"What do you mean, Tsuru?"
Kong looked at Tsuru, hoping for an explanation.
Tsuru frowned deeply as she thought back.
"That would explain why we haven't been able to track them down at all over the past month. With Observation Haki that terrifying, it would be easy for them to evade both the World Government and Marine surveillance. And that's not all. I also received intelligence from Dalton, the guard captain of the Drum Kingdom. When the Sky Pirates arrived there, someone tried to contact the nearby Marines, but the Den Den Mushi simply wouldn't connect. At the time, I thought it was Marine negligence. Now it seems that wasn't the case at all…"
Sengoku immediately grasped the implication.
"Tsuru, you're saying they also have the ability to block Den Den Mushi communications…"
That realization made everyone's expressions darken further.
"They really are a troublesome enemy."
Kong scratched his head in frustration. The strength and methods the Sky Pirates had revealed were becoming more numerous and more dangerous by the moment. Yet for now, neither the Marines nor the World Government had any effective countermeasures.
At the very least, they were completely unable to field any combat power above the Admiral level against them, unless they resorted to a Buster Call.
But even if they did, how would they locate the Sky Pirates in the first place?
"Have the Science Division think of something," Kong said. "For now, we'll continue observing this battle and gather as much intelligence on the Sky Pirates as possible, so we can prepare to deal with them in one decisive move in the future."
Kong's words effectively brought the discussion to a temporary close. Everyone turned their attention back to the projected image.
And at that moment, an unbelievable scene unfolded…
...
4 vs 3000
No matter how one looked at it, this was a battle whose outcome seemed already decided.
The pirate hunters surging forward like ants thought the same. So when the four robot-like dinosaur figures suddenly appeared in front of them, blocking their path, no one paid them any real attention.
That was understandable. If these four robots had been larger, they might have felt threatening. But at under two meters tall, they looked small, especially in a world where so-called "giants" among pirates were everywhere.
But very quickly, their attention was drawn in.
Among the four dinosaur robots standing before them, the one with a deep blue back and a golden belly stepped forward, positioning itself ahead of the other three.
Its arms, shaped like shark-cleaver blades, crossed in front of its chest before slowly lifting into the air. At the same time, visible blue electrical currents began to surge across its body.
"What… is that…?"
A few people reacted instinctively, their steps slowing. But most of their minds were already a blur, filled with nothing but gold and Belly.
"Scythe Secret Art: Cross Slash."
"!!!"
In that instant, everyone felt something scream past their ears, followed by searing pain as dark red blood burst from their bodies.
"Huh?!"
"What just happened?!"
The dense mass of pirate hunters rushing toward the center of Scrap Island and the Twin Goddesses fell in waves, like wheat cut down by a scythe. In the narrow waterway, the ships of those who couldn't dodge in time were instantly split into four pieces.
For a moment, time itself seemed to freeze. No one could understand what had just occurred.
Only a handful of swordsmen who survived the slash were able to see it clearly.
That was a flying slash. A technique only a true swordsman could unleash.
With that single strike, at least two or three hundred pirate hunters were instantly taken out of the fight…
…
Watching that scene unfold, the most stunned person on the deck was Erik.
"Devil Fruit powers really are convenient… I trained for eight years to pull off a slash with that kind of power, and Kuroli only needed two weeks…"
"If you want one," Yemu said with a grin, "I can find you a fruit too."
To be honest, Erik was tempted. But after a moment's thought, he shook his head.
"Forget it. My master said a true swordsman can't rely on anything external besides the blade in his hand. And besides, we already have plenty of Devil Fruit users on this ship…"
"Hahaha…"
It was true. The Sky Pirates already had a lot of Devil Fruit users. With the four Kuro brothers included, there were eight of them now.
Devil Fruits were undeniably powerful, but their weaknesses were also painfully obvious. Having Tiger, Erik, and Ayala—three who weren't Devil Fruit users—meant the crew had a safer margin if anything went wrong.
Of course, the reason Kuroli could unleash a slash like that was also because the Kama Kama no Mi was perfectly suited to slashing attacks.
But still…
"Kuroli used up all its energy in one go… Enel, I'm counting on you."
"I know."
...
"What… what kind of monster is that…?"
The sight of the first two or three hundred in front collapsing instantly, along with more than a dozen ships in the channel being cut apart, hit everyone like a hammer. With death staring them in the face, no matter who they were, they instinctively slowed and stopped.
Then hope flared again.
After that single attack, the dinosaur-like mechanical monster's presence clearly weakened. It even flopped down on the ground.
"It… it's out of energy!"
Someone realized it first, and excitement rippled through the crowd.
"Charge! They're robots! If they're out of energy, they can't move!"
But then a bolt of lightning crashed down from the sky. The robot's eyes blazed with lightning, and with a sharp hiss it vented white mist. In the blink of an eye, it sprang back up, lively as ever.
"Th-this…"
Before anyone could even finish reacting, the golden dinosaur stepped forward under a wave of terrified stares. The three cannon barrels on its back tilted toward the sky.
"Fungus Launcher: Tickle Dance!"
"Bang, bang, bang…"
More than a dozen red shells shot into the air and burst like fireworks. The fragments spread out overhead, drifting down as a red mist that blanketed everyone beneath it.
"W-what is this…?"
Some people reached out curiously to touch it.
Instantly, red fungal patches bloomed wherever they made contact, and then—
"So itchy… so itchy…"
"It itches!"
"What is this stuff?!"
"Everyone, be careful! Don't touch it, and don't scratch! The more you scratch, the more spots show up!"
If Kuroli's all-out slash had only taken a few hundred people out of the fight, then this time nearly a thousand were rendered helpless.
...
"Is this also a Devil Fruit ability?"
Little Franky came out from the cabin and saw the pirate hunters covered in those unsettling red spots, spreading more and more by the second. Just looking at it made his own skin itch, and he had to fight the urge to scratch.
Ayala answered him.
"Yeah. Kurota's Noko Noko no Mi is really useful. But after Captain Yemu reminded me, I've only helped Kurota develop two kinds of spores so far. One is the Itch Spore, the pink ones you're seeing now. Anyone who gets it on them starts itching like crazy. The other is the Hallucination Spore. It makes people see things."
"Huh?!"
Little Franky turned to stare at the girl in front of him, about the same age as he was, with white hair and an almost overly cute face.
"You made those, Ayala?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"N-no reason…"
A chill ran down Little Franky's spine. Figures. The cuter a girl looked, the scarier she really was.
Just then, Ayala added with a touch of regret, "Both spores are strong, but their weakness is obvious. They're afraid of wind and seawater…"