Chapter 62 – [62] : The Power of Logia Awakening!

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Smoker Traits:Smoke-Smoke Fruit (Apex Purple) (Unawakened).

Smoke-Smoke Fruit (Apex Purple) (Unawakened): Smoke Human. Can transform the body into smoke for offensive purposes. Upon Awakening, can permanently alter the climate of an area, and can draw upon the altered climate to gain astonishing stamina recovery speed (Pale Gold tier effect).

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Rowen examined the Trait screen before him, his eyes flickering.

Smoker’s current strength was entirely concentrated in his Smoke-Smoke Fruit, hence only that single Trait was displayed.

Just as expected, it’s one of the weaker Logia Devil Fruits.

Despite being a Logia—which inherently made the user virtually invincible against non-Haki users—it only reached the Apex Purple tier.

Even after Awakening, relying solely on the fruit’s power without Haki or other enhancements, it only provided effects equivalent to a Pale Gold tier Trait.

Looking at the System’s description of the awakened Smoke-Smoke Fruit, Rowen’s eyes glinted with understanding.

So, Logia Awakening does involve permanently altering the climate of an area.

In the original story, Aokiji and Akainu’s battle for the position of Fleet Admiral transformed Punk Hazard into a half-ice, half-magma island—a permanent alteration!

But that alone wasn’t the truly terrifying aspect of Logia Awakening. After all, permanently changing the weather didn’t directly boost the user’s combat power significantly.

The real power of Logia Awakening lay in the ability to draw upon the altered climate to sustain oneself, gaining incredible stamina! And the Devil Fruit abilities themselves would also be enhanced!

The importance of stamina in the One Piece power system was self-evident; Haki and Devil Fruit abilities both required stamina as fuel.

No wonder Aokiji and Akainu could fight for ten days and nights on Punk Hazard!

They were drawing upon the power of their awakened Logia fruits!

After eating a Logia fruit, the user effectively becomes that element. Smoker, having eaten the Smoke-Smoke Fruit, was a Smoke Human.

Within a smoke-filled environment, since the user is smoke, they naturally held an absolute home-field advantage. They could use the ambient smoke to rapidly recover their stamina, granting astonishing endurance.

Furthermore, the potency of their Devil Fruit abilities would also increase, reaching the fruit’s true peak potential.

No wonder—According to the established lore, Zoan fruits—especially the rarest Mythical Zoans—should provide the greatest physical enhancements to the user.

Yet, the ultimate stamina monsters in the One Piece world often turned out to be top-tier Logia users like Akainu.

Rowen looked at Smoker, a predatory crimson-black light flickering in his eyes.

This Smoke-Smoke Fruit—I’m taking it!

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“‘Sky Sovereign’ Rowen?! Captain Smoker, you must be mistaken! They just have the same name! Rowen is a really nice person! Huh?” Tashigi instinctively refuted Smoker’s claim, but then her brain seemed to short-circuit, freezing mid-thought.

Wait… something’s not right here.

Captain Smoker had called out Rowen’s name before she even introduced him.

But Rowen is so kind—how could he be the infamous Sky Sovereign Rowen?

They should just have the same name, right?

“Are you an idiot?!” Smoker finally snapped, unable to restrain himself.

He knew Tashigi was DENSE, but surely not this DENSE!!!

“Y-You… you really are that Sky Sovereign Rowen?” Tashigi stared blankly at Rowen. Her severe nearsightedness, combined with her intense focus on swordsmanship training, meant she wasn’t good at remembering faces from photos.

“Yes, that’s me,” Rowen confirmed readily.

Tashigi’s mind went completely blank.

“What are you doing, you foolish woman?! Get over here! He’s a pirate with a 100 million Beri bounty! And you—you must be Roronoa Zoro!” Smoker yelled, then turned his attention to Zoro.

100 million Beri!

The number alone sent cold sweat dripping down the foreheads of the Marines accompanying Smoker. A 100 million Beri pirate! The soldiers looked nervously at Rowen, their grips tightening unsteadily on their weapons.

“You’re the bounty hunter who doesn’t cherish swords, using them just to make money?!” Tashigi exclaimed, her earlier confusion replaced by accusation directed at Zoro.

Rowen was the first person to truly acknowledge her dream.

The other man was a swordsman capable of earning the acknowledgment of a cursed sword like Kitetsu—someone she admired. Yet, one turned out to be the infamous ‘Sky Sovereign’ Rowen, and the other, ‘Pirate Hunter’ Zoro, who treated swords merely as tools for bounty hunting?

“Sky Sovereign Rowen! Roronoa Zoro! Surely you wouldn’t stoop so low as to use a woman as a shield!” Seeing Tashigi’s complete confusion, Smoker cursed inwardly, then tried to provoke them.

The clumsy woman was too close to them; even with his Smoke-Smoke Fruit, Smoker wasn’t absolutely certain he could save her before they harmed her.

“Woman? I don’t see any woman here. I only see a swordsman,” Rowen replied, looking pointedly at Tashigi, a slight smile touching his lips.

Tashigi needed respect and acknowledgment.

Languishing aimlessly in the East Blue wouldn’t help her achieve her dream. Since that was the case… Rowen decided to add some fuel to her fire.

“Th-That’s right! Captain Smoker! I will fight too!” Hearing Rowen’s words, Tashigi snapped out of her daze.

SHINK!

Shigure flashed out of its sheath.

“Rowen! Roronoa Zoro! I’m placing you under arrest!” Tashigi yelled, biting her lip.

Rowen’s words—had genuinely made her happy. Only Tashigi knew how deeply she resented being born female, believing it hindered her path as a swordsman.

‘Women can’t become strong swordsmen… Women can’t possess great strength… Women can’t achieve their dreams…’ She had heard such things countless times growing up.

But Rowen… acknowledged her dream and treated her as an equal swordsman. That equality was what Tashigi craved most. It made her truly happy. But precisely because of that… she had to arrest Rowen! Save him from the path of evil!

“Hyaa!” Tashigi’s Shigure sliced through the air in a beautiful arc, aimed at Rowen.

WHOOSH!

Tashigi’s vision blurred. Rowen suddenly appeared behind her.

Thwack!

A swift chop to the back of her neck caused Tashigi’s body to go limp, collapsing to the ground.

“Shave?!” Smoker’s eye twitched upon seeing Rowen’s movement.

‘That technique… wasn’t that the ‘Shave’ from the Navy’s Six Powers?!’ As a former student of Zephyr ‘Black Arm’, Smoker was intimately familiar with the Six Powers.

“Indeed. ‘Shave’ from the Six Powers,” Rowen confirmed with a calm smile.

Although the similar Shakushi Trait from Kuro had been converted, Rowen had memorized the feeling of that high-speed movement technique.

And the principle behind Shave—rapidly kicking off the ground dozens of times in an instant to generate explosive propulsion—was something his current physique could easily handle.

After reaching Apex Purple with his Superhuman Demonic Physique, Rowen’s body was more than capable. During his recent days of training, Rowen had completely mastered the Shave technique.

“Hmph!” Smoker’s expression turned cold. With a roar of smoke, both his arms transformed into swirling clouds.

“White Out——!” Smoker bellowed. His smoke-arms twisted into spiraling columns, shooting out to capture Rowen and Zoro.

“So this is the feeling of a Logia Devil Fruit?” Rowen observed with interest as the smoke enveloped him. ‘Quite strange—the body literally becomes the element.’

“It’s even trickier than that Buggy guy’s Chop-Chop Fruit,” Zoro commented grimly, looking at the smoke binding him.

Buggy’s fruit merely granted immunity to cuts; punches and kicks still worked. But Logia users were completely immune to normal physical attacks. Just as Rowen had said… without Haki, they were helpless against a Logia user.

“Since you know I’m a Logia, you should also know you’re no match for me! Rowen! Roronoa Zoro! Your criminal careers end here!” Smoker declared grimly.

“And on top of that, you even betrayed a woman’s trust.” Smoker glared at Tashigi, struggling weakly on the ground but unable to stand, his expression darkening further.

“Woman, woman… So annoying,” Rowen’s smile vanished, his eyes turning cold as he looked at Smoker.

“I told you. I see no woman. Only a swordsman! On these seas, to judge a swordsman who has bravely raised her weapon to chase her dream like that… How rude of you, Smoker. Do you truly understand that swordsman’s heart? You are denying her dream,” Rowen stated, the crimson-black light in his eyes flashing intensely.

Tashigi, who had been trying to push herself up, froze completely upon hearing Rowen’s words, tears suddenly welling up in her eyes. ‘Why… why is the one person who understands her so completely… a pirate?’

“And another thing… You don’t really think your Logia makes you invincible, do you? You weakling who relies solely on his Devil Fruit—” Rowen continued coldly.

Rowen’s words made Smoker’s pupils constrict sharply.

The next moment—

VMM!

The crimson-black light in Rowen’s eyes solidified, exploding outwards from his body.

CRACKLE! CRACKLE! CRACKLE!

Conqueror’s Haki, seemingly taking physical form, manifested as arcs of crimson-black lightning roaring through the atmosphere.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

The remaining armed Marines instantly went white-eyed and collapsed unconscious.

—Conqueror’s Haki!

In the presence of a King, the weak don’t even possess the right to remain conscious, let alone look directly!

“D-Damn it! Conqueror’s Haki!” Smoker stared at the crackling crimson-black lightning, cold sweat breaking out on his forehead. The White Out smoke tendrils holding Rowen and Zoro abruptly loosened.

Rowen’s Conqueror’s Haki—amplified by Born of the Sea, could now exert tangible physical force on reality. This naturally included affecting Logia Devil Fruit users.

Of course, Rowen hadn’t yet evolved his Haki to the Deep Gold tier (Basic Infusion), so he couldn’t inflict fatal damage on Smoker with Haki alone. But causing momentary paralysis? That was easily achievable.

And that momentary paralysis was all Rowen needed.

WHOOSH! (Shave!)

Smoker’s pupils constricted violently.

The next instant, a jet-black fist was right before his eyes.

CRACK!

With a sickening impact that set teeth on edge, Smoker was launched like a cannonball, smashing violently into the ground far away.

CRACK! CRACK! The sheer force of the blow spiderwebbed the ground around him.

“H-Haki?!” Smoker slowly pulled himself from the crater, shaking his dizzy head, looking at Rowen with disbelief and horror.

—Armament Haki!

And incredibly strong!

A single blow had injured him significantly!

Taking a direct Haki-infused hit to the head like that… he couldn’t move properly for a short while.

“Been a while since you took a hit, huh, Smoker? Has anyone ever told you… not to rely too heavily on your Devil Fruit?” Rowen asked, looking down at Smoker, a confident, powerful curve to his lips.

This guy was supposedly Zephyr’s student, yet he couldn’t use Haki?

Perhaps he tried to emulate Admiral Kizaru’s fighting style?

But Kizaru ate the Glint-Glint Fruit, one of the most powerful Logia fruits. Smoker only had the Smoke-Smoke Fruit, among the weakest Logias. Trying to copy Kizaru’s combat style was pure fantasy.

Over-reliance on a Devil Fruit was fatal to Haki development.

Haki required absolute self-confidence!

The ability to fully command one’s own ‘Disposition’! Only then could Haki be wielded effectively!

Even someone as strong as Kizaru had relatively weak Haki due to his over-reliance on his Devil Fruit abilities.

Smoker, languishing in the East Blue and overly dependent on his Smoke-Smoke Fruit—it wasn’t surprising he hadn’t learned Haki yet.

“Captain Smoker?!” Tashigi, having recovered slightly from Rowen’s nerve strike, managed to sit up, leaning on Shigure for support.

Seeing Smoker beaten so badly by Rowen’s single punch left her utterly dumbfounded. This was the first time she had ever seen Captain Smoker get hit! He was a Logia user! How could a human hit smoke?! ‘Haki? What is that power?’

“…” Hearing Rowen’s words, Smoker’s face turned extremely grim. It felt like being lectured by that old geezer Zephyr all over again.

Yes, he did rely heavily on his Smoke-Smoke Fruit.

But previously, Smoker hadn’t seen anything wrong with that.

In the East Blue, a Logia was invincible!

Even at Marine HQ!

Logia fruits were extremely rare! The current three Marine Admirals were all Logia users—hailed as the strongest trio of Admirals in Marine history!

What was wrong with dedicating himself fully to mastering his Logia fruit?!

Smoker grit his teeth, preparing to counterattack.

“Huh?!” Smoker reached behind him, intending to grab his weapon—the ‘jitte’ tipped with Seastone—but grasped only empty air.

Shaking his head vigorously, still disoriented from the Haki blow, Smoker saw his jitte—now held in Rowen’s hand.

“A Seastone weapon—You knew your Devil Fruit had significant weaknesses, so you crafted this weapon… yet you still rely so heavily on the fruit itself. You truly are a fool,” Rowen commented, tossing the Seastone jitte to Zoro.

“With this, you should be able to hit him, right?” Zoro caught the jitte, a feral grin spreading across his face.

“No need. I originally planned to ensure victory, but I didn’t expect him to be such a weakling solely dependent on his Devil Fruit,” Rowen replied.

He had called Zoro over precisely for this purpose—to seize Smoker’s Seastone weapon during the fight and let Zoro use it, ensuring Zoro’s attacks could land.

Bringing Zoro was an insurance policy for hunting the Smoke-Smoke Fruit. But after the first exchange, Rowen realized Smoker, at this stage in Loguetown, was completely reliant on his fruit.

Against stronger Logia users, even with Haki, the fight could be difficult. Powerful Logia abilities were terrifying in their own right; weak Haki could still be overwhelmed by potent elemental attacks.

But the Smoke-Smoke Fruit had almost zero offensive capability on its own; it was primarily a support/utility power.

As Smoker was now—facing a Haki master—he stood absolutely no chance.

“Don’t get too cocky!” Smoker roared furiously, trying to activate his Smoke-Smoke powers again.

But first paralyzed by Conqueror’s Haki, then struck directly in the head by Armament Haki… Smoker couldn’t even control his body properly to fully elementize quickly; there was a noticeable delay.

And giving Rowen that kind of opening—meant only one outcome.

WHOOSH—(Shave!)

BANG!

Another Haki-infused fist connected cleanly, this time a powerful uppercut snapping Smoker’s head back. His eyes rolled white, and he collapsed heavily to the ground, completely unconscious.

“Plunder.”

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