Six was slapped on his head as he looked towards Roger's, who was trying to explain how Armament Haki worked and had noticed him staring at Rebecca dodging August's strikes. The old man had that annoying smirk on his face.
"You can stare at your little wife later. We have a lesson now," Roger said, his smirk widening as he deliberately raised his voice.
Rebecca, mid-dodge, still managed to shoot Six a teasing look. The sheer feral glee in her eyes after getting pummeled by their son was almost concerning.
"Ooh, what's with the look, handsome? Are you planning to use your nefarious ways on me again, lover boy?"
She teased, swaying her hips with a smirk mirroring Roger's.
Six deadpanned.
"I was not thinking about that—although, you do have a very unique definition of what my 'ways' are."
Roger snorted, shaking his head.
"Focus, horny brat. You've got a long way to go before you can start slacking."
The evening passed in a strange mix of peace and brutal training.
Six barely managed to dodge as Roger's Haki-infused pipe came crashing down, tearing a deep gash into the ground. His eyes and ears were still covered, forcing him to rely purely on Observation Haki. He gritted his teeth, reinforcing his wooden sword with Armament Haki as he moved to parry the next blow.
CRACK!
The impact snapped his sword clean in half.
The next instant, Roger's attack sent him flying straight into the stone wall behind him. Pain exploded in his ribs, but he barely had a second to recover before Roger's foot slammed down where his head had been a moment ago.
"Wahahaha! This is finally getting fun, brat! Move faster!"
Roger shouted.
Six groaned, pushing himself up.
"I can't hear you well, my ears are shut, you damn old man!"
The absurdity of his own statement hit him a second too late—right before another strike sent him skidding across the ground.
-Gol D. Roger–
Roger folded his arms as Six finally removed his blindfold and earplugs, breathing heavily. He grinned.
"So, you finally reached the next level. Still slow for someone being taught directly by me."
He said with mock disappointment.
In reality? Less than a week to get this far? That wasn't talent—it was monstrous.
When Rebecca had first claimed her man was a Sun God, Roger had scoffed. An hour later, after being killed and revived over a dozen times by Six's first stage transformation and his insane guns, he realized the bunny girl hadn't been lying.
Now? Now he had a protege.
Rayleigh was gonna be so jealous.
Roger knew raw power when he saw it, and Six's base form—while leagues above an average fighter—was still just that: a strong warrior, maybe on the level of a Marine Captain or slightly higher. Against an Admiral? He wouldn't last. Against the monsters of the old era, like Whitebeard or Sengoku? That was a fool's dream.
But his Sun God form?
That was something else.
Even without knowing its full limits, Roger had seen enough to know that if Six could master it, he could close the gap. Maybe even stand above them all.
The way he fought, the way he learned—it was unnatural. In just days, his Observation Haki had skyrocketed to a level that had taken Roger himself close to a year to reach. His Armament still had a long way to go, but the potential was undeniable.
And Roger, despite everything, found himself grinning.
This is going to be fun.
grinned wildly, he watched Six push himself off the ground, coughing but still standing. The kid was a true monster, no doubt about it. His rate of growth was absurd—It was the kind of progress that made even seasoned warriors feel inadequate.
Still, the boy had a long way to go.
"Wahahaha! You're tough, brat, but don't get cocky just yet. You're still nowhere near the level you need to be!"
Roger shouted, pointing his pipe at Six.
"A real warrior doesn't just react—he predicts, he controls the battlefield! Now, again!"
Six wiped the sweat from his brow, feeling the dull ache in his ribs where Roger's last attack had landed. He took a steadying breath, adjusting his stance. His body screamed at him to take a break, but his mind was sharper than ever. His Observation Haki had kicked in just before that last strike—he had felt it coming, just a fraction of a second too late.
'Next time, I won't be too late.'
He tightened his grip on his replacement wooden sword, Haki coating its edge.
Rebecca, now standing to the side, stretched lazily, watching her man get beaten senseless with amusement.
"You better not lose too quickly, lover boy. It's not sexy when you drop like a sack of potatoes."
Six deadpanned.
"Noted. I'll make sure to get beaten in a more attractive way next time."
Roger barked out a laugh.
"Wahahaha! That's the spirit! Now come at me like your life depends on it—because it does!"
And with that, the training resumed, the sound of clashing Haki-infused strikes echoing through the night.
-Hours later-
"I'm alive!!!"
Six groaned as he pushed himself up, his muscles screaming in protest. He checked his body once again when he woke up to see if he was missing any parts, despite knowing that such a thing was impossible.
Every inch of his body ached, his bones felt like they had been rattled apart and barely put back together, and worst of all—he was hungry.
"Ugh… damn old man… sadist."
He muttered under his breath, rubbing his sore shoulder.
"I think that Roger might have been taking out his frustrations on me. I mean shouldn't you start slowly with….let's say a wooden stick? The first thing that hit me was an iron pipe, and I was sent flying around."
Roger, standing with that ever-annoying grin, crossed his arms.
"Oi, brat, you're still alive, ain't ya? That means you're ready for more!"
Six shot him a glare.
"More? Old man, I've been getting my ass kicked for hours. You could at least give me time to eat before throwing me into another deathmatch!"
Roger waved him off with a hearty laugh.
"Wahahaha! Fine, fine! Eat your lunch, then we get back to it. I need to see if you've got any talent with that sword!"
Grumbling, Six rummaged through his pack and pulled out some food. They had arrived in Nelson—a Legion stronghold. The banners of Caesar's Legion hung from the buildings, and soldiers patrolled with their usual air of arrogance. Dead Sea, their Decanus, was likely nearby.
Six chewed on his food, his mind shifting from his training to strategy.
Maybe this is a good time to test what I've learned… on some real targets.
He smirked.
This day might not be so bad after all.