After instructing Gion, Raleigh looked at the excited Tokikake and signaled him to come forward.
"Tokikake, your path is different from Gion's. Your physical skills and defense are most important."
"You can train Moon Walk together with Gion as I just demonstrated, but Kami-e isn't suitable for you."
That's right - the defensive technique Raleigh planned to teach Tokikake was Iron Body!
As the saying goes: Among the countless Marines Six Styles, Iron Body wastes half your effort!
"The principle of Iron Body is to accelerate blood flow, speeding up muscle movement to achieve iron-like hardness. But the flaw is that most people using it tend to become stationary targets."
"When facing attacks that Iron Body can't defend against, you can only take the hits passively."
"But I want to say that Iron Body is also a prerequisite for awakening Armament Haki. Moreover, Iron Body isn't a useless technique. Try attacking me."
Tokikake nodded and threw a heavy punch directly at Raleigh's chest.
BOOM!
A powerful air current blew through Raleigh's hair, but Raleigh immediately countered with a punch to Tokikake's chest.
"Yes, this is exactly the feeling!"
Tokikake seemed to understand something.
He realized that Raleigh had used Iron Body to block his attacks before.
But he didn't understand why Raleigh could still move normally after using Iron Body, while others could only stand still.
"For Iron Body, there's no need to harden your entire body. Just like Armament Haki, it can be concentrated in one area."
Raleigh took off his shirt, revealing his perfectly sculpted physique with well-defined eight-pack abs.
Pointing to where Tokikake had attacked, he said.
"Just now, by predicting your movements, I accelerated the muscles in my chest to the Iron Body state. In this state, it can block fists, kicks, ordinary bullets, and sword attacks."
"But the rest of my body wasn't hardened, so I could still counterattack."
"Only hardening where you truly need to defend - this is the correct way to use Iron Body!"
Tokikake's eyes sparkled with excitement as he realized the benefits of Iron Body.
Raleigh put his clothes back on; if he didn't, Gion would have been staring dumbfounded.
"Alright, Tokikake, just call a few Marines soldiers to spar with you when training Iron Body. You don't need to attack, just focus on defense."
"You'll have mastered it once you can control Iron Body to harden only one specific body part."
Tokikake burst into hearty laughter:
"Don't worry, Raleigh! I'm a genius. I just didn't want to learn such a clumsy move before."
Raleigh smirked coldly but kept his thoughts to himself.
"Just wait until you're crying later. Back when Momonga was training, he often ended up bruised and battered. Even if you're more talented than him, you're still in for a beating."
...
Raleigh stretched lazily, glanced at the others who had already started training, and decided to return to his sun lounger for a nap.
"Ah, life is tough. Slacking off is so hard."
[Slacking off during work training: Slack Value +100]
With an eye mask on, he cared for no one.
His motto was: Get stronger by slacking off!
On the warship, everyone except Raleigh was busy training diligently.
Gion was applying the principles of Soru to figure out how to master Moon Walk, rapidly kicking her feet against the deck.
Tokikake prioritized Iron Body training, but under the attacks of several Marines soldiers, he was soon covered in bruises.
Miles and Bello Betty were still young, so their current training focused on building stamina.
After all, stamina was crucial in the world of One Piece.
Whether one was a Devil Fruit user or not, endurance played a vital role in combat.
Marines officers like Garp, Zephyr, and even the later three Admirals were essentially powerhouses with high offense and defense—true stamina tanks.
No matter the enemy or environment, they could engage in prolonged battles thanks to their immense stamina.
Take Sakazuki, for instance.
During the Summit War, whether deploying large-scale area attacks or fighting one-on-one against the aged Whitebeard, he wouldn't have lasted so long without sufficient stamina.
Even after Whitebeard fell, Sakazuki still pursued the remaining pirate crew members.
This alone showed he had plenty of stamina left.
So Miles and Betty, carrying heavy lead weights, ran diligently around the deck.
Sweat dripped continuously onto the wooden planks, but their eyes were filled with determination.
Whenever fatigue set in, they'd recall their goals and find renewed courage.
[Slacking off during work training: Slack Value +100]
Raleigh was quite satisfied with the current situation—no one disturbed his slacking, and everyone was striving to grow stronger.
"Ah... this is the life..."
He casually picked up a coconut, cracked it open, and savored the refreshing coconut water.
Indeed, slacking off was the true path to power.
Only by slacking off diligently could one stand firm in the turbulent times to come.
A long time passed, and when Gion and the others stopped to catch their breath, sweat had drenched their bodies.
They glared fiercely at Raleigh, who had fallen asleep comfortably under the warm sunlight.
"That damn guy..."
Watching Raleigh, so carefree yet growing stronger day by day, Gion and Tokikake felt as if they were back in the military academy—no matter how hard they tried, they could never catch up to him.
"This time, I won't admit defeat again!"
Under the scorching sun, though covered in wounds, Tokikake paid no mind to these superficial injuries.
After a brief rest, he chose to do push-ups while carrying an enormous lead weight.
"Hah! Hah! Hah!"
Beads of sweat continuously dripped onto the ground.
But Tokikake seemed unaware of fatigue, repeating the up-and-down motion.
Gion had initially grasped the sensation of stepping on air and had now begun practicing swordsmanship.
This was her daily persistent routine - ten thousand sword swings!
One swing, two swings, three swings...
Even when her arms grew sore and weak, and her movements began to deform, she still swung her sword forward with determined eyes.
Meanwhile, Miles and Betty continued running laps around the deck.
Sunrise to sunset, another day passed.
...
As night fell, Raleigh, who had been sleeping on the deck chair all day, finally awoke.
"Hmm, how did it get dark already?"
He opened his eyes to find not the blazing sun above, but a brilliant starry sky.
Simultaneously, the system promptly made an announcement.
[Slacked off for eight hours during work hours, slacking value +600!]
He casually stretched his body, his bones cracking like frying beans.
"This kind of life - I wouldn't trade it even for a fleet admiral position."
Still somewhat groggy, Raleigh looked around and gaped.
Gion was practicing swordsmanship, Tokikake was doing weighted push-ups, and Miles and Betty hadn't stopped their training either.
"Ah... why are they still training?"
Raleigh's mind was somewhat bewildered, feeling quite surprised.
"But it seems everyone is nearing their limits."