Chapter 79.5 – Kaya joins the crew

"Please believe me, sir! You saved Merry and me," Kaya began, taking a deep breath to quell her shyness, "I'm willing to go out to sea with you."

"Only if you don't mind my meager strength."

Merry, now alert, intervened, "Hold on, Miss Kaya! Going to sea is not something to decide so casually, especially with a stranger."

Kaya nodded, but turned back to Arton with a sincere look.

[Ah, so it's just gratitude. I was hoping for love at first sight.]

Though a bit disappointed, Arton still flashed a warm smile at Kaya and replied:

"Although it was a bit quick, once you've agreed, don't go back on your word, okay?"

"And just call me Arton."

"This blue-haired lady here is Carina, my personal maid and masseuse."

"And there's also a singer wandering around in this village, I'll introduce her to you later."

Kaya and Carina exchanged glances, both nodding politely.

At that moment, Kuro's angry voice came through.

"Damned guy, do you think I don't exist?!"

Arton turned to see Kuro, leaning on a tree trunk, trembling as he stood up.

"You should just stay down."

"Didn't that punch make you realize the gap between us?"

Arton shook his head, addressing Kuro.

"I was just careless. Don't get too cocky, man."

"Next, all of you will die here."

Kuro adjusted his glasses, and his body began to sway rhythmically.

"Shakushi!"

As he spoke, Kuro's body vanished from sight.

With his disappearance, cracks began appearing on the surrounding trees, grass, and stones.

"He's gone?"

"Miss Kaya, be careful!"

Seeing Kuro's blurred movements, Merry spread his arms in front of Kaya, worried about her safety.

"It's fine, Merry."

Kaya's lips curved slightly, confidently watching Arton's back.

A bounty of only 16 million berries? Kaya wasn't concerned about Kuro posing any threat to Arton.

As Kuro's blurred silhouette approached Arton, his razor-sharp claw poised to strike, Arton swiftly kicked him in the chest.

In the next moment, Kuro was sent flying back to the massive tree trunk he'd previously collided with.

"Pfft! How could this happen? How did you manage to kick me?!"

Kuro spat out blood, stunned as he looked at Arton.

"Heh, it's just a technique similar to the Navy's Six Styles, but you can't even control its direction."

"Such a technique might let you bully people in the East Blue."

"But if you went to the Grand Line, you'd likely be knocked out immediately."

Arton shook his head, mocking Kuro as he struggled to get up and assume a fighting stance.

"As expected of the former captain of the Black Cat Pirates."

"You're just as stubborn and reckless as the rest of the Black Cat crew."

"Even now, you're still thinking about fighting."

Kuro was stunned by this and asked:

"You've met the other members of the Black Cat Pirates?"

"Who are you, a Navy officer?"

Arton shook his head and replied:

"I'm not in the Navy, but I have met other members of the Black Cat Pirates."

"Now, except for you, the only one left from the Black Cat Pirates is Jango."

"That's only because he brought me here."

Kuro's eyes widened in shock as he exclaimed:

"It was that traitor Jango who brought you here?"

"He betrayed me?!"

Arton, seeing Kuro's shocked reaction, didn't engage further with him and instead turned to Kaya.

"Since he's your problem, I'll let you handle him."

He placed his hand on Kaya's head.

[Notification: It has been detected that Kaya is compatible with "Tsunade Template (Basic Form)." Since Kaya is sincerely willing to join you, do you want to apply the "Tsunade Template (Basic Form)" to Kaya?]

"Yes!"

[Template transfer in progress... Transfer successful.]

Kaya felt a gentle energy flowing from Arton's hand throughout her body, prompting her to close her eyes and let the energy circulate.

After a few seconds, when Kaya opened her eyes, she noticed Arton staring intently at her chest.

Instinctively, Kaya crossed her arms over her chest.

"What's going on?"

She felt a strange sensation and glanced down to realize why Arton had been staring. The transformation had significantly changed her body, giving her a broader chest and a noticeable difference in her figure.

"What's happening?!"

Kaya exclaimed in surprise.

"It's nothing. I just gave you the strength of a certain hero."

"Go ahead, Kaya. Now you should have enough power to take down Captain Kuro yourself."

Arton reassured her, resisting the urge to gauge Kaya's chest with his hands, and patted her shoulder.

At the same time, Arton finished recording Kaya's transformation after acquiring the Tsunade template.

[Photo: Kaya, who fused with the Tsunade template, has a few traits of Tsunade!]

***

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