Boom!
On the calm sea, a sea king hundreds of meters long broke the tranquility, its body covered in black and purple stripes and sharp thorns, with two giant eyes that occupied half its head.
The splashing giant waves struck the sea, creating ripples that rocked the warship. Cool seawater, like rain, poured down on the unsteady soldiers.
"Next is the third stage of Armament Haki, Emission."
On the violently shaking warship, Sakazuki stood as steady as a mountain, watching the swaying soldiers with a detached gaze as his calm voice resounded.
As Sakazuki finished speaking, he raised his hand and pointed at the head of the sea king that had just emerged from the water. A pale beam of energy shot from his palm towards the sea king's head.
Before the sea king, which had just broken the surface, could react, a beam of energy struck its chin, blasting open a blood hole tens of meters in size. It then lost consciousness and crashed into the sea.
The colossal sea king's corpse slammed into the water, creating a giant wave several meters high. From the wound on its chin, minced meat and blood flowed continuously.
All the soldiers in formation stared blankly at the massive bloody hole, unable to snap out of their stupor for a long time.
"And the fourth stage, Internal Destruction."
Sakazuki's voice sounded, and only then did everyone notice that as the minced meat and blood flowed out, they could faintly see that the head of this giant sea king was completely hollow.
"Hiss!"
"This!!!"
"Is this something a person can do?!"
"So amazing!!!"
"I must learn this move!!"
"Wow!!!"
The stunned soldiers snapped back to reality, unable to help but gasp in low voices, simultaneously imagining the magnificent scene of themselves mastering this technique in the future.
"Alright, fall in line."
Interrupting the soldiers' exclamations and discussions, Sakazuki continued to explain:
"These are the applications and power of Armament Haki."
"What you need to do now is to first master Coating."
"Hands, legs, head, torso."
"Only when you can cover your entire body can you proceed to the next stage."
"Now, pair up and begin sparring."
"Only one will be left standing."
As if injected with adrenaline, every soldier's eyes seemed to contain a burning flame, and they shouted in unison: "Yes!!!!!"
Bang!
Clang!
Ding!
Ding!
......
The sounds of metal colliding were endless, creating a unique symphonic music.
Sakazuki looked at the soldiers training with fervor and nodded with satisfaction. He then beckoned his adjutant and navigator.
"Have you determined our location?"
"Report, Vice Admiral Sakazuki, we have determined it."
"This is located on the edge of the Calm Belt. Based on the nautical chart, records, and the direction indicated by the log pointer, with a weak reaction, we infer..."
"We are approximately twenty-four nautical miles from the edge of the Calm Belt."
The navigator, unfolding the nautical chart and calculations, explained to Sakazuki as he displayed them.
"How is the repair of the engine room going?"
"It's still underway. Several damaged areas are too troublesome."
"They require complete disassembly and repair."
"Hurry up and finish the repairs."
"There will be an extra meal tonight."
After hearing the adjutant's report, Sakazuki nodded and gave a few instructions.
The weather in the Grand Line was unpredictable. One moment it was clear and sunny, and the next it was a fierce storm with waves crashing one after another. While furling the sails to contend with the storm, they had exerted too much force.
The engine room was directly damaged, and the ship continued forward uncontrollably, unexpectedly charging straight into the Calm Belt. It was only after expending a significant amount of fuel that they managed to stop.
Evening, the sun began to set.
In the warship's mess hall, the exhausted young men were ravenously devouring meat. Sakazuki stood on the deck, gazing into the distance, enjoying the tranquility.
Whoosh!
Suddenly, a whistling sound broke the air. Sakazuki frowned.
"Soru"
His figure instantly vanished, reappearing on the side of the ship's cabin, Armament Haki surging.
Boom!
A deafening explosion shook the soldiers on the ship, triggering the alarm. They rushed out of their cabins, entering combat readiness, searching for the impact site.
"It's nothing."
A broken arrow shaft lay on the ground. Sakazuki raised his left hand, gesturing behind him, and spoke.
In his right palm, an arrow, crushed into metal mud, was held.