Chapter 7: Duel with Jinbe

Having superimposed the talent, potential, and strength of Naruto Chu Yang, Chu Yang’s ability to learn anything far exceeded that of an ordinary person.

After another short four days, Chu Yang’s proficiency in Fish-Man Karate had risen to another level.

Jinbe decided to test the results of Chu Yang’s training.

The two held a unique Fish-Man Karate match on the deck.

Aside from Fish-Man Karate, neither side was allowed to use any other skills.

At the beginning, the Fish-Men on the ship all thought Jinbe was joking. How could a human who had only been on the ship for a week learn Fish-Man Karate so quickly?

It would be impossible even if he had started learning from the womb!

Holding a skeptical attitude, all the members of the Sun Pirates witnessed the match between Chu Yang and Jinbe.

Even Arlong was not absent; with his upper body wrapped in bandages, he stood on the sidelines.

His gaze never left Chu Yang for a single moment.

"You attack first!" Jinbe stood openly right in front of Chu Yang, not even bothering to take a defensive stance.

"Alright." Chu Yang, who was always straightforward, did not decline. He clenched his fists at his abdomen and pulled his body back slightly, like a tightened spring.

Chu Yang gathered his strength into his fists and then swung out with force, the power of his punch forming a violent shockwave in the air.

[Fish-Man Karate: Vacuum Tile True Punch]

This was a move Chu Yang had improved upon by referencing Jinbe’s "Seaweed Tile True Punch."

The range was greater, and the power was more concentrated.

Because of Wood Release, Chu Yang’s cellular activity was increasing day by day; the power of this punch was already no less than Jinbe’s original move, and perhaps even stronger.

Jinbe had not realized the power of this punch until the cannonball-like shockwave was upon him, at which point he felt a terrifying pressure.

"Shark Tile True Punch!"

Jinbe’s thick, powerful blue arms bulged with alarming muscles as he smashed a fist fiercely into the air in front of him.

With a boom!

The air seemed to be torn apart by brute force into countless currents, surging wildly in all directions and directly knocking over the surrounding Fish-Men spectators.

Arlong watched the two, who had only exchanged one move, in utter horror; the scale of the clash was beyond his imagination.

"This guy actually learned Fish-Man Karate?!"

"And he’s on par with Brother Jinbe!"

"Does this guy have Fish-Man blood?"

The Fish-Men discussed it heatedly, looking at Chu Yang with astonishment. Fisher Tiger’s mouth hung open, not knowing how to express his current feelings.

"Well done, kid!" For the first time, Jinbe showed a smile toward Chu Yang, putting away his previous dismissive attitude. "In that case, I’m going to fight you for real!"

Chu Yang smiled, his pupils radiating an excited light, faintly carrying a hint of that bloodthirsty fanaticism from before.

Seeing this, Arlong shuddered, feeling a chill in his heart.

The two began to fight again, abandoning meaningless probing and going straight for the simplest and most brutal close-quarters combat.

Fist to flesh!

However, as a human, Chu Yang’s physique was vastly different from Jinbe’s, making it hard to believe he could stand tall under Jinbe’s fierce onslaught.

Chu Yang, with his youthful frame, was only a head taller than Jinbe’s waist, and his thighs were not even as thick as the other’s arms.

The clash of their fists was like two matchsticks colliding with two logs that would take several people to wrap their arms around.

The visual contrast made the match look particularly shocking to everyone watching.

Fisher Tiger was terrified that Chu Yang’s small frame would be broken by Jinbe in the next second.

Indeed.

Every exchange made Chu Yang feel as if his body was about to fall apart; the power transmitted from Jinbe’s fists was like invisible waves crashing against every muscle and bone in his body.

A normal person would have collapsed long ago.

But Chu Yang’s self-healing ability was unimaginably powerful, giving him the capital to remain standing.

Furthermore, since Jinbe did not use the power of Haki, everything remained within the range of what Chu Yang could endure.

The battle between Chu Yang and Jinbe lasted from noon until dusk!

And continued until the stars came out before it came to a pause!

Jinbe was out of energy...

He simply lay on the deck, gasping for air, his whole body covered in bruises, looking a sorry sight.

On the other side, Chu Yang was also in a disheveled state, his face bruised and swollen.

However, Chu Yang had one advantage over him: he was still standing.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Chu Yang, who had only been learning Fish-Man Karate for a week, had actually fought Jinbe to a draw without using Wood Release.

The result shocked everyone!

It had only been a week!

Chu Yang had truly transformed from a novice who knew nothing about martial arts into an elite of Fish-Man Karate.

Fisher Tiger stared blankly at Chu Yang, as if looking at an unknown monster.

Having witnessed Chu Yang’s abilities at Mary Geoise, Fisher Tiger had never thought of him as an ordinary boy, but Chu Yang’s talent still shocked him.

Jinbe said speechlessly, "Kid, you’re really tough to beat!"

Chu Yang grinned and said, "You’re not as tough as I imagined!"

"Hahaha!" Jinbe laughed out loud. "I’ll count this as my loss. We’ll do it again next time, but I won’t hold back then."

Chu Yang said irritably, "If you use Haki, I won’t be able to beat you, so let’s forget it."

Jinbe replied, "You can use your Devil Fruit ability too."

Chu Yang still shook his head, saying, "Can’t beat you, can’t beat you..."

Jinbe felt a headache coming on, then thought of a compromise. "How about this: I’ll teach you Haki, and we can have a match using Haki in the future."

Chu Yang showed a satisfied smile, then slowly slumped to the ground; he really couldn't hold on any longer after persisting until now.

From this day on, no more gossip about Chu Yang could be heard on the Sun Pirates ship.

No one dared to look at Chu Yang with discriminatory or hateful eyes.

Wherever Chu Yang went, all he could feel were the respectful gazes of others.

This was the respect for the strong.

Only Arlong dared to be angry but didn't dare to speak; even when passing by Chu Yang, he would lower his head and walk past quickly.

Two days after the match, Chu Yang excitedly found Jinbe again to learn Haki from him.

He truly loved this state where he learned everything twice as fast as others.

Every moment, he was significantly improving his strength.

It was addictive, and he couldn't pull himself away.

"You really are a monster." Jinbe, still covered in bruises, couldn't help but sigh when he saw Chu Yang, who had already recovered to normal. "Tell me honestly, are you really human?"

"Are you talking nonsense?!" Chu Yang rolled his eyes and retorted, "Where on my body doesn't look human?"

Jinbe clicked his tongue in wonder and shook his head. "None of it looks human..."

"Stop beating around the bush and insulting me!" Chu Yang said with an amused laugh. "Hurry up and teach me Haki!"

A helpless Jinbe had no choice but to honestly explain the power of Haki to Chu Yang.

At the same time, Fisher Tiger, sitting in the captain’s cabin, had a very grim expression. In his hand, he held the newspaper and bounty poster delivered by the News Coo this morning.

The bounty poster was of him, with a bounty as high as 500 million Berries!