vncnus Page 139
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“Ah,” Ace pulled down his hat brim, a bright and determined smile on his face, “I’ve bothered you for several days now, it’s time to continue my journey. Thank you all for your hospitality!”
Shanks, holding a wine glass with one arm, walked up to Ace, his red hair fluttering slightly in the sea breeze. He wore an appreciative smile, but his eyes were as sharp as an eagle's.
"You've made up your mind? The next target is really that old man with Whitebeard?"
Ace nodded without hesitation, his eyes burning with intense passion: "Ah! I will challenge him, defeat him! I will prove to the world that I, Portgas D. Ace, will become the strongest man in the world!"
This arrogant declaration drew good-natured laughter and cheers from Yasopp and the others.
"Ambitious!"
"Haha, it's so good to be young!"
"Be careful not to get too badly beaten by Whitebeard, kid!"
Shanks gave Ace a deep look, offered no advice, and simply raised his glass: "In that case, I wish you... good luck in battle!"
Everyone raised their glasses to bid farewell to this spirited young pirate.
Ace also took a glass of wine, clinked glasses with everyone, drank it all in one gulp, then turned around and strode onto his own sailboat.
"Raise the sails! Let's go!"
The Spade Pirates' ship slowly sailed away from the coast, carrying Ace's ambition and determination, and disappeared into the vast sea fog.
On the shore, the members of the Red-Haired Pirates watched the ship sail away and discussed among themselves.
"What an amazing young man!"
"The power of fire is also troublesome."
"Letting him cause Whitebeard some trouble wouldn't be bad, hehe."
Shanks stood there, a faint smile playing on his lips, lost in thought.
at this time--
A lookout hurriedly slid down from the height, ran quickly to Ben Beckman, and whispered:
"First mate! Ship spotted to the southeast! Flying the flag of... Shichibukai 'Purple Sword' Kuina! Heading this way!"
The voice wasn't loud, but all the officials present could hear it clearly.
The once bustling coastline instantly fell silent.
Everyone's gaze, including Shanks's, turned to the southeastern sea.
The Seven Warlords of the Sea, "Purple Sword"...
That female swordswoman who has risen to fame in recent years, known for her sharp swordsmanship and ruthless style, and who is often used as a pawn by that old man Sengoku, has been cleaning up a lot of troublesome pirates in the New World.
How did she suddenly end up here?
Is it a coincidence, or... intentional?
The relaxed and carefree feeling that had just been relieved after Ace's departure quietly dissipated in the air, replaced by an invisible solemnity and scrutiny belonging to the realm of the strong.
Ben Beckman lit a cigarette, his eyes sharp as he watched the smoke billowing around him.
Raki Lu put down the meat in his hand.
Jesus cloth gently wiped his beloved gun.
Shanks slowly finished the remaining liquid in his glass, his single arm hanging casually at his side, his gaze calmly fixed on the gradually becoming clearer silhouette of the ship on the distant horizon.
Storms always seem to come one after another.
A new crew member, eager to prove himself, couldn't contain himself any longer.
Seeing that the cadres all looked serious, he felt this was a good opportunity to show off.
She's just a Shichibukai, and a woman at that. How powerful could she be? Maybe I can stop her and make a name for myself in front of Shanks and the other officers!
"Hmph! So what if she's a Shichibukai! I'll go and teach her a lesson!"
The newcomer grinned maliciously, and without waiting for anyone's orders, he suddenly exerted force with his feet, and his whole body shot out from the shore like a cannonball!
He stepped on the scattered driftwood and rocks on the sea, and with a few leaps, he stood menacingly in front of the slowly approaching sailboat flying the "Purple Sword" flag.
Hey! Listen up, ship ahead!
The new crew member stood with his hands on his hips on a protruding rock, speaking loudly with a deliberately arrogant tone.
"This is the territory of the Red-Haired Pirates, one of the Four Emperors! All irrelevant people, get out of here right now! Otherwise, don't blame me for being impolite!"
He imagined himself exuding domineering aura, scaring the other party into turning tail and running away.
However, the expected panic did not occur.
The ship didn't even slow down.
A purple figure appeared silently at the bow of the ship, like a ghost.
Guina hadn't even fully emerged from the shadows of the cabin; she merely glanced indifferently at the newcomer blocking her way.
No one even saw whether she made a move to draw her sword.
It felt as if there was an extremely thin purple thread in the air, flashing by at a speed beyond the reach of the eye!
A barely audible sound.
The new crew member felt a chill on his forehead, as if a shard of ice had grazed it. He instinctively reached up and touched it, his fingertips finding a thin trail of warm liquid seeping out.
He stiffly looked down and saw a few strands of his hair, which had been cut off, slowly falling.
The fear of death was like ice water, instantly dousing my entire body!
He had no doubt that if that sword had been just an inch lower, what would have landed on the ground now would not have been his hair, but his head, cut in half!
All courage and arrogance vanished in an instant.
The new crew member was deathly pale, his body trembling uncontrollably, and his crotch was quickly soaked, emitting a foul odor.
He let out a dissonant, terrified scream, tumbled and scrambled off the rocks, and swam frantically toward the shore at an astonishing speed, as if a sea monster were chasing him.
They came with great fanfare, but left in a sorry state, like stray dogs.
The entire process, from provocation to retreat, took only a few seconds.
On the shore, the Red-Haired Pirates' officers witnessed this entire scene.
There was no ridicule, no gossip.
Only a deeper silence remained.
Ben Beckman exhaled a smoke ring, his eyes deep and thoughtful.
Raki Lu touched his fat belly.
Yasopp whistled, seemingly finding it amusing.
Shanks' gaze remained calm, but the faint smile at the corner of his mouth seemed to deepen slightly.
In just one encounter, without even actually making a move, a mere warning "haircut" was enough to terrify a pirate with a bounty of just over a hundred million, causing him to flee in a sorry state.
"Purple Sword" Kuina.
The sailboat, flying a purple sword flag, continued its steady course, cutting through the waves and sailing smoothly toward the island's coast.
An invisible pressure, like a tide, slowly washed over the shore where the Red-Haired Pirates were located as the ship approached.
Chapter 168 Old friends meet
The sailboat flying the "Purple Sword" flag sailed steadily onward, as if the trivial incident had never happened. But the calm yet undeniable aura emanating from the ship made the atmosphere on the shore even more stagnant.
“Tsk,” Raki Lu took a bite of meat and mumbled, “Looks like he’s not someone to mess with. Should we… say hello first?”
His so-called "greeting" was certainly not an ordinary greeting.
Yasopp paused slightly as he wiped the gun barrel, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes. He closed his eyes and focused, his powerful Observation Haki spreading out like invisible tentacles towards the ship, attempting to sense its true nature.
However, just as his Observation Haki was about to touch the ship's hull—
An indescribable, seemingly bottomless mental barrier effortlessly blocked his senses! Not only that, but behind that barrier, there seemed to be an even more vast and profound will, like a sleeping dragon, whose unconscious lingering aura caused his mind to tremble slightly!
Yasopp suddenly opened his eyes, a look of surprise on his face: "My Observation Haki... is blocked! And... there's a Conqueror's Haki aura on that ship! Very... special!"
The fact that the word "special" is used to describe the extraordinary nature of Jesus cloth speaks volumes about its quality.
"Conqueror's Haki? Could it be Observation Haki?" Ben Beckman exhaled a smoke ring, his eyes becoming even more profound. "It seems this Shichibukai is more interesting than we imagined."
Shanks had been calmly watching the ship, but upon hearing Yasopp's report, the faint smile on his lips seemed to deepen. He slowly placed his hand on the hilt of his famous sword, "Griffin," at his waist.
"You'll know if you try it."
The moment the words fell—
A terrifying aura, vast and boundless, like a churning sea of blood, erupted from Shanks' center!
This was not an indiscriminate area-of-effect intimidation, but a highly concentrated impact of will with a clear probing intent! The crimson Conqueror's Haki almost solidified, like a roaring blood dragon, tearing through the air, carrying an overwhelming pressure, and rushing precisely towards the oncoming sailboat!
Wherever it passed, the sea surface was pressed into deep dents by an invisible force, and the air hummed under the strain!
A casual, probing attack using Conqueror's Haki at the level of a Yonko!
The officers on the shore held their breath, their eyes fixed on the ship. They wanted to see how it would react. Would it desperately resist? Would it be forced to unleash its Conqueror's Haki in a clash? Or... would it be directly intimidated and rendered powerless?
However, what happened next was beyond everyone's expectations.
Faced with the overwhelming Conqueror's Haki attack, a crimson calamity that could even make a great pirate lose his composure, the ship... made no reaction whatsoever.
There was no thunderous roar of a powerful collision, no violent shaking of the ship, and not even any ripples of energy surge.
That condensed, crimson, domineering aura, upon approaching a certain distance from the ship's hull, seemed to have struck an absolutely unshakeable "nothingness," or like a rushing river merging into a boundless, unfathomable ocean...
Just like that, without a sound...
No, it's more like... being calmly "accepted" by something more essential and profound, without even causing a ripple.
The ship continued to sail in at a leisurely pace.
On the bow deck, there seemed to be figures moving about, but there was still no sense of any powerful aura emanating from them; only a chilling calm.
The coastline was deathly silent.
Raki Lu forgot to chew the meat in his mouth.