Before they could make a move, the pirate ships had already begun rapidly closing the distance.
Apparently, both sides had the same idea.
They didn’t want to simply blast the other ship apart with cannon fire and lose the value of the vessel itself.
Relying on their superior numbers, pirates crowded the decks, shouting and waving excitedly.
As the gap between the fleets shrank, dozens of guards suddenly launched themselves into the air.
Using Geppo, they ran through the sky toward the approaching pirate ships.
To Nero’s surprise, the pirates showed no shock at all.
Instead, they calmly adjusted their cannons and prepared to attack.
Watching this, Nero realized these pirates were nothing like the Barro Pirates.
They looked more like a seasoned, disciplined crew.
On the largest ship stood a man wearing a black robe and a black hat resembling a western cowboy’s.
He remained at the bow, calmly observing the guards racing through the air.
Nero had a feeling the man wasn’t as simple as he appeared.
The confidence on his face didn’t seem to come from numbers alone.
“Did you find the information on the pirate crews I asked about?” Nero asked Gogoya.
“Yes, Your Majesty.
The crew ahead is called the Demon Pirates.
Their captain is Camoron.
He should be operating on the Grand Line, so I don’t know why he’s here in the East Blue.”
“Demon Pirates?
What’s his bounty?”
Gogoya quickly flipped through the wanted posters in her hand.
After a moment, she looked up and said, “Your Majesty, Camoron’s bounty is… fifty million Baileys.”
Even she found it difficult to believe.
In this era, a bounty of fifty million Baileys was considered extremely high.
This wasn’t the age when bounties over a hundred million were becoming common.
At present, any pirate with a bounty above ten million was already considered formidable.
Nero looked ahead with growing interest.
He wasn’t in a hurry to interfere.
After all, he wasn’t worried about his guards being defeated so easily.
A bounty of fifty million Baileys was enough to suggest one thing.
Camoron was almost certainly a Devil Fruit user.
But why had someone who belonged on the Grand Line suddenly appeared in the East Blue?
The question lingered in Nero’s mind as he continued watching.
The guards flying through the air remained cautious.
Though cannon fire continued around them, none had been struck.
Meanwhile, aboard the Demon Pirates’ flagship, a long-haired man with a gaunt face stepped forward from behind Camoron.
Licking his lips, he asked respectfully, “Captain, their techniques look similar to those used by the Marines.
Could they be Navy personnel?”
Camoron glanced at the approaching guards.
“Let’s watch for now.
They don’t look like Marines, though they may have some connection to them.
Either way, they’re nothing special.”
His tone was full of contempt.
“I understand, Captain.”
The long-haired pirate grinned wickedly as he stared at the incoming guards.
At the same time, Nero’s Observation Haki picked up something unusual aboard the enemy ship.
There was a powerful presence hidden somewhere within the crew.
The energy was unusually strong.
For the moment, Nero couldn’t determine exactly what Camoron’s intentions were.
“Stay here.
I’ll go take a look myself.”
Smiling faintly, Nero vanished from the National.
The next instant, he was sprinting across the sea at incredible speed.
In moments, he landed aboard Camoron’s flagship.
However, the instant he arrived, a massive blade came crashing down toward him.
Fortunately, Nero reacted quickly.
Using Geppo, he leaped twice through the air and narrowly avoided Camoron’s opening attack.
“Hulu hulu hulu…”
Camoron laughed strangely.
“I didn’t expect there to be someone strong among you.”
Holding an enormous sword, he stared at Nero with amusement.
“I wonder whether I should consider it an honor to be called strong by a pirate.”
Nero smiled.
“A bounty of fifty million Baileys is quite valuable.
How about coming with me to Marine Headquarters?”
“Hulu hulu hulu…”
Camoron laughed again.
“You’re funny.
If you want to take me to Marine Headquarters, you’ll have to prove you can.
If you have the strength, I’ll gladly go.”
“Then let’s see.”
Nero smiled.
The two stared at each other calmly.
The surrounding pirates retreated to safer positions, eager to watch the battle.
Camoron appeared completely relaxed.
His confidence was obvious.
“No one has challenged me in years.
You’re the first.”
He grinned sinisterly.
“I’ve spent my life pursuing greater power on these seas.
Show me what you’re capable of.”
The moment he finished speaking, his giant sword slashed toward Nero again.
The force tore a long crack through the deck.
Nero dodged swiftly, but he couldn’t help feeling a little annoyed.
In his eyes, this ship already belonged to him.
Every bit of damage reduced its value.
Still, he didn’t underestimate Camoron.
Although Nero possessed tremendous strength granted by the system, he lacked real combat experience.
This battle was an opportunity to gain exactly that.
As Camoron raised his blade once more, Nero took the initiative.
Without drawing Muramasa, he chose to fight bare-handed.
Using the Six Powers, he rushed forward at top speed.
Just as he entered range, he shouted:
“Shigan!”
His finger shot toward Camoron’s face like a bullet.
Camoron immediately withdrew his sword and evaded.
The attack missed.
Shigan was powerful, but it remained a straightforward technique.
As Nero retreated, countless spikes suddenly erupted from Camoron’s body.
Caught off guard, Nero narrowly avoided being pierced from head to toe.
Even so, several spikes managed to strike him.
The moment they pierced his skin, Nero felt his strength fading.
His vision began to blur.
“Hulu hulu hulu…”
Camoron laughed.
“You knew my bounty, but didn’t bother learning who I am?”
He spread his arms.
“I ate the Thorn-Thorn Fruit.
The spikes my body produces induce hallucinations.”
Nero silently cursed his own carelessness.
He had already suspected Camoron was a Devil Fruit user, yet he had still allowed himself to be caught off guard.
It was a perfect demonstration of his lack of combat experience.
Though powerful, he was still inexperienced in actual battle.
Even so, Nero refused to fall.
As long as he remained standing, he still had a chance.
Camoron’s greatest flaw was his arrogance.
Years had passed since anyone challenged him, and he no longer viewed opponents as real threats.
Gathering the last of his strength, Nero finally drew Muramasa.
The blade’s sinister aura instantly swept across the battlefield.
“Hiten Mitsurugi Style—Ryūtsuisen: Zan!” This chapter is updated first at g.com.
Nero vanished.
To everyone watching, he disappeared completely.
The next moment, a terrifying slash exploded outward.
His target wasn’t Camoron.
Nero knew he couldn’t kill a Devil Fruit user in a single strike.
Instead, he chose another objective.
The ship.
The slash tore through the vessel itself.
If the ship was destroyed, Camoron would be forced to retreat.
As a Devil Fruit user, he could not afford to fall into the sea.
The entire ship shuddered violently as the attack nearly split it apart.
Immediately afterward, Nero threw himself into the ocean.
Seawater quickly neutralized much of the Thorn-Thorn Fruit’s lingering effect.
The spikes embedded in his body dissolved away.
As he sank beneath the surface, bubbles escaped from his mouth.
Fortunately, he had never eaten a Devil Fruit.
Otherwise, he would have been finished.
Using all his strength, he swam upward and eventually grabbed onto a floating plank from the shattered ship.
Lying atop the debris, he gasped for breath.
Around him, countless pirates struggled in the water after being thrown from the damaged vessel.
On another ship nearby, Camoron stood watching.
His expression was dark with anger.
Even he had been surprised by Nero’s final attack.
He hadn’t expected such explosive power from someone who appeared to be losing.
The guards immediately abandoned their assaults and withdrew.
There was no reason to continue fighting.
The enemy still possessed overwhelming numbers, and Camoron’s true limits remained unknown.
Standing on the floating plank, Nero slowly recovered his strength.
When he looked at Camoron again, a faint smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.
Today’s battle had taught him a valuable lesson.
Before fighting an opponent, understanding their abilities was crucial.
Camoron’s eyes burned with anger, yet he made no move.
Soon afterward, Nero returned to the National.
Gogoya stood nearby, looking at him anxiously.
“Prepare to leave.”
His tone remained calm.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Gogoya immediately relayed the order.
Barro took his position at the helm and shouted:
“Raise the sails!
We’re moving out!”
Everyone hurried into action.
Meanwhile, the Demon Pirates made no attempt to pursue them.
Camoron remained silent.
The attack Nero had unleashed moments earlier was enough to make him wary.
Now that Nero had recovered some strength, Camoron had no desire to gamble with his crew’s lives.
Besides, the National didn’t appear to be carrying anything worth fighting over.
As far as he was concerned, losing a ship was simply the price of underestimating an opponent.
“Your Majesty, are you alright?”
Gogoya asked nervously.
Only after the distance between the two fleets grew sufficiently large did Nero finally allow himself to relax.
The toxins lingering in his body had not completely disappeared.
He had merely forced himself to stay conscious.
Now that the danger had passed, his body finally reached its limit.
Without another word, Nero collapsed unconscious on the deck.
The seawater had weakened the Thorn-Thorn Fruit’s effects, but traces of the toxin still remained.
The reason the Demon Pirates hadn’t pursued them puzzled everyone aboard the National.
What they didn’t know was that Camoron cared very little about the National itself.
His true interest lay elsewhere.
Beneath the waters where the battle had taken place was something far more important.
If not for whatever was hidden below the sea, Camoron would never have allowed the National to escape so easily.