The scales at the point where the Bullfish King's tail collided with Vane had already exploded apart, wisps of blood continuously seeping out from beneath the shattered scales.
This two-legged monkey had some real skill. In the seawater, it actually couldn't take him down quickly, and it had been hit twice itself—once on the jaw and once on the tail. The whole fish was still a bit dazed.
But how could the hatred of extermination be set aside so easily? The fury filling its chest grew even more intense because of those two punches. Its tail slapped the water again, sending its body leaping out as it continued its assault toward Vane.
"Again."
Vane was in high spirits as well. A month of adaptation and integration had brought him to a brief bottleneck. To go further, he could only rely on constant real combat, searching for opponents evenly matched with himself.
Around this island, the Bullfish King was currently the only creature that could truly be called his opponent.
Flowing Water Crushing Rock Fist was constantly being adjusted and refined in real combat. The trajectory of Vane's punches increasingly resembled a real current of water.
Sometimes winding like a small stream, then suddenly turning into a surging great river, his afterimage-filled punches continuously hammered the Bullfish King.
The Bullfish King's resistance was equally fierce. Its massive body granted it tremendous strength—if it landed a hit on Vane, it could actually deal considerable damage. If not for Vane's powerful recovery ability, several of his bones would probably already be broken.
A battle between a "giant beast" and a human—the tremendous commotion churned this small stretch of sea as if a storm had arrived, the turbulence of the water steadily increasing.
In the seawater, Vane felt the waves crashing against his body, and the sensation of wind slicing past him with each large movement.
At a certain instant, Vane's nerves caught a flash of insight. His muscles achieved unified coordination, and the way he breathed through mouth and nose suddenly changed.
At that moment, the Bullfish King launched a brand-new charge.
"Whirlwind Cutting Fist—Tornado Punch."
From the defense-oriented Flowing Water Crushing Rock Fist, he shifted to the attack-oriented Whirlwind Cutting Fist.
As this punch blasted out, the air twisted, and a horizontal tornado blade actually appeared, slicing through the Bullfish King's body.
Pshk! Pshk…
The Bullfish King's body instantly gained more than a dozen ring-shaped cutting wounds.
"Wind Pierce."
Taking advantage of the brief instant when the Bullfish King was controlled midair by the Tornado Punch, Vane struck again. This time, however, the whirlwind's power did not spread outward but instead converged on his arm.
Vane's figure flashed past the Bullfish King. Looking again at the front of the Bullfish King, a bowl-sized, pitch-black spiral piercing wound was gushing blood nonstop.
The Bullfish King that had dominated this small stretch of sea ultimately died.
"Whirlwind Cutting Fist has strong killing power, but it's a bit too fierce. If I run into an opponent far stronger than myself, going head-on like that probably won't end well."
"Next, the training will be to use Flowing Water Crushing Rock Fist with one hand, while the other hand simultaneously throws Whirlwind Cutting Fist."
Using both hands at the same time—balancing offense and defense—was the optimal state.
The first step of creating and cultivating his style was officially complete, and he already had some ideas for the next stage of training.
"I wanted to eat you ten days ago, Bullfish King."
Setting those thoughts aside for now, Vane grabbed the horn-like protrusion on the Bullfish King's head with one hand, placed both hands on its belly, and with a powerful heave lifted the Bullfish King out of the seawater.
This guy was definitely tastier than its smaller kin. Judging from the flesh at the wound, it looked delicious beyond words.
...
"Pirates! Pirates are here!"
"Everyone hurry and notify the Rocket Team—the enemy is firing cannons, they're going to blow up the Rocket Team's ship!"
The town fell into frantic chaos.
A group of children rushed into the training ground.
"This is bad, pirates are coming!"
"Lord Meowth, pirates are blowing up your ships!"
"What! Who's got the guts to blow up our ships?!"
After a month of training and Meowth's brainwashing, this group had perfectly transformed into Rocket Team grunts with a strong sense of collective honor.
And now someone actually dared to blow up their ships—this was like lighting a lamp in the toilet, asking for death.
"Meow, don't panic. Tant, take everyone to grab weapons and defend the town entrance. Don't rush to the docks, meow."
Meowth knew there were cannons on those pirate ships. Going to the docks now would make it easy to get pinned down and blown up. Better to let them come ashore first, rendering their cannons useless and letting their own firearms shine.
"Electabuzz, you go with them. If the pirates get close, shock them hard. I'll go notify Vane, meow."
With Electabuzz holding the line, even if the pirates rushed in, they'd first be greeted by a wave of electricity—and this wasn't the voltage of electrotherapy.
"Eh-luu!"
Electabuzz nodded, stepping along on its short legs as it followed the group toward the town entrance.
...
"Didn't expect it—this dirt-poor place actually has a big ship that looks like a pirate ship."
The Axe Pirates. Captain Axe Potter, bounty 21 million Belly, skilled at wielding a long-handled battle axe. This was an axe he had spent a fortune forging, and since becoming a pirate, it had split open the defenses of who knew how many people.
"I heard from other pirates before that the Big Blade Pirates seemed to have been active here. They haven't left for so long—could they be digging for treasure?"
The Blood Coral Pirates. Captain Harry, bounty 23 million Belly. His fighting style was a pair of iron fists. He wore iron guards from fingers to shoulders, with conical knuckle spikes protruding especially from the fists.
The two were old acquaintances, often teaming up for raids. Each commanded over seventy pirates; together, that made more than 150 men.
This number was something they carefully controlled. They knew that the advantage of being pirates was flexibility. If strength hadn't reached a certain level, they wouldn't expand further.
They had always looked down on those idiot pirates who blindly flocked to huge pirate crews. Do you even have that kind of strength, buddy? This was the West Sea, full of powerful figures. Numbers weren't that useful, and too many people would also attract excessive attention from the Navy. Better to streamline first, then expand once strength improved.
For example, after finding a great sea treasure, eating a Devil Fruit, and obtaining powerful strength, then they could expand their members.
"There's a good chance this island has a Devil Fruit."
"That's right. Let's wipe out the Buri Pirates together, find the Devil Fruit, then each rely on our own abilities."
They had searched many islands with no results. The signs on this Shell Island were their best hope yet.
In fact, they weren't wrong—there really was an unknown Devil Fruit on this island. It just wasn't in the hands of the Buri Pirates.
Two pirate ships crowded into the harbor at the same time. But because Shell Island's harbor was far too small to accommodate three pirate ships at once, they could only dock bow to stern, with the latter passing over the former's deck.
"Leave ten people on the ship. Send three more to take control of that other ship."
"Everyone charge! Rush in—food, booze, women, it's all yours!"
It was time again for their favorite part of piracy: plunder. Even though a few people died every time for various reasons, it didn't stop their blood from boiling at this stage as always. Destruction was a natural human desire.
Those charging fastest were newbies who had just experienced one or two smooth raids. Those at a steady pace were veterans. Those falling to the very back—if not due to physical reasons—were basically newcomers, driven there by fear or by remnants of moral restraint not yet fully erased.
"Up ahead is the town. Whoever rushes in first gets a bigger share of the loot."
Those who landed first always got the greatest rewards. That was the same everywhere.
The blood of those at the very front burned even hotter.