Sandia tribe.
The great chieftain listened to his subordinate's report, and his heart was suddenly shaken.
"Wyper… why would Gan Fall do such a thing!"
He hunched his body as he stood up, his aged face full of doubt.
"Chieftain, ever since Gan Fall was driven from the throne of God by that beast Enel, he's been moving around under the title of Sky Knight."
"Knight he may call himself, but in truth he's nothing more than a mercenary, taking money to ward off others' troubles."
"If it weren't for us guerrilla fighters often raiding pirate ships from the Blue Sea, where would Gan Fall get any work!"
"That ungrateful bastard, never mind that he doesn't appreciate us, but he actually took the chance to ambush our warrior Wyper! Simply hateful beyond words!"
The reporting guerrilla was an admirer of Wyper, and at the same time harbored a deep hatred of the Skypieans.
He only wanted to dump the whole blame onto Gan Fall, doing everything he could to wash away the shame of Wyper's defeat.
Though old, the great chieftain was not senile.
He only believed about seventy percent of the guerrilla's words.
The Skypieans led by Gan Fall had indeed fought with the Sandia tribe in the past, and negotiations had once broken down.
But Gan Fall's desire for peace never seemed false, of that, he was still convinced.
If Enel hadn't suddenly appeared in the middle of everything, perhaps they and the Skypieans would already have reconciled, joining hands and heading into a new era of peace together.
"Alas…" The chieftain sighed.
Regardless, the most urgent matter now was still to rescue Wyper first.
Wyper was not only the descendant of the great warrior Kalgara, but also the backbone of Sandia's current fighting force, his importance went without saying.
"You go summon the guerrillas to negotiate with Gan Fall, and bring Wyper back as soon as possible."
———
With Pierre nowhere to be found, Gan Fall had nowhere else to go, and so could only remain aboard Jotaro's ship.
"Up ahead is Heaven's Gate. Do you truly mean to pass through there?"
Nami waved her hand.
"As if! Where would we get that kind of money? Old man, you know this place so well, don't tell me you don't know another way, something to help us get around Heaven's Gate and reach Angel Island in the back?"
"There is." The corner of Nami's mouth had just started to curve up, when Gan Fall immediately poured cold water on it. "But, I forgot to tell you all, God is omniscient and omnipotent."
"Even if you detour from another path to the back, He will still know your whereabouts, and the divine punishment will fall on you all the same!"
For a moment, Nami felt the impulse to kick this old man straight off the ship.
"Gan Fall! Give us back our warrior Wyper!"
In front of the ship appeared Sandia's guerrilla force.
They blocked the path, standing there shouting loudly.
Hearing the commotion, Gan Fall stood up, carrying the gravely injured Wyper on his shoulder.
"Sandia guerrillas?" He was a little surprised. "Why are they here?"
He shouted back loudly toward the Sandia people, "Hey! You came at the right time, your warrior Wyper is here with me!"
Saying so, afraid they wouldn't see, he even shook his shoulder to show them.
Wyper was covered in wounds and bloodstains. With the shake, the unconscious Wyper furrowed his brows and let out a groan, coughing up a mouthful of fresh blood.
The leading Sandia guerrilla saw Wyper's miserable state, eyes nearly splitting with rage, mistaking Gan Fall's actions for deliberate provocation.
"Ahhhh!"
Furious, he roared, having long forgotten the chieftain's command to come for negotiation.
"Gan Fall, I'll slaughter you!"
Nami, standing beside Gan Fall, noticed the ruckus.
"Why are they so agitated?"
Gan Fall shook his head.
"In any case, just hand Wyper back to them."
But the leading guerrilla had already leapt high, taking out an Impact Dial, and fired a shell straight at Gan Fall's position.
"Idiot!" Wyper's subordinate, Kamakiri, kicked him flying. "What if you accidentally hurt Wyper!"
But his stop came too late, the shot had already been fired.
Gan Fall didn't even notice the shell.
Because right after speaking to Nami, he suddenly saw Pierre flying swiftly down from the sky.
"Pierre! Where on earth have you been! Why didn't you come no matter how long I called you!"
Gan Fall scolded Pierre a few times, then shook his head. "Forget it, as long as you're here. Young lady, let's part ways here."
Yet normally so obedient, Pierre this time ignored him completely.
It let out an excited cry from its beak, chasing madly after the sea king ahead, with no intention of coming over.
To shake Pierre off, Starlight had already pushed her speed to the absolute limit.
By the time she realized Jotaro's ship was right in front of her, it was far too late to slow down.
Boom!
She crashed headfirst into the ship.
The steady-sailing vessel suddenly jolted violently.
All attention was in the air, so Gan Fall stumbled, and the Wyper on his shoulder was accidentally thrown off.
Kamakiri turned to scold the fallen guerrilla, "The task the chieftain gave us was to negotiate with Gan Fall and bring back Wyper!"
"I know your family was cruelly slaughtered by the Skypieans in the past war, so you hate them deeply.
But now is not the time to act on impulse, Wyper is still in his hands, how could you attack rashly!"
The guerrilla lowered his head in shame. "Sorry, Captain Kamakiri."
Truly a warrior who grew up alongside Wyper, at a time like this he could still keep a calm head.
He lifted his head, looking at Kamakiri with eyes full of admiration.
Crack!
The previously calm Kamakiri, in the next second, was so furious his molars nearly shattered.
"Beast Gan Fall! You dare use Wyper's body to block a shot from an Impact Dial!"
He snatched a bazooka from his companion's hands, and without care fired a flaming shell.
"Captain Kamakiri, Wyper is still over there!"
"Come with me! Kill Gan Fall!"
At Kamakiri's shout, the entire guerrilla unit surged from all directions, a mighty charge rushing at Jotaro's ship.
Seeing the sky filled with fire shells, Nami nearly lost her soul in fright.
Gan Fall, climbing up from the deck, rubbed his dizzy head, then noticed the fiery lights flying in from all around.
"Girl, get out of the way!"
In an instant his gaze turned sharp as a blade. Seizing his spear, he whirled it fiercely.
All the flaming shells flying at him were slashed apart.
"Hmph! My skills are far sharper now than in the old days!" Gan Fall declared proudly.
For the sake of one day defeating Enel and reclaiming the throne, he had endured grueling training all these years.
He wanted to show off a little longer, but the chill rising behind him made him shiver.
The ship had first shaken violently, then the noisy roars added to it, Jotaro's mood had already sunk to rock bottom.
Coming out and seeing the railings, mast, and sails all blazing with fire, his expression grew so dark it looked like it could drip water.
"Gan Fall, prepare to die!"
Powered by Wavers, the guerrillas soared into the air, surrounding Gan Fall tightly.
The scene was truly magnificent.
Even Gan Fall, faced with such a sight, couldn't keep the expression on his old face from changing suddenly.
Before he could react, the chill at his back turned into a terrifying pressure, like a storm of destruction tearing past the men.
'Conqueror's Haki!'
In but a moment, not a single Sandia guerrilla remained standing, they all dropped like birds struck from the sky.
Gan Fall knelt on the ground, gasping heavily, his whole body drenched in cold sweat.
'What an overwhelming pressure!'
The fact that he endured wasn't because of his own strength, but because Jotaro had held back.
If he had unleashed his Conqueror's Haki fully, even his shipmates would not have been spared.
Gan Fall struggled to lift his head, looking at Jotaro walking toward him, face cold as ice.
He realized he had underestimated the man.
Not even from Enel had he ever felt such pressure.
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