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Chapter 178: Lucky Arlo
Chapter 178: Lucky Arlo
At this moment, Kuro had already retreated to the plaza, eager to flee as quickly as possible.
The strange noises coming from Kas’s group were nothing more than an annoyance to him. After all, human joys and sorrows differ—he couldn’t care less about their frantic shouting. In this world, people roaring wildly was nothing out of the ordinary. He’d long become accustomed to it.
From his vantage point on the plaza, Kuro looked down and saw pirates swarming forward like ants. The numbers were staggering—Whitebeard’s sixteen squads, each with a hundred elite members, plus forty-three pirate crews, totaling over twenty thousand. The horde seemed endless.
But these pirates were no ordinary foes. Veterans of the New World’s blood-soaked battlegrounds, they were far superior in combat to most Navy forces from the first half of the Grand Line.
Kuro sighed. Luring them to the designated spot would still require some effort. As for fighting himself? He’d had enough. After his earlier clash with Whitebeard, staying in the fray would only draw unwanted attention. Too dangerous. Even slackers weren’t safe now.
Better to retreat first.
On the battlefield, Koby gasped for breath. He’d been stationed at the rear, but vivid images of fallen Navy officers and pirates suddenly flashed in his mind—powerful warriors now lying in blood-soaked puddles.
“No… no, it’s terrifying! I can’t do anything! If they, who were so strong, ended up like that… then me? I’m nothing!”
Koby stumbled backward, the haunting images deepening until he couldn’t take it anymore. He turned and sprinted away.
“Hey, Koby, wait!” Helmeppo chased after him.
In the chaos of war, two retreating figures went unnoticed—unless, of course, someone like Kuro was watching.
Kuro tracked Koby’s path until he vanished into the Headquarters’ rear city. Shaking his head, Kuro pulled out a cigar and lit it.
“Running there now will only get them killed.” He’d seen Akainu head in that direction earlier.
Kuro exhaled a plume of smoke, scanning the battlefield. “In war, escaping is never easy.”
He turned to leave.
“Kuro, where are you going? Wait for me!” Lida rummaged through her bag, pulling out a Devil Fruit and biting into it as she followed.
That last skirmish had left her famished. Better to eat something. Without Lucius Kro’s Admiral-level ice tricks, she’d have had to lift those ice blocks herself. Thank goodness she’d been spared that.
The Headquarters’ rear housed Marineford’s city, now eerily deserted. Everyone had evacuated. The only ones left were medical teams, though even they stayed put during wartime. No Navy officer would retreat here—except deserters.
As Koby fled farther from the battlefield, the intrusive images in his mind finally faded, easing the weight on his shoulders.
“Hey, Koby! Are you running from the battlefield? Wait for me!” Helmeppo complained behind him.
“Return to the battlefield!”
A thunderous roar suddenly echoed from the side.
Koby froze, ducking behind a building. “That’s Admiral Akainu?”
Before Akainu, a Navy officer begged, rifle slung over his shoulder, “Please spare me! I don’t want to die! If I die, who’ll care for my family? Just thinking of them weakens my legs. I’ll die for sure if I go back!”
Akainu removed his hat, adjusted his hair, and replaced it.
“If you truly care for your family, don’t shame yourself. Return to the battlefield—Vice Admiral old man will pretend he saw nothing.”
“No! Please!”
“Is that so?”
Akainu clenched his magma-wreathed fist, raising it toward the trembling officer.
“Admiral Sakazuki.”
A voice interrupted. Akainu paused, turning to see Kuro approaching with Lida and Klah.
“Kuro, what are you doing here?”
Kuro scratched his head. “Saw a few confused Navy men. Thought I’d check if I could handle this.”
Akainu frowned. “Deserters have no honor. Let old man execute him. Dying on the battlefield spares his family disgrace.”
“They’ve just lost their way. Let me handle it.”
Kuro unsheathed Autumn Water. “Wasting such potential is a pity. If he refuses to listen, I’ll send him off personally.”
Akainu studied him. Kuro met his gaze steadily. After a moment, the magma on Akainu’s fist receded.
“Do as you wish.”
He stepped past the trembling officer, disappearing into the distance.
Kuro turned to the officer. “Heard him. Back to the battlefield.”
“No! Please! I’ll die if I go back!” The officer collapsed, begging.
Kuro resheathed his blade. “Honestly, I get it. Even Admirals risk death in battle. But you’re a Navy officer.”
He crouched beside him. “Your family takes pride in your service. I won’t kill you, but if word spreads that you fled… your neighbors, your wife, your children will bear the shame. The brave Navy officer who escaped pirates’ attack—how will your hometown view them? Your wife and kids will face scorn as a deserter’s family.”
“Stay here, hiding in this empty city, and you’ll never escape that stigma. Retreat if you fear death, but do it on the battlefield—not here.”
The officer looked up, his face paling with hesitation.
Kuro offered his cigar box. “Here. Calm your nerves. Admiral-grade cigars from Lucius Kro himself. A rare treat.”
“Th-thank you…”
Kuro lit the cigar for him. “Return to the battlefield. Otherwise, if Akainu catches you, you’re dead. Deserter’s fate: certain death. Battlefield: one in ten thousand chance. Your choice.”
“I understand.”
The officer inhaled deeply, adjusted his rifle, and marched back toward the chaos.
“Kuro, will he really go back?” Lida asked.
“How should I know?” Kuro stood, glancing at a corner. “Hey, you two—out.”
Koby and Helmeppo emerged, embarrassed.
“Kuro… sir.” Koby kept his head low, clenching his fist. “I’m not a deserter! I just… kept seeing images of fallen Navy officers in my mind. I couldn’t fight!”
“Images?” Klah blinked, startled. “You mean… you can see them too?”
Klah’s Awakening of Observation Haki had come recently—back then, he’d seen unwanted visions anywhere. Only training with Kuro and Lida had tamed it. But this kid, Koby, at sixteen? Awakening Observation Haki already?
Klah eyed him. This brat might go far.
“Garp Vice Admiral handles training,” Kuro said. “Ask him after the war. But before that—”
“Gaaaahhhhh!!!”
A deafening scream erupted above.
Kuro looked up. A warship plummeted from the battlefield’s edge.
“That’s—”
Klah spotted a straw hat soaring above the wreckage.
“Luffy!” Klah’s eyes widened. “It’s definitely him! How did he get here?!”
“Mr. Luffy?!” Koby gasped, already sprinting toward the crash.
“Koby!” Helmeppo shouted, then sighed apologetically at Kuro before chasing after.
Lida licked her Devil Fruit fingers. “That kid again? Enies Lobby, Shabondy… he’s always in the thick of it.”
Born under a lucky star, that one.
Kuro shook his head silently. Their arrival meant war would escalate.
Whoosh!
A shadow darted from the falling ship, landing before them.
A grotesque bird transformed mid-air, its form shifting like slime into a man.
“Success!” Bak Arlo grinned. “Finally free!”
After surrendering to Admiral Lucius Kro on that strange island, he’d been imprisoned in Impel Down. Given his bounty, he should’ve been in the sixth level—but his cooperation spared him, landing him in level five. During Luffy’s chaos, he’d escaped.
He’d planned to flee directly, but the ship’s crew was too dangerous—Crocodile and Jinbei among the Seven Warlords of the Sea, Revolutionary Army leader Ivankov, Luffy of the World Government’s enemies, Buggy of the Straw Hats, and Franky, who’d dared ambush Three Admirals’ ships.
And those last two had gathered pirate followers eager to recruit him. With them watching, he’d had no choice but to come to Marineford.
The moment the ship fell, he’d transformed and fled.
“Now, what birds do I have left? One more flight, and I’m truly free!” Bak Arlo stood, grinning widely—until he saw Kuro, cigar in mouth; Lida, licking her fingers; and Klah adjusting his glasses.
“You?! You’re here?!” His eyes nearly popped out.
(End of Chapter)
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