*Swish!*
No unnecessary nonsense, or rather, no nonsense was needed!
When Jack slashed down with the sickle-like blades in his hands, afterimages trailed behind the edges!
An unremarkable slash.
To cut down an unremarkable Marine.
And as this blade fell…
The [Lizard King] Hanafuda, holding that giant scythe in his hand, walked toward the bow of the ship, completely ignoring this reckless Marine cadet.
In fact, from beginning to end, Hanafuda only spared Elliot a single glance.
A mere wet-behind-the-ears little Marine wasn’t qualified to catch his eye.
Beneath his mask, his ferocious gaze remained fixed squarely on Zephyr.
Letting the Marines see him together with Jack was very troublesome!
Because over the past two years, he knew very well that his actions of helping Big Brother Kaido collect Zoan-type Devil Fruits had already begun to draw suspicion from the Marines and the World Government.
But…
Since they saw it, he just had to kill them all.
“Hahahaha!”
The surrounding pirates, right as Jack brought his blade down, raised their weapons one by one.
Letting out bizarre, maniacal laughter, they rushed to the deck, fully prepared to board the enemy ship.
And it was safe to say that absolutely no one cared about the Marine charging at them.
Over the years, countless Marines had vainly attempted to kill Big Brother Jack, only to end up sliced in half by his blade.
Therefore…
Rather than saying they didn’t care about this Marine, it was more accurate to say that the moment they saw him charge over, they had already sentenced him to death.
“Heh!”
Everyone was on the deck as the blade’s afterimage fell, a visible flying slash appearing over the sea.
But…
*Boom!*
*Bang!*
The first was a massive roar that erupted right beside the pirates, accompanied by terrifying waves and the sound of a ship being destroyed!
This was accompanied by the ship tilting.
The second sound came before the pirates could even steady themselves, as the pirate ship suddenly shuddered.
Subconsciously…
All the pirates, including Hanafuda, couldn’t help but turn their heads to look.
But the moment they looked…
*Whoosh!*
Everyone’s pupils suddenly shrank and trembled!
Hanafuda’s pupils instantly narrowed into vertical slits like those of a wild beast.
“Hahaha~~”
Those pirates with bizarre smiles on their faces unconsciously let out weird chuckles.
But many of the other pirates froze in place, staring blankly at the horrifying scene before them.
On the ground…
Their Big Brother Jack was lying in a pool of blood.
His massive body didn’t have a single wound on it, but his head…
Was gone!
And so, he lay motionless on the ground.
Furthermore, their previously completely unscathed [Mammoth] was missing its mast and nearly half of its hull, as if it had been blasted into smithereens by something.
And right beside their incredibly dead Big Brother Jack…
That Marine with slightly curly hair stood there, raising a hand to push up his glasses.
Suffocation~~~
A suffocating feeling instantly spread through the hearts of all the pirates!
The pirates without those bizarre smiles on their faces were suddenly struck with expressions of disbelief and horror.
*What happened…*
*Big Brother Jack seems to be dead?*
*How did he die?*
*Was he killed by this Marine?*
*And why is half our ship missing?*
*That’s not right!*
*Just now…*
*What exactly happened just now?*
*What!*
*What in the world happened!*
The confusion and bewilderment filling the pirates’ minds and hearts coalesced into pure terror, causing their lips to tremble uncontrollably as they looked at Elliot.
Naturally…
The sea was terrifyingly quiet at this moment, save for the sound of splashing water from the cannonballs that had just exploded in the ocean.
*Clatter~~*
The sound of chains rang out at this moment.
The [Lizard King] Hanafuda twisted the scythe in his hand, which was connected to a heavy hammer by a chain.
And right now!
This great pirate, whose strength far exceeded Jack’s, raised his scythe high, ready to strike at Elliot.
It was visibly apparent that Hanafuda had not only grown a massive tail, but his hands had also transformed into sharp claws.
His physique had grown significantly larger, making him look like a true lizardman!
Hanafuda didn’t know what had happened either!
But!
There was no reason not to attack!
Seeing this, the fear in the pirates’ hearts seemed to lessen a bit.
*Big Brother Hanafuda, the former [Drought], is making his move!*
Elliot tilted his head slightly, his dark eyes remaining indifferent.
Their eyes met.
“!!”
Hanafuda’s pupils contracted for no apparent reason.
The next instant!
*Bang!*
The massive [Mammoth], which was already tilting and slowly sinking into the sea, suddenly shuddered!
Hanafuda leaped directly into midair.
It was as if…
He was running away?
The pirates, who had just been rejoicing, were stunned once again when they realized Big Brother Hanafuda was fleeing!
And in midair, Hanafuda was panting heavily!
There was no denying that Hanafuda had carved out his reputation on the seas through sheer slaughter, so describing him as a battle-hardened veteran was no exaggeration.
But right now!
Hanafuda’s forehead was covered in a fine sweat as he looked at the black-haired, bespectacled Marine on the ship.
*Just now…*
*If I had attacked, I would have died!*
*I would have died instantly, just like Jack!*
*This kid…*
*What is this Marine’s background!*
*His clothes are definitely a Marine’s, but isn’t that a cadet’s uniform?*
At this thought, Hanafuda gulped, his peripheral vision catching sight of the equally horrified Marines in the distance.
But in the very instant of that glance, Hanafuda’s expression suddenly froze, and he immediately looked back at the deck of the [Mammoth].
He was gone!
The Marine on the deck had completely vanished.
“!”
Just as Hanafuda was about to search for him, he subconsciously turned his head.
What he saw was that young man with slightly curly black hair and glasses.
And the moment he turned his head…
He saw that the Marine was looking at him with indifferent, pitch-black eyes.
Furthermore, Hanafuda saw that this Marine had raised his fist.
Hanafuda gritted his sharp teeth, his expression somewhat crumbling.
“You…”
Just as this Warlord of the Sea, the [Lizard King], uttered a single word…
Elliot’s fist had already descended!
The moment it landed on the side of Hanafuda’s face!
The sheer force behind the punch surged through Hanafuda’s body, crashing down onto the [Mammoth], and further down into the sea…
*Boom!*
It was visible to the naked eye!
The ocean looked as if a massive crater had been smashed into it!
Within that crater, the colossal [Mammoth] completely disintegrated, and the bodies of the pirates aboard were torn to shreds.
The next moment!
*Crash!*
The crater vanished, and a towering pillar of water violently erupted into the sky!
Massive waves surged in all directions.
The giant Marine battleship rocked incessantly as a result.
But the Marines on board, even Momonga and Zephyr, all stared at the water pillar in sheer astonishment.
A dead silence hung in the air as they let the heavy rain formed by the dissipating water pillar fall upon them.
*Thud!*
Amidst the falling rain…
Elliot returned.
And accompanying Elliot’s return, a large fish missing half its body floated on the surface of the sea.
Elliot took out his pocket watch and glanced at it.
It was a little over three minutes to twelve o’clock.
Putting the pocket watch away, Elliot looked at the battleship’s head chef, who was holding a weapon.
Pointing at the corpse of the large fish, he remained expressionless.
“Excuse me, can that be used as an ingredient and eaten?
It’d be a shame to just leave it there to waste.”