Chapter 148: Rasengan!?

The arrival of the Three Legendary Birds Pokémon, each wielding their unique powers, swiftly turned the tide of battle.

Sabo took the opportunity to step back, allowing the Three Legendary Birds to unleash their full power without restraint. As long as no one was killed, he let them act as they wished.

Finally, with a freezing beam from the Articuno, the last standing Vice Admiral, Mole, was transformed into an ice sculpture, crashing to the ground with a resounding snap.

Beside him lay the unconscious Onigumo, his hair singed off, and the other four Vice Admirals, paralyzed by lightning.

The fall of Mole marked the end of this fierce battle.

"It was... easier than I imagined," Sabo remarked, a bright smile spreading across his face as he saw victory within reach.

Now, all that remained was to await the outcome of the clash between Lugia and Akainu, and to capture the navy officers who had fled to the Kingdom of Goa.

At that moment, he could officially declare that in the battle against the Navy Headquarters, the Revolutionary Army had achieved a true and complete victory!

---

In the dense jungle within the Kingdom of Goa, a marine soldier crouched under the hollow of a massive tree, hiding in fear.

The proud "Justice" cloak he once wore had been mostly burnt, leaving only the upper part of the word visible. Sparks of golden electricity flickered across his body, causing his movements to be stiff and sluggish.

"Damn it! Why does the Revolutionary Army have such powerful Pokémon?" The naval soldier named Wem cursed, leaning against the tree trunk, expressing the doubt that plagued every navy member today.

After a brief rest, the paralyzing electricity that coursed through his body finally dissipated, restoring his mobility. But after being chased and burned by Moltres, the last thing Wem wanted was to get up and continue fighting.

"I'll wait until the Admiral and Vice Admirals defeat their opponents before making my move," he thought, exhausted.

As a seasoned naval officer, Wem had immense confidence in the strength of the Admiral and Vice Admirals. In the Navy's recent history, no mission involving an Admiral had ever failed. This unwavering record was what Wem relied on.

However, today, that history was about to be rewritten.

"Hey, mister, are you one of the navy guys Sabo said was going to attack us?" A young voice suddenly interrupted Wem's thoughts.

He opened his eyes to see a boy, around fifteen or sixteen, standing outside the tree hollow, wearing a red vest and questioning him with a serious expression.

The air around them grew tense, the only sound the rustling of leaves in the wind.

"I've been found!" Wem's mind raced. Realizing the boy in front of him must be a member of the Revolutionary Army, he felt his blood surge with adrenaline.

"Damn it!" Wem shouted, his fist, cloaked in Armament Haki, hurtling toward Luffy.

But as Wem attacked, Luffy's expression changed to one of understanding. Although not a member of the Revolutionary Army, Luffy had spent a month idly in the Kingdom of Goa, indulging in food and drink. Now, it was time to prove his worth.

"Armament Haki, huh? I'm not falling for that!" Luffy, who had been trained repeatedly by Sabo in Haki, knew which attacks to avoid. He kicked off the ground, his sandaled feet propelling him backward like a cannonball.

"What?" Wem's face twisted in disbelief as his sneak attack missed. But what shocked him even more was when the boy before him suddenly pulled out a Poké Ball from his waist.

"No… it can't be," Wem thought, eyes wide, dumbfounded. After the earlier battle, he was sure he now suffered from Pokémon phobia.

At this moment, he desperately hoped he was hallucinating due to stress. But reality was harsh.

"Frogadier, get ready to fight!" Luffy pressed the button on the Poké Ball.

[TL/n: Look like Luffy's gear 5 right?]

In an instant, a sleek Pokémon emerged. It landed on three limbs, struck a classic pose, and fixed its gaze on Wem.

Frogadier, the evolved form of Froakie, was no longer the cute Pokémon it once was. Now, it resembled a handsome, agile young warrior. Its long limbs moved gracefully, its indifferent eyes surveying the world, and the white foam around its neck flowed like a scarf in the wind.

Seeing yet another Pokémon appear, Wem's anger flared.

"Damn it! What's the World Government even doing? How does the Revolutionary Army have so many powerful Pokémon, while we're left empty-handed!?"

Though the World Government's involvement in interdimensional transactions was a closely guarded secret, Wem had heard rumors. In the past, he didn't think much of them.

What use were Pokémon or interdimensional trades when the strength gained from one's own training was far more reliable?

But today, reality had dealt him and the navy a harsh blow. Sabo and those two young girls might not have been exceptionally strong on their own, but their Pokémon were a nightmare for the navy.

Since joining the navy, Wem had never fought such a humiliating battle. As the Revolutionary Army's Pokémon kept appearing, the navy was driven back like beaten dogs.

Now, facing yet another Pokémon, he realized he had no choice but to fight to the end.

"Kid, I don't know your rank in the Revolutionary Army," Wem said, shaking off his doubts and focusing on the battle ahead.

Luffy, a fifteen-year-old with a face full of confidence, replied, "Revolutionary Army?"

He chuckled, his nose wrinkling slightly, and said, "I'm not part of the Revolutionary Army! I'm the man who's going to become the Pirate King!"

"Let's go, Frogadier!"

With a shout, Luffy launched himself toward Wem, disappearing in a blur.

"Pirate King?" Wem's eyes narrowed. "Then I can't let you go!"

Wem's fist met Luffy's mid-air, and a dull thud echoed through the dense forest.

Luffy's confident expression faltered, contorting in pain. Despite a month of intense training under Sabo, Luffy was still only fifteen. He might handle ordinary pirates, but Wem was a seasoned Commodore who had seen countless battles. Moreover, Wem's mastery of Armament Haki gave him a distinct advantage.

After just one exchange, Luffy understood he was outmatched.

But even so, he wasn't fighting alone.

"Froga!"

At the moment when Wem and Luffy clashed, a brilliant water orb suddenly appeared from the side, hurtling toward Wem with incredible force.

Water Pulse!

It's a move often used by countless Water-type Pokémon. Its widespread use is a testament to its effectiveness.

After evolving, Frogadier's strength had increased significantly, reaching level 28. While not overwhelmingly powerful, it was more than sufficient to deal with a commodore like Wem.

The high-speed rotating water orb shot toward Wem. But Wem, a seasoned veteran of the battlefield, knew better than to forget that he faced more than one opponent.

Wem, who had been keeping a close eye on Frogadier, reacted instantly. He quickly withdrew his strength and, using the momentum from his clash with Luffy, propelled himself backward.

However, due to the angle, the water orb continued its trajectory, now headed straight for Luffy.

"Ha!" Wem smirked to himself. "You didn't expect that, did you, kid? You're too green to be fighting me!"

"Enjoy the damage your own Pokémon brings you!" Wem watched the water orb, anticipating the moment it would strike Luffy and cause serious injury.

But then...

What happened next wiped the confidence off Wem's face.

Luffy was momentarily stunned when he saw the Water Pulse coming at him, but then a puzzled expression appeared on his face. In his confusion, he actually reached out and caught Frogadier's attack with his hand.

In the next instant, the world seemed to tremble.

The water orb, which was filled with immense energy, was firmly grasped in Luffy's hand.

"W-What!?" Wem's eyes widened in shock.

The battlefield fell silent.

——

"Did... did he just catch a Pokémon move!?"

On the Grand Line, within the alternate dimension inside Wailord, Leo suddenly shot up from his recliner, spilling his lemon tea onto the ground in his surprise.

"This... how is this possible?" Leo was baffled. Even he couldn't grasp and control a Pokémon's attack in his hand like Luffy just had.

Leo was sure Luffy hadn't entered the bond evolution state he had anticipated. Yet, what Luffy had done puzzled him even more.

"No matter! I need to see this for myself!" Leo hesitated for only a moment before drawing on the world's origin power to teleport directly from the Grand Line to the battlefield above Wem and Luffy.

——

Back on the battlefield, after a brief moment of confusion, Luffy seemed to have an epiphany and suddenly mastered the use of the Pokémon move.

The shimmering Water Pulse in Luffy's hand began to spin wildly!

Luffy, he's making the Water Pulse spin even faster!

Leo, watching from above, took in the entire scene.

Luffy's hand, which held the spinning water orb, suddenly stretched back.

"Gomu Gomu no..." Luffy began, as if guided by fate.

In Leo's eyes, the observer, Luffy shouted the name of an attack from a different time and space:

"Rasengan!!!"

With a powerful thrust, Luffy used the rebound force to hurl the high-speed spinning water orb directly at Wem.

Bang! 

The Water Pulse, now mixed with rotational power, exploded on impact, releasing a vast amount of energy that spiraled Wem away.

Wem, who had thought he'd outmaneuvered Luffy, was now the one caught off guard.

With this, and under the combined assault of Luffy and Frogadier, the Commodore had no chance of recovery.

In just a quarter of an hour, he collapsed under their relentless attacks.

"We did it!" Luffy cheered, his face lighting up with joy as his opponent finally fell.

This was the toughest fight he had ever faced. The Navy's Six Powers techniques and Haki...

Without the support of Frogadier's ranged attacks and its tongue's paralyzing lick, Luffy knew he wouldn't have been able to defeat a Commodore on his own at this point.

Just as Luffy turned to Frogadier, ready to celebrate their hard-earned victory, Leo, who had been watching from above, snapped his fingers.

Snap!

With a sharp snap, Luffy and Frogadier suddenly froze in place, as if time itself had stopped.

And indeed, it had.

To uncover Luffy's secrets, Leo had expended a considerable amount of energy to pause time around Luffy and Frogadier.

"Let's see what kind of power is hidden within you..." Leo said, placing his hand on Luffy's shoulder and activating the world's origin power to begin his exploration.

Soon, through the world's origin, Leo learned the truth behind it all.

"I didn't expect this..." Leo retracted his hand, a look of surprise on his face.

Through his exploration, Leo had discovered another power hidden within Luffy...

A power linked to Luffy's Devil Fruit ability!

Leo considered himself fortunate. Before traversing time, he hadn't known that Luffy's Gomu Gomu no Mi was actually the Hito Hito no Mi, Model: Nika.

In the feedback from the world's origin, Leo learned that this was just a mysterious power hidden within the rubber fruit. It was so unique that Leo couldn't describe it in words.

But one thing was certain...

This power possessed life-like characteristics, making it highly compatible with Pokémon energy, which also had life-like traits.

Even though Luffy hadn't fully developed this power, he was already able to freely control the elemental powers associated with Pokémon.

At this moment, Leo couldn't help but marvel at the wonders of this world.

Who would have thought that the destined hero of the Pirate World harbored such a secret?

This power was incredible and immensely strong.

However, a smile slowly crept onto Leo's face.

"It's mine now!"

(End of this chapter)