One Piece: SSS-Rank Haki at Age Seventeen

"Rayleigh, I want to learn this!!"

Luffy looked extremely excited. As someone aiming to become an all-around battle god, how could he possibly keep such an obvious weakness as fear of seawater?

Rayleigh, however, showed a troubled expression.

"The training requires a pair of high-purity Seastone handcuffs. You can train using seawater alone, but the results are far too slow."

As an old man who was so broke he could practically sell himself, Rayleigh obviously didn't have something like that.

"But the black market should have them. Give me some time—getting a pair shouldn't be too difficult."

Rayleigh thought for a moment.

However, Luffy had a completely different idea.

He smiled.

"I know a place that definitely has high-concentration Seastone handcuffs!"

Seeing Luffy's strange grin, both Rayleigh and Law felt a chill down their spines.

The last time they saw that smile…

…was when Luffy decided to go to Marineford.

It was safe to say that Luffy's train of thought was impossible for normal people to predict.

"W-where?" Law asked weakly, hoping their captain wouldn't cause some massive incident again.

"Wa~no~Ku~ni!"

Luffy said excitedly.

After all, Wano Country had a certain great teacher.

In Luffy's mind, the Seastone handcuffs were actually secondary—the most important thing was Kaido-sensei's guidance!

Although he wasn't sure if it would still work at his current strength…

Trying wouldn't hurt.

What if there was a buff involved?!

Looking at Luffy's increasingly determined expression, Rayleigh and Law could only smile helplessly.

There was clearly no changing his mind.

Law clenched his teeth and stared at his slightly insane captain.

"Damn it… Starting a fight with a Yonko just for a pair of handcuffs—only you would think of something like that!"

Gradually, the sun set.

The entire Wano Country sank into silence and darkness.

Only two places remained brightly lit:

The Flower Capital and Udon.

The former was the most prosperous city in Wano—comparable to a city that never sleeps.

The latter was Kaido's industrial zone, famous for producing the rare mineral known as Seastone.

Outside Udon's wastelands, Rayleigh and Law looked out toward a vast complex of buildings stretching across the land.

Massive black smokestacks rose from the structures, spewing thick clouds of smoke.

The military factory complex sprawled across the mountains.

From the sky, it looked like an endless black ocean.

"So this is the Seastone factory?"

Law stared in shock.

"The pollution here is insane…"

"Let's go," Rayleigh said calmly.

"We're not here to mourn this country's fate."

Rayleigh's eyes were complicated, but in the end, he chose not to interfere.

Luffy had asked them to get Seastone handcuffs.

So that was all they would do.

The two figures began moving toward Udon.

Meanwhile, near the seas of Wano—

A massive island crouched on the ocean like a demonic beast.

Jagged black rocks jutted outward like fangs.

Dead trees rose like wild hair.

Dark miasma swirled with crimson lightning.

At the peak of the island, a skull flag fluttered violently in the wind.

The atmosphere was both ominous and murderous.

A streak of blue lightning fell near the edge of the island.

The figure made no attempt to hide himself.

After all—

He was here to seek instruction.

Inside the Japanese-style palace of Onigashima.

"I heard Joker has artificial Zoan Devil Fruits?"

Kaido sat on his throne, drinking sake while glancing at the man beside him.

"Yes, Lord Kaido."

The man kneeling on one knee was King the Wildfire, his aura cold and murderous.

"They're called SMILE. However, the success rate is only about 10%."

"Those who fail lose the ability to feel sadness or pain. Even when facing tragedy, they can only laugh—and they also lose the ability to swim."

"Because of that, the price is only one-tenth of a normal Devil Fruit—about 10 million berries each. And they're only low-tier Zoan types."

"Wororororo!"

Kaido laughed loudly.

"That's no problem! Wano has plenty of people."

"Tell Joker—we want a large supply of SMILE. Money isn't an issue!"

He waved his hand excitedly.

Soon enough, the Beasts Pirates would truly become a crew of hundreds of beasts!

Just then—

BOOM!!!

A terrifying storm erupted.

Conqueror's Haki surged across the sky, creating dense black-red lightning that spread through the darkness.

Standing on the island, Luffy ignored the fallen fodder pirates around him.

Large sections of Onigashima's buildings collapsed as if swept away by an invisible hand.

"That power…?!"

"Straw Hat Luffy… one of the Four Emperors?!"

Several officers barely managed to stay standing, their faces full of shock.

Why had a Yonko appeared here?

Was he declaring war?!

At that moment—

A crimson glow appeared in the sky.

Then it burst into blazing brilliance.

A black pterosaur shot through the clouds.

From its mouth erupted an orange-red beam.

"Imperial Flame: Tempura Udon!"

"King, huh?"

Luffy clicked his tongue.

With a casual wave of his hand, blue lightning condensed into a beam, colliding with the attack in midair.

BOOM!

A massive explosion spread across the sky.

Smoke billowed upward.

In an instant, Luffy appeared above King.

Jet-black Armament Haki erupted, spiraling around his arm.

He slammed a punch downward.

"—Bring Kaido out!"

BOOM!!

King's body crashed violently into the ground, blasting a massive crater.

"Cough…!"

King slowly stood up from the pit.

His pupils trembled.

Crack… crack…

His mask began to fracture.

Then it shattered completely, revealing a strikingly handsome face.

Gray-white hair flowed wildly in the wind.

"You're pretty handsome. Why hide your face?"

Luffy suddenly appeared in front of him, standing casually with his hands behind his back.

King flapped his black wings—flames burning along them—as he rose into the sky.

But his eyes were filled with shock.

Luffy was clearly toying with him.

Even with a playful attitude, the pressure he exuded felt like a collapsing mountain.

That overwhelming power made resistance feel impossible.

Just like facing Kaido himself.

Could this boy really possess the strength of a Yonko…?

"Perhaps your strength far surpasses mine."

Flames suddenly surged across King's wings.

His body slowly rose higher into the sky.

Rings of fire erupted around him, forming enormous circles like the hands of a clock in the dark heavens.

"But that's no excuse for you to run wild on Onigashima!"

King raised his sword high—

Then slashed down from afar.

WHOOSH!

The flames suddenly intensified, twisting and spiraling together before transforming into a massive crimson fire dragon.

It roared toward Luffy.

"Imperial Guardian Flame Dragon!"

Blazing fire like molten lava rained down around the dragon, bombarding the land and melting buildings and mountains in its path.

The fire dragon roared, unstoppable.

The blazing inferno surged toward Luffy.

Yet the small figure standing there remained completely calm.

"Your strongest move, huh?"

Luffy slowly clenched his fist.

Black Armament Haki covered it.

Crackle…

Blue lightning danced across his arm, radiating pure destructive power.

Then he punched forward.

From afar—

The fist looked like a beam of blue light.

It tore straight through the fire dragon with unstoppable force and shot toward King in the sky.

King's expression instantly turned horrified.

Too fast.

Far too fast!

The speed had already exceeded the limits of his Observation Haki.

At that moment—

The sky exploded with purple-black lightning.

"Brat… you're courting death!"

A monstrous figure smashed through the clouds like a descending demon.

Purple lightning wrapped around his body.

In his hand was a massive spiked kanabo club, crackling with black-red lightning.

"Thunder Bagua: Ragnarok!"

"So you've finally come out…"

Luffy's eyes lit up with excitement.

"The strongest creature of land, sea, and air—

Kaido of the Beasts!"

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