"Damn it." The Golden Lion's face darkened. He had never imagined he would lose a clash of Conqueror's Haki to a brat like this—never once had it crossed his mind that some kid could possess Conqueror's Haki this powerful.
"Honestly, the captain's Conqueror's Haki is terrifyingly strong," Kurokamu said enviously. He had Conqueror's Haki himself, so he knew full well that, unlike the other two types, no amount of hard training would let you raise it.
Three of their crewmates had already been knocked out cold by the burst of Conqueror's Haki: Lisa, Adala, and Moore. These three were currently the weakest fighters aboard, completely unable to withstand the impact.
Seeing he was losing ground, the Golden Lion raised his blade and charged at Shirakawa. Spotting the Golden Lion's move, Shirakawa made the same decision. Three swords collided at once. A deafening boom erupted, and from the point of impact, a violent shockwave surged outward in every direction.
The sea's surface plunged into extreme chaos once again, colossal waves racing outward from the center.
"Riddle! Keep the ship steady!" Kurokamu shouted at Riddle. Their vessel was pitching up and down between the crisscrossing swells; one careless moment, and a wave could hammer them straight to the seafloor.
"Obviously I know that!"
Staring at waves that at times towered even higher than the ship, Riddle was genuinely scared. As a Devil Fruit user, if he fell into a sea like this, it was death, no question.
Salar also layered a speed boost onto the ship, equally terrified of going overboard. His expression right now was dead serious.
The cloudless, clear sky transformed in an instant. The moment their weapons clashed, the heavens seemed to split apart—much like the later clash between Whitebeard and Shanks, only this one looked far more severe. Both of them were now going all out; this was no longer a probing exchange.
The sundered sky crackled with violent lightning, giving everything an apocalyptic feel.
"What's going on?"
On a patrolling Marine warship in the distance, an officer gazed toward the forbidding sky far away. Right where they were, the sky was still cloudless, just as before. Yet that patch over there was a churning mass of murky gray—who knew when all the clouds had converged on that spot. Fortunately, they were far enough away; even if they couldn't make out the battle clearly, they hadn't been caught up in it either.
"This has gone beyond what we can handle. We have to report back to Headquarters."
He had realized the cause was a fight between two people, because he heard weapons clashing and saw a pirate ship racing out from the heart of the storm straight toward them. That pirate crew was none other than the Silver Pirates, who had just fled the storm's center.
"Whew! Finally got out!" Riddle collapsed onto the deck the moment they were clear. The waves here were still present, but much smaller. His nerves had been stretched to the breaking point the entire time.
Salar was in even worse shape. He had been continuously boosting the ship's speed, and now his stamina was completely drained.
"Hold on." Yuristin said a word to Salar, then stepped into the infirmary and came back out with a vial of clear medicine, feeding it to him.
This medicine was for restoring stamina. Shirakawa had specially asked Lisa to develop it, and Lisa—living up to her reputation as a miracle doctor—hadn't let him down, producing it in a remarkably short time. In truth, Lisa had been researching in this area long before, and Shirakawa's request simply came at the perfect moment. Spurred on by him, she accelerated her work. The serum was said to be derived from components extracted from Sea Kings, with virtually no side effects on the human body.
After drinking it down, Salar recovered quickly, letting out a long breath as if he'd just been given back his life.
"Alright, ready yourselves for battle. Marines spotted up ahead." Kurokamu's gaze locked onto the warship blocking their path.
But at this moment, the Marines had absolutely no intention of trying to capture them. Seizing the Silver Pirates was important, but they simply weren't a match. After all, this was just a Marine branch in the South Blue—they had no high-end combat power capable of standing up to the Silver Pirates. And right now, more than an opponent they couldn't defeat, they were desperate to know who those two people fighting in the distance were.
"Did you cause that commotion over there?"
Though these Marines were no match, they couldn't afford to show weakness. One of them put the question to Kurokamu, who stood at the bow.
Seeing the Marines showed no hostility, the crew relaxed their guard.
"What do you think? We're standing right here in front of you, aren't we? But that scene over there—that was our captain's doing."
"What? Shirakawa?"
The moment the Silver Pirates had entered the South Blue, these Marines had been notified and had kept a vigilant eye on their movements.
"Then who's capable of fighting Shirakawa on that scale? There shouldn't be anyone in the South Blue who can go toe to toe with the Silver Sword like this, right?" the Marine officer questioned them again.
"We might stand on opposite sides, but it won't hurt to tell you. If this battle gets spread around, I figure it'll boost our crew's fame even more. Here's a hint: the guy fighting our captain is a big-name pirate who came from the New World."
"What? The New World?"
The words "New World" made the Marine officer panic a little. The New World was filled with great pirates far beyond their reach—even Marine Headquarters had only limited influence there.
"Who is it?"
"Golden Lion Shiki."
"Golden Lion? Why would he come after you? Could it be because of the sword your captain carries?"
The Marine officer suddenly recalled that the reason the Silver Pirates had become such a hot topic lately was their captain possessed one of the Supreme Grade Blades, the dream of every swordsman. And Golden Lion Shiki was a world-famous master swordsman.
Upon learning who was fighting, the officer immediately relayed all known information back to Marine Headquarters. The appearance of the Golden Lion in the South Blue was no longer something they could handle.
Headquarters was likewise shocked when they received the report, but they no longer had the resources to deal with the Golden Lion—because the Roger Pirates were already giving them a massive headache. Roger's crew had reached the end of the New World and was searching for a way to reach the final island, Laugh Tale. If Roger set foot on Laugh Tale, the consequences would be unimaginable.
So Headquarters could only order the Marines in the South Blue not to act rashly. The Golden Lion most likely wouldn't start anything with the Marines either.
"It really is one thing after another."
At Marine Headquarters, Commander-in-Chief Kong held his head, looking pained.
"I never imagined that brat from Roger's ship had already grown to this level." Sengoku's expression was grim as well, because all of this would become his mess to deal with in the future.
Judging from the battle descriptions transmitted by the South Blue Marines, it was clear that Silver Sword Shirakawa had already broken out of the ranks of ordinary pirates. Even if he entered the New World right now, he'd be more than capable.
"As expected of Roger," Garp remarked with some emotion. First Bullet, now Shirakawa—none of the ones who came out of the Roger Pirates were anything ordinary.
/-\
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