"Naa… nani!???"
"Low-tier pirates!!!"
Hades' sudden shout made Teach freeze for a moment—
And in that one moment, another slash from the Armament-coated ice blade cut open his chest.
"It hurts hurts hurts hurts hurts!!!"
Compared to Blackbeard's stunned reaction, Kuzan was far calmer. He was already used to Orin (Hades) doing everything completely off-script.
The sharp black ice blade flicked away an axe blade with a backhand motion, and his fist—coated in pitch-black Armament—shot straight toward Hades' face.
Of course, it was blocked by the other axe again.
The two continued fighting recklessly.
From deeper in the forest, faint sounds of panic and arguing could be heard.
"Hey!!! Luffy, calm down!!!"
Chopper and Usopp were trying to stop him too.
"Wait, Luffy! Those guys look insanely strong!!!"
But clearly, they couldn't stop him:
"Move!!! Which one of them is that axe freak calling a low-tier pirate?!!!" (Luffy with angry face)
"I'm the man who's gonna become the Pirate King!!!"
Hearing that shout, Hades' lips curled slightly.
The mindset of Pirate King-types… always the easiest to guess.
"If I were afraid of the Marines, I wouldn't have risked my life to go out to sea!!!"
He planted his feet to build momentum.
Luffy's eyes were locked on the earth-shattering battle before him. There wasn't an ounce of fear on his face—
Only the desire for the title of High-Class Pirate.
Zoro, Sanji and the others, however, saw the situation clearly. That Marine Admiral, and that man wielding dual axes—were absurdly strong!!!
As Teach lay on the ground screaming in pain, the Dark-Dark Fruit's power briefly stopped working, and a crushing wave of cold erupted outward.
"Ice Age!!!"
Layer after layer of freezing energy surged outward. The raging waves solidified, the ground was buried under frost, and as the icy force surged deeper toward the forest—
The man with dual axes unleashed countless vicious slashes.
The tearing sound split the heavens as he shattered the frozen sea into endless fragments.
"Eh!!!!"
Nami, Chopper, and Usopp's eyes bulged ten centimeters out in fear at the sight!!!
"W-wait, Luffy—charging in now means you'll get killed instantly!!!"
Chopper cried with snot flowing down his face, but when he turned, the person beside him had already vanished.
A shout followed:
"Gomu Gomu no——"
"Storm Gun!!!!"
Hades and Kuzan, within the attack's range, didn't take it seriously at all. Hades simply placed both axes before him.
Aokiji allowed himself to be shattered into ice pieces altogether.
"Even if you're the Old Man's grandson, don't interfere with my fight with him!!!"
"Ka-ka-ka-ka——"
Ice crept across Kuzan's cheek and body. He could see it clearly—Orin was playing with Luffy.
Being targeted by this dangerous guy… with Vice Admiral Garp's grandson's current strength, it was far too early.
Finishing this quickly… was at least a roundabout way to protect him.
Thinking this, Kuzan's face covered with frost, white mist drifting from his mouth, he stood before Luffy—pressure maxed out.
"Luffy!!!!"
"Luffy?!!!"
Seeing this scene, the Straw Hat crew finally ran out from the forest. There was no way they could just stand by anymore.
"Aokiji…"
Robin followed behind, trembling as she looked at the tall figure with curly hair. Kuzan finally seemed to notice her.
"Ah… I know you. The World Government already confirmed your identity. You're Nico Robin, right?"
"The survivor of the Ohara Incident."
As he spoke, Kuzan's gaze drifted toward Hades, who was watching the show from the side.
Years ago, the government's intelligence had already confirmed Nico Robin's identity—the mysterious survivor of the Buster Call on Ohara in Sea-Circle Calendar 1500.
As for how she escaped, they guessed she most likely hid aboard Orin's ship at the time.
Robin's appearance made Kuzan feel something was terribly wrong inside.
He knew Orin too well—his personality, his behavior—he could trace it back over twenty years.
That bastard…
He comes back and immediately starts plotting something again?
This only strengthened Kuzan's determination to make Luffy and the others escape.
"A Straw Hat crew with a total bounty over two hundred million… I'll end all of you right here."
Hades simply watched. Beside him, Teach clutched his stomach wound. The two observed the completely one-sided domination.
"Zehahahaha… things are getting complicated. Looks like Straw Hat Luffy's journey ends early here."
Cold sweat dripped down Blackbeard's face. His words were full of irritation.
His intended target—meant to be handed to the Marines—was being stolen early by the Marines themselves.
"Then Captain, what do we do?"
Hades hadn't expected Kuzan to still recognize him.
He didn't want to stay here long—if they called out his name, it'd get awkward.
"Zehahahahaha… There are tons of monsters with over a hundred-million bounties in the sea. No need to fight an Admiral here."
"Men, we're leaving!!!"
A wave of darkness surged. The frozen pirates thawed and immediately followed their captain and vice-captain, boarding the telekinesis-controlled raft that floated away.
"Hey!!! Axe freak, wait!!!"
Seeing the one who called him a low-tier pirate leaving, Luffy panicked instantly. But Hades only waved at him with a grin.
"Ma… don't rush~"
"In the future, we'll definitely meet again, low-tier pirate!!!"
Hades waved while laughing.
"You bastard!!!"
Luffy's temperature spiked, ready to grab a tree and launch himself, but Zoro and Sanji held him back.
"Wait, Luffy!!! There's still an enemy to deal with!!!"
Aokiji's face was hidden behind rising frost, his expression unreadable.
Because just moments ago, a voice whispered into his ear—
"It's been a while, my dear friend. You don't want me to lose my fun and kill Garp's grandson here out of anger, right? So don't say anything. Otherwise, things get boring, don't they?"
That bastard…
Watching his nemesis escape while he stood powerless—rage surged through him.
Sometimes he even wondered—
If he weren't a Marine, would he finally have the freedom to fight without restraint?
But that would make him a deserter…
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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