Ace snapped his fingers deftly, his face still wearing that bright smile. "Since it's decided, let's move quickly."
Sanji, holding a cigarette in his mouth, glanced at the spare ingredients in the kitchen that could be used to entertain guests.
"Won't you stay a bit longer? At least have some tea and food before you go."
Ace shook his head, his smile tinged with a hint of gravity. "Thanks, but I'm already pressed for time."
His gaze grew calm as he swept it over everyone, then looked in the direction opposite Alabasta. "I'm chasing a serious criminal. I heard he recently calls himself Blackbeard. That guy... was originally a member of my division."
He paused, his voice lowering slightly. Ace's usually sunny face now seemed a bit shadowed.
"He ended up killing his comrades and fled... As the division commander, I have to handle this myself."
The air seemed to freeze for a moment at these words, and even Luffy frowned unusually deeply.
"Yeah, that's how it is." Ace looked at Luffy. "So, I can't delay. I'll take your companions there and then leave immediately."
"I understand."
Luffy's face broke into a smile again. "Then see you next time, Ace!"
Ace smiled too. He turned back to the Straw Hat crew, wearing a slightly helpless but still smiling expression. "This idiot younger brother of mine has been a handful since he was little. I've always worried about him."
"In the future... I leave him in your care!"
With that, he didn't linger any longer. Placing one hand on the railing, he nimbly flipped over and landed steadily on the uniquely shaped single-person boat below.
Giyu watched Ace's movements, then simply nodded slightly at Luffy, Vivi, and the others before saying, "See you in Alabasta." He then rushed to the side of the ship, vaulted over the railing, and landed on Ace's boat.
Vivi leaned over Merry's railing, calling out anxiously to the two below. "Wait! Do you know roughly where along the Santara River would be a good place to come ashore?"
Ace waved his hands crossly at Vivi, his tone relaxed. "We know, we know! Don't worry, I've been in Alabasta for a few days now. Trust me, it's no problem!"
Then he looked down at Giyu beside him and pointed to the engine-like structure at the stern of the boat. "Mr. Swordsman, you stand on that engine."
Immediately after, he elementalized his right leg, transforming it into a mass of blazing, leaping flames. "I'll be using my ability down here in a moment, so there won't be room to stand. Sorry for the trouble."
"Mm. My name is Giyu Tomioka."
Giyu looked down at the raised structure behind him, then at Ace.
The power of the Devil Fruit... it truly defies common sense and is very convenient. He lifted his foot and stepped steadily onto the raised platform.
Hearing Giyu's reply, Ace smiled and reached out a hand. "Alright then, Giyu. Make sure you stand firm in a moment."
"Mm."
"Hold on tight!"
Ace reminded him once more, then instantly fully elementalized his lower body, transforming into even more surging, turbulent flames that violently injected into the engine at the stern of the boat.
Whoosh—!
The next moment, the flames compressed through the engine and erupted fiercely, and the small boat shot forward abruptly.
The bow of the ship even lifted slightly due to the immense initial momentum, cutting through the waves on the sea surface.
They began moving at an astonishing speed toward the Santara River, leaving only a gradually dissipating trail of heat behind the ship.
"Wow! So fast!! I wanna ride too!!!" Luffy stretched his neck, watching the fiery trail that had instantly shrunk to a tiny dot, shouting excitedly.
"Incredible... Is this what pirates from the Whitebeard Pirates are like?"
Nami gazed into the distance, but felt somewhat relieved inside—at least Giyu could travel to Alabasta at the fastest possible speed.
.........
After the Merry sailed out of the port of Nanohana, everyone marveled at how Ace could be Luffy's brother and how miraculous the sea was.
However, this brief moment of peace didn't last long, as Usopp's shout reached everyone's ears:
"Enemy attack!!! Two o'clock direction! Two ships are approaching us fast! That mark!... It's the Baroque Works' mark!"
Everyone immediately went into combat mode.
Two sizable ships were seen cutting through the waves, their decks filled with vicious-looking individuals armed with weapons.
"Seems they were drawn by the commotion earlier." Zoro already had a smirk on his face, his hand resting on the hilt of Third Generation Onigiri. "Perfect timing. Let's take out a portion of them first and weaken their forces."
"I'll handle the ship on the right!"
Luffy shouted without waiting for anyone's response, his rubber arm stretching back sharply. "Gomu Gomu no...!"
Almost simultaneously, Zoro drew all three of his blades, looking toward the Baroque Works ship on the left. "Then I'll take the left one."
The battle erupted instantly.
Luffy first firmly grabbed the enemy ship with his arm, launching himself onto their deck.
"This guy dares to come aboard alone?"
"Everyone, open fire! Turn this straw-hat-wearing fool into Swiss cheese!!"
Immediately after, Luffy's arms and legs began spinning rapidly like a windmill, generating powerful air currents. "Gum-Gum Whirly-Whirly!!"
His body became like a giant rubber top, the terrifying impact sending wooden splinters flying everywhere as the ship's hull was smashed. Bullets proved completely ineffective against him.
The ship tilted violently, with the Millions on deck either being knocked unconscious or swept into the sea like dumplings falling into water. With just this one move from Luffy, the ship had already lost its combat capability.
At almost the same moment, Zoro sprang into action.
He jumped onto the deck of the left ship as it drew close enough. Crossing his three swords before him, he watched Luffy sending people flying and murmured, "I see. Then I'll do something similar."
"Three Sword Style: Tornado!"
With a low roar, his blades danced wildly. Spinning and swinging his swords as if a dragon were ascending to the sky, he directly blew the enemies he struck high into the air.
The powerful sword pressure even generated tornado-like air currents, tearing apart everything around them.
"What... what kind of monsters are these!?"
"Who exactly are these guys on this ship...?"
The Millions on board only had time to see a green blur merging with the tornado before the ship's masts and sails shattered under the pressure, the entire vessel's structure collapsing.
The battle began abruptly and ended even quicker.
Within just a few breaths, the two attacking Baroque Works ships were almost completely disabled.
The Millions on deck stood no chance, all knocked out cold.
Usopp's jaw dropped as he stared at the scene, muttering, "Hey, hey... I knew they were strong, but somehow... these two seem even more ridiculous than before..."
Sanji exhaled a long stream of smoke, watching Zoro sheathe his sword and Luffy bounce back onto the deck. With a hint of resignation in his eyes, he murmured under his breath:
"Seriously... these two monsters are progressing at an utterly unreasonable pace."