One Piece: I'm Destined to Be the Son-in-Law King!-Chapter 144: The Rookie Killer’s Reputation

Mister Island, a wild and icy place in the north.

Hidden behind a small hill, the Spade Pirates watched anxiously. Their captain was locked in a fierce battle with a Marine officer some distance away.

"This looks bad, you guys!" one pirate exclaimed.

"It's the famous Rear Admiral Black Hair!" another cried out, fear in his voice.

"Don't worry! Captain Ace is strong!" a third pirate declared, trying to sound confident.

Every pirate rookie worth their salt knew that the first big challenge in the New World was Rear Admiral "Black Hair."

Back in Sabaody, they'd heard terrifying stories about him.

Rumor had it that Black Hair defeated over half the rookies who dared enter the New World, earning him the nickname "Rookie Killer!"

And it wasn't just Black Hair they had to worry about.

The pirates glanced nervously at the other side of the battlefield. More Marines were gathering, and some of them were known to be incredibly powerful.

This situation is really dangerous! they thought.

In the center of the chaos, Ace's fist slammed into a Marine's palm. Ace grinned, feeling confident. He knew he'd become much stronger since setting sail.

"Roya, you better watch out!" Ace shouted.

"Come on," Roya replied with a smile, his hands still casually in his pockets.

He's underestimating me! Ace thought, anger flashing in his eyes. He pushed off the ground, charging towards Roya. He decided to fight hand-to-hand, without using his Devil Fruit powers.

Just like the old days.

He didn't want to take advantage of Roya.

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"Take this!" Ace yelled.

His fist whizzed past Roya's ear!

Roya simply tilted his head, easily dodging the punch. Then, he swiftly kicked Ace in the stomach.

"Thump!"

The sound echoed in the air!

Ace doubled over in pain, clutching his stomach. He stumbled backward, struggling not to throw up the spaghetti he'd eaten earlier.

Roya looked disappointed. "Ace," he said calmly, "it's been a year, and your close-combat skills haven't improved much."

"Damn it!"

Ace looked up, sweat dripping down his face.

He hadn't seen Roya's kick coming at all. Even though Roya hadn't used his full strength, Ace shouldn't have been hit so easily.

I won't be careless again! he vowed.

"Roya!"

Ace charged again, his body tense, his eyes locked on Roya's every move.

Full power!

His punch was much faster than before.

"That's more like it."

Roya still had his hands in his pockets, swaying slightly to avoid Ace's attacks. He didn't even need to use special techniques to dodge.

He could see everything Ace was going to do.

Raising his leg!

"Thump!"

Roya's knee blocked Ace's fist!

Ace felt a sharp pain. It didn't feel like hitting a person; it felt like hitting solid steel.

He'd felt this before.

Ace grinned. "Hard as steel... Is this move called Iron Body?"

"No, you're overthinking it."

Roya frowned. He'd simply raised his leg to block.

In their short exchange, he could tell that Ace's physical abilities had barely improved since they last fought.

This kid has been slacking off after eating the Flame-Flame Fruit, he thought.

In the first half of the Grand Line, Logia-type Devil Fruit users could easily dominate. This often led them to believe they only needed to focus on developing their fruit powers.

Especially Ace, who's so undisciplined. He's going down the wrong path.

But in the New World, Haki users were everywhere, and relying solely on a Devil Fruit would get you into serious trouble.

Roya shook his head and kicked upward with his right leg, knocking Ace's fist aside!

A sudden sense of danger made Ace snap his head up. A powerful gust of wind grazed his cheek.

A thin line of blood appeared on his face.

Ace quickly jumped back, touched his face, and stared at the blood on his fingertips. A chill ran down his spine.

He had dodged the kick, but he was still injured.

Roya has become so strong!

"Now's not the time to be distracted!"

The words snapped him back to reality. Ace looked up. Roya, who had been standing right in front of him, had vanished.

"Shave!"

In a blur, Roya reappeared in front of him, as if teleporting. His right foot swept across Ace's face!

"Thump!"

Time seemed to slow down. Ace's skin vibrated, and two of his teeth popped out.

Then, his body went flying.

"Boom!"

Dust exploded into the air!

"Captain Ace!"

The crew members down the hill were frantic with worry.

"That Black Hair is ridiculously strong!"

"Captain Ace is completely outmatched!"

"Use your powers, Captain Ace!"

If Ace used the Flame-Flame Fruit's power, the situation would definitely change. They had complete faith in the power of the Flame-Flame Fruit.

On the other side, in the Marine camp, Smoker and the other Marines were watching the battle.

They frowned at Ace's performance.

"Fire Fist Ace isn't as impressive as I thought," one Marine said.

"Don't underestimate him," another replied. "As a rookie, he's already quite remarkable. His movements are pretty good, too."

"Keep watching," a third Marine said. "He's a Logia-type Devil Fruit user. He hasn't shown his true strength yet."

Based on the close-combat skills Ace had shown, he wasn't that good. His wild, untrained style was obvious. Smoker and Hina were confident they could beat Ace in a fight.

But Ace's strengths were his quick reactions and his seemingly strong body. Besides, he hadn't earned the name "Fire Fist" through close-combat skills.

Logia-types were naturally powerful.

Less than ten minutes into the battle, Ace was kneeling on the ground, panting heavily.

"Damn it, I can't beat him at all!"

Back on Mount Colubo, he and Roya had been evenly matched. Now, Roya's close-combat skills completely overwhelmed him.

Throughout the fight, Roya hadn't even taken his hands out of his pockets, using only kicks to beat him.

This guy is a monster!

Originally, he hadn't wanted to use his Devil Fruit powers to gain an unfair advantage. Now, he realized he'd been naive.

Roya was different. He didn't have a Devil Fruit to rely on, so he specialized in close-combat. It was only natural that he could beat him.

Ace stood up, flames erupting from his body.

"Roya, I'm getting serious!"

...

Roya chuckled and shook his head, finally taking his hands out of his pockets.

The environment shaped a person's growth. The first half of the Grand Line was called paradise because it was too easy.

He believed that once Ace reached the New World, his strength would double in no time, and he might even catch up to him.

But the current Ace was too inexperienced!

Roya slowly drew Rain Cutter, his sword.

"I'll give you three minutes!"

...

Ace leaped forward, his fists burning with intense flames!

"Fire Fist!"

A wave of raging flames rushed toward Roya, covering a huge area. Even using Shave would make it hard to dodge the flames and the explosions they caused.

The power of a Logia-type was on full display.

Roya watched the flames approach, the ends of his hair starting to curl from the heat.

Even though he'd joked before that not even a dog would eat the Flame-Flame Fruit, it was actually a top-tier Devil Fruit.

A sharp flash of sword light!

"Flame Cut!"

The massive wave of flames split in two, flying past either side of Roya.

"Boom!!!"

A blinding explosion erupted behind him!

Amidst the swirling fire, the two locked eyes again.

Ace's pupils shrank.

The fire... it was cut apart!

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[T/N:

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