"I told you," Ian said coolly, "The Beasts Pirates only want elites. We don't take in trash."
Below him, the pirates who were cheering moments ago froze in confusion—but some of them began to smirk.
Sasaki was one of them.
That's right!
How could trash be worthy of standing behind Lord Ian?!
"Therefore," Ian said calmly, "Fight, you scum."
"The last ten pirate crews standing will earn the right to bear my flag."
"The best among you... will receive my reward!"
The reason Ian chose this deserted island was simple—he was about to host a grand pirate battle royale.
The final ten teams to survive and stand out would be rewarded with the chance to join the Beasts Pirates.
As for the unfortunate losers—well, good luck to them.
The entire place went dead silent.
Until a few seconds later, one nervous pirate finally spoke up, "L-Lord Ian, when you say 'fight'… you mean—?"
"Of course, it's this!!"
A sword was thrust from behind, piercing directly through his chest. The man behind him, Sasaki, burst into laughter. "Still don't understand? Lord Ian only needs the strong!!"
"Trash, should be swept into the garbage heap!!"
His manic expression made the surrounding pirates feel a surge of fear. Someone, gathering their courage, spoke up. "What are you looking at! Do you think I'm weak?"
Sasaki looked around, his body gradually swelling. "Don't misunderstand! I'm not targeting you, I'm just saying, everyone here is trash!!"
In an instant, the entire island descended into chaos.
"Hahahaha! It should have been like this all along. What kind of people dare to stand alongside me!"
"Go die! You scum!"
Just moments ago, the pirates were calm, but the next second, swords were drawn, guns fired, and the fight broke out without hesitation.
Swords clashing and gunshots rang out, laughter and wails mixed together.
In the blink of an eye, the entire island became a scene of chaos.
Of course, not everyone in the chaos tried to fight. Some attempted to flee.
"Crazy! They're all crazy!"
A group of pirates screamed as they rushed towards the pirate ship docked by the shore. "Ian is crazy, and these guys are crazy too!!"
Was it necessary to go this far?
The reason they wanted to join Ian's crew was to ensure their own safety, right?
Now, they were gambling their lives in a fight!
Run!
He didn't want to die!
But—
Crack!!
Thunder suddenly struck from the sky.
A massive bolt of lightning fell right into the center of the pirates, creating a huge explosion as the lightning scattered. All the pirates were thrown into the air by the blast.
Not just them, but all the pirates trying to escape were also struck by the thunder without hesitation.
Thus, the pirates realized they couldn't escape.
Fight!
Only by fighting could they survive!
"If you don't kill, then go die!!"
"Then you all go die!!"
Faced with the threat of death, even the most cowardly person would summon up courage in this moment.
Ian's lips curled slightly.
Isn't this more efficient?
No need for him to waste energy dealing with those troublesome pirate scum.
The Golden Dragon had already reached the island's shore, and the people on the deck could clearly see the pirates fighting on the beach.
"Hehehehe! This is so much fun!"
Dressed in gold, looking almost as dazzling as Ian himself, Solem giggled, his hands twitching with excitement. "Can we really not join in?"
Drake turned to look at him, smiling. "If you joined in, wouldn't it lose its fun?"
"Hehehehehe!"
Solem immediately smirked in pride. "You're right! These guys are way too weak!"
"Mmm—"
Looking at the pirates on the shore, almost crazed in their constant killing, Jinbe couldn't help but feel some pity. "Is it really necessary to go this far?"
"Stop saying foolish things, Jinbe!"
Law replied, not even glancing up, his voice steady. "While the World Government is the root of it all, there's no doubt that pirates are the direct cause of this world's chaos."
Jinbe's lips twitched slightly.
So, saying that, aren't we—the four strongest pirate crews in the world—sounding a bit too strange?
"That guy, Tesoro, always complains about the pirates of the New World being too vile. Every now and then, cargo ships get attacked," Law added.
Jinbe could only sigh.
Pirates represent freedom, but some freedom is just too much.
This chaotic freedom clashed with the order Ian was seeking at that moment.
"Hmm? Ancient Zoan?"
Yamato, who had been watching intently from the mast, suddenly let out a surprised sound.
"Ancient Zoan?"
Jinbe looked up.
As expected, on the shore ahead, a giant Triceratops was wreaking havoc.
It was like an out-of-control locomotive, charging recklessly along the coast.
Nothing could stop its forward march, as everything in its path was crushed underfoot.
"Oh?"
In the sky, Ian was also a little surprised.
It looked so familiar, so very familiar!
A brown Triceratops, green long hair, and a white captain's hat.
Is it Sasaki?
One of the Tobiroppo from the original work?
How did this guy end up here?
Hiss.
Did he unknowingly take a piece from Kaido's territory?
If memory serves, this guy was incredibly loyal to Kaido in the original story, only wanting to drink with him.
Though, this guy's strength is no joke.
After turning into the giant Triceratops, his head covered in Armament Haki, he just charged through everything—no one could stop him.
Behind him and on his sides were his companions guarding him, leaving almost no openings. Along the way, numerous pirates were crying out, defeated.
Well, it's fine. Kaido's Tobiroppo are already assembled, and there's no room for this guy in the group. Let him follow me; it's not a bad thing.
However, this guy isn't the strongest among the tens of thousands of pirates.
The strongest pirate on this island is a muscular man with blonde hair. He's from the Long-Limb Tribe, wearing boxing gloves and looking like a boxer. Both his strength and Armament Haki are quite formidable—he can punch through a pirate ship with one blow.
Then there are a pair of twin brothers, one wielding a greatsword and the other carrying a heavy shield.
Their coordination between offense and defense is flawless.
Individually, they might be weaker, but when they fight together, they're incredibly powerful, only second to the blonde Long-Limb man.
The third strongest is a slender swordsman whose body and limbs are as thin as a bamboo stick.
He wields a thin rapier, almost as narrow as a finger. It isn't used for slashing, but for thrusting. His sword is as fast as the wind, capable of piercing the throats of over a dozen pirates in an instant.
But from the looks of it, Sasaki's strength ranks only around fourth or fifth among these powerful pirates.
After all, this was ten years before the story began, and he was just in his early twenties—still quite young.
But the fact that only he was the one Ian had seen in the original work was undeniable.
The battle raged on.
The difference between the strong and the weak quickly became apparent.
The powerful pirates had an unspoken understanding and did not turn on each other. After all, there were a full ten spots available, and it was enough to pick the softest targets.
On the other hand, the pirates who realized their weakness began to form alliances.
They couldn't win alone, so they decided to team up, take down the stronger opponents, and then settle things among themselves.
However, as their numbers grew, everyone began to take notice of them, and soon, everyone knew what they were up to.
"Hahahaha! No matter how many ants there are, they're still just ants!"
Sasaki laughed wildly, charging headfirst into the gathered pirates.
Without any prior discussion, the strong boxer from the Longarm Tribe also leaped up, raising his right fist. His fist was pitch black, like a meteor, falling with immense force.
"Strong Speed Cannon Fist!!"
Boom!!
Like a missile crashing down, the massive explosion sent pirates flying in all directions.
The lanky swordsman strolled through the gathered pirates. Those who approached him didn't even have time to see how he attacked before blood spurted from their throats, and they collapsed, lifeless.
The twin brothers were more methodical, taking their subordinates with them.
One focused on defense while the other went on the offense. Though their progress was slower, they were equally unstoppable.
More and more powerful pirates joined the attack on the gathered pirates.
Each was fighting their own battle, and if you insisted on grouping together, don't blame them for being rude.
Ian looked down from the sky, observing all of this.
This was why humans were the best at self-destruction.
Of the tens of thousands of pirates, within just over an hour, less than fifteen thousand remained.
Below, the pirates who had grouped together were almost all wiped out. Sasaki, still not satisfied and charging forward, suddenly took a punch to the nose, causing him to stumble back repeatedly.
"Damn that hurts!"
Sasaki shouted loudly, "Who the hell did that?!"
In front of him, the boxer from the Longarm Tribe sneered in displeasure, "Don't get in my way, big guy! Or I'll break your horns!"
"Huh?"
Sasaki stomped heavily with his forelimbs, instantly crushing the ground beneath him. He roared, "Then come at me!"
The boxer tightened his fists.
Anyway, there weren't many small fry left!
But just at that moment...
"That's enough."
In the sky, Ian declared the end of the battle royale.
Only ten pirate crews were left on the island.
**********
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