Ace pulled out his blade and said, "That's right, this is Roger's saber, 'Ace'. Rayleigh found me and gave this blade to me."
Hera followed up by asking, "You didn't just focus on developing your devil fruit abilities and neglect Haki, did you?"
Ace said with a smile, "How could I? Both you and Shanks emphasized the importance of Haki. Besides, Rayleigh and Shanks are so strong even without devil fruit abilities, so how could I neglect Haki?"
Hera knew Ace's determination to pursue Blackbeard, so she could only sigh and say, "If you've made up your mind, then go. But you must be extra careful; Blackbeard is no weakling."
Ace patted Hera and said, "Since you're here, I'm relieved. I'm going to continue searching for Blackbeard."
With that, ignoring Hera's attempts to make him stay, he left behind two life cards and transformed into a pillar of fire that shot into the sky, departing from the area.
Hera watched Ace's departing figure and said with a bitter smile, "He really is a troublesome older brother."
Ain looked at Hera's expression; she had also overheard the conversation between Hera and Ace. "What's wrong? You look so worried. Is that Blackbeard really that strong?"
Hera said, "Of course he's strong. He is Rocks' child."
Sanji walked over holding some roasted meat. "Two beautiful ladies, may I invite you to join me for dinner?"
Reiju took the roasted meat from Sanji and kicked him aside. "Don't listen to my brother's nonsense; he just can't move when he sees a beautiful woman."
Hera saw the Vinsmoke Transformation Device in Sanji's pants and asked Reiju, "Did he accept the Transformation Device?"
Reiju nodded. "It seems Judge and Mother went to find Sanji. Although Sanji didn't return for Mother's sake, he did accept the Raid Suit."
On the other side, Zoro was challenging Kuina.
Zoro held 'cherry ten' and 'Withered Wood' in his left and right hands, with 'Autumn Water' clamped in his mouth, taking his stance.
Kuina drew wado ichimonji but did not summon the throne. After a moment's thought, she sheathed wado ichimonji and took out the small knife left by Hawkeye from the cross hanging around her neck.
Zoro was somewhat angered by this. "I've made great progress too. Are you going to face me with just that small knife?"
Kuina said, "Zoro, you've just set out to sea. Being a pirate hunter in the East Blue isn't enough. A swordsman can only improve through repeated life-and-death struggles. Right now, you are no match for me."
Zoro, feeling somewhat unwilling to accept this, swung his three blades and charged forward.
Zoro's fierce offensive was blocked by Kuina with the small knife; she could even use her Armament Haki-infused arms to block his attacks.
Zoro gripped his twin blades tightly. He was extremely frustrated; it had only been a few years since he and Kuina were apart, but the gap between them had grown too wide. It could be said that even if Kuina didn't resist, he wouldn't be able to cut through her Armament Haki.
Kuina sighed, drew wado ichimonji, and slashed toward Zoro, releasing a black flying slash. Zoro unleashed two slashes of his own, then crossed his arms to strike the slash that had already been weakened.
The immense impact forced Zoro backward. Watching from the side, both Hera and Luffy grew worried for him.
Zoro fell to the ground in frustration. Kuina extended her hand to him. "This time, you've lost again."
Zoro nodded, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, and took Kuina's hand to stand up.
Kuina said, "You won't improve just by staying in the East Blue. If I had stayed training in the dojo, I probably wouldn't even have Armament Haki by now."
Hera fired a 'Water Bottle Bullet' to heal Zoro. Seeing this, Luffy shouted loudly, "So cool! Hera, your swordsman is actually so powerful!"
Then he stood beside Zoro. "But our Zoro won't lose to you guys either. We're going to grow stronger."
Zoro nodded and said, "Kuina, don't you dare lose before I defeat you. The one who will become the world's greatest swordsman is me."
Kuina touched the cross on her chest, which represented her first defeat since going to sea. She said with a smile, "Don't let me get too far ahead of you. I'll be one step ahead, defeating Hawkeye and waiting for you at the position of the world's strongest swordsman."
Zoro looked at the cross Kuina was wearing; it looked somewhat familiar. He asked, "I feel like I've seen this cross somewhere before."
Kuina said, "This is Hawkeye's knife. I encountered him while I was in the Marines."
Kuina thought of that man with the sharp eyes. "As a swordsman, I can feel that his strength is far beyond mine. Zoro, that is the kind of powerful enemy we have to challenge."
Then she laughed. "However, I believe I will definitely succeed. Or rather, he should be that strong; otherwise, what would be the point if our goal could be achieved so easily?"
Luffy saw that the two had stopped fighting, so he hooked his arm around Zoro's neck and pulled him toward the argo. "Alright, alright, let's have a banquet first. Hera has agreed to take us to the next stop."
On the other side, Hera found Nami's sister, Nojiko, and brought out her gift. "This is the Paramecia-type Magnet-Magnet Fruit. Whoever eats it can control magnetism. This is my gift to you for going to sea."
Nami saw Hera finding Nojiko and walked over curiously, discovering Hera giving the Devil Fruit to Nojiko.
Nami quickly reminded her sister, "You only need to take one bite of a Devil Fruit. This thing tastes absolutely terrible."
Then she curiously asked Hera, "Is this the Magnet-Magnet Fruit? Why do you want my sister to eat this?"
Hera said, "Because you have the Rumble-Rumble Fruit and can generate electricity, and magnetism and electricity can be converted into each other. Just like you two sisters, I look forward to you finding more ways to cooperate."
Nojiko was somewhat hesitant. "Is it really okay to give this to me? This thing must be very valuable."
Hera forced the Magnet-Magnet Fruit into Nojiko's arms. "Don't worry. Devil Fruits might be valuable to others, but to me, they're just so-so. If you're not satisfied, I have plenty more."
As she spoke, Hera took out three more fruits. "This is the Logia-type Gas-Gas Fruit, this is the Paramecia-type Mark-Mark Fruit, and this one should be a Zoan-type fruit, but it's not very strong, so I don't really recommend it."
Then Hera thought for a moment and took out another one. "This is the Paramecia-type Clear-Clear Fruit; it can make a person transparent."
Nojiko looked at the Devil Fruits, known as the treasures of the sea, lined up in front of her. She picked up the Magnet-Magnet Fruit that Hera had first recommended and took a bite.
"It tastes awful." Nojiko immediately showed a pained expression after taking a bite. At that moment, Sanji, who had heard about the Clear-Clear Fruit, rushed over and lunged toward it.
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