Night.
On the coast of the island—
In the temporary camp, beside the bonfire, Robin is preparing a sumptuous dinner.
During Rob's special training with Rayleigh, Rob asked Robin to take care of all the food, clothing, and shelter. She naturally accepted Rob's request.
"You really are a monster!"
Rayleigh's face was full of emotion as he drank wine and said to Rob:
"Of all the powerhouses I know, the only one who could rival you in their teens is Charlotte Linlin, who has been called a natural monster since she was a child!"
"She's not even as good as you! Charlotte Linlin is a born monster. There's nothing wrong with her, but she suffers from cravings and is extremely unstable mentally and emotionally. At twelve, she probably wasn't as strong as you!"
Hearing Rayleigh's words, Rob's mouth turned up in a smile, but he didn't say much. He just poked at the bonfire to make it burn more vigorously.
There was a moment of silence.
Rob looked at Rayleigh and asked:
"Old man, do I have the qualifications to challenge the monsters now? Or in other words—Kaido, the aunt you speak of, Charlotte Linlin, and the Strongest man in the world- Whitebeard! Can I challenge them?"
Rayleigh took a sip of wine, compared it in his mind for a moment, and with a serious look, he said:
"Qualified! It's just that your chances of winning are not high, especially against Whitebeard! That guy's Haki, sword skills, physical prowess, and his peak condition, along with the terrifyingly destructive Quake-Quake Fruit ability!"
Rayleigh paused and said with some emotion:
"In the current sea, I'm afraid no one is Whitebeard's equal!"
Hearing these words, the corners of Rob's mouth rose slightly. The fighting spirit in his eyes was restrained and deep but unusually firm.
Rob smiled and said:
"Really? I'm qualified but can't win? As expected of the strongest man in the world, he's really a goal worth chasing and challenging! Hahaha..."
After laughing, Rob looked at the blazing bonfire in front of him. The orange flames reflected in his deep black pupils, showing Rob's flaming and burning ambition like a raging fire!
Looking at the campfire, he said:
"Give me another three years... No, at most two years, I will enter the New World and challenge Whitebeard! I'll take the title of the strongest from him... At least don't let him be the only big Sea King!"
Hearing Rob's words, Rayleigh didn't say anything, just smiled and took another sip of wine happily!
Soon after, Robin finished preparing the sumptuous dinner. Rob, who had trained all day, began to feast on it. Rayleigh, too, started eating heartily and even praised Robin's cooking.
However, Robin's reaction to Rayleigh's praise was relatively flat. All her thoughts were on Rob, and she was completely satisfied seeing her Onii-chan eating so happily.
As for Uncle Rayleigh? Everything was fine!
Half a month later—
On this uninhabited island, the special training battles between Rob and Rayleigh continued. Rob's combat experience had reached a quite terrifying level.
In just half a month, Rayleigh had no way to gain the upper hand against Rob in terms of combat experience.
Two months passed.
The special training battle on the uninhabited island was still ongoing. Rayleigh, with his old bones, fought back all the fights he hadn't had in years. All aspects had greatly improved!
His physique.
His Haki.
His sword skills.
They all had grown and improved a lot!
Four months in.
Through fierce daily battles regardless of the weather, Rob focused on using his Observation Haki. His Observation Haki successfully reached the level of predicting the future. Although he could only see three seconds into the future, it was still terrifying!
Seeing Rob train his Observation Haki to the point of predicting the future by fighting against him, Rayleigh felt confused and found it incredible.
If one could raise their Observation Haki to this level through such special training, wouldn't many Haki masters in the sea have done so through life-and-death battles long ago?
This defied common sense!
Rayleigh called it monstrous.
Soon, as agreed, Rayleigh's half-year sparring time passed like a sharpening stone.
In the last two months, Rob managed to extend his future sight to five seconds!
After their final battle on the last day, Rayleigh didn't even stay for dinner. He left the uninhabited island in his small sailboat and returned to the Sabaody Archipelago.
Inside the camp.
Rob cooked for himself, using the Sea Kings hunted from the sea, the beasts on the island, and the wild vegetables picked by Robin, to make a very sumptuous dinner!
"It's rare that Mr. Rayleigh left when Onii-chan was cooking!" Robin said while enjoying the meal prepared by Rob.
"He really has no luck!"
Holding Uta gnawing on the meat in her hand, she nodded in agreement and said:
"The food made by Nii-chan is the best!"
While speaking, Uta glanced at Robin, her big watery eyes rolling:
"Onee-chan, too!"
This clever little girl had already learned how to balance compliments.
If you praise Rob as a brother, you also praise Robin as a sister who takes good care of her!
Looking at little Uta eating with a greasy mouth, Rob and Robin both had doting smiles and didn't pay much attention to her words.
"Probably because he was scared!"
Rob said thoughtfully while feasting on the meal:
"In the past six months, Mr. Rayleigh has been quite restless! If it weren't for the half-year agreement, he would have left two months ago! Hahaha."
As a senior, Rayleigh kept his promise; as a sparring partner and sharpening stone, Rayleigh did his best.
If there's one downside, it might be that Rayleigh overextended himself.
In the past six months—
Rob didn't constantly drag Rayleigh for special combat training, but there was really very little time for Rayleigh to rest, even more excessive than a grueling work schedule!
For someone retired, whose mentality had long calmed, and who had begun to enjoy a relaxed lifestyle, the "coating craftsman" of the Sabaody Archipelago was naturally wary of Rob, the little lunatic who pulled him into fights every day.
He was really worried that if he continued to stay, Rob would drag him into more special training and fighting, so he simply left.
Of course, if during the special combat training, Rob was like Straw Hat Luffy, who needed constant guidance, teaching, and even a good beating, Rayleigh would find it very interesting.
But the problem is—
Rob and Rayleigh are opponents on the same level. If Rayleigh didn't give it his all, he'd be at an absolute disadvantage and might even suffer serious injuries.
After all, in fierce battles, you can't always pull your punches, and a sword doesn't have eyes. Holding back isn't always an option.
Fighting Rob was pretty dangerous.
Not much to say about Rayleigh.
Robin's eyes were full of expectation as she looked at Rob:
"Onii-chan, the special combat training is over! What are we going to do next?"
Hearing her words, Rob had a smile on his face:
"Let me think about it... Now I don't have anything more to learn! I just need to keep exercising! So next, we can go wherever we want!"
After a short pause, Rob continued:
"The Grand Line is divided into two parts—"
"In the first half, it's called 'Paradise'. The pirates here aren't that strong, and it's relatively peaceful and stable! In the second half, the sea area called 'New World' is now in a state of chaos!"
"What I want is to have a good time in 'Paradise', explore the many magical islands in this sea area, and see if I can find more historical Poneglyphs."
"As for the 'New World', it's not a problem for your Oni-chan! But that sea is really too early for you guys!"
Rob had no interest in ruling a certain sea area or carving out territory, so he wasn't interested in the increasingly fierce war for domination in the New World.
Although he really wanted to fight those pirates, his choice remained the same as before—
Compared to fighting the strong, Rob prioritized the safety of Robin and Uta. It was better to wait for the situation in the New World to become more stable and for Robin and Uta to grow up a bit before going there!
At least wait for the era of the "Three Emperors" before the "Four Emperors" to come!
"Is that so?"
Hearing Rob's words, Robin froze for a moment.
Then she pursed her lips:
"Oni-chan... Are Uta and I a burden?"
Boom!
Before Robin finished speaking, Rob hit her on the head with his fist, and she crouched in pain, holding her head in her arms.
With a serious expression, Rob said in a deep voice:
"Don't be so stupid!"
"Next time you say such things, as your elder brother, I'll teach you a lesson! Remember, you and Uta are my most precious treasures. Nothing else is as important!"
Feeling the pain in her head and hearing Rob's words, Robin realized she had really made Rob angry.
Not harshly, but with big teary eyes, she looked pitifully at the serious Rob and whispered:
"Oni-chan~!"
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