Chapter 54: Steel City, Steel

"Armament Haki – Hardening!" Asa and Chinjao stood side by side at the bow of the ship as he spoke in a low voice.

His right hand was quickly covered by a layer of dark, steel-like coating, glimmering with a hazy blue halo under the light.

"Hahahaha! I did it!" Asa exclaimed excitedly.

"My benefactor is truly as talented as a monster. It only took him one night to learn Armament Haki!" Chinjao, standing beside him, had a look of astonishment in his eyes.

Lao Cai also took note of Asa's performance. At this moment, the resentment he once held toward Asa for killing dozens of Happo Navy soldiers had faded, leaving only deep admiration.

"I'm still not completely proficient in Haki yet, but as long as I keep practicing and strengthen my body with electrodes… Hahahaha!" Asa laughed, satisfied.

The progression of Armament Haki starts from the inside and gradually manifests outward, like burning metal—first turning orange-red before transitioning to black. Asa's Haki was pitch black with a misty, thunder-like blue hue. Luffy and Smoker's Haki had a white luster. Doflamingo's was different, while Virgo's had a purplish sheen, and Bundy Walder's was a darker gray.

The hardness of Haki increases with the user's strength. Asa's body was already powerful—he could go head-to-head with Chinjao even without using Haki. Now, with Hardening enhancing both his attack power and defense, his strength had taken a significant leap.

They stayed aboard the Happo Navy fleet for three days, celebrating with continuous banquets.

On the morning of the third day, Asa woke up, eager to bid farewell to Chinjao. He couldn't afford to wait for the Golden Fleet in the sky any longer—until he obtained the Door-Door Fruit, he wouldn't be able to rest easy.

"Benefactor, when you form your pirate crew in the New World, don't forget the Happo Navy!" Chinjao, Lao Cai, Abu, and others gathered to see Asa off.

"Of course!" Asa nodded solemnly. Lightning flickered across his body as he hovered in the air. "Then, see you in the future!"

With that, he disappeared from the ship in an instant, transforming into lightning and soaring into the clouds without a shred of hesitation.

Beneath the clear blue sky, a streak of electric blue light zipped forward at incredible speed, blending seamlessly with the horizon.

Determined to obtain the Door-Door Fruit as soon as possible, Asa abandoned the ship provided by Chinjao and his men, opting instead to use the flight ability granted by the Thunder Fruit to speed up his journey.

Using the information route that Pross had provided, he cross-referenced the approximate location of the Heavenly Gold transport route with the navigation map of the entire West Blue, ensuring he was heading in the right direction.

"Steel Island, the Steel Capital—200 miles east of Ohara."

"Ohara?" A fleeting thought crossed Asa's mind. "Should I go see Robin?"

But he quickly shook his head.

Nicole Robin was only about four years old right now—completely useless. Bringing her along would only slow him down, and she didn't even know how to read Poneglyphs yet. Right now, she had no value to him.

Asa had always looked down on incompetence. Perhaps once he established himself in the New World, he'd consider cultivating some potential talents, but for now, he had no time to waste.

He continued traveling at full speed toward his destination—Steel Island, the Steel City.

In the pirate world, most countries were island nations. The larger islands formed countries, while smaller ones were little more than villages, towns, or cities.

Only the most prosperous and wealthy islands were granted the title of "capital." The Steel City was one such place, renowned for its vast steel production.

In exchange for protection from the World Government, the island's rulers made annual tribute payments to the Celestial Dragons, donating resources and wealth.

By Asa's calculations, the Heavenly Gold transport ship should be docked at the port of Steel City on Steel Island right now.

Not wanting to waste time or risk unnecessary complications, Asa pushed his speed to the absolute limit.

At such velocity, anyone looking up would see nothing but a brief flash of blue light streaking across the sky before vanishing in an instant.

Although he wasn't moving at the speed of light, he was far beyond the speed of sound. Even Admiral Kizaru's Glint-Glint Fruit couldn't achieve true light-speed flight—human reflexes simply couldn't keep up with such speeds.

Previously, Asa's own reflexes would have struggled to match his forward momentum. But now, with his strengthened body and sharpened reaction time, he could control his high-speed movement effortlessly.

Like a meteor streaking across the sky, the scenery below blurred into abstract shapes. As he passed over islands and open sea, he occasionally triggered exclamations from people below, who mistook him for a falling star.

After flying at high speed for over two hours, Asa couldn't help but marvel at the vastness of the sea.

As he neared his destination, he gradually slowed his flight, adjusting to a more controlled pace.

Whoosh!

Asa abruptly halted mid-air, looking down at the Steel City on Steel Island.

The city lived up to its name—everything below him was made of steel. Buildings, houses, ports, and even the streets gleamed with metallic sheen, filling the air with the distinct scent of iron.

Thick black smoke spewed continuously from the factory chimneys, blanketing the entire island. Though the city was undoubtedly prosperous, the industrial pollution was severe.

"The disparity in the pirate world is truly extreme," Asa muttered, frowning as he waved a hand to dispel the pungent stench of rust and exhaust fumes.

Technology in this world was a strange paradox. There were sophisticated, lifelike robots on the moon, and in the future, Vegapunk would develop the Pacifista—intelligent war machines armed with laser weaponry.

Yet, at the same time, common soldiers still wielded primitive flintlock guns. Even the Navy's warships ran on basic turbine engines, with barely any advancements in artillery.

It was as if technological progress had been stunted, twisted into something unnatural.

But Asa wasn't surprised. In this world, strength was the ultimate authority. A single powerful warrior could destroy an entire island with a sword, a punch, or a kick. Only the legendary Ancient Weapon, Pluton, was said to rival such might.

As a result, research into technology was neglected. Only the World Government showed any interest in it, keeping Vegapunk under near-total house arrest.

But Asa never placed much faith in technology either. As his mastery over electromagnetism grew, no metal object could escape his control.

Perhaps, one day, his abilities would reach the point where he could magnetize any object and manipulate all forms of matter.

His goal was to become like Magneto from the Marvel comics—that was the direction he aimed to develop his power.

Floating above Steel Island, Asa could feel the overwhelmingly active magnetic field below him. Almost everything on this island was made of steel, completely integrated into daily life.

Here, he was practically a god.

His gaze shifted toward the bustling port, where a luxurious ship lay docked. On its mast, the emblem of the Celestial Dragons' Hoof Print was prominently displayed.

A grin slowly spread across Asa's face.

"I found it. The Door-Door Fruit should be on that ship."

By eavesdropping on the conversations of the crew aboard the Heavenly Gold transport ship, he confirmed that Pross's information had been spot on.

(End Of Chapter)

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