Captain of the 6th Division

"Shave!"

Carl utilized the Six Powers—Shave, rushing toward John at high speed.

Carl dodged the sword energy with ease; the slash swept backward, leaving a trail of devastation in its wake.

"Move faster if you want to dodge."

"Hurry up!"

Pirates watching the spectacle from afar were nearly caught in the wake of John's sword energy.

"Tempest Kick!"

Carl followed up by using the Six Powers—Tempest Kick, aiming for John's legs.

John did not wait where he stood; instead, he leaped into the air, gripping his sword with both hands, and brought it down toward Carl.

"Shave—Quick!"

Carl rapidly used his evasion technique (stepping dozens of times within 0.36 seconds) to dodge John's sword energy, then immediately vaulted into the air, landing nimbly behind John.

"Baji Fist—Collapse!"

John was not struck by Carl's Tempest Kick. He spun around instantly, blocking with one hand while using the back of his blade to parry Carl's attack.

"You're still a bit green for close-quarters combat, kid."

John said with disdain. He was confident in his own martial arts and viewed Carl as an arrogant boy, believing he could defeat him even without his greatsword.

What he didn't know was that Carl wasn't using his full strength either. This was a deliberate display of weakness; after all, he wasn't sure of the extent of John's power, and being cautious was never a mistake.

"Overlord Fist!"

John wore a savage grin. He drove his sword into the ground with his right hand, then raised a ferocious fist and hammered it toward Carl.

He wanted to show Carl that his own martial arts were nothing to scoff at.

Carl's eyes sharpened. He recognized this as John's signature technique—the Overlord Fist.

He quickly raised his arms, using them as a shield, and took the full force of John's punch head-on.

With a thunderous boom, Carl was knocked back several steps by the force of the blow. His arms went slightly numb, but he realized that John's martial arts weren't actually that formidable. He could handle this, and he was particularly grateful for John's arrogance, which had provided him with an opening to win.

Carl rushed toward John again without hesitation. This time, his right hand was condensed with even more Armament Haki, and a faint golden glow permeated the air around his body.

John's expression shifted; he immediately sensed the danger. He knew he had underestimated Carl, but it was too late to pull his sword from the ground. He clenched his fists to counterattack, his punches striking out toward Carl like lightning.

The two fists collided instantly, and a powerful shockwave rippled outward.

"Boom!"

The seawater along the shore was churned up, forming massive pillars of water.

Carl focused all his strength into his fist, letting out a beast-like growl. His entire body felt like an erupting volcano, his golden aura radiating endless power.

At the same time, John felt his own strength being gradually suppressed. His eyes turned fierce as he gritted his teeth, refusing to back down and continuing to counter with everything he had.

Their fists collided once more with a deafening roar. This time, Carl's fist prevailed; his power overwhelmed John.

John was knocked back several steps, his face a mask of shock and fury. He had assumed his strength would never lose to Carl's, but now he realized he had been wrong—though it was too late for regrets.

Carl gave John no chance to catch his breath. He launched another assault, his fists moving like a whirlwind, striking John relentlessly.

John tried his best to dodge, but he was still struck by Carl's fists several times. Each collision brought a wave of intense pain.

"Not good!"

"Baji Fist—Iron Mountain Lean!"

Seeing John's exhaustion, Carl pressed his advantage.

"Heaven-Piercing Cannon!"

The combo attacks continued, leaving John no time to defend.

However, John quickly grew accustomed to the rhythm of Carl's attacks, and the battle became even more intense.

After several hours of fighting, John sensed that Carl's power was steadily rising.

Gradually, he found himself unable to keep up, realizing he had truly underestimated Carl.

But Carl's attack speed only increased, leaving him no opportunity to counter.

Finally, after another few dozen minutes of stalemate, John's arms hung limply at his sides, and he collapsed to the ground. His body could no longer support him; he knew he had lost.

He never expected to be defeated by Carl.

"I lost."

John said with a hint of resentment, his face twisted.

He had been outmatched, but John wasn't the type to let it go so easily. He knew he had fallen for Carl's trap; if Carl hadn't constantly used martial arts to drain his stamina, this fight wouldn't have ended so quickly. After all, he wasn't a martial arts expert by trade—he was a greatsword master.

Carl stood beside John, his chest heaving rapidly. He felt a sense of pride and power he had never known before. He knew that if he hadn't used trickery, he never would have beaten John, even though he felt he still had enough stamina to keep fighting for days.

Only now, as the battle ceased, did he begin to feel the soreness spreading throughout his body.

"Carl actually beat John."

"Gurararara!"

"John was just unlucky; he actually let Carl trick him."

Not far away, Newgate saw through the ins and outs of this battle at a glance.

"Captain John lost."

"How is that possible? Captain John lost to this newcomer?"

Hearing his crew members whispering nearby, Captain John immediately turned his head and glared at them fiercely.

The few pirates who had been whispering instantly turned pale, then hurriedly bowed and walked away.

"This isn't over."

John regained some of his strength and slowly stood up from the ground.

Carl knew that his goal of becoming a captain was all but guaranteed.

Because the entire island should be under the coverage of Captain Rocks' Observation Haki, the battle between the two of them must have already been discovered by Rocks. He knew he was qualified to compete for the position of captain.

The rest of the pirates watched this scene, their eyes filled with awe.

Carl had defeated John, proving that his strength was not inferior to that of a captain.

They knew they might be welcoming a new captain; on one hand, the strength of the Rocks Pirates would grow even greater, and on the other, many pirates who hadn't yet followed a captain suddenly had their own ideas—they wanted to join the ranks of this new captain.

"From now on, Carl is the captain of the 6th Division of our Rocks Pirates."

Just as the pirates were considering how to join Carl's crew, a heavy voice came from deep within the island.

Carl hurriedly looked toward the interior of the island. Vaguely, a sturdy man over three meters tall, draped in a red cloak, wearing an ancient captain's hat, with long golden hair and a long blade slung at his right side, was walking toward them.

The person who arrived was none other than the captain of the Rocks Pirates, Rocks D. Xebec, known as the most evil man in history.

"Welcome to the Rocks Pirates."

"Hahaha!"

To realize his ideals, Rocks had been recruiting powerful people to join his pirate crew.

So, seeing a combatant capable of rivaling a captain arrive on the island, he was naturally very happy.

This brought him one step closer to his plan.

"Little ones, let's have a banquet!"

"Celebrate your 6th Division Captain, Carl."

Rocks walked up, took one look at Carl, and then ordered the pirates.

"Oh, a banquet!"

The pirates present immediately erupted into a massive wave of cheers; banquets were an indispensable part of life on Hachinosu.

Not to mention that a new 6th Division captain had just joined.

While Carl and his companions were holding the banquet, a mole within the Rocks Pirates had already reported the details of their clash with John that day to Fleet Admiral Hill.

Upon receiving this news, Fleet Admiral Hill realized that Carl's strength had increased significantly once again.

This young man could not be underestimated; his strength was rising rapidly, and he immediately issued a series of orders targeting Carl.

Fleet Admiral Hill ordered the Marine intelligence agency to strengthen their surveillance of Carl and collect all information about him, including his strength, techniques, and personality traits. This information would help the Marines better deal with Carl in future operations.

Fleet Admiral Hill required the Marine Science Unit to strengthen their research into Carl's abilities. They needed to understand the principles behind Carl's techniques so they could ensure the Marines would have the advantage in any future battles against him.

After the banquet ended, Carl took in some pirates with relatively kind faces as subordinates. Although their strength was generally not very high, they were at least his first batch of followers and could help him handle some chores.

He chose a spot on Hachinosu and had the pirates start building houses; this would serve as the future base for their 6th Division.

As for Charlotte Linlin, upon learning that Carl possessed Titan blood, she indicated multiple times during the banquet that she wanted to have children with him, though she was rejected by Carl every time.

However, Charlotte noticed that Carl had a low tolerance for alcohol, and a scheme immediately formed in her mind.

Just as Charlotte Linlin was thinking about how to approach Carl, Rocks fell into deep thought, his heart filled with suspicion.

After all, the battle to attack God Valley was not far off. Although no one knew his plan, while it was certainly a good thing to have someone so strong join suddenly, what if he were a spy? So, he came up with a plan.

He would have him go directly to attack a weaker World Government member nation to test his loyalty.

Furthermore, he had inserted a plant among the pirates Carl had recruited yesterday, specifically for this purpose.

"Boss Carl, Captain Rocks is calling for you."

The next morning, just as Carl had gotten out of bed and before he had even eaten breakfast, a pirate came to inform him that Captain Rocks wanted to see him.