Arceus's Pirate Journey

Chapter 851: Chapter 850: Jack’s Struggle, Cavendish’s Frustration

Copperajah’s Gigantamax move, G-Max Steelsurge, is essentially a massive Scattering Diamond, capable of laying down more steel spikes on the field and dealing higher damage to newly arrived enemies.

But this is not a game; G-Max Steelsurge has more functions, the most direct effect being to alter the battlefield.

Those steel spikes range from a few meters to as small as swords and are all within Jack’s control. Although it consumes a lot, it can achieve area clearance, compensating for his slow attack speed and vulnerability to being kited by enemies.

At the same time, Jack’s trunk reached into the sea beside him, absorbing a massive amount of seawater into his body, which he then expelled using Fishman Jujutsu techniques, merging with the steel created by G-Max Steelsurge, sweeping towards Setsuna.

”Fishman Jujutsu: Shikai!”

At this moment, Jack’s attack transformed into a true ”steel torrent,” and anyone caught in this flow would be instantly shattered.

Facing Jack’s attack, Setsuna didn’t hold back either. The power of lightning and Aura combined to form a special shield. With the amplification in Moon Lion state, Electromagnetic Floating was not just about floating but became a special skill capable of high-speed flight.

Although Jack’s attack was impenetrable, Setsuna still found a gap. Despite a new bloodstain on her arm, she closed in on Jack, now holding a special javelin.

Lightning, Aura, Haki, these forces were compressed and fused into the spear in her hand. The reason for not using a bow was that in this state, there was no need to rely on bow and arrow power, and with Jack’s size, she wouldn’t miss even with her eyes closed.

Relying on brute force, she hurled the javelin at Jack’s eye, the weakest point of his defense.

Jack didn’t dodge, instead swinging his arms to smash Setsuna, intending to shatter her at the cost of taking the javelin. However, neither Jack’s fist nor Setsuna’s javelin hit the target in the end.

The surrounding space-time seemed to freeze, and both their attacks slowly dissipated into the air.

”The battle is over; it’s a draw.”

The upgrade and exchange battle against a disaster have a significant difference in that participants cannot hold back. At this level, determining a winner is troublesome; without targeting vital points, a fight could last for days or weeks.

And such power is a treasure for every faction, not to be wasted in internal conflict, hence the need for someone to act as a referee.

Currently, within the Hundred Beasts, only Arceus and Kaidou can ensure the results of the two’s battles can be judged and interrupted in time.

In Kaidou’s frequent absences, only Arceus can serve as this referee.

”Well done, Jack. Keep pushing for a while, and you should achieve your goal.

Setsuna, you too. When you can master that power in a normal state, it will be perfect.”

After a brief commentary, Arceus ended the battle.

If those two attacks had hit, both would have been seriously injured, and they had already used up their Protect. Gambling on luck at this time was not suitable.

Neither Setsuna nor Jack refuted Arceus’ judgment, and the challenge came to a temporary close. However, Jack did not give up; soon after, he left Ghost Island to continue honing himself in battle, preparing for the next challenge.

Setsuna returned to her work days on Zou, while Hichugiskhan took the opportunity of his vacation to relax in Wano Kuni, having worked hard for most of his life and finally enjoying some leisure time.

Kaidou returned empty-handed from a series of searches but caused a lot of trouble for the Navy.

They couldn’t figure out what Kaidou was planning. To prevent being caught off guard in case he did something terrifying, they ordered Navy branches everywhere to be on standby and keep an eye on Kaidou’s information.

Jack and Kaidou’s actions frequently landed them in the newspapers, and the entertainment news of Hundred Beasts Fruit often occupied the headlines. Under Tesoro’s management, Uta had become a world-class rookie and had gained quite a following worldwide.

For a time, they were in the spotlight. You could say there was no escaping the words Hundred Beasts in recent news.

Even if they didn’t directly participate, their shadow was there. Their every move is already closely related to the world.

This generally wouldn’t have much impact, merely causing a few sighs from others, but for some, it resulted in gritted teeth.

...

Every pirate at sea has their own goals: wealth, power, fame. They do various things for their objectives.

In the context of the Great Pirate Era, even though the Grand Line is fraught with deadly crises, there is a constant stream of pirates arriving at the Shampodi Islands, and among them, there will be a special ”leader.”

This leader doesn’t mean leading other teams but being the highest-bounty pirate among peers. In the New World, pirates with bounties over 100 million are common, but in the First Half of the Grand Line, such pirates are rare.

Every pirate with a bounty over 100 million is dubbed a Super Rookie, and among this year’s Super Rookies, the strongest is the Handsome Pirates’ captain, White Horse Cavendish, with a bounty of 280 million Belly.

Originally the prince of the Bourgeois Kingdom, his excessively handsome face led to the kingdom’s women falling deeply for him, even disrupting the kingdom’s normal life, resulting in his expulsion for the crime of being too popular.

This ordinarily wouldn’t matter, but he has a split personality. The other personality, unlike Cavendish, delights in killing. In the Rommel Region, Cavendish’s alter ego committed numerous crimes, earning the nickname Rommel’s Kamaitachi.

This incident forced him into piracy, but he greatly enjoys the fame it brought and thus embarked on the path of a pirate.

The glamorous Super Rookie, Pirate Prince, White Horse, Rommel’s Kamaitachi — he has accumulated numerous titles, but recently, he noticed a change in the news coverage.

In the first half, he frequently saw his news updates, but now, it’s all about Hundred Beasts, be it Kaidou or Jack.

Especially after Tesoro’s operational plan started, it became more so. Newspaper space is limited, and when Uta and Tesoro dominate most of the entertainment sections, the pirate bounties focus on active Sea Emperors, naturally causing Cavendish to lose the spotlight.

This gave someone long at the world’s center a severe sense of defeat, prompting a desire to reclaim his popularity.