On the calm and peaceful sea, a Sea King several hundred meters long shattered the surface.
Its body was covered in black and purple stripes, bristling with spikes, and its two giant eyes took up almost half its head.
The massive splash hit the ocean's surface, stirring up waves that rocked the warship.
Cool seawater, like rain, splashed onto the slightly unsteady soldiers.
Despite the violent shaking of the ship, Sakazuki stood as steady as a mountain.
Looking at the swaying soldiers ahead, his indifferent voice rang out:
"Next is the third stage of Armament Haki—projection."
As Sakazuki finished speaking, he raised his hand and aimed at the head of the Sea King that had just emerged from the water.
A pale-colored column of energy shot from his palm, targeting the Sea King's head.
Before the Sea King could react, the energy beam pierced its chin directly.
A blood hole several dozen meters wide exploded open, and it lost consciousness immediately, crashing down into the sea.
The enormous Sea King's corpse slammed onto the water's surface, splashing up waves several meters high.
From the wound on its chin, chunks of flesh and blood gushed out continuously.
All the soldiers in formation stared blankly at the massive bloodied hole, unable to snap out of it for a long time.
"And the fourth stage—internal destruction."
Sakazuki's voice rang out again.
Only then did everyone notice, as the blood and flesh spilled out,
They could faintly see that the inside of the Sea King's huge head was actually hollow.
"Can a human really do this?!"
"I have to learn this technique!!"
The stunned soldiers came back to their senses and couldn't help but exclaim in low voices.
At the same time, they imagined how awe-inspiring it would be if they could master this move one day.
"Alright, line up properly."
Interrupting the gasping and chatter, Sakazuki continued:
"These are the stage-based applications and power of Armament Haki."
"What you all need to do now is first master coverage."
"Hands, legs, head, body."
"Only when you can cover your whole body will you move to the next stage."
"Now pair up—start sparring."
"Only one of you is allowed to remain standing."
As if injected with adrenaline,
A burning flame seemed to ignite in each person's eyes.
They shouted in unison:
Clang! Clang! Clang——
The clashing sounds of metal rang out endlessly.
It was like a unique kind of symphonic music.
Sakazuki looked at the fervently training soldiers and nodded in satisfaction.
Then he called over his adjutant and navigator:
"Have you pinpointed our current location?"
The navigator unrolled the sea chart and the calculated formulas.
He presented them to Sakazuki.
"Reporting to Vice Admiral Sakazuki, location confirmed."
"This is at the edge of the Calm Belt. Based on the sea chart and the direction indicated by the Log Pose, with a weak response signal as reference..."
"We estimate we're approximately twenty-four nautical miles within the edge of the Calm Belt."
"How's the repair on the engine room coming along?"
"Still under emergency repair. Several damaged areas are too troublesome."
"They need to be fully dismantled and rebuilt."
"Fix it as fast as possible."
"Double rations tonight."
After listening to the report, Sakazuki nodded and gave a few orders.
The weather on the Grand Line was unpredictable. Just yesterday morning, it was sunny and calm, and in the blink of an eye, a violent storm had struck.
Layer after layer of waves surged forth. During the struggle of furling the sails in the storm, too much force was used.
The engine room was directly damaged, causing the ship to lose control and move forward uncontrollably—unexpectedly heading straight into the Calm Belt.
They only managed to stop after burning through most of their fuel reserves.
By evening, as the sun was setting—
Inside the warship's mess hall, the exhausted young soldiers were stuffing meat into their mouths like madmen.
Sakazuki, meanwhile, stood on the deck gazing into the distance, enjoying the rare moment of calm.
Suddenly, a sound broke through the air, and Sakazuki's brows furrowed.
His figure vanished in an instant.
He reappeared beside the mast, Armament Haki coating his palm.
A loud crash rang out, startling the soldiers aboard.
The alarm blared as they rushed out of the cabin, entering combat mode and searching for the impact site.
Looking at the broken half of an arrow shaft on the ground, Sakazuki raised his left hand, waving it slightly as he spoke:
In his right palm was an arrowhead crushed into a lump of iron.
"Prepare for battle."
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