The two battles Arthur had fought on his missions had taught him one thing firsthand:
In this world, physical strength was everything.
Everything else was merely technique.
His swordsmanship—redirecting force, deflecting Kaido’s and Alber’s attacks through skill rather than raw power—was technique as well.
“After taking two slashes like that, I’m still able to move around normally?”
“Looks like I underestimated my own body’s durability.”
Arthur slowly walked out of the laboratory and raised two fingers to his lips, letting out a sharp whistle.
The piercing sound echoed across central Punk Hazard.
High atop the island’s tallest peak, Cooper immediately recognized the familiar whistle.
“Cooper!”
The bald eagle cried out Arthur’s name as it folded It’s wings and dived straight toward Laboratory PH-001.
“There you are, Cooper.”
Standing in the open area outside the laboratory, Arthur waved toward the sky.
The eagle’s beak and talons were stained with fresh blood—evidence that it had hunted wild game on the island to feed itself.
The moment it found Arthur, Cooper practically threw itself at him, rubbing It’s head affectionately against his face.
“Alright, come with me.”
Arthur lifted the eagle onto his shoulder.
“I need your help with my training.”
He headed toward the dense forest outside the laboratory.
Now that he had awakened Armament Haki, his next goal was Observation Haki.
And he’d already thought of the perfect training method.
Blindfold himself…
…and have Cooper attack him without stopping.
At the Top of the Red Line
Shrouded in mist and surrounded by breathtaking scenery, the summit of the Red Line was home to vast forests and magnificent castles where the Celestial Dragons resided.
The place that stood at the pinnacle of the world—
The Holy Land Mary Geoise.
Inside the audience chamber of Pangaea Castle, the Five Elders sat together.
Standing before them was a Marine intelligence officer wearing the coat of justice.
“Your Excellencies, regarding the operation to arrest Dr.
Vegapunk, we’ve assigned the task to the son of the Hero of the Marines.”
“Dragon?”
One of the Five Elders nodded.
“As long as he’s on Punk Hazard, Vegapunk won’t escape.”
The officer continued.
“Colonel Dragon’s warship was sunk during the engagement with the experimental subjects.
He has requested another battleship for support.”
“So Kaido escaped…”
“What a pity.”
“The ultimate lifeform slipped through our fingers.”
Another Elder spoke.
“Very well.
Dispatch a Cipher Pol 0 (CP0) vessel.”
“We must ensure that Vegapunk is taken into custody alive.”
The Five Elders continued discussing the matter.
To them, Vegapunk’s greatest value wasn’t the man himself—
It was his knowledge.
“Who should we send?” the intelligence officer asked.
“Most of the promising Cipher Pol agents are still in training.”
“There aren’t many suitable candidates.”
“Send Guernica.”
“He has mastered the Six Powers, and among the current Cipher Pol 0 (CP0) agents, his abilities are more than adequate.” Follow the newest chapters on g.com.
The Marine didn’t leave immediately.
Instead, he produced another report and handed it to them.
“There’s another noteworthy discovery from this mission.”
The Five Elders accepted the file.
Their expressions gradually changed.
“A swordsman?”
“He fought Kaido to a standstill?”
“Is this report genuine?”
“Dragon recruited someone like this?”
“If everything here is accurate…”
“Then he’s worth cultivating.”
“But first, we need to confirm his loyalty to both the Marines and the Government.”
“I agree.”
“The World Military Draft will begin soon.”
“We’ll continue observing him.”
The Five Elders quickly reached a consensus.
At fourteen years old, Arthur was no longer a child.
He had already developed his own sense of right and wrong.
That made him far more difficult to indoctrinate into becoming a cold, unquestioning weapon of the Government.
The final evaluation written in his file read:
A young man with a burning sense of justice.
Compassionate toward civilians and kind at heart.
The assessment was based on Arthur’s actions and words during the Lionheart Island incident, particularly his defense of the civilians and his confrontation with Sakazuki.
Punk Hazard
Morning mist lingered throughout the forest.
After a night of heavy rain, the island felt refreshed, vibrant, and full of life.
Beneath a towering tree, Arthur continued training his Observation Haki.
With his eyes closed, he shifted his footing continuously across the muddy ground.
Every swipe of Cooper’s talons narrowly missed him.
“Cooper…” (Why can’t I hit him…?
His eyes are closed!)
The eagle was thoroughly bewildered.
It had secretly looked forward to using this training as an excuse to beat Arthur up a little.
Instead, after training nonstop since before dawn…
It hadn’t landed a single hit.
“Dodging for this long has helped me understand something.”
Arthur continued weaving around Cooper’s attacks.
“Observation Haki begins by calming your mind.”
“Once your heart is still, you use your spirit to sharpen your senses, detect your opponent’s presence, and react accordingly.”
Cooper blinked.
It felt like it understood…
And yet somehow didn’t.
Arthur simplified it further.
“In simple terms…”
“It’s taking an animal’s instinct for sensing danger and amplifying it to the limit—then consciously controlling it.”
As he spoke, Arthur realized something.
Everything he described…
For ten years he had survived at the bottom of the food chain.
Every waking moment had required him to remain alert against predators.
Many people spent their entire lives without ever realizing they possessed Haki.
Arthur, however, had noticed it almost as soon as it began to awaken.
Observation Haki was the ability to perceive another person’s “voice” or presence.
As it grew stronger, one could sense enemies outside their field of vision, determine how many there were, and even predict the actions they were about to take.
Observation Haki was deeply tied to one’s mental state.
It required calmness.
The moment someone lost control of their emotions, Observation Haki would cease to function.
Fortunately…
Remaining calm was one of Arthur’s greatest strengths.
Now that he understood how essential power truly was, learning abilities like these came naturally to him.
All he lacked was experience.
As daylight spread across the island, a flock of News Coo flew over Punk Hazard carrying the morning newspapers.
“Hm?”
Arthur immediately opened his eyes.
Pointing toward the sky, he said,
“Cooper, go get me a newspaper.”
“Cooper!”
The eagle shot into the air.
The flock of News Coo panicked upon seeing a bald eagle charging toward them and scattered in every direction.
One unfortunate bird reacted a little too slowly.
Cooper intercepted it in midair.
The News Coo stared blankly at the eagle wearing a cap—just like itself.
“Cooper!” (This is a robbery.
Hand over one newspaper!)
Left with little choice, the frightened News Coo pulled a newspaper from It’s satchel and handed it over with It’s beak.
“Coo…” (I’ve seen humans rob people…
but never an eagle rob a newspaper…)
Once it surrendered the paper, Cooper allowed it to fly away.
Returning triumphantly, Cooper landed on Arthur’s shoulder and dropped the newspaper into his hand.
As long as it wasn’t being sold on a civilized island…
Arthur could always read the news for free.
“Let’s see what’s happening in the New World.”
He unfolded the paper.
Almost immediately, his brow furrowed.
“The enemy of my enemy is my friend!
Hero of the Marines Monkey D.
Garp joins forces with Gol D.
Roger to stop Golden Lion Shiki, preventing him from seizing a secret World Government weapon before forcing him to retreat.”
Another headline read:
“The World Government strengthens It’s ban on researching the Poneglyphs.
Anyone caught investigating them will be arrested as a criminal.”
Another:
“Former Celestial Dragon Donquixote Homing, who abandoned his noble status to live among commoners in the North Blue, continues to suffer hardship.
His wife has died from illness, while his two sons survive by scavenging garbage for food.”
And another:
“A thirteen-year-old war hero emerges from the military nation of Jarts in the Grand Line: Douglas Bullet.”
“…”
Arthur silently continued reading.