"Don't come any closer!"
Bang bang bang bang…
The guards kept pulling the trigger, their guns spitting bullets. Countless rounds hit a single man, followed by blasts of gunfire and explosions, yet none of it did any harm.
Toguro stepped forward. Bullets hit his body, carrying all their kinetic force to push him back, but he just walked calmly, completely unaffected.
He was ignoring the bullets entirely!
This is only natural, and the ones firing the guns knew it too. After all, they saw with their own eyes that this monster walked across the sea unharmed, even when their ship's cannons blasted it head-on!
"You're not from the Rocks Pirates, are you? Then why attack us?"
The head of the Figarland family, surrounded by countless soldiers, stared at Toguro. Looking at that body, untouched despite being swallowed by cannon fire, even he felt a trace of fear in his eyes. Still, he said, "Whatever you want, I can give it to you!"
Even among Celestial Dragons, there are differences. If this were one of those fools from the Holy Land, they'd probably still be threatening Toguro, saying things like, "If you dare hurt me, you're dead!" But Figarland knew better. When someone can stroll up to you without fear, why would they care about your empty threats?
So he said straight out that he'd give Toguro whatever he asked for, as long as he could keep his life. As long as he lived, giving up a few things didn't matter.
"The Shikon Jewel... it's with you, isn't it?"
Toguro tilted his head, making a sharp cracking sound, and said to the group in front of him, "I know it's here. Hand it over."
"The Shikon Jewel?"
His words confused the Figarland family. They had never heard of this thing before. From the name, it sounded like some kind of gemstone, and they had plenty of those.
"Stop attacking! Bring out all the treasure!"
If it meant staying alive, forget about one so-called Shikon Jewel—he'd hand over every last bit of treasure. At his command, a team immediately started carrying out treasure chests.
Their ship was docked nearby. They originally planned to head deep into God Valley after landing, since it was a Celestial Dragon base and plantation, with some defenses inside. But before they could get far, Toguro blocked their way.
They still didn't know what this Shikon Jewel was, but clearly nothing mattered more than their lives now. If he wanted it, then take it.
Toguro watched as the Celestial Dragon's guards carried out a stack of huge chests filled with gold and silver. As each chest opened, the glow of jewels lit up the area. Any one of these chests would make an ordinary person's jaw drop, yet the Figarland family gave them up without hesitation.
"We don't know what this Shikon Jewel is…"
The head of the Figarland family looked at Toguro and said quietly, "If you want, you can have all of these."
"No. I only want this." Toguro's eyes fixed on the fourth chest that had just been opened. It was full of gems, but in the next instant, he appeared in front of the man opening it. The pressure from his presence alone made the guard stumble back more than ten steps.
Toguro reached inside and was about to pick up a jewel that gave off a purple glow.
So that's the Shikon Jewel?
Everyone stared at Toguro's target in shock. There was so much treasure here that even Figarland didn't remember when they got this gem. But if this big guy valued it so much, it had to hold incredible power. Still, whatever that power was, it no longer belonged to them…
"Divine Departure!"
Just as Toguro was about to touch the Shikon Jewel, a man's voice suddenly rang out from the distance. He shouted as he swung his blade, and a massive wave of power surged from the edge of his sword.
In that instant, the entire sky grew dark. A thunder-like rumble echoed across the island. Toguro's eyes narrowed, and he leapt back immediately.
A massive crack tore through the ground from far away, like an invisible wall separating Toguro from the treasure chest. Right after, a man approached from the distance, seemingly aiming for the chest.
"Run!"
In that instant, the Figarland family knew a new battle was about to begin. Here, they had no chance to survive. Even with guards and slaves at their side, they were no match at all for such a great pirate!
Toguro took a deep breath, then let out a thunderous roar. It was as if the heavens and earth themselves were howling in anger. A massive gale rose across the world, and the sheer force carried in his roar formed a huge shockwave that blasted straight at Roger, who was rushing over.
Roger had planned to grab the box and leave, but at that moment he had no choice. With one hand, he swung his blade, slicing apart the storm and the shockwave. Then, in the next instant, Toguro was already standing right in front of him.
A master!
Instead of feeling fear, Roger's heart grew excited. Though Toguro wasn't yet fighting at full power, Roger's overwhelming Observation Haki let him hear the vast, unfathomable energy surging inside Toguro.
Roger slashed down with his blade, clashing against Toguro's fist. The impact of their powers shattered the ground beneath them, carving out a massive crater.
"Hey! Say your name!" Roger already guessed the voice he had heard earlier was this man. It seemed he was connected to the Shikon Jewel inside the box. But strangely, the jewel itself was calling out to Roger, begging him to "save it"!
Pushed back by Roger's strike, Toguro stopped where he stood. He raised his hand, removed the sunglasses covering his eyes, dropped them to the ground, and crushed them underfoot.
"Toguro. And you?"
"Just call me Roger! You're strong! How about it, want to be my crewmate?" Roger laughed as he invited him.
"Roger…" Toguro muttered, then suddenly released a suffocating wave of pressure, like an endless abyss. Roger's eyes narrowed as he watched Toguro's aura surge outward in all directions. It felt similar to Conqueror's Haki, yet different. Under this crushing force, the Celestial Dragon guards who hadn't managed to escape fast enough all collapsed one by one.
Their lives were drained away by the demonic energy Toguro carried. In an instant, he entered his full 100% form. Power exploded from his body, his frame swelling larger, though not as much as in his earliest transformation.
With the fragments of the Shikon Jewel fused into him and his mastery of Haki improving, Toguro's base form had become far stronger. The gap between his normal state and his 100% form was no longer as wide as it used to be. Otherwise, Roger's slash just now would have been enough to finish him!
"Hand over the Shikon Jewel, or I'll kill you."