"It should be a small Sea King-class creature!"
Tanaka observed carefully and found that, aside from its color, the giant sea eel in front of him bore a striking resemblance to the Lord of the Coast from East Blue.
As he examined the Sea King, the suspected small Sea King-class giant sea eel also turned its gaze toward him.
Its enormous scarlet vertical pupils locked onto him, radiating a cruel, greedy, and ferocious glint. Then, with a sudden twist, it surged forward, stirring up towering waves as it lunged at him with its jaws wide open, ready to tear him apart.
"You want to eat me? What a coincidence. I feel the same way."
Facing the Sea King that sought to devour him, Tanaka, who had already activated his ROOM, remained unshaken. He calmly raised the sword in his hand, then, instead of retreating, he advanced. A spatial shift placed him instantly at the side of the giant sea eel.
"Amputate!"
With a light swing of his sword—
Snap!
Given the Sea King's colossal size, Tanaka's sword seemed as insignificant as a mere embroidery needle. However, the moment he swung it, the 70-meter-long Sea King was instantly sliced clean in half.
A creature towering over even the giants... A body so tough and powerful that it was impervious to cannon fire... Yet, before the power of the Op-Op Fruit, it was no different from tofu.
"Shambles!"
Without waiting for the halved Sea King to react, Tanaka activated his Devil Fruit ability, teleporting its head to the shore.
Whoosh!
Even a Sea King, once stranded on land, was no different from a fish out of water—left to struggle helplessly.
Moreover, the Sea King had been sliced into two. Only its remaining 30-meter-long head writhed on the shore, flailing its severed body wildly, snapping its jaws at nothing but air, sand, and crashing waves.
After shifting the Sea King's head to the shore, Tanaka turned his gaze to the remaining half of its body, which was still floating on the sea's surface, about to sink. He lifted his left hand and expanded ROOM to its maximum size.
Back on the night of the clan massacre, his ROOM could only cover a mere 20 meters in its default state.
But on that fateful night, after surviving a series of fierce battles and seizing full control of his clan, he devoted himself entirely to honing the Op-Op Fruit, training in Gentle Fist, and refining his Byakugan. With the added nourishment of the Nara clan's medicinal deer and the Akimichi clan's secret pills, he had grown tremendously.
During this time, he didn't just master the One Hundred Twenty-Eight Palms and Vacuum Palm—his mastery over the Op-Op Fruit had also reached new heights.
For instance, the range of his ROOM had expanded from a mere 20 meters in diameter to an impressive 35 meters.
And if he ignored the rapid depletion of his stamina, he could even momentarily expand it further in an instant.
Just like now, Tanaka extended ROOM to a diameter of approximately 50 meters.
Not only that, but through training and development, he had gained the ability to reposition his ROOM at will.
Previously, when he activated ROOM, he had to be at the center of the spherical or hemispherical space it created. But now, he could place the ROOM's origin point elsewhere.
The only condition was that he, as the Op-Op Fruit user, had to remain within ROOM's range.
For example, if he were standing at the Hokage Rock, he wouldn't be able to place a ROOM at the Valley of the End. A 40-meter ROOM centered there wouldn't reach him at the Hokage Rock.
The placement of ROOM's origin point had to ensure that he was also included within its range.
Though this improvement might seem minor, in reality, it granted him far greater tactical flexibility.
Like now, he placed the ROOM's origin at the severed body of the Sea King, expanding the ROOM just enough to encompass its entire remaining torso. Meanwhile, he positioned himself at the very edge of ROOM rather than at its center.
Similarly, in combat, even if the ROOM's visible size seemed unchanged, he could adjust its origin point to envelop enemies or areas that previously lay beyond its reach—allowing him to launch surprise long-range attacks using his Devil Fruit powers.
Tanaka released his grip on his sword.
However, instead of falling into the sea, the sword transformed into a streak of cold light, gliding beneath his feet. It carried him into the sky like Shiki.
He glanced at the Sea King, which still appeared overwhelmingly massive even after being split in half. He clenched his fist.
Shrrrkk!
It was as if an invisible pair of giant hands inside ROOM forcibly twisted the serpent-like remains of the Sea King into a spherical shape, then levitated it before him.
This was the power of the Op-Op Fruit.
Within ROOM's domain, he could practically use the Op-Op Fruit as if it were the Float-Float Fruit, lifting objects without even touching them beforehand.
Whether it was the sword beneath his feet or the severed body of the Sea King—
Whoosh!
Having completed this feat, Tanaka stood on his sword while carrying the compressed spherical remains of the Sea King, soaring back to the shore.
To anyone familiar with Golden Lion, they might have mistaken him for a user of the Paramecia-type Float-Float Fruit instead.
"The Sea King is in my hands."
Gazing at the Sea King, now cut in two and lying helplessly before him, his eyes lit up.
Eager to test the effects of Sea King meat, he didn't bother returning to the Naruto world. Instead, he improvised—chopping down a nearby tree for firewood, slicing off about three pounds of Sea King meat, and using Fire Release to ignite a flame for roasting.
Though he was a Hyūga, skilled in Gentle Fist, that didn't mean he relied solely on it.
In fact, not all members of the Hyūga clan were taijutsu specialists. The clan had plenty of ninjutsu users, including elite ninjas proficient in ninjutsu, taijutsu, and even genjutsu.
Especially among the branch house—since they had limited access to the main house's secret taijutsu techniques, many chose to specialize in ninjutsu or genjutsu instead.
While the Byakugan primarily enhanced perception, vision, and insight, unlike the Sharingan, which could copy most techniques, it still provided a significant boost to training in ninjutsu, genjutsu, and taijutsu.
Something like a D-rank Fire Release technique was practically effortless for Tanaka.
Crackle!
As the flames steadily roasted the Sea King meat, its surface began to glisten with sizzling oil.
A short while later, it was fully cooked.
He hadn't prepared any seasonings, but that didn't matter. Once the meat was ready, he immediately dug in.
Perhaps because the Sea King was eel-like, even without seasoning, its flesh had a natural saltiness.
While the flavor wasn't as refined as the dishes meticulously prepared by the Hyūga clan's chefs, the freshness of Sea King meat meant it only required the simplest cooking methods to shine.
Its texture was excellent—not dry or tough. Instead, it had the perfect balance of chewiness and crispness.
Combined with its naturally salty, oceanic taste... Within moments, he had devoured all the three pounds Sea King meat.
Since he didn't have a "D" in his name and lacked Life Return, he couldn't directly manipulate his digestion. So, after eating, he simply rested for a bit, allowing his body to naturally absorb the nutrients.
---
Sitting cross-legged, he formed a hand seal and closed his eyes, beginning to mold chakra.
Typically, for a Hyūga of his age, even with the Byakugan, chakra molding during Gentle Fist training should not exceed 30 minutes—otherwise, both the body and mind would become overstrained.
Based on past experience, after about half an hour, his physical and spiritual energy would be excessively depleted, causing discomfort and forcing him to stop.
At that point, he would have to rest or eat, waiting for his body and mind to recover before resuming chakra molding.
But this time, he molded chakra for a full hour without feeling any discomfort.
His body and mind felt as if they had turned into a nuclear-powered machine, endlessly extracting physical and spiritual energy from the 130 trillion cells within him, continuously synthesizing more chakra.
For a brief moment, he even felt as if chakra itself was calling out to him.