The pirates who charged him were all knocked out cold by the surge of lightning, twitching, convulsing, and crumpling to the ground one after another.
Their mere flesh and blood were no match for the raw fury of lightning.
Those still standing stared in slack-jawed silence. Even Mohji and his lion Richie had quietly slipped to the back of the crowd.
Wasn't Kurou the weakest, most useless guy on the ship? Where had this overwhelming power come from?
Who exactly was this kid?
As the crowd wrestled with confusion, Kurou spoke calmly, "Anyone else want to try their luck? I'll be right here."
No one dared take a step forward.
Even the strongest on the crew, Buggy and Cabaji, had been brought down. These lackeys knew they didn't stand a chance. They were the type who harrased the weak and groveled before the strong. Beating up defenseless civilians was one thing, but facing this lightning-cloaked warrior? No thanks.
They began backing away, unconsciously parting to form a wide-open path.
Never underestimate a sickly child, they might grow into a lion.
Never mock a poor youth, they might become a king.
Why poke a sleeping lion?
Seeing that no one dared resist him anymore, Kurou turned and walked back toward the ship.
He climbed aboard Buggy's vessel, raised the sails himself, and steered the ship out to sea, alone.
Not a soul dared stop him. They could only watch in stunned silence as Kurou casually sailed away before their very eyes.
He had been dragged onto that ship as a prisoner, and everything that had happened since left him with no attachment to the Buggy Pirates. There was no glory and honor, only abuse and pain.
And besides, it wasn't like he didn't want to wipe them all out. It was just… his Chakra reserves were nearly empty.
When he had enhanced his punch to knock out Cabaji, he'd spent 10 chakra points. Then, casting [Chidori Stream] had cost him 80 more. Now his total had dropped to 10 out of 100.
If all the pirates had charged him together just now, he might not have survived.
It was his courage, his bold bluff, that had saved his life.
He'd scared off a pack of cowards who preyed on the weak.
But he knew one thing for sure:
He had to become even stronger.
As the waves stretched out around him, Kurou stood at the bow and felt his heart swell with anticipation.
He had made up his mind.
He would become the strongest and freest man on the sea.
The first thing he did aboard the ship was rip down the ridiculous clown pirate flag.
He wasn't a member of Buggy's crew anymore. Hell, he wasn't even a pirate.
Then came the next question, what path would he walk?
Pirate? Marine? Bounty hunter? Revolutionary? Adventurer?
He quickly made his decision.
Bounty hunter.
Right now, the only way he could grow stronger was by drawing techniques from the system, and for that, he needed money. A lot of it. Hunting pirates for bounty was the fastest, most direct method for someone with his strength.
Just as he was contemplating, the system chimed in:
[Friendly Tip: You can also increase your Chakra limit through personal training, and even create your own techniques.]
That one sentence snapped Kurou to attention.
He smacked his forehead and muttered, "Of course! If I have chakra, doesn't that make me a real shinobi? That means I should be able to train just like one!"
He recalled the definition of chakra from Naruto lore, physical energy drawn from every cell in the body combined with mental and spiritual energy refined through training. If you learned Senjutsu, you'd add natural energy into the mix too.
Right now, Kurou didn't have a single Berry to his name, he couldn't afford to draw more skills from the system. Which meant… self-training was the best option.
He remembered how he'd infused his punch with chakra earlier, simple, basic, but effective. That gave him an idea.
He thought of one of the most legendary figures in Konoha's history: Sakumo Hatake, the White Fang.
Father of Kakashi. A man revered even by the Legendary Sannin. Wielding his short blade "White Fang" and the technique White Light Blade Flash, his chakra-infused strikes zipped through enemies at speeds rivaling even the Flying Thunder God.
Kurou wanted to replicate that.
He found a wooden plank on the ship and focused chakra into his right hand, specifically, into his index and middle fingers. Then, with a flick, he slashed down.
The wood showed a thin line, a shallow scrape, just a surface wound.
Far from the dazzling blade of Hatake Sakumo. But it was a start.
"Still not sharp enough. Maybe with a proper weapon, it'd cut deeper," Kurou muttered to himself.
Undeterred, he repeated the technique over and over, mimicking the White Fang's Slash.
Hours passed.
Kurou was drenched in sweat, his chakra nearly drained. He glanced at his stats: 2 out of 100. Just barely enough left to stand.
He hurried below deck and raided the ship's cold storage. There was still meat from sea beasts and some vegetables. He cooked it all and devoured a full meal.
Back when he was just a lowly shiphand, he wouldn't have dared touch this food. Heck, he hadn't even been fed enough back then. But now?
Now, he was the captain of this ship.
And he'd earned it, with power.
He trained. He ate. He slept. And two days later, the ship neared a small island.
It was uninhabited, lush greenery, overgrown trees, a small jungle. Islands like this dotted the seas of the One Piece world, often used by adventurers as rest stops.
Kurou decided it was perfect for training.
The ship was too cramped. Here, the air was fresh, and who knew? He might discover something new.
He didn't want to waste a single moment. Beneath a towering tree, Kurou resumed his training.
After two days of imitating the White Light Blade Flash, he'd reached his limit. Without more chakra, he couldn't push further.
So, he made a new decision.
It was time to learn a different technique.
A legendary jutsu.
Rasengan.
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150 P.S = 1 Extra Chapter