Infinite Anime [131-133] (Patreon)

Chapter 131: Udon Prison

Gusion’s eyes lit up when he saw the information about the new world.

One Piece!

He had been looking forward to this world for a long time. As one of the Big Three Shounen series from the previous century in his memory, this manga brought him a lot of joy in his childhood.

Moreover, the Armament Haki he was using now was an ability from One Piece. If he could enter that world, his Haki abilities would surely improve greatly.

He just wasn’t sure if he’d be lucky enough to start off in a place where Haki could be learned. In small countries outside the New World, Haki was indeed rare.

On his way back, Gusion used the rest of his End Coins at the trading market to stock up on some consumables. He then returned to his room and entered the room unique to Pioneers.

Previously, he had completed a Pioneer mission in the world of Kengan Ashura and received a Pioneer Medal, which could be used in the shop.

But when he browsed the shop back then, he wasn’t satisfied with the goods, so he didn’t exchange anything.

After returning this time and checking the refresh, he still felt the items weren’t great. Gusion roughly understood the purchasing power of the Pioneer Medal.

The Bronze Pioneer Medal seemed to be a lower-level medal, only able to exchange for rare-grade max-score gear or mediocre purple recovery items. So Gusion didn’t bother saving it and directly exchanged it for purple-quality recovery items, in case it became useless later.

Once everything was ready, Gusion lay down on the Divine Rest Bed to meditate and relax, adjusting his spirit to its peak.

When the countdown began, he got up, shrank the Divine Rest, and stored it in his inventory.

[Teleportation commencing…]

With the End Space’s prompt, Gusion felt himself once again entering that hazy tunnel of white light. Everything was blurry, except for the clear system voice in his ear.

[World positioning…]

[Positioning complete. Target: Large Derivative World—One Piece.]

[End Space will deploy 179 explorers.]

[Divine Space will deploy 158 explorers.]

[Universal language for this world has been granted to Pioneer. 100 End Coins consumed.]

[World teleportation in progress… Pioneer may view world details first.]

After the prompt, a menu popped up before Gusion’s eyes. Since teleportation would take some time, he began to read.

[Mission World: One Piece]

[Mission World Type: Large Derivative]

[World Difficulty Level: Lv.3~???]

[Note: This is a large, open-world derivative. Different regions have different difficulties. Pioneers, act with caution.]

World Overview:

A struggle for wealth, fame, and power, shrouded in the mist of historical truth;

On the vast seas, Marines battle pirates, ‘Justice’ faces ‘Evil,’ Devil Fruit users and Haki clash.

Devil Fruits: Born from people’s inner desires, eating one grants mysterious powers, but as it violates the law of nature, the sea—the mother of life—abhors the power. Devil Fruit users fear seawater and Seastone.

The Three Types of Haki: Powers latent in all humans, high-level techniques that require strong will to awaken.

World Government: The largest organization, ruling the world for 800 years.

Marines: The armed force under the World Government, sometimes maintaining peace at sea.

Pirates: Mostly ruthless criminals who pillage and slaughter, though a few are true adventurers in pirate name only.

[Note: Killing explorers from Divine Space in this world has double the usual chance to drop a Dead Man’s Chest.]

Gusion skimmed through the information, then heard a new prompt from End Space.

[Assigning initial identity for Pioneer…]

[Analyzing strength, titles, traits, personality…]

[…Comprehensive analysis complete. Suitable identity assigned.]

[Deployment successful. Please check your mission, Pioneer.]

As the sense of weightlessness faded, the stench of rot invaded his nose. Gusion opened his eyes to a dark, damp prison cell.

He froze, then tried to move his limbs, only to feel a heavy sense of restraint.

His face immediately darkened, because he realized he seemed to be… in jail again!

And unlike last time in the Kengan world, this time his legs were shackled with Seastone, and a heavy iron ball hung from the outer chain.

Fortunately, he wasn’t a Devil Fruit user. Even with his legs locked, it only restricted his movement, not his ability to fight.

He was in a single-person cell, and the treatment seemed decent—at least he had a private room, Gusion comforted himself.

After confirming there was no immediate danger, Gusion stayed alert as he checked his mission and initial identity.

[Current Location: New World. Wano Country. Udon Prison]

[Current Time: Sea Circle Calendar Year 1510]

[Current Identity: Prisoner]

He didn’t even see the mission yet. Just checking his location and identity almost made Gusion cough up blood.

Nice. Very nice.

He had hoped to land in the New World, since most people there could use Haki, making it easier for him to learn.

In a way, the system had fulfilled his wish—and then some.

Not only had it placed him in the New World, but it had thrown him directly into the prison run by the Hundred Beasts.

Except, he wasn’t a member of the Beasts Pirates—he was a prisoner in Udon Prison, a slave laborer expected to work to death under the watchful eyes of overseers.

After browsing his identity details, Gusion understood why he was here.

Originally, he was a traveler who accidentally entered Wano. After witnessing the local suffering, he decided to become a Demon Slayer.

He went to challenge Kaido, and unsurprisingly, was nearly beaten to death. Actually, beaten wasn’t quite right—Kaido, drunk, had lazily swung his club from afar, and the resulting shockwave sent Gusion flying into a wall, his fate unknown.

Kaido always had a soft spot for those brave enough to challenge him—or perhaps he just didn’t like wasting manpower—so he ordered his men to send Gusion to Udon Prison for labor reform.

According to the headliner who brought him in, if Gusion behaved well, he could apply to join the Beasts Pirates as a Waiter—the lowest rank, awaiting a chance to eat a SMILE fruit.

Gusion didn’t know how long he’d had this identity; currently, he’d been in Udon Prison for three days, just recovered from his injuries, and still had his bandages on.

Probably to fit his initial status, Gusion’s original black nightmare coat had been stowed away by the system, and his special footwear had been disguised to look ordinary.

After some analysis, Gusion realized why he had such a starting identity.

Normally, his overall strength wasn’t enough to handle missions in such a dangerous place as the New World. But, by coincidence, before entering the One Piece world, he had already mastered Haki at a level considered solid even here.

Further, his backstory was likely influenced by his two titles: “The Fearless” (described by End Space as headstrong and fearless) led him to challenge Kaido, and “Demon Slayer” matched perfectly with Kaido, who is an oni. So he became an oni-slaying vigilante, and, predictably, ended up in jail.

Finally, checking his mission, he understood his situation.

He had no main quest, only a side quest called “Fruit Hunter.”

It was his first time encountering a derivative world with no main quest. But End Space explained: One Piece is a large open-world derivative, where explorers are free to act and aren’t given a main quest directly.

Of course, their stay wasn’t unlimited—just three months. After that, End Space would forcibly extract the explorers.

To prevent explorers from simply loafing around, the system warned that their mission rating would depend on their Exploration Points.

Gusion had analyzed Exploration Points before: killing key characters, changing the plot, or interacting with important figures could all earn them, depending on the situation.

But in any case, you couldn’t just stay in one place and wait for points. So if he just kept rotting in jail, he’d never get much exploration value.

And as soon as explorers started moving around, danger was everywhere.

This world was chaotic, filled with pirates and battles. Even running into the Marines wasn’t necessarily safe.

Gusion had read the latter half of the manga while in the system space. He thought the World Government seemed more and more like the villain, and the Marines were getting increasingly shady.

So, even in the East Blue, explorers might not be safe, let alone Gusion’s current position in the New World.

Wano is a high-level zone. He couldn’t see the difficulty cap, but it was likely over level 40, maybe even 50. Even the wardens in Udon Prison might not be able to beat each other.

Luckily, as long as he didn’t try to break out, he shouldn’t be in mortal danger for now. And while being a prisoner sucked, there were benefits to be had.

After all, Udon Prison was like training ground, and here, one could learn advanced Haki techniques—like Ryuo.

Because it’s a high-level area, most people here could use Haki. He could learn Ryuo and Observation Haki.

Gusion had no intention of submitting to Kaido and becoming a Waiter. Jokes aside, Kaido was a brutal tyrant, and Gusion didn’t want to join him, nor did he want to eat a SMILE fruit.

So, after organizing his thoughts, he decided to observe the prison for a while, find Old Man Hyogoro, and learn Haki from him before considering an escape.

He wasn’t worried about the Seastone shackles either. Maybe thanks to his boosted luck, he just happened to have a master key, which could unlock Seastone cuffs.

When the time was right, he could escape at any moment.

Just as he was thinking, Gusion heard footsteps. Soon, a guard appeared at the door, with another prisoner in Seastone cuffs behind him.

But unlike Gusion’s expectations of a dirty labor convict, this prisoner was a tall, young woman with long, gradient white hair, wearing a white sleeveless kimono, her waist tied with a huge shimenawa rope.

A supreme bandage was wrapped around her forehead, her youthful face full of displeasure, her movement making her bust tremble visibly at the kimono’s armhole.

The escorting guard opened the door, looking nervous. “Young master, please, come in.”

Judging from the guard’s attitude, this was less like bringing in a prisoner and more like serving a young lady.

Chapter 132: Yamato

Gusion was stunned by his new cellmate. Considering where he was, her appearance, and the guard’s attitude, he quickly deduced her identity.

His new cellmate was none other than Kaido’s daughter—Yamato.

Gusion hadn’t studied the One Piece timeline in detail, but judging by Yamato’s youthful appearance, it seemed he had arrived about ten years before Luffy set sail.

Yamato was about 26 when Luffy started his journey, but now she looked only fifteen or sixteen, not yet an adult.

“Young master, Kaido-sama asked you to reflect properly. Please, don't cause trouble here—it's hard for us," the guard said with a bitter face after locking Yamato in.

Everyone in the Beasts Pirates knew how troublesome Yamato was. Though only senior officers dared say it aloud, everyone was aware—Yamato had a screw loose.

She was clearly a girl but insisted she was Kozuki Oden, who was executed eight years ago—a fangirl who’d chased her idol so hard she’d lost her mind.

But as Kaido’s daughter, regular crew members were terrified to disrespect her, even if her antics drove them crazy.

“Hmph! I am Kozuki Oden. How could a cell like this hold me? Once I’m healed, I’ll break out!” Yamato declared, waving her fist.

Although she was imprisoned as a convict, she wasn’t shackled like Gusion. Instead, she had Seastone cuffs on her wrists, but the chain between them wasn’t linked, so she could move freely.

The guard just looked bitter and didn't argue—he knew Yamato couldn’t be reasoned with.

He turned to leave, not sparing Gusion a glance.

To him, Gusion was weak and shackled with Seastone, so there was no way he could threaten the powerful Yamato.

Yamato was put in this cell because Udon Prison was out of empty cells, and this was the least crowded, recently cleaned one.

Besides, everyone knew Yamato would break out in a few days and go challenge her father again, so she wouldn’t stay long.

As for labor reform, it was Kaido’s order, but none of them could really control Yamato.

In Udon Prison, only Queen the Plague—one of the All-Stars—could handle Yamato. Other officers could only discipline her a bit.

After the guard left, Yamato scanned the room, then casually sat down near Gusion, not minding the filthy floor.

Gusion felt a headache coming on. Why did he always get assigned problem cellmates?

While Aizen liked to hide his strength, he was at least reliable. But Yamato was a whole other story—a complete maniac.

When he’d caught up on the Wano arc, Gusion had seriously wondered if Kaido lost not to Luffy, but because he was driven mad by his own daughter.

“Are you a samurai?” Yamato’s gaze landed on Gusion’s hands, eyes sparkling with curiosity and expectation.

“Why do you ask?” Gusion asked, noticing how close Yamato had gotten. He couldn’t help but marvel at the height differences in this world.

When he was young, reading manga, he thought the tall characters were just an artistic exaggeration. But after arriving here, he realized people really were huge—some two or three meters tall, though some creatures were tiny.

As Kaido’s daughter, naturally Yamato was tall and strong, especially with her slender figure.

Sitting next to Gusion, she easily towered over him, gazing down.

“Your hands have a lot of calluses. I’ve seen hands like that—they belong to samurai skilled with swords,” Yamato said excitedly, leaning in. “So, are you a samurai from Wano?”

Gusion glanced at his hands. The system was a magical place; while his body had been enhanced and healed, some features from his training—like calluses—remained.

But those weren’t just from sword training. In his youth, he’d practiced all sorts of weapons, with swords being his specialty. Ever since he’d obtained a Zanpakuto in the Bleach world, he’d stuck with swords.

“No, I’m just a traveler passing through Wano,” Gusion replied. Seeing as he was now Yamato’s cellmate, he could only accept it for now and see if she was sane enough for a conversation.

“Passing through Wano?” Yamato paused, and then her eyes lit up. “Oh, I remember now—you’re the Oni Slayer who tried to assassinate Kaido a few days ago! So you really are from outside!?”

She didn’t seem shy at all, moving close with excitement. “Great! I didn’t expect to meet someone like you here. I am Kozuki Oden, and we have the same goal. Let’s work together to defeat Kaido!”

Gusion was speechless. Even in his own time, it was rare for kids to call their parents by name. Yamato didn’t acknowledge Kaido as her father at all.

She seemed more affectionate meeting her father’s assassin than meeting Kaido himself, and even wanted to team up to defeat him…

Gusion liked to challenge the strong, but he wasn’t suicidal. He didn’t have Luffy’s protagonist aura—did she really think Kaido would just let him get up again and again?

His survival was simply a result of his backstory; in reality, if every challenger was spared, Kaido would’ve been annoyed to death long ago.

If he broke out and challenged Kaido again, he’d likely be killed outright.

So Gusion had no intention of seeking Kaido out. He just wanted to learn all three types of Haki in Udon Prison, then find a chance to leave Wano and begin his real adventure.

Even though there was no main quest, there were side quests, and Gusion felt there were good rewards to be earned if he handled things well.

[Side Quest: Fruit Hunter]

Mission: Kill Devil Fruit users who appeared in the original work. Earn rich rewards while accumulating Exploration Points.

Difficulty: Easy to Certain Death

Reward: Limited Devil Fruit Chest

Failure Penalty: None

[Note: This quest will be settled upon return. Reward is given once. Pioneer may choose one target they personally killed for the reward.]

Gusion checked the details for the Limited Devil Fruit Chest. Contrary to his expectations, it didn’t give the exact fruit used by the slain target.

Instead, it could grant a Devil Fruit of the same type. For example, if he killed Akainu, the chest might not contain the Magma-Magma Fruit, but possibly the much weaker Flame-Flame Fruit.

These chests had both advantages and disadvantages. The good side: they were given at final settlement, so they could contain any fruit of that type, even those currently possessed by living people in the One Piece world.

That meant the potential was huge. For example, even if he killed Akainu, he might get the Flame-Flame Fruit or some unknown Mythical Zoan with fire powers.

But the system wasn’t too stingy; there was a note: the stronger the opponent relative to the player, the higher the chance of getting a top-tier fruit.

For instance, if he now went to East Blue and killed Buggy, the Devil Fruit he got would certainly be weak. But if he killed Kaido, the fruit he got might even surpass the Fish-Fish Fruit: Azure Dragon model.

“What’s your name? Why aren’t you talking?” Yamato asked, seeing Gusion fall silent.

Gusion snapped back, suddenly realizing there was a great Devil Fruit user right in front of him.

The fruit Yamato ate was the Mythical Zoan: Dog-Dog Fruit, Okuchi no Makami.

Even Kaido had called it an extremely rare and precious fruit—a legendary beast from Wano folklore.

“My name is Gusion, from the distant East Blue,” Gusion said, following his identity background.

As he spoke, he used his scouting skill to appraise Yamato’s stats, and couldn’t help but be impressed.

[Beasts Pirates: Yamato]

Physique: 60

Strength: 35 (Weakened)

Agility: 35 (Weakened)

Spirit: 50

Charm: 50

Negative Status: Weakened—Yamato is shackled with low-purity Seastone cuffs, thus cursed by the sea’s power. She is weakened and cannot use her Devil Fruit ability.

[]

He couldn’t see more details because Yamato’s Spirit stat suppressed his, but he could see this obvious debuff.

When he read the manga, he’d wondered about Yamato’s cuffs—were they just ordinary, so Luffy could break them with Ryuo? Pure Seastone was very hard and tough to break with Haki.

But Yamato hadn’t used her Fruit ability before the cuffs were removed, so maybe they were Seastone after all.

Now he knew: they were a Wano specialty, low-purity Seastone cuffs. Because of the lower purity, they were easier to process and had built-in explosives and detection devices. If Yamato left Wano, they would explode.

But being low-purity, they were easier to break and less effective at weakening users.

Gusion guessed that once the cuffs were removed, Yamato’s main stats (except Physique) wouldn’t exceed 50. Honestly, she seemed a bit weak…

In the manga, when Yamato debuted, she was already above the rank of an Emperor’s right-hand, the second strongest in the Beasts Pirates. But at sixteen, she was still average—maybe she hadn’t trained much as a child and only started after her body matured.

Anyway, with her current stats and Seastone restrictions, Gusion felt he could kill her if he tried.

Of course, there was no reason to do that—especially not in Wano. Killing Yamato here would guarantee his own death…

Chapter 133: Storytime and Ryuo

“East Blue? That’s outside the New World—no, outside the Grand Line?” Yamato grew even more interested. “Can you tell me what the outside world is like?”

She’d grown up in Wano and Onigashima, and since she started calling herself Kozuki Oden, her father had confined her, so she’d never been to sea. She longed for the outside world.

More importantly, her idol Oden had craved freedom and adventure, so she felt she should too.

“Well, that’s a long story.”

Gusion sensed a power watching this place, so he stayed cautious.

Yamato wasn’t a bad person—just a hardcore fangirl whose idol was problematic. Still, he had his own ideas for the Devil Fruit quest.

Besides, killing the Oni Princess of the Beasts Pirates in Wano was just asking to die.

“That’s fine! We can’t go anywhere anyway, so tell me about the outside!” Yamato’s eyes sparkled—she loved long stories.

Since he wasn’t planning to attack his cellmate, Gusion changed his mindset. “I can tell you about the outside world, but you have to agree to one thing.”

“What is it? Please say it! I, Kozuki Oden, always keep my word!” Yamato urged.

“I’m very interested in how this country uses Haki. Can you teach me?” Gusion had a new idea after meeting Yamato. He didn’t need to go find Old Man Hyogoro—Yamato was the perfect teacher: Kaido’s daughter, skilled in all three Haki, and easy to fool.

Plus, she might have inherited Kaido’s excellent teaching ability.

“Haki? Of course! I was going to teach you anyway. You look a little weak, and you’re my comrade in overthrowing Kaido! Leave it to me!” Yamato slapped her chest, making her chest tremble a bit.

She agreed so readily that Gusion was stunned. He didn’t expect to get such a bonus from being imprisoned.

“…Did you just call me weak? Never mind, I’ll tell you about the outside. Where shall I start?”

“Anything! I’m interested in all adventures outside! I yearn for freedom!”

Yamato was thrilled. She hadn’t expected to meet a kindred spirit in prison, and from the outside world too.

Gusion started telling her about the strange islands, nations, and customs he’d seen. He wasn’t much of a storyteller, but Yamato was enthralled—she had few friends in Wano and lived a lonely life.

Since they had a deal, Gusion wasn’t in a rush to study Haki. He’d win Yamato over first, then get her to teach him seriously.

They chatted all night. By dawn, Yamato was still fired up. “Wow, there are even islands in the sky? The outside world is amazing! I want to see it!”

“Didn’t you say you wanted to open Wano’s borders? Why do you always want to go out?” Gusion asked.

Yamato didn’t notice the contradiction. “Because I’m Kozuki Oden! I yearn for freedom, so of course I want to adventure! But because I’m Oden, I also have to open Wano’s borders and defeat Kaido.”

Gusion was exasperated by Yamato’s brain circuits. Of all people to idolize, she chose Oden—someone both wanting to open the country and run off adventuring at a time of crisis.

But after talking up close, he felt that maybe, because of her age, Yamato wasn’t yet so brainwashed. She genuinely longed for freedom, not just under Oden’s influence.

But Yamato herself didn’t realize this. She called herself Oden, cut ties with Kaido, and never admitted being his daughter.

“I talked all night—my throat’s dry. Let’s continue tonight. I want to train my Haki now,” Gusion ended the story session.

“Time flies! This is the first time in eight years I’ve talked with someone my age for so long.” Yamato’s joy was obvious. “Since you’re tired, it’s my turn to teach.”

Once she entered teaching mode, Yamato became surprisingly serious. “Gusion-dono, show me your Haki first.”

Gusion activated his passive Armament Haki, covering his arm and making it visible.

Previously, to avoid standing out, he had his Haki passively concealed, so Yamato hadn’t noticed his level.

“Not bad! What you lack is just advanced technique.” Yamato praised. “Now, you need to project your Haki outward, forming a buffer like air around your body.”

She demonstrated, coating her hand with Armament Haki, using the Ryuo technique. A cherry blossom-like aura coiled around her hand.

She reached out, and even from a distance, Gusion’s fist was pressed back by her force.

“That’s Ryuo…”

Seeing Yamato’s Haki up close, Gusion realized the difference—a qualitative change from ordinary Armament Haki.

Yamato’s movement was slow and clear, letting Gusion sense the subtlety of the technique. He quickly understood why he’d failed before.

“Can we spar? Let me try,” Gusion suggested, standing up.

“No problem, but be careful—I’m pretty strong,” Yamato warned.

Gusion nodded. Yamato didn’t hesitate, throwing a punch.

With his hands shackled, Gusion could only use both fists to meet her.

As their Haki collided, Gusion was sent flying, cracking the wall behind him.

He stood up, delighted. Ryuo and ordinary Armament Haki were truly worlds apart.

Because of the Seastone, Yamato wasn’t stronger than him, but her Ryuo sent him flying—that was its power.

In short, ordinary Armament Haki just made attacks harder; for real power, you needed great strength and speed.

Old Man Hyogoro, for example, was too weak to hurt anyone here with regular Haki. But with Ryuo, he could even knock out wardens.

Luffy, too—his stats couldn’t compare to Kaido’s, so normal Haki was useless. With Ryuo, he could finally hurt Kaido.

To sum up, Ryuo was a huge power boost, both offense and defense; a qualitative leap in Armament Haki.

“You okay?” Yamato asked, seeing Gusion grinning after being sent flying.

“I’m fine. Let’s go again—I think I’m getting it!” Gusion realized it was better to practice physically with Yamato than listen to her theory. With her careful guidance, he could quickly grasp the knack.

Bang! Bang! Bang!—

The cell echoed with the sound of bodies hitting the wall, annoying the neighbors so much they cursed: “Are you two maniacs? If you have so much energy, go dig!”

Gusion and Yamato ignored the complaints, absorbed in their Haki training.

Since both still had injuries, the wardens didn’t call them out to work. If only Gusion was lively, they’d have made him dig. But since it looked like Yamato was beating up Gusion, they figured she was venting her anger, so nobody dared interfere.

They even felt sympathy for Gusion and decided not to make him work for a few days.

Gusion didn’t know what the wardens were thinking, but he was happy to keep training with Yamato.

Boom—

Finally, during one spar, Gusion sent Yamato flying, nearly smashing through the reinforced wall.

Looking at the translucent, dark-red Haki wrapping his fist, Gusion grinned and helped Yamato up. “Thanks. I’ve mastered Ryuo.”

After a day’s practice, he could now use Ryuo reliably.

Since his Haki was listed under Origin Seed, he could control its output, switching between ordinary Haki for daily life and Ryuo in battle.