Chapter 445: Burden
Chapter 445: Burden
No matter what it was, Snug barely had time to react. As he took a single step back, the White Colossus closed the distance, its gaping maw swallowing him whole.
Inside the beast’s colossal body, Kas and a group of Navy soldiers wielding sabers and firearms launched a coordinated assault.
“What the hell is this?!”
Snug deflected a Navy soldier’s slash with his Long Blade, then countered with a strike of his own—only to suddenly twist his body as a bullet whizzed past his face.
Clang!
He barely managed to block another soldier’s attack with his blade, but the moment he did, more Navy troops surged forward.
Hiss! Bang!
Bullets and blades rained down on Snug. At the exact points where the attacks struck, a pitch-black aura flared.
Armored Haki!
Yet the moment the Haki manifested, even more attacks bombarded him.
Bang! Bang! Crack!
Inside the White Colossus’s radiant aura, a cacophony of impacts erupted.
“Enough!!”
Snug gripped his Long Blade, channeling Haki into it as he prepared to slash back. But the instant he moved, the attacking soldiers scattered, retreating from his vicinity. From the outside, it looked as though the White Colossus had spat him out. His counterattack hadn’t landed a single blow.
“Snug, big brother!”
By then, the ship had fully docked. Rezan led the Chess Soldiers ashore, his voice laced with concern as he called out to Snug.
Snug’s condition looked dire—his Wool Coat was shredded, wounds marred his body, and his Hair Knot was completely disheveled.
“Unforgivable! What kind of abomination is this? Its speed is eerie!”
Snug tightened his grip on his Long Blade, Haki blazing along its edge. “But no matter what, this won’t stop me. All of you—charge!”
The Chess Soldiers surged forward as one. Though their numbers were around five hundred, their coordinated charge was formidable.
“For Justice!”
Kas roared, and the White Colossus swept toward the Chess Soldiers faster than them, its aura engulfing the battlefield.
“Explosive Slash!”
Snug leapt into the air, his blade arcing downward in a Haki-infused strike.
Bang!!!
The attack collided with the Colossal Shield at the White Colossus’s core—but the shield didn’t budge.
“What kind of defensive power is this?!”
Snug landed, staring in disbelief at the unscathed shield. His attack, though powerful enough to leave even the Devil Fruit user Urouge battered after a desperate struggle, hadn’t cracked it.
What Snug didn’t know was that even Lucius, back in the North Blue, had failed to breach this defense. If he’d known, his confidence might have wavered.
The shield remained unbroken, but Kas could still move. The White Colossus advanced, swallowing the Chess Soldiers whole.
“Idiot. The Chess Soldiers aren’t that weak. Even if you’re using Vinsmoke’s Clone Soldiers, defeating them is impossible!”
Snug scoffed, his confidence unshaken.
Rezan, however, watched silently, his gaze flickering. Scanning his surroundings, he vanished in a blur.
There was no need to linger here—their priority was finding Olga and retreating. This was a Marine Base; prolonged combat would invite reinforcements. Snug could handle himself.
Once Olga was located, the mission would be complete. Dealing with these Navy pests could wait until then.
No sooner had Rezan disappeared than the White Colossus’s aura convulsed, as if digesting its prey. It stepped back, leaving the Chess Soldiers sprawled in disarray.
“This can’t be happening!” Snug’s eyes widened. “These are mother’s soldiers!”
“Justice cannot be insulted!”
Kas stood resolute, his saber pointed at Snug. “Pirates will not set foot in this town!”
“Hmph!”
Snug narrowed his eyes, smirking. “Easy to say—try coming closer again!”
He couldn’t break the shield, but if these fools dared approach, he’d carve this bearded man down, even at the cost of his own injuries!
Decades of combat had taught him this: the eerie ability stemmed from the bearded man himself—Dougleg·Kas.
A thorn in Lucius Kro’s side, Kas had proven his mettle by seizing Vinsmoke’s achievements in the North. He was no pushover—but not invincible.
His physical strength was undeniably weak. If Snug could close the distance again, he’d strike first.
Kas, too, realized this. Instead of advancing, he anchored himself at the town’s entrance, immovable.
“Not so easy to reach me, huh?” Snug’s smirk turned malevolent. “But you Navy have a weakness!”
He reversed his grip on his blade and slashed toward the town, unleashing a massive arc of energy.
“Protect the town! Protect the residents!”
The White Colossus’s shield shifted instantly, intercepting the slash. The aura held for a moment before dissipating.
“See? That’s your weakness. You Navy are too much of a burden!”
Snug dashed toward the town from another angle. “Try stopping me—otherwise, I’ll slaughter every last one of them!”
Pegasus Island, under Kuro’s expansion, had no single town entrance. Its sprawling size allowed access from any direction. Kuro had assumed no pirate would dare approach—after all, he ruled the West Blue, far from the New World, with coastal artillery to match.
But now that Kuro was gone, even the West Blue wasn’t safe from Four Emperors’ commanders.
Snug had sensed this vulnerability.
“He mustn’t enter the town!”
Seeing Snug charge, Kas gritted his teeth and slammed his fist into his chest. “Fivefold!”
The White Colossus accelerated, engulfing Snug in its aura.
“There! You’ve walked right into my trap!”
Snug had been waiting for this. As Kas’s group surged forward, his Katana flared with intensified Armament Haki, cleaving downward at the bearded man leading the charge.
“Fivefold—dodge!”
Kas tried to sidestep, but Snug’s blade abruptly shifted direction, striking horizontally into Kas’s waist.
“I’ve mastered Observation Haki too!” Snug grinned maliciously.
(End of Chapter)
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