One Piece: It All Started When I Found Shanks' Arm

Chapter 41: Arlong! Why Haven't You Come Yet!

Thud, thud.

Amidst the constant tremors of the ground, Shane arrived in front of a giant tree more than ten meters tall.

Glancing up at the treetop, he suddenly reached out with both hands, his ten fingers digging into the trunk. His gnarled latissimus dorsi muscles abruptly bulged, and a chain of muffled sounds came from underground as the roots snapped.

He wasn't pulling it up; it was the roar of the entire layer of earth being overturned!

The giant tree, weighing a full three or four tons, lifted off the ground with a cascade of dirt, held firmly in his hands.

He then turned his head and looked at the peak of the mountain opposite him, about three or four hundred meters away.

After aiming briefly, Shane, without a word, concentrated all his strength and violently hurled the giant tree from his shoulder.

WHOOSH—!

The giant tree shot towards the opposite peak like a javelin. Shane, meanwhile, lifted his heel, gathered his strength slightly, and stomped down.

"Shave!"

His figure flickered and blurred. The next instant, he reappeared on top of the flying tree. The trunk instantly sank a good bit, and its speed slowed slightly, but it still maintained its original momentum, flying towards the mountaintop.

The headwind howled past him, the trees and streams below flashing by. Shane narrowed his eyes slightly, watching the approaching peak. Like the previous one, both mountains had been contracted to become his exclusive training grounds.

However, compared to the devastated state of the last mountain, this one was in much better shape. Only the peak had been completely flattened, creating a huge open-air platform.

At the edge of the platform, Manba, Skinny, and two others were already waiting. Seeing the giant tree flying towards them, they hurriedly retreated further back.

RUMBLE!

The giant tree crashed into the center of the platform. Shane jumped down, landed steadily on the ground, hooked the trunk with one foot, and with a casual kick, sent the trunk rolling down the mountainside.

Gulp—

Even though they had grown accustomed to the various visual shocks Shane provided over the past few months, after witnessing this scene, Manba and the others still subconsciously swallowed.

"Did you bring the guns?" Shane asked casually.

"We brought them, Boss," Manba immediately pulled a flintlock from his back. The other three did the same.

"Just like I said yesterday, everyone aim for my head and fire rapidly."

Just as Shane finished speaking, he remembered something and looked at Skinny. "Not you. You aim for my feet."

"Uh," Skinny blushed. "Boss, my marksmanship has improved a lot. I feel like aiming for your knees should be about right."

"...Whatever."

Shane shook his head and stood in the center of the platform with his hands behind his back, facing the wind. The other four took their positions in the four corners, then closed the distance, raised their muzzles, and aimed at Shane's head.

"Fire!"

Manba waved his hand and gave the order.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

The sound of gunfire, not too dense, broke the silence of the mountains. Four orange-red muzzles spat fire in turn. After one round, they quickly reloaded and immediately fired the next.

Clang! Clang! Shane stood motionless, letting the bullets hit his head. No matter which angle they came from, they were instantly deflected, making a crisp sound like metal striking stone. Even on the fleshy skin of his cheeks, the moment the bullets collided, it was like a pebble falling into a lake, creating a slight ripple that quickly returned to normal.

This was the effect of mastering "Copper Head." Even without specifically using Iron Body to accelerate blood flow, he could still completely ignore the impact of bullets.

Whoosh—!

A bullet shot from the front, and by chance, it flew straight into his eye.

"Oh no!"

Manba noticed this and, his face filled with panic, quickly reached out to stop the others. "Hey, stop shooting! Boss, are you okay?"

The gunfire ceased abruptly. Only then did everyone see clearly that the bullet hadn't bounced off immediately. Instead, it had strangely stopped in front of his eyeball as if stuck in asphalt.

"I'm fine, don't worry."

Shane spoke calmly, then suddenly controlled his eyeball to roll upwards, catching the bullet in his upper eyelid.

Everyone heard a teeth-grinding creak. The next moment, the bullet caught behind his eyelid was crushed into fine lead powder, which slowly trickled down the bridge of Shane's nose.

"..."

A dead silence fell.

"Looks like the effect is good."

Shane nodded with satisfaction and smiled at the dumbfounded Manba and the others. "Alright, that's about it for today. You can go about your business."

"Yes, Boss."

Manba and the others took a long time to come back to their senses. They all took their leave, looking back every three steps as they left the open-air platform, clearly unable to hide the shock in their hearts.

Shane wasn't surprised at all. The description of "Copper Head" was very clear: after mastering it, the strength of all parts of his body above the neck would be enhanced, which naturally included seemingly fragile organs and tissues like his eyeballs and nasal cavity. Even his tongue could remain soft or become as tough as steel. If he stuck it out, it would be like a dagger, easily able to pierce another person's chest.

He walked to the southernmost edge of the platform.

Shane gazed into the distance. From here, he could just see the only port in Cocoyasi Village. The pier was empty, with only a few inconspicuous small fishing boats moored there.

"Arlong..."

Shane muttered in a low voice, "It's already spring. When on earth are you coming?"

For the past five months, he had slept only four hours a day. Almost all his remaining time was devoted to his hellish training.

"Shave" reached Adept level four months ago and Master level two months ago. Then, Iron Body reached Master level, and Copper Head followed suit! His body, tempered a hundred times, had become incomparably strong, far surpassing what it was before. His overall strength had increased explosively!

He was now fully confident in dealing with the Arlong Pirates. From his rippling muscles to his beating heart, every part of him craved battle, craved tearing a powerful enemy apart!

But unfortunately, there were twelve months in a year. It was now only early March. The probability of Arlong arriving in Cocoyasi Village in the first two months was ultimately too low.

"I hope you don't come too late."

Shane licked his somewhat chapped lips and muttered to himself, "If your strength can't keep up with my version, I'll be very disappointed..."

A strong wind suddenly blew past, swallowing his voice. Just like human emotions, whether it was excitement and anticipation or repeated disappointment, they were ultimately no match for the relentless passage of time.

In the blink of an eye, it was April.

The Trading Market once again refreshed with the Six Powers manuals. Shane bought them and got "Moonwalk" and "Finger Pistol" from the blind box, and began to practice.

May.

There was still no sign of the Arlong Pirates, and the hardest mountain on the island finally collapsed completely. Shane spent a few more days, using his fists and feet to completely level it. From then on, it became the best place for the villagers to gather, celebrate, and hold festivals.

June.

"Moonwalk" and "Finger Pistol" were mastered one after another. Shane took over another mountain and, in the process of practicing Finger Pistol, turned the upper half of the mountain into a sieve. When the morning sun shone down, the light speckling the ground was quite beautiful.

It was just that when his figure stood at the edge of the mountaintop, staring at the pier every day like an old man in an empty nest, he looked a little lonely from a distance.

July.

Nami and Nojiko had their birthdays one after another. Shane prepared a huge cake and invited Manba and his group to celebrate grandly. Unfortunately, when he was pushing the cake cart, he didn't control his strength well, twisting the steel frame into a pretzel. The cake tipped over and fell to the ground, causing Nami to wail.

August.

The Trading Market finally refreshed with the "Flesh-Melting Furnace Art" again. This time it was the third part, named "Iron Bones." The training method was surprisingly similar to that of Iron Body. So, Manba and the others were given another task: every day, they had to carry a meter-high spiked club and desperately hammer Shane's various joints. It was just that before, it had been two people taking turns, and now it was six people working at the same time.

September.

Shane's height reached 193 cm, and his weight reached 140 kg. The weight of the black athletic suit he wore also broke through the ceiling again and again, reaching a terrifying 2.1 tons.

One night, Nami woke up in a daze to pee. Passing by Shane's room, she vaguely heard him sleep-talking:

"Come on, Arlong... come on, Arlong..."

"Why... why haven't you come yet..."

Arlong? Is there a girl with a name like that?

Nami became vigilant and planned to ask around the village first thing in the morning. Unfortunately, a child's memory when they wake up in the middle of the night is basically zero. By the time she was brushing her teeth the next day, she had completely forgotten about what happened last night.

October.

In the middle of the month, Shane mastered "Iron Bones." The orange grove also entered its harvest season. The workshops had been built long ago, and orange canned goods and orange jam began to go into production one after another. Belle-mère was incredibly excited, busy from morning till night every day.

And at the same time, in a certain town in the nearby sea area.

Under the terrified gazes of the people, a group of tall fish-men laughed wantonly, leaving with bags full of money.

"Looks like the guys on this island are all cowards, chu~" Chu the Kissing Fishman twisted his neck, not quite satisfied. "Not a single one of them resisted. The last island was a bit more interesting. I wanted to turn this island into a pile of ruins too."

"Humans are weak and ignorant, short and cowardly. They are truly a naturally inferior and despicable race," the purple fish-man in the lead sneered. "The next island, what's it called?"

"Hmm, let me see. It seems to be called Cocoyasi Village." The six-sword style swordsman, Hachi, drunkenly put down his wine gourd and unfolded a sea chart. "It's not a very big village. It should be the easiest one to conquer."

"Is that so?"

The purple fish-man turned his head. Below his saw-like nose, he grinned, revealing his fangs in a wanton, savage smile.

"Shhahahahaha—! That's no fun at all! I just wonder if the humans there have enough money, how much juice can we squeeze out of them..."