Chapter 56: Pirate Cleaners (4)
"So, which ones are we going to deal with?" Esdeath asked eagerly, full of fighting spirit—she was, after all, a battle maniac.
"Let's go after 'Gunslinger' Lisa Colin first. Judging by the time, he hasn't gotten as far from the island as 'Wrecker' Vander Thorn. As for the two who are hiding, they probably won't be leaving the island any time soon. We'll deal with them when we get back. Let's move!"
On the ship led by "Gunslinger" Lisa Colin, the pirates were nervously sailing. The navigator asked about the course:
"Boss, which direction do we sail next?"
"Idiot! In the Grand Line, due to the magnetic fields, you can't tell directions! Just don't go in the direction the Log Pose is pointing. Damn it, why is Aokiji here?"
"Why can't we go in the direction of the Log Pose, then where are we going, boss?" a low-IQ crewman asked.
"Fool! What if Aokiji is heading that way too? We'd run right into him again!"
"Oh, right."
The lackeys suddenly understood and began flattering their captain:
"As expected of our captain, to think of that!"
"Following a captain like this really puts us at ease."
The praise and flattery made Lisa Colin giddy.
"Haha! The next Pirate King will be me—Lisa Colin, the 'Sharpshooter' who kills from a hundred meters away!"
"Ohhh!"
The whole crew cheered, their excitement like a wild party.
"Captain! There's a small boat approaching from behind!"
A pirate stationed in the Karasu's nest reported.
"Boys! We've got some fat prey coming to us! Get ready for a good fight!"
"Ohhh!"
The lackeys howled again, sounding more like chimpanzees than men.
"The sail on the other ship is down—it looks like they're waiting for us. How thoughtful."
At the bow of the ship stood Esdeath, wearing a bloodthirsty smile. She clapped her hands together.
"Let's see what you're made of. White Ice Spikes!"
In an instant, hundreds of diamond-shaped ice spikes of varying sizes formed around her.
"What the hell?!"
"What is that?!"
The pirates on the opposite ship were stunned.
"Ice…?! Don't tell me it's Aokiji!"
Lisa Colin's pupils contracted violently. He never expected to run into Aokiji here.
Unfortunately for him, he was wrong this time.
Esdeath swung her hands back, then forcefully thrust them forward. Hundreds of ice spikes flew straight toward Lisa Colin's ship.
"Incoming attack! Take evasive action!"
The pirate in the Karasu's nest shouted down—but it was useless.
"Wah!"
"Ahhh!"
"Help!"
The ship descended into chaos—some screamed in terror as spikes landed near them, some howled in pain as they were impaled, and others thrashed in the water, begging for help.
Crack... crack... boom!
The wooden mast, severely damaged by the ice spikes, could no longer support its weight. Cracks spread until it slowly collapsed, sending the Karasu's nest crashing into the sea.
"Our sails are destroyed! We can't move!"
"Damn it! Damn you, Aokiji!"
Lisa Colin cursed the absent Kuzan.
...
"Achoo! Achoo!"
"Huh? Even an Ice Human like Admiral Kuzan can catch a cold?"
His adjutant joked beside the over-three-meter-tall man lounging in a deck chair.
"Ararara, don't joke around. I just felt like some pretty lady was thinking about me."
...
"Huh? Captain, it's just a small boat, not a battleship!"
One of the pirates observed the approaching single-masted vessel. Only four people were aboard—three women and one man.
"Huh?"
Lisa Colin, sweating profusely as he schemed, perked up at the news and suddenly felt like he had a chance to turn the tables.
"Boys, attack!"
As if under a spell, the rest of the crew charged like they were high on something, preparing to board. Had they forgotten Esdeath's previous beating? Or had the ones who got beaten already joined the dead?
"You guys stay out of this. I can handle it myself!"
Even before the ships touched, Esdeath leapt with force, landing directly on the enemy ship.
"Alone?"
The pirates surrounded her. Her bloodthirsty smile etched itself into their minds—without realizing it, the phrase "Ice Smile" appeared in their thoughts.
With a newly forged Western-style sword crafted by Da Vinci himself, she pointed it forward and declared a smile :
"Finally, a real fight. Make sure you satisfy me."
Esdeath—known as the Empire's strongest—no, she was the strongest! Even when facing an army of a million, she remained calm. Now she stood before Lisa Colin and his crew, exuding a force so overwhelming it made their legs tremble. Some even stepped back several paces.
"What's wrong? Not going to attack?"
As a battle maniac, Esdeath wouldn't wipe them out in one move. She liked to torment her prey before the kill—like a cat playing with a mouse.
"You dare underestimate us?!"
"Attack!"
But despite their shouts, no one moved. Two who spoke hesitated, embarrassed by their own cowardice—when death stared you down, nobody was stupid enough to go first.
"Is that so? Since you won't come to me, I'll come to you."
Esdeath didn't use her powers—just her swordsmanship. The new blade, though not imbued with Haki, was sharp enough to cleave through enemies and weapons alike. Severed limbs, spurting blood—it painted a gruesome scene. Yet not a single drop stained her white uniform. Esdeath's expression was one of cruel delight.
"Arara, such a battle freak."
Kurumi commented indifferently. Once known as the most evil spirit, the "Nightmare," she had personally killed tens of thousands. She'd even ruthlessly gunned down men torturing cats in a park with toy guns—spraying blood everywhere. So she had no issue with Esdeath's brutality.
"Mm."
Akame didn't kill the innocent, but she never hesitated when carrying out an assassination. Her strikes were never soft, and her crime scenes were always a mess. The carnage Esdeath caused drew no reaction from her.
...
Bang bang bang bang!
Lisa Colin, as captain, had skills of his own. His twin pistols fired flames from their barrels, sending round lead bullets at Esdeath.
"Damn it, this monster woman!"
The moment she stepped onto his ship, his alarm bells rang. Seeing her skills now, he realized this was the strongest enemy he had ever faced… and might also be his last.
"We've got no grudge with you! Why are you trying to kill us?!"
Watching half his crew slaughtered, Colin shouted in despair.
To encounter such a strong enemy by sheer misfortune and have his hard-built pirate crew wiped out—he felt as if all his years of effort had amounted to nothing.
"Aren't pirates supposed to seek freedom? I'm a pirate too. I seek the freedom—of battle and slaughter."
As she finished Speaking, all he saw was the blade of a sword growing larger in his vision...
(END CHAPTER)
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