“Hahahaha…”
Upon hearing Gaban’s words, Ron finally couldn’t help but lower his head and laugh.
“Hahahahahaha…”
Ron’s laughter suddenly grew louder.
“Hahaha…”
“Hahaha…”
Until finally, Ron threw his head back and laughed maniacally.
Rayleigh frowned and said in a deep voice, “Hey, what are you laughing at?
What’s so funny?”
Ron’s laughter gradually subsided, his gaze falling on the three men as he spoke unhurriedly, “Isn’t it funny?
Listen to what you just said—so righteous, so principled.”
“But in the end?
You’ll realize it yourselves—you’re pirates.”
Ron didn’t give him a chance to interject and continued, “As pirates, can you guarantee that there isn’t innocent blood on your hands?
Can you?
When it benefits you, you don’t even mention the word ‘morality.’ When it doesn’t, you turn around and lecture me about ‘honor’?”
“To put it bluntly, you’re just a bunch of hypocrites.”
Roger and the other two were stunned by Ron’s retort.
“You bastard!” Gaban was the first to react.
“What are you talking about?”
“Shut up,” Ron roared angrily.
“Did I not insult you enough?
And who do you think you are?
The ones cooperating with the Kuja Pirates are us, the Rocks Pirates.
What does that have to do with your Roger Pirates?
What are you all shouting about?”
“Have you been simping for so long that your brains aren’t working?
Or have I given you too much face?
Blabbering on and on?”
“Whoosh—!”
The moment the blade light exploded, Roger had already drawn his sword, leaping into the air with a ferocious expression.
Conqueror’s Haki coiled around the blade, compressing the air and producing a piercing wail.
His figure traced an arc through the air, descending from above.
Ron’s gaze darkened, and he snorted coldly.
Resorting to violence when words fail?
So this is the caliber of the future “Pirate King,” the man claimed to be impossible to “hate.”
“To be honest, I’m really grateful you refused to let me board your ship,” Ron murmured.
In that instant, Nine-Tails Mode activated, golden Chakra resembling flames enveloping his entire body.
Immediately, he drew the longsword at his waist, simultaneously coiling Conqueror’s Haki around it.
“Boom!!”
A dull, thunderous explosion erupted, and terrifying shockwaves instantly surged outward.
The ground trembled violently.
Centered on Ron, spiderweb-like cracks instantly appeared, rapidly spreading and collapsing in all directions.
At the point where the two weapons met, Conqueror’s Haki compressed the air into a visible, distorted sphere, continuously expanding, contracting, and expanding again.
At the same time, in a tavern in the town.
Whitebeard was holding a bowl of unfinished wine, still grumbling about why Ron hadn’t woken up yet, when suddenly, his movements froze.
His gaze snapped toward the west, his pupils slightly contracting.
Kaido, sitting across the table, belatedly looked up, his expression abruptly turning serious.
“Such…
such powerful Conqueror’s Haki.” Kaido’s voice was several tones lower than usual.
“Who is it?
Has Rocks returned?”
“No…” Whitebeard slowly rose to his feet, picking up his naginata from beside the table.
“It’s not Rocks.
That guy’s Haki is far more domineering than this.”
After speaking, Whitebeard began walking out.
“Where are you going?” Kaido also stood up, grabbing his spiked club and following.
“Going to see what’s happening, though I don’t know what’s going on.”
“Wait for me, I’m coming too!” Kaido quickly caught up.
“Hey,” the bartender leaned halfway over the counter and shouted, “You two haven’t paid yet!”
“Put it on Rocks’ tab.” Whitebeard’s voice came from the distance, growing fainter.
“Oh.” The bartender nodded obediently.
“Hey, why aren’t you chasing them?” The owner rushed to the bar and punched him on the head.
“He said to put it on Rocks’ tab…” The bartender covered his head, speaking pitifully.
“Idiot!” The owner smacked him on the head again, scolding with frustration.
“Those two guys look like they’re just freeloading no matter how you look at it!”
Meanwhile, at Ron’s location.
Currently, Ron’s Conqueror’s Haki still had a considerable gap compared to Roger’s.
However, with the enhancement of the “Sage Body” and Nine-Tails Mode, Roger hadn’t gained much advantage either.
“Zzzzt—”
The two Conqueror’s Haki continued to clash, the air between them twisting and distorting, emitting a crackling sound like electric currents.
At the same time, Rayleigh and Gaban had already moved to Ron’s flanks.
Immediately, two figures leaped high into the air, one on the left and one on the right.
“Hey, kid,” Gaban swung his twin axes, coordinating seamlessly with Rayleigh’s long sword as they attacked simultaneously.
“How are you going to handle this next?”
At the critical moment, golden Chakra Arms instantly extended from Ron’s left and right arms.
“Thud!
Thud!!”
The Chakra Arms instantly seized Rayleigh’s long sword and Gaban’s twin axes.
But the cost was immense.
Under the dual impact, the ground beneath Ron’s feet collapsed once again, rubble and soil sinking like quicksand.
Half of his body was buried in the crater, with only his torso and above remaining visible.
“What the hell?” Gaban was clearly startled by Ron’s suddenly extending arms, his eyebrows shooting up high.
“He can grow arms anytime, anywhere?”
“Truly unexpected.” Rayleigh chimed in from the side, but the strength in his hands didn’t diminish in the slightest.
“Hah!”
Seeing Ron distracted by dealing with Rayleigh and Gaban, Roger seized the opportunity, exerting force abruptly.
The Conqueror’s Haki on his blade surged violently, soaring skyward like black flames.
That force pressed down on Ron’s blade, causing it to bend slightly and emit a groan of strain.
Simultaneously, Rayleigh and Gaban exerted force to withdraw their weapons, adjusting their stances mid-air and launching a second round of attacks.
This round of assault was far faster and fiercer than the previous one.
The coordination among the three was flawless—Roger suppressed from the front, while Rayleigh and Gaban flanked from both sides, sealing off all of Ron’s escape routes.
Ron frowned, without any hesitation.
Nine-Tailed Fox Demon, descend.
“Boom—!”
A golden giant fox erupted from the crater, its expanding form tearing the surrounding ground into several massive fissures.
Nine enormous tails unfurled behind it, while seven or eight Chakra Arms extended from its sides.
Roger, Gaban, and Rayleigh visibly hesitated for a moment, their assault faltering slightly.
They hadn’t expected Ron to be able to transform into his “Beast Form.”
Ron, now the Nine-Tailed Fox Demon, showed no hesitation.
He swung his fist directly at the three of them.
This sudden turn of events forced Roger and his companions to switch from offense to defense.
But just as they blocked, Ron’s Chakra Arms suddenly opened their palms, fingers snapping shut in an attempt to grab them.
Roger and Rayleigh reacted faster.
At the last possible moment before being caught, they both dodged, slipping through the gaps between the Chakra fingers.
Gaban, however, was a step too slow.
A Chakra Hand clamped tightly around his waist and yanked him before Ron.
“Fuck you, have three on me.”
Ron cursed.
With a thought, the Chakra Arms extending forward each condensed a Tailed Beast Bomb.
Not huge, but not small either.
The three Chakra Arms moved simultaneously, thrusting the bombs at Gaban from the left, right, and above.
“Gaban!!”
The pupils of both Roger and Rayleigh contracted sharply.
Recognizing the danger instantly, they unleashed even more ferocious attacks.
“Ron, stop!!!” Roger roared, his voice ragged.
“BOOM!!”
A blinding light, bright as the sun, illuminated the entire world, followed by an earth-shattering explosion.
Violent shockwaves radiated outward.
The earth folded like crumpled cloth, layer upon layer thrown into the air.
A billowing plume of smoke surged skyward, forming a massive mushroom cloud.
From within the smoke, a golden figure shot out.
Ron had reverted to his humanoid Nine-Tails Mode.
“Pfft—”
The moment he landed, a mouthful of blood sprayed from his lips.
Focused solely on stuffing Gaban with Tailed Beast Bombs, he had paid no attention to defense, taking direct hits from both Rayleigh and Roger.
But…
it didn’t matter.
With his Sage Body, his wounds were healing at a visible rate.
“Ron!!”
From the heart of the dust cloud, an explosive shout erupted.
The surrounding smoke was instantly blasted away by a powerful shockwave, revealing three figures within.
Roger stood at the forefront, a few fresh scratches on his face.
The killing intent in his eyes was now ten times denser than before.
Rayleigh stood beside Gaban, appearing largely unchanged from his previous state.
Gaban’s upper body was stained crimson with blood, but he remained standing, indicating he was injured but not out of the fight.
“Damn,” Ron muttered under his breath, blood still smeared at the corner of his mouth.
“If I’d had a little more time, I’d have given you a bigger one.”
“Whoosh!
Whoosh!”
From high above, two figures descended, landing heavily beside Ron.
Whitebeard glanced at Ron first, then lifted his head to look ahead.
When his gaze fell upon Roger, he visibly started in surprise.
“Roger?” Whitebeard murmured.
Then, turning back to Ron, he asked, “What happened?
Are you alright?”
“I’m fine,” Ron responded.
“What happened?” Kaido gripped his spiked club, his gaze wary as he stared at the three figures ahead, a hint of anger in his tone.
“What did Roger and his crew do to you, Ron?”
“Heh heh heh…” Ron let out a cold laugh, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth.
“They came over out of nowhere to demand an explanation.
As Shakky’s lapdogs, they’ve already succeeded quite well.”
Whitebeard’s brow furrowed slightly, but he didn’t press further.
Instead, he turned his gaze back to Roger, his expression grave.
“Roger, you bastard, what are you trying to do?”
Roger looked at Whitebeard, fell silent for a moment, then slowly spoke.
“Newgate…
you and I are old friends who have been both rivals and allies, aren’t we?
For my sake, I hope you won’t interfere.
This is a matter between us and Ron.”
Ron instinctively glanced at Whitebeard, unsure whose side he would take.
After all, he hadn’t known Whitebeard for long—what kind of bond could they possibly have?
Whereas Whitebeard and Roger shared a relationship forged over years of clashes at sea, one of mutual respect and admiration.
One friendship measured in days, the other in years.
The choice seemed obvious.
Ron lowered his gaze, already calculating in his mind how to make a quick escape.
However, a large hand suddenly landed on Ron’s head.
To be honest, Ron felt a bit startled.
If Whitebeard had used a little more force, he might have transformed into the Nine-Tailed Fox Demon right then and there.
Then, Whitebeard’s voice came from above Ron’s head.
“What are you talking about, Roger?
This kid…
I see him as a little brother.”
“That’s right, that’s right, Roger, you bastard!
We’re all part of the Rocks Pirates—we’re the ones who are comrades.
You’re just an outsider,” Kaido shouted loudly as well.