The Grand Line. Mid-afternoon.
"ROAR!"
The hundred-meter Azure Monoceros unhinged its blood-slicked jaws, the stench of rotting fish billowing out like a physical weight, and lunged at Sabo.
Facing the titan, Sabo's expression remained terrifyingly calm. He gripped his alloy staff, and a liquid-black sheen of Armament Haki flowed over the metal. Simultaneously, manic orange flames erupted from his palms, coiling around the black staff like a spiraling fire dragon.
The perfect fusion: The weight of Haki, the heat of the Logia.
"Lights out, big guy."
Mid-air, Sabo twisted his frame like a coiled spring and brought the staff down on the Sea King's massive, obsidian horn.
"Karyu: Kakusai!"
CRACK—BOOM!
The staff, wreathed in black steel and celestial heat, struck with surgical precision. The horn—capable of splitting a Marine battleship—spiderwebbed and disintegrated. The flames didn't just burn; they poured into the beast's skull through the shattered base.
The Monoceros didn't even scream. Its body stiffened, eyes rolling back, before it crashed into the sea like a collapsing skyscraper.
"Beautiful strike!" Ace called from the bow, laughing as the massive prey floated belly-up.
Sabo used Sky Walk to drift back to the deck, exhaling a plume of white steam. "The Logia's destructive output is staggering. When fused with Haki, the kinetic force is... well, you saw it."
"One shot?" Carina muttered from the bridge. Even knowing they were monsters, watching them dismantle a Sea King like a common carp was starting to warp her sense of reality.
"Gyahahaha! Passable! Barely!" Buggy barked, hands on his hips. "A bit clumsy compared to Rayleigh's slashes back in the day, but for a First Mate I have acknowledged, it was a solid 6 out of 10!"
Sabo just smiled, ignoring the clown's bluff.
"Buggy, since you're full of energy, you're on butchery duty," Ace ordered. "I want the prime loin and belly meat. Dump the rest."
"HUH?! You want This Great Man to butcher a mountain of meat by himself?!"
"Your 'Chop-Chop' fruit was made for this. No work, no steak," Ace said, his tone leaving no room for negotiation.
Under the threat of a meatless dinner, Buggy grumbled and unsheathed a set of oversized kitchen knives. He detached his hands, which zipped across the Sea King's carcass like caffeinated hummingbirds. In less than thirty minutes, several tons of premium beast-meat were stacked neatly on the deck. Buggy might be a coward, but his fruit made him the world's fastest butcher.
That Evening. The Deck of the Eclipse.
The aroma of seared Sea King steak filled the air. Ace was eating with the ferocity of a vacuum, his metabolism converting the high-grade protein into pure vitality.
He set down a massive bone and wiped his mouth. His eyes, dark and sharp, scanned Buggy and Carina.
"From tomorrow, the Eclipse enters a permanent state of combat readiness," Ace said. His voice was quiet, but the authority behind it was absolute.
The laughter died down.
Ace raised a finger, a spark of crimson-gold flame dancing there. "Crocus told me these flames can repair any physical damage. Therefore, starting tomorrow, your training loads are quadrupling."
Buggy's steak hit the deck. "CAPTAIN! People will die! Normal people die from that!"
"Don't worry," Ace said, a demonic, brilliant smile curling his lips. "As long as you have a pulse, I can pull you back. Most people are limited by their talent. But you? I'm going to force your muscles to break their ceiling through a cycle of destruction and rebirth."
He pointed at Buggy. "Especially you, Red Nose. Haki is the only currency in the New World. If you haven't mastered Armament Haki by the time we hit Sabaody, I'm tying you to the anchor and dragging you through the sea for a week."
Buggy turned pale, looking like he wanted to jump overboard. Carina, however, tightened her grip on her wine glass. She knew the Grand Line was a slaughterhouse; strength was the only true luxury. "I understand, Captain. I'll endure it."
"Good."
Just then, the Logose on Carina's wrist snapped to the side. "Land ho! We're approaching the first major hub of the Gilded Current: Bacchus, The Gastronomy Frontier."
"A city of food?" Sabo asked, standing up.
"It's a dual-zone island," Carina explained, checking her notes. "The coast is a playground for nobles and gourmets—five-star restaurants and luxury ports. But the interior? It's a 'Jurassic Interior.' It's an untamed primeval forest filled with dinosaurs and mutated behemoths. Wealthy thrill-seekers pay pirates to hunt there, then bring the meat back to the coast for feasts."
"Dinosaurs and behemoths?" Ace's eyes lit up. "Sounds like the perfect pantry."
The Following Morning. Bacchus Port.
The Eclipse docked amidst gilded merchant galleons.
"Sabo, Carina, Buggy—handle the supplies. Find out who runs this place," Ace commanded as he stepped onto the pier. He ignored the glittering restaurants, looking instead at the towering, prehistoric trees in the distance. "I'm going into the Interior. I want to see if this island has anything worth eating."
Ace strode past the outer fences alone, disappearing into the humid, primeval jungle.
Ten minutes in, the ground shook. A thirty-meter Cyan Tyrannosaur burst through the canopy, a half-eaten limb in its jaws. Its slitted pupils locked onto Ace, seeing nothing but a snack.
"Ancient species. High muscle density," Ace mused, winding up a fist. "Perfect."
Just as Ace was about to throw the punch—
"OI! YOU BRUTE!"
A piercing, furious shout descended from the trees.
"Don't you dare ruin the loin with your crude fist! If you bruise that texture, I'll butcher you next!"
A tall shadow dropped from the sky like a hawk.
It was a woman, nearly 1.9 meters tall, with a wild dark-red ponytail and eyes like a hunting cat. She wore a black tank top and a heavy, blood-stained leather apron lined with dozens of knives.
In her right hand, she gripped the "Iron Tusk" Cleaver—a massive slab of black steel the size of a door. In her left, a curved silver boning knife held in a reverse grip.
"Move, lumbering idiot!"
She soared over Ace's head. The massive cleaver smashed into the Tyrannosaur's neck scales with bone-shattering force, while the silver knife danced through the gaps in its vertebrae with surgical grace.
SHLICK—!
Blood geyser-ed. The thirty-meter apex predator, whose scales could deflect cannon fire, was dismantled like a piece of soft tofu. It collapsed, dead before it hit the dirt.
The red-haired woman landed on the carcass, flicking blood off her twin blades with a practiced snap. She turned to Ace, her gaze lazy, sharp, and profoundly unimpressed.
"Who are you?" she asked, her voice raspy. "And why are you standing in my kitchen?"
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