Shikaru peered through his spyglass, scanning the surroundings. "The number is… ten, no, twenty, no, thirty, forty… over forty pirate ships have suddenly appeared in the sea around us!"
"How is that possible!"
Buggy, who was holding a giant chicken leg, exclaimed in disbelief. "How could so many ships appear around us so silently? Didn't the Captain notice?"
Roger downed an entire bottle of rum. "The only one capable of this must be Shiki, the Golden Lion!"
The sea area where Grimm and Roger were currently located was called the "Aethelwald" Sea.
Shiki, the Golden Lion, possessed the power of the Float-Float Fruit and held the title of the world's greatest swordsman at the time. His most troublesome ability was making his warships move freely in the sky.
And it wasn't just him or one warship, but dozens, even hundreds, of fleets with over ten thousand people floating in the air, making him an extremely difficult opponent for the Marines.
It could be said that before Roger was discovered to be researching the Poneglyphs, the Golden Lion was the most troublesome figure for the Marines. No, the Marines were completely helpless against him.
Compared to Roger's easygoing nature, he was more imposing. Compared to Whitebeard's complacency, he was more ambitious. Compared to Redfield's aloofness, his fleet's pirates were incredibly united.
Originally, Shiki considered Roger his greatest enemy. After their negotiation failed last time, he had been looking for an opportunity to recruit Roger, but was repeatedly rejected.
He had originally planned to find an opportunity to eliminate Roger, but after reading today's newspaper, coupled with the Navy's deliberate leaks, Shiki already knew that Roger had mastered the Ancient Weapons and knew his whereabouts.
He couldn't wait and used his ability to reach this place.
Whether it was Shiki's ability affecting the weather or the heavens themselves fearing this once-in-a-century meeting, the previously clear sky was instantly filled with dark clouds. Thunder roared, and heavy rain poured down.
Before Grimm could even disembark from the Roger Pirates' Jackson, Shiki's fleet of over fifty warships had surrounded Roger's crew, both above and below, left and right, in the Aethelwald Sea.
"Seriously, what bad luck. I've been fighting for days, and I'm exhausted. Don't drag me into this!" Grimm said with an exasperated tone, standing on the ship's railing, looking as if he were about to jump onto his own ship, the "Sea King."
Buggy, seeing Grimm about to leave, and for some unknown reason, found the courage to shout at his retreating back, "Hey!! Grimm, you bastard, are you running away when you see danger?"
Grimm turned and glanced at Buggy. This guy was definitely the luckiest son of a gun in the Pirate King world. Perhaps Roger's good luck all along was thanks to Captain Buggy. However, Grimm still waved his hand and said, "Buggy, since when was I one of you guys?"
After saying that, Grimm, along with Plank and Jaina, leaped into the air, landing steadily on his own large iron ship. He then sailed away in the opposite direction of the Jackson.
On the flagship of the Golden Lion's fleet, a warship with a golden lion head emblem, a man with golden mustache, sideburns, and hair, wearing a samurai kimono, stood on the deck, exuding a majestic aura.
Beside him, a member of the Golden Lion Pirates holding a spyglass ran over and said, "Boss, a ship with a peculiar design has left the Roger Pirates' vicinity and is moving towards the outer perimeter. Should we sink it!"
Shiki, chewing on a cigar, raised an eyebrow. "Could it be Roger and the others trying to escape? The man I know is definitely not that kind of person."
"No… it's not. It's Grimm, the 'Below Legend' pirate. The one you mentioned earlier!" the subordinate with the spyglass reported immediately.
"Oh? The Angel Kid who just fought Whitebeard, and coincidentally with Roger!" Shiki realized with a nod.
"Then, Boss, should we…" Faced with the sudden appearance of Grimm, an enemy of such high caliber, the subordinate hesitated and could only await the captain's judgment.
"Pretend we didn't see him. He's just a kid called 'Below Legend.' I'm not interested in him right now. My target today is only Roger!" Shiki declared grandly.
The meaning was clear: ignore Grimm.
"Yes!"
...
"Captain Roger!" Seeing the dense fleet surrounding them, Buggy clutched his head, tears and snot flowing freely, on the verge of wetting himself. "Life is the most important thing! For now, let's go along with Shiki!"
He had thought Grimm would be here, increasing their chances of winning. But this guy completely disregarded their "feast camaraderie" and left. How infuriating.
Shiki, why don't you go after him, Buggy roared inwardly.
But seeing Shiki completely ignore him, Buggy completely lost it.
"You've become so hard to kill, what are you afraid of?" Shanks still had the mood to tease Buggy.
"Easy for you to say! What if he uses his sword like a blunt weapon? And he has plenty of weaknesses, idiot!" Buggy snarled, baring his teeth.
"Trust our companions, trust this Jackson." Rayleigh clasped his arms and looked at Roger's back, sighing, "Roger's time is running out!"
At this moment, Roger stood at the bow of the Jackson, facing Shiki above. He spread his arms, cigar in his mouth, and roared, "How many times do I have to say it, Roger? You now possess the Ancient Weapon Pluton! With my forces and my meticulously planned scheme spanning years, we can conquer the entire world immediately!"
Saying this, Shiki clenched his fist excitedly. "Become my right-hand man, Roger."
Roger's face, tinged with a faint green, showed clear refusal. He shouted, "No matter how much you pressure me, I will reject your naive idea, Shiki!"
"Then, your meaning is that you want me to kill you right here, right now, correct?" Shiki knew that negotiation was no longer possible and issued an ultimatum.
"It means I will crush all of you!" Roger responded, drawing his sword.
In an instant, the roar of cannon fire and the sounds of people fighting in close combat filled the air.
Dozens of kilometers away, Grimm sat with his hands clasped on his knees, gazing at the fiery sea in the distance. He chuckled and said to the two behind him, "Alright, let's enjoy this good show!"
"Great Lord, aren't you going to help Mr. Roger? Didn't you say he's the key to opening a new era? If he…" Jaina asked, confused.
"Oh! Precisely because of that, I won't help him. Because he's the Child of Destiny! And besides Roger, that Red-Nosed guy has the Conqueror's Haki luck of a god. With him around, everything will be fine!"
"Sigh~~" Jaina completely failed to understand Grimm's meaning.
"Watch and see what a protagonist is!" Grimm grinned.
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