Sakazuki never shows any mercy to pirates. From the moment he was assigned this mission, his goal has been to completely eliminate these disruptive elements.
If it weren’t for the World Government’s order forbidding the Marines from arbitrarily attacking the Emperors of the Sea and engaging in large-scale conflicts, Sakazuki would have done so long ago.
“Adjust the cannons—prioritize attacking the ships!”
Sakazuki’s Meteor Volcano has both great power and a wide range. However, its weakness lies in its accuracy. Once he launches his magma fists, external factors can significantly impact the hit rate. This makes it suitable only for wide-area fire coverage, using quantity to compensate for the lack of precision.
To precisely hit certain ships, it still requires the use of the ship’s cannons.
The ship’s cannons were not just for show; under the dual firepower coverage, the entire plantation island quickly turned into a sea of flames.
“Admiral Sakazuki! There’s a new development: another officer has been spotted. Zeraora is also on the island; he’s protecting the ships that are evacuating!”
The undercover agent on the island had only sent a signal that Queen had arrived, without providing a detailed description of the enemy forces.
“Full speed ahead! Quickly make the landing!”
Due to the limitations of his Devil Fruit ability, Sakazuki couldn’t fight as well on the sea as Kuzan or Borsalino. Kuzan could freeze the sea at will, while Borsalino could fly freely. Neither of them is restricted by the terrain.
But Sakazuki could only make the best use of his power on land.
At this moment, around the island, the lightning in Zeraora’s hands had almost taken on a physical form. With each swing, all approaching cannonballs were detonated in advance.
“Lord Zeraora! The message has been sent back to Onigashima; please take care!”
On the ship, the retreating pirates shouted at the top of their lungs; otherwise, in the chaos of explosions, no one would be able to hear their voices.
“Damn it! Are you all just going to watch? Push out the cannons and return fire!”
The officer on the ship issued new orders. Although they couldn’t intervene in an Admiral-level battle, they were not afraid of a warship’s bombardment.
Their ship’s cannon power was no less than the Marines; if the Marines can hit them, they can hit the Marines just the same. This is the New World, and they are pirates. No pirate ship would lack heavy firepower, even if it is primarily only used for transportation.
The Beasts Pirates’ flag only prevents most trouble; sometimes, they still need cannons to speak for them.
…
Under the officer’s arrangement, the retreating pirates began to counterattack with artillery fire. At this moment, Queen arrived above the warship.
“You crazy magma dog! Do you have any idea how much effort I’ve put into this banana plantation?”
Queen’s body after modification had effectively transformed into an armory, unleashing a barrage of firepower toward Sakazuki’s position. However, this was him merely venting his anger, as neither laser nor gunpowder weapons have any effect on a Logia-type’s body.
Magma-like holes exploded across Sakazuki’s body. Whether it was Queen’s bombardment or fragments from the exploding ship, they were all melted by the searing magma.
Yet, for the ordinary Marine soldiers, this attack was nothing short of a disaster. Queen couldn’t care less about that—it wasn’t nearly enough to vent the anger in his heart. However, in the blink of an eye, Sakazuki below disappeared from sight.
When Queen looked up again, Sakazuki was already right in front of him.
“A pirate’s hard work—is that something worth pitying?!”
Smoke billowing from his fist, his magma-coated punch headed straight for Queen’s face. All the current three Admirals are Logia Users. Although the Logia-type grants them terrifying destructive power, their physical skills are also nothing to underestimate.
Even though Zephyr often said that Kizaru relied too much on his Devil Fruit ability, his swordsmanship and kicking techniques surpassed most people.
Zephyr was comparing Kizaru to a very small group of people who are at the pinnacle of physical skills. Compared to the older Marines who specialized in physical skills, Borsalino falls somewhat short, but with the abilities of the Glint-Glint Fruit, he was still strong enough to be a top-tier expert.
In this regard, Sakazuki is even stronger than Borsalino.
The World Government’s order to him was to capture alive if possible, but killing was also an option. Sakazuki, however, had already dismissed the first option—sinners who have caused significant losses to Marines have no reason to keep on living.
He wouldn’t allow Queen to slaughter the soldiers on the ship. Although Sakazuki wouldn’t hesitate to sacrifice some soldiers to achieve his goals, and he didn’t mind a few casualties for the sake of absolute justice, the deaths had to bring some benefit.
He is also a Marine Admiral, the cornerstone of the Marine’s front line. In this situation, he would definitely step up.
For people like them, Geppo had long become a basic skill. Although Queen extended his arm to block, the massive magma fist still sent him flying.
During this process, the wings on Queen’s back flapped, releasing two Razor Leaf; they were even imbued with Haki. But, the wounds he left began to slowly heal.
“Haki? That level of Haki is far from enough.”
As long as a Logia User uses Observation Haki to predict where the opponent is going to attack, they can avoid the damage. Faced with Sakazuki’s taunt, Queen did not continue his attack.
Seeing the slightly melted part of his mechanical arm and feeling the burning pain on his face, his rationality which he had lost due to rage gradually returned.
This is a Marine Admiral. Challenging an opponent like this is still too early for him…
But while Queen wanted to retreat, Sakazuki had no intention of letting him go.
“Hell Hound!”
Sakazuki’s magma-arm quickly extended, striking toward Queen like a viper’s tongue. Queen’s massive body seemed to be an easy target in front of Sakazuki.
The attack was incredibly fast, and Queen couldn’t dodge it. However, years of Kaido’s training finally paid off—thanks to his powerful Armament Haki, Hell Hound couldn’t pierce a hole through his body.
The scorching magma continued to sear Queen’s skin, and just as his defenses were about to break, a bolt of lightning descended from the sky, interrupting Sakazuki’s attack.
“Phew! You finally arrived!”
“I got here as fast as I could. How are you holding up?”
When Queen attacked Sakazuki, most of the cannons on the warship were destroyed. Sakazuki then changed his target to Queen. With this, Zeraora no longer needed to cover the others’ retreat and swiftly made his way over to join the battle.
“Not bad. Doesn’t hurt as much as when Boss Kaido hits. Let’s think of a way to handle this big problem. Otherwise, it won’t be easy for us to escape.”
He had gone through a lot of trouble to bring Zeraora here as a precaution, so he had no qualms about teaming up.
“Let me correct you—there’s no ‘us.’ I can leave anytime I want, and he can’t stop me. Besides, didn’t you just say you were going to kill him?”
“…”
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