Awakening Of Uchiha [Naruto/One Piece]

Chapter 12: Asking Rayleigh To Hunt Sea Kings

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"Yes! I understand! I will do my best!"

Katsumi nodded earnestly. "Thank you, Uncle Rayleigh!"

"Haha! What's the point of thanking me?" Rayleigh laughed heartily. "I should be the one thanking you! Not only did you save the children of the Nine Snakes Pirates, but you also brought me such important news."

"Exactly!"

At this moment, Shakky chimed in, addressing Katsumi and Kaori. "The information about Roger's son alone is enough to get whatever you want from this guy."

"In my opinion, even that doesn't fully repay your kindness in saving Hancock and the others. How about making a few more requests? Otherwise, I'll feel uneasy!"

She knew how much Ace's news meant to her husband. For information like this, even a bit of training experience was a small price to pay. Rayleigh would gladly share his knowledge, especially with people he appreciated.

However, Katsumi shook his head firmly. "No, we don't need anything else for now. What you've already provided is more than enough."

"Greed is unnecessary."

"But," he added after a pause, "I might need some information in the future. Would it be okay to bother you for help, Aunt Shakky?"

Shakky smiled knowingly. "Hehe! Of course! It's settled then. If you ever need intel, just let me know. I have my ways of staying informed."

Despite her agreement, Shakky doubted Katsumi would truly need her resources. Judging by how he obtained information about Ace, Katsumi and his group likely had an intelligence network far superior to her own. She assumed his request was more out of politeness than necessity, to avoid further entanglement.

After hosting Katsumi and Kaori for lunch, Shakky and the crew leader approached them again, looking slightly embarrassed. "Some of our crew members are still recovering from serious injuries, and we also need to prepare supplies. It might take five days before we can set sail. Is that alright?"

"No problem!" Katsumi replied without hesitation. He and his mother were recovering rapidly, so a few extra days didn't matter.

Moreover, with Rayleigh and his team providing advanced Sea King meat, their recovery would only accelerate. Refusing would be foolish.

"By the way, Uncle Rayleigh," Xuanqing began a little hesitantly, "I'd like to collect some Sea King meat to store for later. Could you help me with this? It's too expensive to buy outright."

"Oh?" Rayleigh raised an eyebrow in mild surprise but then chuckled. "That's easy enough. The sea is full of Sea Kings, and with my strength, hunting them is no trouble."

"But how do you plan to store it? This meat doesn't last long without refrigeration—it'll spoil in about a month, even with its vitality."

"Don't worry about that," Katsumi replied with a mysterious smile. "I have a special storage method. Sorry for the trouble!"

He planned to use the space-time gate's storage space. As for whether it would reveal his secret? In the pirate world, countless Devil Fruits had bizarre abilities. Even if Rayleigh were curious, he'd likely attribute it to a Devil Fruit power. Katsumi's true secret would remain safe.

Besides, opportunities to collect large amounts of Sea King meat so easily were rare. He couldn't expect his mother to hunt them herself. While Susanoo or possibly genjutsu might work, other ninjutsu would be less effective against such massive and resilient creatures. And given Kaori's current condition, using Susanoo was out of the question.

"Haha! That's fine by me!" Rayleigh waved his hand dismissively. "I'm free now, so let's go."

"Great!" Katsumi nodded happily.

"I'm coming too," Kaori interjected. "You're not fully recovered yet, and it's easy for things to go wrong!"

At this moment, Kaori stood up as well, her expression serious. Clearly, she wasn't comfortable with Katsumi going alone with Rayleigh.

After all, Rayleigh would be busy hunting Sea Kings and might not have the capacity to ensure Katsumi's safety.

"Please, Sir Rayleigh," Kaori said, nodding slightly at him.

"Haha! No problem at all! Let's go! The Nine Snake Island ship will take us out to sea!" Rayleigh replied with a hearty laugh.

With that, he led Katsumi and Kaori to the Nine Snake Island ship. After greeting the leader, Gloriosa, the ship promptly set sail.

After traveling about ten kilometers out to sea, the ship temporarily stopped. Without a word, Rayleigh leaped directly into the water.

Boom! Boom!

Soon, a loud rumble and vibrations could be heard from beneath the waves, causing the surface of the water to churn violently.

Gurgle... Puff!

Moments later, an enormous, snake-like Sea King, at least 100 meters long and over 5 meters in diameter, floated to the surface, unconscious.

Rayleigh's head popped up beside the Sea King as he called out to the boat. " Katsumi, how about this one? Is it enough, or do you need more?"

"Ten more should be enough! Thank you, Uncle Rayleigh!" Katsumi replied, then glanced at his mother.

Kaori sighed softly, shaking her head with mild amusement. Without warning, she grabbed Katsumi by the collar and leapt lightly onto the surface of the sea, landing as if on solid ground.

"Oh?"

Rayleigh, along with everyone aboard the ship, was visibly surprised by the sight.

"You can stand directly on the water?" Rayleigh exclaimed, intrigued. "It's because of that strange energy, right? Fascinating!"

He observed the chakra flowing beneath Kaori's feet but refrained from asking further questions. Instead, he grinned. "Alright then, I'll keep hunting! But the next ones might not be these sea snakes."

"No problem! As long as they're Sea Kings, it's fine. Thank you, Uncle Rayleigh! When we return, I'll treat you to some excellent wine!" Katsumi said with a broad smile.

He thought of the fine wines stored in their cellar at home and was sure Rayleigh would appreciate them. His mother wouldn't mind exchanging a little wine for so much Sea King meat.

"Haha! That's a deal!" Rayleigh's eyes sparkled with excitement.

Meanwhile, Kaori carried Katsumi closer to the massive Sea King floating on the water. Katsumi reached out, placing his hand on the creature's huge body. With a single thought, he transferred the Sea King into the space of the time-space gate.

Using the gate's authority, he quickly ended the Sea King's life to prevent it from waking up and causing trouble. He even decomposed it into smaller portions of meat and stored them in the stasis zone designated for items.

"This…"

The sight of the massive Sea King vanishing into thin air at Katsumi's touch left Rayleigh, Hancock, and the rest of the crew completely stunned. Their pupils shrank in disbelief.

"You're really something, kid! Haha!" Rayleigh said with a hearty laugh, giving Katsumi a knowing look. "Since you've got such an effective way to store them, I'll keep hunting!"

With that, he dived back into the water.

Meanwhile, Kaori brought Katsumi back to the ship, ensuring he stayed safe from any sudden dangers posed by the Sea Kings.

"Katsumi! Katsumi! What was that just now?" Hancock exclaimed, rushing over to him. Her curiosity was palpable. "Was it some sort of space-based Devil Fruit?"

"Something like that," Katsumi replied with a faint smile.

"That's amazing! I didn't know you had Devil Fruit powers!" Hancock said, her eyes sparkling with admiration.

At this time, Hancock wasn't yet the proud and aloof Empress Boa Hancock known for her Sweet-Sweet Fruit abilities. Instead, she was a lively and kind-hearted girl, full of curiosity and awe.