Step!
Forced back onto the massive Yuda's body once again, Hancock's expression suddenly shifted.
In that instant, she even forgot about Robin and Nami, who had been persistently entangling her moments ago, and focused all of her attention on the Perfume Yuda instead.
At the same time, Nami and Robin cooperatively slowed their attacks, their gazes turning toward Red in the distance.
After all, Blackbeard was someone Red had been shouting about wanting to eliminate for a long time.
Even now, as Luffy, Zoro, and the others continued to grow stronger, many among the Straw Hat crew still couldn't understand why Red was so wary of Blackbeard—so wary that it surpassed even his caution toward the World Government.
But if it was Red's judgment, then it couldn't be wrong.
"What's going on!?"Hancock demanded sharply.
Her younger sister, Marigold, shook her head hard.
"We don't know either, Sister!"
"Granny Nyon's call came very suddenly, and the situation sounded extremely urgent."
"We—"
As she spoke, Marigold's gaze lifted toward Robin and Nami in the sky.
And at that moment, Red's figure flashed back into view.
"The Black Lion Pirate Alliance?"
The corner of his mouth lifted slightly as he looked at Hancock with interest.
"Perfect timing. We've got some old grudges with that Blackbeard bastard. If you can guarantee you won't leak our whereabouts, then maybe our two pirate crews can work together."
"You should know this already…"
"A pirate alliance formed by Golden Lion Shiki and Blackbeard won't be much weaker than the Four Emperors."
"Sister!"
Hearing Red's proposal, Marigold's eyes instantly lit up.
There had never been any real grudge between them and the Straw Hat Pirates—just a normal clash that happened when pirates met at sea.
If they could get the Straw Hat Pirates' help, their chances of resisting the Black Lion Alliance would be far greater!
However—
"No need!"
Hancock rejected him without hesitation.
Her cold, commanding voice instantly drew everyone's attention.
She swept her hand outward, her gaze briefly passing over Robin and Nami, before declaring with unmistakable imperial authority:
"The affairs of Kuja Island do not require outsiders to interfere!"
At Hancock's signal, the massive Yuda quickly returned to the side of the Perfume Yuda. Twisting its enormous body, it actively latched onto the ship's towing mechanism.
Hancock leapt back onto the deck with composed dignity.
As for the other Yuda, it had unfortunately been caught in the aftermath of Nami's attack on Sandersonia. Now unconscious, it had already been hauled aboard by the Kuja pirates for treatment.
Pulled by the Yuda, the ship soon began to move.
"This battle ends here for today. But the next time we meet, it won't end so easily!!!"
Standing at the railing as the ship departed, Hancock still threw out a final threat toward Red and the others.
Even though, from start to finish, she hadn't gained any real advantage in the fight.
But in the pirate world, that was perfectly normal.
Aside from pragmatic types like Buggy, almost every strong person was the kind who would rather die than soften their words.
"Red—!"
Seeing the Kuja Pirates preparing to leave the area, Nami hurriedly called out.
But Red raised a hand, stopping her.
The next instant, a Hyperspace Hole abruptly opened in midair.
"It's fine. I already left a psychic mark on Hancock."
"Let's go gather Luffy and the others first. Then we'll decide whether it's worth joining this mess."
With that, Red stepped directly into the Hyperspace Hole.
After exchanging a glance, Nami and Robin followed him inside.
...
...
Kuja Island waters.
A floating island radiating an overwhelming aura of evil slowly drifted to a halt directly above the Amazon Lily Kingdom.
Darkness, like a pitch-black cloud, blanketed the Daughter Country.
Light seemed to be devoured by some malevolent god, vanishing little by little from Kuja Island.
"Why did it suddenly get dark? Is it going to rain?"
"No… that doesn't look like a rain cloud. That looks like—"
"An island!!!"
"What is going on!?"
...
The residents of Kuja Island all looked up, shock and unease written across their faces.
Then—
A wildly arrogant laugh, thick with unrestrained desire, echoed down from the island in the sky.
"Zehahahahaha!"
"So this is the legendary Daughter Country! There really isn't a single man in the entire nation!"
"This place is paradise for men!!!"
"Men! Occupy this island!"
"From today onward, this is my, Blackbeard's territory!!!"
Boom!!!
As thick, mist-like black energy poured down from beneath the floating island, countless figures leapt off, falling like a torrential rain.
"Wahahaha! I've heard the legends of Amazon Lily before—never thought a place like this really existed!"
"Following Captain Teach really pays off!"
"Charge! For the alliance!!!"
One crazed pirate after another descended from impossible angles, crashing directly into the heart of the Amazon Lily Kingdom.
In an instant, chaos erupted throughout the city!
Shrill alarm bells rang across the sky, yet they couldn't stop the constant outbreaks of street battles and riots.
"Damn it! Enemy attack!!!"
The Kuja guards stationed along the walls gnashed their teeth in fury.
As a legitimate kingdom where Armament Haki and Observation Haki were widely practiced, Kuja Island's defensive forces surpassed those of over ninety percent of the world's nations.
However—
No matter how strong the guard force was, it only protected the palace and borders. No one had imagined enemies descending directly from the sky into the kingdom's most vulnerable areas.
Fortunately, many former guards and women who had failed selection lived within the city.
Though weaker than the active guard, those who wielded both forms of Haki still far surpassed ordinary pirates.
Thus, countless women who had moments earlier been cleaning, washing clothes, or cooking seized weapons that hadn't seen use in years, rapidly forming civilian resistance forces and clashing with the invading pirates.
In a short time, the entire kingdom plunged into extreme chaos.
Beneath the darkness, bursts of flame flickered like stars in the night sky, flaring briefly before vanishing.
Yet the screams and roars of war rose with the firelight, echoing across Kuja Island in every direction.
"Granny Nyon! What did the Pirate Empress say!?"
Inside the Kuja palace, a woman wearing a leopard-print miniskirt burst in.
Her exposed bronze skin radiated vitality—but the arrow embedded in her shoulder and the blood flowing from it shattered that beauty.
"It's bad… very bad."
Though it should have been midday, the palace relied on bonfires for light.
Granny Nyon—former, former, former empress of Kuja Island—stood hunched with age, her wrinkled face heavy with worry as she gripped her snake-headed cane.
She shook her head at the wounded guard.
"Hancock has encountered an unknown force blocking her as well. Her situation is just as dire."
"Then…" The woman hesitated before asking, "Should we request help from the Marines?"
As a nation under one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, Amazon Lily was technically an affiliated country protected by the Marines and the World Government.
In times of crisis, they had the right to ask for aid.
Even though—
For a pirate of legendary fame, doing so was unbearably humiliating.
Granny Nyon nodded.
"At this point… we have no other choice."
She murmured softly and turned to head deeper into the palace.
But then—
Boom!!!
The palace roof exploded open, a massive hole torn straight through it.
Howling winds and shattered wood poured into the hall.
"Granny Nyon, watch out!!!"
Despite being wounded, the guard rushed forward without hesitation, using her body to shield Granny Nyon from the falling debris.
The next instant, two figures dropped down through the shattered roof into the palace.
"Jihahahaha…"
"Long time no see, Gloriosa."
In the flickering firelight, a man with wild golden hair stood grinning, a cigar clenched between his teeth.
His kimono-like robe fluttered violently in the wind as Golden Lion Shiki greeted Granny Nyon with unmistakable familiarity.
(End of Chapter)