By the time Renault left the Golden City, it was already the next day. One had to admit, there was a reason people flocked here. Some of the "services" were tempting even to Renault.
In fact, last night, Renault had booked a luxury "specialty suite" and spent a wonderful night with Shakky and Hancock. Recalling the unprecedented experiences and the... "equipment" provided, the two women were still a bit dazed.
Of course, Renault hadn't forgotten business. At his request, Tesoro had taken him to the treasury. The Gold Emperor supposedly controlled 20% of the world's Berries, and a huge chunk of that was held in gold and diamonds. Renault unceremoniously swept them into his storage.
By now, Renault had so much gold and diamonds that he didn't even know the total count. The piles of treasure that hadn't even been multiplied by Hairedin's Moa-Moa Fruit were already mountain-high.
After giving Tesoro a few final instructions, he left with the two women.
High in the sky, the Golden Ark flew at incredible speeds. The wind howled, making Renault's cloak flutter loudly behind him. He thoroughly enjoyed the sensation of the wind on his face.
"Hmm?" Suddenly, Renault's brow furrowed. He sensed something was off.
Shakky and Hancock quickly leaned in close to him, their beautiful eyes staring straight at him.
"What are you two doing?" Renault asked, suddenly on guard.
Shakky and Hancock blinked their big, beautiful eyes and spoke simultaneously:
"Captain Renault" "Captain Renault"
Their voices were syrupy and sweet. Combined with their undeniable feminine charm, it was enough to melt a man's bones. Who could resist that?
"Ahem... what exactly do you want?" Renault coughed. When things got this weird, he had to be careful.
Hancock reached out a slender hand, tracing slow circles on Renault's chest. "Captain... I really liked the 'environment' last night. When we get back, can you build a 'specialty room' like that for me?"
Having completely opened up, Hancock was bolder than most could imagine. Her words even made Shakky a bit bashful, though clearly, that was her objective too.
"Oh, so it's about that." Renault rubbed his chin. Thinking back to the various "games" from the night before, they were indeed memorable. Those tools seemed to have completely liberated Hancock's inner nature—it turned out she had quite the hidden streak.
"We can do that." Seeing Renault nod, the two women were overjoyed. They leaned their heads against his chest, greedily inhaling his scent.
"Renault, where are we going now?" Shakky asked casually.
"Yasopp and the others probably haven't finished coating the ship yet. Let's head to the Land of Giants first. It's time to have a talk with Chieftains Jorul and Jarul."
Grand Line, Banaro Island.
After Blackbeard murdered Commander Thatch, stole the Dark-Dark Fruit, and defected from the Whitebeard Pirates, he had gathered four crew members while evading Ace: Burgess, Van Augur, Doc Q, and Laffitte.
At this moment, Blackbeard was looking up at a nearby roof, letting out a boisterous, arrogant laugh.
"Zehahahaha! Commander Ace, you really are persistent, chasing me all the way here! Is it really worth chasing me across the world just because I killed Thatch? Instead of seeking revenge for a dead man, why not join my crew? Whitebeard is old. There's no future in staying with him. The future belongs to me—Blackbeard!"
Standing on the roof was the Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates' Second Division, "Fire Fist" Ace. He had tracked him for a long time and finally found him here.
In response to Blackbeard's recruitment offer, the corners of Ace's mouth curled into a mocking sneer. "Hehehe... Teach, it seems your courage has grown since you deserted. Who do you think you are, speaking such arrogant words? I don't care who the future belongs to, but it definitely won't be you."
"Ace, talking to our Captain like that... I think you're looking for death!"
Bang!
Van Augur, who had been aiming at Ace, pulled the trigger. The bullet tore through Ace's chest, leaving only small flickers of flame in its wake.
"Zehahahaha! Van Augur, he's a Flame-Flame Fruit user. Your bullets are useless against him."
Ace looked down at Blackbeard's group with contempt. "Teach, since you know that, stop wasting my time. Give up, and I'll make sure you suffer less. Otherwise..."
"Zehahahaha!"
Before Ace could finish, Blackbeard burst into laughter as if he'd heard a joke. After a moment, he stopped and clenched his fist. Wisps of black smoke began to drift from his hand.
"Enough, Ace. You're alone now. Don't put on airs as a Commander with me. You really think I'm afraid of you? What I took from Thatch was the Dark-Dark Fruit—the nemesis of all Devil Fruit users. You don't have the right to be arrogant in front of me anymore, understand?!"
Did he really think Teach was still that little subordinate who could be ordered around by anyone in the Whitebeard Pirates?
"You stubborn fool!"
Boom!
Intense flames erupted from Ace's body.
"Fire Fist!"
Ace threw a punch, and a torrent of flames exploded forward. Because it was so fast, Blackbeard and his crew barely had time to react before the fire swept over them.
"Damn it!" "You...!"
Belatedly, Blackbeard began to roll on the ground, grititing his teeth in pain.Due to the unique nature of the Dark-Dark Fruit, Blackbeard had to endure twice the normal pain from any damage received. As the searing heat on his body slowly dissipated, he and his crew stood back up. Aside from looking a bit disheveled, they seemed largely unharmed.
Blackbeard, thoroughly enraged by Ace's sneak attack, glared at him with a sinister expression. "As impulsive as ever, Ace! Today, I'll give you a proper lesson on Pops' behalf!"
"Fire Fist!" Ace didn't bother wasting words and threw another blast of scorching flames.
Having been warned, Burgess and the others dodged immediately. Blackbeard, however, remained rooted to the spot. He slowly extended his blackened right hand and grinned. "Zehahahaha... Ace, let me show you the true power of the Dark-Dark Fruit! Kurouzu!"
It was as if Ace's fire had met its natural predator. The raging flames rushed toward Blackbeard, only to be completely sucked into the black mist swirling in his palm.
"Now, come here!"
But he wasn't done. While Ace was frozen in shock, an immense suction force erupted from Blackbeard's palm. Ace's pupils shrank. He tried desperately to pull away, but it was futile; his body was dragged toward Blackbeard like an object caught in a vacuum.
Blackbeard's arrogant face grew larger in his vision until—Boom!
Blackbeard threw a punch with pinpoint accuracy, striking Ace squarely and sending him flying.
"Gah!" Ace traced a long arc through the air, coughing up a spray of blood before crashing heavily into a nearby building.
"Zehahahaha! Ace, you're looking pretty pathetic right now. Did you really think you had enough strength to come after me alone?" Blackbeard looked at his own smoking hands and laughed. "The power of the Dark-Dark Fruit is truly formidable. Your flames can't pose the slightest threat to me anymore. Ace, just accept your fate!"
Cough, cough...
A series of ragged coughs came from the ruins. A battered Ace crawled out, his face twisted with frustration. He had underestimated this man. It made sense now why Teach had killed Thatch to steal this fruit; he must have known its power all along.
"Zehahahaha! You're at the end of your rope, Commander Ace! Everyone, get him! Capture him!"
Blackbeard was no man of honor; if he could defeat an enemy, he saw no reason to play fair. With the Dark-Dark Fruit already countering Ace's abilities, the combined assault of the crew was too much. It didn't take long for Ace to fall, beaten into unconsciousness.
Van Augur clamped Sea Prism Stone shackles onto Ace's wrists and kicked him aside.
"Wehahahaha! Captain, why are we keeping this guy alive?" Jesus Burgess asked, flexing his muscles. "Ace is a Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates. If we don't kill him now, he'll definitely bring us a lot of trouble."
Since their crew wasn't yet fully established, they still felt a deep dread when it came to Whitebeard.
Under their questioning gazes, Blackbeard shook his head. "My plan isn't just about getting a Devil Fruit. I'm going to use Ace to trade with the Marines for a position in the Seven Warlords of the Sea."
The sickly Doc Q spat out a breath, looking half-dead himself. "Captain, the Warlords are currently at full capacity. There aren't any vacancies."
Blackbeard was prepared for this. "If there isn't a vacancy, we'll create one!"
The crew looked at each other, their eyes lighting up.
"Captain, who do you plan to take out?" Laffitte asked, tapping his cane and performing a small jig. Since Blackbeard had said it so confidently, he must already have a target in mind.
"I've studied the Warlords carefully. Jinbe is a Fish-man; out. Mihawk, Weevil, and Kuma are too strong. Doflamingo has too much influence in Dressrosa; he's a headache to deal with. That leaves Wang Zhi and Silver Axe. Between those two, Silver Axe is the weaker link. We'll strike him."
Burgess and the others nodded after a moment of silence. "Among those names, Silver Axe is indeed the easiest to handle."
"Then let's not delay. Move out! Once Silver Axe is out of the way, we head straight for Marine Headquarters!"
Half a month passed in a flash.
New World, Elbaf.
Known as the strongest nation of giants in the world, this place seemed as if it would never change. For miles around Elbaf, no pirate dared to set foot, and even the Marines and the World Government hesitated to lay a finger on it.
After drifting slowly through the sky for over ten days, Renault finally arrived from the North Blue. He hadn't been in a rush, using the time to bond with Hancock and Shakky. With his current level of power, ten days of training wouldn't have made a massive difference. Furthermore, there was no news of Ace yet, so he didn't need to hurry.
Standing on the deck, Renault looked down at the familiar landscape with a touch of nostalgia. Decades ago, this was where he had intercepted Linlin, killed Mother Carmel, and obtained the Soul-Soul Fruit. It was also where he had recruited Jess, Black Shadow, and Streusen. This place was the second major turning point in his life.
He had returned a few times over the years to visit the two chieftains and the villagers, but those visits were mostly for pleasantries. This time was different.
War with the World Government was imminent. He was now confident enough to face Imu. But before that, he wanted the recognition and assistance of more people. Beyond adding to his military might, he wanted the world to see whose side the people were truly on.
The reason the Giants had remained peaceful for so long, aside from their immense strength, was that they never openly defied the Marines or the World Government. Even if they were dissatisfied with the government's rule, at most a few powerful individuals would leave to become pirates—like the retired Jorul and Jarul, or Brogy and Dorry whom Renault had recruited.
Very few Giants actually left, and even fewer were top-tier powerhouses. Over 90% of Giant warriors remained in Elbaf, avoiding trouble. This was why Elbaf survived. While the Giants were the world's strongest nation, if the World Government truly decided to eradicate them, they couldn't hold out forever. If Imu drew a circle on a map and activated Vegapunk's weapons, a single laser strike might leave no giant standing.
But today, Renault was here to make them take a side. A public side.
Stowing the Golden Ark, Renault led the two women as they landed on the edge of the island.
"Renault, is this where you first met Linlin?" Shakky and Hancock weren't particularly interested in giants, but as his "sisters," they were very curious about the "First Lady" Linlin, especially the gossip.
"Yeah. When I met Linlin, she was only five," Renault said, lost in memory.
"What?! You took Linlin in when she was only five? Then you..." Shakky covered her mouth as if she'd discovered something scandalous.
"What are you thinking? Am I that kind of person? Linlin was an adult by the time that happened, okay?!" Renault's face lined with exasperation as he gave her a light knock on the head.
But the looks Shakky and Hancock gave him were filled with obvious disbelief.
"I'm not arguing with you. Let's go. Business first. Chieftains Jorul and Jarul are already waiting for us."
Meanwhile, at Marine Headquarters, Marineford.
The Navy was currently in its absolute prime. Twenty years ago, Roger was executed, and Shiki and Barrett were subsequently recruited by Renault and vanished. Before Shanks rose to prominence, Whitebeard was the only Great Pirate left. While Roger's death sparked the Great Pirate Era and flooded the seas with criminals, it was mostly a numerical increase in chaos. In terms of genuine threats to the World Government, there were none besides Whitebeard.
Of course, they hadn't forgotten the dangerous man named Renault. They mobilized every resource to find him while simultaneously expanding the Navy's power. Today, the Navy boasted incredible numbers, ships, and cannons, but more importantly, it possessed a formidable core of top-tier combatants.
Commander-in-Chief Kong. Fleet Admiral Sengoku. Admiral Akainu (Sakazuki). Admiral Aokiji (Kuzan). Admiral Kizaru (Borsalino). Vice Admiral Garp.
Six peak-level combatants! It was worth noting that in the year Akainu, Aokiji, and Kizaru were all qualified for the rank of Admiral, Garp—who had always been reluctant—stepped down to Vice Admiral to make room. Knowing Garp still held a grudge over the God Valley incident, Sengoku let him be. Beyond them, there were hundreds of elite Vice Admirals. The Navy had never been stronger.
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