It had been nine days since Ling transmigrated into this world—and seven days since he began his training.
He had just finished his morning meditation and was now soaking in a bath, letting the warmth ease his muscles.
'My stamina has definitely improved… and my strength's steadily increasing. All that's left now is to gain real combat experience.'
'The Reverie should be just starting around this time. Maybe in a week or two, Garp will come to check in on Luffy and Ace.'
'Speaking of Garp… he trained Luffy by throwing him into the forest to fight monkeys and baboons as a kid.'
'That's probably where I should start too. If I go deep enough into Mt. Colubo, not only will I find strong beasts, I might even run into them.'
'Luffy should still be chasing Ace around right about now. And soon… Porchemy will make his move on Ace and Sabo.'
He leaned back, the steam curling around him as he stared at the ceiling.
'Also… I'm pretty sure my meditation is improving my Haki. When I go deep enough, I can feel some kind of energy flowing through my body.'
'That's progress.'
'Yeah… it's time to start training basic Haki.'
'As for my physical techniques—I've made progress there too. I can now use a downgraded version of Shave. I can only kick the ground three times in an instant, but even that's enough to double my speed.'
'The problem is, it eats through my stamina like crazy. I gas out after just five seconds of continuous use.'
'On the other hand, my Devil Fruit training has been a success. I can now send objects into the future with precision—whether it's milliseconds, seconds, minutes, or even days.'
'Two days ago, I sent a rock forward. Yesterday, it reappeared exactly when it was supposed to.'
'That gave me the confidence to try it on something living.'
'So, I found a cow… and it worked. I sent it ten seconds into the future. No harm, no resistance—it just vanished and then reappeared exactly ten seconds later.'
'After that, I started testing it on myself. Just small skips—0.65 seconds forward, or maybe a few seconds at most.'
'That's when I noticed something: my ability does consume stamina, but only in proportion to how far forward I send something.'
'Sending myself a few milliseconds or even a second ahead barely costs me anything. But minutes? That hits like a truck.'
'It means long-distance time skips come at a heavy cost… but short ones are spammable.'
'That's a huge win. I can phase through attacks repeatedly without exhausting myself.'
'However… combining it with even an imperfect Shave is still too draining. So for now, I'll hold off on using them together unless I'm in real danger.'
As Ling soaked in the bath, enjoying the warmth after his morning routine, a sudden commotion broke the calm.
Outside, shouting echoed through the village. Makino and the mayor, who were waiting to have breakfast with him, also took notice.
Ling immediately stood up, dried off in a rush, and threw on his clothes. He stepped outside and turned to the mayor, concern written across his face.
"Mayor, what's going on?" he asked.
The mayor's expression was grim. "It's pirates."
At his words, the three of them rushed out together. Dozens of villagers had already gathered, murmuring anxiously as they tried to get a look at what was happening.
Ling's eyes widened in horror.
A familiar figure was being held by the hair—bloodied, face twisted in pain. A sword was pressed to his neck.
It was Gaimon.
And the man holding him was thin, ratty-looking, with long hair, black-painted lips, and a red-striped bandana.
Ling's fists clenched tightly.
Since he'd arrived in this world, Makino, the mayor, and Gaimon had become the people he felt closest to. Gaimon had saved his life—if he hadn't found Ling washed up on the shore, he might have died from his injuries.
'He gave me this second life. I owe him everything.'
'And that pirate… red-striped bandana, long hair, black lips… he's from the Bluejam Pirates.'
'Even if I don't get involved now, I'll eventually cross paths with them if I head to the Grey Terminal.'
'But Gaimon is my benefactor. I can't let this slide.'
'Ah, screw it. What's bound to happen will happen. If it bites me later, I'll let my future self deal with it.'
Without wasting another second, Ling sprinted toward the pirate, raw power propelling him forward.
Makino and the mayor both cried out in alarm.
"Ling! Come back! You'll get hurt!" Makino shouted.
The pirate turned toward the sound, squinting at the blur charging at him.
"Well, well… what do we have here? A little superhero?" he sneered.
He chuckled—but the laugh died in his throat as a fist slammed into his face.
Ling's punch landed clean, the pirate barely able to register it before he was sent sprawling to the ground.
The villagers gasped in disbelief. Makino stood frozen in shock.
Even the mayor, though wide-eyed, remained calm. He had been watching Ling train all week and knew the boy had something special in him.
In his long life, he'd seen his share of extraordinary people—Garp, for one, and even Garp's son, Dragon.
Now, he was starting to see Ling in that same light.
"Maybe it's time I stopped treating Ling like just another child," the mayor murmured with a sigh.
"Gaimon, are you okay?" Ling asked, concern etched on his face.
"I… I'm fine, but—" Gaimon began, but his eyes suddenly widened in alarm.
At the same time, Makino screamed, and gasps echoed from the villagers.
The pirate had sprung back to his feet and was already mid-swing, his blade flashing toward Ling's neck.
Ling's instincts screamed at him—danger.
Without hesitation, he activated his Devil Fruit ability, skipping one second into the future. The sword sliced through empty air, missing him by a hair's breadth.
The pirate's eyes widened in shock. "What the—?"
But he didn't hesitate. He lunged again, swinging wildly.
Ling reacted fast—he caught the pirate's arm mid-swing and drove a hard punch into his gut, sending the man staggering back.
"Gaimon, get to safety! I'll handle this!" Ling shouted.
Gaimon didn't argue. He understood that in his current state, he was only a liability. He stumbled toward the crowd as villagers moved to help him.
The pirate grit his teeth, glaring at Ling. "You little brat…"
But Ling didn't give him time to recover. He surged forward, feet pounding the ground.
He feinted a high kick.
The pirate flinched, instinctively raising his sword to block—
And that was all the opening Ling needed.
He shifted his weight and drove a low punch into the pirate's ribs.
Knocking him out, making him unconscious.
The mayor arrived with a length of rope, and with the help of a few villagers, tied the pirate up securely.
Makino rushed over, concern etched across her face. She knelt beside Ling and scanned him for injuries.
"Ling, are you hurt anywhere?" she asked, worried.
"I'm fine, Makino. See? All that training paid off," he said with a reassuring smile. "Actually, I've decided—I'll head to Mt. Colubo for a week to train even more."
Makino opened her mouth to protest, but the mayor stepped in.
"He's right, Makino. The boy can handle himself. But Ling," he added, turning to him with a stern expression, "don't push your luck. If you run into something dangerous, get out of there. Don't try to be a hero."
Makino could only sigh, worry still lingering in her eyes.
"You might run into a silly kid with a straw hat out there," she said, placing a gentle hand on Ling's back. "His name is Luffy. If you see him, tell him we miss him."
She smiled softly. "Also, tell him we'll visit soon. And Ling… you can come back anytime, alright?"
She turned to leave. "I'll go prepare some food for your trip."
Ling looked over at the pirate still tied up on the ground. "What about him, Mayor?"
"Don't worry," the mayor replied. "We'll take care of him."
Thirty minutes later, Makino returned with a food basket packed with enough to last the day.
Ling slung the basket over his shoulder and glanced at the morning sun. 'It's already 7 a.m. I should head out now while it's still early.'
After saying his goodbyes to Makino, the mayor, and a final check-in with Gaimon, Ling set off toward Mt. Colubo—ready for whatever the wild forest had in store.
Twenty minutes later, Ling reached the edge of the forest.
"Before I start training, I need to find the perfect spot to stay for the next few days."
A spark of excitement lit his eyes. "Feels like I'm back playing The Forest or The Sons of the Forest again."
"First things first—I need a good place to set up camp. Somewhere near a river, but not too close. I don't want animals—or worse—creeping into my camp at night."
He nodded to himself, recalling the map from the series. "I'll head toward the spot where Luffy, Ace, and Sabo once hunted that giant alligator for dinner. If I remember right, there's a clean water source and plenty of river fish there."
"My base should be close enough to the river for access, but far enough to stay safe. Ten minutes away on foot—or better yet, running distance—should be ideal."
It took nearly thirty minutes to reach the lake deep in the forest, nestled in a quiet, secluded area.
Ling crouched by the water, inspecting it carefully. "Yeah… this'll work."
Satisfied with the location, he began scouting for a place to establish his base camp. After a bit of searching, he came across a clearing ringed with trees, the ground firm and dry.
"This is perfect. No markings on the trees, no recent footprints… seems untouched."
As he surveyed the surroundings, he noticed a tall tree with a thick, sturdy branch jutting out near the top.
"That'll do for sleeping."
With a sharp inhale, he kicked the ground hard—propelling himself upward in a burst of speed. It wasn't quite moonwalk yet, more like an imperfect version of it—he couldn't stay airborne, but he could launch himself with enough force to evade or reposition quickly. Good enough for now.
He landed on the branch and took a seat, steadying his breath.
"Alright… camp secured."
After settling in for a few minutes, he stood up and cracked his knuckles.
"Now… it's time to train."