A wave of Rocks Pirates stared so hard their jaws practically hit the ground.
In their hearts, Rocks was a figure like a god. When had they ever witnessed him get blown away and cough up blood in such a brutal scene?
"Ares… Ares is already in that state. Just being alive is a miracle, and he still managed to send the captain flying… That's terrifying. Is his body really made of iron?!"
"That amount of blood would kill a normal person on the spot, and it still couldn't bring him down. Ares' physique is insane… he might even be comparable to Linlin."
"Captain… Captain isn't invincible either?! He's Rocks!! The most vicious pirate!!"
…
That blood-drenched, demon-god silhouette of Tengetsu Ares carved itself into their minds forever.
A crew that worshipped Rocks as a "heavenly god" stood frozen, stunned beyond speech.
Even Golden Lion Shiki couldn't help but reassess Ares. He silently pulled out a fresh cigar, lit it, and took a deep drag before asking in a low voice,
"Ares… why did you end up fighting the captain?"
"I wanted to trade a Celestial Dragon for Katakuri," Ares said.
In the short time it took to speak, the wounds across his body had already begun to scab over.
That terrifying vitality his recovery was stitching him back together at a visible pace. Under Rocks' assault, the power of the Yami Yami no Mi had been devouring and pulverizing him from head to toe.
Anyone else would have been erased without leaving even dust behind.
Only Ares whose body was almost unmatched across the entire sea could carve a path out of that world of darkness by force.
Even so, he was covered in wounds.
"Because of that?!" Shiki's brows knotted, his face heavy with concern. "But he's the captain of the Rocks Pirates. In a pirate crew, you follow the captain's decisions."
"I know you care about Katakuri. But there was no need to clash head-on with the captain!"
Pirates had rules.
And once you crossed those rules, the best outcome was execution. The worst was simply… death.
Sure, plenty of people in the Rocks Pirates harbored their own ambitions and private agendas.
But on the surface, no one openly opposed Rocks.
Then Shiki remembered something else.
Ares didn't actually know pirate rules all that well. Ignoring the time he'd been missing, he hadn't even been with the crew for that long.
And yet not long after joining, he'd become a division captain a position countless pirates would sell their souls to reach.
He'd leapt past years of struggle in a single bound.
Ares suddenly turned his head.
His beast-like senses caught a razor-cold killing intent.
From Rocks.
Rocks was covered in dust. His face was bruised, a patchwork of green and purple. That was the price of wielding the "most vicious Devil Fruit in the world."
Double pain.
That punch…
With the pain doubled, even Rocks couldn't fully hide it. A flicker of strain and suffering twisted across his expression.
It hurt.
It truly hurt.
But his endurance was monstrous. He swallowed it without a sound.
From hundreds of meters away, those eyes locked onto Ares cold as frost, murder already spilling out of them.
That brat actually broke out of my Dark Star… In less than three years, he's already grown to the level of Newgate and Shiki top-tier monsters of the sea. If this keeps going… his physique might become the deciding advantage. He might even be the one who wins.
He's a Mythical Zoan user, perfectly matched with that power. Give him a few more years and even I might not be able to suppress him…
Unless I obtain that Devil Fruit… The one I've searched for all these years, just like the World Government. But I can't stake my future on something uncertain.
Ares' growth rate, his Mythical Zoan: Azure Dragon power, the boundless potential still left in him…
Rocks felt a sharp, rising dread.
And with it, the desire to kill only grew stronger.
Rocks burst forward.
So fast it was dizzying no one could even track his body. When he appeared again, he was only tens of meters from Ares.
Sensing that murderous intent, Shiki's expression turned grave. He hesitated for a heartbeat, then spoke.
"Captain. Stop."
Rocks halted instantly, whipping up a violent gust that swept past Shiki and Ares.
He stared at Shiki with icy eyes.
"Stop?" Rocks barked. "Ares broke the rules of the Rocks Pirates!"
"Are you trying to interfere between me and Ares?!"
His voice carried a killing intent so sharp the temperature seemed to drop.
"Captain," Shiki said, cigar between his lips, calm but firm. "Our shared enemy is the World Government. There's no need to turn inward over something like this. It's not worth an internal collapse."
Then he pressed, reasoning with him.
"We're strong, yes. But the World Government has ruled for centuries. They're stronger than us. If we start fighting each other and give them an opening, everything we've built all these years becomes a joke."
Shiki understood Rocks.
He was a man of monstrous ambition. He would weigh those words.
As one of the division captains and with strength to match Shiki's voice carried weight.
Rocks' pressure was overwhelming, but Shiki wasn't the kind of man who would be too scared to speak.
He had joined the Rocks Pirates for one reason.
To oppose the World Government.
That was the common goal.
Rocks' expression shifted between light and dark. His gaze flicked to Shiki at Ares' side, and he spoke coldly as he calculated.
"I will not hand over the Celestial Dragons to trade for Katakuri. The execution has already spread across the New World. Countless pirates have gathered on this island."
"If we fail to execute them when the time comes, the Rocks Pirates' reputation will collapse overnight."
"And that will trigger consequences we can't afford."
As he spoke, his mind churned.
We already uncovered the World Government's trap through CP0. Fine. Let Ares and those with ulterior motives walk into it.
Shiki leans toward Ares too. I'll send him as well.
The World Government wants us dead. They'll lay down layers of traps. If Ares and the rest jump in… they won't come back alive.
And that removes the voices inside this crew that don't belong to me. Killing multiple birds with one stone.
A rough plan took shape.
But he knew it still needed refining.
Not only to purge the crew…
He wanted to squeeze the greatest possible profit out of it.
Shiki turned to Ares.
"Ares. Let this end here. Everyone will help search the island for Katakuri."
He didn't want the conflict between Ares and Rocks to deepen.
"Fine," Ares answered.
After trading blows with Rocks, he understood.
Right now, he still wasn't his match.
But Ares also believed that given a few years…
He would surpass Rocks.
This fight had given him plenty his control over Conqueror's Haki coating had grown more familiar, and he'd clearly seen his own shortcomings.
Devil Fruit development.
The "quality" of his Conqueror's Haki.
The finesse and efficiency of coating.
He needed time.
Time to settle.
Time to sharpen.
Shiki chuckled and looked at Rocks.
"Captain, this was CP0's provocation. To rescue the Celestial Dragons, they'll do anything."
"They deliberately stirred conflict between you two to seize a chance to extract them."
Rocks' face stayed cold, his voice full of absolute confidence.
"Relax. CP0 won't be able to take the Celestial Dragons."
"Even if the Five Elders came personally, they still couldn't."
Hearing that certainty, Shiki thought grimly,
So the captain isn't worried at all… Where did he hide them?
Rocks' gaze slid to Ares again. He snorted.
"From this moment on, I officially revoke your authority and position as a division captain."
"You'll be reassigned to the recruit camp. Earn merit to pay for today's offense."
With that, he turned and walked away, his face dark.
His mood was foul.
This fight dragged on too long. It even let Shiki get here. Those two are close, and that lion clearly leans toward Ares…
I thought Ares wouldn't threaten me for years. By then, maybe I'd already be the King of the World and wouldn't care.
But after today, Ares is a serious threat.
He has no grand ambition. He acts on instinct. That kind of person is even more dangerous.
If he grows stronger…
Then the plan I just thought of needs to be perfected.
And it would be best to use this opportunity… to eliminate Ares as a threat.
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