After Adrian set the world economy newswire to spread the story that Marine hero Garp's grandson had been kidnapped, the ripple effect was immediate.
Not only did his notoriety soar — the news itself shifted the balance of influence across the seas. If the grandson of a Marine legend could be snatched by bandits, what did that say about the Navy's competence? If Garp couldn't keep his own kin safe, ordinary marines were suddenly exposed as fallible, exposed to ridicule and morale collapse. That kind of headline shook the world.
And practical payoffs followed the fame: one million reputation points and three SS-tier random draw tickets were now sitting in Adrian's hand.
"Use them all," Adrian decided without hesitation.
He tore into the first ticket.
"Use."
Ding! SS-tier Random Weapon Ticket used successfully.
Ding! Congratulations, Host — obtained: Zanpakutō — Ryūjin Jakka!
Adrian looked at the blade that had materialized beside him.
[Ryūjin Jakka] — from the Bleach world. The oldest and most powerful fire-type zanpakutō; its base form burns anything it slices into ash. Its Bankai's heat rivals the core of a sun.
This was the Captain-Commander's blade. He hadn't expected to pull something of that pedigree — but the system did not seem to care for his expectations. He already had the demonic Thousand-Edge, and now Ryūjin Jakka sat beside it. Weapons like this were never a bad problem to have.
Adrian shrugged and set Ryūjin Jakka aside next to the Thousand-Edge. There was no reason to show off yet. Tools were for later.
He moved to the next ticket.
"Use."
Ding! SS-tier Random Ability Ticket used successfully.
Ding! Congratulations, Host — obtained: Time Sphere (Cataclysm-tier)!
Adrian studied the description with interest.
[Time Sphere] — from the Black Clover world. A time-magic spell that accelerates or decelerates the flow of time for whatever it hits.
Ah — Julius Novachrono's domain. Time-related magic rarely came cheap or weak. Even if this form of time magic was "ordinary" in its origin world, in the wrong hands it could change the clock on a battlefield.
"A time magic, huh?" Adrian's eyes glittered. "Unexpected — but useful."
He learned the spell then and there, committing its incantation and principles into his mind.
Last ticket.
"Use."
Ding! SS-tier Random Underling Ticket used successfully.
Ding! Congratulations, Host — obtained: Uchiha Madara (Cataclysm-tier)!
The air shimmered. An imposing figure coalesced in front of Adrian.
Armor the color of dried blood. Long hair that fell like a dark waterfall. A face handsome enough to be called a "pretty man," but that description broke down accordingly when his gaze landed on anyone else — there was an aura that made even the boldest bristle. He radiated pressure like a storm front.
Adrian could feel it even across the deck. This man was far too strong.
Still, the summoned underling bowed on one knee and spoke with perfect obedience.
"Uchiha Madara, greetings, Master."
System-summoned subordinates arrived with loyalty set to full. Betrayal didn't exist in this contract. Madara rose, regained his composure, and the raw, natural majesty of his presence filled the ship.
"Stand," Adrian said. "From now on, call me Boss."
"Yes, Boss."
Madara nodded and then, at Adrian's command, boarded the Shark to find lodging.
Adrian didn't stop there. He spent the reputation points he had just earned almost immediately.
"System, consume one million reputation. Upgrade my Reiatsu."
Ding! Consumed 1,000,000 Reputation. Attribute [Reiatsu] successfully upgraded to: Cataclysm-tier!
Adrian had spent the entire million in a single stroke. Reputation was for power, and power needed no hoarding.
The upgrade ripped through him. Reiatsu swelled outward like magma leaking a lid. The sudden press of it pushed down on every living thing within sight: pirate, captive, and townsfolk alike felt their chests tighten under the weight of his presence. For a few seconds the world seemed smaller, breath more fragile.
On the Shark, Grimmjow whistled low. "Boss… that reiatsu — it's monstrous."
Uchiha Madara's mouth twitched in something like amusement. "This reiatsu is higher than my chakra now. Impressive."
Lucci straightened. "If that is the case, then we must train harder. I'll master our techniques — full use of Armament Haki and Observation Haki. I won't be a disgrace to you."
Jikoku Gen'ya and Momochi Zabuza both nodded with grim enthusiasm. Even Kakashi — who'd been idly reading a book called Paradise — snapped the cover shut and tucked it into his pack, only half-amused by the rebuke Madara gave him.
On the hulk of the warship, Smoker — though far away — could feel it. He sensed the pressure and a chill crawled up his spine. Something extremely dangerous had just amplified itself.
Back on the Going Merry, Adrian reined his reiatsu in slowly. The pressure collapsed back inward, his aura settling like the tide receding. The moment passed, and he began thinking in pragmatic, bandit terms.
"We've got what we needed here. Time to leave," he said.
Smoker had been missing for days; the Navy would have to act sooner or later. Given the delays, reinforcements were probably already searching the area. Better to leave before the tides shifted further against them. Adrian's chips were significant now: an SS-grade abduction, a mountain of fame, a Cataclysm-tier reiatsu, Ryūjin Jakka at his side, Time Sphere in his arsenal, and Madara sworn to him.
"Prepare to sail," he ordered.
The crew moved: the Going Merry first, the Shark next, and the captured warship to follow. Nami did what she could to keep the Merry steady; Lucci handled the Shark with practiced ease; the Navy men on the prize ship were being shepherded under guard — they were Navy sailors who'd joined the wrong side of fortune when Arlong fell.
The townsfolk watched Adrian's fleet vanish. Relief and hope breathed across Shelz Town as the ragged band left. For the locals it was like waking from a nightmare. For Adrian's crew, it was only the next step.
They'd barely cleared the town when a loud whoosh split the air — a cannonball arced toward them from the distance.
"Bold," Lucci gritted, launching into action. With a single swift kick he intercepted the shell in midair — a whirlwind kick that shattered the projectile into a spray of metal. The crew turned their gaze to the source.
Far off, a Marine warship — the Dog-Head — had opened fire.
"Garp's ship?" someone spat. "The Marine hero came personally?"
Grimmjow's claws flexed. "He thinks he can pick a fight? Let me crunch his bones."
"Hold it," Adrian snapped, voice low enough to cut steel. "Wait and see what they do."
The Dog-Head closed distance. For a heartbeat tension coiled around the fleet like a spring — Grimmjow's violence, Madara's cold glare, Lucci's tight-lipped readiness. The Dog-Head's captain sent another salvo. Adrian's crew was ready; any rash action would mean blood.
Adrian watched the approaching ship coolly. He had expected the Navy. Smoker's disappearance would bring urgency, and someone like Garp would not sit still while one of his kin was held in enemy hands. This was part of the game — using the clock, the eyes of the world, the Navy's pride, all as levers to raise his price.
"Don't fight unless necessary," he told his subordinates. "Let them expose themselves. We'll choose the time."
Their departure across open water resumed. Even as they pulled away, an uneasy acceptance settled on the townspeople: the pirate threat had gone, for now, and they dared to step outside.
But peace is often only a reprieve. From the Dog-Head a voice boomed over the waves, cut in through the wind like a bell: they'd seen Adrian's party leave. Garp had noticed.
Adrian glanced at the horizon and smiled, just a little. He had his pieces in place. He also had a clock in his pocket now — Time Sphere — and more than one sword ready to be drawn.
"Let's go," he said. "Plenty to do, and the world is finally listening."
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