One Piece: Who still has dreams?

Who are you talking to?

Ace was completely bewildered behind him, but suddenly he heard a girl's voice from above:

"Okay, scanning and creating a file... File creation successful. Hello, Ace, my name is Bulma, and I am the AI ​​butler of this gravity training room. You can think of me as an invisible assistant. If you have any questions in the training room, you can talk to me through this 'capsule bracelet'."

A beam of light shone on Ace's wrist, who was filled with surprise and doubt. Energy particles precisely followed his constantly swinging wrist and quickly condensed into a high-tech bracelet.

Redio and Zoro simply raised their hands, and a beam of energy shot down, binding a "capsule bracelet" to their wrists. Then Redio pushed open the main door, and with a "whoosh," the door slowly opened, and the three entered one after the other.

……

This "gravity spaceship" isn't a real spaceship, but it is indeed the only reward item with great value from the missions Reddio completed in the past two years.

According to the AI ​​Bulma, this gravity training room is an "antique-style" product created by Bulma's 17th generation descendant in a parallel Dragon Ball world. The spherical spaceship design is only to commemorate the prototype masterpiece of their ancestor and does not have flight capabilities.

However, unlike the spaceship that Bulma's father made for Goku, the gravity chamber in this future version does not provide global coverage. Instead, it automatically adjusts the gravity based on the data from each capsule bracelet, taking into account the different users' situations.

Therefore, Redio and his companions can train under different gravities simultaneously inside the "spaceship".

It was precisely because of this tool, coupled with the ability to create high-energy food anytime and anywhere, that Reddio's physical strength made rapid progress during high-intensity training.

"This place is so big!"

This was Ace's first reaction upon entering. He looked around and saw that the empty space was about 300 x 300 meters. From the outside, it looked like just a "sphere" the size of a house.

"Science, isn't it amazing?" Redio laughed.

The Capsule Corporation in the Dragon Ball world already possessed space-folding technology. In the future, 17 generations later, this spaceship seems to have been equipped with an infinite energy system similar to Android 18.

In any case, Redio never refueled or charged the spaceship, but if you ask Bulma, she will insist on not revealing the company's patented technology, citing her status as an artificial intelligence produced by Capsule Corporation.

"Oh, I see."

Ace was surprised for a moment, but didn't dwell on it any longer. With Bulma's voice prompts on the capsule bracelet, he enthusiastically began to select the gravity training function. He immediately wanted to choose the "6 times gravity" that Zoro had mentioned on the way.

However, Bulma, as an artificial intelligence, disagreed with such emotional and impulsive decision-making as humans, so she tactfully suggested that the initial activation must start with a gradual increase of 1.1 times...

My body... feels so heavy!

As the gravity number on the bracelet slowly reached 2.5, Ace's expression changed slightly. When it reached 3, a layer of fine sweat appeared on his forehead.

3.1

3.2

3.3...

Ace's breathing became heavy, but under Zoro's enigmatic smile, he gritted his teeth and kept a straight face. As a result of forcibly holding it in, he felt even more tired when the gravity reading climbed to "4".

After the number reached "4.4", Ace's forehead veins throbbed, his eyes became bloodshot, and his muscles twitched all over his body, clearly indicating that he had reached a limit of exertion.

"Don't push yourself. This is your first time, take it slow."

Redio had already prepared a huge feast nearby, and Zoro naturally sat down next to him, unfastened his three swords and placed them aside, eating while watching Ace struggle against 4.4 times gravity on his own...

……

Meanwhile, on the other side of the East China Sea…

〖Cocoa Village〗

Nojiko, with her gray-blue hair and elaborate tattoos on her chest and arms, was flipping through the newspaper at home when she exclaimed in surprise, "The Krieg Pirates were wiped out about half a month ago. Whether it was the result of a pirate battle or the work of an unknown bounty hunter, the Navy has not yet given a conclusion... Nami, did you hear about this when you went out this time?"

"Oh..." Nami replied listlessly, her voice lacking energy.

Her expression was gloomy and she was in a depressed mood. She rested her cheek on one hand and unconsciously flipped through a thick book with the other—the copy of "Devil Fruit Encyclopedia" that Redio had left on the pink new ship.

Chapter 70 Evil Dragon

[Chapter Opening Serial: Executive Vice President Miss Quan, Sunday, Episode 20: "It's a Trap, But What If?"]

[Robin and his two companions ran towards the beach with the blond young man, followed by a new group of Marines and other pursuers. The blond man, with burns on his left cheek, smiled and explained a few words to the excited young Revolutionary Army soldiers.]

*******************************************************

[1 week ago]

[Arlong Paradise, the Arlong Pirates' stronghold, located not far west of Cocoyasi Village in the northwest of the East Blue]

"Hahaha! It's our cadre back!"

In the spacious courtyard, a stone path divides the huge swimming pool into two parts, and a mermaid statue holds up a stone bottle from which water flows endlessly.

At the other end of the pool, on a lounge chair under the corridor, sat a burly, purple-skinned fishman wearing beach shorts.

He had a long, saw-like nose, a fierce face, and a striking sun tattoo on his left chest. When he saw Nami enter alone from the east gate, the saw-nose fish-man let out a wild laugh.

"Ah Long, are you all alone? The security here is still so lax."

Nami, carrying a large box, approached the fishman Arlong, who scoffed, "Guardian... Heh, who do you think I am? Hey, how was your haul this time?"

boom!

Nami slammed the heavy trunk onto the small table in front of Arlong, and without saying a word, she opened it with a snap, took out a fist-sized piece of gold, and placed it heavily on the leather trunk.

"This piece of pure gold is more than enough to pay you the 1 million Berries you asked for," she said. "It's time for you to keep your promise. From now on, you are not allowed to harass Cocoyasi Village again."

"..."

Ah Long was silent for a moment, then gently picked up the ball of gold with one finger and placed it into his large, webbed hand.

He squeezed it hard, and surprisingly, the pure gold deformed like dough. He threw his head back and laughed, "It really is gold? That's so unexpected! But... our agreement was clearly 1 million Berries, Nami, is this Berries? It looks like just a special piece of iron..."

Before he finished speaking, Nami opened the heavy leather trunk again, lifted the second layer, and turned to face him—the bottom of the trunk was covered with stacks of brand-new banknotes, a thick layer.

"1 million Berries," Nami said expressionlessly. "I knew you were going to pull some tricks."

"..."

Arlong stared at Nami, who met his gaze coldly, not to be outdone.

"Ahhhhhh!!!"

Ah Long suddenly looked up and let out a whistle that didn't sound human, as if he were sighing.

He patted the armrest of the recliner, stood up, and his shadow, almost as large as a mountain, loomed over Nami. Looking down at her, he said, "What a pity, Nami. I originally valued your talent for navigation. The 1 million Berries was just an excuse to delay you. Actually, even if you couldn't raise that 1 million in the end, as long as you sincerely joined us, I would have spared your hometown village. Think about it, how could I be the kind of person who would harm my comrades? Right?"

Nami calmly said, "Could you please not get so close? I'm about to throw up."

boom!

Ah Long's eyes twitched, and he flew into a rage. With a stomp of his foot, the high-quality stone floor of the corridor cracked rapidly with a series of loud bangs.

Just then, a figure suddenly leaped out of the pool next to them, slammed the large box on the table shut and snatched it away, then jumped onto the mermaid statue.

"Hahaha!"

Arlong's expression changed instantly, then he burst into laughter, "What bad luck, Nami. Now even if I wanted to keep my promise, I can't! Hahaha..."

Nami's face was ashen, her eyes practically spitting fire as she roared, "Arlong! Hachi! What are you trying to do?!"

On the mermaid statue, the burly figure holding a money box in two hands, with two hands on his hips and two hands adjusting the cloth strip hastily covering his head and face, is none other than Hachi, one of the executives of the Arlong Pirates, the octopus fishman.

Little Eight said, "Who is Little Eight, New? I am the terrifying legend of the sea—David Eight, New! All the treasure belongs to me, New!"

Ah Long said, "Hahaha, it's Davy Jones, isn't it?"

Little Eight exclaimed in surprise, "Really? Oh right, Davy Jones, New! Not counting... who is Little Eight, New? I am the terrifying legend of the sea..."

"Enough!!!"

Nami, unable to contain herself any longer, roared, tears welling in her eyes, glaring fiercely at Arlong, and gritting her teeth, "What exactly do you want?!"

"What do you mean, 'I want what'?"

Ah Long, his eyes bloodshot, roared, "Did I break my promise? Human woman, don't be so arrogant!!!"

He stomped heavily on the ground, and the cracks that were already visible on the ground spread to the five-story building behind him.

The sawtooth shark man strode around and, incredibly, plunged his hands into the corner of the wall, using unimaginable brute force to lift the entire building off the ground!

He lifted the five-story building and, roaring, threw it over the wall of Alon Amusement Park.

Boom... The tall building crashed to the ground outside the wall, and the dust it kicked up turned into a gust of wind that lashed against Nami's dazed and terrified face.

Ah Long's arm muscles were engorged with blood, almost tearing his sleeve. He clenched his fist and said coldly, "When inferior races negotiate with superior races, they should proactively consider all sorts of risks. That's basic courtesy. I ask you, did I receive the money? If not, why should I honor the agreement?"

Nami suppressed her fear and grief, forcing herself not to avoid the nightmarish, cold gaze of the fish-man. She had to be strong; she could only be strong. She couldn't afford to break down.

"However, I am not lying about valuing your seafaring skills."

Arlong lazily sat back down. "Forget about the 1 million Berries joke. How about this: if you can come up with 50 billion Berries, I swear on the honor of the Fish-Men, I will keep my promise, officially accept you as a member, and then let Cocoyasi Village go. How about that, Nami? Hahahaha..."

"Oh, right, since you made me so angry this time, tearing down this precious amusement park, consider this gold and 1 million as compensation~~ I was just thinking of renovating it to be more luxurious, you've been a huge help, Nami, hahahaha!!!"

Nami bit her lip until it bled, tears streaming down her face as she ran wildly out of Arlong Park, the sounds of Arlong and Hachi laughing in unison echoing behind her...

……

Back to the present

With a snap, Nami closed the "Devil Fruit Encyclopedia," grabbed the book, and pushed open the door to leave. "I'm off."

Nochiko put down the newspaper and looked at her younger sister's stubborn back with some worry.

50 million.