On the distant sea, the Perfume Yuda gradually approached. After Olga left Onigashima, Hancock returned to Amazon Lily, and now she was bringing Kuja warriors who were interested to this Socializing Island.
However, she herself didn’t seem very interested. With Olga absent, the island held no appeal for her at all. It was only because she was the Empress of the Kuja that she appeared on this occasion.
“Granny, go tell them. Remind them to be careful, don’t let others think the Kuja are a bunch of country bumpkins.”
“Don’t worry, Snake Princess. Most of them are Kuja warriors. Even though they’ve never interacted with men, they won’t lose composure the moment they meet them.”
“I think you should take a look at what’s happening below before saying that to me.”
Hancock casually pointed to the side, and a group of chattering women immediately came into Gloriosa’s view.
“I think they’re just not used to it. They’ll settle down soon. Look, aren’t they calm now?”
They did calm down, but in a rather unusual way. The Kuja was also a monarchy; beneath the Empress were other ranks of authority.
“Compose yourselves! What do you think you look like? Don’t act so impatient that others look down on you!”
A woman with slender phoenix-like eyes and a high black ponytail tied atop her head was scolding the noisiest among them.
“Marguerite, Aphelandra! I’m talking about you two! You are the guardian warriors of Kuja, not some bitter women who can’t get married! Don’t forget your identity; you are not weaklings. You are stronger than most men, and you can do things they never could!”
“Yes, Sister Kikyo!”
The one reprimanding them was the Kuja warriors’ leader. Though strict with her subordinates, she also cared deeply for them, even if she never showed it in front of them.
As a leader, what she needed was authority, not kindness.
“Why is Sister Kikyo here too…”
“Yeah, wasn’t she not interested…”
Only after Kikyo left did they begin whispering among themselves. Within the Kuja, Kikyo was something of a traditionalist. She strictly upheld the customs passed down through the Kuja, such as the long-standing rule forbidding men from setting foot on the island.
Deep down, she opposed this kind of social gathering. It was something that had never occurred in Kuja history. However, since both Hancock and Gloriosa had agreed to it, she did not object; she simply chose not to participate.
The reason she came along was to prevent these warriors from accidentally losing their dignity as Kuja warriors, getting too excited and giving themselves away outright. She had the air of a strict guardian keeping watch.
Although both sides had a few minor incidents, none were significant. After the Perfume Yuda docked, everything proceeded according to plan, but the real incident arrived at that moment.
The original plan was to pair up randomly based on first impressions, get to know each other here, and then consider touring Wano Country afterward. But just then, an enemy attack appeared.
“Lord Who’s-Who! A ship is flying toward us! That ship, it’s Garp’s ship!”
“Garp?!”
Who’s-Who hadn’t come here to get married. There aren’t many pirates who think like Mandrell; his idea was to find someone he liked, spend some time together, and once they both find each other boring, they’ll go their separate ways to live their own lives. That is the norm for most pirates.
Yet before anything even began, he was hit with such a massive shock.
“That’s right, I wouldn’t mistake that dog head.”
“No need to say more. I see it.”
At this moment, Who’s-Who had already spotted the silhouette. After picking up binoculars, he could even see Garp standing atop the ship.
The first island chain lay on the outer side of Onigashima, beyond the Gyarados sea region. If it were just a single ship, infiltrating this area wouldn’t be difficult, especially since this one had flown in.
“Enemy attack! Emergency evasion!!”
A roar burst from Who’s-Who, his booming voice drawing everyone’s attention. Including him, everyone scattered in all directions. No one wanted that ship crashing down on their head.
“Cumulo-Glorpus!”
Prince Grus created a large amount of clay to provide cushioning, allowing Garp’s ship to land smoothly. This was the Beasts Pirates’ Socializing Island; since its construction, only people from Onigashima and Amazon Lily had come here.
So, unlike the original timeline’s infiltration of Fullalead, the SWORD members could only act together with Garp.
Koby’s Vivre Card could only confirm that he was on this island. It couldn’t pinpoint his exact location from afar, so Garp didn’t launch a large-scale attack.
“Alright, smooth landing!”
Clenching his fist, Garp stepped onto the bow of his ship.
“Onigashima, this is Who’s-Who. The Socializing Island is under attack. The attacker is the Marine Hero Garp; other personnel unknown. Requesting reinforcements.”
Watching that figure, Who’s-Who silently picked up his Rotom and sent out a distress signal.
Afterward, he tossed the Rotom Phone aside. As one of the highest-ranking officers of the Beasts Pirates on the island, he directly took command.
“Garp, do you know where you’ve come?”
“Hey! Pirates, you’re the ones who captured someone you shouldn’t have! The future of the Marines, my beloved disciple Koby, where is he now?!”
“Koby? Who’s that?”
Hearing Garp’s words, Who’s-Who instead looked puzzled. He hadn’t paid any attention to such a minor figure.
“Lord Who’s-Who, he’s that new hero the Marines have been promoting. He infiltrated this place earlier and was captured by me, I reported it to Onigashima.”
Holed’em whispered what had happened before into Who’s-Who’s ear, finally making him understand why Garp had come here.
“So that’s how it is…”
“What are you spacing out for, pirate? But it doesn’t matter, I didn’t expect you to hand Koby over anyway. You go rescue Koby, leave this place to me!”
As soon as the words fell, Garp leapt from his warship, smashing a punch toward the area where the pirates were most densely gathered.
“Galaxy Impact!”
Boom!
A massive shockwave burst forth from Garp’s strike. In an instant, rocks shattered and the ground overturned. The buildings in the direction of his punch were wiped out, turning days of the pirates’ efforts into wasteland in the blink of an eye.
“Gulp…”
The aftermath of Garp’s single punch was terrifying. Countless pirates began imagining what would happen if they were struck directly by it.
“Don’t just stand there like idiots! Anyone without a number, get the hell away from here! This isn’t a battle you can take part in. Go stop the other Marines! Numbers, follow me! Hold that old man back, he’s just a Marine with one foot in the grave!! What’s there to be afraid of?
The distress signal has already been sent. In thirty minutes at most, reinforcements from Onigashima will arrive. This is our territory. Let this guy know who the real masters here are!”
Who’s-Who’s body began to swell, his entire form covered in black-gray metallic fur. A Viking-style helmet appeared atop his head, and sharp steel claws extended from both hands.
“Rapid Fang Barrage!”
Who’s-Who was the first to launch an attack, his claws weaving an impenetrable net by combining them with Shigan technique; however, he failed to truly shake Garp’s defense. At that moment, the ground beneath Garp’s feet suddenly gave way.
“Sand Tomb!”
Dobon’s Sand Tomb had already been activated, and Holed’em’s attack followed immediately after.
“Fire Blast!”
“Seabed… Collapse!!”
As the Numbers’ attacks came one after another, Garp seized the opportunity to grab Who’s-Who’s body and hurled him aside with a powerful slam. In the process, Who’s-Who’s body smashed through the incoming Fire Blast before crashing like a cannonball beside Dobon.
“Brother Who’s-Who!!”
“What are you yelling for? I’m not dead yet. That bastard actually shattered my Protect barrier…”
Who’s-Who spat out a mouthful of blood. When he was thrown just now, he had quickly activated Protect, and Dobon’s sand had cushioned him. Even so, he felt his chest and abdomen churning, his internal organs seeming to shift out of place.
“You can still stand? Looks like I’ve gotten quite weak.”
Garp wasn’t satisfied with his attack. It seemed this opponent was far more troublesome than he had expected.
【You call that weak?!】
Who’s-Who cursed inwardly, though he didn’t say it aloud.
“You all saw it! This Marine is old, he’s not invincible! This isn’t an enemy attack, it’s a massive opportunity! The achievement of taking down the Marine Hero is waiting for you!”
Despite taking a heavy blow, Who’s-Who didn’t retreat. Instead, he used this to boost morale. He knew Onigashima had sufficient reinforcements. If they dragged this out, Garp wouldn’t be able to escape.
There was no way he would let such a delivered-on-a-platter achievement slip by.
“Boa Hancock! Don’t just stand there like an idiot! You’re a subordinate pirate crew now, fight with us!”
“I… dislike your attitude.”
Who’s-Who’s words displeased Hancock, but she still moved as he said. After all, he was stating a fact, and Garp’s punch had already caused losses among the Kuja.
“Perfume Femur Magna!”
“That’s it. Keep going! Even if we just stall for time, we have to keep them here!”
Who’s-Who showed Hancock no courtesy. More accurately, he treated all subordinate crews this way. He had an innate arrogance, and Hancock’s action only reinforced his belief that he was doing nothing wrong.
If you wanted to fly the Beasts Pirates’ flag, you had to cooperate with their actions. Who’s-Who couldn’t stand Hancock’s previous arrogance, though he wouldn’t take the same attitude with Nightin.
He simply saw Hancock as a newcomer whose relationship with Olga wasn’t anything special. Besides, he didn’t think he had stepped out of line; he was just being firm.
While the pirates launched a group assault, Onigashima also received the message Who’s-Who had just sent.
“Lord Queen! Lord Queen! This is bad! That Marine Garp has attacked the Socializing Island, Lord Who’s-Who is requesting urgent reinforcements!!”
“What did you say?!”
You can read ahead upto 75 chapters on my patreon and I’ve also activated (date to date) subscription model on my patreon.
Become a Patron!