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On the Other Side—
Under Red's precise control, the massive waves gradually subsided, allowing the Merry to drift smoothly toward the wreckage of the Black Cat Pirates' ship.
Red watched as Jango and a few others desperately paddled away in a lifeboat.
A friendly smile spread across his face.
"Usopp, looks like a few stragglers are trying to escape over there."
"Since we're such kind people, why don't you send them off properly?"
Usopp smirked and gave a dramatic salute.
"OK!"
With one hand, he reached into his pocket, pulling out several special rounds.
No one likes wearing goggles!
"Special Attack—Gunpowder Star!!!"
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!!!
A volley of jet-black projectiles shot through the air, streaking toward the escaping pirates two kilometers away.
On the Lifeboat—
"What was that sound!?"
One of the pirates, still rowing frantically, turned around—
And the very next second—
BOOM!!!
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!!
A chain of explosions erupted, engulfing the entire lifeboat in flames!
Jango and the six other pirates aboard were all caught in the blast—
And when the fire cleared...
Each one of them stood dazed, their heads transformed into pitch-black afros from the sheer force of the explosions.
Back on the Merry, Usopp gave a satisfied chuckle.
"Done!!!"
"Well done!"
Red praised him without hesitation.
Then, with a casual snap of his fingers—
A powerful wave surged forward, sweeping the half-destroyed lifeboat and sending the remaining pirates plunging into the sea.
Only one person was spared—Jango.
He was left unconscious, floating along the current... until the waves gently carried him straight to the Merry.
And just like that...
The Black Cat Pirates were completely annihilated!!!
A While Later—
Nami stomped back onto the Merry, dragging a huge haul of treasure bags behind her.
Her other hand?
Firmly gripping the stunned Nyaban Brothers by their collars as she cursed under her breath.
"Seriously! A pirate crew this big, and their total treasure is only 30,000,000 Berries!?"
Her face darkened.
"How EMBARRASSING for pirates!!!"
She had expected at least a 100 million!
If it weren't for the bounties on Zangao and the Nyaban Brothers, she swore she would've dived to the bottom of the sea, dragged those pirates back up, and beaten them senseless.
But regardless—
The battle was over.
Back on Deck—
With Nami's new prisoners secured in the cabin, Red stepped to the bow of the ship.
At the same time, Luffy, Zoro, and Usopp were finishing up—transporting all the usable supplies from the wreckage of the Black Cat Pirates' ship onto the Merry.
Half an hour later—
Nothing was wasted.
Every piece of salvageable material from the enemy ship was now loaded onto the Merry.
Luffy, who hadn't personally fought in this battle but had helped carry supplies, was still beaming with excitement.
This was their first real naval victory!
"Alright then—"
With a satisfied smile, Red turned to the crew.
"The enemy has been eliminated. Let's keep sailing!"
But then, he suddenly shifted his gaze to Luffy.
"Oh, right! Before we go—one more thing!"
His expression changed—his lips curling into a mischievous grin.
"Usopp, I need you to build me a large barrel—big enough to fit a person inside while still allowing them to move."
"Huh?"
Usopp blinked, then immediately nodded.
"Got it! No problem, leave it to me!"
Compared to the complicated weather rods he was designing for Nami, this was a simple request.
But then—
Luffy tilted his head, looking puzzled.
"Eh? Red, why do you need such a big barrel? Are you planning to take a bath?"
Red's smirk deepened.
"Oh, this isn't for me, Luffy."
"It's for YOU."
Luffy scratched his head.
"But I don't wanna take a bath."
He picked his nose, looking completely uninterested.
But Red just laughed.
"It's not about whether you want to or not—this is part of your training!"
Turning back to Usopp, he added:
"Once the barrel is done, fill it with seawater and put Luffy inside."
Usopp froze.
Luffy stopped picking his nose.
Even Zoro glanced over.
"...Huh?"
Red grinned.
"It just so happens that it's inconvenient to practice Armament Haki on the Merry…"
"So in the meantime—Luffy, we're going to train you to overcome your Devil Fruit weakness!"
After watching Luffy collapse earlier from just a few drops of seawater, Red had already come up with this plan.
Although it was impossible for a Devil Fruit user to completely overcome their weakness, gradual adaptation could increase his resistance—
And more importantly—
It could help him withstand the effects of Sea-Prism Stone in the future.
"Ah!?"
Luffy's face went completely blank.
As he recalled the horrible feeling of seawater weakening his body earlier, he suddenly stiffened—as if he had been hit by Aokiji's Ice Time Capsule.
His limbs locked up. His expression contorted.
His eyes silently screamed:
'Red, please… be a decent human being!!!'
But no matter how much he wanted to refuse, Luffy understood that Red was doing this for his own good.
In the end, he didn't complain.
Meanwhile—
Usopp snickered to himself as he got to work.
Fighting might not have been his strongest skill, but when it came to craftsmanship—he was a genius!
If it weren't for Franky, Usopp might have been the greatest inventor on the ship.
Within ten minutes, Usopp had already built a large barrel and dragged it onto the deck.
And because he knew exactly what Red planned to do, he even added a seat and safety harness to prevent Luffy from accidentally drowning.
Red, standing beside the barrel, raised one hand.
With a single motion, a wave of seawater surged up and poured into the barrel, filling it to the brim.
Then, Red grinned and extended his hand toward Luffy, gesturing like a gentleman inviting a guest.
"Alright, Captain Luffy. Please take your seat."
Luffy stared at the barrel, then back at Red.
His face twisted into the ultimate look of suffering.
"The wind is rustling... the water is cold…"
Slowly—very, very slowly—Luffy stepped forward.
Then, the moment he dipped his toe into the water—
SPLAT.
His entire body went limp.
It was like he had just been rejected on a first date and collapsed into a depressive spiral.
Completely paralyzed, he slumped forward, hanging weakly in the safety harness Usopp had built.
Red patted him on the shoulder.
"...Come on, future Pirate King!"
Time Passed—
With Luffy's new training underway, the Merry returned to its usual, peaceful routine.
Everyone went back to their own tasks.
The day came and went.
Nightfall—
Luffy slowly dragged himself out of the seawater, soft as a wet noodle.
Though he still couldn't move properly in the water, he had at least begun to adapt to the overwhelming weakness.
It felt like being a newborn baby, forced to start everything from scratch.
At the stern of the ship, under the faint glow of moonlight, Zoro continued his nightly training—holding a massive dumbbell, swinging his sword in perfect rhythm.
In the cabin, Red once again brought Nami into the game world.
With no unnecessary chatter, they immediately headed south from Cerulean City to Route 5, engaging in Pokémon battles as they progressed.
Unlike other routes, Route 5 had no trainers waiting to battle.
Instead, it had a massive stretch of grass running from one end to the other.
Hidden inside were wild Pokémon, ranging from levels 12 to 16.
Occasionally, they even encountered second-stage evolutions like Pidgeotto or the extremely rare Abra.
Two Hours Later—
On Route 5 in the game world—
"Nami, use Zippy Zap! Don't let it escape again!"
Red unleashed a massive tidal wave, cutting off Abra's escape route, preventing it from teleporting away.
Nami, who had been waiting for this exact moment, leaped from the grass.
Her long metal Clima-Tact crackled with built-up electricity—
And with a swift motion—
ZAP!!!
Lightning arced through the air and struck Abra dead-on.
Sparks danced around its tiny, golden body.
For a moment—it twitched.
Paralyzed!
It couldn't teleport away!
"You're not running this time!"
Red grinned.
Summoning fragments of stone, he launched a barrage of attacks, weakening Abra further.
Then, with Nami's signature Pay Day, they delivered the final blow!
"Poké Ball, go!!!"
A red-and-white Poké Ball spun through the air, locking onto the injured Abra.
A flash of red light engulfed the Pokémon as it disappeared into the ball.
The Poké Ball hit the ground—
And shook.
Once…
Twice…
Three times…
So far, they had encountered eight Abras in the past two hours.
Six had been captured.
Two had escaped.
Red had been determined to keep farming them.
In his memory, Abra was one of the few wild Pokémon in the original game that carried a Move Tutor item.
That meant there was a good chance of it dropping a Move Tutor disc.
It was just like farming Rare Candy before—tedious, but worth it.
And since Nami still needed experience in battle, the Pokémon here were perfectly balanced for training.
So, he decided to spend all of today's game time farming on Route 5.
As he watched the Poké Ball continue to shake, Red silently clasped his hands together.
Then, under his breath—
He prayed.
"Jade Emperor, Queen Mother, Supreme Lord, Buddha, Great Sage Equal to Heaven, Master Xuanzang, Celestial Attendant of the Purification Altar…
All gods, Buddhas, and robots, please…"
"Let me be lucky just this once!!!"
Click!
The Poké Ball stopped shaking.
Two notification messages popped up—
[Congratulations! You captured Abra and gained 86 EXP!]
[Congratulations! Abra dropped a Move Tutor: Reflect!]
Red's eyes lit up.
"YES!!!"