For something this strange and uncanny, Yamato's curiosity practically exploded.
Tenma himself was already quite interested, so he went along with it, nodding as he instructed Lafitte to quickly locate the island's position on the sea chart.
Seeing Tenma agree to her request, Yamato jumped up on the spot in excitement, looking just like a kid who'd just been given candy.
Maria Fang, however, was a different story. She watched Yamato frolicking about with a troubled expression and muttered softly, "That's really not very ladylike…"
This was, after all, the difference between growing up on Oni Island and receiving traditional education in Wano.
Although Maria Fang herself turned into a spine-chilling giant tarantula when she transformed, when it came to things like ghosts and spirits—those vague, intangible entities—she was still quite nervous at her young age.
Tenma reached out and rubbed her smooth golden hair, comforting her gently. "Don't worry, there's no need to be so tense. So-called ghosts and spirits are, more often than not, just tricks caused by Devil Fruit abilities."
"If you're really scared, just stick close to me later and don't go anywhere."
"Lord Tenma!"
Maria Fang's beautiful eyes lit up instantly. She called out sweetly and, like a koala, clung tightly to Tenma.
Tenma shook his head with an amused smile. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a somewhat lonely figure beside him and said, "If Robin is scared too, you can come hide over here as well."
"N–No… no need."
Robin's face flushed bright red in an instant. She waved her hands in panic as she refused.
After all, she had only been on the ship for a short while. The defenses in her heart hadn't fully come down yet, and restraint and caution were only natural.
What she hadn't expected, though, was that someone as awe-inspiring as Tenma, a man who shook the seas, could be so gentle in private. It couldn't help but remind her of another gentle giant—Saul.
"Bakkura Village—it's right here. Not too far from us, Admiral Tenma."
Lafitte traced a few lines across the map with his finger and quickly locked onto the target.
Tenma followed the direction he indicated. It really was quite close. It seemed Robin's range of movement while fleeing as a child had indeed been rather limited.
With the direction confirmed, Tenma willed it so,control the flying ship to turn its bow and charge forward at full speed.
It only took a day for the ship to reach their destination.
The place was just a remote little village, nothing like those heavily guarded kingdoms. Tenma didn't bother landing at all, instead piloting the ship slowly over it from the air.
Perhaps because the ghost rumors had spread too wildly, the island's original inhabitants had long since fled.
Tenma released his perception and swept the area below. The village was deathly silent—he couldn't sense a single living presence.
"This place really does look creepy…"
Maria Fang leaned over the railing to look down. A chill ran down her spine, and the hand clutching Tenma's arm tightened unconsciously.
The weather wasn't cooperating either. In broad daylight, a thick mass of clouds just happened to blot out the sun.
The entire island was dim, like dusk. Paired with those frightening ghost legends, it truly gave off an eerie, scalp-tingling vibe.
Of course, the only ones scared by the atmosphere were Maria Fang and the chefs and geisha brought from Wano.
Yamato and Robin, those two brave souls, were already sprawled over the railing, eyes wide as they scanned the surroundings with eager curiosity.
However, after the ship hovered for a while and passed over the empty village, there wasn't even a trace of a ghost.
It wasn't until the ship reached the messy graveyard behind the village that Tenma's gaze locked onto a small figure with pink hair.
"I think I've found the culprit behind the ghost incidents."
Tenma patted the back of Maria Fang's hand, signaling her to let go. Then he leapt forward, jumping straight down from high in the air.
In the graveyard below, Perona was sitting on the ground without a shred of decorum, holding some offering food she'd found somewhere and eating with gusto.
With the sunlight overhead blocked by clouds, she hadn't noticed someone suddenly landing behind her at all.
"Is that stuff any good?"
When a deep voice suddenly sounded behind her head, Perona jerked around.
In horror, she realized that at some unknown point, a tall, dark figure was standing right behind her.
Before she could even make out what he looked like, a massive wave of fear surged straight to her brain.
Her eyes rolled back. With food still stuffed in her mouth, she stiffened—and fainted on the spot.
Tenma was left utterly speechless by the scene.
He looked around at the gloomy surroundings, then glanced at the hardened offerings in the girl's hand, before finally turning his gaze to Perona.
Mm. Pretty much the same as he remembered.
Though she was still a petite, adorable little girl, her wandering life had left her dirty and disheveled, much like Maria Fang had been back then.
Since she'd conveniently passed out, there was no need to waste words. He could just take her back and have the maids clean her up.
With that thought, Tenma didn't hesitate. He bent down, scooped Perona up under the arms, and with a push off the ground, shot back up toward the ship in the sky.
...
In a hazy daze, Perona felt as though she had sunk into a mass of soft clouds.
That warm sensation was like snuggling into her mother's embrace as a child, filling her with an overwhelming sense of security.
It was as if all the hardships before had just been a nightmare—she hadn't eaten that cursed fruit, her friends hadn't abandoned her in disgust, her parents hadn't heartlessly cast her aside. Every day was carefree and happy.
"Tenma said she's the one making those scary ghosts? So that's why she was hiding in the graveyard?"
"That's probably it. Yamato, don't forget—I was like this as a kid too. After eating a Devil Fruit, people treated me as a bad omen. She was probably so hungry she had no choice but to eat offerings meant for the dead."
"Come to think of it, I was also ostracized because of my powers, and that's how I ended up on the path of archaeology."
"Sorry, sorry! Let's not talk about such depressing pasts—it's too heavy!"
A chorus of chatter forcibly barged into Perona's beautiful dream, instantly shattering it.
"Hey! You people—don't you know I'm still sleeping?!"
The noise grew louder and louder. Perona's morning temper flared up, and she snapped awake, sitting bolt upright as she shouted.
The next moment, three girls stared at her in shock.
They stared at her. She stared right back.
—So… so tall!
They all looked like kids too, but when her gaze landed on Maria Fang, Perona couldn't help exclaiming in her heart.
Only then did she belatedly realize that her surroundings had changed.
The quiet, gloomy graveyard was gone, replaced by an exquisitely luxurious room.
She was lying on an incredibly soft bed, wrapped in a blanket that gave off a pleasant fragrance—the very source of that warm feeling in her dream.
"Y–You… who are you people?! And why am I in a place like this?!"
Perona instinctively clutched the blanket tighter, shrinking into herself warily.
Though her words were fierce, her body was very honest. She rubbed around in the covers, wearing an expression of bliss—like a puffed-up yet warmth-loving kitten.
"Oh my, what a cute little girl!"
Perona's appearance hit Maria Fang's weak spot instantly. Unable to resist, she pounced to the bedside and hugged Perona tightly, rubbing her into her chest.
"Y–You… what are you doing?! Let go of me!"
Perona struggled with all her might, but how could she possibly overpower this monster-strength girl?
In her panic, she swung her hand. A small white ghost burst out of her palm and passed straight through Maria Fang's body.
The previously energetic Maria Fang instantly looked as if her spine had been removed. She collapsed to her knees on the bed, hands braced on the mattress, her face full of existential despair.
"Bullying such a little girl… I'm the worst. I'm useless. I should just crawl into a crack in the ground and die…"
"Hahaha, Maria Fang, that's hilarious!"
Yamato laughed so hard she doubled over. Then she noticed the floating ghost and immediately grew interested, reaching out to grab it.
"Actually, I'm the single-minded super idiot here, aren't I…"
In the blink of an eye, there were two people kneeling on the floor, questioning their lives.
Seeing this, Robin hurriedly retreated, desperately avoiding the drifting ghosts, afraid they might brush against her and make her blurt out something embarrassing.
She looked at the girl even younger than herself and explained gently, "Don't be nervous. We mean you no harm. A very important person brought you back. He plans to take you in."
"Take me in?!"
Perona's eyes lit up instantly, her heart skipping a beat.
But soon, she hesitated again, twisting the hem of her clothes with her fingers. "Y–You're really not afraid of me? I'm a monster who can summon creepy ghosts like this…"
—Mero! Mero!
As if to prove her point, several small white ghosts cackled as they floated around her.
"What's there to be afraid of? It's just a Devil Fruit ability."
Once the negative effect wore off, Maria Fang sprang back to life and smiled as she comforted her. "Lord Tenma says people like us are chosen by fate—we're lucky. Those who fear you are just ignorant."
"Y–You're also a mon— like me?" Perona asked eagerly, as if grasping at a lifeline.
"That's right!"
Yamato had recovered too. She hopped onto the bed and bounced twice, saying bluntly, "Maria Fang can turn into a giant spider, and Robin can grow tons of arms. They're all super interesting abilities—just as cool as your ghosts!"
"A spider?! And tons of arms?!"
Perona looked at the two beautiful sisters in horror. Imagining it, she felt a wave of nausea and fear.
But after reacting, she snorted proudly and lifted her chin. "Then my ghosts are still the cutest."
At heart, she was still a child. Once she realized these people weren't like the bullies from before, her heart slowly opened to them.
"I don't think my ability is any worse than yours," Maria Fang said, gently pinching Perona's chubby cheek before grabbing her hand and pulling her out of bed.
"Since you're awake, it's time to take you to meet our Lord Tenma."
...
In the spacious training hall, Tenma sat cross-legged on the floor.
Several crystalline droplets of water floated in the air before him, rising and falling with his will. This was his daily precision-control training using the Float-Float Fruit.
At present, aside from honing the three types of Haki through real combat, the paths that could significantly boost his strength were breaking through to the realm of a great swordsman, and awakening his Devil Fruit.
Haki couldn't be rushed—it had to be forged through life-and-death battles.
So Tenma's daily training naturally focused on developing his abilities and polishing his swordsmanship.
Swordsmanship went without saying: thousands upon thousands of swings every day, just waiting for that final moment of enlightenment.
The real headache was Devil Fruit awakening.
As that drunk Kaido once said, "Devil Fruit awakening is a qualitative transformation that occurs when body, mind, and ability reach perfect harmony."
Easy to say. Incredibly hard to do.
Across the entire sea, those who managed to awaken their abilities were as rare as Conqueror's Haki users.
Even Kaido himself, after eating the Fish-Fish Fruit for so many years, had never used an awakened ability in their fights—though it was possible the old dragon was hiding his hand.
As for what that so-called "perfect harmony of body and mind" actually meant, Tenma was still completely in the dark.
All he could do was rely on these mind-numbingly dull micro-control exercises to deepen his understanding, hoping quantitative change would eventually lead to a qualitative leap.
With a thought, Tenma condensed a droplet of water on the tip of his index finger. The power of the More More Fruit activated instantly, granting the droplet a hundredfold increase in kinetic speed.
He flicked his finger lightly.
"Whoosh—!"
With a sharp tearing sound, the hard wall was blasted with a crater several meters deep. The power was no less than a full-force blow from a hundred-pound warhammer.
Tenma spread his palm. Thousands of identically sized droplets converged from the air, merging in his hand into the original large water sphere.
With a casual wave, the water ball floated back into the tank and merged with the water inside, not even splashing a drop.
—Knock, knock!
The door to the training hall was gently tapped. Maria Fang's lively voice came from outside.
"Lord Tenma, Perona's awake! And she's already agreed to follow you!"
Hearing this, Tenma stood up and opened the door.
A little girl in a Gothic Lolita dress stood shyly at the entrance, not quite daring to meet his eyes.
"Um… L–Lord Tenma, I… can I really stay…?" Perona was so nervous her palms were sweating, her voice barely above a whisper.
This was her first time seeing Tenma in person. She had no real concept of titles like "Flying Admiral" or "general" that Maria Fang had mentioned on the way here.
She only knew that it was this tall man who had taken her away from that cold, lonely place.
He wanted to keep her by his side, had given her such a warm bed—and by following him, it seemed she might even make friends.
"Of course. From now on, stay by my side and serve as my retainer," Tenma said with a smile, reaching out to pat her head.
Though she didn't really understand what a "retainer" was, Perona keenly caught the word "home."
An unprecedented sense of closeness and reliance welled up inside her. Her eyes reddened as she nodded vigorously. "Mm!"
...
After making a detour to Bakkura Village, the ship adjusted its course once more, heading straight for Al Island, where Hogback was located.
With the geisha keeping watch over navigation, Tenma took the newly joined members into the spacious training hall for some special instruction.
—Mero! Mero!
Perona's signature ghostly laughter echoed throughout the hall.
In contrast were Maria Fang and Yamato, repeatedly collapsing to the ground in utter misery, questioning their existence.
After Perona joined, Tenma found her ability quite special and decided to organize a special training session focused on Observation Haki.
Though the two girls had learned to dodge attacks blindfolded over the past half year, they were still constantly getting hit by these unpredictable ghosts.
"Alright, take a break for now."
Tenma clapped his hands to signal a pause, then walked forward slowly. "Next, I'll demonstrate a deeper application of Observation Haki."
"Huh?! Lord Tenma is going to do it himself?"
Perona, who'd felt no pressure bullying the two sisters earlier, immediately shrank back when she saw Tenma step up, wringing her hands behind her back.
"It's fine. Come at me. This is part of the lesson," Tenma said calmly.
Taking a deep breath, Perona stopped hesitating. Three ghosts shot out at once, attacking Tenma from tricky angles.
"Listen carefully. Observation Haki is, at its core, about making your five senses extremely sharp."
"It lets you perceive the strength of nearby auras and emotional fluctuations, allowing you to predict an opponent's movements and avoid danger."
As Tenma explained, Lafitte and Robin quietly lowered the blindfolds they'd been training with. Maria Fang and Yamato stared intently at the center of the room.
"When we were in Wano, you learned to dodge attacks by sensing living auras with your eyes closed."
"But the reason you kept losing just now is because the ghosts Perona releases don't possess any 'life aura' at all."
Facing the onrushing ghosts, Tenma didn't move from his spot, his tone unhurried.
"So instead of fixating on auras, you need to take it one step further—capture changes in your opponent's emotions."
"The ghosts are controlled by Perona. Your real target is her. Predict how she intends to manipulate the ghosts next."
Before his words even finished, Tenma didn't shift his feet at all. With just a slight sidestep and tilt of his head, he effortlessly avoided all three negative ghosts.
His movements were smooth and natural, as if he had known their trajectories all along.
"Lord Tenma is amazing!"
Even though her own attack had been dodged, Perona pumped her fists excitedly, her face full of admiration.
"So that's how it works! I think I've got it!"
Yamato slammed her right fist into her left palm in sudden realization, then grabbed Perona to start the next round without even asking.
After several rounds, though they still couldn't dodge as cleanly as Tenma, the improvement was obvious.
Especially Yamato, whose battle instincts were keen—she was already starting to vaguely predict the movement of one of the ghosts.
Tenma nodded in satisfaction. It seemed he wasn't just good at fighting—he had some talent for teaching as well.
Of course, that was assuming the students were gifted seedlings like these. If they were blockheads, he wouldn't bother.
...
West Blue, Al Island.
A massive ship loomed overhead like a dark cloud, flying in an overwhelmingly imposing manner and completely blotting out the sunlight.
A vast shadow instantly engulfed the island's bustling streets.
This one-of-a-kind signature ability was immediately recognized by those who read the papers. One by one, they screamed in terror:
"It's the Flying Admiral, Tenma! The super pirate with a bounty of 480 million Beli!"
A wave of panicked shouts erupted through the crowd, and in the next moment, the streets descended into utter chaos.
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