Chapter 371: Full-Scale War
"Bang! Bang!"
Two gunshots rang out, and the Beast Pirates guarding the treasure room's door fell to the ground.
Ulti quickly took the keys from their waists and opened the treasure room. She ignored the piles of gold and treasures to the side and rushed toward the table where two Devil Fruits were placed.
"Ara," Kurumi chuckled lightly as she followed behind, "So, it's these two Devil Fruits you're after?"
Ulti hid the Devil Fruits behind her back, her large pink eyes showing a hint of caution.
"Why steal these two Devil Fruits?"
Seeing that the woman in front of her didn't have any ill intentions, Ulti slowly spoke, "To survive in the Beast Pirates, one must have great strength. Otherwise, one would be swallowed and torn apart by others."
Kurumi smiled and asked, "You're so young and staying in the Beast Pirates; you weren't born a pirate, were you?"
"My father knew Kaido. After my father passed away, Kaido adopted me," Ulti briefly explained. "Even though I have a connection to my father, Governor Kaido's orders only ensure that we won't be bullied to death. To avoid being bullied, one must gain immense power."
"But you took two Devil Fruits, which means it's not just for yourself," Kurumi pointed at her, "You have a relative, right? A brother or a sister?"
"..."
Ulti didn't answer. Even if she died here, she didn't want to implicate her younger brother.
"Ara, ara," Kurumi smiled, "You're such a good sister. I say, would you like to join the Dawn Pirates?"
"Don't joke around!" Ulti , with a sharp tone, replied unceremoniously, "Governor Kaido of the Beast Pirates is the Emperor of the Sea. At least he guarantees our survival! What are you pirates even worth?"
Kurumi wasn't angered: "Our Dawn Pirates are one of the Four Emperors too, you should've heard of us. Plus, our team atmosphere is harmonious, without exclusion or infighting."
"Dawn Pirates?" Ulti was startled and shook her head repeatedly, "I've never even heard of you!"
"I see, because of the closed country policy, information from the outside doesn't circulate," Kurumi rested her hand on her chin. "But you're stealing two precious Devil Fruits. Won't Kaido punish you?"
"No," Ulti muttered, "As long as you're strong, Kaido doesn't care about these small matters."
"Each Emperor of the Sea has their own personality," Kurumi nodded, "Your matter has been resolved. Now, take me to find Black Maria."
"You'll die," Ulti narrowed her eyes, "Many pirate groups have come to challenge the Beast Pirates in Wano, but all of them were annihilated without exception."
From the entrance of the treasure room came a woman's voice: "So, you'll be the same."
"Ara," Kurumi casually walked out of the treasure room, looking at the tall woman in front of her who was over eight meters tall.
"Stop right there." Black Maria called out, stopping Ulti , who was trying to sneak away from the wall. "Once I deal with the invading enemies, we'll talk about your theft of the Devil Fruits and bringing enemies to the treasure room."
Ulti tightly gripped the Devil Fruits in her hands. There was a slight hesitation, and she removed her mask, opening her lips to bite down on one of the Devil Fruits.
"What are you going to do?" Black Maria waved her hand, and a spiderweb shot out.
"Let her eat it," Kurumi raised her hand and shot, injecting Haki into the shadow bullet, which shattered the spiderweb.
"Crack." Ulti bit down on the fruit, chewing it a couple of times, desperately swallowing the half-rotten fruit. The tough fruit flesh scraped against her throat, causing a slight burning sensation.
"Ugh." Just like anyone else, the indescribable taste of the Devil Fruit made Ulti gag.
"Mind your own business." Black Maria glared at Kurumi with an annoyed look.
"..." Kurumi casually observed Ulti 's transformation ability. Her small body quickly grew several times in size, and a long tail emerged from her clothes.
"This is... a Brachiosaurus?"
"Yes." Returning her body to its original form, Ulti gave Kurumi a grateful glance. Without Kurumi's help, she wouldn't have been able to eat the Devil Fruit in time.
"Enemies, traitors, you two better surrender!" Black Maria's lower body turned into an ugly spider body, and her eight sturdy legs stood firmly on the ground like pillars. "Otherwise, you won't look good after this."
"Talking so easily." Kurumi raised both guns. "You better not lose too badly."
Seeing that she was being grouped with the traitor, Ulti could only transform into a Brachiosaurus, clenching her teeth. "I'll join the Dawn Pirates with my brother, and you'll protect us!"
"Of course."
"Maria's Web!" Black Maria waved her hands repeatedly, releasing thick spider webs that blocked the paths on both sides.
"Now you can't escape." Black Maria licked her lips. "Let me deal with you properly, my cute 'Nightmare' lady."
"Didn't you hear of me?" Kurumi shrugged. "I thought everyone in the Beast Pirates was someone who keeps their eyes closed to the truth."
"You think you can beat us?" Black Maria sneered. "I've brought all my subordinates."
Behind her, the women lined up, blocking the only way.
"Interesting—come out, 'we'! Let's start 'our' war!" With a command from Kurumi, the space that had been sealed was now filled with her shadows.
From those shadows, pale hands stretched out, slowly revealing white arms that had only shown elbows at first, and eventually their full form.
"Hehehehe."
"Ah, it's time to have fun with more people?"
"Let's play together?"
Countless Kurumi clones, each with their own will, spoke and laughed, their identical appearance and voices chilling the enemies.
"Interesting..." Black Maria's enticing tongue slid out from her red lips. "So, this is the true 'Nightmare'? Let's all try my 'Phantom Mist'..."
A faintly tobacco-scented white mist surrounded everyone.
...
The once lawless Boro Town now lay in ruins, with buildings collapsing in chunks and a large number of lawbreakers either lying down or sprawled on the ground.
"Drought" Jack stared with bloodshot eyes, standing under the archway labeled Boro Town, glaring at the culprit who caused all of this:
"Did you kill my men?"
"Clack."
Artoria pulled out her pitch-black holy sword from the ground. As she moved, her dark armor clanged.
She didn't answer Jack's question, instead asking, "You're the famous 'Drought' Jack?"
Jack's eyes were filled with gloom as he raised two short scimitars. "Who do you think I am?!"
Artoria coldly responded, "I'll defeat you here."
"Plague King's Hammer—"
The black magic power surging from her holy sword transformed into a black beam of light. Artoria casually swung her sword, sending the dark, devouring light toward Jack.
"!" Jack's tiger-like eyes widened as he quickly raised the scimitars in front of him to block the incoming attack. The dark light struck the intersection of the two blades.
The laser-like sword energy put tremendous pressure on Jack. Standing firmly, he was pushed back as the surging magical power left deep grooves on the ground.
"Lord Jack!" His subordinates screamed in shock.
"Who are you really?!" Jack glared at his opponent, the pressure from Artoria's sword energy overwhelming him.
"I am King of Knights, Artoria Pendragon," Artoria proudly declared her name without hiding it. "I now serve as the helmsman of the Dawn Pirates."
"I see, the Dawn Pirates..." Jack coldly said, slamming his legs on the ground, creating craters around him, using the force to leap into the air.
His massive body, usually cumbersome, was now as fast as a missile, Breaking the sound barrier as he charged toward the Black Knight King standing still.
He raised his short scimitars, the crescent-shaped blades slicing through the air, creating a sharp wind.
Artoria met his strike with her sword. In just a few moments, they exchanged dozens of blows.
"Wow, she's amazing!"
"This woman's strength is actually on par with Lord Jack!"
The ground cracked and sank repeatedly as the already damaged town was destroyed again. The remaining buildings collapsed from the shockwaves, and the flying dust and debris bore witness to everything.
Jack, wielding his twin scimitars, continued his attacks. The earth trembled incessantly.
Artoria, effortlessly, said, "If you don't use your full strength, you'll die."
"I... will die?!" Jack's anger exploded at Artoria's words, and with one last powerful clash, Jack's eight-meter-tall body began to swell. Brown hair sprouted from his skin, his nose grew longer, and his tusks began to wildly elongate.
In just a few breaths, Jack transformed into a massive mammoth.
Four real elephant legs began to move, their heavy steps causing tremors like an earthquake, charging toward Artoria with unstoppable force. His long trunk raised high, ready to strike with a powerful whip of force.
Along with the enhanced power from his animal form, the elephant trunk, made entirely of muscle, moved at lightning speed, Breaking the sound barrier and leaving a series of afterimages, followed by a sonic boom.
Artoria raised her left arm and easily blocked the tremendous elephant trunk.
"What—?!"
"She caught Lord Jack's trunk with one arm!"
The small Artoria was almost completely covered by the trunk, and unless one looked closely, they wouldn't have noticed her dark form beneath the trunk's indentation.
"Average strength," Artoria said casually, raising the blackened holy sword once more.
"Roar!"
Jack let out an enraged roar, then sharply swung his head. A sharp tusk gleamed with cold light, resembling a spear, aiming straight for Artoria's chest.
"Clang!"
The warm sunlight was swallowed, the cold black curtain flashing by. The holy sword cleanly cut through the "nine-billion-value" tusk.
"Ah—!" Jack screamed in pain as the tusk was severed, but he didn't stop his attack. With four sets of muscles comprising the elephant's trunk, he swung it at Artoria, hurling her into the air.
In midair, Artoria turned her body, and the blackened holy sword erupted with black flames. "Plague King's Hammer, Reversed Dawn—"
"Swallow the light, Oathkeeper!"
Like the breath of the demon dragon Futhige, the attack was launched straight at Jack below.
The immense magical power shot out from the holy sword, completely engulfing the mammoth's enormous body, causing it to shudder violently.
In an instant, the giant mammoth, standing on all fours, was slammed into the ground. The massive magical power continued to surge, spreading through the mammoth's body and deep into the earth beneath, before exploding outward, tearing apart Boro Town's soil.
Jack's subordinates were completely annihilated in this attack.
The second explosion followed closely, and the gates to the underworld reopened…
...
At the highest point of Flower Capital, the once majestic Onigashima Castle had collapsed partially due to the intense battle. Many residents of the capital were gazing in the direction, hoping to see the hero who dared to oppose General Orochi.
Among them was a woman with emerald green hair, silently watching the chaotic Onigashima Castle.
"Lord Hiyori," Denjiro spoke from behind. "General Orochi sent someone to ask me to protect him..."
"Kurou," Hiyori turned around and replied, "If a hero wants to oppose General Orochi, even if we don't help, we shouldn't get in their way."
"But, Lord Hiyori..." Denjiro hesitated, choosing his words carefully. "If I don't go rescue Kurozumi Orochi this time, everything I've worked for in the past eleven years as a gangster boss and getting close to Orochi will be in vain. What will happen to the final battle in nine years..."
"..." Hiyori paused, thinking for a moment. "Then, you mustn't actually make a move. Just pretend."
Denjiro sighed, "Killing Kurozumi Orochi isn't difficult, but dealing with Kaido is the hardest part. Without killing Kaido, killing Kurozumi Orochi won't be of any use."
"But seeing the people of Wano being persecuted like this by Kurozumi Orochi, I want to overthrow Orochi and Kaido sooner," Hiyori's voice held a hint of sadness.
"My feelings are the same as yours, Princess Hiyori," Denjiro said seriously. "Otherwise, I wouldn't have turned into a mischievous kid to rob from the rich in the middle of the night."
"Sigh..." Hiyori sighed. "Denjiro, go."
"Please stay in the safe house, Princess Hiyori," Denjiro stood up and said his goodbye. "I'm going to Orochi's Castle now."
Inside Orochi's Castle, the decorative beams and pillars had been replaced by the scorched marks of explosions. Ninjas of all attire lay lifeless, sprawled across the floor.
Kurozumi Orochi was protected by a few remaining ninjas in the center, surrounded by the puppets of Deidara , Akame, Erza , and Kurome.
"Do you know what happens when you defy me in Wano?" Orochi yelled in a shrill voice. "My backing is Kaido!"
"You've said that several times now," Kurome said impatiently. "Move out of the way so I can take a few swings to relieve my stress."
"Weren't you supposed to handle the ninja forces?" Deidara grumbled.
"Who told you to be so slow?"
"Damn it!" Orochi cursed in his mind, 'Why haven't Kaido's guards arrived yet?! Where is Kurou?!'
At this moment, Who's Who , wearing a red horned helmet and a red suit, finally arrived at the gates of Orochi's Castle, arrogantly glaring at the two puppets guarding the entrance, Ashura Douji and Lao G.
Upon receiving the report from the puppets at the gate, Kurome asked Erza , "Erza , your opponent has arrived. Do you need me to help you go down?"
"No need."
Erza stretched her arms. "Blackwing Armor!"
The elegant silver armor was replaced by brown armor. Erza spread her bat-like wings and jumped out of the window of Onigashima Castle!
(END CHAPTER)
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