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'I got Katen Kyōkotsu Zanpakutō?'
Ikki's eyes widened in surprise as he immediately took out the newly acquired Katen Kyōkotsu from his system space.
At the moment, the Shikai form of Katen Kyōkotsu resembled the two great swords "Oto" and "Kogarashi" he had taken from Golden Lion.
'Since Katen Kyōkotsu has two blades, do I now have two powerful swords? And the system even provided scabbards?'
After drawing both "Oto" and "Kogarashi" to examine them, Ikki nodded with satisfaction.
'Katen Kyōkotsu has a truly unusual power,' he thought. 'Without someone smart and calm to wield it, this Zanpakutō might not reach its full potential. It's too bad Robin is already bound to Senbonzakura, or she would be perfect for these blades.'
Ikki turned his head and glanced at Robin, who responded with a smile.
'The Advanced Conqueror's Awakening Potion is also a good reward. Too bad there aren't any S-level nutritional potions. For now, the only way to improve my Life Force is through training and fighting.'
Ikki shook his head, took out the Advanced Conqueror's Awakening Potion from his personal space, and drank it in one gulp.
[Ding! Congratulations Host, your Conqueror's Haki has awakened to an advanced level. Your Conqueror's Haki can now directly damage physical objects.]
[Your attributes have been updated, please check.]
[Host: Ikki]
[Age: 25 years old]
[Weapon: Zangetsu]
[Life Force: 30766]
[Swordsmanship Realm: Mountain-Cutting Realm]
[Abilities: Intermediate Armament Haki, Advanced Observation Haki (Future Sight), Advanced Conqueror's Haki, Conqueror's Infusion, Transparent World, Innate Demon Mark]
[Swordsmanship schools: Breathing Techniques, Zoro's Three Sword Style, Tashigi's One Sword Style, Shiki's Dual Sword Style...]
[Items: E-level nutritional potion x4, D-level nutritional potion x4, C-level nutritional potion x16, B-level nutritional potion x10, A-level nutritional potion, 500 points of Life Force boosting potion x1, Intermediate Observation Haki fragment x1]
'Fighting Golden Lion added some Life Force points too. Not bad,' Ikki thought before closing his attribute panel.
"Ikki, have you finished modifying those two swords?" Vivi asked curiously.
Having seen "Oto" and "Kogarashi" disappear and reappear, Vivi, now a veteran crew member, had her suspicions.
"Yes, from now on these two swords will be called Katen Kyōkotsu," Ikki smiled and nodded.
"Two swords? Do you plan to give both to one person?" Vivi asked in surprise.
"These two blades are a pair. They can only show their true power when used together," Ikki explained.
"Can you show us what kind of abilities they have?" Nami asked with equal curiosity.
"Haha, there's no rush. We'll wait until new crew members join us," Ikki laughed. "I'll demonstrate these swords' capabilities to the new members and all of you then. As for now..."
Ikki looked down at the sticky residue from the manta ray healing still on his body.
"I'd better take a shower first. Nami, would you like to join? You must have used a lot of energy in the battle. The hot springs can help you recover faster. After we've regained our strength, we'll set off for Sky Island."
Hearing this, Nami crossed her arms. "Together, Ikki? If you give me 1 million Berries, I might agree."
"Fine, one million it is. Your price keeps going up, doesn't it?" Ikki shook his head, placing his hand on Nami's shoulder and guiding her toward the cabin. The Berries on the ship belonged to everyone anyway, so he didn't mind if Nami kept a little extra in her private vault.
"Hey, don't touch me! The goo on your body is getting on mine," Nami complained with a pout.
Ikki just smiled and hugged her tightly, making Nami squeal and squirm.
"They get along so well," Nojiko shook her head, looking at Golden Lion's body beside her before kicking it off the deck.
The once-mighty Golden Lion Shiki couldn't escape the fate of becoming fish food.
Aboard the Traveler, in the bathhouse...
[Name: Shiki]
[Age: 25 years old]
[Weapons: Oto, Kogarashi]
[Life Force: 30000, S level]
[Swordsmanship Style: Shiki's Dual Sword Style]
[Swordsmanship Realm: Mountain-Cutting Realm]
[Abilities: Intermediate Armament Haki, Intermediate Observation Haki, Float-Float Fruit]
'A 25-year-old version of Golden Lion?' Ikki thought, examining the attributes of the "Mountain-Cutting Realm Swordsman Shiki" challenge he'd unlocked. 'Fortunately, Golden Lion is in this weakened state. Nojiko only needs to train for a while to defeat him and improve her swordsmanship to unlock her Bankai.'
"Ikki, the Explorer has been anchored," Nojiko called from the bathhouse door. "Should we rest here today and set off tomorrow?"
Ikki looked up to see Nojiko, Vivi, and Robin entering the bathhouse. The three women sat down near him.
"No, let's leave today," Ikki decided. "Our battle may have attracted unwanted attention. It would be fine if friendly people came to investigate, but terrible if unfriendly ones did. If you want to rest, let's wait until we reach Sky Island. There's a self-proclaimed 'God' in that place, but as long as we don't provoke him, he won't bother us."
"But your body..." Nojiko glanced at Ikki worriedly.
"Don't worry," he reassured her. "You don't know how effective these hot springs are. Though fighting Golden Lion used a lot of my energy, resting here for two or three hours will restore me to peak condition. After I recover, we'll sail overnight. The battles with Golden Lion and Blackbeard have already delayed us. Nami and Robin are eager to see the treasure and historical monuments as soon as possible."
As he spoke, Ikki smiled and glanced at Robin sitting behind him and Nami soaking in the water with a towel over her face.
"The historical monuments aren't going anywhere. I'm not in a hurry," Robin smiled.
"That said, Ikki is right. Both of us are recovering quickly, so there's no problem if we sail overnight," Nami removed the towel from her face, her tone revealing unconcealed excitement.
"See? We have people who are quite eager to go," Ikki smiled, reaching into his personal system space to retrieve the "Basic Armament Haki Awakening Potion" and handed it to Robin.
"Ikki, what is this?" she asked.
"A potion that will help you awaken Armament Haki," Ikki explained. "Though it only gives you basic mastery, it will at least let you harm enemies with elemental abilities. After you take it, every crew member on our ship will have Armament Haki."
He added, "I'm sorry. I originally wanted you to finish off Golden Lion and possibly unlock your Zanpakutō's Shikai at the same time. But he was too dangerous—I couldn't guarantee I'd just knock him out rather than kill him."
Robin shook her head. "I'm just glad you came back safely, Ikki. As for my Zanpakutō's Shikai, I'll have many opportunities in the future."
Robin knew that while finding a specific Devil Fruit in this sea might be rare, the chances of encountering enemies with Devil Fruit powers weren't small. She would have plenty of chances to unlock Senbonzakura's Shikai.
Ikki smiled and nodded as Robin took the Basic Armament Haki Awakening Potion. He then turned to Nojiko and Vivi, taking out all five bottles of A-grade nutritional potions he had just received from the system.
"Nojiko, take these three bottles of nutritional potions. If you use them well over the next three days, your Life Force will reach S-level. When that happens, spending some time training with me will help you unlock your Bankai. You're almost ready to challenge the 'Golden Lion Shiki Shadow.'"
As he spoke, Ikki pushed the other two bottles of A-grade Nutritional Potion toward Vivi. He took out the "Mountain-Cutting Realm Swordsman Shiki Challenge Permission" card from his personal space and handed it to Nojiko.