Moby Dick
Whitebeard sat upright on the deck, surrounded by members of the Whitebeard Pirates, all with serious expressions, seemingly waiting for something.
Whitebeard still had a relaxed expression on his face, holding a barrel of sake and chugging it down his throat as if nothing was on his mind.
After a while, a henchman rushed up to the Whitebeard in a panic and shouted,
"Dad! Red-Haired's ship is coming!"
"Kurara, you came really fast. Let that Red-Haired kid come up here."
The Whitebeard Pirates' officers were on high alert, knowing that the man about to board possessed the most powerful Conqueror's Haki on the entire sea.
Of course, they were unaware that Shanks had already lost to Senga in this respect.
As a large number of henchmen inexplicably collapsed one after another, Shanks boarded the Moby Dick and arrived empty-handed before Whitebeard.
The Whitebeard man frowned and said with displeasure,
"Hey, Red-Haired, didn't you bring some fine wine with you on my ship?"
Red-Haired's expression was also unpleasant. His face was gloomy, and he suddenly flicked his black cloak with his right hand, revealing the empty left sleeve.
The scene before them caused the Whitebeard Pirates to widen their eyes in astonishment. In their eyes Red-Haired Shanks, a man of comparable strength to their father, had lost an arm? Why was there no news of this at sea?
Even the usually carefree Whitebeard frowned deeply. Although he called Shanks" kid," he acknowledged Shanks' strength.
Now that Shanks has inexplicably lost an arm and is coming to see him, Whitebeard realizes that Shanks' arrival is not simple.
Whitebeard slowly put down the barrel of wine he was holding and said in a deep voice,
"Red-Haired kid, what happened to your arm?"
Shanks touched the broken part of his left arm, where he could still feel a burning sensation. He would probably never forget the purple lightning that had almost killed him.
And, the man with the "God's Eye," Uchiha Senga.
A bitter smile appeared on his face. Shanks sat down on the ground and slowly began to speak.
"I encountered Purple Kirin in the East Blue, that terrifying newcomer in the Navy. He's the one who destroyed this arm with lightning, and I almost died at his hands."
Upon hearing this, the entire Moby Dick deck fell silent. Everyone stared blankly at Shanks, who was sitting opposite Whitebeard.
Marco shouted at Shanks incredulously,
"Hey, hey, stop joking around!"
In truth, Marco had already come to believe this fact. Ever since Senga first distinguished herself in her battle against Rayleigh in Sabaody, he had been arguably the person on Whitebeard's ship who paid the most attention to Senga.
Afterwards, he witnessed Senga kill Whitebeard II. and destroy Golden Lion. Marco was truly terrified by this terrifying newcomer in the Navy, and he even tried to talk to Whitebeard about it.
However, Whitebeard remained indifferent. In his eyes, Senga was just a Marine brat, and he didn't even care about Akainu and the others, let alone a newcomer who had just appeared.
Moreover, in his eyes, Whitebeard Jr.. was just a brainless idiot with great strength, and Golden Lion's strength was far from what it used to be, so it was understandable that he would be defeated.
But things are different now. Shanks, who is also one of the Four Emperors, was defeated by Uchiha Senga and almost lost his life.
Even with all his confidence, Whitebeard wasn't sure he could inflict such a crushing defeat on Shanks. Now that the Marines, whom he considered mere brats, had actually accomplished this, he was truly starting to lose his composure.
Most importantly, Shanks' defeat has had a huge impact. He is Four Emperors, representing the pinnacle of pirate power on the high seas. His defeat will disrupt the balance of power.
Even Whitebeard had to be cautious about this matter. He asked,
"Has the power of this Purple Kirin truly reached this level?"
Shanks gave a wry smile and dropped another bombshell.
"Although I don't want to admit it, his strength is far superior to mine, and before fighting me, Kaido was also defeated by him. I got this information from Kaido's daughter, and it is said that she spared Kaido's life for some unknown reason."
"..."
The members of the Whitebeard Pirates, including Whitebeard, were completely silent at this moment; they were numb.
Standing behind Marco, Blackbeard Teach's face also looked extremely grim. (Tianlai Novel Network)
He has been lying low in the Whitebeard Pirates for over a decade in pursuit of the Dark-Dark Fruit, and now that he hasn't succeeded, he's even considering retiring with the Whitebeard Pirates.
Now, having received such explosive news from Shanks, he actually felt a sense of danger in staying here.
Teach clenched his fist tightly and Teach vowed to obtain the fruit as soon as possible so that he would have the ability to protect himself.
Whitebeard silently picked up the sake barrel, intending to take a sip to calm himself, only to find that the sake in the barrel had all been spilled.
Frustrated, he tossed the barrel overboard and looked at Shanks, who sat across from him with a bitter expression, and said...
So what are you going to do?
Finally, Shanks heard Whitebeard's words. Of course, Shanks didn't come here just to promote Senga; he had something much more important to do.
He looked into the Whitebeard's eyes and said, word by word,
"With a monster like Purple Kirin in the Navy, the Four Emperors' crews alone can no longer possibly contend with the Navy, so let's form an alliance!"
"What?! Are you kidding me?!"
Whitebeard was naturally extremely unwilling to form an alliance with anyone. Didn't that mean he was afraid of the Navy? How could someone known as the "World's Strongest Man" accept that?
Shanks had anticipated Whitebeard's reaction, but he remained calm because he knew Whitebeard's weakness: his "family."
He deliberately glanced at the nearby members of the Whitebeard Pirates in front of Whitebeard and said,
"I think you should be familiar with Purple Kirin's methods for dealing with pirates. If you really face him, do you have any information that you can save these people from his clutches? You don't want them all to die tragically at the hands of that Purple Kirin, do you?"
When his family was mentioned, the Whitebeard's expression froze. This was arguably his most obvious weakness, though it hadn't been before. With him around, who would dare to harm his family?
However, even he had to admit that Purple Kirin's terrifying record was something he might struggle to handle, let alone protect his family.
Seeing that Whitebeard was wavering, Shanks immediately pressed his advantage, adding...
"It's just a nominal alliance; that way, the navy will have something to worry about!"
Whitebeard remained silent, clearly conflicted as well.
At this moment, Marco stepped up and delivered a top-notch assist.
"Father! Agree to his request. This Purple Kirin's strength has exceeded our expectations. We should be cautious!"
Whitebeard glanced at Marco with a complicated expression. In truth, he was already tempted; all that was missing was a stepping stone from his family.
In his eyes, his own life and reputation were insignificant compared to his family, and Red-Haired was indeed the best protection for them.
Thinking of this, Whitebeard finally lowered his noble head and said in a deep voice,
"Alright, Red-Haired, I agree to the alliance."
"A wise decision."