One Piece: Getting Stronger by Writing a Diary

Mihawk stood to the side, watching everything unfold.

In that moment, it seemed as though he understood something on a deeper level.

He smiled faintly and turned his gaze to Nami, who was still lingering to extend the runtime of Arton's recording.

Indeed, since there were more battles to come, Arton hadn't yet turned off the recording function of his diary system.

This extension of recording time greatly pleased Uta, Nami, Carina, and Kaya, who were quite happy to see the runtime increasing steadily.

Meanwhile, other diary replica holders could only watch with envy.

"Now then, it's your turn, isn't it? If I remember correctly, your name is… Nami, right?" Mihawk said.

"Eh? M-me? It's my turn now?"

"Captain Arton, surely there's no need for me to go, right?"

"You've probably been planning to fight Mihawk yourself, haven't you?"

Nami, recalling the injuries Zoro had sustained earlier, quickly ran to Arton's side and pressed his arm into her chest.

Then, standing on her tiptoes, she whispered softly into Arton's ear:

"You wouldn't want me to take a slash from Mihawk like that, would you?"

"If I end up with scars, I won't be able to wear swimsuits anymore."

"That wouldn't be in your favor either, would it?"

Arton chuckled at her words and replied, "Don't worry. With Kaya here, she won't let you end up with any scars."

"At worst, I'll merge with Kaya and use medical ninjutsu to heal you myself."

"Besides, Nami, don't forget—Musou no Hitotachi is the epitome of a warrior's spirit."

"If you don't have the determination to challenge the strong, no amount of training will allow you to fully master it."

Arton wasn't joking.

When he first gained the template of Yoriichi Tsugikuni, he hadn't realized this truth. After all, Yoriichi's template was a complete one.

Without Arton needing to do anything, he could fully inherit Yoriichi's immense power.

However, Shirou Emiya's power was different.

When inheriting Shirou Emiya's abilities, Arton could sense that only when his will, spirit, and strength aligned with Shirou's could he unlock further power from the template.

In other words, the same was true for Nami, Carina, and the others.

If they couldn't genuinely understand the will of the character templates they inherited, they wouldn't be able to fully unleash the potential of those templates.

No matter how much training they underwent, without the proper mindset, they might never reach the peak potential of their character templates.

This was one of the reasons Arton insisted on having Nami fight Mihawk.

If Nami could muster the courage to battle Mihawk now, Arton believed she would be brave enough to draw her blade against other powerful opponents in the future.

Unlike in the original story, where even after significant time at sea, she still displayed fear and hesitation during encounters with the Beast Pirates, such a personality would clash severely with that of the Raiden Shogun.

"I... I understand," Nami said after a brief moment of silence. "But if I'm in danger, you'd better step in to help me."

She knew Arton had high expectations for her to fully master the powers of Musou no Hitotachi.

If she failed to meet those expectations and couldn't unleash the Raiden Shogun's power to its fullest, Nami feared Arton might revoke the template from her.

With no other choice, she nodded reluctantly.

After steadying her emotions, she stepped forward and stood face-to-face with Mihawk.

Mihawk glanced at Nami, then at Arton and Uta.

"The relationship between the three of you seems rather… complicated, Arton."

"No helping it. I'm just a bit too popular, haha," Arton replied with a laugh.

"Is that so? So you're planning to pursue both Uta and Nami at the same time?"

"Of course! Honestly, I also have quite a fondness for my crewmates Carina and Kaya," Arton added casually.

"... If Shanks knew about this, I imagine he'd have some strong feelings about it," Mihawk remarked.

"No problem. If Uta chooses me, there's nothing he can do to stop it. After all, he owes Uta a lot," Arton said confidently.

"… I see. But you wouldn't mind if I told Shanks about all this, would you?"

"Who would've thought the world's greatest swordsman was such a gossip! No matter—it's fine. He's bound to find out sooner or later," Arton said with a smirk.

"Perhaps he'll come to challenge you."

"That's fine. I'll just beat him up when the time comes. As Uta's beloved, it's only right for me to give him a lesson on her behalf," Arton said confidently.

Hearing this, Uta, still perched on Arton's shoulders, tightened her legs around his neck in exasperation.

"Arton, you're way too straightforward!"

"Though... beating up Shanks does sound like a pretty good idea," Uta said, her face slightly flushed.

Mihawk, overhearing the exchange between Uta and Arton, found himself uncharacteristically curious about the past between Shanks and Uta. However, he didn't ask her about it, deciding to save the questions for his next meeting with Shanks.

"Now then, let's begin, Nami," Mihawk said, pointing his black blade toward her.

"After witnessing your power, it will be time for me to attend to the real purpose of my visit."

At this point, the Krieg Pirates were already collapsed on the ground, poisoned by Krieg's own gas bomb. For Mihawk, observing Arton's power was now the primary objective.

Phew...

Nami exhaled deeply, thinking to herself, "Fine. At least Arton's recording is still running."

"I'll just treat this as a chance to earn more points."

"Let's hope I can stall for some extra runtime."

She patted her slightly chubby cheeks, then spoke to Mihawk seriously, "I understand. Please give me a moment to prepare."

Nami planted the base of her naginata into the deck and slowly closed her eyes.

Moments later, under Mihawk's astonished gaze, Nami became enveloped in dazzling lightning. To the naked eye, all that could be seen was a glowing field of blue-and-white electricity completely surrounding her and her naginata.

"Lightning... A Rumble-Rumble Fruit user?" Mihawk raised an eyebrow.

"This lightning power is extraordinary!"

Mihawk assumed Nami was simply warming up.

But to the knowledgeable diary replica holders, the scene was all too familiar.

Tashigi: "This... This is the moment Nami first gained the Raiden Shogun's power!"

Hina: "Is she planning to fight Mihawk in her Raiden Shogun form?"

When Nami initially acquired the Raiden Shogun template, Tashigi and Hina weren't able to witness it firsthand due to being under Arton's control. However, after leaving his ship, the two had immediately reviewed the recorded transformation scene through the diary system.

Gion: "Back then, Nami couldn't maintain her transformed state for long. Has she already reached the point where she can fight in that form?"

Kujaku: "Nami's really something. She's scammed so many points from Arton!"

Charlotte Smoothie: "Interesting. Let me see just how much power you possess, Nami—the one who stole the Raiden Shogun template I wanted."

Nojiko: "Please be careful, Nami! Arton, I'm counting on you—don't let her get hurt!"

Boom!

As if in response to Mihawk's earlier words, the lightning surrounding Nami suddenly burst outward.

In that instant, her outfit transformed into the attire of the Raiden Shogun. Her short orange hair became long, flowing dark blue locks.

The naginata stood tall beside her, crackling with arcs of electricity. Suspended behind her was the Eye of Stormy Judgment made of blue-white lightning.

In that instant, Nami stood there, serene and majestic—like a true goddess!