The Elementalist Lucia [One Piece x OC fanfiction]

XXVIII - Trainings

"The blade should be an extension of your arm, don't think of it as an accessory but as an integral part of your body."

It had been several days since Law had given in to Lucia's request and since then had been teaching her to handle a weapon. Every day, the young woman followed his instructions without flinching, concentrated, determined. It was a new exercise for her and the learning process was laborious. And painful. Since the pirate was not doing her any favours. At the same time she had asked him to treat her without the slightest regard.

"You take too long to think before you attack, it has to be more instinctive than that. In a fight to the death against a swordsman every second counts."

Panting, Lucia held her guard, tense, her eyes piercing. She was not wielding a real weapon of course, it was only a training object to teach her the basics. Nevertheless, it was enough to teach her the basic movements and posture to hold in order to defend herself. First teach her to defend herself. Then attack. The first training sessions had been difficult, she wanted to go on the offensive at all costs without understanding that the most important thing was to know how to parry her opponent's blows. The lesson had finally sunk in after Law had stuck his blade to her throat a couple of times and sliced off a few limbs as well. After spending two days putting her body back together she had finally registered the instruction. Since then, the pirate had to admit that she retained and learned quickly. Her movements were more confident and precise with each assault.

She had also resumed her training with Bepo in order to strengthen her body and her close combat. He was the best opponent she could have from that point of view. Now that she was aware of the risks to her body and heart, she was more vigilant and also learned to fight by protecting this sensitive area as much as possible. She fought the polar bear with her devil fruit, combining physical and water attacks against her opponent. Each day she could hold on a little longer with more powerful offensives. She would gain a few minutes before her vision became blurred and she felt the effects of the dryness on her body. Absorbing the ambient humidity, the one she produced herself by attacking, to revive her body had become an almost unconscious reflex. At times she had to force herself to remember to do it, but she was also pleasantly surprised to find that she did it without thinking sometimes.

A blow from the blade sawed Lucia in two, separating her chest from her legs. Lucia broke her fall by stretching her arms forward, but this did not prevent her from biting the dust. Exhausted, she rolled over onto her back, her face covered in a film of sweat, her breath coming in short gasps. A shadow obscured the sun's rays. When she opened her eyes again, she saw Law standing over her, a smirk on his face.

"Two seconds of inattention. Lost."

She growled:

"It's okay, stop being a smartass!"

With a wave of his hand, he resorbed the sphere he had created and Lucia was able to dematerialize to her full body. Law sat down on a rock, facing her.

"It's still too messy, you're scattering all over the place. When you're facing an opponent you must have a clear and precise line of attack. You will inevitably have to improvise at some point, but you must first have an idea of the direction you want to take. If you don't, you hesitate as you have just done and it's all over for you, it's not because you are a Logia that-"

"That I'm untouchable and immortal, I know. You're rambling, you know that?"

"It's because it refuses to enter your skull that I have to repeat it"

She mechanically wiped her hands on the trousers she was wearing:

"Akainu has proven to me enough that being a Logia type won't save me against powerful opponents. His lava was able to burn my water, your fruit can reach me physically, and I'm not even talking about Haki, which completely annihilates the inconsistency of my body. That's also why I absolutely must get more strings to my bow."