Standing atop the ice, Naruto faced off against Dracule Mihawk—not to avenge Zoro, but for another reason entirely.
Zoro had challenged Mihawk to pursue his dream. That defeat, devastating as it was, had helped Zoro see the world for what it truly was.
"Recognize the world. Recognize yourself."—those were Mihawk's words to him.
And Zoro did see something. From that moment on, his mindset began to change. This was his chosen path, and it was his burden to bear.
Naruto, on the other hand, had a different goal.
He didn't want revenge. He wanted a glimpse—an understanding—of the high-level combat power this world possessed.
Mihawk's strength was shrouded in mystery. Though formally a Warlord of the Sea, his power clearly surpassed the title.
After all, Crocodile had once been a Warlord too, but Luffy, without Haki or advanced techniques, had defeated him.
Even Donquixote Doflamingo had been pushed back by Luffy after two years of training.
But Mihawk? He dueled with Red-Haired Shanks, one of the Four Emperors.
The title "World's Greatest Swordsman" wasn't mere embellishment—it was earned through absolute, undeniable power.
Naruto stepped toward Mihawk, his gaze focused.
This fight wasn't for pride—it was research.
He wanted to see Haki in action.
He had already begun to explore its basics on his own. From what he'd learned, Haki and Devil Fruit abilities were both manifestations of this world's unique natural energy—two different systems built from the same source code.
While Devil Fruits yielded countless strange abilities, Haki was more fundamental. It was a pure, refined form of natural energy, drawn into the body and tempered over time.
To truly grasp it, Naruto needed to witness it in real battle—feel it, even.
Guesswork will only get me so far, he thought. But if I experience it firsthand... I can master it instantly.
He extended his hand. The ice beneath his feet cracked loudly.
"On the sea," Naruto muttered, "you've got to work with your environment. Water Release is the most fitting ninjutsu now."
There was no need for hand seals anymore—Naruto had already seen through the essence of ninjutsu.
He unleashed Water Style: Great Waterfall Technique—tenfold.
Seawater erupted from the fractured ice, forming towering torrents that surged forward with deafening force.
What was once a Waterfall Jutsu had been amplified into something else entirely.
This wasn't a waterfall. It was a tsunami.
Mihawk's eyes narrowed. Shock flickered across his usually calm face.
"To manipulate seawater like this, and so effortlessly..." he muttered. "Even the Aqua Laguna in Water 7 isn't this overwhelming."
Cold sweat beaded down his forehead.
"No matter..." Mihawk said, tightening his grip on Yoru, his obsidian-black blade. "My sword can still cut through this!"
With a single powerful swing, he released a flying slash that twisted space itself.
The air shrieked as the slash carved a deep trench across the ice, splitting the incoming tidal wave in two.
Water crashed against the frozen surface, shattering it into fragments. The battle's aftershocks made the sea tremble.
Mihawk's ship bobbed violently. Several candles aboard were snuffed out by the spray.
He stood atop a drifting sheet of ice, seawater pouring from the sky like rain.
Reaching up to adjust his hat, Mihawk closed his eyes and activated Kenbunshoku Haki—Observation Haki.
In the next instant, he pinpointed Naruto's presence and leapt with inhuman grace, flipping midair before unleashing another flying slash.
Naruto didn't flinch.
He simply raised his fingers and flicked them casually.
The incoming slash dissolved like cherry blossoms caught in the wind—petals vanishing into the sea and sky.
Mihawk's frown deepened.
What he had considered a powerful strike—one that could split ships—had been casually dismissed.
"Did you see that, Zoro?" Luffy shouted excitedly, still chewing on a hunk of meat. "That flick of Naruto's fingers—it's like an entire tsunami attack!"
The floating sea restaurant shook violently, and several patrons lost their footing.
"This... this is just the residual impact of their fight," someone gasped. "And it's already on the scale of a natural disaster."
"Are monsters like this really all over the Grand Line?" Sanji muttered. He had just begun chasing his dream...
But now, seawater was falling from the sky like a torrential storm, soaking everyone on deck.
If the sea's filled with freaks like this, Sanji thought, am I sailing straight into death?
The fire of Sanji's dream was extinguished in an instant.
His hands and feet turned cold, and his body began to tremble uncontrollably.
But then—
"No," Zeff said calmly, lighting a cigarette as seawater dripped from his mustache. "The ocean is vast, yes—but it's not full of monsters like that."
He glanced at the horizon, eyes sharp with experience.
"I've sailed the Grand Line myself. Spent years out there. There are powerful people, sure... but not like this. What you just saw? That's not normal."
Zeff, once known as "Red-Leg Zeff," was no ordinary chef. In his prime, he had roamed the seas as a notorious pirate and braved the Grand Line. And even so—
"Even during my time, I'd never heard of so many monsters roaming the seas," he admitted.
He looked toward the battlefield where the waves still thundered and the air trembled.
"Hawkeye... he's one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea. And among them, he's undoubtedly at the top."
Zeff exhaled slowly, eyes narrowing.
"But that blond kid—Naruto... he's something else entirely."
"Someone like that, able to control the ocean itself—he's on the level of a Yonko."
A Four Emperors-class existence.
"Hell, he might even be stronger than the Pirate King."
There was a heavy silence among the onlookers.
To be able to manipulate seawater freely while standing atop the sea—what did that mean?
It meant invincibility.
Zeff knew better than most how terrifying that kind of power was.
No matter how strong a pirate was—Whitebeard, Kaido, Big Mom, even Roger himself—when traveling the sea, they all needed ships.
Without a vessel, you were nothing but flotsam waiting to drown.
Some rare beings could bypass this—like Admiral Aokiji who cycled across the sea with his Devil Fruit—but even then, they weren't immune to the ocean's wrath.
In the end, it was all transportation. A boat, a bike—it didn't matter.
None of them could stand against a true tsunami.
And yet... this young man was the tsunami.
Zeff's mind drifted to the story of the Golden Lion—Shiki, a living legend who once clashed with Gol D. Roger.
Despite his fleet of flying ships and terrifying Devil Fruit power, Shiki had ultimately been brought down... by a storm.
Now, standing before them was someone who could create such storms at will.
A human capable of commanding the ocean's fury.
Zeff's voice turned solemn.
"Perhaps... only a fishman might stand a chance against him."
That was the only possibility he could imagine—a natural-born warrior of the sea.
As the wind howled and seawater rained down in torrents, Zeff stood in stunned silence.
A boy like Sanji, who once dreamed of finding the All Blue... now found himself facing a force that made the entire ocean tremble.
...
TN:
♾️ Pa-treon-com/LordMerlin (+60 Chaps)