The pirates who charged at him were all thrown back by the electrified young man, collapsing unconscious on the deck.
With nothing but fragile flesh and blood, how could they ever hope to withstand the force of thunder and lightning?
The remaining pirates stood frozen in fear. Even Moqi and his lion, Richie, cowered behind the others.
Wasn't Raion supposed to be the weakest, most useless one on the ship?Where had this overwhelming power come from?Just who was this kid?
As everyone stared at him in confusion, Raion calmly asked,"Is there anyone else who wants to challenge me? I'm right here."
The silence was deafening. No one dared to move.
Even the two strongest members of the crew — Bucky and Kabaji — had been taken out. The rest of them didn't have the courage to provoke a monster like this.
These men were pirates, bullies who preyed on the weak but feared anyone stronger than them. When they saw the lightning crackling around Raion's body, they knew this was a power far beyond their reach.
They had only brought him aboard to use as a low-level deckhand. There was no reason to risk their lives against him now.
Not only did they not step forward, but they instinctively stepped back, forming an open path.
Never underestimate the weak.Never bully the young and poor.Never provoke a sleeping lion.
Seeing that no one dared to oppose him, Raion slowly walked toward the ship's wheel.
He boarded Bucky's personal boat, raised the sails, and set out alone into the open sea.
Not a single pirate tried to stop him. They simply watched in silence as Raion steered the boat away, leaving the Bucky Pirates behind.
Raion had been brought onto this ship against his will. Everything he had experienced here — the humiliation, the cruelty — only strengthened his resolve to leave.
It wasn't that he didn't want to kill the Bucky Pirates. But his chakra reserves were nearly depleted.
When he first struck Kabaji with a chakra-infused punch, he had spent 10 points of chakra. Using [Chidori Current] consumed 80 points. Now, his chakra level had fallen to 10/100.
If all the pirates had attacked him at once, his strength would not have been enough to survive.
Raion's courage and quick thinking had bluffed his way out of danger.
But this incident only reinforced one truth — he had to grow stronger.
As the boat sailed across the blue horizon, Raion felt a surge of excitement in his chest.
He made a silent vow to himself:"I'll become the strongest and freest man on these seas."
The first thing he did was take down the ridiculous clown pirate flag.
Not only was he no longer a part of Bucky's crew — he wasn't even a pirate.
As he looked out at the endless ocean, Raion began to think about what he wanted to become.
Pirate?Navy?Pirate hunter?Revolutionary soldier?Adventurer?
He quickly made his decision.
Pirate hunter.
Why? Because if he wanted to get stronger, he needed money — lots of it — to draw more cards, acquire stronger ninjutsu, and increase his chakra reserves. With his current power, hunting pirates for bounty was the best option.
While he was deep in thought, the system's voice chimed in:
Friendly reminder: You can also increase your maximum chakra limit through personal training and by developing your own ninjutsu.
This simple statement lit a spark in Raion's mind.
"Of course! If I already have chakra, then I'm a ninja in a sense. Just like in Naruto, I can train to strengthen my body and chakra without relying only on cards."
He recalled how the First Hokage described chakra — a combination of the body's physical energy, drawn from each of the body's trillions of cells, and spiritual energy, cultivated through experience and practice. Sage training even added natural energy into the mix.
Right now, Raion didn't even have enough Berries to draw another card. Self-training was his only viable path.
Just like his earlier punch against Kabaji — simple chakra infusion into his fist had produced devastating results.
The first technique that came to Raion's mind was the S-rank sword style of Sakumo Hatake, the legendary leader of Konoha's Anbu — the famed "White Fang of Konoha."
Sakumo was so powerful that even the Legendary Sannin respected him. His signature technique, [White Fang's Flash], combined with his short sword [White Fang], allowed him to channel chakra as fast and sharp as lightning. His strikes were said to rival the speed of the Flying Thunder God technique.
"Maybe I can create something similar," Raion muttered, inspired.
He grabbed a wooden plank, gathered chakra into his index and middle fingers, and slashed at it.
The board showed a faint, thin cut — as if a knife had grazed it.
Of course, this was a crude imitation. It couldn't compare to the true S-rank technique of the White Fang.
"Not sharp enough… Maybe if I combine it with a real blade, I can make this technique work better," Raion said, scratching his head.
Determined, he practiced this knock-off version of the "White Fang Slash" over and over, pouring chakra into his fingers with each strike.
Hours passed. Sweat soaked through his clothes. His chakra reserves dropped to 2/100 — almost empty.
Exhausted, Raion searched the ship for food. In the cabin's cold storage, he found leftover sea beast meat, fruit, and vegetables. He cooked them and devoured the meal.
When he had been nothing more than a lowly deckhand, he had never even dreamed of eating like this. Back then, he could barely feed himself. But now, as the sole master of this ship, he could live however he wanted.
All of this was for the sake of becoming stronger.
Days passed in this cycle of eating, sleeping, and training. After two days, his small boat drifted toward an island.
It was uninhabited, covered with dense green vegetation — almost like a miniature forest.
There were many such islands scattered throughout the One Piece world, where adventurers would stop to rest.
For Raion, this was a perfect training ground — better than the cramped deck of his boat. The fresh air and open space were ideal for cultivation.
Without wasting time, Raion continued his training under the shade of a massive tree.
After two days of practicing his imitation of [White Fang's Flash], Raion felt he had reached his current limit. His chakra reserves simply weren't enough to advance further.
It was time to focus on another technique.
The Rasengan.