The intelligence came back in time. Vane wasn't far from here either, and quickly rushed over to meet Calder.
This was the first Devil Fruit ability user he had ever encountered. It was said he could turn into a black leopard.
Zoan-type — Cat-Cat Fruit — Black Panther Form.
The most famous Cat-Cat Fruit user was Rob Lucci. His fruit was also a leopard type, but judging from Lucci's markings, he should be a jaguar.
But what truly made Vane feel amazed was that he saw something above Calder's head that others couldn't see. That should be the mark of an Electabuzz, right? A glowing Electabuzz emblem was floating above Calder's head.
Sure enough, Devil Fruits are connected to Pokémon. It's just that the exact nature of this connection is still unknown.
"I'm the person in charge of this place… in other words, the boss you're talking about. I wonder what your pirate crew wants by coming here?"
At present, Calder was the only one who had come forward to greet them, and it wouldn't be right for Vane to just walk up and slap him twice.
"Just you, a little brat? Wasn't your leader Big Blade Buri?"
The information Calder had was that the one in power on this island was Big Blade Buri.
"Big Blade Buri? His head has probably already been exchanged for Belly at a Marine base and burned to ashes in a single fire."
So that's how it was. In Calder's view, the young man in front of him must have been just like himself back then—accidentally discovered a Devil Fruit, ate it, killed his own captain, and then used his captain's bounty as startup capital to recruit men.
"I came here today to fight you to the death. If I win, everything you have is mine. If I lose, my ship and my crew are yours."
Even now, Calder was still arrogant, not believing in the slightest that the other party could be stronger than him. He was also a Devil Fruit user. In his view, the other party had only eaten a Devil Fruit for a little over a month—how could he possibly be a match for someone who had developed it for two years?
"No problem. But we can reduce some needless sacrifices."
"Very good. Kid, I'm the ferocious beast Calder with a bounty of 27 million! Dying at my hands, your pirate career will have no regrets."
Under the gaze of both sides, the two moved to the center.
After more than a month of development, Vane's height had increased by twenty centimeters. He was now close to 1.9 meters tall.
This bit of growth was completely normal in the pirate world. And in the pirate world, 1.9 meters was still considered short. Those powerhouses—the Yonko and the three Admirals—aside from that "odd one out" Red-Haired, which of them wasn't at least three meters tall?
At the very least, Vane felt that if he worked hard, surpassing two meters was still very much possible.
Calder across from him was already over two meters tall. According to some supplementary information from his subordinates, Calder definitely hadn't been that tall originally—he had undergone a second growth spurt after eating the Devil Fruit.
Calder's throat let out the roar of a ferocious beast. Black fur grew across his face, his ears turned into beast ears, his muscles bulged, and his body followed suit.
Black Panther Fruit — Human-Beast Form.
In this form, Calder's overall strength was at its peak. Both power and speed were enhanced, and his pair of claws became his strongest weapons.
As for full beast form, it was even more agile, used for traveling or escaping. In terms of combat power, it was actually inferior to the human-beast form.
"Leopard Dash!"
Calder's powerful thighs exploded with force, and he charged toward Vane at an impressive speed. Among all the captains Vane had fought so far, his speed was the fastest. As expected of a Devil Fruit user.
Flowing Water Crushing Rock Fist — Gentle Flow.
Facing the sharp leopard claws, Vane used the Flowing Water Crushing Rock Fist to defend, and it wasn't even at full power.
He was deliberately applying pressure to himself, seeing if he could connect the Transparent World mode into one continuous whole.
Bang! Thud~~
Seen… unseen…
As the two exchanged blows, the deliberately weakened Vane inevitably accumulated some wounds on his body, all torn open by the leopard claws.
The pain wasn't intense—or rather, he had already grown accustomed to pain. This body had begun to grow numb to it.
Sure enough, under sufficient pressure, the frequency at which images of the Transparent World appeared before his eyes grew higher and higher. He could occasionally see a string of consecutive images.
He could see the opponent's heartbeat, the state of muscle exertion. If this chain of images could be sustained, he would be able to pre-read based on the opponent's muscle state.
"Die! Just die for me!"
Calder was fighting with great excitement. The opponent was like a perfectly sized punching bag—able to withstand his attacks without collapsing instantly. He loved this perfectly measured feeling of ravaging.
"Cross Leopard Claws!"
Both of Calder's claws shot out, crossing as they slashed toward Vane's chest.
"Boss Vane!"
"Relax, meow. Vane won't lose."
Meowth at the side wasn't panicking at all. Although it didn't know why Vane had been defending and passively taking hits, it had personally seen Vane's training scenes.
Fighting sea beasts with both hands in the sea—let alone the fact that drawing his blade was his strongest state. Right now, that blade was still strapped behind his back, unmoved.
So before Vane drew his blade, there was no need to panic about anything.
Meowth was right. As long as Vane hadn't drawn the sword behind him, it meant everything was still fine.
Facing the cross-slashing leopard claws, Vane slightly increased the speed of his flowing fist and knocked the attack aside.
Of course, it wasn't completely blocked. The edge of the claws still tore open several wounds.
"Kid, you've got some skill. Too bad you ran into me, Lord Calder. I'll give you a chance—how about becoming my subordinate?"
Calder felt exhilarated and victory seemed assured. On a whim, he even wanted to subdue Vane as his underling.
But Vane had no time to pay him any attention. He was staring intently at Calder's chest.
Calder felt that the other party's gaze was like it was about to pierce him. In the dark, his chest seemed to carry a needle-like stabbing pain.
"Right foot."
"What?"
Calder subconsciously stepped out with his right foot, preparing to launch an attack.
"Right claw, left leg."
Vane's words once again pre-read the opponent's attack. Calder was like a puppet machine—whatever Vane said, that was how he attacked.
"Damn it, what the hell is going on?"
Just moments ago, he had clearly been suppressing this guy completely. How had it become that before he even attacked—just with a slight movement—the other party could see exactly what he would do next?
In Vane's eyes now, Calder's physical state was completely laid bare. The tightening or relaxation of muscles, the acceleration or slowing of the heartbeat—
These images appeared one after another, slowly linking together into a continuous animation.
The last time he had seen the inside of a human body so clearly was that monster with multiple hearts and multiple brains, Muzan.
This time, it was this ordinary pirate.
From here on, Calder's movements could no longer escape Vane's pre-reading.
Calder's speed had originally been slightly faster than Vane's, but this small advantage was utterly useless in the face of the Transparent World's foresight.
Calder's movements grew frantic. His attacks became wide and reckless, which in turn caused many openings to appear.
"You no longer have any value. Being able to help me grasp the Transparent World, your pirate career can be considered without regrets."
Vane seized an opening, and the Flowing Water Crushing Rock Fist began to rain down like a storm.
Heart, joints, throat… punch after punch landed solidly.
Amid the thudding sounds, there were occasional sharp cracks of bones breaking.
How could this be… I haven't even founded a great pirate crew yet… I haven't broken out of the West Sea…
Zoan-type vitality was extremely tenacious. Vane's fists didn't stop until his Transparent World showed the opponent's heart coming to a halt.