Chapter 191 (Patreon)

With his next objective decided, Mihawk began considering how to accomplish it.

The pirate world was many times larger and more varied than the shinobi world.

That difference was not limited to its strange creatures or the unusual environments found throughout its seas.

The sheer size of the world was astonishing.

In the shinobi world, Mihawk and the others could travel from Konoha to the border of the Land of Wind within a single day.

With a little more time, they could cross the Land of Waterfalls and reach the Land of Iron.

Excluding the distant continents across the sea, even the territory occupied by the Five Great Shinobi Countries was relatively small.

The pirate world was completely different.

Even a medium-sized island could cover more land than Konoha, while the world’s total population likely numbered in the billions—perhaps even tens of billions.

Its seas were divided into the four Blues, while the Red Line and Grand Line cut across the globe. The Grand Line itself was separated into Paradise and the New World, with the Calm Belts stretching along either side.

Finding a single creature somewhere in those vast seas would be extraordinarily difficult.

As far as Mihawk remembered, Pure Gold was hidden inside Bonbori, an enormous anglerfish large enough to swallow entire islands.

Bonbori spent most of its time beneath the sea and rarely surfaced unless it was drawn by the light of Pure Gold.

Searching the entire ocean for it would be no different from trying to find a needle in a haystack.

The simplest solution would be to follow Luffy and his crew.

Two years from now, after entering the New World, they would eventually encounter a girl carrying Pure Gold and find their way inside Bonbori.

However, the current era marked only the beginning of Luffy’s journey.

Mihawk had no interest in babysitting the Straw Hats for two years, nor did he intend to waste that much time waiting for the correct moment.

At his current level, Luffy possessed neither the strength nor the presence required to convince Mihawk to travel with him.

Therefore, Mihawk needed to find Bonbori through another method.

Two possible approaches soon formed in his mind.

For the moment, he designated them Plan A and Plan B.

“Let’s go fight Arlong!”

“We’ve endured enough! If this continues, we’re as good as dead!”

While Mihawk considered both plans, he continued walking along the road with Hinata, Hanabi, and Saeko.

A chorus of angry shouts suddenly came from ahead.

A large group of villagers was marching toward them.

Men, women, and even elderly villagers carried farming tools and anything else they could use as a weapon. Their expressions showed that they had finally reached the limit of what they could endure.

At the front of the group stood Genzo, still wearing his sheriff’s uniform.

Among the villagers, an orange-haired girl with a bandage wrapped around her left arm immediately caught Mihawk’s attention.

Boom!

Genzo suddenly collapsed without warning.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The villagers marching behind him froze. Their furious expressions went blank, their eyes rolled back, and they fell unconscious one after another.

The sound of bodies hitting the road continued until only the orange-haired girl remained standing.

She was Nami, one of Luffy’s future crewmates—the pirate thief who would eventually become known as Cat Burglar Nami.

“Y-You...”

Nami stumbled several steps backward as Mihawk and the others approached.

Fear spread across her face.

“Who are you?”

Everyone around her had lost consciousness at the same time.

Anyone could tell that the four strangers approaching her were responsible.

Nami was far from foolish. Over the years, she had deceived and stolen from countless pirate crews.

She was certain she had never seen any of the people before her.

They were outsiders.

Then she noticed the direction from which they had come.

Wait... They came from Arlong Park.

Nami’s expression changed.

Her fear gave way to tension as she forced herself to speak.

“You came from Arlong Park... What did you do to Luffy and the others?”

Her question died halfway through.

Mihawk walked directly toward her, his red eyes fixed upon her trembling figure.

Nami’s throat tightened.

Her eyes widened, and her entire body began shaking violently. Despite desperately trying to speak, she could no longer force out a single word.

Mihawk stopped before her and turned toward Hinata.

“Hinata, use her.”

“Yes.”

Hinata nodded before looking directly at Nami.

“Don’t be afraid. This will only take a moment.”

Hinata had no idea that her attempt to reassure Nami only frightened her further.

Am I going to die?!

A pulse of chakra spread through the air.

Hinata activated her Tenseigan.

Her pure white eyes transformed, revealing an intricate pattern of blue and white.

Nami froze at the sight.

Saeko was equally captivated.

So these are the eyes Hinata used to help save the shinobi world...

The legendary Tenseigan.

They’re beautiful.

Hinata raised one hand.

A silver-white sphere of light condensed above her palm.

It was noticeably larger than the green chakra spheres produced by the Tenseigan to absorb chakra.

This was another of the Tenseigan’s five unique techniques.

Hinata held the silver sphere against Nami’s abdomen.

The instant it touched her clothing, the sphere turned into fluid light and passed into her body.

Nami’s terrified expression gradually went blank.

The light disappeared from her eyes, leaving her standing motionless as though her consciousness had been removed.

Unlike the green spheres that simply absorbed chakra, the silver sphere allowed Hinata’s hand to pass through its surface as well.

Her hand appeared to enter Nami’s body without causing any injury.

After searching for a moment, Hinata slowly withdrew it.

A second sphere emerged in her grasp.

This one was completely different from the silver-white sphere she had inserted into Nami.

It was as clear as crystal, almost like a mirror capable of reflecting a person’s heart.

Images flashed across its surface like a rapidly changing slideshow.

Every image belonged to Nami’s past.

The crystal sphere gradually contracted before sinking into Hinata’s palm.

It connected directly to her mind, allowing her to examine Nami’s memories from a third-person perspective at extraordinary speed.

Luffy...

The villagers...

Arlong...

Bell-mère...

Scene after scene passed through Hinata’s mind.

To everyone watching from outside, Hinata merely stood in place with a thoughtful expression.

Mihawk observed Nami, whose body remained upright and whose breathing had not stopped.

A rare trace of surprise appeared in his eyes.

The Rinnegan’s Human Path could forcibly read someone’s memories by extracting their soul, but this method was far more convenient.

It allowed Hinata to obtain the same information without killing the target.

Afterward, she could even interfere with the target’s will and actions, turning them into a puppet under her control.

The Tenseigan’s abilities were even more versatile than Mihawk had expected.