An Eye for an Eye

The second week of the ninth month following the God Valley Incident.

Ginny slammed a document on Lin Yuan's desk.

"The Iron Hook Pirates. Captain 'Iron Hook' Drake, bounty 280 million. Over 400 men, four ships. A veteran pirate of the New World, with 15 years of experience."

Lin Yuan opened the file.

"They hijacked five of our merchant ships. The cargo was worth about 300 million Beli. The ship owners have jointly appealed for help, saying that if this isn't resolved, they won't dare pay protection money anymore."

"Anything else?"

"Drake declared that Hachinosu was nothing, just a bunch of punks with a few punks daring to collect protection money in the New World. He said that from now on, he would be the one calling the shots in this area."

Lin Yuan closed the file.

"Ginny, location."

Ginny made a circle with her fingers, her eyes gleaming with a purple light. After a moment, she marked a location on the nautical chart.

"Iron Hook Island. Their stronghold. All four ships are in port."

Lin Yuan stood up.

"Kaido, Bullet, Kuma, King, Moria, and Inazuma. The entire force is mobilized."

Ginny was stunned for a moment. "The whole crew? Against a single Iron Hook Pirates?"

"It's not about dealing with them," Lin Yuan said, "It's about establishing our authority. After defeating the Iron Hook Pirates, no one in this area will dare to touch our ships."

Iron Hook Island.

The Iron Hook Pirates' headquarters. The island is small, but in an excellent location—right at the intersection of two merchant shipping routes. There is a simple harbor, wooden houses, warehouses, and a tavern on the island. Four pirate ships are moored side by side in the harbor, with an Iron Hook skull painted on their sails.

"Iron Hook" Drake sat in the tavern with a bottle of rum and a plate of roast meat in front of him. He was a burly man in his forties with an Iron Hook on his left arm and an eyepatch over his right eye.

"Boss, the cargo on those five merchant ships has been sold. We've made 280 million." A subordinate walked over with a wine glass in hand.

"Two hundred and eighty million? That's too little." Drake chewed on his meat. "Next time, we'll just hijack the Transport Ship from Hachinosu. Lin Yuan has Seastone; that stuff is valuable."

"Boss, will Lin Yuan retaliate?"

"Revenge?" Drake took a swig of his drink. "What revenge could he possibly have? I've been in the New World for fifteen years, what haven't I seen?"

The subordinates dared not speak.

Drake put down his glass and stood up.

"Pass down the order. Tomorrow, we'll take a detour around Hachinosu and hijack those Transport Ships. Let Lin Yuan know who calls the shots in this sea area."

As soon as he finished speaking, a huge door opened in the sky.

Not one, but six. The six doors opened side by side, and a person walked out of each door.

Kaido, Bullet, Kuma, King, Moria, and Inazuma.

Six people, lined up in a row, landed on the harbor of Iron Hook Island.

Kaido, carrying his Iron Club, walked at the very front. He was taller than the streetlights in the harbor, and his shadow cast on the ground looked like a moving mountain.

"Oh ho ho..." Kaido's laughter echoed from the port to the tavern, "The Iron Hook Pirates? Come out and greet our guests."

The pirates on guard duty at the port were stunned. Then they erupted in chaos.

"Kaido?!"

"It's Kaido!"

"And Bullet! Kuma! Jhin!"

"Go report to the boss immediately!"

Drake burst out of the tavern, his face ashen.

Where is Lin Yuan?

"The captain's busy." Inazuma stood behind Kaido, hands tucked into his cloak. "The six of us are enough."

Drake glanced at the six people: Kaido, Bullet, Kuma, King, Moria, and Inazuma. Their combined bounties exceeded three billion. On his side, there were over four hundred people, four ships, and their combined bounties were less than one billion.

But he did not back down.

Having spent fifteen years in the New World, he learned one thing: some fights, you have to fight even if you can't win. If you fight, there's still room for negotiation. If you don't fight, you don't even have the right to negotiate.

"What did Lin Yuan send you here for?"

"Two things," Inazuma said. "First, the five merchant ships you hijacked were worth 300 million Beli. Double that, 600 million."

Drake's lips twitched.

"Secondly, the Iron Hook Pirates are forbidden from appearing in these waters starting today. If seen again, kill."

Hundreds of pirates rushed out of the tavern, swords and spears in hand, and surrounded the six. But no one dared to make the first move. Kaido stood at the very front, and his mere presence made their legs go weak.

Drake stared at the Inazuma.

"You six guys think you can take on over four hundred of us?"

"It's not fighting," Inazuma said, "It's stealing."

The battle erupted the moment Drake waved his hand.

He didn't strike first; it was one of his gunmen. The man was hiding behind a second-floor window of the tavern, his scope aimed at Kaido's head. The trigger was pulled, and the bullet flew—

Kaido didn't even look. The bullet struck his temple with a crisp "clang," the bullet flattened, and fell to the ground. Kaido reached out and touched the spot where he had been hit; not even a scratch had broken the skin.

"Oh ho ho..." he laughed, "Who hit that? Come out."

No one came out.

Bullet didn't wait. He slammed his fist into the ground, which shattered, sending debris flying. The shockwave spread outwards, and the dozen or so pirates at the forefront were thrown back by the blast, flying away like pieces of paper.

The Kuma raised its palm, pointing it at a pirate ship.

"Paw Shockwave."

With a single palm strike, the air was compressed into a massive shockwave that slammed into the ship. A large hole was blasted in the hull, planks shattered, and seawater rushed in. The ship began to sink.

Jin flew into the sky, the flames behind him transforming into a fire dragon, which lunged at another pirate ship. The fire dragon crashed into the mast, breaking it, setting the sails ablaze, and the flames spread across the entire deck.

Moria crouched down and placed his hands on the ground.

"Shadow Box."

The shadow burst forth from the ground, transforming into a massive black cube that enveloped all twenty-odd officers surrounding Drake. They slashed wildly inside the Shadow Box, but the Shadow Wall remained completely still.

Inazuma dashed into the crowd, his fingers flying through the air. He was fast, but Drake's men were no pushovers. Pirates who could survive in the New World all possessed some Armament Haki. A burly man swung his sword, the blade coated with a thin layer of black Haki. Inazuma dodged to the side, his finger slicing across the blade—and it snapped in two. The burly man froze, Inazuma kicked him in the chest, sending him flying.

But even more people flocked to the scene.

Inazuma's stamina was rapidly depleting. His Snip-Snip Fruit required precise touches, and with so many people around, he couldn't keep up. A pirate attacked from behind, smashing an iron rod into his back.

"Well--!"

Inazuma staggered forward two steps, a trickle of blood spilling from the corner of his mouth. He turned, snapped the iron bar in two with his fingers, and kicked the attacker away. But three more rushed up from the left, and five more from the right.

Moria's Shadow Box trapped more than twenty cadres, but there were still more than three hundred people outside. His shadow continued to extend, turning into Shadow Wall to block the Inazuma, but with each blow to the Shadow Wall, his strength was depleted.

"Shadow Horn Spear!"

Black spears pierced the shoulders of three pirates, but after they fell, five more took their place.

Kaido didn't make a move. He stood in the center of the harbor, his Iron Club planted firmly on the ground, watching the battlefield. His mission was to hold the line—he would only intervene if a strong opponent appeared. But so far, Drake hadn't moved.

Drake stood at the tavern entrance, watching his men fall one by one.

His face was grim, but he didn't panic. He was waiting. Waiting for Lin Yuan's men to make a mistake. Veteran pirates of the New World have plenty of patience.

The battle lasted for twenty minutes.

More than 400 people were gone, half of them. The harbor was filled with groaning pirates. Two of the four ships had sunk, and the other two were on fire. Moria's Shadow Box had been broken and rebuilt three times, and his strength was almost gone. Inazuma had seven or eight wounds on his body, and his cloak was soaked with blood.

But Drake still didn't make a move.

Kaido frowned.

"Coward," he whispered.

Then he moved.

He didn't charge, he walked. He walked step by step toward the tavern, his Iron Club dragging a deep furrow in the ground. The pirates blocking his way automatically moved aside—no one dared to stop him.

Drake's pupils contracted.

"Kaido..."

"Didn't you want to fight?" Kaido stood in front of him, two heads taller. "Fight."

Drake gritted his teeth and swung the Iron Hook on his left arm toward Kaido's face. The Iron Hook was covered with dense Armament Haki, and the black hardened layer was as thick as armor.

Kaido didn't dodge. The Iron Hook slammed into his forehead with a loud clang. Kaido's head tilted back slightly before straightening up.

There was a faint white mark on his forehead.

"That's it?" Kaido tilted his head.

Drake's face turned completely pale.

He'd spent fifteen years in the New World, fought Whitebeard, fought Golden Lion, and fought Rocks' subordinates. He thought he'd seen all the monsters. But Kaido was different. Kaido wasn't a monster; Kaido was a monster above monsters.

"You're done," Kaido said. "It's my turn."

He raised his right hand and slapped Drake across the face.

It wasn't a fist, it was a slap. But Kaido's slap was heavier than an ordinary person's hammer. Drake's body flew out like a cannonball, crashing through the tavern wall and landing inside. Tables and chairs shattered, bottles exploded, and rum spilled all over the floor.

Drake crawled out of the rubble, his mouth covered in blood and his left cheek swollen like a pig's head.

But he was still standing.

"Not dead yet?" Kaido a little surprised. "That's right."

He entered the tavern and walked toward Drake.

Drake took a step back.

I surrender.

Kaido stopped.

"Admit defeat?"

"I concede." Drake gritted his teeth. "Six hundred million Beli, I'll pay. I'm not coming back to this area."

Kaido glanced back at the port. Lin Yuan had appeared at some point, standing on the dock with his hands in his pockets, looking in their direction.

Lin Yuan nodded slightly.

Kaido hoisted the Iron Club back onto his shoulder.

"You're smart to know what's good for you."

He turned and walked out of the tavern.

Lin Yuan stood on the dock, looking at the burning pirate ship and the wounded soldiers scattered all over the ground.

Drake emerged from the tavern, covered in wounds, his left cheek so swollen he could barely open his eye.

"Six hundred million Beli, delivered to Hachinosu in three days. If it's too late, the ship will sink." Lin Yuan didn't look at him, but calmly delivered the ultimatum.

"Also, I'm seizing two of your four ships. They'll be returned when the compensation is due."

Drake's face darkened further. With two ships stuck here, he couldn't even run far.

"You--!"

"Say another word, and we'll seize three ships."

Drake shut his mouth.

Three days later, Drake's men delivered 600 million Beli.

Lin Yuan had Ginny collect the money and distribute it to the owners of the five merchant ships—the cargo was worth 300 million, and the compensation was 600 million. The extra 300 million was distributed according to the ship owners' proportion of their losses. The ship owners were extremely grateful and said they would continue to pay protection money and spread the word about Hachinosu.

Ginny made a note in the ledger.

"Six hundred million has been received and allocated. The Iron Hook Pirates have left this area and are sailing towards the depths of the New World."

What about the other two ships?

"Returned. Drake's men drove off."

"Direction?"

"Chao Calm Belt. He probably wants to take a detour to the South Blue."

Lin Yuan didn't ask any more questions.

Ginny closed the ledger and glanced at Lin Yuan.

"Lin Yuan, news of the Iron Hook Pirates has spread throughout the Underworld. Morgans has released a report saying that six people from Hachinosu defeated a veteran pirate crew of over four hundred. Your bounty is likely to go up again."

"Let it rise."

Ginny was silent for a moment.

"There's one more thing. We've found out about that group of pirates in Zephyr."

Lin Yuan's fingers paused for a moment.

What's your name?

"The Black Hyena Pirates. The captain has a bounty of 350 million. They specialize in kidnapping Marine families and extorting money from them. Recently, they've set their sights on Zephyr's family."

Lin Yuan narrowed his eyes.

"Target?"

"Zephyr's daughter. Thirteen years old, attending school at Marine Headquarters."

Lin Yuan remained silent for a long time.

"Keep a close eye on them. Let me know when they make their move."

What do you want to do?

"Repaying a favor."

Ginny didn't ask why, and turned to leave.

(End of Chapter 55)