Aboard the Explorer, in the Sword Enlightenment Room.
"Nojiko, you also want to join us for training?" Ikki turned around, somewhat surprised to see Nojiko being brought to the Explorer by Nami.
"Is that all right, Ikki?" Nojiko tilted her head with a smile. "Although I don't have Nami's talent for navigation, I'm quite confident in my cooking skills. Besides, having one more person can free up more time for your training."
Hearing this, Ikki nodded to himself appreciatively.
"Since you put it that way, Nojiko, I have no reason to refuse. Welcome aboard, Nojiko," Ikki said. "Don't worry, I understand you want to defeat the Arlong Pirates together with Nami as soon as possible. I'll give you considerable support."
Ikki smiled, raised his hand, and stamped the Explorer's emblem on the back of Nojiko's hand.
[Ding! Congratulations to Host for gaining the second partner. Special reward: 'Iron-cutting Realm Swordsman Challenge Permission' x1.]
[Nojiko's attribute information has been updated.]
[Name: Nojiko]
[Age: 20 years old]
[Weapon: None]
[Life Force: 13]
[Sword Realm: None]
[Special Ability: None]
[Swordsmanship School: None]
'As expected, Nojiko, who hasn't gone to sea for training, has significantly lower initial Life Force points than Nami,' Ikki thought. 'In this state, it might be difficult for even E-level nutritional medicine to bring Nojiko's Life Force into the D-level.'
Ikki felt concerned as he realized he only had four bottles of E-level nutritional potions left in his reserves.
'Wait, I still have the "100-point Life Force Boosting Potion,"' Ikki remembered. He raised his hand and, before Nami and Nojiko's astonished eyes, produced a bottle of red potion from thin air.
"This is a medicine that can quickly increase a person's strength, enhancing physical abilities without the need for exercise," Ikki explained. "Since Nojiko has joined my crew and urgently needs power to confront the Arlong Pirates, I'll give this to you."
Naturally, Nami supported Ikki's proposal. When Nojiko heard how precious this potion was, she hesitated briefly, but with Nami's encouragement, she nodded and drank the '100-point Life Force Boosting Potion.'
After consuming it, Nojiko clearly felt her body heating up. Her skin turned red instantly, and streams of steam rose from her body.
"Don't worry, it's just the normal reaction to rapid strength enhancement," Ikki reassured them, seeing Nami's worried glance.
Simultaneously, Ikki's mind registered notifications about Nojiko:
[Ding! Partner Nojiko's Life Force level has improved from E-level to D-level. Special reward: one bottle of "100-point Life Force Boosting Potion" for the Host.]
[Note: This medicine can only be taken once per person.]
"How do you feel, Nojiko?" Ikki asked once the system notification faded.
"It's... amazing! I've never felt so good," Nojiko exclaimed. "Captain Ikki, I feel like I could knock out a cow with one punch right now!"
She flexed her biceps excitedly as she spoke.
"Haha, that's quite the comparison," Ikki laughed. "But I do believe you could indeed take down a cow now."
Ikki patted Nojiko's shoulder, then turned to Nami and retrieved the Life Force Boosting Potion he had just received from the system.
"Nami, this is your share," he said. "Drink this and you'll quickly gain additional strength."
After hearing Ikki's words, Nami didn't hesitate. She took the Life Force Boosting Potion and drank it. Soon, she experienced the same reaction as Nojiko.
After a moment, Nami took a deep breath. "This is incredible! I feel like my physical strength has doubled," she said. "Captain Ikki, why didn't you give us something this good earlier?"
Nami pouted, giving Ikki a playful look of complaint.
"Precisely because this potion is so effective, my supplies are very limited," Ikki replied, spreading his hands. "I just gave you the only two bottles I had left that can provide such rapid enhancement."
"Hey, Nami, you should thank Captain Ikki," Nojiko scolded, hands on her hips.
"Haha, Nojiko, since we're partners now, there's no need for such formalities," Ikki smiled, waving dismissively.
"Yeah, yeah, no need to be formal with Captain Ikki," Nami nodded in agreement.
"Speaking of which, Captain Ikki, now that my strength has increased so much," Nami continued, "can I fight that bastard Arlong?"
Hearing Nami's question, Ikki thought for a moment before shaking his head.
"Arlong of the Arlong Pirates came from the Grand Line," Ikki explained solemnly. "His strength far surpasses that of Jango and the others you defeated earlier. With your current abilities and half-developed swordsmanship, defeating him would be difficult. Even with Nojiko's help, Arlong still has many fishman pirates supporting him. I suggest that you and Nojiko train here for a while longer. After your strength improves further, then you can challenge the Arlong Pirates."
"Swordsmanship..." Nami placed her hand on the zanpakuto at her waist. "Captain Ikki, you mentioned before that one can quickly gain swordsmanship power by challenging the shadow swordsmen in the Sword Enlightenment Room. Am I ready now to challenge those shadow swordsmen?"