"I swear, sometimes you're just begging to be punched..."
Momonga gave a small, exasperated sigh.
Darren merely shrugged, as if he hadn't heard Momonga's complaint at all.
After a month of "special training," Momonga's strength had transformed entirely.
He had already mastered the basics of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit, adapting it to different combat situations with surprising ease.
He could transform his body into pure lightning and dart through air and conductive materials at breakneck speed.
He could discharge bolts of high-voltage thunder at mid-range, striking targets with surgical precision.
He could harness the searing heat and piercing power of lightning to unleash devastating attacks.
All told, though Momonga still hadn't awakened Haki, his overall combat power was now easily on par with a Marine Vice Admiral—possibly even within reach of the elite among them.
After all, the raw advantage conferred by the Rumble-Rumble Fruit was simply overwhelming.
As for how he should develop the fruit's abilities, Darren hadn't offered any grand theories or personal insights. Instead, he'd pointed Momonga toward a single, clear model—Enel.
Enel, "God" of Skypiea, the original Rumble-Rumble Fruit user in the canon story.
While Enel's reign ended abruptly thanks to Luffy's unique rubber immunity, there was no denying his formidable mastery of the fruit.
The key point was that Enel's approach to the Rumble-Rumble Fruit was direct and easy to replicate.
This likely spoke to some deeper logic at the heart of Devil Fruit mastery.
Every fruit had its own natural pathways for growth.
We saw this in the canon story: when Blackbeard stole Whitebeard's Tremor Tremor fruit, he immediately wielded the same devastating "Quake" techniques. When Sabo inherited Ace's Flame Flame fruit, the first move he unlocked was "Fire Fist," echoing his predecessor's signature attack.
Why? Because these signature abilities were the simplest, most accessible ways to harness each fruit's power.
For Momonga, Darren didn't intend for him to become a flawless all-rounder like Sakazuki, Kuzan, or Borsalino.
The truth was, Momonga didn't have their freakish natural gifts or monstrous potential.
So instead, Darren envisioned him as a new Enel—a master of Haki, swordsmanship, and physical combat to complement the terrifying might of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit.
Enel himself had been a true monster, his fruit's power alone enough to make him a walking disaster.
Now, with Momonga adding in his own skills and training in the use of Haki, he wouldn't be as vulnerable in close-quarters combat as Enel had been.
He wouldn't be unstoppable, but he'd be a force to reckon with.
At the very least, he'd be a solid contender at the lower end of Admiral-level combat power.
After all, reaching the absolute top required more than just talent—it took fate, luck, and a lifetime of battle.
As for Darren himself, his own progress over this month had been more than satisfactory.
His body had grown stronger by three points, while his strength and speed each ticked up by one. Even his Armament Haki had grown by two points—earned in the brutal back-and-forth of "training" with Momonga.
His updated stats now read:
Armament Haki: 39.035
Conqueror's Haki: 52.301
Yet with time, the effects of this "lightning forging" had begun to wane.
He'd even started to develop a kind of resistance—now, any lightning below ten million volts simply slid harmlessly off his skin, like water off a stone.
It was almost as if he were immune to electricity itself.
Looks method won't do much more for me in the short term...
Darren studied his stats, mind turning over the problem.
Maybe, once Momonga pushed his output to fifty million volts or beyond—even a hundred million—this method might become useful again.
But for now? It was time to stop wasting time in the North Blue.
"How's the collaboration with Vinsmoke Judge coming along?" he asked, exhaling a thin stream of smoke.
Momonga blinked, then asked:
"You're heading back to Headquarters?"
Darren nodded with a wry smile.
"Zephyr-sensei has already called me several times, chewing me out until my ears are ringing. If I don't show up soon, he'll probably drag me back by the scruff of my neck."
Just picturing Zephyr's furious, red-faced scowl over the Den Den Mushi was enough to give him a headache.
He'd tried explaining that he'd found a highly effective training method here in the North Blue.
But that only made Zephyr explode.
"What's that supposed to mean?! Are you saying my training is worthless?!"
Darren obviously couldn't tell the old man the real truth: that a single day of beatings in Kaido's prison had taught him more than weeks of drills at Marineford.
He could already imagine how that conversation would go...
When he got back, there was no way he'd be getting any warm welcomes.
"Zephyr's just looking out for you, you know," Momonga said with a rare smile, enjoying the sight of Darren finally looking a little put-upon.
"But as for the collaboration with Vinsmoke Judge... the engine refits haven't seen much progress yet, but the laser weapon has."
"Vinsmoke Judge says Germa 66 has successfully reverse-engineered the core energy structure of the laser cannon. He thinks it won't be long before they're ready to start production."
Darren nodded, raising his head to watch the sunset blazing in the clouds far off on the horizon.
The cold air bit at his skin. Snowflakes began to drift down from the sky, even as the sun painted the clouds in radiant reds and golds.
A beautiful contradiction—snow falling in the bitter cold, yet the sky alight with such breathtaking color.
He let out a small sigh, a smile playing at his lips.
"This year's almost over," he murmured. "Time to go home."
Momonga gave a knowing look, eyes crinkling in amusement.
"Of course. The end of the year is a time to be with family."
Darren laughed lightly, about to reply—when the sharp trill of a military Den Den Mushi cut through the air.
"Buru buru... buru buru..."
Momonga eyed him slyly as he pulled out the receiver.
"Maybe it's that lady of yours, calling you home..."
He'd seen enough over the last month to know Darren had brought a woman back to his personal quarters.
Darren rolled his eyes, snorting with a half-laugh.
Momonga raised his hands in surrender, still chuckling as he stepped away.
Darren answered the call.
And Momonga noticed immediately—the smile vanished from his friend's face, replaced by something grim and heavy.
When he finally ended the call, Momonga hurried back over.
"What's happened?" he demanded.
The clouds had swallowed the sunset, darkness falling over the snow-swept world.
The cold sank into their bones.
Darren licked his dry lips and let out a long breath, his voice rough.
"Dragon's in trouble."
Darren's voice was low and hoarse, the words cutting through the swirling snow like a blade.
Momonga stood frozen, the icy wind biting into his skin. Before he could even begin to ask, Darren continued, his voice raw.
"He killed a Celestial Dragon at the border between the North Blue and the Grand Line..."
The Marine Commodore's words fell heavy and cold, hanging in the air like a sentence of doom.
"—and he did it in front of a crowd."