Hiroto swept his gaze across the scene and exhaled slowly.
Victory.
And it had been effortless.
By now, in these waters of East Blue, he no longer needed to consider mere numbers.
"Goodbye."
Hiroto sheathed his sword and rode the wind away.
Just as he had said, the battle ended in the blink of an eye.
What he didn't notice was the gaze falling from the sky, watching him disappear.
'One blade splits the sea... strength like that appearing in the East Blue? Seems the World Government's propaganda is only skin-deep.'
A trace of surprise crossed Issho's weathered face, followed by concern for the pirate who had just left.
The man looked very young, yet his power was considerable. And if the Marines had joined forces to hunt him, he must already be a major calamity in the East Blue.
Even though he had just suffered a failure that shook his own convictions, Issho could not suppress the urge to cut down evil once more. Within his beating heart, those surging emotions had never truly died.
He shook his head, choosing not to act recklessly.
His travels had shown him too much, not every pirate could be painted with the same brush.
To carry out his own will without later regret, rashness had to be cast aside.
So even when facing someone with a fearsome reputation, he would see for himself whether the man truly deserved it.
Still...
Issho glanced at the sea beneath him.
His cane-sword left its scabbard, and a mighty gravity pressed downward.
In his eyes, the Marines serving the World Government were the most basic guardians of order in this world. In most cases, he didn't mind lending them a hand.
Far above.
A News Coo soaring in the sky witnessed everything, the den den mushi camera around its neck still clicking away.
...
Cocoyasi Village.
In the tangerine orchard, Hiroto sat cross-legged under a tangerine tree.
In the distance, the sky was gradually darkening, the twilight glow was obscure, and a sea breeze blew gently, providing a rare moment of comfort.
He was reviewing the details of the recent battle. In truth, there wasn't much to say. It was pure brute force, followed by cleaving the sea to annihilate the Marine fleet.
[Flying Slash] didn't need much mention. With a 5X scale increase, it could produce a slash at least twenty meters wide and over a hundred meters long.
But the core of truly being able to split the sea with one strike lay in [Fish-Man Strength]. With a ten times strength boost, he exerted power that only a C-grade Strength attribute could possess.
This was the absolute upper limit that [Fish-Man Strength] could provide.
A single attribute reaching the level of a 100 million bounty is a terrifying value.
In the original story's Fish-Man Island arc, Urouge, one of the Supernovas, only had a bounty of 108 million berries.
As for the cost...
Hiroto recalled the feeling of the battle just now. That one strike felt like it drained thirty percent of his stamina.
This was an entry with massive consumption.
As for the drawbacks... his current Strength attribute had already reached D++ level, and it wouldn't be long before he could raise it to C-grade himself.
By then, the effect of [Fish-Man Strength] probably wouldn't manifest, since it was created by [Gluttony] devouring some Fishmen and Arlong. The current upper limit was fixed there.
But it wasn't important. His subsequent plan was to see if he could retain the 10X multiplier of this entry through [Fusion]. Even if he lost that efect, he wouldn't feel it was a waste.
'Now it feels a bit like a glass cannon. The shortcoming is actually stamina. No matter the technique, the stamina consumption is huge.' Hiroto pondered, then opened his panel.
Three options emerged, followed by a somewhat dim but still brilliant purple light, which surprised him slightly.
Blue → Purple?
Although it looked like it was at the lower end of the tier and might even drop back down if it got any weaker, it was still purple nonetheless.
Did Smoker plus seven Marine Warships really provide this much energy?
Though a bit puzzled, after thinking for a moment, Hiroto quickly made his decision.
He pressed [Extraction].
A dazzling purple light exploded before his eyes.
[Entry – Overtime Worker (Purple) acquired!]
[Entry: Overtime Worker]
[Quality: Purple]
[Type: Passive]
[Effect: Increases Constitution attribute by C- grade, provides a high recovery rate for endurance.]
[Consumption: None]
[Panel Updated]
[Constitution: D+ → C (100 million berries bounty level)]
Hiroto closed the panel with satisfaction.
The level of [Overtime Worker] was relatively low, barely reaching purple grade, and it only provided a C- level boost to the Constitution attribute. It was much worse compared to [Shunpo], but since it came from residual energy plus Smoker and the fleet, it was beyond his expectations anyway.
Moreover, the boosted attribute was his weakest point, Constitution, and the high endurance recovery was also extremely important.
Regardless of how it was portrayed in the original story, in the summaries, battles between powerhouses were basically measured in days.
Endurance is a vital factor in the One Piece World, some elderly powerhouses suffer from a lack of it.
Patting his butt, Hiroto stood up and began training. He didn't return until late at night.
(End of Chapter)
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