In Golden Lion Shiki's eyes, Ares' talent was far beyond something as simple as the word "genius" could describe.
This guy…
His talent in swordsmanship alone already surpassed Shiki himself.
No… to be more precise, this man was an all-rounder a genius in physical combat, swordsmanship, and Haki perfect and without a single flaw!
It was terrifying talent.
A monster's talent a once-in-a-million phenomenon.
And Ares was, after all, his disciple. That fact filled Golden Lion Shiki's heart with intense pride, his lips curling into a delighted grin.
"GYAHAHAHA… That's right! This is my disciple, the one and only Golden Lion Shiki's disciple!!"
"Ares, at this rate, in just a few years, you'll become a world-renowned great swordsman!"
His heart swelled with joy. Ares had managed to use his own body to unleash a true flying slash. If he could really become a great swordsman, combined with Ares' natural physique and talent, he would become a walking war machine.
Every movement of his body would carry devastating power akin to a sword's slash.
A sword, with its sharpness, hardness, and streamlined blade, was naturally more suited to deliver precise and lethal slashes than the human body.
But the body had its own advantages it was easier to control, and force could pass through it unimpeded.
Still, the drawbacks were many, incomparable to the natural advantages of a blade.
Ares looked at Shiki, clenching his fist tightly as he declared with grand ambition,
"Forget swordsmen or great swordsmen. My goal is to surpass the Supreme Grade Blades!"
As long as he could forge his body to a hardness greater than the Twelve Supreme Grade Swords, then no one in this sea would ever surpass him.
He would be the strongest.
The toughest.
Shiki nodded in satisfaction, the cigar between his lips twitching upward with a trace of wild arrogance.
"Then let's begin today's sword training!"
"Flying slashes are just the beginning. Truly great swordsmen can cut through anything!"
"Then I will make sure that no swordsman no matter how great will ever be able to cut through me!" Ares cut in, his tone firm and unwavering.
Shiki burst into wild laughter.
"GYAHAHAHAHA!!!"
His expression shifted into one of fierce anticipation as he grinned,
"Let me see just how much you've improved during this time!"
With that, he unsheathed both of his swords Oto and Kogarashi and instantly hardened them with Armament Haki. His arms, along with the swords and scabbards, turned jet-black with a cold metallic sheen.
Ares' eyes, as big as eggs, flashed with a terrifying glint. His grin revealed a mouthful of gleaming white teeth.
"I love to fight!!"
"Bring it on!!"
Shiki's grin stretched wider with unrestrained madness. With a sweep of his sheathed blade, he slashed toward Ares, even though he didn't bother to draw his swords.
The strike was imbued with Shiki's terrifyingly powerful Armament Haki, and Ares dared not underestimate it.
Bloodhand unleashed once more!!
Ares' bronze arms instantly flushed blood-red, letting out a hiss of vapor as white steam rose in thick clouds. He raised his arm to block.
CLANG!!
The sharp ring of metal echoed violently, rattling both their eardrums!
BOOM!
The earth beneath Ares' feet caved in, forming a circular crater two to three meters wide and several decimeters deep.
This alone was enough to show just how powerful Shiki's casual strike was.
"GYAHAHAHAHA… This is more than I expected, Ares. You really are a man born for battle!" Shiki laughed loudly, his praise genuine.
"Again!!"
Again and again, the blackened scabbard clashed against Ares' arms and even his legs. It wasn't just swordsmanship it was tempering Ares' reaction speed, combat instincts, and physical toughness.
Because within Ares' body, the partial fusion of two souls from different worlds had transformed his sensory perception, his reaction time, and even the strength of his brain.
Shiki was convinced Ares' progress had gone beyond genius. It was simply divine.
Though Shiki wasn't using his full strength, their battle still shook the surrounding area with tremendous force.
The booming sounds echoed across the island.
Brilliant, dazzling slashes tore through the ground and shattered trees, leaving destruction in their wake.
Some time later.
Several figures appeared a few hundred meters from the battlefield. Leading them was a man draped in a black captain's coat, adorned with gold epaulets on his shoulders Rocks D. Xebec.
Standing beside him were Edward Newgate Whitebeard and Wang Zhi.
With his arms crossed, Rocks calmly watched the fierce battle in front of him. A faint smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.
"Looks like this voyage really made Ares grow a lot. His progress is even faster than I expected."
In his initial estimation, it should've taken Ares at least half a year to reach this level.
Yet in reality, it had only taken half a month.
What Rocks didn't know was that during Ares' time with the Rocks Pirates and this not-so-long voyage he had learned Armament Haki, swordsmanship, hand-to-hand combat, and even elements of Fishman Karate.
His harvest had been immense. His progress was so rapid it wasn't like shooting up in a rocket, but it was at least like flying on a jet.
His growth rate was so astonishing it even caught Rocks off guard.
"Yeah, I've been watching him grow the whole time. His speed of improvement is even faster than mine or Shiki's!" Whitebeard agreed with genuine admiration, his expression still filled with lingering shock.
As Ares' hand-to-hand combat instructor, he had personally witnessed Ares' terrifying learning speed.
Whatever he taught Ares today, Ares could grasp by tomorrow.
This was already beyond the realm of genius. And now, after this mission, Ares had returned with strength that felt like he'd been gone for months.
It was like seeing a completely different person.
Wang Zhi, however, wore a bitter smile as he quietly grumbled,
"Captain, Ares was just following your words. He's obsessed with the pursuit of battle."
"On this voyage, we ran into the World Destroyer, Brynndi World. And Ares… that kid actually dove straight into the sea and charged at Brynndi World's crew all by himself."
"And that's not even the worst of it…"
"Halfway through, Vice Admiral Garp showed up. And this kid still charged in on his own without hesitation."
The more he spoke, the sadder he became.
Honestly, it was nothing short of a miracle that he was still alive, standing here right now.
The bitterness on Wang Zhi's face said it all he genuinely believed that he and his crew had barely made it out alive.
Of course, Rocks had already heard about this the day Wang Zhi's group returned.
Listening to Wang Zhi's complaints, he burst out laughing.
"Zehahahaha! But you all came back alive, didn't you?"
"Even the likes of World Destroyer Brynndi World and Vice Admiral Garp couldn't claim Ares' life. Strength is part of luck. If it were anyone else, they'd already be dead."
"Pirates are meant to charge forward! Any enemy standing in your way must be faced without fear!"
"They must be slaughtered!"
"Which great pirate known across the seas doesn't have mountains of corpses beneath their feet?"
Not only did Rocks not reprimand Ares, he actually praised him instead.
"Pirates like Ares those who fear no one and charge head-on are true warriors!"
"So long as he survives, he's destined to become a pirate whose name shakes this entire sea!"
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