The very next second,
BANG!
The tavern's wooden doors were thrown open with tremendous force!
"Reporting, Sniper King! The First Sniper Battalion is assembled and awaiting orders!"
"The Second Sniper Battalion is in position!"
"The Third Battalion is on standby!"
"..."
A dense crowd of figures poured into the tavern like a human tidal wave. They were fully armed, clad in identical sniper cloaks, their gazes as sharp as hawks.
In mere seconds, the entire tavern was packed wall-to-wall, and the street visible through the door was completely filled with more of them!
Eight thousand elite snipers stood in perfect formation, their voices uniting in a thunderous roar that shook the very foundations of the building:
"ALL EIGHT THOUSAND ELITES HAVE ARRIVED! WELCOMING THE RETURN OF THE SNIPER KING!"
Bellamy's expression instantly petrified. His jaw hung slack, looking as if it might unhinge and hit the floor. "Wh-... WHAT?!"
His subordinates were even more terrified; some collapsed directly to their knees. "A-Are you kidding me?! H-How many are there?! Did eight thousand really just show up?!"
Every other pirate in the tavern was struck dumb, their eyes wide as saucers, the alcohol in their hands completely forgotten.
Usopp stood at the center of it all, arms crossed, looking down on Bellamy with an air of supreme authority. "You said I was boasting? You denied my title as Sniper King?"
Bellamy's face was a ghastly shade of pale. Cold sweat trickled down his temple, his lips trembling too violently to form a single word of reply.
Luffy bounced up and down with pure glee. "WOW! Usopp! You're the coolest!"
Zoro's eye twitched violently. "This idiot... When did he get a power like this?"
Sanji's cigarette fell from his lips, forgotten. "Eight thousand subordinates... Is this for real?!"
Outside the tavern,
Pedestrians on the street had stopped to stare, buzzing with animated discussion:
"Hey... whose crew is that?"
"I heard it's someone called the 'Sniper King'..."
"This is terrifying! When did a big shot like that come to Jaya?!"
Bellamy finally managed to snap out of his stupor, trembling as he took two shaky steps backward, his voice cracking. "W-Wai... wait... It was all a misunderstanding just now..."
Usopp let out a condescending sneer, slowly raising his hand. "Now you understand fear?"
"Sniper Corps! Aim!"
As one, the eight thousand elites raised their rifles, the dark, circular muzzles aligning perfectly on Bellamy and his terrified crew.
Bellamy collapsed to the floor in a heap, a dark, wet stain instantly spreading across his trousers. "M-... MERCY!!!"
His men wailed, crying for their mothers, kowtowing and begging for their lives. "Lord Sniper King! We were wrong! We'll never dare again!"
Usopp looked down upon their pathetic forms, nodding with immense satisfaction. "Remember this. Do not mock the dreams of others so lightly from now on."
With that, he gave an elegant wave of his hand. "Withdraw!"
"YES, SNIPER KING!" the eight thousand voices thundered in unison.
Then, as quickly as they had come, they retreated like a receding tide, vanishing without a trace in the blink of an eye, as if they had never been there at all.
Bellamy and his crew scrambled over each other to flee the tavern, their pants soaked, their faces etched with pure terror.
They didn't dare utter a single threat, focused only on desperate escape, terrified that the eight thousand snipers might rematerialize at any moment.
Pride? Dignity? They meant nothing in the face of survival!
"Damn it... That guy actually has eight thousand subordinates?!" Bellamy cursed as he ran, his voice shaking uncontrollably. "What kind of monster is he?!"
Back inside the tavern,
Usopp placed his hands on his hips, heaving a deep, world-weary sigh. "Ah... My title of Sniper King has slumbered for too long. I didn't expect that upon my return to the world, my edge would remain undimmed."
A visible vein throbbed on Zoro's forehead, his hand already resting on the hilt of Kitetsu. "This moron... No one would object if I cut him down right now, would they?"
Sanji's eye twitched, the cigarette in his mouth bitten clean in half. "Hey. There's a limit to this showing-off nonsense..."
Only Luffy's eyes continued to sparkle, as he excitedly circled Usopp. "WOW! Usopp! You're actually the God of Snipers! That's so amazing! Teach me! You have to teach me!"
Sanji & Zoro: "..."
Amidst this chaotic atmosphere—
"ZEHAHAHA! What a thrilling encounter!"
A coarse, booming laugh suddenly erupted from a dark corner of the tavern.
Everyone turned to look. Sitting in the shadows was a man with a strange, bulky physique and several missing teeth. A stack of cherry pies and a bottle of rum sat on the table before him. His smile was impossibly wide, revealing a row of uneven teeth, and his entire being radiated a palpable, dangerous aura.
Marshall D. Teach. Blackbeard.
He raised his tankard, the murky liquid inside catching the dim light. "I never expected to meet such an interesting character in a place like this! 'Sniper King'? ZEHAHAHA!"
The temperature in the tavern seemed to plummet several degrees in an instant.
Zoro and Sanji's expressions simultaneously turned deadly serious. Even Luffy stopped his cheering, looking thoughtfully at the strange man.
Usopp broke out in a cold sweat. He stiffly turned his head, whispering to his crewmates, "Th-that guy... Should we make a strategic retreat?"
Blackbeard drained his tankard and slammed it down heavily on the table. "Don't be in such a hurry to leave! Why not stay and share a drink with me?"
His gaze fixed on Usopp, his thick fingers drumming excitedly on the wooden table. "ZEHAHAHA! A pirate who commands eight thousand men... Your bounty must be astronomical, right?"
He licked his lips, a greedy smile spreading across his face. "Just the kind I like!"
Usopp's back was instantly drenched in a cold sweat, his legs trembling involuntarily. Why is he licking his lips while looking at me? Does he... eat people?!
Terrified to his core, he nonetheless fell back on his only skill: the bluff.
He forced his back to straighten, deliberately deepening his voice. "Hmph! You have a good eye! I am none other than the great pirate with a bounty of ONE BILLION BERRIES—'Sniper King' Usopp-sama!"
[Ding! Pretense scenario detected!]
[Random quote fulfillment in progress...]
[Fulfillment Result: 10% Successfully Applied!]
The tavern erupted once more:
"ONE BILLION?!"
"Isn't that higher than a Warlord of the Sea?!"
"No wonder he has eight thousand subordinates!"
Just as the tension reached its peak, the tavern door was suddenly pushed open again.
"Latest bounties! Special Edition from the World Economic News!" a newsboy shouted.
A single newspaper fluttered through the air, landing perfectly at Blackbeard's feet. He bent down, picked it up, and his eyes scanned the front page. His widening grin revealed every one of his crooked teeth.
There, in bold print, was the headline: 'SNIPER KING' USOPP'S BOUNTY SOARS PAST 100 MILLION BERRIES! The photo beside it was unmistakably Usopp.
"ZEHAHAHA!" Blackbeard burst into maniacal laughter. "One hundred million berries! That's perfect!"
He slapped the newspaper excitedly. "All I need to do is capture a pirate worth over a hundred million and hand him over to the Marines! My ticket in! ZEHAHAHA!"
Usopp's face instantly lost all color. He turned mechanically to look at his crewmates, his lips trembling as he silently mouthed the words: "H-Help me..."
....
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