The peak of a Vice Admiral, just below an Admiral candidate? Luffy thought. He was confident that if he could cultivate it, he could reach the quasi-Admiral level. However, he knew his current strength hadn't broken through 8 points because his basic attributes were still too low. That was why he hadn't yet reached the Admiral or Emperor level.
He decided not to rush and to take things slowly. When he came out of the cabin, he fell silent at the sight outside. On the ship next to him, Usopp was sitting, hitting grass in front of Kaya.
Kaya, frowning, listened to Usopp's nonsense for a bit, then said in annoyance, "Usopp, stop talking to me. I'm afraid Captain Luffy will misunderstand!" She turned and left, not even sparing him a glance.
Usopp stood transfixed, as if struck by lightning. Luffy, seeing that, could barely hold back his laughter. This guy actually dared to flirt with my woman while I was away? He really has a death wish!
"Usopp, come here," he called.
Usopp looked at the half-smiling Luffy, and his heart sank, feeling that something bad was about to happen. Nervously, he climbed onto the Going Merry.
Snap!
Luffy grabbed his long nose and twisted it hard.
!!!
Usopp's shriek echoed across all three ships, startling Zoro and the others. They then glanced at Nami and Kaya, who also had subtle expressions. Their hearts trembled. These two girls were not to be trifled with! Nobody should approach them again in the future!
"Repair Fruit, activate: Restore!"
In the blink of an eye, Usopp's nose returned to normal.
"Luffy, you-" Usopp was about to get angry.
"Hmm?" Luffy glanced at him.
"Uh... never mind. You were testing your ability, right? Haha, your ability is amazing. Alright, I'll be leaving now."
Usopp, stiff from Luffy's gaze, turned and hurried away. Even though his injury had healed, the pain from the pinch still lingered. He knew Luffy was deliberately toying with him; it seemed his chance to get close to Kaya was gone.
Luffy ignored Usopp's sad back. He focused on his power. To be able to heal instant injuries... this was too powerful. He was aware that he shouldn't rely too much on Devil Fruits. True strength lay in Haki and basic physical strength.
Two days passed.
"Done!"
A loud shout came, waking Luffy who was pretending to be asleep. He looked to the side of the Second Division. Buggy was holding a crooked black flag.
"Captain, we need our own symbol!" he exclaimed.
Zoro sighed, "Buggy, a pirate flag should look scary and intimidating."
Nami rubbed her forehead. "It is intimidating, but because of your horrible talent, Buggy the Clown."
Buggy yelled angrily, "Are you trying to discourage me? I drew it beautifully!"
Usopp chuckled, "You should've consulted with me, a genius artist like myself."
Luffy grinned. "Usopp, I'm entrusting my flag to you! Draw it on the sails of all three ships!"
Usopp instantly became excited. Two hours later, the Straw Hat Pirate flag was complete.
"Brothers! Let's go catch those fishermen!" Luffy yelled cheerfully, pointing to the island ahead.
A day later, they arrived at Coco Yashi Village.
Luffy, Kaya, and Nami were training hard. Just then, Usopp bought a newspaper and his eyes went wide. He shouted, "Luffy! Something bad happened! You're wanted by the Marines!"
Everyone stopped. Luffy quickly appeared in front of Usopp.
"Give me the wanted poster," Luffy said. He took the poster, looked at his photo and the 40 million Berry bounty, and immediately burst out laughing.
"Haha! A bounty of 40 million! I'm a really great pirate!"
Usopp was stunned. "What's so funny about this?"
Luffy turned to Buggy. "Buggy, you're only 20 million; that's too weak."
Buggy saw his bounty had increased to 21 million and immediately cried, "Why did my bounty go up?"
Zoro glanced at his own bounty. He smirked, then saw the words "Capture Alive Only" on Luffy's poster. He sighed, "As expected of Luffy, who has connections. Even as a wanted man, he must be captured alive."
Nami leaned against the railing, admiring Luffy's photo on the poster. She was glad her name wasn't on it.
On the beach, Luffy sat on a rock. Nami and Kaya stood behind him. In front of them were Zoro, Usopp, Buggy, and his elite subordinates. Luffy looked at the big lion and asked, "Hey, what was your name again?"
Mohji, the trainer, replied, "Captain, I'm Mohji."
"Who asked you? I'm asking the lion!" Luffy said, pointing.
Buggy immediately slapped Mohji. "Sorry, Captain. His name is Richie."
Luffy nodded, unfolding a map. "This is Arlong's Pirate's den. We have to cut off their retreat."
Mohji interrupted, "We'll ambush them!"