Warm sunlight spilled down through the clouds, and the wind swept delicate wisps of cloud past them, carrying a faint scent of ozone left behind by lightning burns.
At the center of Skypiea, Holy Land Mary Geoise, Upper Yard, Rector swung a barbell three times his size with both hands, every motion accompanied by a whistling wind.
Lightning flickered across Rector’s body as he continuously tempered his physical form; this method was far more effective than simple exercise, allowing his strength to grow much faster.
Not far away, the four brothers Perospero, Daifuku, Oven, and Katakuri were convulsing uncontrollably.
“Big Brother!
Can we change to a different method?!” Perospero’s large tongue was so numbed by electricity that his speech was somewhat slurred.
“Big Brother!
I was wrong, I shouldn’t have talked back!” Oven was at a loss for tears, his hands gripping the barbell spinning like a fan and shaking incessantly.
“Hmph!
You little brat, with your current strength, how are you going to protect your future younger brothers and sisters?!” Rector glanced sideways at Oven.
Looking at this younger brother who would in the future be run over by Capone Bege like a speed bump, Rector felt a headache coming on.
(Speed bump)
Oven had a violent temper and acted impulsively, his body always moving faster than his brain, doing things first without caring whether they were feasible.
“Big Brother!
There’s no need to make me do this kind of training too, right?!” Katakuri forced a wry smile, the arcs of lightning winding around his body twice as thick as those on Daifuku and the other two.
Rector looked at Katakuri; he was not yet the perfect older brother in everyone’s hearts within the future Big Mom Pirates.
The current Katakuri was still a cheerful, doughnut-loving kid, not yet the powerful Katakuri in his younger siblings’ hearts whose back never touched the ground.
The turning point of all this was when Brulee’s face was slashed, carried out by pirates who mocked Katakuri’s large mouth.
Those people could not beat Katakuri, so they took out their anger on the five-year-old Brulee.
When her face was disfigured, the younger sister instead comforted Katakuri, saying it didn’t hurt at all.
This directly struck the softest part of Katakuri’s heart; he didn’t care about the impact of his large mouth and sharp teeth.
Friends didn’t matter to him, but family was his bottom line.
That his large mouth had indirectly caused his sister to be injured and disfigured was something he could not tolerate.
Thus, Katakuri put on a scarf to cover his large mouth, living out his life as the most powerful and reliable figure in his younger siblings’ hearts.
“Katakuri!
You are someone who will surpass Mama in the future!
If you can’t even overcome this bit of pain, how can you surpass Mama?!” Rector’s words left the four brothers looking completely bewildered.
Katakuri pointed at himself, his eyes wide open.
“Me?
Surpass Mama?
Isn’t Big Brother here?
Your strength will definitely surpass Mama in the future!
As long as I can keep living together with my younger brothers and sisters, that’s enough!”
“Mama is about to give birth!
I don’t know if it’s a younger brother or a younger sister!”
Katakuri’s eyes sparkled with full expectation, and even the pain brought by the lightning tempering seemed to fade quite a bit.
“Bang!!!”
The heavy barbell slammed heavily onto the ground, the metal bar with its weight plates sinking deep into the mud.
The smile on Katakuri’s face instantly froze.
Looking at Rector’s expressionless face, he began to panic inwardly.
“Katakuri!
Since you know your younger brothers and sisters are about to be born, you should work even harder!”
Rector patted Katakuri’s shoulder with his large hand.
Katakuri felt the warmth on his shoulder.
The anticipated fist did not come down, but instead he heard Rector’s gentle voice.
“We are pirates!
We have to face the Marines, as well as other pirates trying to snatch our territory!
These people will all hurt your younger brothers and sisters!”
“As an older brother, you have to hold up the sky for them!
Don’t forget that freakishly strong old man who punched Mama flying a year ago!”
“Ah!
How could I possibly forget!” A trace of fear flashed across the depths of Katakuri’s eyes.
“That was the first time Mama was sent flying by a single punch.
That scar-faced man was terrifyingly strong!”
“As long as you know!
Keep training!” Rector turned around and pulled the barbell out of the ground.
According to the original timeline, Charlotte Linlin would now join the Rocks Pirates and become a core combat force within the crew.
Right now, he needed to rapidly improve his strength.
Only when you became Garp’s enemy would you realize the terror of this man!
A year ago, when he set sail following Charlotte Linlin, he happened to run into Garp, who was pursuing Roger.
Just one punch, a single punch, had knocked him unconscious for three days.
If not for his Iron Balloon talent holding up, Garp’s punch could have directly taken his life.
When he woke up, several of his sternums were shattered.
And to save him, Charlotte Linlin met Garp’s punch—imbued with Conqueror’s Haki—head-on.
The two of them flew backward together, smashing through the deck and falling into the cabin.
In this world, fists were always more useful than reason; roads that wouldn’t open were smashed open with fists—this phrase was the truest rule of this vast sea.
“Mamamama…
Rector is right!
Katakuri, Mama hopes your strength can surpass Mama!”
“Thud!!!”
Charlotte Linlin’s slender yet huge figure landed on the ground, kicking up a burst of fine dust, and the whipped-up wind caused the waves of clouds to sway along with it.
Her bright red corners of the mouth were still stained with cake cream, and her slightly protruding lower abdomen showed she had been pregnant for some time.
What Charlotte Linlin was carrying in her belly right now were precisely the soon-to-be-born siblings Cracker, Custard, and Angel.
“Mama!”
“Mama!”
The four of them, led by Katakuri, immediately swarmed around.
Charlotte Linlin extended her palm and rubbed each of their heads one by one.
“Family is the best companionship!
As older brothers, you must protect your younger brothers and sisters well!” Charlotte Linlin said, casting her gaze toward Rector.
“Rector!
I’m getting ready to return to the New World!”
“Return to the New World?
Right now?” Rector looked at Charlotte Linlin’s slightly protruding abdomen, pondering inwardly.
The construction of Skypiea was only just getting on track now; Charlotte Linlin could leave, but he couldn’t.
His plan was only just beginning.
“Yeah!
Streusen sent me a message that Rocks is recruiting powerful pirates all over the world.
Joining the Rocks Pirates will definitely allow us to get quite a few powerful Devil Fruits!”
Charlotte Linlin smiled as she looked at Rector: “Right now in the Rocks Pirates, there’s the Tremor-Tremor Fruit user Edward Newgate, and Golden Lion Shiki.”
“They both ate their Devil Fruits only after joining the Rocks Pirates!
Joining the Rocks Pirates can help us find many powerful Devil Fruits!”
Rector was silent for a moment, then said to Charlotte Linlin: “Mama!
You can go, but you must take Perospero with you!”
This was the safest arrangement for now.
He didn’t oppose Charlotte Linlin joining the Rocks Pirates; after all, this was the era of Rocks.
Travel blogger Roger was still searching for Laugh Tale, and many rare fruits had yet to appear.
But after Charlotte Linlin joined the Rocks Pirates, Streusen would definitely join as well.
With Streusen around, in case he instigated Charlotte Linlin to find a spouse, Perospero could stop him.
Perospero was meticulous in thought, making him couldn’t be more suitable; even Streusen would find it hard to fool him.
“Alright!
Once I find news about Devil Fruits, I’ll have Perospero contact you!” With that, Charlotte Linlin left taking Perospero with her!
Perospero’s face was filled with excitement—he could finally shake off the big brother!
He didn’t have to endure this painful training anymore!
Rector watched the two vanish, raised his barbell to continue training.
Having Perospero follow Charlotte Linlin had another underlying purpose—to inquire about the whereabouts of the Island-Island Fruit.
The Island-Island Fruit could control entire islands and perceive every corner of them.
Totto Land was their base camp, and someone had to guard it to prevent idlers and miscellaneous people from approaching.
The Island-Island Fruit was meant for Perospero; after all, he was best at planning and scheming, making him the optimal candidate to garrison the base camp.