Chapter 393: Are You So Desperate?
Chapter 393: Are You So Desperate?
On the shores of the Island of Poisonous Cherry Blossoms, a cleared area remained spotless, sheltered from the wind, with nary a petal in sight.
Here, a group of individuals bore distinctive tattoos—a skull with crossed bones behind, and a crescent moon shaped like a beard above its teeth. They were the Whitebeard Pirates!
On the shore stood Marco the Phoenix, not yet thirty and looking youthful. He gazed into the distance with a telescope in hand. "It's indeed Black Pearl of the John Pirates."
"Hey! Go tell Dad!" Marco lowered his telescope and called out to his companion.
His comrade immediately acknowledged with a sound and dashed off toward the island's interior.
Out on the vast ocean, there were few who could prompt such a serious response from the Whitebeard Pirates—entities like the Beast Pirates, the Big Mom Pirates, and the John Pirates.
"Looks like they're coming for us," said Vista, standing beside Marco with his hands on the hilts of his twin swords, his gaze fixed on the distant sea.
"If they're looking for a fight with Dad, let's send them to the bottom of the sea," rumbled Jozu, seated on a rock behind them.
"Not necessarily," Marco said, lifting the telescope to his eye again. "John knows there's no benefit to starting a war with us. He's no lunatic like Kaido... Hmm?"
As Marco spoke, he paused, his gaze shifting to another vessel through the telescope. It was a medium-sized sailboat with white sails, devoid of any flag, and seemingly a merchant ship rather than a pirate vessel.
He turned the telescope back to the John Pirates' ship and noticed the Black Pearl bearing down on the 'merchant ship,' rapidly closing the distance.
"Someone's caught the attention of the John Pirates," Marco remarked, lowering his telescope.
Jozu and Vista, ever vigilant, had also noticed the two ships approaching. "They're not our people, are they?" Vista asked, his hand tightening on his sword hilt.
Marco glanced at Vista and crossed his arms. "Unlikely. They're probably just unlucky merchants who happened to cross paths with the John Pirates. This island isn't part of our territory yet, and that ship isn't flying our jolly roger."
The Whitebeard Pirates had claimed several territories, but this Island of Poisonous Cherry Blossoms was not among them. Moreover, the approaching merchant ship didn't bear their insignia, indicating it wasn't affiliated with their crew.
The Whitebeard Pirates rarely plundered, often finding themselves in a state of poverty. They mostly targeted other pirates or the assets of the World Nobles, the Celestial Dragons, sparing civilians from their raids.
But they weren't saints, either.
They wouldn't intervene in this situation unless it involved their own, and with Whitebeard himself far away, there was no way they could reach the oncoming ships in time.
Vista released his grip on his sword and shook his head. "If the John Pirates are after us, they're out of luck.
Seven or eight cannonballs were fired toward Feng Ye's ship.
The barrage was not dense, indicating that they did not intend to completely destroy Feng Ye's ship. Instead, they aimed to cause enough damage to cripple the vessel and prevent it from escaping, before catching up and looting whatever they could from it.
BOOM!!!
The cannonballs blanketed the area where Feng Ye's ship was located, causing seawater to splash high into the air and obscuring the ship from view. Towering waves rose several tens of meters high.
Marco and the others on the shore watched this unfold and shook their heads.
Marco didn't continue watching but turned and called out to the Whitebeard Pirates crew who were hurrying over, "Hey! The John Pirates are coming! Everyone, be careful! Apprentices, fall back and don't come here, you won't be able to handle it!"
As Marco was shouting, Flower Sword Vista, standing beside him, suddenly narrowed his eyes, as if witnessing something unexpected. He stared at the sea and said, "Marco! Look! Something seems amiss!"
"Hmm?"
Marco turned his head.
Amidst the splashing waves, Feng Ye's ship reappeared, seemingly untouched by the cannon fire.
What was even more bizarre was that another round of cannonballs flew towards the ship, but they froze in mid-air before reaching it and then exploded one after another!
"Oh?"
Captain John, standing at the forefront of the Black Pearl's deck, was slightly taken aback by what he witnessed on the distant sea. "Seems like there's someone notable on that ship."
He drew his sword.
Blocking the Black Pearl's cannon fire was clearly a Devil Fruit ability, and to do so with such ease suggested that there was someone of considerable strength on board.
However, he wasn't overly concerned. He was Captain John, one of the mighty pirates of the New World, and there were very few people on these seas that he considered a threat.
Sssssss!
After drawing his sword, he swung it forward.
A sword aura of bluish-brown color sliced through the air, speeding towards the stern of Feng Ye's ship, covering the distance of several hundred meters in an instant, intending to split the ship in two.
But just at that moment.
A figure appeared on the top of Feng Ye's ship.
This figure reached out and pressed their hand towards the incoming sword aura, effortlessly grasping and holding it in their palm.
Sizzle!!
The bluish-brown sword aura warped into an arc, unleashing a power capable of slicing a large sea king in half, but it was forcibly suppressed by that palm, like a serpent whose neck was gripped, struggling futilely to break free.
Then, with a forceful squeeze, the massive sword aura suddenly dissipated into countless specks of light that vanished into the air.
"..."
Marco's expression froze as he witnessed this.
Flower Sword Vista's expression mirrored his captain's.
Under everyone's gaze, Feng Ye slowly lowered his hand, standing tall on the ship's top, separated by a hundred meters of seawater, and stared indifferently at Captain John on the deck of the Black Pearl. With a calm voice, he asked:
"Are you so desperate?"
(End of Chapter)
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