"Ding! Congratulations, host. Skill successfully unlocked: Sword Pressure!"
A stream of information rapidly poured into Bai Yu's mind.
The next moment, his eyes lit up!
This Sword Pressure was much like this world's Flying Slash.
He only needed to pour his own spiritual pressure into his blade to unleash it.
Unlike an ordinary Flying Slash, however, Kenpachi Zaraki's spiritual pressure was scorching, adding a burning sensation to his slashes.
This undoubtedly raised Bai Yu's strength another level.
Seeing his strength leap twice in succession within a single day...
Even Bai Yu felt ashamed of such outrageous cheating.
But damn, it felt good!
"Bai Yu, Ace, bad news! Grandpa's warship has been spotted on the sea to the west!"
Luffy shouted in terror.
"Ace, hurry up and set sail! If you don't leave now, Grandpa might really drag you off to become a Marine!"
Bai Yu exited the system.
He looked at the Dog-Head Warship that had appeared on the distant sea, approaching at full speed.
He instantly understood that Garp had probably rushed back to stop Ace from setting sail.
But looking at Ace lying on the ground with a bitter expression...
That strike just now had truly dealt a heavy blow to both his body and his mind.
He had challenged Bai Yu full of hope, only to get KO'd in one strike.
Did this count as ending before it had even begun?
Compared to that last fight, their evenly matched exchanges in the past had been fucking child's play.
"Can the future Pirate King still stand?"
Bai Yu leaped over to Ace's side and glanced at his somewhat fractured shoulder.
It seemed he had gotten carried away with that last strike.
Still, he was fortunate he hadn't switched to a real blade, or he would be collecting Ace's corpse right now.
"Bai Yu, you really hid it well. I never imagined you were a master swordsman. Looks like you fooled us all. If Sabo knew, he'd probably be stunned too. Too bad he'll never get to see it."
Ace shook his head bitterly.
"My collarbone is cracked. I won't be able to move for a while. Knowing old man Garp's temper, I probably won't escape. I'll get dragged off to become a Marine!"
As far as Ace was concerned, he did somewhat resent the actions of his biological father, Pirate King Roger.
But that didn't interfere with his desire to become a pirate and pursue freedom and his dreams.
Unlike Luffy, who had been brainwashed by Red-Haired...
Ace's thinking undoubtedly held foresight and ambition of his own.
Of course, if he met Whitebeard someday and was brainwashed by the idea of being his son...
That would be another matter.
"Bai Yu, I'm the future Pirate King! There's only one Pirate King, and that's me! None of you qualify!"
Luffy ran over, shouting.
"But Ace, hurry up and set sail. I'll hold Grandpa off for you..."
Ace shook his head with a helpless, bitter smile.
Leaving aside his injuries, which already made it impossible for him to fight...
Just having Luffy buy time for him...
Could he even withstand a single Fist of Love?
"All right, don't overthink it. In a situation like this, your big brother should step in and help you chase your dreams!"
Bai Yu let out a deep breath, patted Ace's shoulder, and casually tossed him a drink in white packaging.
"Drink it. It'll help your injuries recover a little."
This was the Modified Nutrient Express he had exchanged twenty points for in the system.
Looking at the white liquid, a meme from his previous life flashed through Bai Yu's mind.
It made it feel rather hard to swallow.
Still, the product description provided by the system was very tempting.
"It can heal injuries?"
Ace was dumbfounded.
Looking at the white liquid in the bottle, he genuinely wondered whether Bai Yu was playing some twisted prank on him.
But now he was riding a tiger and couldn't get off. Faced with his wish to set sail, he steeled himself and gulped it down anyway.
The instant it entered his mouth, the icy sensation chilled Ace straight through, making him shiver with pleasure.
The aches throughout his body receded like the tide.
The bone-piercing pain in his shoulder rapidly faded.
When Ace finished the bottle of Nutrient Express and came back to his senses...
His arm, which had been unbearably painful and completely immobile, had miraculously healed.
Such a recovery speed was far too terrifying.
"If you're better, hurry up and get aboard. I can already see the old man's sour face."
Even as Bai Yu inwardly marveled at the Modified Nutrient Express's potency, he hurriedly urged him on.
Ace came to his senses and stood upright with Luffy's support, saying,
"Bai Yu, thanks. But if the old man finds out you helped me set sail, won't you be unable to escape him later?"
Ace liked going against Garp, but he also knew his temperament.
"Don't worry. I don't want to be a pirate. Only kids become Pirate King."
Bai Yu casually took a swig of liquor.
"Next, I'll head out to sea and become the Marine King. That way, if you and Luffy get caught and sent to Impel Down, someone will be there to fish you out!"
"Ace, Bai Yu's right! We won't have to worry about getting caught anymore!"
Luffy slapped his forehead and hurriedly chimed in.
Bai Yu rolled his eyes and tossed the flask straight over.
"Have a drink. The next time we meet, we'll be enemies. Don't let me catch you."
Ace was dumbfounded.
He had never imagined Bai Yu would make such a decision.
"Didn't you say minors couldn't drink?"
"You're already running away from home and becoming a rebellious teenager. Why talk about not being allowed to drink?"
Bai Yu rolled his eyes as he spoke.
"A drink will numb your nerves a little, so you won't hold things up when it's time to run."
"Hurry up, finish it, and scram!"
"Thanks!"
Ace hesitated briefly, then quickly took the flask and gulped down a mouthful of strong liquor.
"Cough, cough, cough..."
A string of coughs soon rang out, and Ace's eyes widened. If he hadn't seen Bai Yu drinking from the same flask with his own eyes...
He really would have suspected that what he'd just drunk was some burning poison.
The kick of this liquor was nothing their sake could compare to.
"Little boy!"
Bai Yu gave him a disdainful roll of his eyes.
"A man should do the biggest things and drink the strongest liquor. Now scram! The old man's almost here!"
"Ace, you brat! You actually dared to hide it from your grandpa and become a pirate! If I don't sink you into the sea today, I'll never swallow this anger! All my painstaking efforts have gone to waste!"
A hysterical roar came from the distant warship.
It completely shattered the silence at the dock.
Makino hurried forward and said,
"Ace, setting sail now might really infuriate Mr. Garp. Should you find another time?"
As a tavern owner, the name Makino heard most often in this part of the East Blue was Mr. Garp's.
She knew a little about his strength.
Mayor Dappu, leaning on his cane nearby, also spoke hurriedly.
"Ace, Makino's right. If Mr. Garp goes mad, he might really go on a rampage. Admit you were wrong, and he should forgive you."
The villagers gathered around also spoke up one after another to persuade him.
Looking at Garp's figure growing clearer aboard the Dog-Head Warship...
Ace instinctively looked at Bai Yu.