"A material that contains extremely powerful energy!?"
Red, who had just finished explaining matters related to Trainers to Sanji, looked at Nami in surprise.
After hearing that Nami wanted to upgrade and evolve the Clima-Tact, Red couldn't help but stroke his chin thoughtfully.
"Now that you mention it, there really are quite a few items in the Pokémon world that fit your requirements."
"Really!?" Nami's eyes lit up in an instant as she looked at Red with anticipation.
"It's just…" Red showed a hint of hesitation. "I'm not sure whether those things would actually work."
"And bringing them into the real world would also take quite a bit of time."
When it came to energy-filled materials, the first things that came to Red's mind were the various elemental Evolution Stones used to help Pokémon evolve—such as the Fire Stone, Water Stone, Thunder Stone, and so on.
Those attributes just so happened to align perfectly with the Clima-Tact's functions.
That said, there were no shortages of miraculous items in the Pokémon game worlds.
If he could somehow bring Arceus's Plates into the world of pirates…
Wouldn't it be absurdly easy to create weapons rivaling Ancient Weapons!?
"I remember that the Celadon City Department Store sells standard Evolution Stones," Red thought. "When the time comes, I can exchange a few and see whether Usopp can make use of them."
With the idea settled, Red nodded toward Nami and said:
"After we finish wiping out the Arlong Pirates, I'll help you research it."
"Don't worry. Even if items from the Pokémon world don't work out, the Grand Line has plenty of resources worth exploiting."
"No need to rush."
"Really!?" Joy flashed across Nami's eyes. "That's amazing!"
At some point, the name Arlong Pirates had stopped making her tremble in fear. Instead, she had become far more invested in anything that could make her stronger.
Back then, she simply didn't have the power.
But now, Nami only had one thing to say:
"Fighting feels great!"
"…Did I accidentally turn Nami into a battle-loving violent girl!?"
Watching her bounce away in high spirits, Red couldn't help but feel a bit worried.
Still, Nami's question had reminded him of something important.
In truth, Red had long since set his sights on the various mysterious items found in Pokémon games.
Unfortunately, because Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu/Eevee removed the held item mechanic, he could only place his hopes on clearing this world first—then heading to other game versions where held items still existed.
Some held items in Pokémon games provided absurdly powerful boosts.
Red was extremely curious…
If those special items were brought into the world of pirates, would they still retain their broken effects?
Of course, all of that was for the future.
After seeing Nami off, Red's consciousness shifted, his attention snapping back to the game console's screen.
He opened the Pokémon list.
Behind Usopp's icon, a chibi blond figure in a black suit with a cigarette clenched between his lips appeared on the screen.
It was Sanji's Pokémon avatar!
Thanks to Luffy and Zoro vouching for him, Sanji accepted Red's identity as a Trainer almost without hesitation and was quickly added to the Pokémon list.
Red tapped to inspect him.
Sanji's status panel popped up:
[Pokémon: Vinsmoke Sanji][Level: 32][Gender: ♂][Nature: Calm (+Sp. Def −Attack)][Type: Fighting / Fire][Ability: Battle Armor (The body becomes extremely tough, with no weak points)][Moves: None][EXP: 0 / 3169]
...
[HP: 123][Attack: 96][Defense: 95][Sp. Atk: 74][Sp. Def: 92][Speed: 109]
...
"Huh~?"
A trace of confusion flickered through Red's eyes as he murmured to himself.
"Battle Armor!? Is it because there's an exoskeleton hidden within his body that the system assigned him this Ability?"
Pokémon Abilities were effectively the first major cheat provided by the system to Red's companions.
Although Usopp's Run Away and Nami's Pickup hadn't yet manifested in the real world…
The system had already made it clear upon activation—
As long as they entered a game world even once, those previously nonexistent Ability effects would manifest on the "Pokémon" themselves.
Usopp simply hadn't had any chance to trigger his.
As for Nami…
Red suspected it was because she had stayed aboard the Going Merry for too long—equivalent to not accumulating enough "steps" in-game—so Pickup had never activated.
Meanwhile, Luffy's Regenerator and Zoro's Pressure had already been clearly demonstrated in reality.
During their days in Syrup Village, every time Luffy trained himself to total exhaustion, all it took was a short rest before he bounced back full of energy.
He was practically the living embodiment of endless sit-ups.
As for Zoro's Pressure, it had manifested repeatedly in battle—so much so that even Dracule Mihawk had mistaken it for the prelude to Conqueror's Haki awakening.
Which meant…
"Sanji's Ability makes his body incredibly tough, removing all weak points…"
"In other words, once the Ability is active, even if he's struck in the eyes, internal organs, his backside, or even his little brother down there, the damage would be no different from being hit anywhere else?"
"This Ability… is unexpectedly strong!"
Staring at Sanji's status screen, Red pondered intensely.
The Fighting + Fire dual typing was exactly as he'd expected.
Once Sanji's dormant power fully awakened, he would already possess monstrous defense and recovery.
Now, with Battle Armor eliminating weaknesses entirely—
Sanji was destined to become the blazing knight charging at the very forefront of the Straw Hat crew!
Explosive offense paired with monstrous defense…
"The Wings of the Pirate King… they're already taking shape!!!"
Red's eyes gleamed with anticipation for the Straw Hat Pirates' future.
...
...
In the blink of an eye, a full day passed.
Despite having fought a battle worthy of being recorded in Straw Hat history at noon, by afternoon everyone was back to their routines—training, researching, improving themselves.
Everything returned to calm once more.
Sanji, freshly aboard, was still figuring out his place within the crew.
That afternoon, Red called Johnny and Yosaku up to the deck.
After explaining the concept of Trainers, he successfully registered both of them in the Pokémon list.
However, the two of them were ultimately just ordinary people with some combat experience.
Their type was uniformly Normal, and their Abilities were similarly unimpressive—Swift Swim and Tangled Feet.
One boosted movement speed in rain; the other made dodging easier when confused.
Neither offered much direct combat value.
Their stats were even more pitiful.
Forget comparing them to Luffy or Zoro—even Usopp and Nami far surpassed them.
These two were clearly not meant to stay aboard the Going Merry and continue adventuring with Luffy.
Especially since neither of them had ever intended to become pirates in the first place.
Still, while they couldn't be crew members, they could serve as the Straw Hats' representatives in the East Blue.
After all, as pirates, there were many matters Red and the others couldn't handle personally.
And Johnny and Yosaku's loyalty was beyond question.
So that afternoon, Red taught them Headbutt and Pay Day, both Normal-type moves.
He also explained his plan to them.
Having witnessed the Straw Hats' strength, received Red's benefits, and sharing their bond with "Big Bro Zoro," the two eagerly accepted this part-time role.
At that moment, they were already rowing a small makeshift boat from the Going Merry, carrying the trussed-up Don Krieg and Gin toward the Marine base at Loguetown…
(End of Chapter)