https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-170-Marine-Headquarters-Major-Klah/13536136/
Chapter 171: What Does This Have to Do With Me, Kuro?
Chapter 171: What Does This Have to Do With Me, Kuro?
The captains were currently engaged in fierce combat with Navy elites in the central area and naturally couldn’t interfere here. However, the newly arrived affiliate captains caught wind of the commotion.
“Klah?”
A man wearing a crown but clad in a jester’s garb glanced at Klah and said, “That’s him.”
This was Amadus, an affiliate captain under the Whitebeard Pirates.
An elderly female pirate studied Klah and remarked, “But I don’t see the knife.”
Elmy, another affiliate captain.
“Don’t overcomplicate it. Just grab him first, and we’ll find out.”
The speaker was a fishman resembling an octopus, wielding six massive cleavers in his six arms as he approached. Garamon, an affiliate captain. A dozen pirates trailed behind him.
These were all captains notorious across the New World, each commanding their own pirate crews!
Faced with ten captains closing in, Klah hurriedly explained, “Wait, I’m not Klah—I mean, I am Klah, but I’m not Kuro!”
“If you’re Klah, that’s enough. We’re after you—what’s this about Kuro?” Lumba tightened his grip on his weapon, stepping closer.
---
In the chaos, Lida delivered a flying Fishman Karate strike to a charging pirate, then shot Kuro a disgusted look. “You used Klah’s name again, didn’t you?”
“No, I didn’t!” Kuro sidestepped a pirate’s blade, kicked him in the gut, and sent him flying. Extending his finger, he fired a Fishman Karate blast at another pirate about to slash a nearby Navy officer, punching a gaping hole through his body.
“I gave my own name. They must’ve misheard. Works in my favor—they’ll ignore me.” Kuro shrugged.
Lida narrowed her eyes. “Wait, where did you get sent flying earlier? Did you meet Whitebeard?”
Kuro refused to answer. That memory was too bitter—tears wouldn’t even come.
Noticing his silence, Lida gasped. “You actually met him? Now they’ll really notice you!”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” Kuro tilted his head as a blade slashed past, narrowly missing him. Lida pointed her finger at the attacker—Bam! The pirate crumpled, his forehead pierced as if by a bullet.
“Klah’s the one in trouble. What does this have to do with me?” Kuro said without a trace of guilt.
He’d announced his real name. If they mistook him for Klah, what could he do? He was just as baffled.
“Is Klah going to be okay?” Lida leapt sideways as Kuro spun around, kicking another ambush-ing pirate away.
“Eh, he charged in himself. A little lesson won’t hurt. At worst, he’ll take a few injuries but still escape.” Kuro swept his leg sideways, unleashing a Soru wispslash. The attack streaked toward a wounded Navy officer being targeted by two pirates nearby. The slash struck both attackers, sending them flying.
“Thanks a ton!” The Navy officer caught his breath, trembling.
“Retreat to the rear if you’re injured. Staying here just wastes your life—and maybe your comrades’ too.” Kuro advised.
Medical teams existed, but the Navy’s were only for cleanup. Entering the battlefield now would only speed their deaths.
“But I can still fight!” the officer hesitated.
Kuro glanced at his rank insignia. “You’re just a Lieutenant. As a Commander, I order you to withdraw. But if you insist on staying, I won’t stop you. Life and death are decided here. If you can’t handle it, retreat without fear of punishment—just tell them Lucius Kro permitted it.”
“Yes, understood, Commander Kuro!” The officer clutched his bleeding shoulder, hesitated, then saluted Kuro and retreated.
He wasn’t a glory-seeker. Survival came first when wounded.
Lida eyed him curiously. “Aren’t you usually neutral toward everyone with affiliations?”
She’d traveled with Kuro long enough to know his nature. He’d help unaligned civilians if he could, but he ignored those with allegiances—Navy, pirates, Revolutionary Army, or the King’s Army.
Kuro grimaced. “In a battlefield of hundreds of thousands, death and injury are inevitable. If some want to retreat, I won’t force them to fight. I’m slacking off myself—can’t blame others for valuing their lives.”
Yet expecting him to babysit the battlefield was unreasonable. “Otherwise, why deploy so many Navy? Just recruit a few combat monsters.”
“Fall back—too close. That old geezer might spot us.”
Kuro checked his distance. The Navy had charged forward recklessly, now clashing below the Moby Dick. Too risky.
“Shave!” Klah vanished, his five claws slashing toward Lumba, the knight-like captain. But Lumba blocked the high-speed assault effortlessly.
The Dierkaban Brothers seized the opening, charging at blinding speed. Forced to parry, Klah retreated, vanishing again with Shave, only to face a razor-sharp gust from behind.
Clang! Klah skidded backward, his claw-blade carving five furrows in the ice. His other arm trembled.
In his former spot stood Garamon, six cleavers raised mid-swing. “Huh? Dodged it. Not bad.”
“Survived under Dad and the captains,” Elmy and other pirates flanked Klah’s opposite side. “Don’t underestimate him.”
“Right. End this quickly—Ace needs us!” Lumba brandished his blade, joining other captains on Klah’s flank. The Dierkaban Brothers and remaining pirates closed in, encircling him.
Around them, fallen Navy littered the ground—collateral damage from earlier clashes.
These New World captains weren’t weak. They were terrifyingly strong.
Handling one or two would’ve been manageable, but a dozen? Klah couldn’t protect the Navy now—he could barely save himself.
“No choice…”
Klah stood, arms hanging low, eyes locked on the closing captains. Escaping would cost blood.
“Charge!!!”
A booming cry erupted from the side—Deng Shi and a Navy squadron surged toward Elmy’s flank.
“Just Navy grunts,” Elmy and others sneered, preparing to slaughter them. But the lead Navy officer slashed forward with a saber, piercing Elmy’s rotund body.
“This can’t be—you—!” Elmy staggered backward, eyes wide. Before she could react, the Navy swarmed her, bayonets and blades carving her into a bloodied corpse.
“Elmy!” The captains roared, charging in—only to find these Navy soldiers unlike the earlier pushovers. Though low-ranked, their ferocity was unmatched.
One captain pierced a Navy officer’s shoulder, but the officer gritted his teeth, grabbing the captain’s arm. Seizing the opening, his comrades hacked the captain down.
Suddenly, the captains were evenly matched.
The officer who’d slain Elmy wrenched his blade from her corpse, shouting at Klah, “You alright, Klah, Mr.?”
“K-Kas?!” Klah gaped in disbelief. “What are you doing here?!”
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
