Chakra Control, Talent and Hard Work

By noon the next day, sunlight pierced through the thick clouds.

Golden light shone without restraint across the deck of the Straw Hat.

"Haaah—"

Victor pushed open the cabin door and lazily stretched, his joints cracking loudly all over.

"Ah, what nice weather."

He rubbed his sleepy eyes and looked toward Luffy, who was sitting in the VIP seat at the bow, crunching away at an apple.

"Oh, morning, Luffy."

"Ah, Victor, morning." Luffy waved vaguely, his mouth stuffed full of apple.

Nami, who was in the middle of the deck counting their dwindling supplies, instantly got a throbbing vein on her forehead when she heard those two talking.

Her face darkened.

"It's already noon! You two idiots do nothing but sleep!"

"Gulp."

Luffy swallowed the apple in his hand, core and peel included, in just a few bites and patted his stomach.

"Ah, it's noon already? No wonder I'm so hungry."

Nami sighed helplessly, set down the list in her hand, and looked out over the endless sea, a trace of worry flashing through her eyes.

"Is it really safe for us to head to the Grand Line like this...? I heard it's the most dangerous place, known as the Pirate Graveyard."

Luffy sat cross-legged and nodded seriously.

"Nami's right. We really need to eat more meat. Eating nothing but apples every day will make us weak."

Zoro, who had been dozing against the mast, opened his eyes at just the right moment and added:

"Besides meat, we need alcohol too."

"Who was talking about food?!"

Nami's temper flared. She grabbed a bright red apple beside her and hurled it viciously at Victor without even looking.

"Whoosh!"

The apple traced an arc through the air, flying straight at Victor, who had just finished stretching.

"Smack."

Victor raised a hand and caught the apple steadily, then looked at Nami with dark lines across his face.

"Hey! Miss Navigator, that was Moss Head talking! I didn't say anything! Why throw it at me?"

"Hehehe! You got hit!" Luffy clutched his stomach and burst out laughing.

"Hmph, serves you right." Zoro curled his lips in smug amusement.

Nami took a deep breath, forced herself to calm down, and sighed.

"What are you two even talking about? Stop joking around. This is the Grand Line..."

Nami spread out the sea chart in her hands, her expression grave.

"There are countless vicious pirate crews there. Whether it's the size of their ships or the number of fighters they have, they far surpass our little boat with only four people.

"If we rush in like this, we won't even be able to guarantee our own safety. Luffy, do you understand?"

Seeing Nami's serious expression, Luffy stopped smiling and nodded with equal seriousness.

"Yeah, I understand!"

Luffy clenched his fists, his gaze firm.

"We really need to find more companions! Besides a cook, we need a musician too..."

"Pfft—a musician?!"

Zoro could not hold it in and burst out laughing again. "Hey, hey, is that really something we need to prioritize?"

"Are you an idiot?!"

Nami finally snapped and roared at Luffy. "You don't understand at all! What matters is combat strength! Supplies! A sturdier ship!"

After yelling at Luffy, Nami turned and fixed her murderous glare on Victor, who was watching the show from the side.

"Victor!"

"Yes, yes, Miss Navigator."

Victor took a bite of the apple in his hand and answered through a mouthful of it.

"Where's the nearest island? We have plenty of money in the cabin. We can spend it on a bigger ship and stock up on supplies while we're at it."

At the words "money" and "supplies," Luffy and Zoro's eyes immediately lit up.

"Oh! We're going to eat meat!" Luffy raised both hands and cheered.

"Don't forget the alcohol," Zoro added.

Nami sighed helplessly and pulled out the sea chart again, examining it carefully.

"Let me see... If we head a little farther south, there's an inhabited island called Rolf Town.

"It's fairly prosperous. We should be able to get a decent ship there and replenish our supplies."

"Rolf Town..."

Victor nodded thoughtfully.

If he remembered correctly, that should have been the village where Usopp lived in the original story.

In other words—the hometown of the Going Merry.

At that thought, Victor walked over with a smile.

While Nami was still looking at the chart, he casually stuffed the apple in his hand into her mouth.

"Mmph?!" Nami's eyes widened.

"Alright, the plan is confirmed! Destination: Rolf Town! Full speed toward that island! I'm counting on you, Miss Navigator."

"Mmph! Mmph!!"

With her mouth stuffed full of apple, Nami waved her fists furiously and shouted indistinctly.

"Ptoo! Ptoo! You bastard, Victor!!"

"Oh!! Full speed ahead!!"

Ignoring Nami's protests completely, Luffy excitedly pulled the sail and shouted at the top of his lungs.

After the ship adjusted its course, Victor went to the stern alone.

He watched the waves rolling behind the ship, his eyes turning slightly serious.

Yesterday, he had exchanged for [Chakra Control Mastery]. It was one of the most basic foundations in Naruto and an essential path toward becoming an expert.

"Perfect time to test it out."

Victor took a deep breath and slowly gathered Chakra beneath the soles of his feet.

The feeling was strange, as though an invisible membrane had adhered itself to the bottoms of his feet.

Holding onto the rope at the stern, he cautiously extended one foot toward the surface of the sea.

"Like a dragonfly touching water..."

When his sole touched the ocean, he did not sink as usual. Instead, he felt a flexible resistance.

He was not sinking!

Victor was delighted and breathed a sigh of relief.

Then, he boldly released the rope. His other foot stepped steadily onto the undulating surface of the sea as well.

At that moment, he stood as if on solid ground, rising and falling with the waves without sinking even the slightest bit.

Victor clasped his hands behind his back, feeling the sea breeze brush against him as he muttered with a grin:

"Mm, setting the system aside, this is entirely the result of talent and hard work."

Walking on water was absolutely a life-saving and practical godly skill in a pirate world made almost entirely of seawater.

Whether in naval combat or while escaping, it would give him an enormous advantage.

However, just as Victor was immersed in self-satisfaction...

Beneath the water, a fairly large sea fish seemed to have developed a strong interest in this "two-legged creature" standing on the surface.

It quietly swam over and curiously nudged the sole of Victor's Chakra-covered foot.

"Hm?"

Victor, who had been maintaining a delicate balance, suddenly felt his foot slip.

The flow of Chakra was instantly disrupted.

"Fuck!"

A beautiful national curse slipped out of his mouth.

Victor immediately lost his balance. As though someone had tripped him, he plunged headfirst into the sea.

"Splash!"

Icy seawater instantly rushed into his nose.

Victor was not a Devil Fruit user, but as a thoroughly landlocked shut-in transmigrator, he was not a good swimmer.

"Help, help! Glub glub..."

He flailed in the water, displaying none of his earlier expert demeanor.

"Hahahaha! Victor fell into the water!"

Leaning over the rail, Luffy watched the scene and pointed at Victor's bedraggled state, laughing heartlessly.

"Tch, what's that idiot doing?"

Zoro, who was wiping his swords, glanced over and complained helplessly.

Though he sounded disdainful, he swiftly took off his outer clothes and jumped into the sea with a splash.

Meanwhile.

On a quiet, peaceful island not far ahead.

On the streets of Rolf Town, a long-nosed boy was running wildly, drenched in sweat.

As he ran, he waved his arms and screamed himself hoarse at the empty streets:

"Pirates are coming!!"

"Pirates are coming!!"

"Everybody run! Terrifying pirates are going to attack the village!!"