Although she fired the first shot herself, Sherwin could clearly see that the cannonball was aimed toward the bottom of the ships.
Which meant that Shirahoshi had held back—she wasn't trying to attack the pirates directly, only to damage their ships so they couldn't keep chasing.
A little naïve, but understandable.
After all, Sherwin at the beginning didn't even want to kill anyone in front of Klee Meow.
Coming from a peaceful era, he could very much empathize with Shirahoshi mindset, and even admired this little girl a bit.
He was at least an adult before crossing into this world. His experience far surpassed Shirahoshi, who had been trapped in the Hard-Shell Tower for years.
He even had inherited memories to strengthen his will, and most importantly, a Felynes companion to soothe his heart—so his mentality shifted far more smoothly.
But Shirahoshi, timid as she was, still forced herself to do things she disliked and even feared, just for her mother and her people. That alone was remarkable.
Jinx could naturally see that Shirahoshi first shot was deliberately off-target, but she didn't scold her. Instead, she tapped Shirahoshi lightly on the head and offered advice:
"Idiot! A few holes won't stop greedy pirates. If you want to stop them, shoot their masts and sails, meow!"
"Yes!"
Seeing that Jinx wasn't displeased about her holding back, Shirahoshi spirits instantly rose.
She lifted the Raso gun with both hands and kept pulling the trigger, following Jinx guidance and firing toward the pirate masts.
However, those pirates weren't corpses. They hadn't expected such accuracy from so far away the first time, but once prepared, they blocked almost all of Shirahoshi shots.
The few that landed were also deflected, failing to break the masts—instead crushing a few unlucky men nearby.
Sensing this through Observation Haki, Shirahoshi stiffened slightly, but after biting her lower lip,
she continued firing at the pirate ships… only her accuracy dropped sharply.
Clearly, she couldn't maintain her calm enough to keep Observation Haki active.
"That enough, Shirahoshi. Don't push yourself too hard. We have plenty of time—take it slowly."
Sherwin spoke again to calm her, and on the other side, Robin quietly activated her Devil Fruit powers, gently taking the gun from Shirahoshi hands.
"Sher–Sherwin… boss…"
This time, Shirahoshi didn't insist any further. She let Robin remove the gun from her hands, lowering her head with watery eyes toward Sherwin.
"You've already done great. Go groom Klee Meow and Haibara Meow for now. Leave the rest to us."
Sherwin gently patted her arm and spoke softly.
Perched atop her head, Jinx also tapped her lightly with a tiny paw and—rarely—said something kind:
"Sherwin right. For your first real fight, that performance is impressive for a scaredy-cat like you. I'm actually a little impressed, meow!"
Klee Meow and Haibara Meow, hearing their names, proactively crawled into Shirahoshi arms, rubbing their soft faces against her cheeks and purring out adorable meow~ meow~ sounds.
Under Sherwin comfort and the healing warmth of the Felynes, tears faded into a smile. Shirahoshi hugged the two kittens and stepped aside.
"I want to watch from here."
That was her final insistence, and Sherwin didn't try to stop her.
While they were busy helping her through her emotional hurdle, the pirate ships had already drawn near and began firing back toward the Dodo Advance.
"Nyahahahaha! Now it my turn, meow! Come, greet my friends of all shapes and sizes!"
(=`=)l▄︻╤
Jinx leapt down from Shirahoshi head, landing on the Dodo Advance stern rail. She propped up her beloved gun and unleashed a fierce barrage toward the pirate ships.
Even without Observation Haki awakened, her natural marksmanship alone allowed her to hit seventy to eighty percent of her targets—despite the swells and considerable distance…
Of course, only if the targets weren't dodging or blocking.
The pirates who had witnessed her suppressive fire back on Bely Square Island weren't unprepared this time. They had cover ready, and several Devil Fruit users formed shields around their ships using their powers.
After a full sweep of bullets, Jinx realized her gunfire alone wouldn't break through. But the little mad cat still laughed wildly, emptied the magazine, holstered her gun, and swapped in the fishbone launcher, resting it on her shoulder.
"Three, forty-one, nine—and launch, meow~"
The Reaper Missile, now painted with triangular eyes and sharp fangs, trailed a blazing tail as it shot toward the pirate fleet.
They had never witnessed the power of the enhanced Reaper Missile before, but none of the pirates had the slightest desire to experience it firsthand.
From the leading ships, a captain skilled in marksmanship raised an absurdly long flintlock firearm with a trumpet-shaped muzzle, aimed at the missile still in midair, and pulled the trigger.
A jet-black bullet coated with Armament Haki struck the Reaper Missile with perfect accuracy—detonating it instantly…
"BOOM!!!"
However, the pirates had still underestimated the destructive power of the Reaper Missile after Klee Meow improvements.
The explosion sent a massive surge of waves across the sea, instantly scattering the pirate formation and pushing the Dodo Advance even farther away.
Yet Jinx was not satisfied with this outcome…
"Bad! Don't tell me they're scared and running away, meow?!"
Worried she might lose her entertainment, the little manic cat quickly stowed her weapon, placed a paw over her brow, tiptoed to the stern to peer out, and shouted loudly,
"Sherwin, I don't think there are any others left! Let turn the ship around quickly—if they flee, we're in trouble, meow!"
Sherwin thought about it and agreed. They had kept their distance from the pirates mainly for Shirahoshi sake.
Since she was no longer involved in the fight for now, there was no need to keep up the act…
He also feared the pirates might have been frightened by the explosion and attempt to escape.
He clearly saw that there was a Devil Fruit user among them. This time, he definitely couldn't let them slip away!
So while ordering Seijuro Meow and the others to turn the ship, Sherwin also reminded Jinx,
"Don't use Reaper Missiles again. If they get blown to pieces, it'll be hard to collect loot."
"Oh, right—if you hadn't said it, I almost forgot, meow!" Jinx twitched her ears and added, "But I wasn't planning to use them again anyway."
The little crazy cat switched back to her Boom-Boom Gun with a frustrated expression, grumbling unwillingly under her breath,
"Looks like I really need to upgrade the bone-fish firing speed… and that Haki—how do I even learn that, meow?!"
On the other side, the pirates had no intention of fleeing. After a brief moment of chaos, they quickly steadied their ships and continued sailing straight toward Sherwin group.
"Huh? These guys are unexpectedly stubborn."
Sherwin originally thought that, since they remained inactive back on Brisscliff Island, their personalities would lean toward caution. Yet once the fighting began, they displayed a surprising amount of bravery.
Well—mainly because Sherwin didn't yet know that this pirate crew had already found another Warlord to rely on.