May 22, 1504, Age of the Sea Circle
"You are my sunshine, my only sunshine, you make me happy when skies are gray(...)"
On the great ship of the Red Hair Pirates, little Uta was singing cheerfully on the deck while Orion stood beside her, accompanying her with a violin as he played a song with a simple melody.
The little musical genius looked absolutely adorable while singing the song Orion had just taught her, and despite it being the very first time she had ever sung it, she was already performing it perfectly.
Although the song itself was quite simple, Uta's genius shone through at every moment, capable of transforming even a basic tune into a masterful work of art for anyone listening, and it was obvious why Shanks had been planning to leave his little daughter on the music island of Elegia in the future.
Even so, Uta would probably never go to that island of music now, since Orion had promised Shanks that he would create a great musical academy within his kingdom, allowing Uta to remain safe in Pacific Kingdom while continuing to learn within an environment designed perfectly for her.
Orion still did not have a particularly clear plan regarding how he would establish this music academy or where he would recruit musicians of the highest caliber, but he was not overly worried because Shanks had given him a deadline of five years, which was more than enough time to handle the matter.
Ultimately, he could always personally travel to Elegia and recruit the necessary musicians there for his new project.
"Uncle Orion, what did you think of the song? Did I sing well?" Uta asked after finishing the performance, her eyes filled with anticipation as she waited eagerly for Orion's answer.
Orion stored the violin he had been using inside his inventory, then placed a hand atop Uta's head, gently stroking her white-and-red hair and making the little girl close her eyes happily.
"Of course, it was even better than I could've imagined! Our little Uta really is talented," Orion replied with a smile, using an exaggeratedly grandiose tone.
"Hehehe," Uta giggled happily upon hearing praise from one of her favorite people, feeling extremely proud that she had managed to sing the song Orion had taught her so well.
Even though Shanks' crew included a rather peculiar pair of musicians—Bonk Punch and his monkey Monster—Uta preferred making music with Orion, since his style of playing was far more orthodox.
At present, Orion's Guitar and Violin skills were both at level 5, though he also possessed an overall musical talent thanks to his skill appropriately named "Musical Talent," which allowed him to improvise new songs alongside Uta without difficulty.
Orion did not only train his combat techniques, but also the rest of his abilities, and ever since the last time he had seen Uta, he had continued practicing with his instruments, raising his skill level from four to five.
Even so, Orion felt that the little prodigy would surpass him completely within just a few years, which was why he had begun wondering whether he should dedicate more practice time to at least one of his instruments in order to keep up with her, or simply spend SP to increase the level of his musical skills in the future.
In any case, that would be something to decide later, because with his current level he was still perfectly capable of keeping pace with the little genius, and during the past week the two of them had been practicing all kinds of songs together every day, causing Uta to become far more attached to him than before.
"Hey, how much longer are you planning to keep stroking her hair?" Shanks suddenly said, appearing from deeper within the ship with a dark expression.
"Papa!" Uta exclaimed the moment she saw that Shanks had finally woken up from his nap.
Although the famous pirate could be absolutely terrifying to his enemies, in everyday life he was incredibly lazy and constantly took long naps, leaving the rest of the crew to handle everything else.
During the week they had spent traveling together, Orion had not spent much time with Shanks precisely because of that, since the pirate sometimes took as many as five naps a day.
As for the reason they were now traveling together, it was because Shanks had invited Orion to accompany him to the base of a small-time Devil Fruit trafficker operating nearby.
A week earlier, Shanks had explained that he and his crew were searching for the Devil Fruit known as the Gomu Gomu no Mi, and had asked Orion to keep an eye out in the future for any information related to it, since it was something extremely important to him.
Orion had agreed without hesitation, because after all, Shanks had helped him on more than one occasion, and it cost him nothing to remain alert for any information regarding that Devil Fruit.
Even so, Orion believed that with the information network available to Shanks, his own help was unnecessary, because even with the assistance of Shadow and Stussy, he still could not compare to the behemoth that was the Navy and Cipher Pol, both of which Shanks could make use of due to his status as a Celestial Dragon.
However, perhaps Shanks had sensed what Orion was thinking at the time, because he soon said something that completely caught Orion off guard and made him reconsider several of his future moves.
"This is a secret mission, so I can't use the World Government's resources to search for this Devil Fruit...
In fact, if they find out that I'm searching for the Gomu Gomu no Mi, I could end up in serious trouble...
Besides, my position in Mary Geoise isn't nearly as stable as you think, especially after the recent slave escape incident.
I may have to abandon my status as a Celestial Dragon soon, though I can't say that idea makes me sad hehe."
Orion still remembered the expression Shanks had worn while saying those words—it had almost looked like relief. He did not know what kind of burden Shanks carried upon his shoulders, but there was no doubt that it was an extremely heavy one, something that severely limited his freedom.
In any case, Orion had promised to help him search for the Gomu Gomu no Mi, though in truth it would be more of a passive search than an active one, and afterward Shanks had invited him to accompany him to the traffickers' base in the area to see whether they could find any trace of the elusive fruit they were seeking.
Obviously, Shanks did not actually need Orion's help to deal with such a minor matter, because after all he had completely destroyed Doflamingo, one of the largest traffickers in the world, so a small local trafficker was no more than a tiny grain of sand in his path.
The reason he had invited Orion to accompany him was because he wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to spend some time with him, since despite all the pranks and arguments they constantly had, there existed a deep respect between them, and Shanks felt an affection toward Orion similar to that of an older brother toward his younger sibling.
After all, Orion had been Roger's apprentice, which in a sense made him something like an adoptive younger brother when taking into account the ranks granted by the legendary pirate's apprentice hierarchy—which basically included the two of them and Buggy as well, though Buggy was a special case.
On the other hand, another reason Shanks had invited Orion along on the trip was because he wanted Uta to spend some time with him, since Orion was a great musician and his little daughter was always eager to learn from him.
However, after spending an entire week watching Uta and Orion grow increasingly close, his fatherly jealousy could no longer endure it, and so, looking at Orion with a half-smile, the red-haired pirate said,
"Hey, Orion, isn't it about time for our match?"
Beyond Shanks' reasons for inviting Orion on the journey, the reason Orion had accepted instead of immediately returning home to the South Blue was because he wanted to use the opportunity to train with Shanks.
After his battle against Shimotsuki Kojiro, Orion could feel that his Swordsmanship was only one step away from advancing to the next level, and so he intended to use Shanks as a sparring partner in order to take that final step.
Furthermore, Shanks had told him that he could keep any Devil Fruits and treasures they found at the enemy base they were about to visit, so Orion had not hesitated to accept the invitation.
Throughout the last week, they had engaged in daily sparring sessions, though because they were aboard the red-haired pirate's ship while sailing across the open sea, they could not fight at full strength, since otherwise they would destroy the ship completely.
Even so, the sparring sessions with Shanks had helped Orion greatly, and he had finished "digesting" Shimotsuki Kojiro's techniques, adapting them to his own cutlass-based style and creating two new techniques of his own.
Just as Orion and Shanks were about to begin their daily sparring session upon the deck of the great ship, one of the crew members shouted from atop the crow's nest, announcing that he had spotted the destination island in the distance.
Orion assumed there would be no choice but to cancel today's sparring session, but to his surprise Shanks lowered Uta from his arms and approached him while patting his shoulder with a friendly smile that still had not reached his eyes.
"Perfect, Orion, now we can finally have a real sparring match! Don't worry, I promise you'll learn a thing or two," Shanks said.
Orion had a bad feeling about Shanks' intentions, since the pirate was clearly irritated by the jealousy he felt toward him, but he could not pass up the opportunity to have a serious sparring match with Shanks, and so he simply nodded his head. Then, after opening a door in the air so his travel companions could enter the Pocket Dimension, he used Geppo to head toward the island that had appeared on the horizon.
...
"Come on, boys, let's finish this quickly so we can drink in peace!" Yasopp shouted, as usual far more enthusiastic about drinking and lazing around than handling any sort of responsibility, remaining true to the pirate spirit that had led him to abandon his family in order to join Shanks' crew years ago.
The pirates responded to Yasopp's words with excited shouts while rushing toward the distant traffickers' base. This time their captain Shanks would not participate in the assault, because he was occupied with something else, though his presence was unnecessary anyway, since it was impossible for the traffickers to offer any meaningful resistance against the famous pirates.
While the attack against the traffickers' base began in the distance, Orion and Shanks stood face to face, their cutlasses ready for the battle they were about to have.
This would be the first time since Orion had reunited with Shanks that the two of them could fight freely, without having to worry about destroying the red-haired pirate's ship.
"Let's make this quick, Orion. I don't want to miss the banquet with my nakamas," Shanks said with an aggressive grin, making a provocative gesture with the palm of his hand, signaling for Orion to begin his attack.
"I agree. It's best to go all out from the very beginning," Orion replied, and activating his Prism Eyes, he stepped forward and used one of his new techniques.
"Thirty-Six Styles, Dragon Biting Sword!"
Orion's blade moved at incredible speed, creating the illusion of being two swords attacking simultaneously from above and below, like the bite of a powerful Dragon.
This was one of the techniques Orion had created by adapting Shimotsuki Kojiro's swordsmanship, since Kojiro's attacks had been specifically designed for use with a katana, making it impossible for Orion to replicate them directly.
"Weak," Shanks said as he took a step forward and launched his own attack.
"Kamusari!"
Shanks' violent strike completely destroyed Orion's new technique through sheer overwhelming force, sending him flying several meters backward in the process.
Even though Orion also used the technique Kamusari—which he had copied from his master Roger after seeing him use it several times—the difference in power between his Kamusari and Shanks' was incomparable, because the red-haired pirate could imbue the attack with his Conqueror's Haki, which was the true essence of the technique.
After repelling Orion's attack, Shanks did not move from his spot, and simply placed one hand on his waist as he said,
"Is that all you've got, Orion?"
Orion did not become discouraged by the fact that his attack had been repelled so easily, because he already understood the gap in power between himself and Shanks. His only goal during this duel was to fight with the full extent of his current abilities and improve his swordsmanship through the experience he gained.
"Thirty-Six Styles, Coiling Dragon Sword!"
"Let me show you what a real attack looks like," Shanks said as he watched Orion's direct strike, which at first glance seemed entirely predictable and harmless.
"Aramitama!" the pirate shouted as he unleashed one of his most powerful attacks.
Orion's sword, which had been moving in a straight line, suddenly seemed to twist together with the movement of his body, mercilessly targeting Shanks' crotch.
However, before his cutlass could connect with Shanks' body, the pirate's attack exploded with its full power. Just like Kamusari, Aramitama was not a flashy technique, but one focused entirely on inflicting the maximum amount of direct damage in an extremely pragmatic style, something that suited Orion's personality far more than Shanks'.
Bang!
Shanks' attack erupted with terrifying force against Orion's, and in less than a second it completely destroyed any possibility of resistance on Orion's part. He was unable to withstand the intensity of the energy released by the pirate and was hurled far into the distance, bouncing repeatedly across the ground until he finally crashed into a rocky wall on a distant beach, becoming completely buried beneath the collapsing stones of the cliff that had crumbled from the impact of his body.
Shanks sensed Orion's current condition with his monstrous Observation Haki, and with a sigh, sheathed his sword, thinking that Orion still had a long road ahead of him.
However, at that exact moment, Shanks' eyes widened in shock, because Orion emerged from the rubble, staring stubbornly at him with his multicolored eyes, and raising his cutlass above his head, declared firmly,
"Aramitama!"
A massive wave of energy burst forth from the blade of the sword Ace in Orion's hands, racing toward Shanks at tremendous speed, while the pirate still looked stunned by what was happening before his eyes.
According to what Orion himself had previously explained, the only technique he had managed to learn from his master Roger was Kamusari, and not because the legendary Pirate King had taught it to him directly, but because Orion had learned it on his own by replicating what he had perceived after witnessing Roger use it.
Shanks had always believed Orion was exaggerating when he claimed to have learned Kamusari that way, because if it were true, it meant Orion possessed an unbelievable talent for the sword, considering that Shanks himself had needed to receive Roger's guidance multiple times before being able to use Kamusari.
Now, seeing Orion successfully replicate his "Aramitama" after witnessing it only once, Shanks could not help but feel both tremendous surprise and immense delight, because it meant that perhaps Orion truly could become strong enough in the future to assist him with his grand plans.
Even so, now was not the time to think about the future, because they were still in the middle of their duel. Therefore, showing the seriousness Orion's attack deserved, Shanks coated his sword in Conqueror's Haki and unleashed another Kamusari, completely obliterating Orion's attack.
Although Orion had managed to copy the technique on a superficial level, his old problem still remained: he was incapable of imbuing his attacks with Conqueror's Haki, even though he possessed it himself.
Using Conqueror's Haki in such an advanced manner was not something simple, and Orion had never been a genius when it came to Haki—though he had improved his initial mediocrity quite a bit thanks to the SP investments he had made into passive skills that enhanced his talent.
Once he destroyed Orion's attack, Shanks vanished from the spot, moving at incredible speed before reappearing directly in front of Orion.
"You've surprised me, Orion. I didn't expect you to be able to steal my technique like that," the pirate said with a friendly smile that, this time, truly reached his eyes.
Orion did not answer him, because he was far too exhausted to do so. The last attack he had unleashed had consumed all of his energy, making it difficult even to remain standing.
Right now, he was in a state of hyperfocus thanks to his passive skill, but he was completely drained, unable to continue the duel or even respond to Shanks' words.
The red-haired pirate naturally noticed Orion's condition, and so, raising his sword once more, he said,
"It's time to end this duel. The boys have also finished attacking the smugglers' base."
Then he made a brief dramatic pause before adding,
"Since you're so good at replicating Captain Roger's techniques, I've got one more for you...
Whether you can reproduce it or not will depend entirely on your talent."
Orion, utterly exhausted, listened to Shanks' words and focused all of his attention on his movements as the pirate declared,
"God of Fire Ace."
Shanks' sword, coated in Conqueror's Haki, began spinning wildly as he advanced toward Orion. However, none of the violent strikes that composed the technique actually hit him—because otherwise he would have died—and instead crashed directly into the massive cliff behind him.
In a spectacular scene, the gigantic cliff was reduced to nothing but rubble by Shanks' attack, though Orion could not witness it himself, because he lacked the energy to even turn around and look at the destruction the pirate had caused.
All of his concentration was focused entirely on the almost hypnotic movements of Shanks' sword as he tried to absorb every tiny detail of the technique.
Finally, Shanks' attack came to an end, and Orion collapsed onto his back, staring at the sky while breathing heavily. His eyes returned to normal, and showing a broad grin, he stretched himself out triumphantly across the cold ground just as a new notification appeared on the system screen.
*Ding*
*Your skill "Swordsmanship(Level 7)" has increased by 1 Level*
Orion had been completely defeated by Shanks in this duel, yet at this moment he did not feel like a defeated man in the slightest, because he knew his power had increased tremendously thanks to the experience he had gained—and that he could continue becoming even stronger still!