Chapter 2 — Breaking Limits
The next day.
Shinji Ikari followed Koby and Helmeppo around the ship with an empty stomach. After breakfast, the three of them were immediately thrown into training.
Shinji and Koby were about the same age, so they were assigned to the lowest-ranking chores.
The annoying part was that not only did they have to do heavy labor during the day, they also had to train hard at night.
Swordsmanship, hand-to-hand combat, and marksmanship—none of them could be neglected.
They also had to study navigation knowledge and basic sailor skills.
To Koby and Helmeppo, it felt like torture—a painful path toward becoming stronger.
But to Shinji, it was pure enjoyment.
Pain was still pain, of course. But every bit of pain he endured eventually turned into strength.
Even though the improvement was small, Shinji could clearly feel the beauty of training.
The Devil Fruit he ate—the fruit of endless vitality—converted all physical pain and injury into energy, making him stronger without him even noticing.
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Late one night, a bounty poster shocked Koby and Helmeppo.
"Nani?!"
"Luffy's first bounty is 30 million Berries?!"
Koby couldn't believe it.
The road to fame for Monkey D. Luffy had begun incredibly fast.
The shock only made Koby's desire to grow stronger even more intense.
But after staring at the poster for a while, Koby collapsed from exhaustion.
The bright moon hung high in the sky, and both of them had completely run out of energy.
Helmeppo glanced at the poster once before passing out on the ground.
Meanwhile—
On the beach, Shinji was still training.
"Iron Body!"
"Iron Body!"
"Iron Body!"
He shouted while repeatedly striking his stance.
The Six Powers of the Marines were extremely powerful techniques, but they were notoriously difficult to master. Each one required pushing the human body beyond its natural limits.
Yet Shinji trained tirelessly.
Every night he practiced until morning.
The pain of staying awake all night seemed to transform directly into strength for him.
Koby had noticed something strange.
The more exhausted he felt, the more energetic Shinji seemed to become.
Although the changes were small, Shinji's constant accumulation of effort had gradually pushed his body to a new level.
His once thin frame had become firm and powerful.
The muscles covering his body were the result of relentless training.
"Iron Body is invincible!"
"Invincible Iron Body!"
Strength.
Counterattack.
Defense.
Endurance.
Physique.
These five qualities had to be pushed beyond human limits before someone could truly master Iron Body.
Every day Shinji practiced Marine techniques and studied naval knowledge.
If he stayed awake all night, the pain in his body would become unbearable.
But at the moment when exhaustion and pain peaked—
The power of the fruit inside him transformed that suffering into energy.
The fatigue disappeared.
And he became stronger.
Training improved his physique, skill, and reaction speed.
Even the unbearable pain of pushing his limits became fuel for growth.
This allowed him to constantly break through his boundaries.
"I must master Iron Body."
"The strongest Iron Body. The invincible Iron Body!"
Shinji gritted his teeth and kept going.
Unfortunately—or perhaps fortunately—the moment he reached his limit, the fruit's power converted the pain into energy again, strengthening his body.
Of course, the fruit also had a noticeable side effect.
His appetite grew larger every day.
At first, he couldn't even eat as much as Koby.
Now he could eat the same amount as five adult sailors.
Even as a simple deckhand, Shinji worked incredibly hard.
Whatever he did, he pushed himself to the limit.
Training was no exception.
After all, every bit of effort would eventually turn into real power.
Again.
And again.
Shinji pushed his body to the edge.
He had to master Iron Body.
He had to.
"Iron Body will let me take more hits. It's also a stepping stone to awakening Armament Haki. I must learn it."
Just as Shinji continued his training—
His stomach growled loudly.
He was hungry again.
Hungry to the point of weakness.
Strangely, hunger and pain could also be turned into energy.
But the stronger he became, the more energy his body required.
Which meant he became even hungrier.
"Damn it… I can endure any suffering."
"But I absolutely refuse to starve again!"
Shinji silently swore to himself.
In fact, he had already made dozens of vows since arriving in this world.
Never starve again.
Read comics freely.
One day surpass Garp.
Even he couldn't remember them all.
Boom!
A deep vibration echoed inside his body.
After pushing past his limits countless times, Shinji suddenly felt an intense pressure within himself.
His strength, endurance, defense, and physique had all reached a critical point.
And this time—
When he held his stance—
Something inside him seemed to break free.
Boom!
The strange sound echoed through his body again.
The boy stood motionless beneath the moonlight.
A confident smile slowly appeared on his face.
Sweat covered his forehead, and his messy black hair—now reaching past his ears—gave off faint steam.
His deep black eyes and bright whites looked like night and day existing side by side.
He wore nothing more than an ordinary Marine trainee uniform.
Yet he looked like a child stubbornly trying to imitate a true warrior.
"Iron Body!"
He shouted loudly.
A faint, almost invisible aura appeared around his body.
Shinji was certain of it.
This was the power humans gained after breaking past their limits.
Not only did it make his body stronger, more durable, and more resilient—
At critical moments, activating Iron Body could grant incredible defensive power.
"Strange… when Iron Body activates, I can feel this faint aura."
Shinji realized that this weak aura was the real secret behind Iron Body.
Unfortunately, aside from activating Iron Body itself, he couldn't control that energy.
He could only maintain it while holding his stance.
"Could this useless aura… actually be Armament Haki?"
Shinji muttered to himself.
Sadly, he was still far from truly mastering it.
No wonder the Six Powers of the Marines were considered the foundation for understanding both Armament Haki and Observation Haki.
It seemed Haki could exist in extremely weak forms at first.
But step-by-step training might still allow someone to cultivate it.
The person who created the Six Powers must have been a true genius.
"I'm exhausted…"
Shinji sighed and collapsed onto the ground.
Grrrr~
His stomach was still growling.
"Shinji! You actually mastered one of the Six Powers—Iron Body!"
Koby rushed over, carrying Helmeppo on his back.
In his hand was a piece of spare food.
It looked like a wafer biscuit.
"Of course."
Shinji grabbed the biscuit and devoured it in a few quick bites.
"I'm your senior now."
Koby stared at him in silence.
Shinji stood up and turned toward the sea.
The moonlight shimmered across the ocean like silver snow, illuminating the waves.
It lit up the world.
And reflected the dreams of young men.
"I'm telling you, Shinji…"
"Someday we'll become famous like Luffy!"
Hope shone in Koby's eyes.
Helmeppo was already asleep on his back.
"Of course."
Shinji looked at the sea and grinned.
"I'm the man who's going to become the King of the Navy."