Luffy and Nami were currently discussing something the world of pirates had never seen before—import and export trade.
At first, Nami found the whole concept confusing. She clearly had no knowledge of this kind of system.
But as Luffy patiently explained it to her step by step, she slowly began to grasp the idea.
Before long, she was even able to actively debate back and forth with him.
Their arguments grew sharper, their exchanges more lively, and the things she learned multiplied.
Barely ten minutes later, she had fully mastered the concept—surpassing even the pace at which she'd learned Soru earlier—and reached a level of complete proficiency.
Nami promised that, next time she and Luffy discussed this topic, she'd "shut him up" with reason alone.
And after this round of teaching, the bond between them deepened even further.
After lunch, Luffy walked onto the deck in high spirits and glanced toward the small boat trailing behind them, where Zoro was sleeping soundly.
The guy had somehow found a thick rope and tied his dinghy to their ship.
That way, he wouldn't lose them—and he didn't have to row.
"When did this guy get so clever?"
With a thought, Luffy teleported straight onto the small boat, still holding a few leftover pieces of meat from lunch and a bottle of sake.
"Luffy?"
Hearing movement, Zoro opened his eyes and saw the red-vested man squatting in front of him.
"You've almost finished those rice balls, right? Here—your lunch."
Luffy handed him the meat and sake, even uncorking the bottle for him.
"Thanks, Luffy."
Zoro sat up and immediately downed several large gulps.
Food was fine and all, but for him, alcohol came first.
"These past few days, I heard you say you want to challenge Mihawk?" Luffy asked casually, sitting down beside him.
Zoro swallowed half the bottle, exhaled sharply, and replied,
"Yeah. What's the problem?"
"A big one. Right now, you're no match for him."
"I know that. But I'm still going to challenge him. Even if I can't win yet, I want to know how wide the gap really is—then train toward that goal!"
Hearing his resolve, Luffy smiled approvingly… but soon shook his head.
"If you just want to know the gap between you two, then I can tell you."
"Right now, you're one of the top swordsmen of the East Blue.
Mihawk, on the other hand… is a top-tier great swordsman."
"The difference between you two is like a faint star compared to the bright full moon. To be blunt—he could beat you with a pocketknife."
Knowing Zoro's personality, Luffy spoke plainly.
The East Blue was the weakest sea; Zoro's horizons were still too limited.
If he went to fight Mihawk like this, he'd end up like in the original world—cut half to death, screaming to the sky, 'I'll never lose again! Pirate King, got a problem with that?!'
Just imagining that scene made Luffy speechless.
"A pocketknife… beating me? Stop joking." Zoro stared in disbelief, the blow hitting harder than expected.
"You may not believe it, but it's true. And even then, he wouldn't be using his full strength."
Luffy took the bottle back and drank a few swallows before continuing.
He began explaining Mihawk—though only Mihawk's early strength.
As for the future version with a bounty of 3.59 billion, Luffy didn't mention him.
He didn't want to crush Zoro completely.
"The gap in swordsmanship is one thing. But what you really need to work on… is Haki."
"Haki?" Zoro repeated blankly, clearly overwhelmed.
"Yeah. Try cutting me with your sword."
As he spoke, Luffy coated his arm in Armament Haki—black and glossy like polished metal.
Zoro hesitated. He couldn't just strike his captain.
But Luffy's calm "go ahead" look eventually convinced him.
Clang!
His blade flew from his hands, landing near the stern.
Luffy's arm didn't have so much as a scratch.
"T-This… this is Haki? Can you teach me?" Zoro asked, eyes wide in shock.
"Of course. I already taught you the mental method for the Six Powers—you'll understand it slowly…"
"And Haki comes in three forms: Armament, Observation, and Conqueror's Haki.
Most people can only use the first two.
But you, like me, were born with Conqueror's Haki."
Luffy explained the concepts with a smile.
Since Zoro was his First Division Commander, his strength needed to keep up.
After more than three hours of teaching, Zoro finally gained some understanding.
Mastering Haki would take months, maybe longer, but Luffy had already taught him everything he could.
Just as he was about to leave Zoro to continue practicing on his own, Nami's voice rang from the main ship.
"Luffy! Zoro! We've reached Orange Town!"
The two looked up.
Not far away, the outline of an island slowly emerged on the horizon.
At the same time, at Orange Town's port—
A few pirates on guard duty had also spotted the approaching ship.
Their leader lowered his telescope and ordered,
"Go inform Captain Buggy—we've got a big fat target coming our way!"
"Yes, sir!"
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T/N:
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