"Slanted Moon Style: Mountain-Splitting Slash!!"
Gion shouted lightly, unleashing a tremendously sharp slash that spanned over a hundred meters, aimed straight at Ren.
The immense power could even shear off the peak of a mountain!
"One-Sword Style: Cross Slash!"
Ren wasn't going to back down. His Cross Slash shot out in an instant, colliding with Gion's attack mid-air.
In that brief instant, air currents surged violently. Sand and stones whipped through the air. Some cadets standing too close were sent flying outright.
They stared wide-eyed at the duel and couldn't help but gulp nervously.
This... this is what combat between powerhouses looks like?
Even a casual strike from them could split a warship in two!
"So this is the strength of Vice Admirals? I mean, it's expected of Instructor Gion… but even our boss is this strong? That's insane!"
Simba and the others looked like their eyeballs were about to pop out. It was absolutely absurd.
Gion was in her twenties and had trained for over a decade, so her power was understandable.
But Ren? They trained with him day and night, and this gap in strength was crushing.
Their confidence was nearly shattered. It wasn't even in the same league.
"Alright, that's enough."
Zephyr finally spoke up. Any more of this, and the entire training field would be destroyed.
"Your swordsmanship's not bad. Hmph! So you've been hiding your true strength all this time!"
Gion had thoroughly enjoyed the spar. Knowing she couldn't defeat Ren, she sheathed Konpira.
Ren just grinned, dispersing his Devil Fruit energy.
For a first-time try, the result was pretty satisfying.
After all, having a wide skill set was always an advantage.
Right now, he had mastery in Haki, Devil Fruit powers, physical combat, and swordsmanship. His overall strength was already enough to dominate the first half of the Grand Line.
Seeing Ren's progress made Gion feel a strange happiness in her heart. But then she angrily scolded herself:
"Why am I happy for this bastard? He didn't give me a shred of mercy back there."
Zephyr looked at Ren with exasperation and said, "Did that old fool Garp never teach you the saying 'bite off more than you can chew'?"
Ren shrugged. "Can't help it. The more I learn, the better. I know myself well — I'll be fine."
He had the system. Leveling up wasn't hard for him.
Even reaching swordmaster level didn't take him long.
Zephyr sighed. "Young people these days... Fine, do what you want. Just don't neglect your physical training. Alright — starting tomorrow, the rest of the cadets can officially begin learning the Marine Six Styles."
"YEAH! Long live Instructor Zephyr!"
The Elite Division burst into cheers.
For the past three years, they'd been doing nothing but physical training.
That damn running. Those cursed sit-ups. And more...
Finally, they could start learning the legendary Marine Six Styles!
That afternoon, Gion was set to report to Vice Admiral Tsuru's unit.
Ren and Ain accompanied her to the docks.
"Alright, this is where we part. I'm heading to the New World. I'll be waiting for you guys."
"Sis…"
Ain held onto Gion's sleeve. "I'll miss you!"
"Silly girl. Don't be too softhearted. You can't let men off easy!"
Gion shot Ren a glare.
"Hey... that bet we made — still on, right?"
Ren, surprisingly serious, spoke up.
"Huh?"
Gion blinked, startled by his sudden sincerity.
"When I become an Admiral, you'll be my vice-captain for life."
"That..."
Gion suddenly remembered.
She had once told Ren, "If you want to be my man, you better have Admiral-level strength."
With a faint smile, she replied, "Alright. I'll be watching your strength."
Then she stepped aboard the warship without another word.
"The Six Styles are body techniques that push human limits. They consist of six moves: Iron Body, Shave, Paper Art, Moonwalk, Tempest Kick, and Finger Gun."
In a massive training ground, Zephyr began lecturing the Elite Division cadets.
"Exceeding human limits means reaching levels ordinary people can never attain. To avoid overloading yourselves, each of you will start by choosing one technique you're best suited for."
"Based on my experience, I recommend starting with Iron Body. Its principles can be extended to the other five techniques. You could say it's the core of the Six Styles."
Zephyr broke down the Six Styles one by one, explaining their mechanics and application techniques.
A year passed.
In that year, most of the Elite Division cadets learned the Marine Six Styles.
Some of the more gifted ones even grasped Armament Haki.
Still, only a select few managed that. Ain, Binz, and other top talents had no trouble.
As for Ren — after a year, he finally gathered 100 shards of the Return-Return Fruit and successfully synthesized his second Devil Fruit.
After unlocking it, the ability proved quite formidable. At maximum, he could rewind time by ten years.
From now on, if someone pissed him off, he could just de-age them and teach them a lesson.
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