Chapter 13 — Training Beyond Limits
When Shinji Ikari woke up, he felt incredibly comfortable.
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What would have been unbearable pain for anyone else had instead transformed his body under the influence of his Devil Fruit.
The flames.The extreme heat.The fierce battle with the pirate captain Yan Feng.
Every moment had pushed him to the brink and forced out the last trace of his potential.
Now his body had completely recovered—
And he had become stronger.
Shinji leaned against the wall of his cabin and looked out the small round window.
Outside, the sea rolled endlessly beneath the wind.
He quietly reviewed his current strength.
He had begun to grasp several of the Six Powers of the Navy:
Shave
Tempest Kick
Iron Body
His speed, strength, and endurance had all surpassed normal human limits.
And with the power of his Devil Fruit—
His recovery ability was terrifying.
The fruit constantly restored his vitality, allowing him to survive injuries that would kill ordinary people.
"According to the old man," Shinji murmured, "I've barely developed my Devil Fruit at all."
"So far I've just relied on the energy it feeds back to me."
His fruit was a Paramecia-type.
Yet he was only using it to recover from injuries.
"That can't be its true potential."
He glanced again at the bathtub filled with seawater in the corner of the cabin.
Suddenly—
A mischievous smile appeared on his face.
"Iron Body!"
With a loud shout, Shinji plunged both hands into the seawater.
He wanted to test something.
Could Iron Body reduce the weakening effect of the sea?
For a brief moment—
It worked.
But only for a single breath.
Then the seawater's power overwhelmed him.
His body weakened immediately.
Still—
His Devil Fruit responded instantly.
It began fighting against the sea's suppression.
"Iron Body!"
Again.
"Iron Body!"
Again.
Each time he activated the technique, the faint aura in his body resisted the seawater for a moment.
Then weakness returned.
Fortunately, only his hands were submerged.
That meant he could keep repeating the process.
"Iron Body!"
"Iron Body!"
"I see now…"
Shinji's eyes lit up with realization.
"Using Iron Body drains my strength quickly."
"The Devil Fruit then feeds back more energy to compensate."
"And that energy slowly improves my body's resistance to seawater."
It sounded ridiculous.
But it worked.
Shinji remembered what Garp once said.
Even Devil Fruit users could learn to reduce the sea's influence through training.
His Devil Fruit seemed ordinary—
Yet through this strange method, he could increase his adaptability.
"If I keep exploiting this loophole…"
"I'll grow stronger much faster."
He still didn't fully understand the fruit's abilities.
But he had discovered a way to accelerate its energy feedback.
Ten minutes later—
Shinji's stomach growled violently.
He sprinted to the cafeteria and devoured five plates of curry rice.
He expected that to hold him for a while.
But only ten minutes later—
His stomach growled again.
He had to eat more.
It was absurd.
The hunger itself required food to restore energy.
Yet the hunger also triggered the Devil Fruit's feedback.
The result—
He kept getting stronger.
And hungrier.
Soon Shinji began appearing in the cafeteria again and again.
Eventually he even started preparing food himself.
Sandwiches.
Grilled meat.
He drank milk directly from a large barrel.
"Captain Shinji… what's going on?" the cook asked nervously.
Shinji had recovered during the night.
During that time, Marine Headquarters had already issued a promotion.
From Sergeant—
To Captain.
The reason was simple.
He had killed two pirates whose combined bounty exceeded 50 million Berries.
Such an achievement easily justified the promotion.
Technically, a captain should command dozens of Marines.
But Garp had personally limited Shinji's squad to only ten soldiers.
Among them—
Koby and Helmeppo.
Shinji himself knew nothing about the promotion yet.
He was too busy eating and training.
The sailors in the cafeteria whispered nervously.
They had just received a report.
Shinji had already eaten his entire monthly food allowance.
And he was still eating.
At this rate—
He could consume the entire ship's supply.
"Captain Shinji!" one Marine finally said nervously.
"Vice Admiral Garp says you've already used up this month's salary and rations."
"You'll only receive basic meals from now on."
Another sailor added worriedly:
"You've eaten seventeen times since this morning."
"If this keeps going, the ship won't have enough food to reach the next island."
Shinji froze.
His salary… gone?
Food… gone?
He burped awkwardly.
Only then did he realize how insane his training had become.
Still—
There was good news.
The time between meals had increased from 10 minutes to 20 minutes.
He really was getting stronger.
His mind was now filled with only one thought.
This works.
Wiping his mouth, Shinji finally asked something important.
"Wait… I killed two pirates."
"Don't I get their bounty?"
The Marine cooks shook their heads.
"That reward goes to bounty hunters."
"As Marines, our job is to defeat pirates."
"But the Navy provides salary, food, equipment, and medical care."
"So… no bounty."
Shinji stared blankly.
No bounty money?
With his appetite—
That was a disaster.
He seriously considered disguising himself as a bounty hunter.
If he secretly hunted pirates worth tens of millions of Berries, he could probably afford his meals.
"Damn it," Shinji muttered.
"I can't stop training."
The Devil Fruit strengthened his entire body.
The longer his hands stayed in seawater, the better his resistance became.
But if he submerged his whole body—
He'd probably pass out before gaining much benefit.
"No food?"
"Then I'll find it myself."
Shinji marched straight to Garp's enormous fishing rod.
The old man had absurd equipment.
He cast the rod into the ocean.
The line shot through the water like a spear—
And skewered a fish the size of the battleship.
"Come here!"
Shinji pulled with all his strength.
"Tempest Kick!"
Slash!
Huge chunks of fish meat were sliced off and landed on the deck.
"I'm grilling fish tonight!"
Shinji drooled at the sight.
Koby stared in shock.
"Did Shinji just get stronger again?"
Half the enormous fish was still hanging from the rod.
Helmeppo groaned.
"You're almost mastering Shave, and you're worried about that?"
"The real problem is how far ahead Shinji already is."
Before they could say anything else—
BAM!
Garp's fist smashed into Shinji's head.
"Idiot!"
"We need to reach the next island quickly!"
"Are you planning to drag this giant fish behind the ship?!"
"It hurts!"
Shinji hurriedly shook the remaining fish off the hook.
"These are for tonight's dinner!"
Garp punched him again.
Two large bumps formed on Shinji's head.
"Can I eat a little more?" Shinji asked hopefully.
"Do you want another punch?"
Garp glared at him.
"If you want to get stronger, master the Six Powers as quickly as possible."
"Your training method consumes too many supplies."
"This entire ship can't keep feeding you!"
"Fool!"
With that, Garp turned and walked back toward his cabin.
Shinji blinked.
Only now did he realize something.
The old man had known about his strange training method the entire time.
So…
That lecture had actually been another piece of advice.