Chapter 57 Rinnegan Control, Susanoo, and Battle Ace"Universal Pull!"
Luffy didn't even respond, his right hand shot forward with a low shout.
In an instant, an irresistible, terrifying suction force was created out of thin air.
Before Ace could react, he was shocked to find his body completely defying the laws of physics, uncontrollably hurtling towards Luffy at breakneck speed.
"What...what the hell is this?!"
Ace's expression froze, utterly bewildered.
He instinctively activated his Flame-Flame Fruit, attempting to elementalize his body to avoid the force.
But unfortunately, even as an invisible flame, he couldn't escape the overwhelming gravity and was still being pulled towards Luffy.
Luffy grinned, revealing two rows of white teeth: "Gear Second! Activate!"
"Shave!"
"Armament Haki Entanglement!"
"Gum-Gum Jet Gatling!"
A series of attack names burst from Luffy's mouth.
Knowing Ace possessed exceptionally high levels of Observation Haki, Luffy held back.
His tactic was to use the gravity of his Rinnegan to forcibly restrict Ace's movement, followed by a high-density, ferocious barrage of attacks!
A dense rain of fists, imbued with black Haki, rained down on Ace.
"Hey! Hey! Luffy, you're serious!"
Seeing the rapidly enlarging array of fists in his vision, Ace felt a chill run down his spine.
With no way to dodge, he could only instantly harden his arm, wielding a flame-wrapped iron fist to meet Luffy's attack head-on.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The two fists collided wildly in mid-air.
The dense, muffled thuds exploded like a barrage of cannon fire, deafeningly loud.
The lightning-fast speed of their exchange left Smoker, watching from the sidelines, dazzled, unable to catch any afterimages.
However, Luffy, at the center of the attack, frowned deeply.
It wasn't enough!
With his current speed and power, he was struggling to completely break through Ace's defenses.
"Shinra Tensei!"
Luffy's mind raced, and the suction force instantly reversed.
A devastating repulsive force erupted.
To Ace's astonishment, he was launched like a cannonball, flying backward uncontrollably once again.
"Impressive! Luffy!"
Having regained his footing, Ace wasn't angry at all; instead, he looked at Luffy with genuine excitement and praised him sincerely.
"I never expected that in just three years, your strength would have evolved to such an astonishing level!"
Faced with his brother's praise, Luffy looked at the relaxed Ace and felt a surge of helplessness.
There's no way around it; the time he's been in this world is simply too short.
Although his progress compared to the original story is phenomenal, he's still struggling against top-tier fighters like Ace in the One Piece world.
Unless…
Unless he gets incredibly lucky and randomly acquires a god-like character like "Li Jing"—a character with a bug-like, god-like template.
Otherwise, facing a monster who possesses both a Logia-type Devil Fruit and mastery of all three types of Haki, it's really difficult to pose a substantial threat.
Looking at Ace, brimming with fighting spirit in the distance, Luffy pursed his lips and silently pleaded in his mind, "System, stop playing dead, hurry up and give me a new template!"
[Ding! New template is being randomly selected...]
[Congratulations, host, you have obtained a new template...]
[Sand Waterfall Gaara!]
"Huh?"
Looking at the system notification that popped up on his retina, Luffy was completely stunned.
"Why did I have to pick this dark-eyed kid?"
Luffy felt like he had swallowed a fly, extremely annoyed.
It's not that Gaara isn't strong; this guy is a Kage-level shinobi later on.
The problem is, this ability is severely mismatched with the current environment and opponents!
Whether it's Fire Fist Ace right now, or Crocodile he'll face next, Luffy's biggest desire is actually water-based abilities.
Even Kisame Hoshigaki from last time was stronger than this sand-playing guy!
Water-based abilities are practically the natural counter to the Flame-Flame Fruit and the Sand-Sand Fruit, making the fight much easier.
But Gaara's skill tree is completely misaligned.
Aside from the Sand Control Technique, a variant of Magnet Release, there's also the Sand Village's signature Wind Release.
While these two techniques have an advantage in Alabasta, where the ground is covered in sand, they're practically useless against Logia-type users due to elemental weaknesses.
"Oh well, he's still a Kage-level character, after all."
Luffy consoled himself.
The only good news was that Gaara, also from the Naruto world, should have a considerable amount of chakra, which could serve as a large-scale power bank for the Rinnegan.
Luffy sighed and refocused his attention on the attribute panel.
[Host: Luffy (Monkey D. Luffy)]
[Currently Loaded Template: Sandfall Gaara]
[Equipment: Mazono (This is a specially made gourd housing the guardian spirit sand)]
[Talent Ability: Magnet Release Kekkei Genkai (Variant)]
[Special Skills: Jinchuriki (One-Tailed Shukaku), Sleep Technique, Possession Body (Half-Tailed Beast Transformation), Complete Form...]
[Character Reset Countdown: 6 days 23 hours 59 minutes]
[Character Reproducibility: 50%]
Compared to Nagato's dazzling skill list, this introduction was ridiculously concise.
The reason is simple: Gaara's abilities are basically all focused on sand control.
As for his Wind Release attribute, it's mostly just using the One-Tailed Shukaku inside him to unleash air bullets, all categorized under the "Jinchuriki" entry.
Just then, a sudden change occurred.
Under the astonished gazes of Ace and Smoker, the space behind Luffy seemed to distort.
A blurry figure flashed by, and then, a massive, oppressive sand gourd appeared out of thin air on Luffy's back.
Luffy's aura, which had been slightly weakened by the prolonged battle, instantly surged like a volcanic eruption.
Feeling the power surging within him, Luffy stared at the system panel with delight.
"Shukaku, the One-Tailed Beast?!"
He couldn't help but exclaim, his voice filled with disbelief.
He truly hadn't expected the system to be so generous this time, even perfectly replicating the Jinchuriki's identity.
You see, in the original story, after Gaara became Kazekage, the One-Tailed Beast within him had already been drained by the Akatsuki.
Although Gaara was later ridiculed as the "weakest Kazekage" after being defeated by Deidara, his true fighting strength was far from as weak as people thought.
It's important to understand that the sealing techniques of the Sand Village were abysmal, allowing the One-Tailed Beast to frequently roam and cause chaos in the village.
When Gaara fought Deidara, he was facing internal and external threats.
He had to suppress Shukaku, who was about to go berserk within him, while simultaneously engaging in aerial dogfights with a Kage-level powerhouse like Deidara.
Ultimately, to protect the village, he exhausted his chakra to remove the explosive clay capable of destroying the village, only to be captured after his strength failed.
Throughout the entire ordeal, Gaara himself suffered almost no injuries, which is quite remarkable.
Without Shukaku, he completely mastered his power and firmly held onto his position as Kazekage.
And now, Luffy is facing the same predicament that Gaara faced.
As the chakra of Shukaku, the One-Tailed Beast, overflowed, a violent and bloodthirsty negative emotion instantly swept across the entire area.
The suffocating malice made Ace and Smoker on the opposite side shiver involuntarily.
A scarlet tailed beast cloak began to slowly emerge on Luffy's body, like boiling bubbles.
"Luffy? What's wrong? Are you alright?"
Ace stared blankly at the bizarre scene before him.
He could clearly feel that the energy within Luffy was undergoing some kind of qualitative change, becoming extremely dangerous.
Yellow sand swirled and quickly covered Luffy.
In the blink of an eye, half of Luffy's body had transformed into a ferocious tanuki form.
"Hahahaha! I'm finally out!"
"Give up resistance, brat! Hand over your body obediently! I'm in a good mood, I'll kill these two guys for you!"
A sharp, piercing laugh exploded in Luffy's mind.
Shukaku's arrogant voice sent a shiver down Luffy's spine.
If it were the previous Luffy, facing a being second only to the Sage of Six Paths in terms of power-up, he might have been easily overpowered and possessed on the spot.
But unfortunately, Shukaku had met its match this time.
Luffy's previous form had just unlocked the ultimate form of the Sharingan—the Rinnegan!
Plus, Gaara's Kage-level chakra was now his backup…
The next second.
Luffy's consciousness descended directly into the sealed space.
Those enormous, eerie Rinnegan eyes suddenly opened in the darkness of the sealed space, gazing down at the tanuki below.
"What?! This…this is that old man's eyes!?"
The previously arrogant Shukaku, upon seeing those eyes, froze like a duck being choked.
Its voice instantly changed, its enormous eyeballs filled with fear and shock.
Luffy stared coldly at Shukaku, his tone chilling: "If you don't want to die, behave yourself and lend me your chakra."
"If you dare to play tricks, I don't mind letting you relive the fear of being dominated by the Nine-Tails."
"Damn it! Who are you?!"
Shukaku roared in resentment, but under the terrifying pressure of the Rinnegan's power, its body began to tremble.
In the end, it could only let out a reluctant whimper, obediently retreating to a corner and falling silent once more.
Outside.
The sand covering Luffy began to slowly peel away, and his violent aura subsided.
Soon, he returned to his normal form.
Feeling the vast, terrifying chakra within him, Luffy was overjoyed.
Is this the joy of being a Jinchuriki?
Compared to him, Kisame, the so-called "Tailless Tailed Beast," was utterly weak.
Kisame had to constantly drain chakra with his broken sword Samehada to maintain his chakra reserves, while Luffy now possessed a built-in nuclear reactor!
Although Shukaku had the fewest tails among the Tailed Beasts, its strength was not to be underestimated.
Now, under the powerful suppression of the Rinnegan, this tanuki had completely become Luffy's personal chakra battery.
This meant that Luffy's chakra reserves had been greatly expanded.
Those powerful techniques that he couldn't use before due to insufficient chakra could now be unleashed at will!
Luffy grinned and looked up at the bewildered Ace.
"Come on, Onii-chan, your little brother's got a real treasure for you!"
Before he finished speaking, Luffy's eyes instantly transformed into crimson, eerie Mangekyou Sharingan.
Then, a gigantic skeletal silhouette, radiating an aura of hell, suddenly rose from Luffy's body!
That massive skeletal arm, carrying world-destroying power, slammed down directly towards Ace!
This was the Uchiha clan's strongest, most powerful cheat code—
Susanoo!
"What?! What the hell is that?!"
Ace's expression changed drastically, his pupils contracting sharply.
As a battle-hardened veteran, he could clearly sense the terrifying energy contained within that roaring skeletal fist.
What made it even more unbelievable was that his intuition was screaming warnings: He absolutely couldn't take it head-on!
Because he actually sensed the fluctuations of Haki emanating from that fist!
It wasn't just Armament Haki to enhance defense, but even a chilling Conqueror's Haki!
Compared to Ace's shock, Luffy was so excited he wanted to roar.
The successful awakening of Susanoo finally made him understand one thing.
The energy system of the One Piece world and the chakra of the Naruto world had an astonishing interconnectedness!
Chakra, in essence, is a combination of physical and mental energy.
In the One Piece world, Armament Haki, gained through grueling physical training, corresponds to physical energy.
Conqueror's Haki, used to attack enemies through mental will, perfectly corresponds to mental energy!
As for Observation Haki, which allows one to perceive all things, it corresponds precisely to the natural energy that enhances perception!
This Susanoo, composed of chakra, is essentially a highly fusion of Armament Haki and Conqueror's Haki.
Therefore, its attacks can completely ignore the elemental nature of Logia-type Devil Fruits, directly striking the user's physical body!
The activation of Susanoo this time is like opening a door to a new world for Luffy.
Once he masters this principle, even if the template disappears, he can still refine his own "chakra" by fusing his Armament Haki and Conqueror's Haki in a 1:1 ratio!
Then, he'll never have to worry about running out of chakra again.
Even more so, with his unique physique as a Devil Fruit user, he might even be able to attempt to fuse with Observation Haki (natural energy) and develop his own Sage Mode!
Thinking of this, Luffy almost wanted to laugh out loud.
This was a true cheat code!
As long as his strength steadily increased, he would have the real means to survive in this monster-infested world!
On the other side of the battlefield.
Ace was like a fly being chased by a fly swatter, frantically darting around in the air, controlled by Luffy's Susanoo.
Although Susanoo's attack power was off the charts, its speed was undeniably clumsy.
No matter how Luffy swung his giant fist, he always missed by a hair's breadth, unable to hit the agile Ace.
Luffy sighed inwardly. It seemed that unless he could activate his Perfect Susanoo and cover the entire field with a massive AOE attack, hitting this "Jet Warrior" who was determined to escape was simply a pipe dream.
Watching Ace, who was flying through the air with fire emanating from his feet, Luffy couldn't help but complain, "Is this the legendary human rocket? That's so unfair!"
Seeing that he couldn't hit him, Luffy simply dispelled his Susanoo.
Ace, in mid-air, breathed a sigh of relief.
If this continued, he would probably be forced to fight that skeleton head-on.
Although he was shocked by Luffy's strange technique, as a master of advanced Armament Haki, he wasn't afraid to fight to the death.
Seeing that Luffy seemed to have given up on fighting, Ace grinned, his wish to visit his brother fulfilled, and he was in a great mood.
"Hahaha! Luffy, you're still a long way from catching me! Train hard, I'll be waiting for you in the New World!"
Ace laughed as he said goodbye, preparing to escape with fire emanating from his feet.
Luffy frowned and unleashed a Bansho Ten'in.
"Whoa!"
Ace yelled, reacting with lightning speed. His legs instantly transformed into high-powered rocket thrusters, desperately fighting against gravity, inching his way away.
"Leave your Vivre Card! Or I'll drain you dry!"
Seeing he couldn't stop him, Luffy had no choice but to settle for second best.
To prevent losing him next time, Luffy shouted at the top of his lungs.
Ace was equally decisive, pulling a special piece of paper from the lining of his cowboy hat, tearing off a small corner, and casually tossing it over.
Watching the Vivre Card drift towards him, Luffy reluctantly severed the gravity, raising his hand to draw it into his palm.
Watching Ace disappear into the horizon as a tiny spark, Luffy shook his head.
"Such immense strength, yet he still fell to Blackbeard. Truly a monster from the same generation as Shanks and Marco."
Luffy sighed helplessly.
Although Blackbeard Teach is unattractive and has appeared somewhat disheveled in his appearances, his rapid rise to the ranks of the Four Emperors within the last two years demonstrates his undeniable strength.
Having the Tremor-Tremor Fruit alone is not enough to secure a position as one of the Four Emperors.
Marco's memories clearly state that the remaining Whitebeard Pirates were utterly crushed by Blackbeard.
This indicates that Blackbeard's physical abilities and Haki mastery are also top-tier; otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to withstand the backlash from the Tremor-Tremor Fruit.
"We failed to capture Ace this time. Our next meeting will probably be before the Skypiea arc, when the Blackbeard Pirates reappear."
"Still too weak..." Luffy looked at his palm and shook his head helplessly.
Smoker, standing nearby, heard this and his lips twitched wildly, looking at Luffy with utter disdain.
His eyes seemed to say: Listen to this, is that even human language?
You beat the second division commander of the Whitebeard Pirates, a pirate with a bounty of several hundred million, into a pulp, and you're here complaining about being weak?
If you're weak, then what am I? A piece of trash?
Smoker rolled his eyes a thousand times in his mind at Luffy.
"Well, forget it."
Luffy stretched. "Anyway, Ace can't catch Blackbeard anytime soon. The most important thing right now is to kill that Crocodile and quickly install a new Shichibukai."
Originally, Luffy planned to use strength... no, he planned to use "reason" to persuade Ace to take over the Shichibukai position.
If the plan worked, Blackbeard's scheme to use Ace to exchange for a Shichibukai spot would be completely thwarted.
Moreover, if Ace became a Shichibukai, his sensitive status as the "son of the Pirate King" would make the Navy higher-ups hesitant to act.
After all, Fleet Admiral Sengoku already knew about this and had even personally invited Ace back then.
If Ace could turn over a new leaf and fill the Shichibukai vacancy, the political significance would be far greater than killing him.
Think about it, if even the Pirate King's own son abandons the darkness and joins the government, wouldn't the "One Piece" be a joke?
This was a devastating blow to the increasingly rampant pirate forces.
As for revealing his identity? That was purely bait to lure Whitebeard out for a final battle.
Garp was so angry when he questioned Sengoku because even without revealing Ace's identity, Whitebeard, with his personality, would definitely have come to his rescue.
Revealing his identity was just adding a few more flowers to the Navy's banner of justice—utterly disgusting.
Unfortunately, his current strength… cough cough, that is, his reasoning, wasn't strong enough to make Ace obey.
Now he could only take it one step at a time.
Either he hoped for a random, powerful template next time, subduing Ace before Blackbeard could act.
Or… he could simply eliminate that menace, Blackbeard, once and for all—that was the easiest solution!
…
Looking in the direction Ace disappeared, Luffy rubbed his eyes, which were sore from activating Susanoo for the first time.
He turned to Smoker, who was still in a daze, and said, "Looks like our bet has to continue. How about we change targets? How about we see who kills Crocodile first?"