28 More Training #28

It's good to have a student with a solid foundation..." Liu Fan said, smiling as he swung his staff and watched me duck under it at the last possible fraction of a second. "I don't know how you attained such a physique, but it has allowed you to absorb my teachings like a sponge..." He added, quickly blocking my counterattack despite the unpredictable movement of my spear.

As it turns out, the dirty old geezer was not only a master arts expert but also a bonafide master of the Rokushiki and something of a big shot in Black Leatherback town.

The only reason he stooped to opening a dojo in White Cub town was that he didn't like training the talentless marines, who didn't know the way of the gentleman and the warrior, according to him, at least.

I still couldn't wrap my head around this whole wild six masters, six powers story, and I must admit that I was somewhat curious, but that was the kind of shit that gets you Buster-Called. I wanted nothing to do with that. Thank you very much.

Even more surprising was that Liu Fan dropped that bomb on my lap so casually, like it was nothing, but I was the one to ask. Still, the old-timer didn't care about anything besides his martial arts and picking up chicks, so it wasn't that surprising once I tought about it.

If I had to complain about one thing, would be Liu Fan's bad memory, which seemed to reset every couple of weeks as he'd suddenly draw a blank and ask me who the hell I was and I was doing in his dojo, forcing me to explain the fact I was his student and how we've met. Still, he's not forgetting me as often as when I first started training under him so it wasn't that bad.

In any case, my training went smoothly. My skill with the spear and barehanded brawling improved with each passing day under the old timer's guidance.

Though Shaolin Kung Fu relied on bo staves rather than spears, the two weapons were similar enough for me to practice the martial art with my spear, and Liu Fan didn't seem to mind.

Though he forced me to get a new spear with a much more flexible wood shaft that better suited the martial art, I adapted to the new weapon and fighting style without much trouble.

According to my teacher, I was progressing faster than anyone he'd ever seen before, but I was still a novice in the grand scheme of things, and I didn't bother arguing since I hadn't landed a single hit on him yet.

Naturally, I asked the old timer to teach me the six powers, and he wasn't opposed to the idea, granted I could achieve a decent level of mastery over Shaolin Kung Fu, and again, I had no reason to complain.

My training with The Method didn't lag behind either. Studying martial arts not only deepened my understanding of violence, but I was also able to experience a way of life different from what I had on the Four Clover and Torino islands.

Unfortunately, my understanding of human anatomy didn't progress much since no one wanted to mess with me because of my teacher's status. And even if they did, I couldn't simply kill and dissect people like I used to back on Four Clover Island.

Stupid civilized societies, and their rules, am I right, fellas?

"Stop fantasizing about that pretty redhead and focus on your training, brat!" Liu Fan exclaimed, smacking me on the head with his bo staff, cutting my line of thought once he noticed I was distracted.

"I told you to cut it out, you dirty old fart!" I said, gritting my teeth as I rubbed my forehead. "You'll make me fucking stupid if you keep smacking me on the head!" I added as I brandished my spear and sent its sharp tip flying toward Liu Fan's forehead.

"You're plenty dumb already, young man..." Liu Fan said with a smirk as he dodged my attack, the feint after it, and the follow-up leg swipe like they were nothing. "I reckon a good smack on the head will fix that," He added, standing on one leg as he leaned his body to the side and sent the tip of his bo staff flying toward my head.

"Fuck. You." I said, rolling my eyes as I deflected the attack with my spear and used the momentum to spin the weapon and bring it down on Liu Fan's shoulder, only for him to sway his body and maneuver himself behind me.

"Never mind..." The elderly martial artist said as he smacked me on the head and tripped me with his foot. "I'm pretty sure your hopeless," He added, pointing the staff straight at my nose.

"You're still upset about Gloria, aren't you..." I said as I rose to my feet with a quick kick-up, and Liu Fan merely gave me a confused, innocent expression, but he was as good of a liar as one specific rubber human from East Blue.

"It's not my fault your old ass has no pull..."

...

Somewhere in South Blue

Rear admiral Sicily's ship

The captain's quarters

The rear admiral couldn't help but sigh as he reluctantly reached for the transponder snail and dialed Marine HQ. "This is Rear Admiral Sicily requesting to speak to Admiral Akainu regarding the fugitive hunt in South Blue..." He said after taking a deep breath as he firmed his resolve.

"Very well, sir. Please wait a moment..." The communication officer calmly said and immediately transferred the call as the rear admiral finished his sentence.

"What do you want, Sicily?" Came admiral Akainu's gruff voice from the transponder snail a moment later. "I thought I told you not to bother me until you found Nico Robin..." He added, clearly struggling to hide his annoyance.

"That's the thing, sir..." Sicily said, barely holding back a sigh as he spoke into the transponder snail with an uncomfortable expression. "We've already searched every island and ship on South Blue and found no traces of Nico Robin..." He added, settling for rubbing his forehead in frustration instead.

"She can't be on South Blue, and even if she was, I don't see the logic behind continuing the search..." Sicily calmly reasoned. "We're wasting valuable time and resources, and the civilians are starting to hate us more and more every day for disrupting their lives..." He added.

"I don't give a damn what the civilians think!" Admiral Akainu exclaimed, instantly lashing out at the rear admiral. "Nico Robin is a dangerous criminal capable of destabilizing order--" He added, pausing halfway through his sentence as the sound of knocking came alongside his voice.

"Hold on..." The admiral said as he turned his attention to the guest at the doorstep of his office, going quiet for several minutes. "There's been a change of plans, rear admiral Sicily..." He said, clearing his throat.

"A war has broken out in Kuraigana Island..." The admiral said, regaining his calm fashion. "You and your men are to head into paradise to keep things under control...." He instructed in a tone that brokered no argument.

"Sir, yes, sir!" Sicily replied, only sighing in relief once the admiral ended the call. "Still... another war...? What is the world coming to..." He muttered as he stood up, put on his hat and coat, and headed for the upper deck.

...

Four Clover Island

East Clover Town

Kid barely resisted the urge to lash out as he watched the marine soldier count his money while leisurely walking toward his ship. "Why do we suddenly have to pay so much money to these fuckers?" He asked through gritted teeth as he turned to Killer.

"I thought the world government had no power here..." He added with a scowl.

"Even if Four Clover isn't affiliated with the world government, they could still sink the entire island if they wanted to..." Killer said with a sigh. "We need to bribe the marines to keep them away from our goods..." He added with a shrug.

"It's all that crazy lady's fault. Cedric, that bastard, even when he's all the way on the other side of South Blue, he's still hassling me..." Kid angrily said, clearly annoyed as he kicked a random empty bottle on the ground, shattering it to countless pieces.

"I've got a mind to hand over that lady friend of his to the marines just thinking about all the damned money we had to give away..." The redhead concluded, his eyes twitching in annoyance.

"You heard that marine soldier..." Killer said, rolling his eyes at Kid. "The marines stopped looking for her in South Blue..." He added, shrugging his shoulders as he turned around and headed for the docks' exit.

"Besides, you're the boss, aren't you...?" Killer said as he briefly turned around and flashed a shit-eating grin. "If you want to hand over Cedric's friend, no one can stop you..." He concluded, adjusting the collar of his shirt as he walked away.

"What?! You think I won't?!" Kid bellowed, clearly affronted by his frinds' words. "Bastard! Are you chalenging me to do it?!" He asked, and the only answer he recieved was a carless shrug.

"Come back here!"

...

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