Crack—!
A faint electric current crackled softly around Red's body.
The next instant, his feet slowly lifted off the deck of the Going Merry, leaving the planks behind as he floated into midair.
A look of delight flashed through his eyes.
"Interesting! Even though I didn't get a powerful Electric-type attack move, I unexpectedly gained a flying move instead. That's a nice surprise."
"And…"
Sensing the rate at which energy was being consumed after activating Magnet Rise, the smile on Red's face grew even broader.
"Rather than calling it a move, it's more like giving myself an extra ability."
"If I ignore speed and just maintain a hovering state, the energy consumption is practically zero. I could float all day without any issues."
"But if I accelerate…"
A bolt of electricity flared around Red's body.
In the next second, his figure transformed into a swift red lightning bolt. As if he had teleported, he shot from the bow of the Going Merry straight to the stern.
"Hah—!"
Landing back on the deck, Red exhaled heavily, bracing one hand against the railing.
Feeling that more than half of his stamina and energy had been drained, a thoughtful look appeared in his eyes.
Just now, he had pushed all of his Pokémon energy to its maximum, using Magnet Rise at full power.
And the result was obvious.
"This speed is roughly on par with Luffy's Shave… but the consumption is ridiculously high."
"With my current condition, this kind of movement would only last for about a hundred meters or so."
"It's good enough for emergency evasion, but for actual combat, it's still a bit lacking."
Red muttered softly.
Fortunately, he had never planned to develop himself as a front-line combatant anyway.
Helping his companions grow stronger—that was his real specialty.
Thanks to the powerful recovery granted by the Cascade Badge, Red quickly recovered most of his stamina.
Over the next half hour, he continued testing Magnet Rise at different speeds.
All in all, if he moved at a normal walking pace, the move caused almost no energy drain at all.
But as the flying speed increased, the consumption rose geometrically.
Using it for long-distance travel clearly wasn't practical.
That said, this move elevated Red's world from two-dimensional ground movement into three-dimensional space, greatly enhancing his mobility and control.
"No matter what, I'm now a man qualified to tease the legendary Pokémon Groudon!"
With the testing complete, Red lifted the corner of his mouth in satisfaction.
The night passed without incident.
In the blink of an eye, a new day began.
For the past two days, business at the Baratie had been noticeably slower than usual.
Even though Luffy and the others hadn't caused any trouble—spending their days either eating at the Baratie or training aboard the Going Merry—for ordinary, law-abiding civilians, having a pirate with a bounty of fifty million Beli nearby made even the most delicious food hard to swallow.
As a result, many ships that had originally planned to stay for several days had hurriedly left the Baratie during this time.
And today, the quiet Baratie finally welcomed a major customer once more!
…
…
Bright sunlight spilled across the sea, shimmering with golden reflections atop the waves.
It was noon.
After finishing the morning's training, the Straw Hat crew gathered on deck, preparing to head to the Baratie for a big meal.
"Hey! Red, it's time to eat!!!"
"MEAT!!! I'm gonna eat a loooot of meat today!!!"
Usopp and Luffy had their arms slung over each other's shoulders, shouting excitedly toward the cabin.
These two like-minded idiots had now become the most compatible pair of fools in the Straw Hat crew.
In contrast—
Zoro, who was about to face Dracule Mihawk and truly begin his path of chasing his dream, and Nami, who had just obtained her new weapon—the Clima-Tact—and still carried a blood feud with the Arlong Pirates, were much quieter.
Aside from eating, sleeping, and playing games, every waking moment over the past few days had been devoted to training, squeezing out every last bit of their potential.
At that moment, Red emerged lazily from the cabin after finishing his Ancient Power training.
Yawning, he glanced at Luffy and Usopp.
"Honestly, you two only have a sense of time when it's mealtime."
"Of course!" Luffy planted his hands on his hips righteously. "Eating is really important!!!"
"Yeah, yeah~" Red replied perfunctorily, waving his hand to signal for them to lower the small boat.
But just then—
A piercing ship's horn suddenly blared from behind the Going Merry.
The abrupt sound instantly caught everyone's attention. All of them turned to look out toward the distant sea.
A Marine warship, larger than the Going Merry, cut through the calm waters like a blade, arrogantly charging toward the Baratie.
"Hm?!"
Seeing the Marine vessel, the expressions of the Straw Hats instantly changed.
Zoro gripped his swords, anticipation flashing in his eyes.
"A Marine warship? Are we going to fight?!"
Before his official duel with Mihawk, Zoro figured a small warm-up battle wouldn't hurt.
Usopp, however, clearly didn't share that enthusiasm.
He immediately collapsed to the deck, wailing weakly.
"Ahhh~! I've caught a disease that makes it impossible for me to fight the Marines!"
Suddenly, he peeked up and offered a suggestion:
"Hey! Why don't we just sink them with Buggy Bombs right now?!"
He had plenty of confidence when it came to long-range bombardment.
"No rush," Red stopped him, a slight smile tugging at his lips. "They probably don't have the guts to start a fight with us."
Nami also observed carefully. "Judging by the size of the ship, it doesn't look like it's carrying any big-name Marine officer."
"So…" Luffy tilted his head in confusion, "can we eat now?"
Grrr~
His stomach responded perfectly with a loud growl.
"Let's wait a bit," Red said lightly. "Since we've run into the Marines, it'd be rude not to show our name, right?"
He patted Luffy on the shoulder to comfort him.
"After all, once we enter the Grand Line, we'll be dealing with the Marines a lot."
"All right~" Luffy clutched his stomach and reluctantly agreed.
Red, on the other hand, felt genuinely pleased about the arrival of this warship.
If his guess was correct, the ship was transporting the pirate world's most mysterious man—Demon Man Gin!
And the commanding officer aboard was someone whose nickname rivaled that of the Marine hero Garp—
Marine Headquarters Captain, Iron Fist Fullbody!!!
A few minutes later, the Marine warship slowly pulled in near the Baratie.
And by sheer coincidence…
It docked right beside the Going Merry.
"Huh? No pirate flag—wait!"
Standing at the railing, Fullbody—whose looks resembled a budget version of Show Luo—immediately noticed the pirate ship flying its colors next door.
"Hey! You kids over there!"
"I am Captain Iron Fist Fullbody of the Marine Headquarters!"
"Who's your captain?! State your na—"
His words abruptly cut off.
Because within his field of vision, a straw hat suddenly appeared.
A symbol no Marine operating in the East Blue could ever afford to ignore.
Luffy pouted, clearly annoyed at having his mealtime interrupted.
"Were you looking for me?"
In an instant—
The atmosphere turned subtly tense.
A moment later, Fullbody's pupils shrank violently as he shakily spoke the name that flashed through his mind:
"Str–Str–Straw Hat… Monkey D. Luffy?!"
"Y-you… why are you here?!"
(End of Chapter)