The Golden Dragon ship raced across the surface of the East Blue.
On the deck of the large ship, Zoro and Kuina were practicing.
"Physical strength is the foundation of everything!"
The strict teacher, Jack, shouted loudly, "Whether you're a swordsman, martial artist, or a Devil Fruit user, whether it's swordsmanship, hand-to-hand combat, or abilities! Everything starts with physical strength!"
"True strength comes from a strong body!"
"So! Don't stop! Keep going until not a single finger can move! Absolutely no stopping!"
Zoro and Kuina had sandbags tied to their legs, and they were running around the wide deck, breathing heavily.
"You're still far from it."
Beside them, Law sighed.
Zoro and Kuina's physical condition was still too weak. They weren't even qualified to practice the Rokushiki yet. To be blunt, their strength was probably the weakest among the thousands of pirates on the Golden Dragon ship.
They had to start from the most basic training.
However, just by watching them, even though their stamina was near its limit, their bodies were on the verge of collapse, yet they continued with steady steps, Law knew that they wouldn't stay this weak forever. On the contrary, they would definitely become strong.
On the other side, Enel was training in Rokushiki.
Rokushiki was a precursor to Haki. Iron Body was a degraded version of the Armament Haki, and Enel was not far from mastering Haki.
Ian had finally finished his long training with Mihawk.
He felt like his training had reached its peak.
He was almost there.
Just a little more.
That last step could no longer be achieved through sparring with Mihawk.
Ian needed an opponent.
One stronger than him, someone who could bring immense pressure.
Thinking of this, Ian couldn't help but glance at Mihawk with some regret.
They were playing chess, international chess.
Not to mention, Mihawk was quite cultured. He could easily talk about literature and history from various countries, and his chess skills were impressive. He was a pirate with great intellect.
At this moment, the cultured pirate noticed the strange look in Ian's eyes.
Mihawk instantly furrowed his brow.
What's with that look from this guy?
Does he not realize who's at a disadvantage here?
"Checkmate."
Mihawk moved a piece and checkmated Ian.
"Tsk."
Ian shook his head, putting down his piece with a sigh. "If only your strength matched your chess skills, Mihawk."
Mihawk's forehead twitched in frustration. "You bastard, are you challenging me to a duel?"
Ian replied with a hint of melancholy, "Forget it. Mihawk, you're still a bit off."
This bastard!
Mihawk really wanted to pull out his sword and strike him down.
Why does it feel like you've won?
"It's my turn, it's my turn!"
Ian was pushed aside, and Yamato, who had been waiting by the side, sat across from him with a cheerful smile, crossing her arms like a seasoned pro.
"Ian! I won't lose as easily as Mihawk!"
"I win!"
Mihawk gritted his teeth in frustration.
Everyone on this ship was so infuriating.
"You should just give up."
Ian rolled his eyes.
Someone who's never won a single match is acting like this?
I've never lost a best-of-five against her.
Hancock sat obediently by his side and couldn't help but fan the flames. "Ian, teach her a lesson."
"Here it comes!"
Yamato made a grand move on the board.
"I really can't do anything with you."
Ian sighed and moved his piece.
"Heh heh!"
Yamato gave a strange laugh.
Hancock whispered some advice into Ian's ear.
Mihawk, watching this scene, suddenly pursed his lips. Why did it feel like he was the one who lost?
The Kingdom of Goa, located on Dawn Island, is a nation known throughout the East Blue.
Due to its strict population isolation policy, it forced all the poor people into a slum called "Gray Terminal" outside the city.
This resulted in a remarkably clean city, nearly spotless, earning it the title of the most beautiful country in the East Blue.
Even the far-off Sorbet Kingdom in the South Blue sought advice from this nation.
The country's terrain is mainly composed of its capital by the sea, surrounded on three sides by towering, continuous mountains.
Beyond the mountains, on the eastern coastline, there sits a small village.
The village was named Windmill Village due to a tall windmill standing at its entrance.
Few people knew that this small, unknown village by the sea produced two incredible individuals.
And later, an even more remarkable person would emerge.
Now, on the coast of the village, two young children stood side by side.
"Our goal is the distant reef!"
The girl, wearing a white dress, had a unique hairstyle—red on the right, white on the left. Her big round eyes seemed to be scheming something. Overall, she was quite cute.
She pointed to a rock sticking out from the sea not far away. "The first one to swim there and back is the winner!"
"Ah! I will definitely win!" The boy next to her looked a little younger, with a round face and a silly expression.
"Alright! Then, I'll count down from three, two, one, and we start!"
The girl grinned mischievously and got ready to dive in at the shore.
The boy followed suit, blowing hot air through his nostrils. "Bring it on!"
"Three, two..."
The countdown was about to end when the girl suddenly turned around. "Ah! Shanks!"
"Huh?"
The boy instinctively turned his head.
Then.
"One."
Splash.
The sound of someone hitting the water.
"Shanks? Where's Shanks?"
The boy hadn't reacted yet and blankly looked behind him.
"Uta! Shanks isn't—eh!!"
When he turned back, he saw that his companion, who was once beside him, had already swum far ahead.
"How despicable, Uta!!"
Shouting loudly, the boy leaped into the water, desperately swimming forward. He shouted in frustration, "But I won't lose! I swim as fast as a swordfish!"
He knew that swordfish swam quickly.
The girl ahead laughed.
This idiot never learned from his mistakes.
She was older than the boy and had been sailing with the Red-Haired Pirates for years. Her physical abilities were far superior to most kids her age. Eventually, with a huge advantage, she reached the reef ahead.
But.
"Eh!"
The girl didn't turn back. She stood still, staring blankly ahead.
Until the boy, panting, reached the reef as well, she was still staring off into the distance.
"Hehe! Uta! Are you too tired to swim?"
The boy climbed up onto the reef, thinking he had won.
But.
"Luffy! Look!"
The girl urgently pointed at the sea.
"Huh?"
The country boy looked up in confusion, gazing toward the sea.
A ship.
He saw a ship rapidly approaching.
"Oh!!"
The boy's eyes immediately lit up, and he shouted in surprise, "What a huge ship! It's even bigger than Shanks' ship! There's a skull painted on the sail, it's a pirate ship! Pirates are coming!"
"Idiot!"
Uta was furious, "You don't understand anything!"
She said seriously, "That's the Golden Dragon ship! Ian the Skyfire is here!"
She was already eight years old and had been sailing with the Red-Haired Pirates since Shanks found her, so she wasn't unfamiliar with the monsters of the New World.
"Golden Dragon ship? Ian the Skyfire?"
Luffy tilted his head and blinked, confused.
"Idiot! It's stupid of me to tell you this!"
Uta was about to explode with anger.
"We should hurry back and tell Shanks!"
"Oh, oh!"
Luffy suddenly realized, nodding excitedly, "Right! We need to tell Shanks, pirates are coming!"
He suddenly got excited, "This time, I'll definitely fight alongside them!"
"Idiot! I already told you, it's Ian the Skyfire!"
The girl jumped into the sea and added, "If there's a fight, it'll be me! Luffy is too weak!"
"Impossible! Uta is the weak one! My punches are as powerful as bullets!"
"A bullet that can't even hit anyone?"
The two of them bickered while swimming quickly toward the shore.
It wasn't clear if they were actually nervous.
The two kids were in great shape and soon reached the shore, then quickly ran into the village.
They rushed ahead without a word, ignoring the people who greeted them along the way, and ran all the way to the bar outside the village.
**********
Support me on my patreon and read upto 30 early chapters.
patreon.com/PirateKing24