"This is…"
Watching the flickering black glow on Luffy's hand, Red jolted in surprise, immediately sitting up from his bed.
"Armament Haki!!!"
"Luffy, you've finally awakened Armament Haki!!!"
Two years!
It had been two years since Red first explained the concept of Armament Haki to Luffy…
And finally, on the third or arguably the early morning of the fourth day at sea, Luffy found the path to Armament Haki.
Although the Armament Haki on Luffy's fist was still faint and barely held together, as long as he took this first step, Red believed Luffy's Haki training would soar from here, bringing surprises all the way.
After all…
He was a Pokémon with the Normal type, a pure physical ability!!!
But when they left the Gym earlier, Luffy said he still hadn't felt anything like Armament Haki.
So, how did he manage to achieve it right after leaving the game world!?
A thought gleam flashed in Red's eyes.
If there was any notable change during this time…
It might have been when he took Luffy to the Pokémon Center, restoring him to peak condition before logging out of the game world.
"Did being in perfect condition unlock Luffy's latent potential? Or did the healing process at the Pokémon Center infuse some energy that triggered Armament Haki?"
In the games, no matter how severe a Pokémon's injuries, even if they were on the brink of fainting, a few seconds on the Pokémon Center's healing machine would restore them completely.
In-game, this was just a mechanic, a string of data and code
But since even Pokémon energy now exists in reality, it's not impossible that the Pokémon Center's healing process has some special effects too.
"Maybe I should have Zoro test this later."
Red pondered silently.
But soon, he pushed these thoughts aside and gave Luffy a genuine smile:
"Congratulations, Luffy!"
"Now I don't have to worry about the Marines in Loguetown being a threat to us."
"Shishishishi~" Luffy laughed heartily. "No matter who the enemy is, I'll punch them all away!!!"
Fresh from unlocking Armament Haki, Luffy brimmed with confidence, his eyes sparkling like stars.
...
After celebrating with Luffy for a while, exhaustion finally caught up with the rubber boy, and he returned to his room.
Now, Red finally had time to check his own rewards.
Though his excitement for the Badge Skill had been momentarily overshadowed by Luffy's sudden breakthrough.
He opened the system interface and checked Luffy's stats in the pre-game selection menu.
[Pokémon: Monkey D. Luffy]
[Level: 47]
[EXP: 278/7057]
[HP: 198 (+4)]
[Attack: 144 (+3)]
[Defense: 156 (+3)]
[Sp. Atk: 124 (+3)]
[Sp. Def: 138 (+3)]
[Speed: 141 (+3)]
...
After defeating Gym Leader Misty's two Pokémon, Luffy gained 552 EXP, pushing him to Level 47.
Upon leveling up, his HP increased by 4, while all other stats rose by 3 points.
Without a reference point, Red wasn't sure how impressive this growth was.
But if compared to standard Pokémon in the games, Luffy's base stats were undoubtedly at Legendary-tier—maybe even beyond most Legendaries!
Then again, this was Luffy we were talking about.
After a moment, Red closed Luffy's stat screen and focused on his own gains.
First, the reward from the [Badge Collector] achievement…
Unlike the Boulder Badge, which made his body feel more grounded and sturdier, the Cascade Badge brought an unusual sense of lightness.
And inside his body, there was now a constant, refreshing moistness.
If the Boulder Badge enhanced his defense, then the Cascade Badge…
Seemed to grant him heightened mental and physical comfort, and an unbelievable recovery ability!
Especially when combined with his True Newbie Body constitution, this recovery ability pushed him further down the path of being unkillable!
Most importantly…
This recovery wasn't limited to physical wounds—it also restored stamina and mental energy at an accelerated rate!
Meaning Akai's sustainability in combat had skyrocketed.
"Nice! I used to envy Luffy for being able to use the Pokémon Center to recover, but with this, I'm basically a perpetual motion machine!"
After silently praising the ability, Red turned his attention back to the console.
The pending reward prompt still lingered in the corner of the interface.
With a mental command, a spinning wheel appeared, displaying all possible Water-type moves.
"Alright… Time for the thrilling gamble!"
Rubbing his hands together, Red hit the [Spin] button.
Not wanting to torture himself watching the wheel spin, he cut off his attention from the screen and closed his eyes, waiting in the darkness.
About thirty seconds later, he looked back
[Congratulations! You have obtained the move Surf!]
Whoosh
A flood of foreign memories and energy surged into his body.
A deep ocean-blue gleam shimmered in his eyes, as if a vast sea was hidden within them.
A moment later, Red grinned at his hands.
Even though the move Surf didn't need to be cast with his hands, the sensation of gaining a new power was exhilarating.
"Surf, huh? A pleasant surprise!"
He opened the move's details.
[Move: Surf]
[Type: Water]
[Category: Special]
[Power: 90]
[Description: A Water-type move with special effects. The user summons a massive wave to crash onto foes. It can also manipulate nearby water sources to form tidal waves. Additionally, after learning this move, the user can traverse water surfaces with minimal energy expenditure.]
"Another move with stacked utility?!"
After reading the description, Red couldn't help but smile.
Though it was late at night, the Cascade Badge's recovery boost had revitalized him.
He stepped out onto the deck under a starry sky.
Standing beneath the cosmos, he raised a hand toward the sea.
"Surf!"
Instantly
A deep blue light surged in his eyes.
The next moment, the calm ocean erupted into a five-meter-high, fifteen-meter-long mini-tsunami, crashing forward!
CRASH—!!!
The artificial wave dissolved into the vast sea, leaving only ripples behind.
"Not bad."
Red nodded in satisfaction.
The attack might seem insignificant against the ocean itself, but that was because the target was the entire sea.
If used on land, conjuring a tsunami like this would be devastating—especially against Devil Fruit users.
It would be a lethal strike!!!
Of course, such a powerful move wasn't without flaws.
The downside of Surf was…
"The energy cost is pretty steep."
Feeling the drain, Red muttered:
"Even with the Cascade Badge's boost, I can only use Surf five times in a short period."
"And the cast time isn't very fast. Against fast, agile opponents, they could easily dodge it."
For example, if the enemy knew Soru, using Surf would be pointless.
But…
"No move is perfect!"
After noting Surf's strengths and weaknesses, Red moved on to testing its secondary effect.
"Able to manipulate nearby water sources into waves?"
"I think I've got a great idea!"