Target, Reverse Mountain

These past few days, Gato had been engrossed in chakra training and hadn't bothered controlling his ship's course. He no longer even knew where he was.

For an ordinary person, losing their direction at sea meant certain death. But Gato had no such concern, especially after mastering Divine Wind Control.

When he unleashed this ninjutsu at full power, he could control the violent winds within several thousand meters around him for roughly ten minutes. But if he restricted its range to just around his ship, his chakra wouldn't run dry even after two or three hours.

Traveling with Divine Wind Control was practically as fast as riding a roller coaster. He estimated that only Luffy's future Thousand Sunny, using wind-powered propulsion, would be able to surpass him in short bursts.

Gato's strength had stabilized at the level of a special jonin. He should have a fighting chance even against a Marine Headquarters vice admiral.

Of course, that was excluding monsters like Garp and Tsuru. Still, he now had the qualifications to speak on equal terms with an admiral.

Even if he couldn't win, he could still run. With such a divine technique under his command, his ability to survive on the sea was already first-rate.

After speeding along for half a day, he spotted a town with ships coming and going. There, he learned how to reach Reverse Mountain and continued onward.

"Reverse Mountain... No matter how many times I hear about it, reading its description again still feels unbelievable!"

Even in this bizarre and fantastical world, many laws of physics still generally applied.

But whenever you started thinking that way, somewhere strange would pop up and slap you in the face, reminding you that this was the world of pirates.

"Gah hah hah! Isn't that what makes it fun?"

Reverse Mountain was the first great obstacle pirates dreaming of finding NEPIEE had to conquer. What it tested was not only a navigator's skill, but luck even more so.

The currents there were incredibly dangerous. One wrong move, and the ship would be destroyed and everyone aboard would die.

A complete sailing novice like him would definitely capsize. Even with his ability to walk on water, he couldn't possibly keep his balance under that kind of impact. He could only drift with the waves amid the raging sea.

Fortunately, Gato had gained a new ability. If things truly went wrong, he could fly away. It was just that the ship which had accompanied him throughout his travels in the East Blue would probably not survive.

Still, there was nothing much to miss. It had only ever been a temporary means of transportation, and he hadn't developed any attachment to it.

Once they reached Reverse Mountain, its mission would more or less be over. If it was lucky enough not to be destroyed there, it could still carry Gato a little farther, until he found a ship that truly belonged to him.

If that happened, Gato would arrange its "funeral" properly.

If it was unlucky, it could only become wreckage and vanish from this world.

Gato estimated that this was the last stretch of time he would spend with the ship, because Reverse Mountain was drawing ever closer.

He hadn't been idle during this time either. The Lightning Living Body Technique, whose progress had stalled, made new headway. After advancing to chunin, activating this ninjutsu naturally provided his body with greater stimulation than before.

He wanted to eat another powerful creature like the Lord of the Coast to replenish his energy.

But as its name implied, the Lord of the Coast only lived near shore, while he had already ventured an unknown distance into the open sea and was about to reach Reverse Mountain, the starting point of the Grand Line.

"Come to think of it, wasn't there a huge sea monster among Arlong's crew? I wonder why I didn't see it back then. If I'd caught it and raised it then..."

Too much time had passed, and Gato had long forgotten who exactly was in the Arlong Pirates. He only remembered their leader, Arlong, and Hatchan, who appeared later on. As for the sea monster called Moo Moo, he only remembered it now because he wanted something delicious to eat.

There were some large fish in these waters, but they were merely large in size. The energy density within their bodies was nowhere near that of savage sea monsters or Sea Kings.

Training through their flesh and blood would only be barely satisfactory. Gato wasn't asking for much. At worst, once he became stronger, he could head to the Calm Belt and hunt Sea Kings to eat.

If not for the threat of Sea Kings, he could have reached the Grand Line without going through Reverse Mountain. After all, with Divine Wind Control, he could create wind even where there was none.

For now, he should obediently go through Reverse Mountain. The Calm Belt was far too dangerous. The Sea Kings there were nothing like the Lord of the Coast, and they might appear in enormous swarms.

"Vice Admiral Garp, this is the latest information."

Wearing his dog-head hat, Garp was basking in the sun. He lazily accepted the documents handed over by his subordinate.

After casually flipping through a few pages, his previously carefree expression turned serious.

"He did all of this?"

"Yes. According to testimony from the villagers of Cocoyasi Village, he was the one who destroyed Arlong's crew. No one else in the East Blue has that kind of strength."

"Where is he now?"

"According to P's intelligence agents, Gato appeared on an island a few days ago. They believe his destination is Reverse Mountain."

"This is bad. Head for Reverse Mountain at full speed. We must intercept him before he gets there!"

"Yes, Vice Admiral Garp!"

After hearing his subordinate's report, Garp furrowed his brows and fell into thought.

"So bloodthirsty... Sengoku, I hope your decision is the right one. Tsuru should be able to wash away that kid's evil thoughts, right?"

Although Gato had killed nothing but pirates, Garp couldn't help worrying. His actions were simply too brutal. He was nothing like a rookie pirate who had just set out to sea.

If Akainu Sakazuki had been here, he would not have had such concerns. He might even have appreciated Gato more because of it, since Gato's methods closely matched his own ideals.

Naturally, it was Colonel Mouse who discovered all this. Cowardly as a mouse, he had no intention of going after Gato. After passing the information on to the other Marines, he decided to hide in the Marine base for a while and not come out again.

Gato did not yet know what the Marines were doing, but he had already become wary. While training, he had actually spotted his own wanted poster.

The wanted poster had been delivered by a News Coo. The moment he saw it, he immediately bought a copy.

Being sensitive to numbers, Gato saw his bounty at a glance.

"Two hundred million? Gah hah hah! Those Marine bastards have pretty good judgment."

Almost every pirate cared about their bounty, not because they were afraid, but because it was practically a symbol of status among pirates. The higher the bounty on their heads, the more confidence they had.

Aside from a few oddballs, most pirates were happy to see their bounties keep rising. Naturally, Gato was no exception.

Having happily gained a two-hundred-million bounty, he was thrilled beyond measure. Of course, he hadn't gotten carried away. He knew that it also meant the Marines would take him more seriously.