Chapter 290: Reward, Not Revenge
To be honest, Zhang Da was not optimistic about the two of them. The ghost of negativity was not something that could be overcome by willpower alone.
In the Moria chapter, Zoro was covered in wounds, but he still endured all the injuries and pain inflicted by Kuma on Luffy. He was still able to stand even with blood spurted all over the ground. His willpower is beyond doubt, right?
Even such a ruthless person can't withstand the ghost of negativity. Now how can two little kids, 10-year-old Ace and 7-year-old Luffy, resist it?
Little Luffy was already almost at his limit, and now he was lying on the ground with a sad face, unable to move - Perona had actually already judged Luffy as the loser in her heart, and she just hit him casually because she was having the chance.
Ace was determined not to lose again, but negative emotions surged up all at once, and he had no control over it. He crawled down involuntarily, and said dejected words: "I...can't do it, I can't win..."
"Hehehe~ Wouldn't it be better to admit defeat earlier? Why do you have to keep holding on?" Perona put herself in the other person's shoes and thought about it. If she were faced with an ability that she couldn't handle, she would give in after being taught a lesson three times at most. Only a fool would want to be tortured thirty-three times.
"No, no matter how many times I will stand up, I... will never lose to anyone!" Ace shouted, and an invisible aura emanated from him. The two little ghosts floating next to him and Luffy were swept by this force and both fell and disappeared.
"What is this? A golden lion?" Perona felt that Ace in front of her suddenly turned into a golden lion. She was almost scared to death. She was stunned for a few seconds before she realized that this seemed to be called Conqueror's Haki.
Fortunately, Perona has grown a lot now , and Ace's subconscious was targeting the negative ghost, which had limited effect on Perona herself and did not make her faint on the spot.
Wendy and Xia Lulu felt a little palpitated when they were swept by the domineering Haki, and were a little confused. Although Zhang Da had also taught them some knowledge about domineering, there were too many things to teach them at the same time, and they couldn't connect the dots for a while.
Shark Chili has never felt anything like this kind of momentum, boldness, and murderous aura. You may not believe it, but he has always considered himself a scientist, and the Fish-Man Karate he practices is also a fighting technique with scientific basis.
Altria looked at Ace in surprise. She didn't expect that this child could have such power at such a young age. Poor Tatsuya had tried so hard but still hadn't found the trick.
Zhang Da was somewhat envious of such talent. This was a natural prerequisite for standing at the top of the world. As for the aftermath of the domineering color that swept over him, he basically felt no discomfort. To put it in a slightly more high-sounding way, this power was just a breeze.
Tom was amazing. At first, he was wandering around with a big belly like Luffy. Later, he laughed so hard that his stomach hurt when he saw the two brothers in trouble. But he got bored after watching too much, so he soon fell asleep with a snot bubble hanging from his nose. He is still sleeping now and has no idea what happened.
"Ace... so you have it too?" Garp had the most complicated feelings. He was not surprised that Ace had the Conqueror's Haki. It was reasonable for the son of the Pirate King to have the Conqueror's Haki.
But this only gave Garp an even bigger headache. He really treated Ace as his own grandson. Was he going to watch Ace continue to follow Roger's old path?
It would not be a big deal if he was just an ordinary pirate going on adventures, but Ace obviously wanted to make a name for himself and let everyone face up to his existence. By then, his identity would definitely not be hidden.
Garp has absolute confidence in the ability of his old friend Sengoku. If Ace's bounty is over 100 million in the future, Sengoku will definitely be able to find out his origins thoroughly.
'The son of the Pirate King has become a great pirate', if this happens, neither the Navy nor the World Government will allow him to continue to grow.
By then, even Garp will be powerless - he also has his own stance. At most, he will not go to arrest people personally. Sengoku will help him to withstand the orders of the Five Elders, and he can cheat and pretend not to hear Sengoku's orders, but this is the limit.
As a grandfather, he wanted to protect the children all the time, but as a marine, he could only do so much. It was impossible for him to stop others from taking action or release them secretly.
The same logic applies if Ace is replaced by Luffy. They are obviously family members, but because of their positions, they can only watch each other being chased around the world and in danger of their lives. Garp had already experienced this feeling when Dragon was listed as the world's most vicious criminal. He really doesn't want Ace and Luffy to go on that path.
Ace didn't understand what Garp was thinking. He was now thinking about spreading his fame to every corner of the ocean and making everyone look at him with admiration.
Plus, he couldn't figure out what killed Sabo, he only knew it was something opposite to freedom, so he wanted to pursue freedom no matter what.
"How about it? Are you ready to accept my challenge?" Although Ace didn't understand what was going on, the ghosts had disappeared, so he should be considered the winner, right?
Zhang Da also saw clearly that Ace did not resist the negative ghost, but only erupted in the domineering color after the negative ghost had taken effect.
But there's no need to be so serious about it. You might as well just beat him up first, then try to change his mind with some verbal persuasion. Isn't this the same principle used by Naruto in the next studio?
It would be a good thing if we could help bad teenagers to give up their evil ways and do good.
"You've passed, but the penalties you've accumulated from losing before cannot be waived. You have to copy everything you need to copy. You won't go back on your word, will you?"
"Of course I keep my word!" Seeing that Zhang Da also agreed, Ace immediately got ready for action.
Perona shouted unconvincedly: "What? They are just two ghosts! Why do you think he won? I can still release four, eight, or even a hundred!"
She felt a little guilty when she said one hundred. After all, she had never tried it and she didn't know if she could do it.
Ace was also someone who refused to admit defeat: "A thousand of those things would be useless!"
"What did you say? Two thousand then!"
“It’s useless!”
The two started arguing as soon as they had a disagreement, and neither of them gave in.
"Alright, alright. He just passed the two negative ghosts. It doesn't mean he beat you. You are older than him, so just give in to this stinky little brother." Zhang Da also tried to persuade Perona. Seeing that she was still angry, he whispered, "Don't you want to see him being punished by me?"
"Huh?" Perona blinked her big eyes. She knew a little about Zhang Daye's strength. Although he was ranked quite low on the ship, he was still very good at bullying children, right? And he would use various methods to bully them!
Thinking of this, Perona glared at Zhang Tatsuya, but when she thought of that arrogant freckled kid being pinned to the ground and spanked, or being forced to do homework or read newspapers, she laughed out loud again.
Zhang Da didn't know that he was labeled as a bully by Perona, so he turned to Ace and said, "If you want to fight, then fight. Is your current state okay?"
Ace picked up the water pipe stubbornly: "I want to be a pirate. After I go out to sea, the enemy will not wait for me to eat and rest before attacking me, so come on!"
No wonder he dared to challenge Whitebeard alone to cover his companions after he was exhausted from fighting with Jinbe for five days and five nights. This stubborn character has not changed since he was a child.
Garp didn't say anything, just watched from the side. He didn't care about letting Ace get beaten up again after all the trouble he had been going on for so long. After all, he had been beaten by him since he was a child. No matter how cruel Zhang Da was, could he be more cruel than him?
Garp clenched his fists and made up his mind to change Ace's mind before he went out to sea. Just for this domineering Haki, he would beat him harder next time.
Wendy said softly, "Come on, Tatsuya-nii!"
"Well, thank you Wendy, but you won't have to work harder to deal with him." Zhang Da also smiled and touched Wendy's head, saying, "Wendy, go check on the man in the straw hat, don't leave any sequelae or anything like that."
"Yeah!" Wendy ran over obediently to check on Luffy's condition, used magic to help him relieve his discomfort, and also healed the injuries caused by Garp.
"Thank you, but please don't hold back in the competition." Ace saw that Wendy was helping Luffy heal his injuries. He was always nice to people who helped his brother, but the competition still had to happen. Little Ace hesitated whether to put down the water pipe in his hand first.
Perona, who was eager to see Ace get beaten, enthusiastically acted as the referee: "Round 1, Ready... GO!"
Zhang Da looked at her speechlessly. Has this girl ever played King of Fighters? I'm teaching you some English, but I'm using it here, right?
After all, English is the official language on the bounty order, so Ace could understand it. He inserted the water pipe behind his back without knowing how to fix it, and then rushed forward with his fists waved.
The speed is average, and feels a little stronger than young Zoro, and should be about the same as Kuina. Zhang Da also evaluated Ace's strength. With this level, he certainly can't hurt him, so he might as well try his half-baked skills.
Zhang Daye raised his legs and stomped his feet on the ground more than ten times, and his whole body disappeared on the spot.
"Disappeared?" Ace was shocked and immediately realized that Zhang Daye's speed was too fast, causing his eyes to be unable to keep up. He could only try hard to find Zhang Daye's figure.
But the next moment, Ace flew backwards and stopped after hitting a tree.
"Woooooooo!" Ace slid down the tree trunk to the ground, and a few leaves floated down in front of him.
"Ace!" Luffy jumped up and ran towards Ace, not even paying attention to whether his injuries had healed.
"I'm fine." Ace stood up and rubbed the back of his head, then asked, "What was that just now?"
Zhang Da also stood in front of Ace, one hand in front and the other behind, showing the demeanor of a master: "That move is called charging forward bravely. It rushes out at a speed that is difficult to see with the naked eye, and knocks away all obstacles on the route."
Although he seemed calm on the surface, he was actually rubbing his belly secretly. Ace was a tough guy, as expected of being beaten by Garp.
People in the know covered their faces. Zhang Daye was really talking nonsense. Isn't this just shaving? Moreover, it was a failed shaving and he didn't control the direction and distance well. Is it really okay to deceive children like this?
"How awesome!" The naive little Luffy believed it immediately. He felt that this move was very suitable for him, and it was a move that could knock Ace away. If he learned it and then fought against Ace in the future, would he be able to win?
"Is that so? I thought you had learned the shaving technique among the six styles!" Garp touched his head, as if he had suddenly realized something.
"Hey, hey..." Shark Chili and Xia Lulu who were watching didn't know what to say. You are a vice admiral of the navy, right? And you are also a naval hero. You can't be so easy to fool!
Zhang Daye was silent for a while. He now knew where Luffy inherited his defective brain from. That guy Dragon must have been a genetic mutation. It was really rare for three generations of this family to have a good brain.
Ace instinctively felt that something was wrong, but he couldn't put his finger on it. After all, he didn't see clearly how Zhang Da made his move.
"I'm going to use all my strength!" Ace pulled out the water pipe again. He had realized that he might not be able to defeat such an opponent, but since they had already fought, he would never run away and he would never give up.
Zhang Da also took a few of Ace's moves with his bare hands. It seemed that there was no pattern to Ace's moves. They were probably skills he learned from fighting various beasts in the forest, and from fighting thugs in border towns and garbage mountains.
Zhang Da didn't need any tricks to fight him. He could beat Ace with just his speed, strength and reaction. He was simply bullying the weak with his strength.
Not to mention that he would occasionally practice shaving and make Ace dazzled. Let alone predicting the position, Zhang Da himself didn't know whether he could reach his designated location, so how could he predict.
Ten minutes passed and Ace didn't know how many punches and kicks he had received, but he didn't care. Anyway, he wasn't as hurt as Garp. He just got up after falling down and continued.
Even though there is no hope of winning until now, but I have to at least hit him once today, right?
"Watch this!" Ace pounced on him again.
Zhang Da also dodged the water pipe in Ace's hand and punched Ace in the abdomen, knocking him away. Then he suddenly found that Ace seemed to have mastered a very good technique of taking a beating.
It's the technique of subconsciously adjusting your muscles or landing posture when facing an unavoidable attack, trying every way to minimize the damage you receive.
Zhang Da's eyes also lit up, and he felt that he could use more force to learn from him. Anyway, with Wendy there, he was not afraid of hurting him.
Garp, who was watching from the sidelines, suddenly felt itchy. Although he wanted to teach Ace and Luffy a lesson, he still felt very uncomfortable watching others beating his grandson. Should he give this kid some advice on the Six Styles and Haki later?
He was a little fooled by Zhang Daye's nonsense before, but Garp is not a fool after all. After such a long time, he can see that Zhang Daye is practicing the Six Styles.
Well, it’s decided. Let’s consider this as a reward for this kid’s help in teaching my grandson a lesson!
It's just a reward for my grandson, definitely not revenge for him.
