"So he was completely reduced to ashes… not a bad funeral."
Looking at the massive opening in the distant iceberg, Kaito Arisawa slowly lowered his right foot.
Don Chinjao was nowhere to be seen.
The dragon-shaped blast had not only pierced through several icebergs—it had completely obliterated Chinjao within it, leaving no body behind.
Kaito was not surprised by this outcome.
The technique he had just used, Dragon Subduing Kick, was built upon the principles of the Eight-Impact Fist.
One of the defining characteristics of the Eight-Impact Fist was that its shockwaves could shatter an opponent's entire body—including their bones—into dust.
"From a power perspective, the 'Dragon Subduing Kick' I developed is already more than sufficient."
"But it still has flaws."
"It needs more time to be perfected."
The technique he had just used—Dragon Subduing Kick—was the new martial art Kaito had developed.
Although he had only spent three days creating it, the technique had already taken shape thanks to the concentrated state of his combat talent.
The move combined several systems:
The shockwave force of the Eight-Impact Fist
The mobility and techniques of the Six Forms
The destructive amplification of Armament Haki
Even so, it was still only a prototype.
And because it was a prototype, it naturally had imperfections.
For example—
When Kaito used Dragon Fighting in the Wild just now, the attack required a brief moment of energy accumulation.
In that fight, Chinjao had already been heavily injured, and his reactions had slowed significantly.
Otherwise, in a real high-level battle, Kaito would never have had enough time to gather power for such an attack.
Another issue was stamina consumption.
Normally, Kaito never worried about stamina.
While his Constitution talent was in a concentrated state, his endurance was almost absurd.
Even when his physical strength became exhausted, his enhanced constitution restored it rapidly.
In fact, the recovery speed was usually faster than the rate of exhaustion.
But after performing Dragon Fighting in the Wild, Kaito had experienced something unusual.
For the first time in a long while, he felt clear physical strain.
The consumption wasn't overwhelming for him.
But it still proved how demanding the technique was.
If someone else had used the move—
Someone like Chinjao, for example—
Their stamina would probably have been completely drained after a single strike.
Of course, it was natural for powerful attacks to consume more energy.
But Kaito knew that part of the exhaustion he felt had been unnecessary.
The wasted stamina came from his incomplete control over the technique.
"Dragon Subduing Kick…"
"Besides needing refinement, the name also needs to prove itself someday."
A playful smile appeared on Kaito's face.
The name "Subduing the Dragon" wasn't chosen randomly.
Part of it came from memories of another world.
But more importantly, it represented a goal he had set for this martial art.
In this world, the word "dragon" had more than one meaning.
It referred not only to mythical creatures—
But also to a certain group of people.
The Celestial Dragons, the rulers of the World Government.
Whether as a pirate or as someone pursuing his own ambitions, Kaito knew one thing clearly.
Sooner or later, he would stand in opposition to them.
And beyond them—
There was also the mysterious figure known as Im.
That individual was a mountain that had to be crossed.
So the name Subduing the Dragon carried deeper meaning.
It symbolized Kaito's intention to one day step on that mountain.
The sky gradually darkened.
Day turned to night.
Along the glacier coast, the blood of countless fallen fighters had dyed the ice a deep red.
In some places, the blood gathered into small streams.
These streams flowed slowly toward the sea, turning the nearby waters crimson.
"Report to the captain!"
"The First Brigade suffered nineteen casualties, fifty-six severely wounded, and one hundred eight lightly injured. Current active personnel: 481!"
"Report to the captain!"
"The Second Brigade lost twenty-three men, forty-six severely wounded, and one hundred twenty-three lightly injured. Current active personnel: 477!"
"Report to the captain!"
"The Third Brigade lost thirteen men, twenty-four severely wounded, and seventy-six lightly injured. Current active personnel: 487!"
"Report to the captain—"
The strong smell of blood and the corpses scattered across the battlefield did not disturb the members of the War Pirates.
After nearly half a day of fighting, the battle had finally ended as night fell.
Each squadron captain gathered their units in orderly formations.
After counting their troops, they stepped forward one by one and loudly reported their results to Kaito.
Every captain bore wounds.
Some minor.
Some more serious.
Yet none of them showed fatigue when delivering their reports.
Instead, they stood tall and proud, presenting their best posture before their captain.
Kaito looked at them.
Behind each captain stood rows of pirates arranged into twenty neat formations.
Seeing them like this, Kaito felt both satisfaction and pride.
This—
Was his pirate crew.
These were the warriors he had trained.
This was the blade he would wield to carve his path across the seas.
Just as he had turned Don Chinjao into a stepping stone—
His crew had also proven themselves.
In less than half a day, they had defeated the long-established Eight Treasures Navy.
And their casualties had remained relatively low.
"Very good."
"Everyone fought well today."
After the captains finished reporting, Kaito looked across his assembled crew and praised them without hesitation.
His words were directed to everyone.
The brigade captains.
The squad leaders.
The junior officers.
Even the ordinary pirates.
He did not forget anyone.
Even the fallen were honored.
Kaito's praise wasn't just verbal.
He also issued concrete rewards.
Anyone who had killed enemies or distinguished themselves in battle received recognition and compensation.
After the rewards were distributed, smiles appeared across the pirates' faces.
Their morale rose even higher.
With renewed energy, they began cleaning up the battlefield.
"How are you all?"
"Nothing serious, right?"
After arranging the rewards for the crew, Kaito walked over to where Robin and the others were resting together.
Chinjao had brought with him the elite warriors of the Eight Treasures Navy.
Many of them were masters of the Eight-Impact Fist and Armament Haki.
While Kaito had been fighting Chinjao, Robin and the other commanders had been battling these powerful enemies.
Naturally, none of them had escaped completely unharmed.
They all bore injuries.
Fortunately, none of the wounds were life-threatening.
They simply needed time to recover.
"It's nothing serious."
"Just a small injury."
"Yeah, this is basically a scratch."
"Don't worry, Captain. I've checked everyone. They just need some rest to recover."
Robin and the others had already bandaged their wounds.
Seeing Kaito approach, they responded with relaxed smiles.
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