Amidst the crowd, Kamado Yoriichi's eyes locked onto a man wielding two swords, dressed neatly and carrying himself like a refined gentleman.
"This man is strong," Yoriichi thought. "Perhaps, before long, I'll have the chance to face him in battle."
He silently vowed to defeat this swordsman.
Not far away, Bang Gu stroked his long beard, a warm chuckle escaping his lips.
"So many young warriors… perhaps this is exactly the kind of trial an old man like me has been waiting for."
Though his hair was entirely white and he was well past sixty, Bang Gu's eyes burned with fighting spirit no less intense than that of the youngest pirate on the field. The phrase old yet strong suited him perfectly.
While most men his age would have long since retired to a quiet life in the countryside, Bang Gu still traveled across the seas, seeking out battles with the strongest.
Such a thing was rare anywhere on the ocean—after all, not everyone was a monster like Garp.
People grew old eventually.
But for Bang Gu, that truth seemed irrelevant. To him, the passing years were nothing more than a small obstacle.
It was precisely this relentless drive to grow stronger that had made him into such a formidable fighter—his strength rivaling that of the greatest warriors on the seas.
The battle had yet to begin in earnest, but the two pirate crews already glared at each other as if it were a matter of life and death. There would be no holding back.
Any chance for diplomacy had long since vanished.
Whitebeard's gaze locked on Kronos in the distance. Suddenly, his massive blade dropped into position—
Boom!
The deafening impact silenced the entire battlefield.
In that moment, it was as if the world contained only two figures—two emperors of the sea—facing each other across the waves.
"Boy…" Whitebeard growled, a dangerous grin spreading across his face. "Have you come here to die?"
Most men, confronted by the world's strongest man, would be scared half to death.
But Kronos was not most men.
Fear? That was impossible.
He chuckled as if he had just heard a ridiculous joke.
"Whitebeard… are you senile?" he taunted. "To say something like that… truly absurd."
The smug look on Kronos's face only stoked Whitebeard's fury.
That damned expression… it was infuriating.
Whitebeard wanted nothing more than to crush him on the spot—but even he knew Kronos was no pushover. A man with such powerful crew members could only be a captain of equal caliber.
Still, Whitebeard had no doubt: there was no way Kronos could defeat him.
And then Kronos raised his voice, stretching out his hand to show five fingers.
"Dealing with you bastards?" he sneered. "We only need five people to wipe out your entire crew!"
The declaration stunned everyone present. For a moment, they wondered if they had heard wrong.
Five people?
To take down the Whitebeard Pirates?
Impossible.
Of course, Whitebeard's men assumed he was joking—or deliberately spouting nonsense to provoke them. Otherwise, they couldn't even begin to guess his true intention.
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