The wind howled across the broken cliffs as Ren and Shakky faced each other beneath a crimson sunset. Waves crashed against the jagged shore below, sending mist into the air, but neither of them paid it any mind. Their focus was locked entirely on each other.
Shakky moved first.
Her leg whipped upward in a clean arc, coated in Armament Haki, forcing Ren to cross his arms to block. The impact cracked the ground beneath him, dust rising in spirals as she followed with a sharp punch aimed at his ribs.
"Getting slow, Ren," she said coolly.
Ren grinned, sliding back several meters. "Or maybe you're finally getting fast."
They blurred.
Steel-like kicks collided with hardened fists. Shockwaves rippled through the island, The beasts that once ruled this island had long since fled.
Shakky spun midair and drove her heel down toward Ren's head. He sidestepped, grabbed her ankle, and flung her toward a boulder the size of a house. She twisted mid-flight, smashing through it instead of avoiding it.
"You're not holding back," she called, stepping out of the debris.
"You told me not to," Ren replied.
Months of relentless training had sharpened her into something terrifying. She was now at the level of Aramaki or Issho—low to mid-tier Admiral strength. Her Haki was refined, her instincts lethal.
Ren wiped blood from the corner of his lip and smiled.
"So which Devil Fruit do you want?" he asked suddenly.
Shakky froze for half a second before dashing forward again. "You know multiple?"
Ren vanished from sight, reappearing behind her. "Well for Mythical I know Yamata-no-Orochi, Vampire. And Logia Flame and Thunder."
She blocked his strike and countered with a palm thrust that sent him skidding across the ground.
"Well that's quite the choice," she muttered.
They separated, breathing steady but intense.
Thunder rumbled faintly in the distance, almost as if the sky itself was listening.
Shakky closed her eyes for a brief moment while Ren waited. The wind tugged at her hair as she thought carefully.
Yamata-no-Orochi. Multiple lives, multiple heads. Immense durability and survivability. But she frowned at the idea of becoming something grotesque, monstrous in form.
Vampire. Enhanced regeneration, speed, possibly blood-based abilities. But weakness to sunlight? Or hidden drawbacks? Unknown variables bothered her.
Flame Logia. Powerful, destructive, versatile. But fire was common among strong opponents. Many could counter it.
Thunder Logia.
Her eyes opened.
Speed beyond imagination. Devastating attack power. Mobility across battlefields. And perhaps the greatest advantage—few could match lightning's pace.
She inhaled slowly.
"If I take Yamata-no-Orochi, I become harder to kill," she said thoughtfully. "But I don't need extra lives. I don't plan on losing."
Ren raised an eyebrow. "Confident."
"If I take Vampire, I gain regeneration. But I already have strong Haki. I don't want a fruit that makes me dependent on blood or shadows."
Ren nodded slightly.
"Flame is powerful," she continued, brushing dust from her shoulder. "But flame can be suppressed. It can be countered. Thunder…"
She stepped forward.
"Thunder is speed. Thunder is control of the battlefield. Thunder is fear."
Ren smiled faintly. "So?"
"Well fine," she said, crossing her arms. "Thunder Logia."
A grin spread across Ren's face.
"Well fine," he teased back, mimicking her tone. "But you will have to wait a few years."
Before she could react, he leaned in and pecked her cheek.
Shakky rolled her eyes, though her lips curved slightly. She had grown used to his romantic side. It still caught her off guard sometimes.
This guy was too much.
At first he had kept distance from her, always controlled, always calculating. But since that night months ago, something shifted. He had grown more open, more possessive in subtle ways.
He would kiss her without warning. Drag her off for "bed training" that lasted hours. Leave her legs shaky and her pride wounded.
Yet she never once complained.
She suddenly grabbed his collar and pulled him in, capturing his lips before he could peck her again.
"Fine," she murmured against him. "Not like I'm desperate to get stronger. You will protect me, right?"
She winked, her arms wrapping around him in a loose hug.
Ren hugged her back firmly.
"Of course. Do you even need to ask?" he replied softly. "And even without a Devil Fruit, you're Admiral-tier. Not many can touch you."
"Still," she smirked. "Lightning suits me."
"Yeah," Ren chuckled. "It does."
The next morning, the island trembled one final time as Ren punched through the last remaining mountain peak. There was nothing left worth striking.
"We've exhausted this place," he said.
Shakky glanced around at the flattened landscape. "You exhausted it."
They packed camp and sailed to another island deeper in the New World. This one was wilder, harsher, filled with violent storms and towering cliffs.
They set up camp near a dense forest.
That evening, Ren inspected the tent seriously.
"Quality control," he stated.
Shakky stared at him. "You're joking."
"Bed training is important," he insisted.
She sighed. "You are impossible."
The night was long.
The next morning, Shakky lay staring at the sky outside their tent, utterly exhausted.
"What kind of stamina is this…" she muttered.
Even at Admiral-tier strength, she couldn't match him in sex. It was ridiculous. Infuriating.
She almost laughed.
"I really need a sister to share this burden," she whispered to herself.
She wasn't an idiot.
Ren was strong. Charismatic. Ambitious. A monster in battle and in private. The world was vast, and she knew he would eventually attract more women.
That realization had sparked something competitive in her months ago.
Their "bed training" had become an unspoken battle. If she could outlast him, dominate him, defeat him there, maybe she could claim absolute victory.
But she had lost.
Completely.
Now she accepted it.
Her body still felt sore.
Later that afternoon, they resumed combat training.
Shakky activated advanced Armament and Observation simultaneously, vanishing in a burst of speed. Her kick struck Ren square in the chest, sending him crashing through three massive trees.
"You're distracted," she said sharply.
Ren stood, brushing splinters from his shirt. "Thinking about thunder."
"Focus," she ordered.
He grinned. "Make me."
She charged again.
Mid-combat, she spoke between strikes.
"When I get the Thunder Logia," she said, ducking his punch, "I'll surpass Admiral-tier."
Ren countered with a sweeping kick that she blocked.
"You already could," he replied. "Fruit is enhancement, not foundation."
She slammed her palm into his shoulder, electricity-like sparks of Haki crackling.
"And you?" she asked. "Still hiding your full strength?"
Ren's eyes glinted faintly red.
"Not hiding," he said quietly. "Waiting."
"For what?"
"For the right enemy."
His Conqueror's Haki flared violently, splitting the sky above the island. Clouds parted as if pushed aside by invisible hands.
Shakky smiled fiercely.
"You really are a monster."
"And you love it," he shot back.
She laughed and rushed him again.
Hours later, they lay on the grass overlooking the ocean, bruised but satisfied.
"Thunder Logia," she said again softly.
"I'll get it for you," Ren promised.
She turned her head toward him.
"Don't die before that."
He scoffed lightly. "You think I'm that weak?"
"No," she replied. "I think the world is that dangerous."
Ren stared at the horizon.
"The Holy Knights," he murmured. "CP. Marines. Emperors. It doesn't matter."
Shakky raised an eyebrow. "Planning something reckless?"
"Always."
She nudged him with her shoulder.
"Then make sure I'm there when you do."
Ren smiled.
"You always will be."
The wind carried the scent of salt and distant storms. Far away, thunder echoed across the sea.
Shakky closed her eyes, imagining lightning dancing in her hands, speed tearing across battlefields, enemies frozen in fear as she descended like a living storm.
Ren watched her quietly.
The New World was brutal. Merciless. But together, they were becoming something far more terrifying than the sea itself.
And when thunder finally answered her call, the world would remember her name.