Under Grothius's command, the Slaves frantically moved boxes filled with treasures.
Initially, they were somewhat cautious, but after seeing that Grothius did not punish the Slaves who accidentally dropped treasures, they finally relaxed.
It seemed their Celestial Dragon lord quickly got into the role of a Pirate.
The merchant ship's Captain was on the verge of tears, and the crew members stood by, trembling, looking like they wanted to stop them but dared not, only able to watch as this group of people moved the treasures onto the "Pirate Ship."
This "robbery" lasted for over an hour, until all valuables on the merchant ship were plundered.
Grothius stood on the deck, which was piled high with spoils, hands on his hips, full of smug satisfaction, and laughed wildly:
"Hahahaha…"
"Do you see? This is the first battle of our God Pirates!"
The CP Agents and Slaves hurriedly flattered him:
"Captain is truly heroic!"
"Long live Captain!"
"Captain is invincible!"
"Awoo awoo awoo…"
The flattery of the crowd made Grothius even more pleased. He disdainfully glanced at the plundered merchant ship, then waved his hand smugly:
"Let's go! We're off to find the next target."
Then, he also shouted to the merchant ship's Captain:
"You! Next time, remember to bring more treasures!"
The Captain quickly nodded in agreement, but what he was thinking was, "I don't even know if I'll survive this trip back. You want to do it again?"
Soon, the God Pirates' gilded flagship set sail again, aimlessly cruising the New World, searching for the next target that could fulfill Grothius's Pirate dream.
Sakazuki stood on the deck the entire time, his face dark, smoke rising from his body.
He looked at the thoroughly plundered merchant ship, then at Grothius, who was returning full of spoils and smug satisfaction.
Sakazuki gritted his teeth and cursed under his breath:
"That damn idiot!"
This sea area truly lived up to its name as the final destination for Pirates. Before long, the Slave responsible for lookout shouted in terror:
"Your Highness… Captain! A Pirate Ship has been spotted on the front left! It's a real Pirate!"
What does a "real" Pirate mean? Are there fake Pirates?
However, Grothius did not notice the impropriety in the Slave's words. He immediately rushed excitedly to the ship's rail and snatched the telescope.
When he saw the ferocious skull flag in the distance, this guy not only wasn't afraid, but instead excitedly slapped the railing:
"They're here! They're finally here! This is what real adventure is about!"
The CP Agent behind him quickly reminded him:
"Saint Grocis… no! Captain!"
"The Pirates of the New World are a group of vicious scoundrels. The other party looks menacing, shouldn't we first…"
"Shut up!"
Grothius turned and kicked him again:
"That's what makes it interesting!"
"I'm going to subdue all of them and make them my subordinates!"
"How can the future Pirate King rely on these useless guys?!"
"Bring the ship closer to them!"
Facing Grothius's command, the Slaves could only reluctantly comply.
However, his comical flagship and clumsy demeanor seemed to have aroused the curiosity of the Pirates on the other side.
They had never seen such an arrogant Pirate Ship, one that even had a golden idol inlaid on its bow.
Far from avoiding them, the other party turned their course and charged straight at them with murderous intent, clearly treating them as real prey.
This hostile action was like a spark falling into a dormant volcano.
Sakazuki, standing on the deck, finally found a reasonable outlet for his long-suppressed anger.
The anger accumulated over recent days due to Grothius's comical atrocities and unreasonable commands now completely erupted.
A crimson figure had already leaped high from the deck like a cannonball, skimming across the sea, heading straight for that Pirate Ship.
"Admiral Akainu!"
"Why did Admiral Sakazuki make a move?!"
The Marines who had come with Sakazuki all looked puzzled and exclaimed in surprise.
Although they knew Akainu had zero tolerance for Pirates, it wasn't to the extent of killing them on sight, was it?
Under everyone's astonished gaze, Sakazuki didn't even give the Pirates on the other side a chance to speak:
"Great Eruption!"
Seeing this, the Pirates were greatly alarmed and began to flee in a panic:
"Oh no! It's an Admiral!"
"It's Akainu! We're finished!"
"Admiral Akainu, spare us! I'm willing to surrender! I want to go to Impel Down!"
But in the vast sea, where else could they escape to besides the ship beneath their feet?
Their pleas had no effect on the enraged Sakazuki. A massive fist of magma directly smashed the Pirate Ship's bow to pieces, with flames and thick smoke rising into the sky.
As the smoke grew thicker, the broken Pirate Ship began to sink in the raging fire, with some melted treasures faintly visible sinking to the bottom of the sea with it.
The battle… or rather, the slaughter, began quickly and ended even faster.
The entire Pirate Ship, facing Sakazuki in his enraged state, offered no resistance whatsoever and was sunk with just one blow.
When Sakazuki, smelling of gunpowder, returned to the deck using Moonwalk, a part of the long-standing frustration in his heart finally dissipated.
"Akainu! You brainless magma wild dog!"
Just then, Grothius's voice came from nearby.
His face was flushed, and he stomped hard on the deck, making thudding sounds. He pointed at the burning wreckage on the sea, his glass helmet fogged up with a layer of mist.
He rushed in front of Akainu, almost pressing his bubble helmet against Sakazuki's forehead:
"Who told you to kill them all?!"
"I wanted to recruit a few strong subordinates! You stupid dog!"
Sakazuki's recently recovered complexion turned dark again. He lowered his head, his wide Marine cap brim obscuring his expression, and remained silent.
But if one looked closely, his clenched fists creaked, his knuckles white and slightly trembling.
Magma constantly dripped from between his fingers, burning small charred spots on the specially made deck with sizzling sounds.
The high temperature emanating from him made the air distort. On his resolute face, his muscles were taut, his jaw clenched.
In the end, he only managed to squeeze out a low sentence through gritted teeth:
"My duty is to eliminate Pirates…"
Sakazuki's voice was hoarse, like the final muffled gasp of a volcano before it roars.
The atmosphere on the ship instantly dropped to freezing point. Everyone else was silent, cowering and trying to minimize their presence, fearing they would be caught in the conflict between these two.
Only two CP Agents, suppressing their fear, stood by Grothius's side.
Even though they knew that if an Admiral truly intended to strike, the two of them couldn't possibly stop him.
But at least they could fulfill their duty as guards and die with the Celestial Dragon.
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