The Pinnacle of Piracy

Roy's words dispelled the joy of victory in everyone's hearts, leaving behind too much confusion and bewilderment.

"Cheer up, everyone, don't worry too much. That guy probably realized he couldn't do anything to us, so he left behind a bunch of mystical words to maintain his image as a strongman. The genius Captain Usopp saw through it all long ago!" Usopp said, scratching his nose.

"Is... is that so?" Vivi frowned, gently biting her lip, feeling a lingering shadow in her heart.

Vivi's delicate demeanor naturally aroused the wolf's protective instincts. Sanji, who wished he could Sanji, nodded a hundred times per second and said, "Vivi, don't worry, this is definitely just another feint like before. That guy only has this many tricks up his sleeve."

"Th... thank you all!" Vivi said somewhat awkwardly.

"No, I suggest you don't ignore what Nightmare said. Haven't you noticed that he knows the identities of most of you, and even information that you yourselves don't know? This can't be described as a coincidence." Ace, who was still Roy the meaning of Roy's last words, advised them after hearing their conversation.

"Huh? Now that you mention it, it seems to be true. My dad left the East Blue when I was very young, and most people in our village have forgotten about him and treat him like he's dead." Ace then became serious and started to think about what was wrong with Usopp.

"Indeed, I'm someone no one in the Vinsmoke Family wants to talk about, someone they'd rather be considered dead. My time in the East Blue happened eleven years ago, and for someone as important as him, we should be insignificant. It's really unusual that he could know my identity and background so clearly." Sanji said in a low voice, smoking a cigarette.

Seeing that Luffy was still immersed in his memories of Shanks, Nami took the initiative to speak, saying, "And Luffy, if he really is the son of Revolutionary Army Leader Dragon, then this kind of information should be top secret, but he spoke of it casually, even revealing it to us very easily."

"Rumor has it that Nightmare may have a massive intelligence organization that has infiltrated the Navy, pirates, the Revolutionary Army, and even the World Government. That's why he knows a lot of information that we consider top secret. Even if he is indeed trying to create a smokescreen, we should not completely ignore what he has said," Ace said calmly.

"Gulp!" Yasopp swallowed hard, his mouth trembling. "Does that mean that whatever we do could be under that monster's surveillance?"

"I'm becoming more and more desperate about my future!" Nami cried out in despair.

After hearing Ace's explanation, Vivi became even more conflicted. After a long while, she took a deep breath as if she had made a great decision and said, "Luffy, Nami, and everyone else, are you willing to accept me as one of you?"

At first, everyone was incredulous, but then the cheers that erupted were deafening. In particular, a certain curly-browed man was so excited that his whole body was burning up, and his nose started bleeding again.

Nami was the first to calm down and asked with confusion, "Vivi, didn't you say last time that you were going to stay and help your country? Why...?"

"Actually, my father used to be a very good king. If he could regain his senses, he would definitely be able to do better than me. Moreover, Brother Ace is right. A nobody like me has no right to choose. The only thing I can do is to keep improving myself. If that unknown danger really comes, I can try to save this country again with my own strength!" Vivi said with a confident smile.

"Vivi, you're wrong." Luffy's serious expression startled Vivi. "We're partners! If danger really comes, we should face it together!"

"Thank... thank you!" Vivi said, her voice choked with emotion.

After Luffy his signature "D" smile, Luffy took off his Straw Hat and muttered to himself, "Shanks and the others waiting for me ahead in this sea of Grand Line?"

"The latter half of the Grand Line is known to the world as the New World. The Four Emperors rule the New World like emperors, and Red-Haired Shanks and my Old Man Whitebeard are both Four Emperors!" Ace said solemnly.

"Wow, Shanks is really amazing!" Luffy exclaimed sincerely, then asked, "What about that Nightmare from earlier? Was he also one of the Four Emperors?"

"Are you an idiot? The Shichibukai and the Four Emperors are opposing forces. Since it has already been said that Nightmare is one of the Shichibukai, then he definitely can't be one of the Four Emperors!" Nami said irritably.

Luffy didn't mind and said with a grin, "Is that so? That's great! Shanks will definitely be able to defeat Nightmare, right?"

Upon hearing this, Ace shook his head with a heavy expression. "It's difficult. Given the current situation, most people believe that if Red Hair can't find a strong enough external ally, he has almost no chance of winning."

"How is that possible?" Luffy said impatiently, "Ace, you must be lying to me, right? Didn't you say that the Four Emperors are the Great Sea Emperors who rule the New World? Shanks should be considered one of the strongest pirates, how could he possibly lose to someone else?"

"Generally speaking, that's true. Red Hair is indeed one of the strongest pirates in the world. However, Nightmare cannot be judged by common sense. He actually possessed the strength and power to rival the Four Emperors, but for some unknown reason or ambition, Shichibukai and lurked under the wing of the World Government."

"Moreover, the Big Mom Pirate Crew of the Four Emperors, have close ties with him, several Shichibukai have dealings with him, and countless dark forces have submitted to him, forming an extremely terrifying network of power."

The group was disheartened upon hearing this. This kind of enemy was truly despair-inducing. Now they could only hope that the enemy wouldn't take them seriously, otherwise, any powerful figure emerging from Nightmare's ranks would be a catastrophic disaster for them.

"Damn it, I'm still too weak to help Shanks at all," Luffy said, pounding the ground with his fist.

"So, Luffy, improve yourself as soon as possible. Only when you become strong will you have the power to protect those you cherish," Ace encouraged.

"By the way, Brother Ace, do you know what Nightmare meant by what he said to you at the end?" Vivi asked curiously.

"In fact, I find this very strange. Didn't I tell you that I challenged him two years ago and suffered a crushing defeat? When I thought he was going to kill me, he said a lot of bizarre things about fate to me before letting me go."

"Could he really be a fraud?" Usopp felt like he smelled a kindred spirit in Roy.

"No, if the other rumor about him is also true, perhaps he did indeed glimpse a corner of the future," Ace said seriously.

"What rumor?" Usopp asked curiously.

"He has eyes that can see through the fog of the future!"

"Seeing the future is such a pipe dream..." Usopp's lips twitched weakly.

"If he could really see the future, today's failure wouldn't have happened," Nami asked doubtfully.

Everyone looked at Ace with suspicion, feeling that he was exaggerating.

"Who knows? Fear stems from the unknown. It's precisely because no one has ever truly seen through him that he has become Nightmare in the hearts of the world!" Ace shook his head and sighed, then turned to look at Luffy. "I hope that when we meet again, it will be at the pinnacle of pirates!"