The moment life energy was infused into the weapon, dazzling white light burst from the mineral blade. In an instant, it transformed into a surging energy shockwave.
An invisible wave of pressure spread outward from Yuuki, rippling through the air.
A massive pillar of white light erupted from the blade and shot across the dark sea like a meteor streaking over the water.
BOOM!
A thunderous explosion echoed across the ocean in the distance. The blazing white light illuminated the night sky.
Even after the explosion, the sea remained split in a perfectly straight line. It was as if an invisible force prevented the water from closing again.
"Ki Technique — Hakoku."
Yuuki lowered the mineral blade and smiled faintly as he watched the commotion on the sea.
He had succeeded.
Yet there was no overwhelming excitement—only the calm satisfaction of something finally falling into place.
Just as he had suspected, compared to magic power, which was an active energy, life energy was extremely "lazy."
Especially while it remained inside the body.
Only after forcing it out of the body did that laziness begin to lessen.
Crash! Crash!
The aftermath of his attack roared across the ocean surface. Waves seven or eight meters high surged forward one after another, rolling toward Little Garden.
"Using a weapon to stimulate it really is effective…"
Yuuki murmured softly while watching the waves.
Then the mineral blade in his hand dissolved.
He clenched his fist and aimed it at the distant sea.
Then he threw a punch.
Ki Technique — Hakoku!
BOOOOM!
Blinding light erupted once more.
This time, the shockwave fired from Yuuki's fist was even more condensed and powerful than the previous strike.
The towering waves rushing toward the island were instantly vaporized by the blast. The once-raging sea was crushed into submission, returning to calm.
"In the world of pirates, people rely on weapons to stimulate their 'lazy' life energy," Yuuki said with a faint smile.
"But for me… that isn't necessary."
"As long as I spend a bit of magic power to activate it, the life energy becomes active on its own."
After sensing the scale of the destruction he had caused, Yuuki nodded with satisfaction.
"That strike just now… had power comparable to the spell Salamander's Breath."
And that was without combining it with other magical attributes.
If he layered additional magic into it, the destructive force would rise even higher.
That alone was enough to increase the power of his spells by an entire level.
"Originally, I thought my greatest gain in this world was evolving my grimoire through the Luck Fruit."
"But now it seems…"
"Learning to fully control and utilize my ki is a reward no less valuable than the grimoire's evolution."
Yuuki felt the immense life energy coursing through his body.
Then a thought suddenly crossed his mind.
What would happen if he fully merged life energy with magic power?
In the next instant—
Whoosh!
Normally, Mana Skin manifested as a silver layer of magic power covering the body.
But now, fused with life energy—
The silver glow transformed into a pale silver mist surrounding Yuuki.
It looked like a thin cloud drifting around his body, loose and diffuse.
Within the faint white haze, Yuuki's figure became difficult to discern.
At the same time—
The entire world suddenly felt clearer.
Yuuki's shoulder moved slightly—
And he vanished from the beach, as though he had blended into the air itself.
The next moment, he reappeared seven or eight hundred meters above Little Garden, floating in the sky.
"What refreshing air."
Yuuki inhaled deeply, a hint of surprise in his voice.
Of course, the air itself hadn't changed.
What had changed was his perception.
For the first time since arriving in the One Piece world, Yuuki felt something familiar.
In the Black Clover world, natural mana existed everywhere.
But the One Piece world lacked natural mana entirely.
It didn't stop Yuuki from using magic, but it felt like someone from the plains suddenly arriving at a high plateau—where the air was thinner and harder to breathe.
A subtle discomfort had always lingered.
Now—
That discomfort had vanished.
With a flash, Yuuki returned to the beach.
He looked down at the thin silver mist surrounding his body.
The sight reminded him of something.
When Luffy enters his Nika form, similar white clouds swirl around him.
Though Luffy's clouds were far denser.
"Is this a power unique to this world?" Yuuki murmured.
"No… that phenomenon appears when Zoan Devil Fruits awaken."
"I haven't used a Devil Fruit, yet the same mist appears."
"Which means…"
"It must be related to life energy."
Yuuki quietly sensed the changes within his body.
The silver cloud-like state did not increase his strength.
Instead, it made him feel more in harmony with the world itself.
From what he knew, all three Devil Fruit types—Paramecia, Zoan, and Logia—possessed something called awakening.
Logia awakenings had not yet been shown.
But Paramecia and Zoan awakenings were well documented.
For example, awakened Paramecia users could transform their surroundings into extensions of their ability:
Doflamingo could turn buildings and terrain into strings.Katakuri could transform the environment into mochi.
Zoan awakenings, meanwhile, greatly enhanced strength, durability, and recovery.
Their most notable trait was extraordinary vitality—the ability to stand up again no matter how many times they were knocked down.
And another clear sign—
Cloud-like smoke surrounding the user.
Examples included:
Luffy's white clouds in Gear 5Rob Lucci's dark clouds after awakeningKaku's awakened giraffe formEven Saint Jaygarcia Saturn, whose Mythical Zoan form displayed similar clouds.
All of this pointed to a single core factor:
Life energy.
The defining trait of awakened Zoan users was their overwhelming vitality.
And that vitality naturally meant a higher life-energy output.
Once Yuuki realized this, it became clear why the same cloud-like phenomenon appeared around him.
His body had already undergone divine evolution, surpassing ordinary humans.
Naturally, he possessed far greater vitality—and far greater life energy.
Thus, when it fused with magic power, the external manifestation became this silver mist.
The fact that it did not increase his strength was also logical.
Compared to the scale of his current vitality, the extra life energy added by the state was negligible.
"An unexpected gain."
Yuuki dismissed the silver mist.
This was only his normal state.
If he entered his Divine Form, the clouds would likely grow much denser and more massive.
But compared to those external changes, what truly interested Yuuki was something else.
In this state—
He could fully integrate with the world itself.
Magic power might not exist in every world.
But life energy existed in every living being.
That made it a far more universal power.
"By this point, my understanding of ki probably surpasses even the Land of the Sun in Black Clover."
"After all, they never possessed a supply of ki as massive as mine."
"In that case…"
"Mastering Zetten shouldn't be difficult anymore."
Yuuki raised his arm and shaped his hand into a blade.
Zetten was, at its core, the precise control of ki.
By wrapping ki around magic power and releasing it in a single burst, one could produce explosive speed and power in an instant.
That was Zetten.
The explanation sounded simple.
But before this, Yuuki could only use ki for sensing.
He had no idea how to manipulate it precisely, let alone mobilize it deliberately.
Now…
"Ki Technique — Zetten."
Yuuki slashed forward with his hand.
Buzz.
A nearly invisible force shot from his fingertips.
It manifested as a thin silver thread that drilled through the air.
Yes—
Drilled.
The air ahead seemed to become visible matter, wrinkling and compressing as the silver line pushed through it.
Then—
Boom.
The air collapsed inward, forming a ripple-like vortex before disappearing.
The entire process was silent.
Compared to the brilliant and overwhelming Hakoku, the attack seemed almost plain.
Yet Yuuki knew very well—
Even he could feel his heartbeat quicken from the power of that strike.
"A terrifying attack."
"If Hakoku represents destruction across a wide area…"
"Then Zetten represents destruction at a single point."
Yuuki frowned slightly.
Despite mastering such a powerful technique, he felt no excitement.
Because he suddenly realized—
He had overestimated Zetten.
Not in terms of power.
But in terms of usefulness.
Zetten wasn't truly a standalone attack.
It was more about timing.
In simple terms—
Rather than striking head-on, Zetten was meant to exploit a fleeting opening and deliver a fatal blow.
Like a perfect draw-cut technique.
That was the meaning behind the phrase:
"A strike capable of splitting the heavens."
Of course, Zetten's power was still immense.
Before mastering it, Yuuki had been confident he could hold off the Word Devil, perhaps even defeat it.
But killing it?
That had been uncertain.
The devil's weakness was its heart.
Yet even if only its heart remained, it could grow a mouth and regenerate a body.
Even cutting the heart in half wouldn't necessarily kill it.
In the original battle, the key had been Asta's anti-magic, which prevented the devil's magic from functioning.
Now, however—
Yuuki was confident he could kill the Word Devil with Zetten if the heart was exposed.
Yet there was a problem.
The Word Devil was considered one of the weaker high-ranking devils.
And far above it stood beings like Lucius.
Yuuki had originally pursued Zetten because, in the anime, Asta used it to contend with Lucius.
But Yuuki had overlooked one crucial detail.
The true key had been anti-magic.
"…Looks like I trapped myself in a mental corner."
Yuuki sighed softly.
"Well, at least mastering life energy has greatly increased my magic's destructive power."
"And Zetten is still a powerful technique."
"It might not be enough to oppose Lucius…"
"But dealing with high-ranking devils shouldn't be a problem."
He stretched lazily while watching the red sun rise above the sea.
No matter how he looked at it—
Spending an entire night experimenting had been more than worthwhile.
Morning
On the Magic Eye Pirates' ship, the crew looked exhausted.
The disturbances from Little Garden throughout the night had been enormous.
Although they knew it was caused by Captain Yuuki, none of them had been able to sleep peacefully.
Even now, they still found it hard to comprehend just how powerful their captain truly was.
"Everyone."
A calm voice suddenly rang out on the deck.
"It's time to set sail."
The crew instantly woke up.
"Captain!"
"Captain!"
Mohji and Cabaji were the first to straighten up, their eyes shining.
"Understood, Captain!" Buggy quickly responded, dashing to the helm to steer the ship away from Little Garden.
Truthfully, he had wanted to leave for a while.
Too many terrifying events had happened here.
Originally, he had hoped to search the island for treasure.
But after Yuuki's battle with Kuma had nearly destroyed the island, any treasure that might have existed was probably buried forever.
The sea parted as the pirate ship slowly departed.
Vivi emerged from the cabin carrying a tray of freshly baked sweets.
When she saw Yuuki standing on the deck, she took a deep breath and carefully observed his expression.
Relief filled her heart.
Although she didn't know what had happened during the night, she could sense that Yuuki seemed to be in a good mood.
She approached cautiously.
"Lord Yuuki… these are freshly baked sweets. Please try some."
Yuuki raised an eyebrow slightly.
Lord Yuuki?
Previously, Vivi had always called him Captain Yuuki.
This change clearly stemmed from witnessing his battle with Kuma.
She had realized—
Yuuki truly could defeat Crocodile.
Yuuki casually picked up a pastry and tossed it into his mouth.
"…A bit too sweet."
Then he glanced toward Mohji and Cabaji.
"You two. Come with me."
With that, he turned and walked into the cabin.
Mohji and Cabaji exchanged excited looks and hurried after him.
"…Too sweet?"
Vivi stared at Yuuki's retreating back, disappointment flickering in her dark eyes.
But she quickly brightened again.
"Princess, allow me to help," Igaram said as he approached.
His expression was slightly complicated.
"I—"
Vivi was about to refuse.
Then she suddenly remembered something.
Her eyes lit up.
"Your wife, Terracotta, is the head chef of the royal palace kitchen, right?"
"Yes, Princess," Igaram replied with a bow.
"I know a little about desserts."
"That's perfect!"
Vivi grabbed his arm and hurried toward the ship's kitchen.
She was determined to improve her baking.
After all—
She wanted Yuuki to like it next time.
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