Bullet stared blankly at the man before him.
"Hey, hey, don't zone out, Bullet. This part I'm about to explain is crucial."
Ian snapped his fingers with some annoyance, sending a burst of Armament haki striking Bullet's forehead. The sharp pain made Bullet furrow his brows tightly.
"Haki Emission?"
He spoke.
The idea that Armament Haki had so many techniques was something he had never considered before.
"The key to any Haki technique lies in control," Ian spoke confidently. "Emission gathers Armament haki from all over the body and concentrates it to greatly enhance its power and release outwards."
"Don't you think it's a waste to use it like you do—turning your entire body pitch black?"
Bullet said nothing.
"A step beyond Emission is Armament with Internal Destruction."
Ian snapped his fingers again, and another burst of haki struck Bullet.
This time, Bullet's pupils slightly trembled.
The haki pierced past his body's surface, directly invading and damaging his insides.
"The secret to this technique is even finer control, allowing the haki to seep through the enemy's weak points."
Ian explained, "Once you reach this level of control, training the Conqueror's Haki Infusion becomes much easier."
"Conqueror's Haki Infusion."
Bullet spoke again. "Conqueror's Haki can be infused?"
He had never thought about that before.
"I'm the one surprised. When you were with Roger's crew, neither Roger nor Rayleigh ever taught you?"
Ian asked with curiosity.
No wonder they say the title of 'Demon Heir' should belong to Shanks.
That guy even replicated Roger's moves one to one.
Bullet's lips didn't move at all, showing no intention to answer.
Ian didn't bother to ask further.
Apparently, even when this guy was on Roger's pirate crew, he was very solitary and refused to interact with others.
He was only focused on challenging Roger and had no time to get to know anyone else.
And when Roger beat him up, he didn't even need to use any advanced Haki techniques.
That's probably how it was.
Ian spent half a day thoroughly explaining to Bullet advanced Armament Haki, Observation Haki (future sight), Conqueror's Haki's Infusion, and even the techniques of Observation Kill.
"That's about it."
By the time he finished, Ian felt a bit dry-mouthed. "Anything else you want to ask?"
Bullet looked at Ian with a complicated expression.
This guy was really playing it all out without holding back.
Was he truly not afraid that Bullet might surpass him and defeat him?
What arrogance!
He didn't even take him seriously!
Just like he said, he wasn't worried at all about anyone surpassing him?
"Very well."
Seeing that Bullet had no more questions, Ian nodded with satisfaction.
Looks like he explained everything thoroughly.
Could it be that he really had a talent for teaching?
"In that case," Ian said casually, "you can leave now. I'll be waiting anytime for you to come and challenge me."
Bullet was stunned again, staring at Ian in disbelief.
This guy was actually letting him leave just like that?
Seeing that Bullet didn't make a move for the moment, Ian smiled faintly.
"You're not going to leave and never come back, forgetting our promise, are you?"
Bullet snorted coldly, "What nonsense are you talking about? Just wait for me!"
"I'll come back and crush you completely!!"
With that, Bullet left.
Ian gave him a ship, and the guy quickly sailed away from Hive Island.
"But, Lord Ian, is it really okay to let that guy go just like that?"
Tesoro was puzzled by Ian's actions.
"That guy is extremely dangerous. Even if he can't defeat you in the future, he could just disappear without returning."
"No, he won't."
Ian replied calmly, "Right now, he probably wants to defeat me more than anyone else."
After all, Bullet's lifelong dream was to surpass Roger.
Tesoro still had some doubts but said nothing more, as this was Ian's decision.
Soon enough, Tesoro found himself convinced by Ian's judgment.
Because Bullet didn't go far—he settled on a deserted island within the Hive Island waters and began training there.
It was likely so that once he broke through his limits again, he could challenge Ian immediately.
"Send him supplies regularly," Ian said.
It would still take some time to tame Bullet.
But that was fine—as long as Bullet kept chasing strength, he would never escape Ian's grasp. Ian was very confident in that.
Since Bullet had been chasing Roger's strength tirelessly for decades, now he would just have to chase Ian instead.
It was as simple as that.
From now on, all that was needed was to crush him hard every time he thought he had become strong enough to defeat himself.
While Ian was playing the role of a teacher, the world grew restless.
Somewhere in the New World.
A small pirate town was now in ruins. Every house seemed utterly destroyed by a terrifying force, leaving only broken walls and rubble.
Among the devastation, corpses lay everywhere, blood staining the ground—the bodies of pirates scattered across the scene.
Only two figures walked calmly through this living hell.
"Mom! I'm hungry!"
The speaker was a tall, muscular man. His upper body was overly strong, while his lower body was unusually slim.
Golden hair flowed down his back. Most notably, just below his nose was a crescent-shaped mustache.
In one hand, he carried a naginata. In the other, he hoisted a huge bundle as large as a small mountain, from which faint golden light glowed through the gaps.
"Hehe, Weevil, my dear son!"
A small old woman sat on the man's shoulder. Though her face was shriveled, short, and unattractive, she was dressed in lavish, sparkling jewelry. Gently, she stroked the man's cheek with a comforting smile.
"We made a big profit today. When we get back, I'll cook you a feast."
"Yay!"
The burly man cheered happily.
"I love Mom's cooking the most!"
"Hehehe, you silly son."
The old woman's face lit up with joy.
She then pulled out a newspaper from her chest pocket and unfolded it. The headline announced the World Government was recruiting for the Seven Warlords.
"Weevil, I think it's time we changed our identity."
"Change identity?"
The silly son didn't understand what his mother meant.
"Become a Warlord!"
The woman chuckled.
"I never thought I'd work with the World Government one day, but it's not bad. We won't have to worry about the Navy chasing us anymore."
"After all, that bastard of your father sure won't help us!"
"Dad?"
The burly man reacted as if a trigger word had been said, eagerly asking, "Mom! When are we going to see Dad?!"
"Silly son," The old woman wrapped her arms around her son's neck, her eyes welling with tears, "That bastard father of yours only cares about those kids he picked up. He doesn't care about the two of us at all!"
"Damn it!"
The burly man was furious, "I will kill all those damn guys sooner or later! How dare they compete for Dad's favor!"
"Alright, alright, silly son," The old woman quickly calmed him down, "Now is not the time to deal with them. Your dad's inheritance will be yours sooner or later. First, let's go to the New World entrance and find the Navy. We need to become Shichibukai first!"
"Oh!!"
The mother and son's backs faded into the distance.
**********
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