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"Hmmm?"
At that moment, Zephyr, who was standing inside the coated pipeline observing Roy from afar, had already noticed that something was wrong.
He saw that Roy's body, which had originally been slightly hunched under the pressure of the water, was slowly calming down.
Then... under Zephyr's astonished gaze, Roy's figure gradually straightened.
"Clang!" "Clang!"
Bursts of sound came from within Roy's bones, like the explosive ringing of metal striking metal.
Then...
Zephyr saw Roy lightly raise his hand and beckon to him.
Zephyr naturally knew how much strength was required to make such a simple motion at a depth of 5,000 meters.
"Roy, your body..."
Even this well-traveled former Admiral's gaze was now locked onto Roy, sharp light flashing in his eyes.
There was unconcealed shock in his voice.
He had been studying Roy's training reports constantly during this recent period, believing that he understood Roy's physical condition better than Roy himself did.
But without a doubt, Roy had once again shattered his understanding.
"Mm." Roy nodded without hesitation. "I think I've already adapted, Zephyr-sensei."
Once there was a first time, there would be a second. He had already planted the idea in Zephyr's mind that Roy Amos was a monster-level genius with special talent.
So now, he didn't need to make up any extra excuses, doing so would only raise suspicion.
In fact, that's exactly how it played out.
"Adapted?"
After hearing Roy's words, Zephyr's expression turned grave.
However, he still didn't doubt Roy. Roy was right there in the sea; Zephyr naturally wouldn't think he was a Devil Fruit user.
So...
"This kind of physique is simply unheard of!"
Zephyr shook his head in amazement.
"Zephyr-sensei, I don't like the way you put that." Hearing this, Roy retorted righteously.
"What do you mean by 'physique'?" I'm not getting stronger just because of my physique. My genuine effort counts too!"
"Effort..." Zephyr rolled his eyes at Roy.
Although he'd been busy lately, he still remembered what Roy was like at the base, lazily drinking cola every day with no connection to the word "effort."
Still, he didn't say much more and simply continued. "Are you sure you've adapted? Don't force yourself. Any discomfort, whether in your bones, muscles, or internal organs, must be reported to me."
He would rather slow down the training process than let Roy, his only true successor, get injured.
"Naturally." Roy nodded and smiled. "I'm sure. They're all very healthy."
Just as he said this... if Zephyr could see through Roy's body, he would certainly discover that whether they were his bones and internal organs or his incomparably powerful muscles, enhanced by the Wind God Wing Dragon, the Great Buddha Fruit, and the Muscle-Muscle Fruit.
At that moment, they all had a metallic luster like steel.
In Roy's eyes, the full truth was clearly displayed on the light screen.
[Fruit Ability Slots · 4: Empty → Dice-Dice Fruit LV3]
[Dice-Dice Fruit]
[Enhancement Ability – Can transform any part of the body into blades and harden them]
[Effects by Level]
[LV1: Gains weak fruit effects; slightly enhances body defense and hardness]
[LV2: Gains partial fruit effects; can transform the body into blades and enhance defense, hardness strengthened to "rough iron"; requires 60 million / 20 million Beli for permanent / temporary unlock]
[LV3: Gains full fruit effects; can transform the body into blades and enhance defense, hardness strengthened to "steel"; requires 300 million / 100 million Beli for permanent / temporary unlock]
[LV4: Deep fruit development; allows the blades formed from the body to rotate and deform, body hardness strengthened to "refined steel," greatly enhancing body hardness and sharpness; requires 1 billion / 300 million Beli for permanent / temporary unlock]
[LV5: Devil Fruit Awakening · All-Phenomena Severing; can control everything in the surrounding environment to turn into blades to slash enemies, with sharpness sufficient to cut mountains; self-hardness upgraded to "alloy"; requires 6 billion / 20 billion Beli for permanent / temporary unlock]
That's right.
At this moment, Roy had already loaded the Dice-Dice Fruit into his fourth Fruit Ability Slot.
As for strengthening this fruit, it had long been part of Roy's plan.
"Although the Dice-Dice Fruit can't really be considered an especially powerful Paramecia, and in terms of the diversity of its abilities, it's even a lower-tier version of the Iron Maul Fruit…"
"…its ability to greatly enhance bodily hardness is extremely practical. As long as I don't turn my body into blades, it's almost impossible for anyone to notice."
Roy understood the advantages of this fruit very clearly: practical and inexpensive, the very definition of high value for money.
According to his original plan, his next clone would have used this fruit. He just hadn't expected to end up using it here first before his next clone ever got the chance.
"Mm."
After confirming that Roy had fully adapted to the water pressure at 5,000 meters, Zephyr sighed and made his decision.
"Since you've already adapted..."
Zephyr's body surged as Busoshoku Haki spread over him, infused with overwhelming pressure. The pitch-black Haki wrapped around Zephyr, making him look as if he had merged with the dark sea itself.
Then, Zephyr leapt forward, passing straight through the coated pipeline and into the deep sea.
"Follow me."
He waved his hand and led Roy deeper into the abyss.
The deep sea was filled with nothing but silence.
Even after consuming the Dice-Dice Fruit, which made his body strong enough to withstand the pressure, Roy still found it somewhat difficult to swim through this pitch-black expanse.
"So strong..."
Watching Zephyr ahead of him, completely wrapped in Armament Haki and seemingly moving effortlessly, Roy marveled again in his heart.
But just at that moment...
"Hmm?!"
Roy's heart skipped a beat.
He could clearly sense a change in his surroundings.
"The resistance of the seawater is getting stronger?"
"No...that's not it."
He muttered to himself, but quickly came to the right conclusion.
"There's something wrong with the seawater ahead!"
Just as he realized this, he heard Zephyr's voice.
"It's here."
'Here?'
'What's here?'
Instinctively, confusion arose in Roy's mind.
But the very next second, what he saw made his pupils shrink violently. Within the already dark and unfathomable depths of the sea... massive black silhouettes began to appear one after another.
Their sheer size was enough to span the entire ocean floor.
They had long, slender bodies like unimaginably enormous "giant serpents."
Each one stretched endlessly, its thickness resembling towering mountains. Along their bodies, Roy could see countless specks of light scattered like scales.
By that faint light, Roy finally saw what those "giant serpents" truly were.
They were sea currents!
The "scales" were bioluminescent deep-sea organisms and mineral fragments, and the massive bodies were the paths traced by the currents themselves.
At that moment, Roy understood exactly what he was seeing.
"The Marine Giant Whirlpool?"
Just as mentioned earlier, his current location was the deep sea beneath Marineford. As everyone knew, Marineford, Enies Lobby, and Impel Down formed a triangular structure at sea, guarded by the three Gates of Justice.
The Gates of Justice remained closed year-round, creating the region known as the "Sea of Justice."
Within this unique sea, the largest known undersea current in the Grand Line existed.
Its name...
The Marine Giant Whirlpool.
It existed within this sea, preventing almost all ships outside the World Government and the Marines from passing through, trapping them in endless loops instead.
"That's right!"
At that moment, Zephyr spoke in a low voice.
"It's the 'Black Snake,' a part of the Marine Giant Whirlpool that exists beneath Marineford."
"Old man..."
At that moment, even speaking had become difficult for Roy.
"You're not going to tell me that this so-called 'formal training' is..."
"That's right… enduring the pressure of the deep sea is only the beginning. What you truly have to face are these 'Black Snakes,' and then surpass them!" Zephyr's words were clear and forceful.
Roy's evaluation was very simple.
"This old man is a lunatic!"
He knew it, none of these old-timer Marines were easy to deal with.
Zephyr had the nerve to call Garp's training method of smashing a mountain with his fists "reckless." But how is using one's body to withstand deep-sea currents any less reckless?
No, rather than that, was this even possible?
At that moment, as if he could hear Roy's doubts...
"Roy, watch closely!" Zephyr's aura suddenly changed as he spoke.
Roy could see it clearly.
The pitch-black Busoshoku Haki covering Zephyr seemed to gain substance. The vast, boundless Armament Haki began flowing continuously like a living thing.
Roy naturally knew what that was.
"Ryuo," the highest application of Armament Haki.
But what Zephyr was using now was clearly not an ordinary Ryuo. Roy could see Zephyr's feet, waist, and legs, down to his bulging, corded muscles.
Every muscle and bone in his body moved in tandem with Ryuo. It wasn't just his skin; even the blood coursing through his body and the veins beneath it seemed dyed black by Haki.
It was as if his entire body were frantically cooperating with Ryuo, transforming itself and reaching its ultimate potential.
Seeing this, Roy's eyes widened.
"Tempering the entire body... awakening potential."
"So this is..."
Then, Zephyr's next action confirmed Roy's guess.
There was no flashy techniques. No unnecessary movements.
Zephyr simply clenched his left fist and threw a punch at the "Black Snake" in front of him.
"Black Body Style Secret Art: Mountain-Shattering!"
"Buzz...!"
In that instant, Roy saw it clearly.
The moment Zephyr's fist swung out, an unprecedented, terrifying shockwave erupted. The deep sea's seawater was violently split apart by that overwhelming Haki.
On the massive, seemingly unstoppable sea current, the "Black Snake"...
A gigantic hollow with a diameter of several hundred meters appeared in an instant.
That's right.
That enormous undersea current had been cut through by Zephyr's single punch.
Roy stood there, utterly stunned.
And then, naturally, only one thought remained in his mind.
"Coach, I want to learn this!"
(End of chapter)