Crushing

Gato set sail once again.

Unlike the last time, when he had left a deserted island on a raft in a desperate gamble for survival, forced by death itself, this time he was setting out to fulfill his dream. And he was aboard one of the East Blue's rare, magnificent warships.

This ship belonged to him alone, so naturally, it felt different.

"My legend, Gato's legend, begins here today!"

He had never been someone content with an ordinary life.

In his previous life, selling off all his possessions and living anonymously might have been safer, but that thought had never once crossed his mind.

Gato's mind was clear. He was still weak now; the monsters of the New World could crush him with one hand. But one day, he would stand among them—perhaps even higher.

It was not Kaguya who gave him confidence. He had confidence in himself. Kaguya had not directly given him power either, only a path to becoming stronger.

In the end, he still had to walk that path himself.

In his previous life, Gato had reached the absolute limit of what an ordinary man could achieve. Since he had been capable of becoming one of the strongest among commoners, why would he be unable to rise to the top among those who wielded power once he gained it?

That was Gato's confidence.

"Hey, kid. You're taking watch tonight. We're all exhausted from buying supplies today. Big Brother can't be expected to do something like that alongside us, so it can only be you."

An unpleasant voice cut through Gato's lofty thoughts about the future, thoughts stirred up by setting sail once more.

It seemed this magnificent ship he longed for was not entirely his yet. No matter. It soon would be.

Gato glanced at the so-called Big Brother. Seeing that he said nothing, apparently acquiescing, Gato burst into exaggerated laughter. "Gahahaha, three idiots."

Big Brother first stared at Gato in disbelief, then flew into a rage. "Bastard! What did you say?"

"Haha, thanks for helping me buy this ship."

The young man seemed to understand something. "I see. You dared to play me!"

He drew the blade at his waist, while the other two each pulled out a dagger with a swish.

"Haha, I thought you might become our companion. Looks like you can only become the first ghost beneath the Gabi Pirates."

The young man was not stupid. He understood the importance of striking first and slashed fiercely at Gato.

The three attacked Gato from different directions at once. An ordinary person might have panicked at the sight, but to him, this was child's play.

Even without using Lightning Enhancement, their movements looked no faster than crawling turtles to Gato.

Gato looked at the three of them with pity. That young man was actually quite clever, but his limited experience had limited his thinking. He had only misjudged one thing: Gato's strength.

The three only saw a blur flash past, and pain shot through their wrists as all their weapons flew from their hands.

Then, to their horror, Gato retreated farther away with the weapons that had originally belonged to them, leisurely toying with them.

Gato tossed the two daggers back as though they were scrap metal, keeping the blade used by the lead youth—a sword, perhaps.

Delight spread across his face. This blade could conduct chakra. Though there was some resistance, in the world of Naruto, it would already qualify as a legendary sword passed down through the ages.

The sword's decorations were exceptionally ornate, and it looked extraordinary at a glance. Its snow-white blade proclaimed its nobility. It had to be one of the famed swords.

"Tsk, tsk, this sword really isn't bad. It's wasted in your hands, so I'll reluctantly take it."

Hearing Gato's shameless words, all three felt utterly humiliated and charged at him again.

The young man was the leader after all, and smarter than the two hotheads. He vaguely sensed the gulf between them and Gato, so when they charged again, he fell behind the other two.

"You really don't learn, do you? Seems that in this world, crushing someone head-on is what truly leaves an impression. Perfect. I can test my new partner's power."

Gato knew no swordsmanship, but he could manage simple chops, slashes, and thrusts. With this famed sword capable of conducting chakra, his destructive power would surpass anything from before.

He poured lightning-nature chakra into the blade and immediately felt it become different. It was as though it had turned into an extension of his arm. A lifeless object seemed to come alive.

Bright Light was truly an unexpected delight. It would definitely increase Gato's combat strength greatly.

"Gahahaha, so this is my first partner. Very good!"

Amid his wild laughter, Gato swung the long-prepared slash. No sword aura emerged; after all, he was merely an ordinary person when it came to swordsmanship.

Nor did he need sword aura, because they had already rushed right up to him.

Gyaaaaaaaaaaaa—

The blade swept through the air and struck the two stabbing daggers, producing a piercing sound of metal being sliced apart.

But the sound lasted only an instant before the two daggers snapped in response.

All three froze, dumbfounded with fear. They knew the blade was sharp, but it had never been so effortlessly sharp that it could directly cut through two refined steel daggers.

"Idiots, I saw long ago that you wanted to rob me. Everything on this ship is mine now. Any objections?"

But the three were so frightened that they could no longer speak, naturally leaving them unable to answer his question.

Of course, even if they could answer, their response would not affect Gato in the slightest. He was merely asking out of habit. After all, they had helped him quite a bit, so he should at least let them die knowing why.

Gato shook his head. People of this caliber dared to recklessly set out to sea and become pirates? So much for the so-called Great Pirate Era.

"Whoever answers my question gets to live. What is this sword called?"

Gato raised the sword in his hand—his new partner.

After hearing that, only their leader reacted, since the sword had originally been his.

He cried out in terror, "Bright Light! This sword is called Bright Light. It's one of the Fifty Skillful Grade Blades! Let me go."

After hearing that, Gato could not help admiring the blade in his hand. Its ornate fittings and gleaming edge made it look like a valuable collectible, but in truth, it was a deadly weapon meant for killing.

It was nearly nightfall now, and the moon had already risen. Yet beneath the moonlight, the blade seemed even more dazzling, shining brilliantly. The name Bright Light truly suited it.

Although it was only ranked among the Fifty Skillful Grade Blades, whether the higher-grade blades—the Supreme Grade Blades—could also channel chakra would have to wait until Gato could test it himself.

As long as they could not channel chakra, even a Supreme Grade Blade would be little more than a useless trinket to him.

Satisfied with the answer, Gato said, "Not bad. You can live. You'll clean this place up later."

Before the three men could understand what he meant, the young man standing at the back saw Gato swing the snow-bright Bright Light blade in his hand.

Two heads fell to the ground.