Dadan's attempt to establish authority had failed; compared to her, Luffy and Kaito Sakamoto found Garp to be far more intimidating.
After finishing their meal, Ace silently grabbed a water pipe and stepped outside. Luffy noticed this and quickly put down his bowl, dragging Kaito along as he followed.
"Hey, you guys finished eating, but I haven't!" Kaito complained.
Just a moment ago, Dadan had angrily wished for Luffy to get lost, but now she was concerned about where they were going.
"Hey! Where do you think you're going?!"
"We're just going to check things out. We'll be back safe, Ms. Dadan," Kaito replied.
Dadan took a bite of meat and grumbled, "Brats are so annoying... Ms. Dadan... but at least you're polite."
.....
"Hey! I'm Luffy! About that spit you aimed at us earlier, I'm over it now. Let's be friends!" Luffy called out, recalling what Shanks had taught him about not getting mad over small things.
Kaito wasn't as eager; if someone spat in his face, there was no way he wouldn't retaliate. Of course, he had to have the strength to back it up.
Ace turned around, glaring at Kaito and Luffy. He hated these unexpected guests. He kicked a tree thicker than Luffy was tall, breaking it cleanly in half as it crashed down.
How can a ten-year-old do that!!!?
Kaito was shocked to witness it firsthand. If it were him kicking, he'd definitely break his own foot.
As the giant tree came crashing down, Kaito swung his arm, and the bracelet on his wrist transformed into a long whip that coiled around a branch.
With his other arm wrapped around Luffy's waist, the two swung away just in time to avoid the falling tree.
This was a trick Kaito had learned from Monster, the musician of the Red-Haired Pirates, specifically that monkey's "forest survival swing."
Having avoided the giant tree, Ace watched with newfound interest as Kaito suddenly produced a whip.
He walked down the slope and asked, "How did you do that?"
With a cold expression, young Ace stared at Kaito, who couldn't help but feel like laughing for some reason.
"It's just a bit of a trick, nothing special."
Ace's eyelid twitched. Seeing that Kaito wouldn't spill his secrets, he decided it was simple enough—let's just fight! He quietly took down the water pipe from his back.
"If you won't tell, then let's have a spar!"
Thinking back to Ace breaking that tree with a kick, Kaito thought, "There's no way I'm fighting you! Not a chance."
"That wouldn't be right."
Ace didn't care; he swung the water pipe straight at Kaito.
Luffy immediately jumped in front of Kaito, shouting, "Don't bully Kaito!"
And then... Luffy was knocked aside by a blow, but thankfully, blunt force wasn't much of an issue for him.
Kaito: ....
Now that he was here, Kaito thought that if he didn't use his abilities, a hit like that would surely break his arm.
He just hadn't expected his first battle to be against Ace.
His eyes widened suddenly. Kaito quickly copied Ace's physique, and his hands were busy as his bracelet transformed into a long staff.
He had learned this from Ben, the ship's doctor of the Red-Haired Pirates, who was a master of weaponry and skilled in stick fighting.
A fun fact: another crew member, Rayleigh, also learned his stick techniques from Ben.
"Clang!"
Kaito held the staff with one hand, blocking Ace's water pipe. The sound of steel clashing echoed through the forest.
"You're really something. This 'magic' of yours is impressive, and your strength is better than that little brat's," Ace said with a smile, pleased to meet someone who could actually fight him.
Kaito smiled back, but inside he was cursing; his arm was already numb from the impact.
Using his sight to copy, he could only replicate about forty to fifty percent of Ace's strength. Fighting Ace with only forty percent of his own power was practically guaranteed defeat.
But Kaito didn't want to waste his ability to replicate the Red-Haired Pirates' members on someone who would inevitably become an ally. That was his safety net for future adventures!
So, he seized the opportunity to grab Ace's hand. Ace immediately pulled away, asking, "What do you mean by that?"
By touching, he could replicate sixty percent of Ace's strength.
Kaito didn't answer but instead copied sixty percent of Ace's physique as they began to spar.
Attack from below!
Kaito took the initiative and made a sweeping strike. Ace reacted quickly, jumping up and bringing the water pipe down with both hands. The force was palpable, and the sound of the air breaking was sharp; if that hit Kaito's head, it would surely split him open.
Not wanting to match his strength, Kaito dodged backward just in time. The water pipe slammed into the ground with a loud thud, cracking the earth beneath them.
Kaito swallowed hard—what kind of grudge was this!?
He barely had time to ponder before Ace charged at him again!
....
In the forest, the sounds of steel clashing rang out continuously.
Kaito's strength was not a match for Ace's, but Ace's technique was not as refined as Kaito's.
The two struggled to find an edge, with Luffy remaining true to his principles, not jumping in to help but cheering Kaito on.
However, as time passed, Kaito's stamina waned rapidly, and he gradually fell into a disadvantage. Ace sensed this and became excited; victory was in sight.
But suddenly, that excitement faded.