Chapter 108: Call Kaido Over!

"Yes, and since these combat techniques were designed specifically for giants, it is much more difficult for ordinary humans to learn them."

Brogy added, "In the past, friends from outside came to our Giant Village to study and succeeded, but among humans, they were beings like giants themselves, standing at least three or four meters tall."

"As for someone like you, Brother Siano, although your physique is no inferior to those monsters, your size is truly too... uh, pocket-sized and mini; I'm afraid you cannot meet the minimum requirements to learn the Giant Tribe's combat techniques."

So that's what they were worried about!

They should have said so earlier!

Siano suddenly realized.

He blinked, and in the brief moment his eyelids rose and fell, his body suddenly expanded drastically; like an inflating balloon, he enlarged significantly with a 'Bang'.

Eh?

It's been a long time since I switched back to my true form.

Siano only now realized that his true height seemed to have increased even more... by about twenty centimeters or so?

Originally already three point seven meters, now he estimated he must be three point nine meters, almost breaking through the four-meter mark.

He looked up at Blue Ghost and Red Ghost.

The two giants stared at him in utter astonishment.

"Two uncles, this is actually my true appearance," Siano smiled. "I wonder if I am qualified now..."

"Enough, absolutely enough!"

Only then did the two giants recover from their shock, speaking in unison.

In Elbaf, some warriors with exceptional talent who trained since childhood only reach four or five meters; Siano's height just barely reached the minimum threshold.

"Then shall we start training tomorrow?" Blue Ghost stood up and stretched. "You must be tired enough for today; tonight, just get a good res—"

"No need to worry about me."

Siano casually shook his arms; the horrifying bruises on his body were fading at a speed visible to the naked eye. "My stamina is still quite sufficient, and it's not dark yet; let's train a bit longer today. Worst case, we can just light a bonfire tonight."

"Uh..." Blue Ghost's motion of raising his arm froze, nearly throwing out his old back.

"..." Red Ghost, who had been rubbing his sore arms, was also dumbfounded at this moment.

"Alright, we can't delay you two too much; let's start right now!"

Siano moved his fully recovered joints, flames of eagerness dancing in his eyes: "Two uncles, where should I begin learning?"

In the afterglow of the setting sun.

The two legendary giants exchanged a glance and swallowed hard.

Looking at this black-haired youth before them who seemed not to know what fatigue was, they felt for the first time what was meant by "teaching pressure."

"What's wrong?" Siano looked at them blankly. "Are we not continuing today?"

"Gah... Gahahaha!" Dorry's laughter was obviously somewhat hollow. "O-of course we will continue!"

Brogy silently wiped the cold sweat from his forehead: "Warriors of Elbaf... n-never retreat!"

That night, beside the bonfire.

Dorry and Brogy lay sprawled on the ground, their faces filled with exhaustion.

Meanwhile, Siano, who should have been utterly spent, was energetic as he set up meat for grilling, occasionally throwing a few practice swings into the air.

Blue Ghost and Red Ghost listened to the 'Whoosh' of wind sounds coming from beside their ears and exchanged a bitter smile.

They had originally thought it would be the two of them unleashing an inhumane hellish training regimen upon Brother Siano, fearing he would collapse and have to quit within a few days.

But as a result, how did it look now...

It seemed that the two of them were the ones being tortured by the hellish special training?

—————

Four days later, Little Garden.

The scorching noon sun baked the entire island like a furnace, the air distorting and deforming in the heat waves.

Siano stood bare-chested in the open space between two giant bones.

At this moment, he was still maintaining his true form.

His height of three point nine meters was like a small hill, inspiring awe; he casually rotated the joints of his hands, yet the muscles all over his body were already tensed tight like steel bars.

"Hey, everyone move back a bit; if you get caught in the path, it will be very dangerous," Dorry's voice rolled like muffled thunder.

The crowd nearby, who had been giggling while eating ice cream and watching the spectacle, were startled and hurriedly retreated to both sides.

"Are you ready, Brother Siano?"

Siano took a deep breath and nodded.

In an instant, the power throughout his body surged out like a volcanic eruption, pouring entirely into his fist; the surrounding air distorted and deformed, emitting a groan of being overburdened.

"Elbaf Spear—Kokuo!!!"

With a fierce shout, Siano suddenly smashed a punch forward!

A crimson shockwave burst forth from his knuckles, smashing toward the towering Shanfeng in the distance with a force that crushed everything in its path.

Crack, crack.

Wherever it passed, the ground cracked inch by inch; the air was forcibly torn open into a vacuum channel, destroying countless trees along the way, and at the moment the shockwave made contact with the Shanfeng—

Boom, boom, boom!!!

The entire mountain body trembled violently; the rock walls, fragile as thin paper, were easily pierced through.

A huge cavity with a diameter of over one hundred meters abruptly appeared.

Through the hole, one could even see a large expanse of azure sky on the other side; shattered rocks rained down like a storm, piling up into a new hill at the foot of the mountain in the blink of an eye.

"...?!"

The crew members collectively turned to stone, their eyeballs nearly popping out of their sockets.

What the hell!

From several hundred meters away, a single punch blasted Shanfeng apart—is this an attack a human can unleash?!

"Huff, huff..."

Siano knelt on one knee, his chest heaving violently; bean-sized beads of sweat dripped from his chin, hissing as they evaporated into white steam upon the scorching ground.

This single strike had drained nearly half his stamina, yet the corners of his mouth curled upward wildly, impossible to suppress.

It worked!

Elbaf Lance: Kokoku...

He had finally mastered it!

Not wanting to waste too much of the kind-hearted giant uncles' time, he had spent these four days frantically accelerating his progress, training relentlessly with barely any sleep or rest.

Sleeping only four hours a night, countless times his muscles ached until he lost sensation, sustained purely by force of will.

When he truly could no longer endure, he would stuff food desperately into his mouth, using Life Return to rapidly replenish his body's emptiness.

Facts proved it.

Effort and sweat are never betrayed.

Through his desperate cultivation and the buff bestowed by the statue...

... he had, at a speed unimaginable even to Blue Ghost and Red Ghost, completely mastered this Giant Tribe ultimate technique in merely four days!

"Heh..." He grinned broadly and stood up.

The consumption this time was indeed significant; in actual combat, he could likely fire at most two shots.

But one must remember, this was under the premise that he had just mastered it and lacked refined control over stamina expenditure.

With continued training and cultivation in the days ahead, as proficiency constantly increased and his body adapted further—

The power of "Elbaf Lance" would increase further, while the stamina consumption would, conversely, be continuously controlled and reduced.

Coming to Little Garden this time was truly the right decision.

In just five short days, he had not only mastered Observation Haki but also gained a trump-card ultimate move; the harvest far exceeded his prior expectations.

"Hmm?"

Siano suddenly frowned, turning his head to gaze toward a certain part of the forest.

He wondered if it was an illusion.

During the spare moments of his arduous cultivation these past few days, he always felt a hidden gaze concealed within the dense woods, quietly observing him.

In the past, he naturally would not have noticed, but now that he had mastered Observation Haki, it was difficult to ignore this subtle sensation of being watched.

Yet what was even stranger was...

His Observation Haki found no human figure within the visible range nearby, and whenever he rushed over at maximum speed using "Soru," he found not a single trace or clue.

Could it be some bizarre Devil Fruit ability again?

Or was he overthinking it, merely an illusion born from having just mastered Observation Haki and not yet adapting to such keen insight?

Siano soon shook his head and withdrew his attention.

He couldn't be bothered to meddle; besides, having cultivated the "Enhanced Occlumency," he was immune to many Devil Fruits on a mental level.

As for the physical aspect?

What strength could a sneaking, lurking fellow possibly possess? Would he dare to come out and take one of his punches?

After mastering Elbaf Lance, his self-confidence had momentarily swelled to an unprecedented height.

Whatever Ghost Spider or Sand Crocodile, if they fought again now, one punch would knock them flat!

Not enough to watch, simply not enough to watch!

Go, call Kaido here, call Big Mom here too! Even Whitebeard and Shanks must be summoned!

That afternoon.

Another grand banquet ensued.

Everyone gathered together, laughing and rejoicing in merriment; all the alcohol accumulated previously was consumed entirely this time, leaving not a single drop remaining.

But no matter how joyful the banquet, there is always an end.

Just as even the best of friends must eventually part ways.

It was time for the Curtain Fall Adventurer Group to depart.

After spending these few days together, the bond Siano forged with these two simple-hearted giant uncles through fist and foot was truly as deep as that of decades-old friends.

When he escorted them to the dock, the two giants, whose eyes had been red from crying all the way there, watched Siano's back as he boarded the ship.

They suddenly could no longer hold back and burst into loud wails; the tears streaming down poured like a waterfall at their feet, instantly causing the river's water level to rise significantly.

It took everyone a long while to comfort them before they finally stopped sobbing.

Siano carefully wrote down everything he knew regarding the Giant Warrior Pirates and Elbaf onto paper, handed it to Dorry, and told them to only open it after he had departed.

Many matters within would likely be difficult for the two of them to accept, possibly triggering another bout of heavy crying.

For instance, Harald, the old king of Elbaf, had already been killed by Prince Loki;

Similarly, Yoruru, the captain of the older generation of Giant Warrior Pirates and a legendary warrior of all Elbaf, had long since died at the hands of Charlotte Linlin;

Furthermore, although the crew members who were to be executed by the Marines back then were saved by Carmel, dark underhand transactions resulted in many Giant children becoming weapons of war for Marine Headquarters;

There were also two Giant Warrior crew members seeking to retrieve their captain, Kashii and Oimo.

Coerced by the Marines using the lives of Dorry and Brogy as threats, they had been tricked into becoming gatekeepers on Enies Lobby...

As for what plans the two would make after reading these messages...

Whether to continue striving for a final victory on this isolated ancient island, or to set sail once more to save their former companions and protect Elbaf...

That was no longer something Siano could influence; the decision rested solely in the hands of the two giant uncles themselves.

(End of chapter)