...
Inside God Valley, everyone was buzzing with discussion about the bizarre "alliance" lineup on the light screen.
Marine Vice Admiral Smoker, Warlord of the Sea Buggy, Hancock, Law, Revolutionary Army's number-two Sabo, and the pirate Supernova Luffy…
The web of relationships was so tangled it made one's head spin, and their stances were poles apart—it looked like a combination that had absolutely nothing to do with each other.
Yet right now, because of the common crisis—Bullet, the Buster Call, being trapped on an isolated island, and some strange bond (mostly seeming to revolve around Straw Hat Luffy)—they were forced to stand on the same side!
At least for the moment, their goals aligned: stop Bullet, find a way to survive.
Buena Festa stepped out of the secret command room and also saw this scene. He froze for a second, then a contemptuous sneer appeared on his face: "Hmph, a bunch of rabble!
Even if they've temporarily banded together because of that Straw Hat kid, so what? In front of Bullet's absolute power, they're nothing but lambs waiting to be slaughtered—a few more bugs that can be casually crushed!"
Buena Festa had near-blind faith in Bullet's strength; he simply didn't believe this makeshift "miscellaneous army" could make any waves.
"Garp, you old geezer… I can't say much about your other skills, but when it comes to making friends, you're number one in the world!"
Roger looked at the strange group on the light screen and couldn't help laughing as he teased Garp: "Look at that—Marines, Warlords, Revolutionary Army… he knows people everywhere. If you put it that way, your grandson's background really does have connections on both sides of the law!
On the Marine side there's you, his future hero grandpa; the son of the Revolutionary Army Commander; the brother of the number-two; even among pirates, Rayleigh later becomes his master, the Pirate Empress falls for him…"
As Roger spoke, he started counting up Luffy's connections—and there was even one of the Four Emperors, Red-Haired Shanks, as his guide. Those ties were harder than indestructible Seastone!
Hearing Roger's words, Garp let out a laugh but didn't reply. Still, a hard-to-describe flash of pride appeared in his eyes.
In the future, his grandson Luffy seemed—without anyone realizing it—to have already tugged at the heartstrings of quite a few major figures.
Scopper Gaban carefully observed the situation, rubbed his chin, and analyzed: "Actually, defeating that Bullet isn't completely impossible."
He pointed at Law on the light screen: "The key probably lies in that Trafalgar Law's ability. If they can seize the right moment and coordinate with the others' attacks…
They might be able to inflict effective damage on Bullet's seemingly invincible combined giant."
After saying this, Gaban paused for a moment before continuing: "This Bullet's biggest weakness is actually his own arrogance.
Locked away for so many years, once he got out he thought the world was still stuck in the past. Relying on his fruit awakening and Haki, he looks down on everything, dismissing the brats of the new era.
That kind of mindset is fatal on a battlefield that changes in an instant."
Gaban's observation cut straight to the point.
Bullet was immersed in the dream of his past defeat by the Buster Call and his own absolute power, ignoring the diversity and potential of the new era's powerhouses, and even more so overlooking the chemical reactions that "teamwork" could produce.
"No one person can ever truly be 'invincible' on this sea."
Gaban sighed, his gaze subtly sweeping over the blue-and-white-haired Rocks not far away.
Even someone as strong as Rocks—ambitious, strength reaching the heavens—still needed to gather Whitebeard, Wang Zhi, Silver Axe, Shiki, Linlin, Kaido, and a large group of ferocious powerhouses as partners and support…
No matter how mighty the lion, it can't shake a pack of wolves!
Garp, Sengoku, Zephyr, and Tsuru all nodded involuntarily upon hearing Gaban's analysis.
Setting aside their positions, his words were indeed reasonable and revealed a certain fundamental truth of the world of the strong.
"Mamama~"
Charlotte Linlin now boomed in her loud voice, her massive body swaying slightly: "Gaban's right! No one can gallop freely across this sea all by themselves!
Nakama—comrades—are always number one! Even if there isn't deep affection between them, even if they scheme against each other, the very status of 'comrade' is part of one's strength, an essential for survival!"
After finishing, Big Mom glanced around at the unruly pirates present: "Look at us! Everyone here is a proud, capable, ruthless bastard, right?
But in the future? I built Whole Cake Island! Newgate got his sons! Kaido built the Beasts Pirates!
Who goes around trying to conquer everything alone like that lunatic Bullet?
Humans… have always been pack animals! Pirates have their own way of living, but the principle is the same!"
Big Mom's and Gaban's words hit like an enlightenment, sinking many pirates who had previously only worshipped individual martial prowess into deep thought.
Some more emotional ones were even moved by the speech; they hugged their nearby comrades tightly, mumbling things like "It's great to have you," "We're brothers for life," and similar words. The scene turned unexpectedly "touching" for a moment.
"Well said! Gaban! Linlin!"
"Little Fierce~!"
Golden Lion Shiki started acting up and being a nuisance again.
He sheathed Sakura Jū and Kogarashi, spread his arms wide, put on an exaggerated moved expression, and flew down from midair toward Silver Axe on the ground: "It's so great to have you too! Come on, let's embrace this 'indispensable bond'!"
Silver Axe looked at Shiki's punchable face and disgusting tone, veins bulging on his forehead, and roared without mercy: "Get lost, you bastard! Who has any bond with you! Disgusting! Believe me or not, I'll chop you into eight pieces and feed you to the fish right now?!"
"Hahahaha!"
The surrounding Rocks Pirates who saw this familiar scene weren't scared at all; instead, they burst into loud laughter and egged them on:
"Lord Shiki and Lord 'Fierce' really have a great relationship!"
"Yeah yeah, beating means affection, scolding means love!"
"This bond is so enviable, you adults!~"
Hearing the people around still jeering, Silver Axe was so furious smoke practically came out of his seven orifices, yet he was helpless.
He glared viciously at the hecklers around him, but it seemed to have no intimidating effect—everyone genuinely didn't seem afraid of him.
"Little Fierce, how about you come sail with me from now on! The two of us teaming up—we could definitely carve out our own territory…"
Shiki had previously tried to recruit Roger, and now he was trying to poach Silver Axe to join him.
But in the end, Silver Axe's attitude was the same—he directly told Shiki to get lost. Everyone had their own ideals!
How could he possibly sail with Shiki? It was simply absurd—and not to mention Silver Axe already hated Shiki!
...