Arc 18Chapters 446–459

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Chapters 446–459 Vol. 5 Read

Ch. 446Straw Hat Crew vs. Red-Haired Pirates

Luffy fought Shanks over the last Road Poneglyph and transformed into Gear Five as their duel continued. The Straw Hat Crew battled the Red-Haired Pirates’ officers, while Yasopp aimed his gun at Usopp.

  • Luffy and Shanks exchanged powerful attacks, and Shanks knocked Luffy into the castle ruins while demanding that he fight seriously.
  • Luffy revealed Gear Five and charged Shanks, and the two clashed again as the other Straw Hats faced their opponents.
  • Chopper fought the Red-Haired Pirates’ doctor, Hongo, who accepted his challenge to spar.
  • Franky emptied his new Vulcan Gatling on Gabu, then traded powerful blows with the durable officer.
  • Yasopp crushed Usopp’s leaf shuriken and aimed his rifle at him, warning that a sniper’s attack had to threaten its target.

Ch. 447Life Isn't About Winning All the Time

Usopp fought his father Yasopp in the castle, but Yasopp’s superior Haki and marksmanship overwhelmed him. Yasopp knocked Usopp unconscious after winning, while Usopp struggled to accept how completely he had been outmatched.

  • Usopp tried to escape Yasopp’s first shot with a Tough Skin Pumpkin, but Yasopp blasted through the barricade and sent him fleeing into the castle hall.
  • Usopp filled the hall with flammable gas and ignited it with a Firebird Star, causing a powerful explosion that Yasopp survived by escaping through the roof.
  • Usopp took cover in the ruins and attacked with explosive shots, but Yasopp used Haki-enhanced bullets to pierce his cover and wound his waist and shoulder.
  • Yasopp tracked Usopp with Observation Haki, shot him down, and struck the back of his head with his gunstock to end the fight.
  • Usopp blamed himself for losing so quickly, and Yasopp reassured him that his defeat was no disgrace against his own father.

Ch. 448One to One

Usopp and Yasopp confronted their painful past and acknowledged their complicated feelings for each other, while Reiner watched the wider battle unfold. Nami defeated Limejuice, bringing the score Reiner was tracking to one to one.

  • Usopp admitted that he had resented Yasopp for leaving him and his mother, but explained that his adventures had helped him understand Yasopp's love of the sea.
  • Yasopp told Usopp he was proud of him, and the two made peace with their past choices.
  • Reiner watched the battles from the castle dome with Beckman and observed the Straw Hats fighting members of the Red-Haired Pirates.
  • Nami used her lightning powers to overwhelm Limejuice and defeat him.
  • Reiner marked the result on the floor and announced that the score was one to one.

Ch. 449The Contest for the World's Strongest Swordsman

Franky defeated Gabu with a Radical Beam after surviving his chokehold. In the suspended forest, Hawkeye exposed the hesitation behind Zoro’s swordsmanship and continued to press him, leaving Zoro exhausted and unable to answer why he needed to win today.

  • Franky fought Gabu through punches, kicks, and a suplex, then battered him with a barrage of iron fists.
  • Gabu bit apart Franky’s Weapon Left Arm and trapped him in a Crucifixion Chokehold.
  • Franky fired a Radical Beam from his restrained hand, blasting Gabu into a pit and knocking him unconscious.
  • Zoro battled Hawkeye in the suspended forest, but Hawkeye countered his attacks and cut his shoulder.
  • Hawkeye questioned why Zoro insisted on fighting that day and explained that his promises and fear of failure were making his blade hesitant.
  • Hawkeye drove Zoro back with precise attacks and told him that a swordsman who restrained his desire to attack wielded a dull blade.

Ch. 452The Pinnacle of the Sword

Zoro fought Hawkeye with renewed conviction and finally wounded him, while Hawkeye’s counterthrust pierced Zoro near the heart. The chapter ended as Zoro brought down his final slash and blood gushed forth.

  • Zoro cast aside his hesitation and clashed with Hawkeye, their Conqueror’s Haki tearing through the surrounding forest.
  • Hawkeye’s precise attacks overwhelmed Zoro until Zoro chose to press forward and cut Hawkeye’s chest for the first time.
  • Zoro launched a relentless Nine-Sword Style assault, forcing Hawkeye into a difficult defense and building momentum with each strike.
  • Hawkeye abandoned defense and thrust Black Blade Yoru as Zoro’s final slash cut across his chest, while Yoru pierced Zoro near the heart.
  • Zoro dropped Yubashiri, raised Black Blade Shusui, and brought down a final slash as Hawkeye faced him without retreating.

Ch. 453Breaking Observation Killer

Hawkeye told Sanji that Roronoa had won, while Luffy continued his duel with Shanks and discovered a way to land a decisive blow despite Shanks’s Observation Haki. The chapter left Luffy confident that he could counter Shanks by focusing on his own future.

  • Hawkeye emerged from the woods and told Sanji that Roronoa had won, though he had probably gotten lost.
  • Sanji relaxed, lit a cigarette, and congratulated Roronoa as the others watched Luffy and Shanks fight.
  • Shanks praised Luffy’s growth but challenged him to surpass him without holding back, and Luffy’s battle spirit kept his Nika form from fading.
  • Shanks vanished using his Observation Haki-countering technique, but Luffy closed his eyes and sensed his own future before striking Shanks with White King Kong Gun.
  • Luffy told Shanks that he had figured out how to counter his ability by seeing his own future.

Ch. 454The Most Unanswerable Kami-Atsu

Luffy used Observation Haki to predict Shanks’s attacks and countered his swordsmanship, but Shanks’s Kami-Atsu slash overwhelmed him. Luffy was buried beneath the collapsing palace, and Beckman declared Shanks the winner.

  • Usopp realized Luffy was using Observation Haki to work backward from visions of himself being attacked, and Reiner said Luffy’s instincts made the technique possible.
  • Shanks and Luffy unleashed their Haki and began a clash, with Luffy dodging Shanks’s sword and landing a kick before his counterpunch missed.
  • Shanks reappeared behind Luffy and cut his upper arm, leaving Luffy at a disadvantage despite his ability to anticipate attacks.
  • Luffy braced himself to defend and counter Shanks’s next attack, while Reiner sensed that the duel was nearing its conclusion.
  • Shanks shifted in front of Luffy and struck with Kami-Atsu, deflecting Luffy’s punch and hurling him through stone pillars into the collapsing palace.
  • Franklin stopped Usopp from rushing to Luffy, while Beckman declared Shanks the winner.

Ch. 456The Final Poneglyph

After recovering from his duel with Shanks, Luffy celebrated with the Red-Haired Pirates and prepared to visit the giant who had cared for Robin. Shanks gave Luffy the final Road Poneglyph rubbing and urged him to pursue One Piece.

  • Shanks returned Luffy’s straw hat and praised him after their fight, but Luffy refused to accept defeat and vowed to challenge him again.
  • Luffy’s hunger overtook his fighting spirit, and the pirates gathered in the giant village tavern to drink together.
  • Luffy told Robin he would accompany her to visit the giant who had looked after her.
  • Shanks offered Luffy a rubbing of the final Road Poneglyph, but Luffy initially refused because he had not officially surpassed Shanks.
  • Shanks explained that he had chosen Luffy twelve years earlier and gave him the rubbing, asking him to fulfill the promise between Shanks and Captain Roger by finding One Piece.

Ch. 457A Son and a Daughter

Twelve years after his adventures, Reiner told his and Nami’s twins, Krista and Carl, about finding Laugh Tale and the Great Treasure. Krista vowed to search for it herself when she grew up, while Carl protested her plans to make him her crew’s all-purpose subordinate.

  • Reiner brought Krista and Carl to bed and teased Carl about his pirate memorabilia when he claimed to be too old for bedtime stories.
  • Krista and Carl argued over which twin was older and who should be called Big Sister, until Reiner separated them.
  • Reiner told the twins that he and his crew reached Laugh Tale after Robin deciphered the Road Poneglyphs and that they found the Great Treasure.
  • Reiner said he had not taken the Great Treasure and challenged the twins to find it themselves if they wanted to know what it was.
  • Krista vowed to build a crew, sail to the end of the sea, and become the first female Pirate King, then tried to assign Carl several jobs and make him vice-captain.

Ch. 458Each Their Own Lives

Twelve years after the Straw Hat Crew disbanded, Nami finished charting every Grand Line route and island, while Reiner reflected on how their former crewmates had built separate lives. As Reiner and Nami traveled toward the Sabaody Archipelago for Luffy and Uta’s wedding, they looked forward to seeing everyone again.

  • Nami completed and organized her Grand Line nautical charts and navigation manuals, planning to publish them and make a fortune.
  • Reiner congratulated Nami and said her charts could help expand the Sea Train network across the Grand Line.
  • Nami and Reiner prepared to arrive at the Sabaody Archipelago the next morning and wondered how their friends had been doing.
  • Reiner recalled how the Straw Hat Crew had disbanded twelve years earlier and described the different lives their former crewmates had pursued.
  • Nami grew too excited to sleep at the thought of seeing everyone at Luffy and Uta’s wedding, and she urged Reiner to get up.

Ch. 459New World Government

Twelve years after the Holy Land war, Reiner, Nami, Carl, and Krista toured a more peaceful Sabaody Archipelago, where merfolk could live and work with greater freedom. As they explored the island, they reflected on the New World Government’s reforms and the coming spread of global communications technology.

  • Reiner bought Krista Grand Line Buns as the family traveled through Sabaody’s busy morning market on a bubble bicycle.
  • Krista spotted mermaids rehearsing at Mermaid Paradise, and Nami noted that the New World Government had made Sabaody and nearby islands safer for merfolk and fish-men.
  • Nami recalled that the Revolutionary Army had helped bring the Holy Land war to an end twelve years earlier, after which the member nations rebuilt the World Government as a joint government.
  • The New World Government introduced annual elections for twenty council seats, and Alabasta, Fish-Man Island, and Dressrosa were likely to be selected next year.
  • Reiner thought about Vegapunk’s new third-generation network system and the changes a worldwide internet could bring.
Arc 18 of 18