Between Two Worlds: Nen and Haki

A portal manifested in his palm, looking much like a gaping maw that instantly swallowed the metal block whole.

Hearing Zane's words, Manlong indicated his understanding and stepped out of the room.

Piece after piece was consumed into his body.

The Marine bounty was a trivial matter to Zane; it didn't occupy his thoughts at all.

A moment later.

After swallowing various metals, Zane sat cross-legged in silence.

But this was only on the surface; inside him...

within the Munch-Munch Fruit's dimension, all the metals were continuously merging and adjusting.

Suddenly, the mouth-like portal appeared on Zane's right palm again, spitting out a brick-shaped piece of metal.

He caught it.

Zane began to squeeze it. As he exerted more force, his fingers gradually sank into the surface.

"That's about right. With this hardness and regenerative capability, it's enough to forge a batch of high-quality weapons."

Releasing his grip, he watched as the finger indentations in the metal block healed at a visible speed. Zane nodded in satisfaction.

Since plundering the Munch-Munch Fruit, he had specifically ordered his subordinates to purchase various metals during every resupply.

Now, after countless adjustments and fusions, he had finally successfully researched the memory alloy that Wapol had accidentally created in the original storyline.

'Zane Metal? That's a bit embarrassing. Let's just call it Memory Metal.' Zane rubbed his chin.

The creation of Memory Metal was only the first step. Next, he needed to use the shaping abilities of the Munch-Munch space to forge it into the required weapons.

Zane soon threw himself back into his busy work.

He was truly a dedicated captain.

Not only did he have to train hard himself, but he also had to forge weapons for his men.

If he wasn't the captain, then who was?

........

It was unknown where the Marines had obtained a photo of Zane.

But one thing was certain: the photo on the bounty poster clearly displayed Zane's third eye.

In other words, news of Zane being a member of the Three-Eye Tribe had spread throughout the world along with the newspapers.

"Three-Eye Tribe? I didn't expect that race to be so resilient; I thought they'd gone extinct."

"This is amazing. A super-rare race like this is worth even more than a mermaid. If we catch him, he'll sell for an astronomical price."

"The Three-Eye Tribe, rumored to possess the ability to read Poneglyphs... this can't be missed!"

"A suspected Rumble-Rumble Fruit user? Hey, is this for real? That invincible power is no joke."

......

To ordinary people, the newspapers and bounty posters reaching every corner of the globe suggested another evil element on the sea, but to those with agendas, they were a source of excitement.

For instance, Crocodile, who was currently playing the role of a hero in Alabasta.

Chewing on a cigar, Crocodile tossed the newspaper onto the table.

"Rumble-Rumble Fruit? If it's true, then Doflamingo really might have died at the hands of this Three-Eye kid."

Exhaling a cloud of smoke, Crocodile let out a peculiar chuckle.

"Is the Boss interested in this man named Zane?" Nico Robin, sitting below him, glanced at the bounty poster on the table and smiled at Crocodile.

"It's said the third eye of the Three-Eye Tribe hides some mysterious power, like the ability to decipher Poneglyphs. Of course I'm interested." Crocodile looked at her with a knowing smile.

"I see!" Nico Robin remained composed, still smiling. "Then it is indeed quite attractive. But I'm afraid it won't be easy for the Boss to recruit him, since he's a Rumble-Rumble Fruit user—someone with a reputation for invincibility."

"Invincible? No matter how strong a Devil Fruit power is, if the user themselves isn't up to par, they're nothing but a hollow shell." Crocodile huffed.

"But didn't you just say he likely defeated Doflamingo, a Warlord? I'd imagine he's far from a hollow shell," Nico Robin remarked casually.

"A brat who just appeared and probably hasn't even been to the New World... no matter how strong he is, how far can he go? Don't compare me to someone like Doflamingo." Crocodile took a deep drag from his cigar.

"How confident. Then I'll congratulate you in advance on recruiting an excellent subordinate, Boss."

"No need for congratulations in advance. You're coming with me."

"Oh? Well, I suppose I could use a trip outside."

Nico Robin, who had planned to make a move once he left, felt her heart tighten, but she didn't let a trace of it show on her face as she readily agreed.

'What should I do?'

'If he truly captures that Three-Eye person and they possess the ability to read Poneglyphs, I would be in grave danger.'

'No.'

'He shouldn't move against her until he actually finds a Poneglyph.'

'There's no other way. I can only keep up the facade for now. I'll stay as low-profile as possible and pretend to be intimidated by him.'

Various thoughts flashed through her mind.

Ultimately, Nico Robin's heart dissolved into a sigh.

*

*

*

"Based on our current sailing speed, our next stop will be Whiskey Peak, the last stop before Reverse Mountain.

Captain, that place is controlled by a group of bounty hunters who target rookie pirates just entering the Grand Line.

Of course, they're no threat to us, so we can use it as a place to perform one last round of resupplying..."

Listening to the report from the navigator, Eddie, Zane sat on his golden throne with his legs crossed, his arm resting on the armchair and his head propped up by his fist. He let out a chuckle.

"Don't get ahead of yourself. There's a large group of enemies waiting for us at Whiskey Peak right now."

"Huh?" Eddie froze.

Zane snapped his fingers at him. "Stop daydreaming. Go notify everyone; we're preparing for battle."

"Yes! I'll pass the word immediately!" Coming back to his senses, Eddie hurried away.

Soon, the battle signal spread throughout the warship via the broadcast Transponder Snail.

"Boss, who's the enemy?"

Walking briskly to the golden throne, Manlong asked in a deep voice.

"A Warlord, Crocodile!" Zane gave the answer directly.

There was no helping it when Observation Haki was this powerful.

Under ultra-long-range perception, even without a glimpse of Whiskey Peak, Zane had a thorough understanding of the situation there.

In particular, the various conversations he overheard allowed him to acquire ample intelligence quickly.

"That sand crocodile?" Baby 5, who followed right behind, looked surprised.

"Your captain here seems to be attracting more and more enemies since this eye was exposed. Even a Warlord couldn't resist joining the fun." Zane joked, moving his arm from the armchair and resting his interlaced fingers on his crossed knees.

"Warlord or not, I won't allow anyone to offend the Captain." Baby 5 transformed her right hand into a blade and swung it fiercely in front of her.

After day after day of trai... cultivation, the beautiful maid's heart and mind were completely occupied by Zane, and she could no longer be influenced by anyone else.