Chapter 129: Plans in Motion: Training, Ambitions, and the Road to Wano

“Lord Karl, are you talking about the Kurozumi Family?”

Down below, Kaze Tsuki Yaya couldn’t help but ask in surprise when he heard Karl and Lady Linlin’s conversation.

“That’s right. The Kurozumi siblings, Kurozumi Mukusen and Kurozumi Semimaru.”

“Why? Do you know them?”

Karl thought it over. That’s right—the Kurozumi siblings really were driven out of Wano.

And there were always rumors in the original story that the Kurozumi Family was the true lineage of Wano.

The five great families—Kozuki and Shimotsuki among them—all hailed from the moon, which is why they have ‘tsuki’ in their names.

Otherwise, how else could Wano’s blacksmithing skills be so advanced?

Even the Road Poneglyphs were forged by the Kozuki Family.

“I don’t know the details. I just know that several families joined together and exiled the Kurozumi Family from Wano.”

Honestly, even Kaze Tsuki Yaya didn’t know exactly why his clan had banished the Kurozumi Family.

He figured, though, there must be some good reason for it.

“Krell!”

“Lord Karl.”

Krell stepped out from the crowd and looked at Karl.

“Find accommodations for this member of the Tsuki Clan. Tomorrow, we’re setting out for Wano.”

“Understood, Lord Karl.”

Krell nodded and walked over to Kaze Tsuki Yaya, gesturing for him to follow.

Once they’d left the meeting room, Karl dismissed the others as well.

“Do you want to come along?”

He turned to Ledfield and extended an invitation.

“No, I just received news from Sleeping Ancient Town. I plan to search for that Mythical Zoan.”

Earlier, when chatting with Ledfield, he’d mentioned a few Mythical Zoan Devil Fruits in passing.

And just as expected, Ledfield had set his sights on the Bat-Bat Fruit, Model: Vampire.

Maybe this is what people mean by great minds thinking alike.

“You going alone?”

He’d also heard about the news from Sleeping Ancient Town—a place near the second half of the New World, close to Dressrosa.

If memory served, Roger should have reached that part of the New World by now.

If those two crossed paths, Ledfield might actually be in for a tough fight.

“Don’t worry. If I want to leave, no one can keep me here.”

Ledfield had a quiet, unshakable confidence in his strength.

He might not be at his peak yet.

Even so, his abilities had reached the level of an admiral—a pure close-combat powerhouse.

So, unless he’s swarmed, there aren’t many people who could truly stop him.

“Alright. Stay safe out there.”

…

On the sky island of Visalia.

“Just fifteen more days, and we’ll reach Cake Island in the New World.”

“I’ll be in charge of your training until then and teach you the Five Elements Fist.”

Gan Fall stood before a group of children, his eyes bright with excitement.

Teaching martial arts to kids—this was a first for him.

What thrilled him most was the contribution points he’d earn from training these children.

That way, he could exchange them for higher-level techniques.

Ever since he started practicing the Five Elements Fist himself, his strength had leveled up so much he barely recognized himself.

Now, more than anything, he wanted to get his hands on advanced techniques so he could power up again.

“Is it just me, or does this guy seem a little unreliable?”

“I was thinking the same thing.”

“That makes three of us.”

Sakazuki and Borsalino were still whispering their doubts when Issho chimed in out of nowhere.

“When did you get here?”

Sakazuki crossed his arms, wearing his usual cold look.

“I’ve been here the whole time.”

Issho, unlike his future self, hadn’t blinded himself yet. As a kid, he still looked a bit unrefined, but not nearly as gruff.

“Alright, follow my lead.”

Gan Fall took his position at the front and began demonstrating the Five Elements Fist, step by step.

“Okay, not bad—he does know a thing or two.”

At first, everyone followed along without much thought, but by the second round, they started to heat up.

It was a totally different feeling than that first run. The more they practiced, the more tired they felt from head to toe.

After a dozen rounds, only Sakazuki, Borsalino, and Issho were still moving without collapsing.

But soon enough, those three dropped to the ground in exhaustion too.

“Clap clap clap!”

“Alright, go grab some food.”

Gan Fall clapped his hands as a line of attendants brought out steaming plates of Sea King meat and set them before the kids.

This was part of the process—eating Sea King was the best way to recover after intense training.

They’d already tested this with the kids they recruited from Beehive Island before.

“What kind of meat is this? I feel all hot after eating it.”

One of the kids finally asked the obvious question.

“That’s Sea King meat.”

“Sea Kings range from a few dozen meters to over a thousand meters long. They’re huge fish.”

“Their meat is packed with nutrients.”

After hearing Gan Fall’s explanation, the kids started wolfing down their meals.

It was like a contest—everyone wanted to eat as much as possible.

“Delicious!”

Borsalino nudged his sunglasses up—at his age, he already wore a sly grin.

He’d actually stolen those sunglasses from another kid.

Now, he wore them every day.

“After you finish eating, head back to your rooms and rest. We’ll continue tomorrow.”

With that, Gan Fall practically bounced off toward the little Sutra Library on the island.

After every class, he’d earn more contribution points.

And with those points, he could pick out whatever he wanted from the library.

The ‘Sutra Library’ was really just a tiny attic.

Inside, each style of Video Transponder Snail stored a different martial arts manual.

“That should be enough points. Time to redeem the Eight-Level Fist.”

Gan Fall had finally saved up enough points over these days.

Five Elements Fist was free, so anyone could practice it.

But what he wanted was the most destructive technique available—the Eight-Level Fist.

He walked in and went straight for the snail he was after.

“Spend 1,000 points to unlock the Eight-Level Fist?”

“Yes, yes, do it!”

Gan Fall couldn’t hide his excitement; he’d been dreaming about this day.

He’d already watched the Eight-Level Fist demonstration on the Video Transponder Snail countless times.

It featured a match between Notty and Halil.

He completely ignored the differences in their size and strength.

But just looking at the technique itself, the Eight Extremities Fist was no doubt a powerhouse move.

You could use every part of your body to attack.

Turn yourself into a one-man war machine.

He headed over to the small sparring ring and began training with the Video Transponder Snail.

…