Response and Hunt

Onigumo Vice Admiral eight swords, awaiting Xia Qiu's arrival, intending to kill him in one fell swoop.

But as time ticked by, Xia Qiu still hadn't appeared.

"Have they left?"

Onigumo looked puzzled, slowly sheathed his longsword, and then asked, "How's the leak down there?"

"Lieutenant Vice Admiral, the ship's hull has been struck four times, resulting in three holes. Two of these holes can be repaired, but two of them struck the same spot, causing larger holes that destroyed five compartments and disrupted buoyancy. The ship is now experiencing some weightlessness on that side," a colonel replied.

Top-tier warships are long and have large compartments; one compartment is roughly equivalent to two compartments on a large warship.

If a large warship is hit, it will almost sink after two impacts.

"We are still two-thirds of the way from Enies Lobby."

Onigumo frowned, thought for a moment, and asked, "Colonel Harris, what was the nearest island to us when we came here? How far away was it?"

"The closest is Savos Island, about thirty nautical miles from here," Colonel Harris quickly replied.

Onigumo couldn't help but ask, "I remember there's a town on Savens Island, right? Does it have Marine Branch there?"

Harris shook his head and said, "No, Savins is not big, just a small town, and it's a gathering place for pirates, known as a pirate supply point on the third route."

"If we go back against the wind, using a foreign vessel, it will take about six knots per hour and about five hours to reach Savens Island."

Onigumo nodded, then said, "Notify Major General Komir to take another top-tier warship to Savos Island."

Colonel Harris quickly asked, "What do you want?"

Onigumo Vice Admiral Onigumo said, "Let's go there and wait for them. It's about 190 nautical miles from the G5 Branch to Savos Island. If they use a foreign ship and go all out, they can reach about 20 knots per hour and arrive at Savos Island in about ten hours. We can set off again tomorrow morning."

Not far away, a Commodore asked, "Vice Admiral, shall we go back?"

"That's right."

Onigumo nodded and said, "The remaining journey is about 380 nautical miles. At our speed, with a tailwind, we can only go 8 to 10 knots. It will probably take us more than 40 to almost 50 hours to get there. I can't stay vigilant all the time by myself. So we need to go to Savos Island to meet up with Major General Komir, and then the two warships will head to Enies Lobby together."

The Commodore couldn't help but ask, "Vice Admiral General, were we being too cautious? After you injured that Sea King, it probably won't come back, right?"

"We still can't be careless."

Onigumo Vice Admiral his hand and said, "This Sea King's attack method is a bit strange, and there are important people on the warship. Their crimes have reached Lord Akainu's ears. Don't forget the relationship between the Lord of Deep Green City and Lord Akainu. The mission cannot be lost, and we must be careful."

"We'll do it right away." The Commodore quickly ran to the bow of the ship to relay the order.

Ghost Spider sat down to one side and closed his eyes.

He planned to stay here for the next three hours until he reached Savens Island, where he would go ashore to rest.

Under his command, the warship slowly turned around and headed towards the distant sea.

"Why did you go back?"

Xia Qiu spotted the warship turning around from a distance and found it rather strange.

Are you planning to go back?

Logically speaking, if a warship is attacked by Sea King and the Sea King is injured and leaves, the possibility of it returning is extremely slim.

Based on the Seastone beneath the naval warships, they should consider this an accidental event, not a deliberate attack.

Why did I choose to go back?

But it took you twelve hours to get here. Now the boat is damaged and you're going back against the wind. I estimate it will take more than thirty hours.

Their decision to return must have stemmed from their perception of themselves as a threat, believing they could sink the ship.

Thirty hours is a long journey, and even with his formidable strength, Onigumo cannot remain on guard at all times.

On the way, he still had many opportunities to attack naval warships, enough to sink them.

So they may not be planning to return to the branch base. And after they go back, they will have to change ships and set off again, but there will be many ships setting off.

If that's the case, why not send warships to find them?

On the vast ocean of the Grand Line, it is difficult to track each other. The personnel left behind at the G5 Branch base may have the Vice Admiral's Vivre Card and be able to find them. The two sides will meet on the sea in about six hours, one coming and one going.

Or go to an island and meet there.

Moreover, what if there's a branch base on the island? Wouldn't it be more convenient and faster to send people directly to provide support?

Xia Qiu sensed the magnetic force of the island on her way back. She had encountered that magnetic force before, and estimated it to be about 25 nautical miles away.

If this warship wants to get there, it will probably only take five hours, or less.

However, if the island has a branch base and sends a ship to pick them up, the journey will be shorter.

Since he couldn't get the Vice Admiral back to shore, he could only choose the shortest route and shorten the time as well.

If the destination island does indeed have a branch base sending ships to meet them, those bases would at most have large warships. With my current strength, I could break the keel in one ramming and sink it completely in two.

Therefore, Xia Qiu himself had to patrol in front of the warship, preventing the other side from making contact, and at the same time, he had to sink the ship in a short time.

"In that case..."

Xia Qiu felt somewhat troubled. This time was not long, Onigumo could stay on the deck the whole time. If she tried to attack, she would be attacked by Onigumo.

He was decisive.

Xia Qiu has encountered many enemies, all of whom were very careless when dealing with him, treating him as an ordinary Sea King.

Even if one is aware of their own abilities, their self-assessment, whether in terms of strength or speed, will be greatly reduced.

The greatest contempt comes from wisdom.

Onigumo was very cautious and decisively turned back. It was unclear why he made such a decision, but it did put him in a difficult situation.

No rush.

Xia Qiu did not launch an attack immediately, but followed the warship.

What happened up there?

Inside the cage, the Fangs Pirate Crew were imprisoned. Their captain was a tall man around thirty years old with a ferocious face. A snake coiled around his neck, its head on his left cheek, with a large mouth and its tongue flicking out.

His hands Seastone Handcuffs. He frowned and asked, "The ship shook several times just now, and there was a lot of noise outside. What happened?"

"Perhaps they were attacked!"

Beside him stood a strong young man with red hair, a burn scar on his left cheek, and his hands and feet were bound by iron handcuffs.

"It's good that we're attacked; we can escape in the chaos," the tall man sneered.

"Captain, do you think it's possible?"

A green-haired girl sat not far away, with a scorpion tattoo on her left arm and her hands Seastone Handcuffs. She said boredly, "Who can attack a Vice Admiral? And if the ship sinks, we'll all die too."

"Then let's die together."

The tall man snorted coldly and said, "Apart from the legendary Golden Lion Impel Down, no one has ever escaped from Impel Down. Given our crimes, once we enter, we will never be able to get out. If that's the case, we might as well be dead."

The others remained silent, but at that moment, a voice came from outside, "Shut up."

A figure appeared in the doorway, staring coldly at them.

"Knew."

The tall man withdrew his body and stopped speaking.

Beneath the surface of the sea, Xia Qiu closely followed the warship.

As time went on, Xia Qiu discovered a problem: the warship was not heading in the direction it came from, but rather towards another magnetic point.

In other words, they do indeed intend to meet on the next island.

We must prevent him from landing on the island, so we must launch an attack before he does.

Xia Qiu made a decision in her heart, but she still waited, intending to delay as much as possible within the time limit.

One reason was that he hoped to wear down Onigumo Vice Admiral's stamina. Keeping him on high alert would keep him on edge. Even if the effect was minimal, it would still have some impact.

Secondly, he constantly feeds in the sea, using Evolution Energy to repair his wounds.

So Xia Qiu was still waiting, and time passed second by second.

An hour later, Xia Qiu dived into the ocean to hunt sea fish. After eating some, a warm current appeared, and her muscles began to heal.

Two hours later, Xia Qiu ate again, and scales began to grow slowly, but they were not fully grown.

As for the bony plates and dorsal fin, the power from feeding is not enough for them to repair their injuries.

The dorsal fin is completely broken, and it will probably take three or four days to repair itself.

Half an hour passed after the two meals.

Xia Qiu felt hungry again, but this time, he did not eat.

Save some room for the Navy.

Xia Qiu felt the increasingly strong magnetic force in the distance and knew that he was not far from his destination, so he swung his body and rushed forward again.

"It's been over two hours, Vice Admiral General. Why don't you go back and rest?" Brigadier General Jojoan said as he walked over from a short distance away.

"We're not far off, just wait a little longer," Onigumo said coldly, staying close by.

"Alright, we'll wait with you." Brigadier General Jojoan and Colonel Harris stayed by your side, not daring to leave the deck.

On this ship, besides Vice Admiral Onigumo, there was a Commodore, two colonels, two lieutenant Commander, and two Lieutenant Commander.

Brigadier General Jojoan was his subordinate, and he was always accompanied on every voyage. He was quite capable and could fight against the enemy.

These two colonels, who used to be the only ones responsible for daily security, are now in charge of guarding the Fangs Pirate Crew. Although some of them are handcuffed with Seastone Handcuffs and others are chained, and there are also cages made of Seastone, they still need to be guarded by a dedicated person.

The people around him remained vigilant, but most of them had relaxed, even Onigumo was no exception. He had not maintained his Observation Haki at all times, but had already deactivated it, otherwise his Observation Haki would have been exhausted.

But at that moment, the ship roared.

With a swift movement, Onigumo, not having time to grab the six swords beside him, arrived at the ship's side, slashed out with his twin swords, Rankyaku flying and striking the dark shadow on the seabed.

Whoosh whoosh whoosh.

Waves of Rankyaku shot out, but the dark figure sank down and disappeared into the seabed.

As expected, an attack occurred.

Give me the sword.

After Onigumo finished speaking, a subordinate handed him six swords, which he controlled with his hair. Then his body grew larger, and his buttocks turned into spider buttocks.

He took the other six swords, controlled them with his hair, and then used Observation Haki again, waiting quietly.

But this time, another period of time passed, and the other party did not come.

"The attack site is the same place as the last attack, which was just covered with wooden planks, but another large hole was smashed in the side. Not only was the patched-up area broken, but the hole is also larger, affecting buoyancy and slowing the ship down again," a Lieutenant Commander reported.

"Damn it."

Onigumo looked somewhat gloomy. The ship's speed had slowed down again, and what should have been an hour's journey was now going to be delayed.

Moreover, the Sea King launched another attack, meaning that it had been following him for the past few hours.

Not only that, he also attacked the point of impact, as if deliberately trying to widen the hole.

Small openings can be repaired and have little impact on buoyancy balance, but large openings allow more people to enter, potentially affecting several compartments at once, posing a greater threat.

Therefore, this Sea King very intelligent.

"Auston, when it attacks again, jump down and fight it."

Onigumo suddenly spoke coldly to the distance.

"What?"

Brigadier General Auston paused slightly, looked at Onigumo, and asked, "You want me to fight him, but I may not be able to..."

The chances of defeating someone that even Onigumo Vice Admiral couldn't kill in three hits are rather slim.

"He's already injured. I attacked him three times and slashed him so many times. Even if he's still alive, he won't last much longer," Onigumo said. "When he comes again, I'll strike again to worsen his injuries. You go down and attack him. Even if you can't defeat him, at least keep him occupied while I attack him from above."

"Your subordinate obeys."

Auston immediately agreed. Vice Admiral Onigumo was right. After three attacks, they would launch another one. No matter how strong Ghost Spider was, he was just a Sea King and would probably be on the verge of death. Then he could go into the sea and have a chance to kill Ghost Spider.

Killing him would be a great achievement.

Auston found two harpoons. He was skilled with longswords, but harpoons were more suitable for the water.

He stood in the center of the deck, waiting quietly. Onigumo did not arrive, so he had no choice but to unleash his Observation Haki.

He is skilled in both types of Haki, but his Observation Haki is relatively weak. Moreover, Haki has its limits, and he cannot maintain his detection range for long if he wants to expand it to the entire ship.

In the blink of an eye, another ten minutes passed.

boom.

The ship trembled, Onigumo leaped to the side of the ship, unleashing eight swords simultaneously.

"Eight Sword Style Secret Technique: Spider Web."

Eight Rankyaku shot out, forming a Spider Web that shot into the seawater and struck Xia Qiu's body.

Puff puff puff puff.

Xia Qiu's back was damaged again, the bony plates were completely broken, and the spines of the second dorsal fin were also broken.

In addition to the previous attack, Xia Qiu's scales were broken again, his muscles burst open, and the wound on his head was so deep that the bone was visible.

it hurts.

Xia Qiu felt a sharp pain in his head, but he endured it; he had already been hit six times. Two large holes, two small holes, the ship's speed decreased again and again, seawater kept pouring in, and the buoyancy balance was about to be destroyed.

If another large hole is created, the ship will slowly sink.

Xia Qiu gritted her teeth and dived downwards.

But at that moment, Auston, who was on the deck, flashed to the side of Onigumo, stepped on the side of the ship, held the harpoon, bent his legs, and his body was launched directly out.

boom.

Auston plunged into the water, charging toward the shadowy figure that was dodging downwards, and stabbed down fiercely with the harpoons in his hands.

"Die."

Auston's harpoon pierced Xia Qiu's head, going straight into the wound, breaking through the muscle, and hitting the bone with a crisp sound.

"Next time, I'll blow your head off."

Auston drew his harpoon, preparing to attack again.

But Xia Qiu had already dived downwards. Auston swayed, pushed off with his legs, and was about to pounce on Xia Qiu again, raising his harpoon.

The next moment, a huge tentacle lashed out.

Bang.

Auston sensed the approaching shadow and raised his harpoon to defend himself. He was struck by the harpoon, the force of which momentarily stunned him, but he was not injured.

"What's this?"

Auston couldn't see what was attacking him in the dark ocean and was somewhat surprised by the sudden attack.

In Xia Qiu and autumn, they would dive down to create distance.

"Trying to run?"

Auston snorted and chased after it again, but at that moment, Xia Qiu suddenly twisted its body and then swung its front paws.

I'm not diving down to escape, but to create an opening so I can turn around and attack you.

Xia Qiu's enormous claws lashed out at Auston, Auston raised his harpoon and crossed it to defend himself.

Bang.

The claws landed on the harpoon, snapping it in two, and then slammed into his body.

Bang.

Auston's upper body was struck by the claws, his head exploded, his sternum shattered, his spine bent, and his body was thrown backward.

Click.

Xia Qiu turned around and bit his body, then slid downwards.

He's quite strong, either a Commodore or a brigadier general. If I eat him, my strength will increase.

Thank you for bringing the food.

Xia Qiu closed her mouth wide, chewed it up, and swallowed it.

This chapter has 4,500 words.