Rodney vs Ace

Chapter 11: Rodney vs Ace

There was a lot of commotion outside, with Luffy yelling. Rodney immediately said in his mind, "System, exchange for 'Leaf-Style Sword Art,' 'Dance of the Camellia,' 'Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere,' and 'Water Release: Water Colliding Wave'!"

800 mission points were just received: 500 for Leaf-Style Sword Art, 50 for Dance of the Camellia, 150 for Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere, and 150 for Water Release: Water Colliding Wave.

Rodney now had a total of 810 mission points. At that moment, Luffy rushed in again, ready to attack. Ace quickly stood in front of Rodney and stopped him, saying, "Wait, Luffy, you're not his opponent."

Luffy was determined to defeat Rodney, but even Garp knew that it would be difficult. Rodney had just beaten Ace effortlessly, and even Garp himself would have a hard time against him. Luffy couldn't just stand by and watch his brother being bullied.

"Get out of the way, Ace! I want to avenge you!" Luffy said angrily. As brothers, they shared both blessings and difficulties.

"I understand, but you're not his opponent," Ace shook his head. He knew Rodney was still holding back in their previous battle, and Luffy would only be beaten if he fought now.

"But..." Luffy wanted to say more, but Garp interrupted him and said, "Alright, Luffy. Although Rodney may not be as physically strong as you, his brain is sharper. It won't be easy for you to defeat him."

"Grandpa, he defeated Ace!" Luffy was stubborn, just like his determination to become the Pirate King. It was in his blood as a D.

"Since that's the case, I was originally planning to beat you up to teach you that recklessness leads to death. But now, I want to test out my new ability," Rodney said confidently. Luffy's unwavering beliefs made him immune to any beating from society.

Perseverance was admirable, but persistent enemies could be quite annoying.

"Hey, Luffy, find a way to untie me quickly. You alone can't match him," Ace pleaded, seeing Rodney's Sharingan spinning. After a brief moment of distraction, he added, "Find someone to untie me, ah."

Rodney thought to himself, "In order to adapt to this world, the system has made many changes, including cutting out illusions."

In addition to enhanced vision and replication, Sharingan also had the ability to release and see through illusions.

In this world, the release of illusions relied on disturbing the enemy's chakra, which would blind their senses. However, since there was no chakra in this world, Rodney wondered how he could use it.

Therefore, the system changed it to spiritual energy. Illusions could only be released on enemies with weaker mental power. Those with comparable mental power would only experience a momentary trance, while those with stronger mental power would be unaffected.

Acquiring the Sharingan greatly increased Rodney's chakra and mental power, raising it from 0.8 Kakashi to 1.4 Kakashi.

Since Sharingan was compatible with him, Rodney could freely activate and deactivate it, greatly reducing the chakra consumption compared to Kakashi, who lacked Uchiha blood and suffered from long-term chakra depletion.

"Oh, I'll beat you up first, and then..." Luffy's eyes met Rodney's, and he fell into a hallucination. Luffy, being only fourteen years old, was no match for Rodney in terms of mental strength. He hadn't awakened the Haki yet, so he could only obediently enter the illusion and dream.

"Hey, Rodney boy, what did you do to my grandson?" Garp was surprised by Luffy's sudden stupor and didn't notice the appearance of Haki.

Rodney concealed his Sharingan, and his eyes returned to their usual black color. He casually replied, "Just a little trick to make him sleep. He'll be fine." Luffy collapsed on the ground, waking up from his slumber, and started exclaiming, "Meat! So much meat! Hehehe..."

"Bwahahaha, really?" Garp laughed. "Alright, let's go. I'll take you somewhere else, and you, Ace, follow us." He led the way, carrying Luffy.

"Let's go," Rodney said, striding away, with Ace reluctantly following behind.

Garp took them to Bogard and requested the key to unlock Ace's Seastone Cuffs. Once Ace was freed, he felt his strength returning, and flames ignited on his body.

"The Flame-Flame Fruit is incredible, indeed. Vice Admiral Garp, your grandson is truly amazing," Bogard sincerely commented.

"Bwahahaha, it's just a small thing, a small thing," Garp boasted proudly of his grandson's promising future.

"Rodney!!" As soon as Ace was free, he wanted to engage Rodney in battle again.

"Fire Gun!"

Sparks shot out from Ace's fingertips, but Rodney easily dodged them and landed steadily on the open sea. 

"Standing... on the water? How is that possible? Does he have a Devil Fruit?"

"It's quite convenient for chasing pirates."

"Fire Fist!"

Ace launched a blazing punch with scorching momentum. Rodney swiftly performed hand seals that he had been practicing for decades. "Water Release: Wild Water Wave!"

A large amount of water gushed out of his mouth, resembling a river during the rainy season.

The collision of fire and water created white water vapor. Rodney quickly formed another seal. "Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere!"

The wind technique tore through the water vapor, directly piercing Ace's body, leaving several holes and a mark on the ground behind him.

"Water Release: Water Body!"

The seawater condensed into five water clones that ran staggeringly toward Ace. Each clone drew short knives from their legs, besieging him. Having learned from his previous encounter, Ace didn't give the water clones a chance to plot against him. He destroyed four of them with long-range attacks but realized that none remained.

Where did they go?

"Here!" Suddenly, a figure leaped out from under Ace's feet. The dagger in their hand gleamed coldly in the sun, repeatedly stabbing at him.

"Dance of the Camellia!"

It was a technique from the Kaguya Clan, known for its soft yet incredibly fast attacks. Underestimating the enemy meant certain death. Unfortunately, Ace's Flame-Flame Fruit gave him immunity to such attacks. Even if his body was pierced, it didn't affect him.

A punch landed on Rodney's body, engulfed in flames, but Ace soon discovered that he hadn't hit the target. Rodney had turned into a puddle of liquid.

Crash!

His ankle was suddenly restrained as if something had grabbed his foot. He felt a momentary weakness in his body. Looking down, he saw that the Seastone Cuffs, which had been taken from him moments ago, was now cuffed around his feet.

"Damn it!" Ace knew he had lost again, this time in a one-on-one fight. He hadn't even used his full strength, which made him feel frustrated. 

"Hahaha, Ace, having a Devil Fruit ability doesn't mean everything. Although Rodney may not be as physically strong as you, his techniques are far superior," Garp laughed and said, observing Rodney emerging from the ground. "Rodney, you've done well. Would you like to join the Marines?"

"Thank you, Vice Admiral Garp, for the compliment. Shall we proceed with our agreement?" Rodney smiled, completely disregarding Garp's recruitment offer.

"No problem, what do you want to learn?" Garp generously asked.

"I've already learned how to use Soru. So naturally, I want to learn the advanced version: Geppo. Let's go with that." Rodney's request was straightforward.

"Vice Admiral Garp, is it appropriate to teach Mr. Rodney so many Rokushiki techniques?" Bogard, as an adjutant, felt it necessary to remind Garp, a respected figure in the Marines.

Rodney responded seriously, "Adjutant Bogard, you're mistaken. The Rokushiki techniques aren't a secret in this world, are they? Many pirates in the New World have encountered Rokushiki users several times. Besides, I'm not a pirate, so there's no harm in learning them."

Defected marines within the Marines have also learned the Rokushiki techniques to some extent. It's a common occurrence, especially in the New World.

Therefore, it could be considered an open secret. If they were to pay attention to every detail, they would have to be vigilant about many other things as well.