"Admiral Purple Kirin: I will protect Fish-Man Island!"
The next day's newspaper headline featured these words in large print, accompanied by a photo of Senga floating in the air, looking down at Fish-Man Island.
The lighting in the photo is very well controlled, making Senga's Rinnegan stand out strikingly in the sunlight.
On the Mosquiti,
"Dad! Fish-Man Island has been taken over by Purple Kirin!"
Marco rushed up to Whitebeard with a newspaper in his hand, only to find that Whitebeard seemed to already know about it. He took the newspaper from Marco, glanced at it, and then casually threw it away.
Marco hesitated for a moment before speaking.
"Dad, Fish-Man Island is supposed to be protected by our pirate crew. Isn't Purple Kirin's approach a bit...?"
Whitebeard glanced at him; he knew perfectly well that Senga's actions were a provocation, but what could he do?
Just last night, Neptune informed him of the matter over the phone, expressing his apology.
If this had happened in the past, given Whitebeard's personality, even if he had a good relationship with Neptune, he wouldn't have let it go so easily. But it was Uchiha Senga who took over Fish-Man Island!
He was confident in his strength, but he wouldn't be so sure that he could defeat Kaido and Shanks in a single day. Even if he could defeat Kaido, he wouldn't have the strength to deal with Shanks was also one of the Four Emperors.
The Whitebeard was getting old; all he wanted now was to be with his sons. He could handle facing Purple Kirin head-on over this, but how many of his sons were left?
Moreover, Shanks arrived on his ship shortly after Neptune finished speaking to him, and his first words upon meeting him were...
"Don't go up against Purple Kirin!"
"..."
The Whitebeard gulped down a large mouthful of wine in frustration, then slammed the gourd containing the wine onto the ground, shattering it into pieces.
When has he, known as the "World's Strongest Man," ever felt this frustrated?
He's actually being pushed to this point by some kid in the navy, even though they've never even met!
Marco silently looked at his father, his heart aching as much as Whitebeard's.
An idea he had never had before appeared in his mind.
"Is Dad really getting old?"
Blackbeard Teach arrived at that moment and, having overheard their conversation, was now extremely flustered.
Because he felt that staying with the Whitebeard Pirates was no longer safe!?
Is this still the pirate crew led by the "World's Strongest Man"?
He had initially thought that if he was Dark-Dark Fruit, he would simply stay here and retire, but the current situation had thrown him into a panic.
He clenched his fists tightly, and thought fiercely to himself,
"No! This can't go on any longer. I must get that Dark-Dark Fruit!"
Teach stood there lost in thought when suddenly someone tapped him on the shoulder. He whirled around, glaring fiercely at the person who had interrupted him, and snapped,
"Who goes there!?"
The person who patted him on the shoulder was Thatch, the fourth division commander of the Whitebeard Pirates. Teach's glare stunned Teach, and he froze on the spot.
This was the first time he had ever seen Teach look at him like that. In his mind, Teach was an honest and kind-hearted man.
Teach realized his lapse in composure and thought to himself that things were going badly; he couldn't afford to let his carefully cultivated public image collapse.
He quickly changed his expression and asked with a grin,
"It's Captain Thatch. What's up? Is there something you need?"
Thatch was stunned, wondering if he had just hallucinated. Teach seemed like a completely different person just now.
However, Teach had cultivated his reputation for kindness over many years, and it was deeply ingrained in the Whitebeard Pirates. Therefore, Thatch didn't think much of it and looked at Teach, asking...
"I've seen you standing here for a while now. I was wondering if something's on your mind?"
"Oh, I'm fine, Captain Thatch. I'm just a little worried about Dad. He seems angry about Fish-Man Island."
"I see. Sigh! There's nothing we can do about it. After all, that Purple Kirin's strength is truly terrifying. Kaido and Red-Haired are no match for him. Father didn't intervene because he was thinking of us!"
"Yeah, that Purple Kirin is a real monster! Hahahaha!"
Teach let out his characteristic laugh and brushed the matter aside.
Thatch didn't want to discuss this upsetting matter any further. After thinking for a moment, he casually said...
"Some people have forgotten how terrifying our Whitebeard Pirates. Not long ago, a group attacked our territory, and our father sent our Fourth Division to wipe them out. Get ready."
"Yes, Captain Thatch!"
Teach obediently agreed and turned to leave. He needed to go back to his room to calm down and think about what path he should take in the future.
Thatch watched his retreating figure thoughtfully; he always felt that Teach seemed to be hiding something.
However, his thoughts were quickly interrupted by Whitebeard's cough. It turned out that Whitebeard's bad mood had aggravated his physical illness, and he was coughing violently.
Seeing Whitebeard's pained expression, Teach immediately forgot about his own situation and rushed over to help Marco insert needles into Whitebeard's body, stabilizing his condition.
After escorting Whitebeard back to his room, Marco and Thatch went up to the deck side by side, both looking grave. Marco said with a grim expression...
"Father's condition is getting worse. This can't go on. The navy's power is growing, and our situation is becoming precarious."
Thatch nodded in agreement. At that moment, he suddenly realized that his strength was still insufficient, at least compared to the current Navy.
As the cook of the Whitebeard Pirates, he suddenly developed a strong desire for power, but power is not something that can be increased at will, nor is it treasure.
Wait, treasure?
Thatch's expression changed drastically. He realized the fastest way to increase his power, especially since he hadn't even eaten Devil Fruit yet!
As we all know, if a person's talent is limited, then a powerful Devil Fruit is the fastest way to increase their strength!
Marco, standing before them, was an Ability User of an exceptional Devil Fruit. Although his Taijutsu were already formidable, the enhancement that the Phoenix Fruit provided to him was undeniable!
Thanks to this fruit, Marco not only gained powerful Taijutsu, but also enviable flight and unparalleled regenerative abilities.
Thatch hadn't thought much of it before, but now he finally realized the importance of Devil Fruit, and he just stared at Marco in a daze.
Marco felt a little awkward being stared at like that by Thatch, and he asked in confusion,
"Thatch, what's wrong with you? Why are you looking at me like that?"
Thatch snapped out of his daze and, without hiding anything, told Marco what he was thinking.
Marco thought about it and felt that Thatch's words made a lot of sense. The Whitebeard Pirates did need to improve their overall strength, which would also save his father some trouble.
Although the Whitebeard Pirates had no shortage of Devil Fruit, the ones they gave Thatch couldn't be too bad, and it seemed like none of the remaining Devil Fruit were particularly suitable.
No wonder, if it were a powerful Devil Fruit, it wouldn't be sitting in storage.
Thatch knew this too, so he spoke directly to Marco.
"Let's put this matter aside for now. Our Fourth Division has another battle in a few days, and maybe we'll get some decent Devil Fruit from our opponents."
"Well, good luck then, Thatch!"