The Rust-Iron Pirates.
Their captain, Rust-Iron, had a bounty of 36 million Berries.
Under him were also several bounty-level crew members, ranging from a few million to ten million Berries.
In this corner of West Blue, a pirate crew like this could already be considered fairly formidable.
During the days Rust-Iron had spent on Mafia Island, he had run rampant and thrown his weight around without anyone daring to interfere.
Even the local Mafia would usually turn a blind eye.
And the reason Ren knew so much was entirely because the captain of the Rust-Iron Pirates was a Devil Fruit user.
“Captain, be careful.
Their captain is a Paramecia-type Rust-Rust Fruit user.
It’s especially effective against bladed weapons, but it doesn’t work on the human body.
I’d recommend using your fists to punish him!”
Ren offered a reminder.
“Kid, are you telling me to avoid his strength?”
Rocks glanced back at Ren.
“No, that’s not what I meant.
Do whatever you want.”
Ren waved his hands while searching for cover.
Nobody else knew this better than Ren.
He knew exactly how powerful Rocks was.
His clash with the Giant King Harald had once completely cleared out everything within a five-kilometer radius.
With Ren’s current physique, if he got too close, even the shockwaves alone could cost him half his life.
Just as Ren found a suitable place to hide, Rocks had already arrived in front of the Rust-Iron Pirates.
He looked over the pirate ship and nodded.
“It’s a long way from the ship of my dreams, but as temporary transportation, it’ll barely do.”
Rocks spoke quietly.
His words, along with his earlier declaration that he was commandeering the pirate ship, had all been heard by the members of the Rust-Iron Pirates.
At that moment, dozens of pirates, led by Captain Rust-Iron, poured out of the ship one after another.
Their faces were filled with either cold smiles or fury.
“Kid, were you the one who just said you were going to take my ship?”
A middle-aged man with a large belly and a skull captain’s hat pushed his way through the crowd.
The strong smell of alcohol surrounded him.
“Do you have a problem with that?”
Rocks shot back.
That matter-of-fact tone left the pirates of the Rust-Iron Pirates stunned for a moment.
Then they exploded in rage.
“You bastard!
Just where did this clueless idiot come from?”
“Kid, don’t tell me you’ve never even heard of the Rust-Iron Pirates!”
“You dare challenge our entire crew all by yourself?
You’ve got some nerve!”
The pirates hurled insults and shouted abuse one after another.
Only one person among the entire crew remained silent.
He simply kept staring at Rocks.
Under the dim light, that face seemed strangely familiar to him, yet he couldn’t remember where he had seen it.
Captain Rust-Iron raised a hand, signaling his subordinates to quiet down.
He looked Rocks up and down before his gaze settled on the sword at Rocks’ waist.
“You’re a swordsman?”
he asked.
Rocks nodded.
Captain Rust-Iron suddenly laughed.
“As a swordsman, you actually dare come challenge me.
I have to admit, you’ve got guts.”
He picked up a bottle and took a large swig before staggering forward.
“More than a hundred swordsmen have fought me so far.
Without exception, every single one ended with their sword destroyed and themselves dead.
Do you know why?”
Rocks shook his head.
“Because I’m the natural enemy of swordsmen!
No matter how powerful a swordsman is—even if they’re wielding one of the legendary Twelve Supreme Grade Blades—the moment my hand touches their sword, it’s destined to become nothing more than a useless piece of scrap metal!”
Captain Rust-Iron grinned confidently.
“I’d actually like to see whether you can turn my sword into scrap metal.”
Rocks gave a light chuckle, drew the Western-style sword from his waist, and pointed it at Captain Rust-Iron.
Captain Rust-Iron had clearly never encountered someone who willingly offered up their weapon before.
He froze for a moment.
Then, after recovering, he immediately reached out and grabbed Rocks’ sword.
“Rust-Rust, activate!”
The curve of his smile grew wider.
He could hardly wait to see the despair on his enemy’s face when their beloved sword was destroyed.
However—
In the very next second, the smile on his face froze.
It was replaced by extreme shock and disbelief.
Because his Rust-Rust Fruit ability, which possessed an absolute advantage against bladed weapons and had always been effective without fail, had actually failed today?!
He was clearly holding Rocks’ sword.
Yet no matter what he did, he couldn’t make it rust away.
“How…
how is this possible…
What…
what exactly is going on?”
Having encountered such an abnormal situation for the first time, Captain Rust-Iron couldn’t help but widen his eyes.
Wait!
He suddenly noticed something.
The Western-style sword that had been silver-white moments ago had now become completely black.
What was that black substance?
“C-Captain, run!
That…
that man…
he’s Rocks D.
Xebec!
The man who caused a massive disturbance at the Reverie not long ago and received an initial bounty of 1.5 billion Berries!”
The Rust-Iron Pirates’ intelligence officer finally recognized Rocks’ identity and cried out in horror.
“What did you say?!”
At that moment, every pirate present, including Captain Rust-Iron, was completely petrified with fear.
“R-Rocks…”
“If you’ve got nothing else, then it’s my turn.”
Rocks slowly raised his Western-style sword above his head.
Then he brought it crashing down.
Boom!
It was clearly a slash, yet it produced the effect of a giant hammer smashing into the ground.
A terrifying hammer-like shockwave erupted.
In an instant, the entire Rust-Iron Pirates were wiped out.
Even the pirates gathered near the harbor to watch the commotion were sent flying by the shockwaves.
In the blink of an eye, not a single person remained standing throughout the enormous harbor.
Clap, clap, clap!
Applause rang out, breaking the silence.
“As expected of the captain!”
Ren applauded as he walked toward the unconscious Captain Rust-Iron.
Then he pulled a hammer out of his bag.
Without the slightest hesitation, he smashed it into the man’s head.
In an instant, white and red splattered across the ground.
[Congratulations on defeating a Rust-Rust Fruit user.]
[Paramecia-type Rust-Rust Fruit — Recording complete.]
Listening to the mechanical notification echoing in his ears, the corners of Ren’s mouth gradually curled upward.
“Kid, did you have a grudge against this guy?”
Rocks raised an eyebrow.
“More or less.”
Ren nodded.
“When I first arrived on this island, a dancer helped me.
Later, this guy killed her.”
Rocks’ expression didn’t change.
His heart remained completely unmoved.
There was nothing new under the sun.
During all his years roaming the seas, Rocks had seen far too many women resist and be killed.
He had long since grown accustomed to it.
Nor would he look down on Ren or develop any prejudice against him simply because Ren had taken advantage of the situation to kill Captain Rust-Iron.
If anything, Ren’s decisiveness and ruthlessness made Rocks think more highly of him.
Rocks was just about to praise him when he saw Ren sigh.
Then Ren continued,
“This bastard got angry because when he pulled it out, he discovered his thing wasn’t as big as that dancer’s.
Tsk, tsk.
He almost bent me over before, and I didn’t even complain.”
Rocks: “…?”
That story…
Now that was something new.
“Wahahahaha!”
Rocks burst into laughter.
“Kid, you’re pretty interesting.
Come with me.
We’re setting sail!”
…
Mafia Island.
The office on the top floor of the casino.
“Lord Marlon, b-bad news!
Something terrible has happened!”
The casino manager, who also served as the island’s law enforcement officer, shouted anxiously.
“What happened?”
The young man smoking a cigar spoke in a low voice.
“Just…
just now, Rocks…
that monster with the 1.5 billion Berries bounty appeared on the island…”
“Rocks?”
The Mafia boss Marlon froze for a moment.
Then his expression changed drastically.
“What did you say?!”