On a merchant ship belonging to the Komodo Merchant Guild.
The ship was enormous, over a hundred meters long, with two upper decks and three lower levels.
However, the current scene on the deck was a slaughterhouse: bodies were strewn everywhere, blood flowed like a river, and the mast, structures, and everything else had been utterly wrecked.
Thud-thud-thud-thud... thud-thud-thud-thud...
On the ship's second level, a clear set of footsteps echoed through the dark corridor.
On both sides of the corridor were iron-wrought cages holding many people in tattered clothes: men and women, old and young. Nearly everyone was filthy, and some were even confined with handcuffs and shackles. Furthermore, the entire second level emitted a disgusting, strange, foul odor.
Hearing the footsteps, these people looked with fear toward the source of the sound. They had initially heard sounds of fighting and screaming from above—even blood had seeped down—but now, the sounds of fighting and screaming had vanished, and they couldn't even sense the presence of anyone on the deck above.
The unknown breeds fear, and the footsteps emerging from the darkness were equally terrifying.
Clutching a dim oil lamp that barely illuminated the path ahead, Aeridar looked at the slaves in the cages on either side, his heart unmoved.
He was no longer the earthling who had just transmigrated. Years of this life had completely transformed him.
While he despised the slave traders, Aeridar felt no pity for those who had become slaves. To him, they were all simply weak. Weakness was the original sin; their plight was their own fault. To be enslaved, they only had themselves to blame for being too weak.
Ignoring the fearful or bewildered glances from the people on both sides, Aeridar walked directly inside. He had already gotten the information he needed about the five young girls from Kuja from the guards above.
"Number fifty-one… here it is." Aeridar looked at the number branded onto the top of the cage, then at the five filthy little girls, about seven or eight years old, inside. He immediately asked, "Hey~ Are you girls from Kuja?"
The five girls looked up upon hearing the voice. The light was harsh, so they simultaneously shielded their eyes with their hands, squinting to make out the person in front of them.
"Oh, Aer… Aeridar-san! It's Aeridar-san~!" one of the girls in a floral dress cried out excitedly, recognizing Aeridar.
Due to Aeridar's relationship with Hancock, he had visited Amazon Lily several times, so the Kuja people all knew him.
"Ah~ I'm here to rescue you," Aeridar knew he had the right people when he saw their excited reaction.
Screeech~
Clang~
With a teeth-grinding sound, Aeridar grabbed the cage door and forcibly tore the steel-wrought gate right off, tossing it onto the floor.
The five little girls stared dumbfounded at the violent Aeridar. The cage was made of steel, yet it had been ripped off with bare hands—what terrifying strength!
"Come out. I'm taking you away." Aeridar said plainly.
"Oh..." The five girls obediently walked out.
Soon, Aeridar brought the five girls to the first level. Though their faces were pale at the sight of the corpses scattered across the floor, the girls managed not to throw up, a testament to their heritage as a warrior tribe.
He had them clean up in the ship's bathroom and change into clean clothes before coming out.
By this time, several Marine warships had already arrived one after the other. In the distance, a massive ship, approximately 150 meters long with a huge, sharp axe as its figurehead, could be seen sailing quickly toward them, about two or three nautical miles away.
"Oh? That warship is…" Aeridar raised an eyebrow. "It must be the Pirate Assault Squad led by Zephyr."
Boom, boom, boom, boom…
The Marines and the Happo Navy were engaged in a fierce artillery battle a few hundred meters apart. Furthermore, both the Marines and the Happo Navy had boarded a battered armed merchant ship, seemingly fighting over something with exceptional ferocity.
That armed merchant ship, in fact, was where Aeridar had fought Chinjao. Chinjao was lying unconscious there, and it appeared the Marines and the Happo Navy were battling for control of him.
Naturally, the Marines wanted to arrest Chinjao, while the Happo Navy wanted to reclaim their old leader.
"Mosa Mosa…"
Binz, wearing a flashy ninja suit, shouted as he swayed, and more than ten vine-like plants with leaves rapidly grew, trapping the surrounding pirates one by one.
"Shigan: Ten!" Shuzo, who was dark-skinned, powerfully built, and long-armed, clawed with his hands, easily leaving five bloody holes on his opponents. Within moments, more than ten pirates fell at his hands.
"Bastard! Hasshoken!" Sai took the lead, wielding his naginata, tearing through the Marines. No blade, gun, or shield could withstand a single blow from him.
"Tekkai! Shigan: Five!"
"Hasshoken! Drill Nail: Bujaogen!"
Clang, clang, clang, clang…
Sai, wielding the naginata, and Shuzo of the Longarm Tribe, began a fierce battle. The already ruined deck became even more ravaged by their clash.
However, after fighting the Komodo Merchant Guild and then Aeridar, the heavily damaged Happo Navy was unable to continue the fight against the Marines. Under the Marines' high-spirited, fierce assault, the Happo Navy was steadily being pushed back.
"Boss! Chinjao-sama has been captured!" a pirate suddenly shouted.
Sai looked up and saw Chinjao, who was unconscious and rolling his eyes, bound tightly in chains by the Marines. Simultaneously, a Marine warship was slowly approaching to take him aboard.
"Damn it!"
Glancing at the Marines, whose reinforcements were arriving, and then at his own heavily wounded subordinates, Sai gritted his teeth. After forcing Shuzo back with an attack, he turned his head reluctantly and commanded loudly, "All troops, retreat!"
"Boss!"
"What about Chinjao-sama?"
"Are we just going to leave Chinjao-sama?"
The pirates of the Happo Navy cried out, their emotions running high.
"We have no chance of winning! If we keep fighting, we'll all be left here!" Sai snapped fiercely. "Everyone, retreat now!"
As the new pillar of the family, Sai naturally had a responsibility toward his subordinates. When he knew an action was impossible, he had to retreat to prevent greater casualties.
Following Sai's order, the Happo Navy pirates had no choice but to withdraw from the armed merchant ship. Although they were reluctant, they understood that continuing the fight would truly lead to a complete rout.
"Should we pursue them?" Binz asked.
"Don't push a desperate foe. We've already captured the great pirate Chinjao," Shuzo said calmly.
In truth, the habitually cold-blooded Shuzo wasn't unwilling to pursue, but the Happo Navy's strength far exceeded his imagination. Their individual combat capabilities were exceptionally strong. If he continued the chase with the forces he currently had, it wouldn't be enough to take them down, and it was better to guard Chinjao lest the enemy turn back for a counterattack.
However, while Shuzo and Binz did not pursue, that didn't stop the other Marines. Several Marine warships gave chase, firing continuously at the four remaining battleships of the Happo Navy.
Boom, boom, boom, boom…
Cannonballs hit the sea, sending up splashes several meters high. Sai, having returned to his own ship, immediately ordered a full retreat to avoid further engagement with the Marines.
"Retreat! Full retreat!"
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