"Idiot! Don't you know there's a little kid here! Keep it down!"
Karin's accusation was purely finding fault.
As for this, Sasuke was already used to it.
Ever since the two had started following Naruto, big and small arguments had never stopped.
This time, she even found an excuse. In the past, Karin might have simply said, "What are you looking at? Want to fight?"
And he basically never took it seriously.
They were old comrades who had shared life-and-death experiences… this kind of squabbling was just daily routine.
On the contrary, Sasuke was also surprised by the Conqueror's Haki Karin had released.
'It seemed I wasn't the only one who had grown during this time.'
After the transformation he underwent from the battle with Yamato in Dressrosa, Sasuke also understood what kind of resolute heart was needed to awaken Conqueror's Haki.
In his heart, he was actually happy for Karin's growth.
Similarly, Karin felt the same way, but she still had to have the last word verbally.
—However, they shared this unspoken understanding as teammates, but that didn't mean others could understand.
Seeing her 'darling' being yelled at, Baby-5, who had been feeling weak-kneed from the spectacle before, suddenly found a surge of courage from somewhere.
"Who do you think you are! Why are you talking to Sasuke like that! Aren't you just as loud? Believe me, I'll shoot you!"
This time, even Sasuke showed a somewhat surprised expression.
During their time together, he had come to understand Baby-5's personality.
Apart from her obviously abnormal 'quirk' of immediately agreeing to any request, Baby-5 was usually a little girl who seemed carefree but was actually quite timid and would cry when frightened.
Well... a fourteen-year-old… even counting the time in the parallel world with the Dragon Vein, only fifteen-year-old Sasuke, referring to the twenty-two-year-old Baby-5 as a 'little girl'...
On this side, Karin had only instinctively snapped at the stuck-up guy, but unexpectedly someone from the other ship dared to snap back. Her eyebrows rose slightly.
She didn't care about Baby-5's harmless words… she was more surprised that someone actually liked that stuck-up guy, Sasuke.
'Could someone like that awkward fellow actually be liked? Was this person purely an appearance lover?'
'Hmm... if that were the case, I couldn't deny it.'
Even Karin understood that Sasuke was considered quite handsome in most people's eyes… of course, incomparable to Naruto.
While Karin was lost in thought and didn't retort, Naomi beside her couldn't stand it anymore.
She decisively transformed back into her snake-man form, drew her bow, and aimed it at the other side.
"You bastard! Don't think you can be arrogant just because you're an acquaintance of the Captain. Go ahead and shoot! See if my arrow can hit you first."
Kalifa didn't join in the enjoyable activity of verbal sparring, but judging by the gleam reflecting off her glasses and her silently clenched fists, it wasn't hard to see she was also a bit angry.
Naomi's personality was similar to Baby-5's… even more timid when not drinking.
But when it came to her captain, she wouldn't back down.
This instead caught the two main parties, Sasuke and Karin, off guard.
'After setting sail alone, she actually had such strong personal charm to attract companions who would defend her like this.'
But perhaps the voices on both sides were a bit too loud, causing the already frustrated Stussy, who wasn't getting smiles from her son, to frown.
"Medusa."
"I'm here."
"Let them quiet down."
"As you command, my lady."
The next moment, the little white-haired loli put her fingers together to form a heart shape and indiscriminately unleashed a sister version of [Mero Mero Mellow] called [Sluggish Sweet Beam].
The same pink heart-shaped light drew the attention of both sides. When it hit Baby-5 and Naomi, they turned into statues with almost no resistance.
"Turn these two young ladies back after the fight is over."
"Yes, my lady."
This statement was not only for Medusa but also meant for Sasuke and Karin, telling them not to suddenly react due to this.
In the sky above, even without using his Observation Haki, Naruto could clearly hear everything that had just happened with his evolved, exceptional hearing.
"They really are energetic—"
'And, both had successfully awakened... it was indeed right to let them go out and explore on their own.'
'If they had stayed by my side, they probably wouldn't have seen this even after several years or even decades.'
Naruto smiled and shook his head.
But in his view, this was just childish playing and fighting, nothing compared to his own long-awaited reunion with Yamato.
Across from him, Yamato, whose aura was spreading turbulently toward the sky like flames, tilted her head and looked at Naruto puzzledly.
"Why aren't you releasing your aura!? Naruto-sama!"
"I've been looking forward to it for so long!"
To this, Naruto just smiled and explained lightly.
"No need for that. Let's just settle it with our skills."
"Well said! Makes sense!"
Yamato seemed to have a natural +100 'persuasion' buff when it came to Naruto's words. Without much thought, she nodded in agreement.
Then she converged and condensed her overwhelming Conqueror's Haki, wrapping it around her precious kanabo, Takeru.
The characteristic lightning effects of Conqueror's Haki Infusion crackled on it. In her beast-man form, Yamato raised her arms above her head, the muscles in the arm gripping the kanabo suddenly flexing.
"Here I come, Naruto-sama!"
"Oh! Bring it on!"
Out of respect, although Naruto didn't draw a weapon, he did roll up his sleeves in a proper manner, exposing his muscular arm and clenching his fist tightly.
Seeing this, Yamato's figure transformed into a white streak of light, crossing the dozens of meters distance in the blink of an eye, appearing before Naruto as if by teleportation.
"Divine Swiftness—"
Crackle!
Lightning flashed!
"—White Serpent!!!"
Facing Yamato's strike, filled with burning fighting spirit, a satisfied smile appeared on Naruto's face. At the same time, his own Haki condensed in front of his arm.
The next moment, fist and kanabo collided in mid-air. The clash of Conqueror's Haki between them even caused space itself to distort.
Boom!!
...
"Gah! I'm still far from it! As expected of Naruto-sama!"
At the dining table, Yamato, wrapped in bandages around her arms, neck, chest, abdomen, and thighs, remained as carefree as ever, seemingly completely unbothered or angered by her injuries.
On the contrary, after witnessing Naruto's power, her pursuit of her goal became even more resolute.
'As expected of Naruto-sama! In his serious state, I couldn't even last a single move!'
'That damn old man is definitely no match for Naruto-sama!'
Across from her, Naruto's expression was somewhat awkward as he returned Takeru to Yamato.
"I'm really sorry, Yamato. I couldn't hold back just now."
"But don't worry, I've reforged your weapon. This time I added more precious materials. Quality-wise, I'm confident it's better than that guy Kaido's kanabo."
Yamato's strength was truly remarkable, and this wasn't Naruto being modest.
How strong was she?
Simply put, if Yamato were to really fight her old man now and they had to decide a winner, Naruto thought it would be forty-sixty in the father-daughter match.
Perhaps in a few more years, even Kaido wouldn't be Yamato's match in a one-on-one fight.
This girl really had talent.
But precisely because of this, her strength had reached a level that required Naruto to treat seriously.
This was a level that even Sasuke and Karin hadn't achieved... at least, when they first set sail alone, they weren't qualified.
Coupled with the emotions of reuniting after so long, Naruto hadn't deliberately held back.
—The result was what you saw now.
Yamato's weapon, along with the bones in half her body, were shattered and broken by the fierce force of Naruto's punch.
If she hadn't been so fortunate, and if Naruto's Medical Ninjutsu weren't so powerful, this girl might have turned a happy occasion into a tragic one.
But her full-power strike wasn't completely useless.
Even Naruto's body, which had evolved into an Otsutsuki physique, was cut open by Yamato's blow.
Hmm... about the same as cutting your finger while chopping vegetables.
But this was still incredible.
One must know, he wasn't comparable to someone like Momoshiki.
Before evolving to his current form, Naruto was already a top-tier strongman on the seas.
And looking at Yamato, acting as if nothing had happened, still able to drink heavily and eat big chunks of meat while wrapped in bandages, completely unaffected.
—One really had to say, that was the bloodline of that guy Kaido for you.