Location: Kyien (The Glass Garden), Grand Line Year: 1522 (Three Months Later)
The ecosystem of Kyien was simple: if it moved, it was sharp. If it didn't move, it was sharper.
Hiroki Rintarō sat atop the highest spire of volcanic glass, overlooking the glittering, deadly forest. He looked different. His clean blue kimono was gone, replaced by trousers patched with leather from the Obsidian Hawks and a vest made from the hide of a Crystal Wolf. A jagged scar ran down his left bicep, a souvenir from a miscalculated dodge in week two.
But the biggest change was in his eyes. The calculating coldness was still there, but it was now backed by a heavy, oppressive calm.
Below him, the Crystal-Back Gorilla—the Alpha that had nearly broken his sword three months ago—prowled the clearing.
Hiroki stood up. He didn't sneak. He jumped.
He fell fifty meters, landing in the center of the clearing with a heavy thud that cracked the glass ground.
The Alpha roared, recognizing the challenger. It had grown used to this hairless monkey who refused to die.
[Tactical Insight Active]
Target: Alpha Crystal-Back.Threat Level: Moderate (formerly High).Objective: Test Subject.
The Gorilla charged. A fist of diamond-hard crystal swung for Hiroki's head.
Hiroki drew Umitsubame.
In the past, he would have analyzed the angle, the speed, and the density. He would have looked for a weak point.
Now, he simply stopped thinking.
Don't calculate the cut. Force the cut.
He channeled his spirit. The fear of death, the desire to protect, the stubborn refusal to break—he pushed it all into his right hand, then into the hilt, then into the steel.
Armament Hardening: Koka.
For a fleeting second, the gleaming silver of Umitsubame turned a dull, matte black.
Ittoryu: Black Swallow.
He didn't dodge. He swung his blade directly against the crystal fist.
CRACK.
There was no recoil. No shockwave traveling up his arm.
The black blade sliced through the organic crystal as if it were butter. The Gorilla's arm was severed cleanly at the elbow.
The beast shrieked, clutching the stump, staring in disbelief.
Hiroki flicked the sword. The black coating faded, returning to silver. He looked at the blade. No chips. No scratches.
"It worked," Hiroki whispered.
The Gorilla fled into the forest. Hiroki let it go. He wasn't hungry, and he had learned what he needed.
[Training Arc Complete]
[Status Window Update - Hiroki Rintarō]
Strength: 22.8 → 26.5 / 100 (Jungle Survival)Speed: 17.5 → 21.0 / 100Endurance: 13.0 → 18.5 / 100 (Significant Boost)Swordsmanship: 31.8 → 35.0 / 100 (Master)Armament Haki: 0.1% → 6.5% (Basic Hardening Unlocked)Observation Haki: 2.0% → 3.2%
6.5%. It was enough to coat the blade for a single strike. It wasn't Vergo's full-body armor, and it wasn't the permanent black blade of Mihawk, but it was the first step into the New World's power system.
Hiroki sheathed his sword. He walked to the beach where his skiff was hidden.
"Time to go," he said. "The dinosaurs are waiting."
Location: Little Garden, Grand Line Year: 1521 (Two Weeks Later)
The transition from Kyien to Little Garden was like stepping from a jewelry box into a history book. The air was thick, humid, and smelled of ancient rot and giant ferns.
Hiroki's boat drifted up a river mouth.
[Environmental Hazard: Prehistoric Diseases][Immunity System: Adapting...]
A shadow passed over the boat. A pteranodon.
"Big," Hiroki noted.
He steered the boat toward the shore. He needed to restock on fresh water and meat before the long haul to Alabasta.
As he stepped onto the muddy bank, the ground shook.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
It was a rhythmic trembling, like the heartbeat of the earth.
Hiroki's Observation Haki flared.
Two massive signatures. Spirits like burning suns.
"The Giants," Hiroki realized. Dorry and Brogy.
He secured his boat and walked inland. The jungle was dense, filled with carnivorous plants and tigers the size of trucks. Hiroki moved through them with the "predator" aura he had cultivated on Kyien. Most beasts sensed he wasn't food and kept their distance.
He emerged into a clearing dominated by two colossal skeletons of Sea Kings.
And there they were.
To the left, a giant with a long beard and a helmet (Dorry). To the right, a giant with a wide beard and an axe (Brogy).
They were drinking from barrels.
"GABABABABABA!" "GYAGYAGYAGYA!"
Their laughter shook the leaves off the trees.
Hiroki stood at the edge of the clearing, looking up. They were easily twenty meters tall.
"A human?" Brogy spotted him first. He leaned down, his face the size of a small house. "Lost, little human?"
"Just passing through," Hiroki said, keeping his voice steady. "I have heard of the warriors of Elbaf. I didn't expect to find them having a picnic."
Dorry laughed, slamming a barrel down. "Picnic? We are in the middle of a duel! A duel that has lasted a hundred years!"
"A hundred years," Hiroki repeated. "For what reason?"
The two giants looked at each other. They blinked.
"I... forgot," Dorry admitted.
"Me too!" Brogy roared. "But it must have been important! GABABABA!"
Hiroki sat down on a log. "If you forgot, maybe it's time to call it a draw?"
The laughter stopped instantly. The air pressure in the clearing dropped.
Brogy raised his axe. Dorry raised his sword.
"A draw?" Dorry rumbled, his voice low and dangerous. "There is no draw in Elbaf. Only victory or death. To suggest a draw is to insult our honor."
[Warning: Lethal Intent Detected][Threat Level: Beyond Measurement]
Hiroki didn't flinch. He didn't reach for his sword. He knew he couldn't fight them. Not yet.
"My apologies," Hiroki said calmly. "I am a swordsman. I understand the weight of a vow. I spoke out of turn."
He bowed his head slightly—a sign of respect, not submission.
The tension held for a terrifying second. Then, Brogy grinned.
"He has guts! Most humans run when I frown!"
"Indeed!" Dorry agreed. "Come, little human! Have some meat! It's dinosaur!"
Dorry tossed a chunk of roasted meat the size of a car toward Hiroki.
Hiroki caught it... well, he side-stepped and let it crash into the ground, then carved a manageable slice with Umitsubame.
"Thank you," Hiroki said.
He ate with them. He watched them.
[Observation Haki Training: Active]
He wasn't just eating. He was sensing their Haki. Even when laughing, their spirits were immense. They didn't use "coating" or advanced techniques consciously, but their very existence was an assertion of will.
This is the peak of physical might, Hiroki analyzed. Zoro will learn from them one day. I am just a witness.
Suddenly, the volcano in the center of the island erupted. Kaboom.
The signal.
Dorry and Brogy stood up, their faces serious.
"It is time," Dorry said.
"Prepare to die, Dorry!"
"Your axe will shatter today, Brogy!"
They charged at each other. The impact of their weapons created a shockwave that flattened the surrounding jungle.
Hiroki shielded his eyes against the wind.
He watched the duel. It was simple. Brutal. Honest.
There was no calculus. No tactical insight. Just two friends trying to kill each other out of respect.
Hiroki touched the hilt of his black-scabbarded sword.
"I have a lot to learn," he murmured.
He stayed on Little Garden for three days. He didn't interfere. He didn't try to solve their conflict (that was Luffy's destiny). He just refilled his water, hunted a T-Rex for supplies (which boosted his Strength to 27.0), and left.
As he sailed away, leaving the booming clashes of the giants behind, he looked at his Eternal Pose for Alabasta.
"Next stop: The Desert Kingdom," Hiroki said.
But his mind wasn't on the sand. It was on the organization waiting for him.
Baroque Works.
He had humiliated Mr. 5. He had ignored the Millions.
When he arrived in Alabasta, he wouldn't be a ghost anymore. He would be a target.
And in the desert, there was nowhere to hide.
[Chapter 13 End]