Chapter 82: Training and Preparation

"Ugh, ugh~~"

Although Rosinante spoke with ease,

the reality was that not everyone could easily grasp a new technique.

Due to their height, Torrepol and Diament had difficulty maintaining their balance. As for Pica, after practicing a few times, he simply gave up. His 'eight-foot height and waistline' physique made it impossible for him to perform such flexible movements.

After repeatedly gulping down seawater, everyone gradually started to get the hang of it.

Given their physical fitness, mastering the 'treading water' technique was only a matter of time.

But someone had already quickly grasped it, and that was Pekoms!

Pekoms could be considered a rare Devil Fruit user who could still enjoy the ability to 'swim' after consuming a Devil Fruit.

His 'swimming Devil Fruit' could temporarily transform any ground or structure he touched into a 'water' nature, allowing him to easily swim within it.

Having used the ability for an extended period, he was already well-versed in the 'swimming' technique.

With the switch to actual 'seawater,' he quickly learned the trick to maintaining balance and the technique of rapidly exerting force underfoot, successfully mastering the ability to 'tread water' and speed across it.

"Damn, this is unscientific~~"

Having fallen into the water multiple times and swallowed a bellyful of seawater, Diament lay beside the swimming pool, feeling defiant.

Rosinante could be excused—he was both the 'inventor' of the technique and might have secretly practiced it for a while.

But Pekoms was just going too far; he had learned how to tread water so quickly. Didn't that make them all seem foolish?!

"Hehehe, no wonder it's Doflamingo—"

The second person to be able to 'speed across' the water's surface appeared right after, but:

"Are you using your Devil Fruit ability for this?"

Rosinante looked at Doflamingo's 'shoes' and couldn't help but comment. The broad soles of the shoes were made of transparent threads that increased the contact area, and the invisible threads in the air helped him maintain balance.

"Vivi, vivi, vivi, the ability is also a form of my strength."

Doflamingo responded confidently,

"These are just tools that assist me in becoming proficient!"

...

"Makes sense."

Doflamingo's behavior left Rosinante pensive.

Using external objects to assist in training until one becomes familiar with the technique, then discarding those objects—this was actually a normal training method. Expecting to learn by observing once was only possible if they had consumed the 'Sharingan Fruit', and that was almost—

Wait a minute,

Rubbing his chin, Rosinante's thoughts wandered.

If he remembered correctly, there indeed existed a 'Copy Fruit' in this world!

Gambia,

A member of the Whitebeard Pirates with a bounty of 300 million berries.

Wearing a green mask, he had pink hair and an elongated tongue, resembling a chameleon. Draped in a flamboyant multicolored coat, he was a 'Copy Fruit' user. Not only could he replicate someone's appearance, but he could even copy their abilities!

He was practically an upgraded version of Mr. 2 Bon Clay's 'Copy-Copy Fruit'.

That one was a true 'omnipotent fruit'—touching someone allowed you to possess their abilities, and you could even maintain multiple copied abilities.

—The only downside was that the copied things were definitely weaker than the original versions.

Moreover, this guy was quite delusional. He had been lurking on Whitebeard's ship as a 'son,' all because he coveted Whitebeard's 'Quake-Quake Fruit' power. After being exposed by Marco, he had fled the Whitebeard Pirates and had even briefly held the title of 'Warlord of the Sea'.

At this point in time, had this guy joined the Whitebeard Pirates? Or had he already defected...

"Rosinante... Rosinante!"

The voice in his ears snapped Rosinante back to reality, and Jora raised the book in her hand next to him.

"This is a gift from my martial arts teacher, 'Hound' Kijik. Over the years, I've been occupied with administrative matters and haven't had time to practice. Perhaps you can better excel with it."

"Is that okay?"

Taking the book and getting a nod of approval, Rosinante opened it. The more he read, the more pleasantly surprised he became.

The Hound's Footwork, just by the name, he knew it was a movement technique.

In an extremely short period of time, by repeatedly and rapidly stomping the ground dozens of times to generate explosive reactive forces, one could achieve high-speed movement. To an enemy watching, it would appear as if they disappeared.

Wasn't this the 'Shave' of the Six Powers?!

"To get this without much effort..."

It seemed that Jora's martial arts teacher was probably a former Marine officer. Somehow he ended up being wanted and hid in the 'Fairy Tale Land' of Auden Say, conveniently passing on his modified version of the Shave to Jora.

Although fundamentally it was the Shave of the Six Powers, since 'Hound' Kijik regarded it as his unique technique, it naturally had some extensions beyond the original:

"If you practice according to the methods in the book, you can use 'Shave' multiple times for attacks or evasions in a short period."

Successive high-speed 'blinking'?

This 'Hound's Footwork' was interesting.

But when he looked further down, Rosinante felt like a bucket of cold water had been poured over his head.

"Hey, Jora, no wonder you didn't practice it yourself."

The minimum standard for learning this footwork was to lift a weight of 5 tons with one leg. Unless Rosinante unleashed his 'Flywheel' state, he could barely meet that standard. And this was just the entry level!

"Cough, cough, too busy with administrative work... I've let down my teacher's instruction."

Jora turned her head shyly,

Her strength wasn't actually bad. Apart from her roles as the Queen and the orphanage director, she had also actively engaged in Devil Fruit development and sparring with the knights.

However, compared to Rosinante, who exercised for twelve hours a day with unwavering discipline, her past efforts were simply inadequate.

"Well then, I'll try the 'treading water' technique as well."

Faced with the ever-strengthening members of the Donquixote Family, Jora also joined the training.

...

Days passed,

The subsequent period unfolded just as Rosinante had planned.

Everyone sweated profusely in the 'Rose Garden,' and they devoured feasts of meat and fish every day. Non-stop consumption of high-nutrition food disappeared into the mouths of a group of big eaters.

Food transformed into energy, supporting their high-intensity training!

Pica's unarmed combat, Diament's swordsmanship, Jora's kicking techniques, Doflamingo's Conqueror's Haki, Rosinante's Observation Haki...

Every day also required sparring with each other. They didn't aim to master every skill but at least be able to stand their ground in situations where weapons were lost or where their Devil Fruit abilities were not advantageous.

Even various steel equipment was continuously damaged and replaced. The truly 'hitting the iron' behavior could be seen by visitors here, leaving Polkin's eyebrows twitching in irritation.

"Rosinante-sama,"

A young man in a black suit enthusiastically approached Rosinante, who was drenched in sweat. The sight of the massive iron balls he was dragging with his feet startled the young man.

"What is this..."

"Oh, it's a technique I'm practicing."

As Rosinante casually answered, he continued to perspire heavily while stepping forward, dragging the two large iron balls behind him with a clanging sound.

"This... this is really..."

The scene left Polkin quite embarrassed.

Perhaps only someone as diligent as Rosinante-sama could possess the power to control a city like this?

"By the way, Rosinante-sama."

Polkin, who had composed himself, opened the folder in his hand,

"Our trading ships have returned safely. Here's the inventory of goods and an estimate of the profits we can obtain."

"Sure,"

Taking the documents with one hand while continuing to drag the iron balls with the other, Rosinante glanced through them casually.

"Not bad,"

Handing the documents back to the respectfully waiting Polkin, Rosinante's next words caused the young man in the suit to stiffen, and his face turned pale in an instant.

"I only embezzled five million berries."

?!

"R-Rosinante-sama... I... I..."

Kneeling on both knees, Polkin stammered, his face covered in cold sweat as it slid down his cheeks. He moved his lips but couldn't manage to utter a complete sentence.

"Polkin, you're considered one of the 'veterans' of the family. How could you lack vision like this?"

Regarding Polkin embezzling funds, Rosinante wasn't surprised at all.

Even Torre and Diament, if it weren't for him making them exercise every day, they would probably be stuck in the 'Land of Sweetness' by now.

Polkin was no different. Suddenly transitioning from a common worker's son to a nouveau riche with power over thousands. Being fawned over by those wealthy merchants and factory owners exposed him to various beauties, fine wines, exquisite foods, and 'high-end entertainment'...

Initially, of course, those people paid for Polkin's enjoyment.

But how often could they foot the bill? Subsequent expenses naturally fell on Polkin's shoulders. Once he fell into such a luxurious lifestyle, money flowed away like water, never to be saved.

"Understand now? You've been played."

Looking at the trembling young man on the ground, his exquisite suit soaked with sweat, Rosinante shook his head.

Many envy the second generation of the wealthy, but they don't realize how difficult it is for them too.

Without some skill and mental fortitude, so-called second-generation wealthy individuals can easily fall victim to lawyers and partners deliberately indulging their desires, leading them to indulge in women, gambling, even drugs...

By the time they come to their senses, their wealth has been drained by cunning conspirators. Even their connections have been inherited by others.

The transformed 'successful individuals' then point fingers at the infamous second-generation wealthy and say, "See, this is what it means not to make it past the third generation."

"To be honest, the family doesn't need you to be clever."

Rosinante walked up to Polkin. The stubborn youth who had dared to stand in front of him and Doflamingo just a few months ago was now trembling on the ground before him.

Indeed, power is most corrosive to the heart,

"Even if you're a bit slow, it doesn't matter, but loyalty is the most important."

Rosinante extended his hand to help the young man up and asked him in a calm voice.

"Polkin, in this town, how many people do you think are smarter and more astute than you if they want to replace you?"

"Big... big brother..."

Stammering with chattering teeth, the young man raised his head, his gaze full of pleading.

This made Rosinante sigh. Maybe if he had allowed the young man to follow him and the others out to sea, he might have been a lively and strong young lad by now.

And not this hesitant and fearful individual in front of him.

"This time, take it as a lesson."

Aside from Polkin, the management of the family's business also fell to Whiskey...

Unlike Polkin, who had suddenly entered the 'upper echelons' and been dazzled by it all, Whiskey had climbed up from the bottom to become a successful businessman. He was well aware of the corrupt methods of the 'upper echelons.'

Jora had once managed a whole country, Pica was an elite agent of CP3. With them around, maintaining the Donquixote Matriel businesses was not a problem at all. Dealing with brokers attempting to cheat them was also handled very decisively.

Kill!

So Polkin wasn't essential,

"Think carefully about what you really want."

Patting his shoulder, Rosinante decided to give him another chance.

"To be honest, I don't want to admit that I misjudged you, and I don't want to... deal with you myself."

"Go,"

With a gentle push, Polkin, who was in a daze, stumbled away.

As for whether he would mend his ways or bear a grudge, it didn't matter to Rosinante.

"Heh heh heh, if it were me, I'd just take care of it with one slash."

Torrebor pounced out from the side, sticking close to Rosinante's face, shaking snot back and forth.

"Just a manager, there's as much as you need."

"Yes, yes,"

Rolling his eyes, Rosinante said,

"Instead of eavesdropping here, why not exercise your Devil Fruit ability more?"

"All these are just minor incidents. Everything we have is built upon—"

Power!

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(End of this chapter)