John, I Don't Want to Lose! (Please Keep Reading)

John, I Don't Want to Lose! (Please Keep Reading)

"Captain John, you bastard!"

As he spoke, Bai Ye flipped Captain John the middle finger. This guy was always the crew's biggest goofball, and Bai Ye got along with him better than anyone else in the Pirate Crew. They often teased each other.

But after Captain John said that, Bai Ye couldn't take it anymore. This bastard didn't believe in his strength!

Captain John likewise flipped Bai Ye the middle finger. Back then, he hadn't known what it meant. When Bai Ye first did it, he had just laughed it off. But after learning the meaning behind the gesture, he couldn't stand it anymore. He had to give Bai Ye the middle finger in return at every opportunity!

"I'm serious. There's this brat called Kaido. He seems to be from the Oni Clan. Rocks personally asked for him and sent Whitebeard to pick him up!"

Captain John glanced around, then told Bai Ye as if he were revealing some secret intelligence, as though afraid someone else might hear.

He had gone through a lot of trouble to get that information.

"Don't overthink it. The captain probably didn't tell you because he was afraid you'd get the wrong idea. Come to think of it, aside from Kaido, you've got several other biggest rivals. Those guys are all eyeing your position too!"

Captain John took a swig of liquor and spoke casually.

Bai Ye fell silent upon hearing that.

In the original plot, there were most likely only six captains. Aside from himself, Rocks had probably held similar captain challenges afterward.

But the strength of those six was indeed formidable.

Golden Lion, Whitebeard, and Big Mom were currently the three great monsters of the Rocks Pirates.

Ochoku was a Grand Swordsman. Captain John's Haki was among the best on the ship, while Silver Axe possessed monstrous strength. With a single swing of his axe, he could even split open a mountain, and he also possessed powerful Armament Haki.

Even Kaido of this era would not have been a match for those six. Kaido himself was not particularly strong at this point. His true rise came after he ate the Azure Dragon Fruit.

But Bai Ye could not wait that long. Big Mom would seize the Azure Dragon Fruit at God Valley and give it to Kaido.

With his current strength, there was no way he could guarantee taking it from Big Mom. Even Bear's Paw-Paw Fruit was beyond his reach, and even if he got it, Bai Ye did not particularly want it.

His ideal combination was Blackbeard's physique, allowing him to eat three fruits: the Logia-type Rumble-Rumble Fruit, the Paramecia Op-Op Fruit, and the Mythical Zoan Nika Fruit. Of course, if the Nika Fruit was not an option, he had three alternatives for the Mythical Zoan. The first was Vampire Form, the second was Tanuki Form, and the third was Nue Form.

The first came from Count Red, granting him an extraordinarily long lifespan and the ability to restore life, among other traits.

The second came from the tanuki by Count Red's side. It could turn names and drawings into real objects, complete with their abilities. It could even create Devil Fruit users. It was basically an ability like Ma Liang's magic brush!

The third Devil Fruit came from Koji of Wano Country. It granted the ability to distinguish good from evil and transformed its user into a dragon-like creature wreathed in flames.

In Bai Ye's eyes, none of those three Devil Fruits was much weaker than Nika. Of course, they still could not compare to Nika. After all, it was the most ridiculous fruit, and Oda's cheat code for his beloved son.

But Nika influenced its user and chose its own bearer. For eight hundred years, the World Government had never found Nika. Even after they did find it later, Red-Hair took it away.

In the end, that was Nika's own choice.

So Bai Ye had never held much hope of finding Nika.

But right now, what Bai Ye needed most was the Rumble-Rumble Fruit.

In the early stages, Logia-types provided the most obvious boost in combat power.

Whether it was the Op-Op Fruit or a Zoan-type, their early benefits were absolutely inferior to those of a Logia-type, especially a top-tier Logia like the Rumble-Rumble Fruit.

After learning that the Rumble-Rumble Fruit was on Birka, Bai Ye could no longer suppress the excitement in his heart. With the captain competition about to begin and more than a month still left, Bai Ye wanted to give it a try.

"What are you thinking? You don't seriously think you can improve that much in one month, do you? If you really think so, you should go talk to Rocks!"

"I don't want to sit around and wait to die, John. I don't want to become the laughingstock of the Rocks Pirates!"

Bai Ye looked seriously at Captain John. Rocks had personally promoted him; he had not earned it through his own strength.

To a large extent, that was partly because of his potential, and partly because Rocks wanted to set an example for everyone else. As long as they followed him sincerely, they could be like Bai Ye.

Thus, along with envy, Bai Ye drew even more jealousy.

Everyone knew that when Bai Ye had first joined, he had only possessed the strength of a colonel. After Rocks' special training, he had reached the level of a rear admiral, but that was far from enough. The other captains all possessed, at minimum, the strength of a mid-tier Shichibukai, while Bai Ye was only at the level of a rear admiral.

Naturally, once the captain competition was announced, Bai Ye became the target of everyone's attention.

To become a captain and earn Rocks' admiration, defeating Whitebeard would naturally be the best option. But if they had the strength to defeat Whitebeard and the others, Rocks would have appointed them captains long ago.

It was precisely because they lacked the strength.

And Bai Ye was the best breakthrough point!

"Phew, you really are stubborn!" Captain John shook his head, took another drink, then looked at Bai Ye with a serious expression. "Do you need my help?"

When a man of the sea sincerely told you about his troubles, even the most unreliable pirate would listen seriously, especially when that person was your friend!

Captain John could feel Bai Ye's determination. Since Bai Ye did not want to give up, he naturally would not drag him into continuing to drink.

"I'm leaving the Pirate Crew for a while. Captain John, you've been to plenty of places. Can you give me a way to reach the Sky Island? I need to go there!"

Bai Ye was gambling. If the Rumble-Rumble Fruit was on Birka, then after eating it and combining it with the abilities of Bai Ye from the Naruto World, he was confident that he would make a name for himself in this battle.

But if the Rumble-Rumble Fruit was not there, he would not panic too much. He still had the Mangekyo, and that ability was already strong enough. As long as he could ensure he had enough stamina to keep using the Mangekyo, he could remain undefeated.

But if there were more possibilities, Bai Ye naturally would not cling tightly to a single Mangekyo ability.

"I do, but I have a map for the Sky Island. How are you planning to get there? Ask Shiki?"

Captain John loved collecting treasure more than anything in his life, so he naturally kept Eternal Poses for all sorts of places to make it easier for him to hunt for treasure.