One piece :I open the locks of the heart

I gestured toward Eisah's shadow, which slid across the ground toward me.

"Alright, Eisah, let Luffy go."

Before disappearing, the mischievous Sans-cœur gave Luffy a wide, mocking grin, raising a hand in a playful salute. Then, it slowly sank back into my own shadow, as if still amused by the situation.

Koby observed the scene with curiosity. "It's… kinda mischievous, isn't it?"

Nami, meanwhile, was still trying to suppress her laughter.

"I… I'm sorry, but…" She caught her breath, wiped away a tear of laughter, and looked at Luffy with a teasing smile. "It was just so funny!"

Now free, Luffy slowly pushed himself up, dusting off his shorts with a sulky expression.

"It's not funny…" he muttered, pouting like a child.

I raised an eyebrow as I examined his injuries more closely. He had bruises and a few minor cuts—clear signs of an intense battle. Without hesitation, I reached out and cast a healing spell.

A soft green glow surrounded his body, gradually closing his wounds and easing his pain.

"There, that's better," I said as I lowered my hand.

Luffy nodded, testing his arms with a few movements, clearly relieved.

Then, I crossed my arms and took on a more serious tone.

"So, Captain… Do you understand the importance of Haki now?"

Luffy's head snapped up, his expression shifting into something more thoughtful.

"I…" He scratched the back of his head. "I thought I could beat him… He was fast, but I should've been able to hit him, right?!"

I nodded. "And that's exactly the problem."

Luffy studied me more closely, realizing that I wasn't scolding him—I was trying to explain something crucial.

"Listen, Luffy… I only won against that man because of luck. One single opening, one brief moment of hesitation, and I managed to defeat him. But I never want to be that powerless again against someone who controls a power I don't understand."

I placed a hand on his shoulder, looking him straight in the eyes.

"You're our captain." I tapped his chest lightly with my fist. "But you're also our strongest fighter. It's your role to take on the most dangerous enemies—the captains, the officers, the monsters we'll encounter at sea. You can't just rely on brute strength. You have to become stronger, faster… and learn to sense what's around you."

Luffy remained silent for a few seconds, processing my words.

Then, a fiery determination ignited in his eyes.

"You're right." He clenched his fists. "I don't want you guys getting hurt because I'm too weak!"

Koby and Nami exchanged glances as they saw Luffy's serious expression.

Then, he lifted his head and locked eyes with me.

"Jordan, tell me what I have to do!"

His tone wasn't that of an impatient child, but of a captain truly ready to improve.

A smile spread across my lips as I saw Luffy's readiness to learn.

"Then listen carefully."

I spent nearly half an hour explaining the basics of Haki of Observation, using Eisah's knowledge to clarify the more complex concepts.

Luffy listened with rare concentration, nodding at each explanation, occasionally furrowing his brows when he didn't immediately grasp something.

"So, if I got this right… It's like I can 'sense' attacks before they even happen?" he asked, crossing his arms.

I nodded. "Exactly. At first, it'll be hard, but with training, you'll be able to anticipate attacks long before they actually hit you."

A confident grin spread across Luffy's face.

"Awesome! I'm gonna train until I can dodge everything!"

I rolled my eyes slightly. "That doesn't mean you'll be invincible… but yeah, it should definitely help you in battle."

After our long training session, we all sat down together to share a well-earned meal.

During the meal, Koby and I told Luffy about our experiences in the Wonderland Dungeon.

"And so… there was this huge door with a face that complained because it wanted to sleep!" Koby gestured wildly, his eyes gleaming with excitement.

"And giant playing cards that wanted to chop off our heads!" Nami added with an exaggerated shiver.

Luffy raised an eyebrow, his mouth full of meat. "That dungeon sounds really weird…"

He scratched the back of his head before swallowing a huge bite.

"And unlike Destiny Island or Traverse Town, the Sans-cœur take way too long to find!"

He shook his head before setting down his empty plate.

Then, a grin stretched across his face as he looked at me with excitement.

"Jordan, call Eisah. I'm gonna train my Haki with him while you guys do the normal mode of that dungeon."

I raised an eyebrow. "Oh? You sure you don't wanna come with us?"

Luffy crossed his arms and nodded firmly. "Nope, I'd rather do dungeons with more fighting. And if I wanna be the strongest, I gotta master this Haki."

I smiled at his determination.

"Alright, Luffy. I'll leave you in good hands."

I called Eisah, and the shadow of the bounty hunter appeared before us, amusement glinting in his yellow eyes.

Luffy cracked his knuckles, ready to dive into his training.

Meanwhile, Nami, Koby, and I prepared ourselves to return to Wonderland Dungeon, this time in normal mode.

The dungeon proved to be much faster than the first time, thanks to our previous experience and our ability to bypass some of the puzzles.

But when we arrived before the Queen of Hearts, she exploded with fury the moment she saw us.

"YOU! It's you again!" she shrieked, pointing her scepter at us. "How dare you return after trying to STEAL MY HEART?!"

Nami blinked, confused. "Wait, WHAT?! Nobody wants your old heart, you crazy woman!"

Koby, panicking, raised his hands. "Uh, Your Majesty, we don't want—"

"SILENCE!"

She slammed her scepter violently against the ground, and her playing card soldiers immediately took battle positions.

"OFF WITH THEIR HEADS!"

The soldiers charged at us, their shining swords raised high above their heads.

I raised my Keyblade, blocking the first attack from a card soldier who tried to slice me in half with a clean strike.

Koby, much faster than the first time, dodged skillfully and countered with a precise slash from his scimitar, aiming directly at the legs of the card soldier.

The impact made it stagger violently backward before crashing to the ground.

But to our great surprise… it stood back up as if nothing had happened!

"They're still immortal…" Koby groaned, stepping back, eyes narrowed.

Nami, who hadn't even bothered to wait and see if they could stay down, unleashed a powerful Thunder spell, frying three soldiers at once.

Lightning crackled across their flat bodies, charring them black, leaving them twitching.

But just a few seconds later… the cards stood up again, as if nothing had happened!

"I knew that wouldn't work, but it's still so frustrating!" she complained, clenching her fists.

"We need to get out of here—fast!" I shouted, knocking back another wave of cards with a wide spinning strike.

The soldiers were already surrounding us, more aggressive than during our first encounter.

"You cannot win!" the Queen of Hearts cackled, her sadistic laughter echoing through the gardens.

The cards kept advancing, their numbers growing by the second.

Koby gritted his teeth. "There's even more than last time! It's like they're multiplying!"

Nami, already ready to flee, nervously tapped my shoulder.

"Jordan, the plan?"

I scanned the surroundings, searching for an immediate escape route.

Then, I saw it—a narrow passage between two towering hedges in the labyrinth.

"This way! Follow me!"

Without hesitation, we dashed forward, dodging the swords of the playing card soldiers trying to block our path.

Behind us, the Queen shrieked, her face turning crimson with rage.

"COME BAAAAACK HERE, I WANT THEIR HEADS!"

The soldiers pursued us, but we were faster, diving into the hedge maze just before they could surround us.

We ran without stopping, the shouts and sounds of pursuit gradually fading behind us.

After a few minutes of frantic running, we finally reached the Lotus Forest, where we stopped, breathless but safe.

Nami slid down against a tree, her cheeks flushed from the effort. "Damn… they were even stronger this time…"

Koby, hands on his knees, nodded. "We couldn't do anything; they're literally invincible."

I smirked, amused despite the situation. "Yeah, and honestly… we were lucky. Imagine if they could run as fast as us."

Koby shuddered at the thought. "That would be a real nightmare!"

After swiftly clearing the last Sans-cœur from the Lotus Forest without much trouble, a familiar silhouette appeared in the air, floating nonchalantly above us.

The Cheshire Cat had returned, his wide, enigmatic grin lighting up his striped violet and pink face. He observed us playfully before spinning around, vanishing in pieces, his tail evaporating last before reappearing in a completely random order.

"Towards the ending you know, just let yourselves be carried along, the little one in danger is not here for you to worry about," he declared in a singsong tone.

Koby furrowed his brows. "Why does he always talk like that? Can't he just give us a straight answer?!"

Nami, now accustomed to the weirdness of this world, crossed her arms and sighed. "Basically, Alice isn't here… so we can focus on the Sans-cœur."

I nodded, a grin forming on my lips. "Exactly. No need to worry about her, so let's go hunt some monsters."

The Cheshire Cat then began juggling with his own eyes, tossing them into the air and catching them as if they were marbles. Then, he made his entire body disappear except for his grin, which floated in the air for a few seconds before vanishing completely in one last mischievous flicker.

Koby took a step back, an uneasy expression on his face. "I don't know why, but he really creeps me out…"

"He's just annoying," Nami muttered, rolling her eyes.

With the assurance that we could now focus on exterminating the Sans-cœur, we ventured deeper into the strange corridors of this whimsical world. Each passage led us to a new space where the laws of physics seemed completely absent.

The Shadows and other creatures emerged from nowhere, but with our accumulated experience, we had no trouble crushing them one after another.

"This world is really weird…" Koby remarked as he smoothly deflected a group of Nocturnes Rouges with his scimitar.

"That's nothing… Try imagining Luffy here," I said while slicing a Soldat Volant clean in two.

Nami burst out laughing, dodging a Rondouillard that attempted to charge at her. "Oh yeah… He'd be running around everywhere, completely lost."

Finally, after clearing every area of the Sans-cœur and progressing through the various rooms, we reached the final chamber of the dungeon.

As soon as we stepped into the arena, a heavy, oppressive sensation settled over us.

Two Trickmasters stood at the center of the room, their long, disjointed arms and blazing torches illuminating the space with an eerie glow.

"This time, there are two," Koby noted, tightening his grip on his scimitar.

"Good. That means twice the training for us," I said, spinning my Keyblade in the air before taking a battle stance.

"I'll take the one on the left!" Nami called, raising her staff.

"Koby, handle the second one; I'll cover you with ranged attacks!"

The battle erupted immediately, the two Trickmasters swinging their arms wildly, their torches crackling violently as they tried to crush us under a barrage of flames.

With our well-honed coordination, we exchanged attacks fluidly, dodging their assaults without much difficulty.

We had grown stronger, and these enemies, though impressive, were no longer a match for us.

After an intense exchange, both Trickmasters collapsed almost simultaneously, vanishing in a rain of black sparks, marking our undeniable victory.

I sheathed my Keyblade, looking over at my teammates.

"We're improving… That was much easier than last time."

Nami exhaled, a satisfied smile on her lips. "We're getting too strong for this kind of opponent."

Koby nodded, proud of himself. "We're really progressing fast. I can't wait to see how far we can go."

A message suddenly appeared in my mind:

Nami receives an additional Shell Necklace +.

Koby gains an Apprentice Ring (facilitates skill learning).

Jordan gains 300 Shadows, 2 Giga Shadows, 60 Large Bodies, 60 Nocturnes Rouges, 60 Opéras Jaunes, 60 Rhapsodies Bleues, 60 Soldiers Volants, and 2 Trickmasters.

The Soldiers Volants and Trickmasters in your possession have been upgraded to Normal level.

You have unlocked Wonderland - Hard Mode.

When we returned to the real world, we were greeted by a scene worthy of a comedy show.

Luffy was sitting cross-legged on the sand, blindfolded, holding his shield in front of him as a flimsy defense, while Eisah's Sans-cœur, ever silent, stood before him with a long wooden staff.

SMACK!

"AARGH!" Luffy yelped, clutching his head after receiving a sharp hit.

Eisah-Shadow tilted his head slightly, as if wondering why Luffy was complaining. He slowly raised his staff…

SMACK! This time, on the shoulder.

Luffy jumped up, his arms in the air like a boxer with no defense.

"HEEEEY! You're hitting too hard!" he protested.

Eisah-Shadow, of course, didn't respond. Instead, he simply pointed his staff at Luffy and gave a small shrug.

From the back, we exchanged puzzled glances.

"What is he trying to say?" Koby whispered.

"No idea…" Nami replied, narrowing her eyes.

Eisah-Shadow waited a few seconds… then shook his head, like a teacher losing hope in an impossible student.

And then he raised his staff again.

SMACK!

"OWWW!" Luffy collapsed face-first onto the ground, vigorously rubbing his head, unintentionally pulling off his blindfold.

Eisah-Shadow crossed his arms, shook his head slowly, then motioned with his hand as if to say, "Again."

Luffy groaned. "BUT I KEEP DOING IT!"

Meanwhile, we, the spectators, were frozen in place, watching this ridiculous display.

Then I turned to Nami and Koby with a mischievous smile.

"So… Do you guys want to try too?"

The terrified look they gave me made me burst into laughter.

Nami took a step back, gripping her staff as if her survival depended on it. "Not a chance!"

Koby raised his hands in immediate surrender. "No thanks! I already have enough training with my sword, that's more than enough!"

I sighed, pretending to be disappointed. "Shame… Luffy is having so much fun."

Nami and Koby exchanged a glance… before bursting into laughter at the sight of Luffy getting mercilessly smacked around by the mute Sans-cœur.

Eisah-Shadow, not even understanding why everyone was laughing, simply gestured to Luffy as if to say, "Come on, let's continue."

Luffy growled, clenching his fists. "I'M GONNA GET IT! JUST WATCH!"

SMACK!

We were unable to stop laughing, realizing that this training was going to take much longer than expected—and I was really glad I didn't have to go through it myself.

As Luffy adjusted his blindfold, I raised my hand to stop Eisah-Shadow. He froze instantly, his staff still raised.

Without a word, I gently pushed him toward Luffy's shadow. As if being absorbed into an invisible rift, he silently sank into my captain's shadow, merging seamlessly. Luffy, too focused on his training, didn't even notice.

Seeing that everything was in place, I took the staff and swung a quick strike toward him.

Swoosh!

Luffy tried to dodge, and this time, the strike didn't land completely. He moved just in time, but not enough to avoid the impact entirely—it struck his shoulder instead of his head.

I smiled. "Interesting."

Luffy lifted his head, intrigued. "Huh? That was better, right?!"

I nodded. "Looks like I'll be able to teach you this ability much faster than expected."

He looked at me, puzzled. "Why?! What changed?!"

I didn't answer right away, glancing at Luffy's shadow, which vibrated slightly. Eisah's shadow, now fused with him, was amplifying his danger perception, making his adaptation easier. The Apprentice Ring on his finger was probably helping his growth as well.

Nami and Koby, who had previously refused the idea of training by getting smacked on the head, exchanged a look.

Nami raised an eyebrow. "Are you saying… we could also learn faster… like this?"

Koby, torn between fear and excitement, hesitantly asked, "Would… would it work on us too?"

I shrugged with a teasing smile. "Who knows? Want to try?"

Nami took a small step back, crossing her arms. "I refuse to get hit on the head!"

Koby, however, seemed to hesitate. He tightened his grip on his scimitar, battling his apprehension.

Luffy, who had been listening to our conversation, exclaimed excitedly, "Hey, Koby, come try it! Honestly, it's awesome!"

Koby groaned as he watched Luffy get hit again, but… he didn't seem to be suffering as much as before.

Finally, Koby let out a deep sigh and nodded.

"Alright… but go easy on me at first!"

Nami rolled her eyes. "You guys are insane…"

But despite her apparent refusal, I noticed her gaze lingering on us, her mind already weighing the pros and cons.

She didn't want to admit it… but she was tempted too.

(Author's note: For those who might say I'm messing with power levels, unlike Eiichirō Oda's original work, this world will have a more balanced mix of dangers and strengths, providing a real reason why the Marines don't maintain absolute order over the Four Great Seas.)