[Ding! This system does not offer credit, nor are there any discounts.]
The system's reply was cold and heartless, directly extinguishing Kane's fantasy.
"Tsk, what a money-grubbing system."
Kane raised a middle finger in his mind. Since he didn't have the money to pay to win, he could only pay with his body.
The afternoon sun was scorching, and the deck emitted the smell of heated pine oil.
In a corner, a group of Marine soldiers were huddled secretively in the shadows, their eyes darting back and forth between Kane and Garp.
"Bets are open, bets are open! I bet Ensign Kane can learn it in three days! He is a monster who awakened Armament Haki after only four days of getting beaten!"
"Three days? You underestimate Vice Admiral Garp's fists too much! Observation Haki requires mental cultivation; it has nothing to do with Physique! I am betting five days!"
"That was just luck, right? Ensign Kane can take a hit, but his brain looks... not very bright. I am betting a week!"
Bogard leaned in the shadows, listening to his subordinates' discussion. He didn't stop them, but silently noted down the names of these little rascals in his notebook—training would be doubled later.
In the center of the deck.
Kane's eyes were covered by a thick black cloth, and his hands were tied behind his back. He looked like a death row prisoner about to be executed, trembling slightly.
"Are you ready, brat?"
Garp's voice came from all directions, elusive and drifting.
"Vice Admiral, can we discuss something? Can you not hit the face? I barely recognize myself in the mirror these days..." Kane tried to make a final struggle.
"Cut the nonsense! Will an enemy on the battlefield refrain from cutting off your head just because you are handsome? Use your heart to see!"
Kane took a deep breath, his body tensing slightly.
After his vision was stripped away, his other senses indeed became sharper. The sound of waves hitting the hull, the cries of distant seagulls, even the sound of the Marine soldiers swallowing their spit became clear.
But he knew none of this would work.
"Starting now!"
Before the words finished, a sudden sense of crisis stung his scalp.
Kane subconsciously tried to dodge to the left, but before he could even think, a sharp pain erupted from his right cheek.
Bang—!
Kane was sent flying sideways, rolling three times on the deck before stopping.
"Too slow! Too dull!"
Garp stood where he was, still holding half a bag of senbei. He hadn't even moved his feet. "Don't use your ears to listen! Sounds can lie! Sense the presence! Sense the malice!"
Kane rubbed his face as he climbed back up, ten thousand curses running through his mind.
Sense my ass!
You've completely suppressed your presence, and there's not even a hint of killing intent when you punch someone. What the hell am I supposed to sense?!
But he didn't give up.
His balance of discipline points was already less than 100,000. This time, there was really no way to pay to save his life; he could only rely on himself.
"Again!" Kane shouted.
Just as Garp's fist wind struck again, a flash of inspiration suddenly struck Kane's mind in his state of extreme tension.
Wait.
Who am I?
I am a Storm Man! I am the man who ate the Logia Storm-Storm Fruit!
As long as an object moves, it displaces air and creates wind.
No matter how fast Garp's fist is, or how hidden his movements are, as long as he is still moving in this physical world, he will definitely disturb the airflow!
"Storm Domain... Open!"
Since I can't see you, I will turn the entire deck into my vision!
Kane adjusted his breathing, treating himself as a stationary eye of the storm, trying his best to sense the slightest movement in the surrounding air.
Whoosh...
In an instant, the world changed in his perception.
The darkness of his vision was replaced by a 3-D network composed of countless airflow lines. The vortices formed by the sea breeze blowing past the mast, the warm air currents from the Marines' breathing, the breeze emerging from the gaps in the deck... and... an incredibly terrifying humanoid vacuum moving at high speed!
"Over there! Right-rear, 45 degrees!"
Kane's head jerked to the side in an extremely bizarre motion.
Whoosh—!
A powerful fist wind brushed past his scalp, taking a few hairs with it, but failing to hit his head.
He... he dodged it?!
The eyes of the betting Marine soldiers in the corner nearly popped out. The Berries in the bookie's hand scattered all over the floor.
Even Garp let out a soft "Huh?", pausing his action of putting a senbei into his mouth.
"A fluke?"
Garp raised an eyebrow, his figure blurring as he instantly appeared behind Kane, kicking toward his backside.
The air is being compressed!
Below and behind, the airflow is turbulent!
Before Kane's brain could react, his body had already followed the guidance of the airflow, drifting forward like a weightless fallen leaf, barely avoiding the sneak attack.
"It wasn't a fluke!"
The pencil in Bogard's hand snapped. His eyes behind his sunglasses were full of shock: "The second time! He really predicted the Vice Admiral's movement! It has only been half a day!"
"Interesting..."
The smile on Garp's lips gradually widened. It was the excitement of a hunter discovering prime prey. "Developing your Fruit ability into a sensory radar? You've got plenty of clever tricks. But..."
"What if the storm itself can't keep up with my speed?!"
Garp's figure completely vanished.
Boom—!
The atmosphere on the deck seemed to be sucked dry in an instant.
Kane felt the once-clear airflow network instantly collapse!
Because there were simply too many disturbance sources, and they were too fast! Fists were everywhere, and the figure of that old geezer was everywhere! He couldn't distinguish between an actual attack and an afterimage!
"Don't get ahead of yourself! Observation Haki isn't just a radar! It is precognition!"
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Although Kane captured the airflow, his body simply couldn't keep up with that terrifying frequency!
"Being able to see it but not dodge it—isn't that even more despairing?! Bwahahahaha!"
"Aaaagh! Not the face! I have to rely on my face to make a living!"
For the next hour, a tragic scene of blind man's bluff played out on the deck. Kane was like a ragdoll struggling in a washing machine, sent flying everywhere by Garp's kicks.
Pain.
Piercing pain.
But in this extreme pressure, in the despair of his Fruit ability failing completely, Kane was pushed to the edge of the cliff.
I don't want to spend money! I don't want to be beaten anymore!
This intense obsession caused the stray thoughts in his mind to be completely cleared.
Gradually, amidst those wild fist shadows, Kane felt a new power sprouting within his body.
It was something even more mysterious than airflow perception.
It was intuition.
It was the body's most instinctive warning of danger after being beaten countless times.
A second before the next attack arrived, a blurry frame of an image flashed through Kane's mind—
A fist was about to strike his left ribs!
Without conscious thought, Kane forcibly twisted his waist in mid-air and raised his right hand in a moment of enlightenment.
Pitch-black Armament Haki instantly covered it, precisely blocking his left ribs.
Bang!!!
This time, he didn't fly away. Instead, his feet plowed through the deck as he slid for over 10 meters, finally coming to a steady stop.
Blocked.
The moment Garp threw the punch, he had already seen it!
Kane tore off the blindfold that was already soaked in sweat, revealing a pair of eyes that, although bloodshot, were startlingly bright.
[Ding! Congratulations to the host! Under extreme violent pressure, you have successfully awakened Observation Haki (Basic) on your own!]
[Achievement Reward: discipline points +10,000!]
"Hahahaha!"
Kane couldn't help but laugh out loud, not even caring that it aggravated the wounds on the corners of his mouth.
I saved 100,000! And I earned 10,000!
This beating was worth it!
"Huff... huff..." Kane panted heavily, looking at Garp, who was across from him eating a fresh bag of senbei with gusto. Despite the intense pain all over his body, his eyes were full of gratitude. "Thank you for the guidance, Vice Admiral!"
"Hmph, although you relied on cheating at first, that last bit was the real deal."
Garp tossed the last piece of senbei into his mouth and patted the crumbs off his hands, giving a rare piece of positive feedback.
"Now, when you reach the New World, you will barely be more than cannon fodder."
Kane was about to complain about what kind of praise that was.
Suddenly.
"Brulu brulu brulu... brulu brulu brulu..."
The golden den den mushi in Bogard's arms suddenly began to ring frantically. That urgent ringing caused the atmosphere on the ship to freeze instantly.
Garp frowned and reached out to take the receiver.
"Moshi moshi, this is Garp. If it is that Sengoku guy whining about donut reimbursements again, tell him I am not here."
"Garp!!! What time do you think it is? You bastard, you are still in the mood for donuts?!"
Sengoku's hysterical roar came from the other end of the den den mushi. The volume was so loud that one could practically feel the spittle through the receiver.
More importantly, Kane keenly heard the chaotic alarms and roars in the background of the call!
Something big has happened!
Kane's heart skipped a beat.
"No matter where you are! Head to the Edwar Sea Area of the New World at full speed immediately!"
Sengoku's voice carried an unprecedented gravity.
"Latest intelligence! Golden Lion Shiki has assembled his entire grand fleet!"
"He has cornered the Roger Pirates in the Edwar Sea Area of the New World!"
"Those two madmen... are going to war!!"
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