Want to read ahead? Join my Patreon for just $7 to get early access to all upcoming chapters!
> Patreon.com/NegativeTranslations
________________________________________
Chapter 363: Rejecting Whitebeard! I Am Not Anyone's Son, I Am My Family's Umbrella
The air seemed to solidify in an instant. Whitebeard's deafening invitation was still echoing among the rafters of the tavern.
Not just the pirates inside the tavern, but even the various spies craning their necks outside the door held their breath. Become Whitebeard's son? On this sea, this was an honor countless pirates didn't even dare to dream of!
That was a shortcut to becoming the "Strongest". It was the most solid sanctuary on this sea. Just a nod. Just one word: "Pops". From then on, the name Charlotte Katakuri would no longer just be the Sweet Commander of the Big Mom Pirates, but the new second-in-command of the Whitebeard Pirates! Possibly even... the future successor to the captain!
After all, everyone could see the condition of Whitebeard's body. He desperately needed a successor who could hold up this banner. And Katakuri—whether in strength, temperament, or that capacity to protect his family—perfectly fit Whitebeard's criteria for choosing a son!
"Wh... What kind of joke is this!" In the corner, Perospero was so scared his tongue was tied. The candy cane in his hand directly melted into a puddle of sticky liquid.
Crazy? Is this old lunatic Whitebeard insane?! To openly poach Mama's corner in front of the whole world! And it was the deepest cut possible! If Katakuri really agreed... Perospero simply dared not imagine how terrifying it would be when that crazy woman back in Totto Land went berserk! The entire Big Mom Pirate crew would probably disintegrate instantly!
Everyone's gaze, like spotlights, was pinned firmly on that tall man.
Katakuri stood in place. His leather clothes, tattered from the fierce battle, were still fluttering slightly. That mouth full of fangs, freshly restored to its true appearance, did not show the slightest flattery or panic because of Whitebeard's invitation. His eyes were as calm as a bottomless pool of stagnant water. Only when he looked at Brulee beside him did a trace of imperceptible ripples appear.
One second. Two seconds. Three seconds. Silence spread, oppressive enough to make one want to scream.
Finally, Katakuri slowly raised his head. Those crimson eyes looked directly at the old man sitting in the chair like a mountain. Two streams of Conqueror's Haki belonging to top-tier powerhouses collided silently in the air. Although not as earth-shattering as before, it caused fine distortions in the surrounding space.
"Whitebeard." Katakuri spoke. His voice was deep and husky, but it carried a hard quality like metal and stone. "Your capacity commands my respect. To be willing to make an enemy of the world for brats with no blood relation... That resolve as a 'Father'... that crazy woman isn't even fit to carry your shoes."
Hearing this, Perospero's heart gave a violent twitch. It's over! Is this the prelude to accepting?
However, Katakuri's tone took a sharp turn in the next second.
"However. I refuse."
Boom!
Three simple words. Like a heavy hammer, ruthlessly smashing onto everyone's chest. Refused?! He actually refused Whitebeard's invitation?! This was a chance to reach the pinnacle of the world!
Even Whitebeard himself had a flash of surprise flicker in those narrowed golden eyes. But immediately, that surprise turned into even deeper appreciation.
"Oh? Do you look down on my ship?" Whitebeard leaned forward slightly. That pressure belonging to the World's Strongest instantly surged several times over! The tavern floor groaned under the burden.
Katakuri's knees bent slightly. Muscles all over his body tensed instantly, like a fully drawn bow. But he still didn't retreat a half-step. Nor did he lower his proud head.
"Not at all." Katakuri shook his head. He reached out his hand and gently rubbed Brulee's purple hair beside him. Brulee was gripping his coat tightly, her eyes full of worry.
"If it were twenty years ago, perhaps I would have agreed without hesitation. Because there lies the 'family' I yearn for. But now..." Katakuri turned around, looking through the tavern window towards the direction of the distant New World.
There, there was Daifuku, Oven, and those younger brothers and sisters shivering in the shadow of that crazy woman.
"I am already a Big Brother." Katakuri's voice was light, yet heavy as a thousand tons. "If I leave... If I become your son... those idiots still remaining in Totto Land... who will protect them?"
"I don't want to be anyone's son. What I want to do is to open an umbrella that belongs to me, for my family!"
Since that crazy woman can't give a real home, then I will provide it! Since this world cannot tolerate the illusion of perfection, then I will tear it apart! This was the final answer Katakuri realized within the dungeon, in that battle inside the Infinity Castle!
Inside the tavern, it fell into a dead silence once again. But this time, no one felt Katakuri was being ungrateful. Those pirates looked at that back, and in their eyes remained only pure awe. This was a man's responsibility!
"Gurararara!!!"
After a brief silence, Whitebeard threw his head back and laughed again. The laughter shook the medicine in the IV bottles violently.
"Good! Good! Good!" He said "Good" three times in a row. With a wave of his large hand, he drank the bowl of sake in one gulp. "Don't want to be a son, want to be the head of a family? Charlotte brat... You really suit my taste!"
"Then get lost! Go build your own 'home'! If one day, that crazy mom of yours can't tolerate you..." The smile at the corner of Whitebeard's mouth became ferocious and arrogant. "My ship will always save a spot for you!"
This was a promise. And the greatest recognition from this Overlord of the Sea to Katakuri!
Katakuri took a deep look at Whitebeard and bowed slightly. This was the highest respect from one man to another.
—————
Blake slowly withdrew his gaze and leaned back in his chair.
"System," Blake called out softly in his heart. "Tally up the rewards from the previous dungeons."
Three heavyweight dungeons cleared in succession. He, the behind-the-scenes boss, hadn't had time to tally the harvest yet.
[Ding! Settling accumulated rewards for the Host...]
[Settlement Order: 1. Pokémon (Kaido); 2. Black Bullet (Whitebeard); 3. Demon Slayer (Katakuri).]
The cold mechanical voice echoed in his mind. Immediately after, three balls of differently colored brilliance exploded in Blake's consciousness.
[Dungeon 1: "Pokémon: Magikarp's Counterattack" Settlement Complete.]
[Proxy Player: Kaido.]
[Clearance Evaluation: S+ (With the weakest body, defied the heavens to slay a god, achieving the title of Champion).]
[Congratulations Host. Obtained SSS-Class Reward: Sky Dragon Rayquaza Template (Authority Version)!]
[Description: Not only obtain Rayquaza's physical attribute bonuses, but also master its core authority "Delta Stream".]
[Note: Host can freely control all weather above the stratosphere, quell or induce storms capable of destroying continents, and possess absolute bloodline suppression over all "Dragon" attribute creatures.]
Boom—!
An aura ancient and boundless instantly awakened within Blake's body. It wasn't Chakra. Nor was it Haki. But a power closer to "Rules". Deep within Blake's pupils, the phantom of a winding green dragon faintly emerged. It cruised above the clouds, with the sky as its territory and the stars as its embellishment. It was the monarch of the atmosphere, the overlord of the sky.
Blake gently exhaled a breath. Hoo—
Just as this breath left his body, the sky outside the tavern underwent a drastic change. The originally clear sky of ten thousand miles was instantly swept by wild winds and covered in dense dark clouds. Streaks of green flowing light shuttled through the clouds, as if an ancient giant beast was awakening.
"What's happening? The weather changed?"
"The sun was just out!"
The pirates in the tavern looked out the window in bewilderment.
Only Whitebeard's hand holding the sake bowl paused slightly. He raised his head, his golden eyes looking deeply at Blake. In that instant, he actually felt a pressure from this young boss that was ten thousand times more terrifying than when Kaido transformed into an Azure Dragon!
That was true... Dragon God's Might!
"Disperse."
Blake recited silently in his heart. The dark clouds outside the window instantly dissipated, and the wild wind stopped abruptly. Everything was as if it had never happened.
"Not bad." Blake nodded in satisfaction. Although he already possessed the God Tree Fruit and could control natural energy, "Delta Stream," this rule-level weather manipulation, still gave him a trump card capable of overturning the world. In a world dominated by the sea and weather, mastering the weather meant mastering Divine Authority! Added to the Wind God's authority from before, this allowed him to truly grasp the power of rules.
________________________________________
Support this fanfict by leaving Positive Review, Comments, and Power Stones.
For Advance Chapters:
> Patreon.com/NegativeTranslations