Chapter 38: Act! Keep On Acting!
Chapter 38: Act! Keep On Acting!
Six Styles—techniques learned by elite members of the World Government and Navy, calculated by spiritual power.
A regular Navy soldier wielding a gun possesses spiritual power of 10. Those who master all Six Styles, however, have spiritual power of at least 500, making them superhuman.
Skills never burden the wielder, but Kuro found himself in serious danger now.
What else did he have besides basic swordsmanship and Haki? What else could he have? Without Six Styles, he had no choice.
To learn Six Styles, one had to enter the elite class during training. But the elite class now felt like a waste for Kuro—the effort and rewards were utterly mismatched.
Zeff, though still technically in the Navy, had stopped teaching them and instead formed his own "pirate guerrilla force" to hunt pirates. Without Zeff, the elite class offered nothing. Even if Kuro performed well, he might attract attention, which would only backfire. Pass.
The next day after their meal, Navy training began.
Headquarters’ training for regular Navy recruits was notoriously brutal.
Daily routines included 2,000 push-ups done with only thumbs and index fingers, 100 rope-climbing sprints, and 200 laps around the training grounds within one hour.
But this was just warm-up. The real challenge lay in combat drills.
Trainees couldn’t stop until they fainted—and even then, they’d be revived to keep going.
This was the Navy’s daily grind at Headquarters.
……
In the formation, Kuro and his companions sweated like pigs, feigning exhaustion.
Lida rolled her eyes at Kuro repeatedly. In her youthful female form, using her Devil Fruit ability drained her strength rapidly. Refusing to use it would leave her stuck in a weak child’s body, making training impossible.
Controlling strength took skill, and while the drills barely affected Lida, restraining herself and maintaining her Devil Fruit ability left her ravenous.
Thankfully, the Headquarters’ cafeteria was all-you-can-eat, or she’d have quit ages ago.
Klah performed admirably, keeping pace with other Navy recruits.
As for Kuro? He dripped with sweat, tongue lolling out, teetering on collapse—yet somehow staying upright.
Lida’s eyes practically bulged from their sockets.
They’d been like this for days.
Kuro, meanwhile, was in heaven. How blissful—light training, then a quick word with Smoker to secure a safe assignment, preferably in East Blue.
No need to fight Grand Line’s freaks head-on. Just thinking about it made him grin.
After finishing the last physical drill, their training officer led them to the training ground. “Now begins Martial Arts Training! Step forward, one by one!”
“Kuro, I hope I face you—you’re a great opponent!”
“Bullshit! I want to fight Kuro!”
“No, Kuro’s mine!”
The familiar Navy recruits squabbled.
Over the past few days, Kuro had bonded with several recruits. His performance earned him a nickname: 50-50.
No matter the opponent, he’d fight until the bitter end, appearing utterly drained and doomed to lose—yet refusing to fall.
The Navy recruits loved sparring with him, always leaving them satisfied.
“Kuro…Mr.?” A hesitant voice broke through.
A pink-haired, short-statured recruit stood there. But Kuro recognized him.
Compared to his previous blob of a body, the recruit now had a lean, muscular frame, standing taller.
Koby!
“It’s really you, Mr. Kuro!” Koby beamed as Kuro turned. “Long time no see! Didn’t expect to see you in Grand Line!”
“Oh. It’s you, the errand boy.”
Kuro nodded. Koby had worked as a grunt at Base 153—he’d known him back then.
“If you’re here…”
Kuro’s gaze swept sideways, spotting the idiotic blond not far away.
“Helmeppo, long time.” He waved lazily.
“Ah! Kuro!”
Helmeppo was sparring with Klah. Shocked by Kuro’s greeting, he stammered, “You’re in Grand Line too? What a coincidence!”
“I’m more surprised you joined Navy Headquarters instead of a branch. You’ve changed, at least.” Kuro nodded.
Training under Garp did wonders—both had transformed.
But this world’s people were freaks. In such a short time, they’d packed on muscle and strength that couldn’t be ignored.
Judging by Koby’s stance, he’d likely mastered “Shave” to some degree.
“Please, treat me well,” Kuro said to Koby.
“Yes! Mr. Kuro, I’m not the same as before—I’ll shock you!”
Koby’s excitement spilled over.
Finally, a familiar face.
All this time, he’d wanted power—and to show his old acquaintances he’d become someone new.
Kuro, he knew, was a dedicated Navy officer, working relentlessly for a decade before finally entering Headquarters.
Koby admired that.
But as for strength?
He didn’t think he’d lose to someone who’d spent ten years in East Blue’s backwater branch!
“Begin!”
At the officer’s command, Koby surged forward, legs exploding into motion.
“Let me shock Mr. Kuro first!”
A grin tugged at his lips. He’d recently begun practicing “Shave,” and though still fresh, his speed had skyrocketed. Kuro would be stunned!
“Oh, so it’s Shave.”
Kuro’s mind remained calm, but he still put on a show. Acting surprised, he crossed his arms to block Koby’s charge.
“Koby, you’ve changed—you’ve gotten strong.”
Kuro deflected Klah’s punch, then threw a slow, lazy jab in return.
To him, it felt sluggish—but to Koby, the straight punch carried serious threat.
Koby grimaced, blocking the strike before countering.
Bang!
Crack! Crack! Crack!
The training ground echoed with the sounds of fists meeting flesh.
“Stand still and take it!”
After several exchanges, Koby roared and lunged at Kuro’s face.
Kuro’s expression turned serious. Pretending to be too slow to dodge, he barely tilted his head, letting Koby’s fist graze his cheek.
Then he struck—a punch to Koby’s abdomen.
Koby coughed violently, biting his lip before retaliating with a punch to Kuro’s gut.
Both staggered back, panting. Koby stared at Kuro, a look of mutual respect in his eyes.
“Mr. Kuro, you veteran Navy, your combat experience is incredible! I thought I’d grown strong, but I still can’t beat you.”
Wiping his hand, Koby grinned.
But fighting Kuro felt incredible.
A true clash of equals.
“I feel the same. It’s been a while since I’ve met a rival like you.”
Kuro nodded solemnly.
Lida, meanwhile, rolled her eyes yet again while sparring evenly with a female recruit nearby.
She felt her eyeballs might pop out from overuse.
“A while since I’ve met a rival like you?”
Missing a word like “weak” there, huh?
Act!
Just keep on acting!
(End of Chapter)
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