Meanwhile, in the secret valley behind the mountain.
Luna was completely unaware of the upcoming “interception”; she was currently immersed in exploring the limits of her abilities.
In the open space of the valley, she closed her eyes and focused, running the [Meditation] skill at full power.
Feeling the surging power within her body, the bottleneck of Rubber Constitution LV100 had already loosened, and she could sense that she was just one step away.
The seeds of the three colors of Haki floated deep within her consciousness, especially that dark-red Haoshoku flame.
Through Shanks’s guidance and these past few days of tranquil nurturing, although the total amount grew slowly, that “texture” seemed much more solid, lacking a bit of the initial frenzy and showing signs of being more controllable.
“Not enough, still not enough.” Luna opened her eyes and shook her head.
It might be more than enough to deal with small fries in the East Blue, but whenever she thought of the Grand Line, the powerful enemies she might face in the future, and the “beauty crew members” with extremely special strengths or circumstances whom she needed to “recruit,” she felt a sense of urgency.
“I’d better train first.” Merely thinking was useless; Luna walked to the center of the open space, closed her eyes, and began today’s training.
First was the basics: the stretching, contraction, and deformation of Rubber Constitution.
She could now easily stretch her arms up to twenty meters away, and her fingers could whip and crack tree trunks like whips.
What she practiced was control precision—allowing her fingers to accurately pass through three vine rings suspended at different heights during rapid stretching without touching the edges.
Once, twice, thrice…
The experience bar of [Rubber Constitution LV94 (67 / 100)] slowly climbed.
Next was Taijutsu.
She practiced “Rubber Instant Strike” against the cliff wall, not using her full strength, but controlling her force so that every punch hit the exact same spot.
The pit on the cliff wall grew deeper and deeper, gravel rustled down, and [Basic Taijutsu LV97 (92 / 100)] was about to break through.
Then came Haki.
She sat cross-legged, entered a meditative state, and guided the three forces within her body.
The red flames and black lightning of Haoshoku were carefully “stroked” by her, attempting to make them more docile and controllable without triggering an outbreak.
[Conquerors Haki Control LV54 (50 / 100)]
The condensation of Armament Haki was even more difficult.
She concentrated her mind on her right fist, imagining vitality and willpower compressing and hardening.
After practicing for half an hour, a faint black luster lasting less than a second appeared on her fist, and the area was only the size of a fingernail.
[Armament Haki Condensation LV41 (5 / 100)]
For Observation Haki, she adopted the method taught by Shanks, standing in the open space with her eyes closed, listening to everything around her—the sound of the wind, the chirping of insects, the friction of leaves, the distant stream…
She tried to “hear” things deeper down—the landing spot of that squirrel jumping on the branches in the next instant, the intention of that bird preparing to spread its wings and fly.
Gradually, she was able to dodge pinecones blown down by the wind while keeping her eyes closed.
[Observation Haki Perception LV57 (31 / 100)]
In the intervals, Luna gradually thought of a conjecture she had in her past life regarding the abilities of the Rubber Fruit.
Gear 5 Nika turned white, meaning the rubber in the Rubber Fruit could change color.
White was the color of rubber, but transparency was also an ability of rubber.
“Transparency…
How on earth should I start?” She recalled the direction she conceived last night.
Nika’s awakening could rubberize the surrounding environment and change according to one’s will, so theoretically, partially altering the molecular structure of her own rubber to produce special refraction or even diffraction on light of specific wavelengths, achieving visual “transparency,” was not completely impossible.
This required extremely meticulous [Form Control] and a deeper understanding of the essence of rubber.
She extended her right hand, concentrated her mind, and no longer pursued stretching or hardening, but instead tried to “imagine” that the rubber on the palm part became like clear gel, allowing light to pass through…
Failure; her palm was still flesh-colored.
Try again, imagining the cell gaps expanding and the structure changing…
Still failure; aside from making her palm slightly warm and swollen, there was no change at all.
The experience bar of [Form Control LV61 (33 / 100)] moved slightly, but it was clearly still far from a qualitative change.
Luna was not discouraged and instead practiced other things.
She began to move rapidly in the valley, using [Elastic Potential Energy Control] and the explosive force of her rubber legs to bounce and change direction among rock walls and trees, practicing aerial maneuverability and rapid approach and detachment under complex terrain.
The experiences of [Basic Taijutsu] and [Rubber Constitution] grew steadily.
Next was combo move practice: the penetrating power of “Rubber Spiral Spear”, the range control of “Rubber Whip”, the burst timing of “Rubber Instant Strike”…
She disassembled and combined various basic moves, attempting seamless connection during high-speed movement.
Sweat quickly soaked her clothes, but her eyes were bright and she enjoyed it.
Every attempt, whether successful or failed, would be fed back by the system, and the subtle growth of the experience bar was the best reward.
This visible progress was intoxicating.
Training lasted until the sun slanted westward.
Luna was soaked in sweat all over, but her spirits were high.
She could feel herself getting stronger every single minute and second, and that clearly visible sense of growth was addictive.
While resting, she sat down against a rock, took off her straw hat and played with it in her hands.
The rough straw texture, the warm breath baked by the sunlight, and that indescribable “feeling” left by Shanks upon it.
“I will use this power well,” Luffy whispered, which was both a promise to Shanks and an oath to herself, “in my own way.”
She recalled the famous quote of Luna from the original work— “I am going to be the Pirate King!” Passionate, straightforward, and full of youthful spirit.
Luna smiled and put the straw hat back on her head.
“I am Luna, the one who will build the largest beauty pirate crew,” she said, her voice not loud, but resolute, “As for being the Pirate King…
being one along the way is not impossible either.”
When the setting sun dyed the valley golden, Luna ended her training and walked back.
Her steps were brisk and firm, the straw hat swayed slightly on her head, and her shadow was pulled very long behind her.
Tomorrow, she would sail a small boat alone to leave Windmill Village and start a true adventure.
Ahead lay the unknown sea, powerful enemies, and a long journey.
But Luna was not afraid at all.
She had memories of two lifetimes, an infinitely growing system, three colors of Haki that had just started but had infinite potential, and a heart that clearly knew what she wanted.
She wanted to become stronger, to find those women scattered all over the world shining with unique brilliance, to gather them on her ship, and to roam this vast and crazy sea with them.
As for how many factions this process would overturn, how many people’s destinies would be changed, and how big a storm it would trigger…
Luna grinned, a spark of rashness and calm calculation flashing in her eyes.
“That won’t be my concern anymore,”
“I only want my crew members.”
The sea breeze blew from outside the valley, carrying the breath of the distant ocean.
Luna raised her head, looking towards the direction of Windmill Village and further into the boundless blue.
A new era began with a straw hat and a “vulgar” dream.
And her ship was already ready.
When she returned to PARTYS BAR, it was already dark.
Warm lights were lit in the bar, and Makino had prepared a sumptuous dinner, almost like a farewell banquet.
“Luna, you’re back?
Come and eat quickly, it’s all your favorite food.” Makino’s smile was as gentle as ever, but upon closer inspection, a trace of imperceptible tension and guilt seemed to be hidden in the depths of her eyes.
“Wow!
That’s great!” Luna’s eyes lit up, casting aside her thoughts, and she pounced on the dining table to feast heartily.
She didn’t notice Makino’s abnormality, or rather, the thick-skinned nature brought by the Rubber Fruit, the excitement of going out to sea soon, and her affection for her family made her overlook these details.
Dinner was pleasant.
Makino chattered and nagged about many things to watch out for when going to sea.
Although Luna had mostly heard them from the Red Hair Pirates, she still nodded earnestly.
Makino also secretly stuffed a small money bag into her hand, containing some extra Berries.
“Be careful on the road, you must be careful.” Before going to sleep, Makino hugged Luna and whispered tightly.
“Mm, I know, Sister Makino.
I’m still very weak right now, so I won’t drag you onto the ship.
When I become very, very strong, I’ll come to pick you up to travel around the world.” Luna hugged her back and said with a grin, “When I find my first companion, I’ll write back to tell you!”
“I know,” Makino said happily.
Late at night when all was quiet, Luna lay on her small bed, but she couldn’t fall asleep.
She simply got up to carry out her routine seawater Meditation.
Soaking in a specially made seawater wooden box, a sense of weakness struck, but the effect of [Underwater Adaptation LV258] allowed her to endure and maintain conscious awareness.
She operated [Meditation] to recover the consumption of the day, while continuing to nurture Haki and perceive the barrier of Rubber Constitution that was about to break through.
She didn’t notice that the light in Makino’s room also stayed on for most of the night.
In a certain sea area far away from Windmill Village, a huge dog-headed warship was cutting through the waves and speeding towards the direction of Goa Kingdom at an astonishing speed.
On the bridge, a stalwart old man draped in a Marine “Justice” coat, with graying hair and bulging muscles, was crossing his arms, wearing a stern face, staring at the sea level ahead, his eyes seeming to burn with anger.
“Speed up!
We must arrive at Windmill Village before sunrise!” Vice Admiral Garp roared at his subordinates.
“Yes!
Vice Admiral Garp!”
The warship engines roared, cutting a white wake through the night.
Garp clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white.
“Brat…
just you wait…
Let’s see how Grandpa smashes your pirate dream to pieces!”
He could seemingly see the scene of that small figure wearing a straw hat being lifted up by her collar by him, crying loudly in fright (the way he imagined it).
This night, some were full of anticipation, some were worried, and some were furious.
The coastline of Windmill Village appeared exceptionally tranquil under the moonlight, resembling the final calm before the storm.
And Luna’s pirate path, before officially setting sail, was about to face a severe test from the family (physically).