Chapter 7: A New Life Worth Celebrating
What are pirates' goals? To plunder, burn, and kill. Occasionally, treasure hunts, and often, conflicts with the Marines.
If he were a pirate, Habler would have shown some pirate bravery and fought to the death against these Marines, taking advantage of the fact that the escort ship's most threatening Marine was being assaulted to break through the Navy's defenses.
Or, as a new member of the "Bat Cutie" pirate group, he should have fought bravely, buying more time for his nominal captain.
But, unfortunately, Habler only saw one identity: a fugitive.
And what is a fugitive's priority? To escape.
After Brownie's blow, the little giant's massive figure remained motionless. Once everyone's attention was diverted, he slipped toward the upper passage.
Well, he was actually quite noticeable. With his large size, it would be difficult for the Marines to ignore him. But the Navy didn't have the energy to deal with this type.
In a short time, Habler reached the stairs. Seeing Brigadier General Brownie getting further and further away, his huge figure suddenly straightened; the wounds inflicted by Brownie did not affect the little giant's movements. Then he ran.
The free world was really calling him this time. If he could only escape from this cabin, if he could only have the chance to return to the blue sea, Habler was confident he could swim to the next island!
In his early days as a pirate, Habler had been abandoned on an unknown island by a previous pirate fleet due to his excessive appetite. However, Habler managed to swim away on his own. However, since then, he had harbored a deep distrust of pirates, despite being one himself.
His wide feet rumbled against the iron plate. For some reason, the few Marines he encountered on the way showed no signs of stopping him. Were they logistics officers or staff officers? He speculated briefly, then anxiously ran toward the light.
Freedom, freedom awaits him!
The moon had sunk below the ocean's surface at some point, an orange and red veil stretching over the blue water. White seagulls flew in the distance, their squawks echoing.
Habler stood under the bright light. The sunlight hit his hands, but he felt no warmth.
Not far away, under the seagulls' wings, three dark green warships, with their gleaming cannons, formed a V formation, surrounding the escort ship. The only open direction...
Habler turned in a panic. Ahead stood the Gate of Justice, a white cliff that stretched from the sky to the earth, as far as the eye could see. It was slowly opening to the sides, and waves rose like small hills.
Clearly, the warship had emerged from the Gate of Justice.
Could he still escape?
Habler's heart sank, his body icy. He felt that his previous actions were like a performance: no matter how many ups and downs there were, the end would be the same. Even Buggy's behavior seemed ridiculous to him. Such a desperate struggle, in the face of the overwhelming force of the Navy, was ridiculous.
He stood there stunned. Until an explosion coming from all directions submerged him.
Brownie had a very clear impression of monsters. Because he had personally witnessed how three monsters climbed by his side step by step, leaving him behind, sitting in the admiral's position, a symbol of the Navy's strength.
The three monsters caused a deep impact on Brownie. It was like a genius next to a diligent student. He had worked hard for months to learn one or two of the Six Styles, but his opponent only watched for a while and managed to use them fluently. And it always seemed as if he had done it naturally.
What was even more uncomfortable was that, when they met again, when Brownie was proud of his mastery of this move, his opponent had already developed one more suitable for him, based on his mastery of the Six Styles. It was too depressing!
Brownie never imagined he would get hit like this again today.
"What a fun game, right?" the red-nosed clown said.
He had learned a lot of interesting moves from this old Marine: Soru, Kami-e, Geppo, Rankyaku, Shigan.
This veteran Marine mastered all the moves except the Tekkai.
Many of these were techniques that Brownie had developed over years of research to complement his own scimitar.
For example, Brownie raised his hand, hastily blocking the approaching knife with his scimitar's blade.
The knife suddenly cut through the air, leaving some residual images with a slight arc.
This was a move he had developed over years of research, combining Soru, Shigan, and sword techniques. And, yet, after a single use, the red-nosed clown already mastered it. And he used it against him! It was simply too much to do to him, and then he would do it in front of him!
But his anger quickly dissipated at the replica, apparently identical, of the other's move. The cutting and slashing movements of the scimitar, executed by Red Nose as a fruit knife, were as graceful and fluid as water.
If he hadn't seen him execute a series of cuts with a knife just moments ago, he would have mistaken him for a fellow swordsman with years of experience. His only comfort was having notified Marine Headquarters as soon as he noticed the anomaly.
Even if the investigators were from headquarters, they should arrive soon. With such a monster appearing in the sea, Brownie felt ashamed to face Instructor Zephyr.
After all, it was only thanks to his repeated demonstrations that he had almost mastered the Rokushiki.
And the sea stone ring on his left hand, after failing the first time, was no longer useful. The red-nosed guy possessed the agility and observation skills of a circus clown.
"Well, now I better understand a friend who loves tights," Buggy said with a hint of emotion, withdrawing his right hand.
He didn't know if it was the fusion of three heads, but he felt that his brain was incredibly active. Every movement of the other was etched in his mind, frame by frame. Even memories from the past were sharp. He could even vividly remember Batman's skillful and versatile movements. He was a genius, wasn't he?
But time would not allow him to continue playing like this.
Buggy raised his right hand and snapped his fingers softly.
As a reflex, Brownie instantly tensed at the snap and released the Tekkai.
After all, his face had gone from initial calm to pale and covered in cold sweat. Who could understand the pressure he had endured all this time? His nervousness was not unfounded.
Several fragmented bodies suddenly passed by him.
The vibrations were very familiar to him. Damn it, would fragmented bodies also be good with slivers? Who could he blame?
He even had to worry about whether a sharp bone was hidden behind him, ready to deliver a sudden blow as before.
Brownie also felt that his Observation Haki, which he had practiced diligently for a long time but had not managed to fully master, was gradually being perfected under this pressure.
However, Buggy's goal was not him. It was "Lefty," who had been separated from him for a long time.
"Lefty" returned with a fuse and a box of matches.
The other end of the fuse had no end, as if it extended and spread to all parts of the warship.
"Our new crew members deserve a magnificent fireworks celebration, don't they?" Buggy said.
Buggy straightened up. Although he wore a prison uniform, it looked like a thin, tight purple suit.
He gave a slight bow and a farewell sign.
Then, with two fingers, he gently rubbed one end of the fuse.
The flesh-colored index and thumb made a metallic sound as they clashed.
Brownie found it extremely harsh.
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