As soon as Kitaro refused Bckbeard's offer, Van Augur aimed his rifle on him, and the other Bckbeard Pirates prepared to strike.

  "Tsk, hahaha! Who wouldn't be tempted by an ability like the Thunder Fruit?" Bckbeard sneered.

  Kitaro's expression remained cool. "True enough. Honestly, I almost felt bad about taking it. But now that you're all ready to steal it, I suppose I'm justified in fighting back to take my things."

  Bang!

  Van Augur fired a shot, the bullet whistling toward Kitaro—who stopped it between two fingers.

  "What?!"

  Before the crew could recover from the shock, Burgess heaved a massive boulder at Kitaro. With a single hand, Kitaro caught it mid-air and tossed it back at Burgess.

  "No!" Burgess braced himself, but the impact threw him backward, crashing through buildings. The surrounding pirates scattered, screaming.

  Van Augur fired several more shots in rapid succession, but Kitaro dodged each one effortlessly. In a fsh, he appeared before Van Augur, ripping the rifle from his grip and striking him across the face with its butt. Van Augur crumpled, sent flying through more structures.

  The commotion drew Doc Q's attention, and he stared in horror as Kitaro unleashed fire from his mouth "Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!" A massive orb of fme engulfed Doc Q, the explosive bst leaving him and his horse unconscious amid the smoldering wreckage.

  "Van Augur! Burgess! Doc Q!" Bckbeard's eyes widened in shock as his crew fell one by one.

  "Damn you!" he growled. In response, Bckbeard activated his Dark-Dark Fruit, dark energy swirling around him. "Kid, you don't know who you're dealing with!"

  He pressed his hands to the ground, spreading a dark void that swallowed the surrounding area. Kitaro, encased in darkness, stood calmly amid the growing shadows.

  "Tsk, hahaha! You fell right into my Bck Hole! Darkness is gravity; it pulls everything—even light itself. And now, it'll crush you into nothingness!"

  Kitaro watched Bckbeard's gloating, unimpressed. He began channeling chakra, a massive Rasengan forming in his hand.

  The Rasengan's swirling energy glowed fiercely. Without a word, Kitaro unched it at Bckbeard, whose smug grin vanished as the dense chakra struck his dark vortex.

  Boom!

  "Dark Water" Bckbeard used this move wanting to use his Devil Fruit nullification ability.

  The Rasengan's impact sent Bckbeard flying, unable to absorb the force any longer.

  Kitaro used a massive amount of chakra to let it hit.

  "Arghh! Damn it!" Bckbeard writhed in pain, clutching his side.

  He finally gasped, "What was that power? My Dark Water didn't work!"

  "Because I'm not a Devil Fruit user," Kitaro replied, his voice calm. Blue-white arcs of lightning crackled around him as he gathered more energy.

  Boom!

  The ground shattered as Kitaro closed the distance, appearing in front of Bckbeard in a blink. Before Bckbeard could react, Kitaro drove a fist into his face, then grabbed his head, smming him into the ground with a resounding impact.

  "Aaagh!" Bckbeard screamed in pain.

  Without hesitation, Kitaro raised his leg and stomped down on Bckbeard's gut, driving him further into the earth. Bckbeard's eyes bulged from the pain.

  With another swift motion, Kitaro formed another Rasengan, pressing it into Bckbeard's back, embedding a unique mark onto him.

  "Arghhhhhhh!"

  Bckbeard's scream echoed, and as Kitaro prepared to end the battle with an even more powerful attack, Bckbeard finally shouted, "I surrender!, please stop"

  ---

  Hearing Bckbeard's surrender, Kitaro immediately stopped his attack.

  "Aaagh! It hurts! It hurts so bad!" Bckbeard writhed on the ground, clutching his side in agony. After a moment, he caught his breath. "Hah… hah… I'm alive…"

  Bckbeard looked up, a mix of awe and fear on his face. "Who… who are you?"

  Bckbeard still couldn't believe that his dark water didn't work. He was strong man with a strong Haki but he still felt fear from this person who can use abilities without devil fruit.

  Despite his arrogance, Bckbeard had been around powerful people for decades within the Whitebeard Pirates. But the strength Kitaro had just dispyed was staggering—reminiscent of a Division Commander's power.

  Bckbeard had his big pn now, he didn't want a variable into it.

  "My name is Uchiha Kitaro," he said. Then, with a small grin, he added, "And about we, the Uchiha cn? Well… we're in the security business."

  "Security?" Bckbeard repeated, confused. "With that kind of strength?"

  "Yes—security, not just 'guarding'." Kitaro corrected him. "Our company specializes in protecting items and clients. It's respectable work."

  Bckbeard's mouth twitched in disbelief, but he held his tongue, wary of Kitaro's Sharingan gaze. Even he wasn't foolish enough to risk another beating.

  "You're powerful enough to roam the world," Bckbeard argued, trying to entice him. "With strength like that, you could have anything—money, power, fine liquor, beautiful women. Join me, and I'll make you my vice-captain. Together, we'd dominate the world!"

  Kitaro stroked his chin as if considering it, then shook his head. "Sounds tempting, but I'll have to decline."

  "Why?!" Bckbeard was baffled.

  "I'm just not into the whole 'fighting and killing' thing. My greatest wish is world peace." Kitaro replied with a serene expression.

  Bckbeard stared, dumbfounded. Was this guy serious? He'd just demolished half of his crew without breaking a sweat using violence, yet now he cimed to seek peace? And there y Enel, who'd been pummeled into the dirt. Bckbeard almost ughed out loud at the irony.

  But then Kitaro added, "However, since you're so interested, you could always hire our security company."

  Bckbeard's brow furrowed. "Hire… security? Can I even afford it?"

  "That depends," Kitaro said coolly. "Our security ranks have five levels."

  He began listing them: "First-level security agents are around the strength of someone with a 50 million berry bounty. Second-level agents are closer to 100 million. Third level? 500 million."

  Bckbeard was intrigued. "What about the fourth level?"

  "two times stronger—1 billion berry level," Kitaro replied.

  Bckbeard's eyes widened, his mind racing. "What about the fifth level?"

  Kitaro's eyes sparkled. "Fifth-level security? That'll cost you a cool 10 billion berries."

  "Ten… billion?!" Bckbeard shouted. "That's ridiculous! The highest bounty out there barely breaks 5 billion! How could anyone be worth 10 billion?!"

  Kitaro chuckled. "Simple math, Teach. Two 5-billion-level people make 10 billion, right?"

  Bckbeard's face went pale. Did this guy mean he had people who could take on two Yonkō-level threats at once?

  With a gulp, Bckbeard asked, "And how much would it cost to hire someone at the fifth level?"

  "100 million berries."

  "100 million? Not bad…" Bckbeard murmured, relieved.

  "Per day," Kitaro crified.

  "100 million per day?! Why don't you just go and grab it?!"

  Kitaro shrugged with a smirk. "Because we don't stoop to robbery. Our rates are fair and much faster than robbery anyway."

  ...