Naruto: Copy System#669+670: Couldn't You Have Brought This Up in Private? The Reckless Supernova!

The Five Elders weren't looking for a fight with Shin.

Of course, it wasn't that they didn't want to target him—it was that they were afraid. If they had a clear understanding of Shin's true strength and knew what his trump cards were, perhaps then they would have the courage to make a move.

But as it stood, the Five Elders were completely in the dark about Shin. Under such circumstances, how could they possibly act against him?

Then again, if they actually knew the terrifying extent of Shin's power and his true trump cards, they would probably be even more terrified to act.

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"Just focus on recovering for now. I was planning on going after Whitebeard, but it looks like I'll have to postpone that."

Akainu had intended to make a move against Whitebeard, but with Fujitora out of commission, he had no choice but to abandon the plan for now.

It wasn't that Akainu thought Whitebeard would be an easy target. The Summit War had taught him just how formidable the old pirate still was.

But the situation on the seas was becoming increasingly dire, and he needed to do something to regain control. Then there was the matter of the Five Elders. They had supported his bid for Fleet Admiral, but now he was practically their puppet.

In front of the Five Elders, Akainu had no dignity to speak of...

With that, Akainu left Fujitora to his recovery. As long as his life wasn't in danger, that was enough. In fact, the fact that Fujitora had survived at all was a miracle in itself—something to be grateful for.

After Akainu departed, Fujitora was lost in thought.

'Shin Uzumaki's strength far surpasses that of the other Four Emperors. If we truly want to eliminate the pirates, we'll have to deal with him.'

Fujitora now had a new objective, one that would become his life's mission: to defeat Shin Uzumaki.

As things stood now, his goal seemed to be biting off more than he could chew, but deep down, Fujitora was confident. He believed that one day, he would achieve his goal and defeat Shin Uzumaki.

But that day was not today. Now was not the time to dwell on it.

For now, he would put it out of his mind and focus on healing. The memory of how easily Shin had defeated him was a stark reminder that such thoughts were futile for now.

Fujitora also knew he couldn't achieve this goal on his own. His strength had already peaked. Even if he improved in the future, the gains would be limited. Trying to defeat Shin Uzumaki on his own was a fool's errand, a fact he could see clearly.

He would have to take a different path—he would need to unite the strength of others to face Shin Uzumaki.

'Looks like I can't afford to be at odds with Akainu anymore.'

Fujitora thought to himself.

The first person he could win over was, of course, Akainu. They had their disagreements on many things. Although Akainu had changed somewhat, his extremist nature wasn't so easily erased.

In truth, Akainu was still quite radical. He was just better at restraining it now. But Fujitora had always disliked Akainu's personality.

There was considerable friction between them. But if it meant being able to one day confront Shin Uzumaki, perhaps compromising a little wouldn't be so bad. He could do it.

Yes, that was what Fujitora decided.

When the time was right, he would share his thoughts with Akainu.

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Shin probably had no idea that his actions had inadvertently mended the rift between Akainu and Fujitora.

For now, Shin was having a rather pleasant time on Fish-Man Island.

"Shin-sama, would you like me to find some beautiful mermaids for you?" Neptune asked him.

"What are you trying to do?" Hancock asked Neptune, her voice dripping with ice.

Shin shot old Neptune a look. 'Are you trying to get yourself killed, Neptune? Couldn't you have brought this up in private?'

Did he really have to say it out loud, right in front of Hancock, of all people? Honestly, the fact that Hancock hadn't drawn her sword and killed him on the spot was a miracle.

In fact, if Shirahoshi hadn't been holding Hancock back, Neptune would have been cut down where he stood.

Neptune gave a weak laugh, too terrified to speak. He had forgotten that Shin's lover was right there.

Agh, he never should have said that. Neptune wanted to slap himself. Why did he have to say everything that came to mind??

He cautiously glanced at Shin, breathing a sigh of relief when he saw that Shin wasn't angry. Still, Neptune was on edge, terrified of causing any more offense.

"Ahem, I think I'll be leaving now."

Neptune could still feel a faint killing intent lingering around him, a chill that seemed to seep into his very bones.

"Yes, you should go, Neptune," Shin said, waving him off.

This was his way of saving Neptune. The king might have been tactless and spoken at the wrong time, but his heart was in the right place. At least, as far as Shin was concerned, Neptune's intentions were pure gold...

"Thank you, Shin-sama."

Neptune thanked him gratefully and quickly made his exit. Only after he was a safe distance away did he finally let out a breath, feeling as if his entire body was drenched in a cold sweat.

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"Hmph. If it weren't for Shirahoshi, I would never have let him off so easily," Hancock huffed.

"I'm sorry, Hancock-nesama," Shirahoshi said apologetically.

"It's alright. It has nothing to do with you, Shirahoshi. You don't need to apologize to me." Hancock gently stroked Shirahoshi's hair.

Shirahoshi closed her eyes, looking as if she were thoroughly enjoying the gesture. She absolutely loved Hancock's headpats. Of course, what she loved most of all were Shin's headpats.

"Shin, you're not going to blame me, are you?" Hancock asked, sitting beside Shin and looking at him cautiously.

What did Hancock fear most? She feared Shin's disapproval. Anything else, she couldn't care less about.

"Don't worry, of course I won't blame you. Why would I ever blame you?" Shin said with a faint smile, stroking her head.

Yes, just as Hancock had given Shirahoshi a headpat, Shin now gave one to Hancock. And just like Shirahoshi, Hancock savored the moment, leaning into him with a gentle and submissive air.

"Shin-nii, I want one too," Shirahoshi said, looking at Shin with her adorable, wide eyes, filled with boundless anticipation.

"Alright." Shin smiled faintly at her.

Then he placed his hand on Shirahoshi's head.

A smile spread across Shirahoshi's face, and she immediately snuggled closer to Shin, pressing against him, just like Hancock on his other side.

<><><><><><><><>

A year passed in the blink of an eye.

After the Summit War, the seas enjoyed nearly two years of peace.

But this peace felt more like the calm before the storm. The Four Emperors and the new generation of Supernovas, after concealing their fangs for two years, were about to bare their claws.

Shin, of course, was no longer on Fish-Man Island. He had left long ago and was now in his own territory.

'Luffy should be in the New World by now...' Shin was just guessing.

There was nothing left for Luffy and his crew on Fish-Man Island. They had surely entered the New World. The plot had been altered beyond recognition, so he had no idea if Luffy would still end up confronting Doflamingo.

It was possible things would still follow their original course, but that had little to do with Shin. He and Luffy were unlikely to ever become enemies. Luffy wouldn't go out of his way to antagonize him, and Shin had no reason to target Luffy.

After all, Shin had no grudge against him. He had a decent enough impression of Luffy; he wouldn't go after him.

But now, Shin had to deal with the matter of the Supernovas.

The so-called Supernovas were rookie pirates with bounties over 100 million Berries who had risen to prominence in a short amount of time. They were seen as pirates with great potential, like Red-Haired Shanks back in his day, whose bounty had quickly surpassed 100 million.

The eleven Supernovas, along with Blackbeard, were known as the "Worst Generation," and they were all making names for themselves on the high seas.

Once they had a name, they wanted an even bigger one. And what better way to do that than by taking on one of the Four Emperors?

Even Shin got challenged. These rookie Supernovas, fresh into the New World, actually thought they could take him on.

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"The Mad Monk, Urouge. He really has a death wish," Shin said with a flat expression.

Originally, Shin couldn't have cared less about the so-called Supernovas. They just had potential—and potential didn't equate to strength.

In the first half of the Grand Line, their strength might have been impressive. But here in the New World, they were nothing special.

"Indeed. Anyone who messes with Shin deserves to die. I think it's time to cleanse the seas," Hancock said, her eyes flashing with anger. These ignorant fools actually thought they could challenge Shin. Death was the only fitting punishment.

"Shin's victory over Redfield may have deterred the old generation, but it seems to have had no effect on these rookies," Olvia observed.

"I think it's impossible to ever truly deter those greedy pirates," Robin said, shaking her head slightly. "Their insatiable ambition for fame and fortune will always drive them to challenge those stronger and more established than themselves."

"How strong is this 'Mad Monk' Urouge? If I fought him, could I take him down?" Nami asked curiously.

Honestly, besides sparring with the other women, Nami had never had a real opponent. So now, she was itching for a real fight to test her skills.

"Well... he's probably stronger than you are right now," Shin said, glancing at Nami.

Nami's current strength was no match for the Mad Monk Urouge. Though Nami's strength was improving rapidly, she had only just begun her training. Unless she got her hands on a powerful Devil Fruit, she wouldn't be able to defeat Urouge.

"Let's go. Time to find Urouge."

Shin wasn't going to let Urouge off the hook.

Whatever his reasons, the fact was that Urouge had caused trouble in his territory. Shin might usually be laid-back, but if you crossed him, don't expect mercy.

Urouge was clearly asking for it. He didn't know Shin's boundaries and had the audacity to cause chaos in his territory.

"Olvia, you have the intel, right?" Shin asked, looking at Olvia.

Though Shin was the captain and Hancock the vice-captain, neither of them handled the day-to-day affairs. Everything was left to Olvia, much to her exasperation.

"Yes, I have information on the Mad Monk Urouge," Olvia nodded.

They had, of course, thoroughly investigated his current location. The Kuja Pirates' intelligence network was now quite formidable.

"Good. Then let's go take care of the Mad Monk Urouge."

Shin stood at the bow of the ship. He'd been keeping a low profile for too long—it was time to make a move. Perhaps his quiet period had made some ignorant fools bold enough to test him.

"By the way, Whitebeard sent us an invitation earlier."

Olvia slapped her forehead. She had almost forgotten about that. Now she finally remembered.

"Whitebeard?"

Shin was slightly stunned when Olvia mentioned Whitebeard. What did Whitebeard want with him at a time like this?

"After we deal with Urouge, a visit to Whitebeard wouldn't hurt."

Shin didn't care what Whitebeard was up to. He was prepared to meet him; it was necessary. He was very curious to find out what Whitebeard was planning.

The others on the ship had no objections to Shin's decision. At the same time, Robin was trying to guess Whitebeard's motives.

"Shin, I think Whitebeard invited you to deal with Kaido."

Robin said to the leisurely-looking Shin.

"To deal with Kaido?"

Shin fell into thought upon hearing this. After a moment, it seemed Robin's guess wasn't impossible. It was quite possible he wanted to deal with Kaido.

After all, the grudge between the Whitebeard Pirates and Kaido was immense. And now that Kaido had allied with Blackbeard, that had clearly crossed a line for Whitebeard. It was very likely he wanted to make a move against Kaido.

"If it's to deal with Kaido, are you going to participate?" Robin asked Shin.

"If it really is about dealing with Kaido, then of course I'll participate. A little fun when I'm bored is always nice."

Shin said to Robin with a faint smile.

But for now, it was just speculation.

No one knew if Whitebeard really wanted to deal with Kaido. And with Whitebeard's personality, would he really ask for an alliance?

Shin felt that with Whitebeard's pride, he would never do such a thing.

But Shin had miscalculated. The current Whitebeard had shed much of his pride. All he wanted now was to avenge Ace.

Besides Akainu, the main culprit behind Ace's death was Blackbeard. If not for Blackbeard, Ace would never have died. So, Blackbeard was Whitebeard's primary target. And Kaido was the obstacle standing in his way, preventing him from killing Blackbeard.