Pirate: I have a Hollow living inside me

Do you think he'll agree to become one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea?

"..."

Upon hearing this, Garp fell silent.

I'll say it again, he's very good at judging people.

He felt it was unlikely that Rocks would become one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea.

There was no specific reason, it was just an intuition...

Garp casually shrugged, saying indifferently, "Give it a try. The orders have already been given. Unless you don't want to continue being the marshal, you'll have to send someone to make contact with that kid."

Zhan Guo waved his hand listlessly: "I will send someone over, but for now, we should delay as much as possible, preferably until this turmoil has subsided..."

……

The Black Demon sails the seas.

Rocks is training, Kuina is practicing her swordplay, Nami is tending to the orange tree, and Robin is quietly reading a book...

All four of them were busy with their own things.

Seeing the newsbird land, Robin took out one hundred Berries and handed it over.

I took the newspaper from the newsbird and unfolded it to read it.

I saw the above account about them... or rather, about Lox.

Robin glanced at it briefly and then said to the others, "Gentlemen, the captain's new bounty has been issued, and the newspapers have also reported on what the captain did in Alabasta."

"Really?"

Nami immediately became interested and put down her work.

She jogged towards Robin, exclaiming, "Let me see! Let me see!"

[Shocking! The most ferocious rookie, the "Black-Haired Swordsman," strikes again, first slaying Crocodile, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, and then battling former Marine Admiral "Black Arm" Zephyr!]

Looking at the bold, oversized headline on the front page, Nami's lips twitched: "This headline is really eye-catching..."

Robin chuckled: "It's just a gimmick. Newspapers often do this to boost sales."

"Can't a newspaper that's supposed to be for the world be a little more subtle?"

Nami muttered something to herself.

She was also very interested in Lox's new bounty, so she asked, "How much is Lox's latest bounty?"

"Here you go."

"The Black-Haired Swordsman Rocks, with a bounty of 450 million Berries?"

Nami took the bounty poster from Robin and almost cried out in surprise when she saw the number on it: "This... so much? It's increased by more than 300 million Berries in one go!"

"No, strictly speaking, this number is not much; in fact, it's rather too little."

Robin shook his head: "The newspapers say the captain fought Zephyr to a draw. There shouldn't be only this many people who can fight a former admiral..."

He felt that the bounty on Rocks was too low.

And the scarcity is rather suspicious...

"Is something wrong? Isn't 450 million Berries a lot?"

Nami swallowed hard: "I think that's a lot."

After a pause, Nami said with a tearful face, "Most importantly, Xiao Luo's name has been exposed. Will we be constantly being watched by the Navy Admirals from now on...?"

Rocks' name was revealed.

She had heard about it from Rocks before.

If this name is exposed, it could be targeted by a naval admiral.

Now it's a prophecy.

She felt that the future was bleak.

In the days to come, danger will likely be their constant companion...

Robin smiled and comforted the dejected Nami: "Don't worry, we have our captain here, right? He'll protect us."

"..."

Nami said she felt comforted again.

Then she said in a firm voice, "Xiao Luo is not strong enough yet. I will try my best to urge him to cultivate."

"The best thing would be to become the strongest person in the world, then we'd be safe!"

"Thank you so much!"

Locke's speechless voice came through.

This girl is really going too far, even urging him to cultivate...

Is Nami suffering from some kind of paranoia?

Why do you keep thinking you'll be hunted down by a naval admiral?

The ocean is so vast that the navy cannot easily pinpoint their location unless they follow a specific route.

Nami waved her little fist: "You're welcome. You have to become stronger, Xiao Luo. I believe in you!"

Locus: "..."

I'm too lazy to bother with this girl.

Rocks sat next to Robin, leaning closer to look at the open newspaper.

He memorized the contents of the newspaper with just a glance; he had a photographic memory and grasped the gist of it at a glance.

Locus counted on his fingers, deep in thought: "The newspapers have reported everything that happened in Alabasta, but something's not right about the bounty..."

Kill Crocodile, fight Zephyr.

This achievement would be considered one of the most exaggerated even in the New World.

How come his bounty is only 450 million Berries?

The product is not as described!

“I also find it strange. After such a major incident, Captain, your bounty should have been close to one billion Berries in my estimation. It is indeed a bit less now.”

Robin stroked his smooth chin: "Could it be some kind of blunder?"

"If we're just talking about taking down Crocodile, then 450 million Berries is about right, since my name adds to the reward."

After a moment's thought, Rocks said, "I guess the Navy is trying to cover up my battle with Zephyr."

"After all, if a former admiral can't even handle a newcomer, it will damage the Navy's prestige."

"Perhaps the Navy didn't expect this news to be published in the newspapers, which is why this situation occurred?"

"That's certainly possible."

Robin suddenly realized, his eyes flashing, and said, "There's a branch of the World Economic News in Alabasta. I guess they're the ones who took those photos, right?"

"Ha, if it's that birdman Morgons, he's capable of anything for a big news story."

When the World Economic News was mentioned, Lockes thought of Mooreguns, that birdman.

That birdman is the kind of guy who dares to say no to the World Government.

Connecting the dots, Lockes roughly understood the specific reason.

Rocks chuckled, "The Navy is going to lose face big time now..."

"However, the spread of this newspaper and wanted notice has caused us some trouble. Before we even arrived in the New World, we've probably already been targeted by some people there..."

Looking at his name prominently displayed on the bounty poster, Locke couldn't help but curl his lip: "Only a first name, no surname. Are they trying to put me on the hot seat?"

After Zephyr learned his name, Rocks knew he couldn't hide it any longer.

So he deliberately revealed his full name.

The only difference between Rocks and Duke Rocks is the last name.

But the feeling of reading them is different, and the impact they have is also different.

The Navy has now deliberately removed the surname "Duke" and only kept the first name "Rocks".

Without a doubt, it was all so that he would be noticed by certain people, so that he would be on their minds even before he arrived in the new world!

That Navy is so cunning!

It's probably the work of Fleet Admiral Sengoku, that "strategist." He's remembered this grudge!

Kuina couldn't help but say, "It's rare for us to be targeted by important figures in the New World so soon after arriving on the Grand Line..."

Nami's voice was dry: "A big shot? What big shot?"

"Then the sea emperors of the New World, I suppose?" Locke said casually.

"What?!"

Upon hearing this, Nami was completely petrified, frozen in shock...

Chapter 109 Zephyr is not as good as Kakeru! It's "Black-haired Swordsman" Rocks!

Time flies, and a few days have passed.

Five days have passed since the Black Demon departed from Alabasta.

"Unleashing Armament Haki is indeed not so easy to master. Was it just a coincidence before?"

"Tch... Zephyr, Zephyr, and he's supposed to be an instructor at the Navy's recruit training camp? His teaching skills are not even a hair's breadth below Coach Kay's!"

On the second deck.

Rocks ended his training in unleashing Armament Haki.

In his previous clash with Zefa, he had casually mocked Song Sou's domineering aura; however, he was unable to use it again afterward.

Rocks has reached the threshold of Haki's white aura being emitted, but he cannot fully master it.

Zephyr's "teaching skills" are not even a hair's breadth below Kaido's; he couldn't even teach him to instantly master external Armament Haki...

That's terrible!

"My fundamentals are still too weak. Although Old Duke knows dual-color Haki, it's too crude. My foundation isn't solid enough..."

Despite the complaints, Rocks knew that Zephyr shouldn't be blamed for this.

Rubber Sun God trained under Rayleigh's guidance, so his foundation was solid and it's normal for him to break through in battle.

After all, people's fates are predetermined.

Locus did not consider himself inferior to the Rubber Sun God.

But you can't compare old Duke to Ridley, can you?

One was the first mate, and the other was a floor cleaner.

The two are not comparable.

Old Duke was only half-baked in terms of domineering presence.

The fact that Old Duke was able to teach Rocks Armament Haki doesn't mean he was particularly skilled.

It was purely due to Rocks' innate talent.

As for Observation Haki?

Rocks was born with enlightenment and didn't need much training at all.

Moreover, it is a rather unique form of Observation Haki.

Perceiving malice, precise range, judging strength, generating special perspectives in the mind... and so on, are all aspects of this process.

That's why it's called a special kind of Observation Haki.

In terms of the two types of Haki, Rocks' Armament Haki is inferior to his Observation Haki.

The foundation laid in the past was too weak, and even though Rocks had just begun to grasp the threshold of unleashing Armament Haki, he was still unable to use it smoothly.