki?!"
Everyone froze.
"Just hearing that sounds powerful!" Usopp exclaid.
"Yeah."
Luffy casually tossed over a notebook.
It was the Vice Admiral Haki Notes given to him by the system.
He had already read it thoroughly.
There were no shortcuts—only awakening, training, and gradual growth.
Zoro hurriedly caught it.
"Wait… I slept for three days?!"
Luffy gasped.
"That ans I missed 15 als!"
"Why are you calculating that so quickly?!" Nami shouted.
"And why are you calculating five als per day?!" Usopp added.
Just then—
"I heard the captain woke up."
A white-haired man rolled in a cart full of fruit.
"Have so fruit first. Dinner will be ready soon."
Zoro stared at him.
"…You definitely have so weird hobby."
"It's not like that!" Vivi hurriedly explained.
"This is Igaram's wife, the palace head chef—Miss Terracotta!"
But her sparkling eyes never left Luffy as he devoured the fruit like a beast.
"Even if they're married," Zoro muttered,
"there should be limits to how similar people can look…"
"Make sure you prepare three days' worth of food for !"
Luffy had already finished the fruit.
Vivi wiped his mouth gently, smiling.
"That won't be necessary, Vivi."
"It's fine, Luffy."
The sound of Sanji's heart shattering echoed through the room.
"Wait… am I forgetting sothing?"
Ding!
Mission Complete: Final Battle
Rewards Granted:
Life Return → Ultimate Life ReturnIron Fist –Breath Chapter / Montum ChapterMassive Dual Haki Enhancent Pack (Selectable)Ultimate Life ReturnFull control over the secrets of life—every muscle, strand of hair, and even skin cells can be controlled at will.Energy storage: By eating, the user absorbs life force to heal any injury
(does not restore stamina).
As long as life force remains, the body cannot be injured.
Final Flash of Life — Instantly restores stamina, spirit, and condition.
Cooldown: once every three days.Iron Fist
A martial art created by Monkey D. Garp.
Divided into three stages:
QiMontumIntentEnhancent Pack
"Those who understand, understand."
Luffy grinned excitedly.
"I choose Armant Haki!"
A powerful surge of energy flowed through his entire body, strengthening his physique as if his very life level had evolved.
Na: Monkey D. Luffy
Physique: 69.9 (Advanced)
Strength: 63.5 (Advanced)
Speed: 59.9 (Interdiate)
Conqueror's Haki: 45.9 (Interdiate)
Armant Haki: 59.9 (Interdiate)
Observation Haki: 36.7 (Interdiate)
Devil Fruit: Gum-Gum Fruit – 45.6 (Interdiate)
Evaluation: Between Vice Admiral and Elite Vice Admiral
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