Chapter 13: The First Battle with Ace
Dadan's attempts to assert her authority had failed; compared to her, Luffy and Kaito found Garp much scarier.
After finishing their meal, Ace silently grabbed the hose and walked outside. Luffy noticed this, put down his bowl, and immediately pulled Kaito along to follow him.
Kaito exclaimed, "Hey! You guys finished eating, but I haven't yet!"
Just a moment ago, Dadan had angrily wished for Luffy to leave, but now she seemed concerned about where they were going.
"Hey! Where are you guys off to?"
"We're just going outside to take a look. We'll be safe, Miss Dadan," Kaito replied.
Dadan took a bite of meat and remarked, "Kids are so annoying... 'Miss'... but at least you're polite."
.....
"Hey! I'm Luffy. I'm not mad about you spitting at us earlier. Let's be friends!" Luffy recalled what Shanks had taught him—that some small things weren't worth getting angry about—and waved to Ace, hoping to befriend him.
Kaito didn't share the same sentiment; if someone spat in his face, he wouldn't let it go without a fight. But, of course, he needed the strength to back that up.
Ace turned around, gritting his teeth and glaring at the two unexpected guests. He hated them, and with a swift kick, he snapped a tree thicker than Luffy in half, which came crashing down.
Can a ten-year-old even do that!?
Kaito watched in shock, realizing that if he attempted such a kick, he would likely injure himself.
As the massive tree came tumbling down, Kaito swung his arm out, his wrist bracelet transforming into a long whip that coiled around a branch.
With his other hand, he wrapped an arm around Luffy's waist, and they swung up, narrowly avoiding the falling tree.
This was Kaito using the "forest survival swing" technique he learned from the musician of the Red-Haired Pirates, that monkey!
Kaito and Luffy dodged the falling tree, and Ace watched this unfold, suddenly intrigued by Kaito's ability to conjure a whip out of nowhere.
Descending the slope, Ace asked, "How did you do that?"
With a cold expression, Ace stared at Kaito. For some reason, Kaito felt like laughing.
"Just a little unorthodox trick."
Ace's eyelid twitched. Seeing that Kaito wouldn't explain, he decided that the simplest solution was to fight! Silently, he removed the hose from his back.
"If you won't say, then let's fight!"
Thinking back to how Ace had just snapped that tree, Kaito thought, no way am I fighting you! Not a chance.
"That wouldn't be good."
But Ace didn't care; he swung the hose at Kaito.
Luffy immediately jumped in front of Kaito, declaring, "Don't bully Kaito!"
And then... he got knocked aside by the blow. Fortunately, being hit by a blunt object didn't affect Luffy much.
Kaito: ...
Now that he was here, if Kaito didn't use his abilities, a hit like that would surely break his arm, given his physical condition.
He never expected his first battle to be against Ace.
With a sudden burst of energy, Kaito replicated Ace's physique. Meanwhile, his hands were busy, as the bracelet transformed into a long staff.
He learned this technique from Bon Clay, the ship's doctor of the Red-Haired Pirates, who was a master of weaponry, especially staff techniques.
As a fun fact, the other officer, Lemm, also learned his staff techniques from Bon Clay.
"Clang!"
Kaito held the staff with one hand and blocked Ace's hose. The sound of steel colliding echoed through the forest.
"You're quite something. This 'magic' of yours, or your strength, is impressive. Much better than that little brat," Ace said with a smile, pleased to find someone who could actually fight back.
Kaito returned the smile, but inside he was thinking, damn it, my arm's already numb from that hit.
With his vision replication, he could only mimic about 40 to 50 percent of Ace's strength. Fighting Ace with only 40 percent of his power would be a guaranteed loss.
But Kaito didn't want to waste his opportunity to replicate a member of the Red-Haired Pirates on someone he might need to cooperate with later. This was a safety net for when they set sail!
So, Kaito seized the chance and grabbed Ace's hand. Ace immediately pulled it back, asking, "What do you mean?"
By touching, he could replicate up to 60 percent of Ace's strength.
Kaito didn't respond and instead replicated 60 percent of Ace's physique, ready for the fight.
Attack Mode!
Kaito took the initiative, sweeping low with a horizontal strike. Ace reacted swiftly, jumping up and bringing the hose down with both hands. The force behind it created a sharp whoosh—if that hit Kaito's head, it would surely split him open.
Not wanting to match strength, Kaito dodged backward just in time, and the hose slammed into the ground with a loud thud, cracking the earth beneath it.
Kaito swallowed hard, wondering how much animosity Ace had toward him!
Before he could ponder further, Ace attacked again!
....
In the forest, the sound of steel clashing echoed continuously.
Kaito's strength was no match for Ace, while Ace's techniques didn't compare to Kaito's.
For a moment, neither could gain the upper hand. Luffy, standing aside, maintained his composure, not intervening, but cheering Kaito on enthusiastically.
But as time passed, Kaito began to tire rapidly, falling into a disadvantage. Ace felt this and became excited; victory was within reach.
But suddenly, his excitement faded.
Estado de energía semanal
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