By now, Chenos had already closed in on the CP0 agent and launched a direct attack.
"Rankyaku!"
CP0 merely shifted his body slightly, cleanly dodging the slash. He then stomped on the air and shot forward like a cannonball, charging straight at Chenos.
Facing CP0's aggressive assault, Chenos chose not to evade. Instead, he met force with force, rushing head-on toward his opponent.
Both of their fists became coated in Armament Haki.
When their punches collided, the air between them exploded with a deafening sonic boom.
However, Chenos was at a disadvantage in raw strength. He was blasted backward by the impact.
Seeing that CP0's physical power exceeded his own, Chenos remained completely unfazed. He flipped once in midair, stepped on the air again with Geppo, and charged back toward CP0.
It looked as though he intended to clash fists again.
CP0 watched Chenos approach, a trace of contempt flashing through the eyes behind his mask. Clearly, he planned to teach this reckless youngster a lesson with sheer power.
Once more, he raised his fist and rushed forward.
Again, Chenos was knocked back.
Again, he charged forward.
Like a headstrong fool, over and over.
But this was exactly what CP0 wanted.
His strength was superior. Every direct exchange damaged Chenos more than it damaged him. Though CP0's fists were taking some strain, Chenos—being the weaker party—should have been suffering far worse injuries.
So the two of them continued to exchange punches in midair.
After more than ten clashes, CP0 shook his slightly numb fist and watched Chenos, who was still charging forward with undiminished momentum. He surged forward again, fists colliding once more.
After dozens more exchanges, CP0 finally sensed something was wrong.
His arms were now so numb he could barely lift them. The accumulated shockwaves from the repeated clashes caused a suffocating pressure to build in his chest, as if blood were about to burst out of his throat.
His internal organs throbbed with sharp pain—clear signs of severe internal injuries.
This made no sense.
In direct fist clashes, he had the advantage. If he was already in this condition, then the weaker one should have been pulverized long ago.
Yet Chenos still looked perfectly fine.
At that moment, CP0 noticed the mocking smile in Chenos's eyes.
"Power's about stored up," Chenos said lightly.
"I'm done playing with you. Goodbye."
"Rebound Step!"
Chenos vanished in a blur and instantly appeared beside CP0.
CP0 detected him and tried to swing a punch, but after the prolonged exchanges, half his body was already numb. His awareness was there—his body simply couldn't respond.
Chenos's hand, coated in Armament Haki, pressed a condensed absorption sphere directly onto CP0's body.
Chenos's lips curled upward.
"Enjoy it."
The moment the absorption sphere made contact, CP0's eyes bulged. Veins stood out across his forehead.
It felt as though his right arm—already battered from dozens of clashes—had just endured dozens more impacts all at once. The accumulated damage overwhelmed it instantly, causing multiple gashes to burst open along his arm.
His entire body went rigid, paralyzed like stone. His internal organs felt as if they were being violently shaken apart, as though his insides were being crushed.
He tried to open his mouth to say something—perhaps to buy time and activate Life Return—
But the instant he opened his mouth, blood poured out, choking off his words.
Chenos stepped in front of him and looked down coldly.
"Next life, don't be a Celestial Dragon's dog."
Chenos clenched his fist.
Armament Haki—and the energy accumulated from over a hundred direct clashes—condensed fully into his fist.
"Normal Punch — Rebound!"
A black glow erupted around his fist, transforming into a dark meteor as it slammed into CP0's chest.
"No—I—"
Too late.
The punch landed.
A blinding flash erupted, followed by a violent sonic explosion. CP0's body was launched downward like a cannonball, crashing straight into the sea.
BOOM—!
The ocean surface caved in, forming a five-meter-wide vacuum crater with no water at its center. CP0 was smashed deep into the seabed below, staring in despair as seawater began to collapse inward around him.
"No…!!!"
With every bone in his body shattered and only his final breath remaining, he could do nothing but watch as the sea swallowed him whole.
He sank into eternal darkness.
On the deck, Tesoro casually patted Shark on the shoulder.
"See? I told you. Chenos is really strong."
Shark stood there, mouth agape, staring at Chenos in the sky in complete disbelief.
The fight had seemed long—hundreds of punches exchanged—but in reality, everything happened at an absurd speed. So fast that Shark couldn't even clearly see their movements.
From his perspective:
Chenos rushed forward.
Both figures vanished.
They flickered into view only briefly—each time with CP0 taking damage and Chenos completely unharmed.
Then, suddenly—
Chenos punched CP0 straight into the sea.
Even the ocean itself was blasted open.
The entire battle lasted less than five minutes.
What kind of monster is this?
How could someone who looked even younger than him be this strong?
Shark looked down at his own once-proud steel body… then back at Chenos, who radiated an overwhelming, invincible presence in the air.
He couldn't help but laugh bitterly at himself.
I even thought he was weak…
I was shouting at him to run…
Come to think of it—
Having a captain this strong didn't sound so bad.
At the very least, he could shield Shark from the World Government's pursuit.
And… they seemed rich too.
After all, Shark had casually named a price of one billion Beli, and Chenos hadn't even tried to bargain.
Strong. Wealthy. Protection guaranteed.
That meant Shark could finally focus on what he truly wanted—
Research.
When Chenos returned to the deck, he saw Shark grinning foolishly to himself and tilted his head in confusion. He glanced at Tesoro, who merely shrugged, equally clueless.
"Shark," Chenos said,
"so—how about it? Join our pirate crew."
Shark looked up.
"…Alright."
"I'm in."
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