Interlude

No wonder everyone had this thought. Although they were all Shichibukai and had never fought each other, they still had a basic understanding of their relative strengths.

If Hawkeye's battle against Nightmare could be considered evenly matched and somewhat interesting, then the Empress's provocation of Nightmare was practically a foregone conclusion in their minds.

Admittedly, the Empress, who became one of the Shichibukai, is definitely not weak, but this strength depends on who she is compared to. Compared to Nightmare's formidable record, the Empress's frail figure is not convincing at all. Moreover, they do not believe that Nightmare is the kind of person who would show mercy to women.

However, they were somewhat puzzled. They had never heard of any connection between Nightmare and the Empress. But seeing how much the Empress seemed to want to devour Nightmare, could it be that she had been seduced and abandoned by Nightmare in the past?

"Hiss... How terrifying!" Everyone gasped inwardly, their eyes filled with admiration and resentment as they looked at Nightmare. The world's most beautiful woman was just discarded like trash by him? If you don't like her, you can give her to me!

Hawkeye looked completely bewildered. Was his challenge going to be ruined again?

Roy found it somewhat amusing, looking calmly at the woman who was several points taller than him. "Prey? Interesting. How long has it been since anyone dared to speak to me like that? What gave you such courage? Ignorance... or perhaps that nonsensical love?"

"Hmph, how dare he speak to me like that! What a heartless man!" Hancock could hardly believe her eyes. Shouldn't someone as beautiful as her be forgiven for anything? This man before her hadn't succumbed to her charm. This was no Devil Fruit.

A naval officer quietly approached Sengoku and asked, "Fleet Admiral Sengoku, shouldn't we quickly separate them? If they fight and destroy this place, it won't look good for our navy."

Sengoku shook his head. "You overestimate Hancock. Her Devil Fruit Ability might be a venomous snake or a ferocious beast to others, but it's practically useless against a monster like Nightmare. If a fight really breaks out, the battle will end quickly, and it won't end up like what you described, where this place is destroyed."

"Moreover, the Pirate Empress is not someone to be trifled with. At the beginning, she even dared to resist the forced conscription of the Shichibukai and even took the initiative to attack Mole. It's good to teach her a lesson now, so that she won't have any peace and quiet for the next three days."

Just as Sengoku was speaking, Hancock could no longer tolerate Roy's indifferent attitude towards her. She made a heart shape with her hands, and pink heart-shaped light bloomed, seemingly exuding a faint and charming fragrance.

"Become my captive, Slave Arrow!"

The pink light instantly pierced through Roy's body, but instead of petrifying him, even the indifferent expression on Roy's face remained unchanged.

"How is that possible?" Hancock covered her red lips, her heart filled with shock. "Could this guy be someone with an incredibly pure and untainted mind, just like Luffy?"

"In that case, let's try this move, the Perfume Femur!"

Hancock gently touched her lips, conjuring a huge pink heart-shaped object, then pulled it back like a bow and arrow, the pink arrow instantly leaving her body.

Roy remained unmoved, letting the arrow pierce his body, and then, without even raising his eyelids, said, "Have you had enough?"

"This is absolutely impossible!" Hancock's beautiful eyes widened, she was stunned and shocked. After all, this attack was a sure-kill arrow that would petrify anyone, regardless of whether they harbored any affection for her!

While Hancock was in a daze, Roy gently raised his right hand, extended his index finger, and a wisp of gray sword Sword Qi flowed at his fingertip. It seemed that countless tiny spaces around him were constantly breaking and regenerating, in an endless cycle!

To the ordinary rear Rear Admiral Vice Admiral, this scene might just seem like Nightmare was incredibly cool and impressive. But to the Shichibukai and Sengoku, the meaning was completely different. Nightmare's fingertip was practically a small black hole. If he were to actually point at her, the Pirate Empress would become history.

However, Doflamingo and the others remained indifferent. Not to mention that they had no connection with the Empress, even if they did, given their ruthless pirate style, they would never offend someone like Nightmare for the sake of a Pirate Empress.

Therefore, having good judgment is very important in life; if you choose to seek your own death, you can't blame anyone else.

Seeing that everyone else was just watching the show and had no intention of making a move, Sengoku's eyes twitched violently. He cursed inwardly, but he had no choice but to step forward. Hancock could die, but she absolutely could not die here, at such a crucial moment before the big battle. Otherwise, it would be too much of a blow to morale.

However, Roy's actions were even faster than Sengoku had anticipated. While Sengoku was still pondering, Roy quietly pointed out a finger imbued with the aura of death and destruction.

The Empress was no longer the madwoman she had been. Her face was deathly pale. The other Shichibukai could see the outcome, but as the person directly involved, she naturally felt the fear of death even more acutely. Despite the slowness of the opponent's attacks, she had no thought of running away. It was as if she was recalling the fear of being branded with the Celestial Dragons mark when she was a child. She could only wait quietly for death to come in despair.

"Buddha Shockwave!" Sengoku didn't have time to transform in time. The shockwave he unleashed in human form only slightly deflected Roy's attack from its original trajectory, grazing past the Empress's heart.

Puff!

Seeing the Empress's graceful figure being sent flying hundreds of meters, her life force suddenly plummeting to rock bottom, unable to even utter a complete sentence, everyone suddenly awoke from their daze, their eyes filled with fear as they looked at Roy.

Although everyone knew that Empress Hancock was no match for Nightmare, the outcome was still too fantastical, considering they were both Shichibukai. Hancock used all her methods, yet they had no effect on Nightmare. In contrast, Nightmare effortlessly brought Hancock to the brink of death with a single finger. The difference in their abilities was like heaven and earth.

"Gulp..." A Marine swallowed hard, sweat soaking his entire body. "Is the Pirate Empress too weak?"

"Weak? There are no weaklings among the Shichibukai, let alone someone like the Pirate Empress who was recruited into the Shichibukai with just one expedition. This situation is entirely due to Nightmare's terrifying strength!" Mole's face was ashen. He had almost been instantly killed by the Empress, so calling Hancock weak was like slapping him in the face. However, seeing the arrogant Hancock on the verge of death, a perverse pleasure rose within him. Serves you right for looking down on me!

"Indeed, the Pirate Empress's greatest strengths are her incredibly powerful Conqueror's Haki and her unpredictable Devil Fruit Ability. But now, her Devil Fruit Ability is completely ineffective against Nightmare, and although she didn't have time to use her Conqueror's Haki, it's easy to see that her Conqueror's Haki is on a completely different level from Nightmare's; the gap between them is simply too great." Momousagi's expression was solemn. She had originally harbored the idea of challenging Roy again, but after seeing this attack, she had no choice but to give up in despair. The gap between them had indeed never narrowed!