Infighting X Farce

As soon as the words were spoken, streaks of black shadow, like fleas, shot up from the Hell Pirates' ship.

There was still about twenty meters between the two ships, but these 'ghost face' One Piece were able to use the explosive power of their legs to leap across directly.

"Fighting!"

This scene caught Hawkins' crew off guard, who immediately cried out.

"Ha ha ha ha!"

"Slaughter them!"

Looking at the black dots falling from the sky, Basil Hawkins instantly activated his power. His slender body was wrapped in grass twigs and gradually grew larger, revealing the Strawman, a scarecrow whose hands turned into five-inch nails.

Several arms extended from various parts of his body, making him look terrifying! However, Hawkins remained quite calm. In his divination, the bloodshed and casualties in today's encounter were already foreshadowed.

He had divined beforehand that even if the Hawkins Pirates fought against the Hell Pirates, the Hawkins Pirates would still have a 70% chance of survival!

This means... they won't be wiped out.

This is also why he took the initiative to interact with the other party.

Gunshots and the clanging of blades instantly filled the entire deck, turning into a chaotic melee.

Hawkins, controlling the arm of the Strawman, swung it wildly, his sharp finger nails sweeping across the surroundings like a whirlwind. These ghost-faced One Piece considered him their primary target; killing their captain would be a major achievement. However, Basil Hawkins, who had earned his current reputation, was no pushover... His straw doll body, though seemingly fragile, was actually quite tough and possessed considerable defensive capabilities. Many approaching shadowy figures were torn apart and splattered with blood by his finger strikes.

But what surprised Hawkins was that the members of the Hell Pirates had powerful and outstanding physical abilities and extremely sharp reflexes. Many of his attacks that seemed about to hit were actually dodged. Moreover, even if they were injured by his attacks, it did not affect their actions at all.

The sensation from his fingertips felt as if his nails were piercing and tearing not the flesh of a living being, but rather stone.

"Captain!"

Hawkins' group was surrounded and had not yet escaped when they heard their men calling for help nearby.

Hawkins turned his head and saw that in the blink of an eye, many of his men had been taken down, and they were almost being overwhelmed by the enemy... The 'Ghost Faces' relied on their abnormal physical strength to even withstand bullets. On the scene, apart from him and a few other combatants who had the ability to fight back, the rest... were either dead or wounded.

"Hey!"

In that brief moment of distraction, several ghostly faces suddenly appeared close by, swiftly thrusting their weapons into the straw man's body with terrifying force.

The group of men let out a cruel and triumphant laugh.

However, what greeted them was the face of the Strawman Subduing, his eyes flashing with emerald green light.

There were also scarecrows, each about the size of a palm, falling down from between the grass blades and emitting black smoke.

"Um?"

"How come... you're not injured?"

The members of the Hell Pirates were stunned.

They had never seen anything like this when they were slaughtering other One Piece crews in the North Blue, nor had they ever fought against an opponent with such bizarre abilities... They had almost always crushed them.

This indirectly fueled their evil intentions.

"Get out of my way!"

Hawkins said coldly.

The next second, the wind howled.

Several One Piece collapsed backward, blood gushing from their chests.

The onlookers, all wearing ghost One Piece, were taken aback... This was the first time someone had been able to ignore their evolved bodies' inherent defenses and inflict such obvious wounds. Basil Hawkins, as if enraged, displayed a significantly different level of strength compared to before.

The towering straw man shoved his way across the ship towards the black-clad One Piece. He had more than one arm, and although his other arms lacked nails, the force of his strikes and blows was still considerable. It was clear that he was extremely worried about his crew, and he fought his way through the enemy's encirclement.

They joined up with the surviving crew and stood at the forefront with an imposing, unyielding spirit.

Full of murderous intent.

In less than a quarter of an hour, the Hawkins Pirates were reduced to only ten people, including Captain Hawkins.

The other nine people were all injured.

Those in more serious condition have lost their ability to fight and are being supported by their teammates.

However, thanks to Hawkins' Devil Fruit ability, many members of the Hell Pirates perished; he actually killed them all... The damage from his attacks prevented the low-bloodline Demon Tribe from healing themselves. Some were even killed instantly.

"Captain... our weapons aren't very effective against them."

The deputy said something to the straw figure standing in front of him, his heart pounding.

The fighting has temporarily ceased, resulting in a stalemate.

Out of fear of Hawkins' terrifying lethality, the members of the Hell Pirates who surrounded them did not dare to make any rash moves for the time being.

Boom! At that moment, a loud explosion rang out on the ship, and Dorans descended from the sky, landing on the deck with his knees bent. His squatting posture upon landing caused the deck to shatter into wood chips instantly, and cracks spread.

Hawkins, seeing this, was on high alert.

"Still not resolved... You guys are really incompetent."

Dorans slowly got up, picking up a scarecrow that had fallen to the ground and playing with it.

"Hmph! He won't last much longer... Brother Dorans, you don't need to do anything, just watch us!"

"I don't believe he can maintain this ability indefinitely. Let's wear him down!"

"Right!"

The One Piece who were being scolded by him were first embarrassed, then started shouting.

Dorans ignored it, turning his head to look at Hawkins as he fought his way through the deck, with scarecrows falling down along the way, and quite a few of them.

He turned to face the terrifying 'monster' before him, the Strawman, and said, "You're quite powerful... This thing... does it make you immune to damage?"

Hawkins remained unmoved upon hearing this.

But the crew behind him turned pale at the sight.

They seemed to have not expected the former to have such keen observation skills.

As Dorans threw away the straw doll and walked towards him, Hawkins said, "You can take anything from the ship... If we continue fighting, even if you win in the end... it will cause more unnecessary casualties."

"Hehehe..."

Dorans gave a mocking laugh and started moving his limbs.

"Your Hell Pirates are expanding their ranks, and losing a large number of members at this time is probably not what your captain wants to see. Moreover, if you continue to cause trouble, you will become the common enemy of all One Piece in the North Blue... The One Piece who have conflicts with you are only a small part of the North Blue. If you are regarded as an enemy by all One Piece... then I believe that the various forces in the North Blue will also be eager to make a move."

"Even Doflamingo... he can only maintain a superficial level of control; he wouldn't dare to openly oppose the entire North Blue."

"All you want is money, here you go."

Hawkins continued.

"We want money... but we also want our lives."

Dorans suddenly raised his elbow, unleashing a powerful punch—this was his perfect opportunity to shine! The reason he hadn't appeared immediately was to let the other trainee crew members highlight his strength.

Seeing the force of his punch, Hawkins immediately assumed a fighting stance and raised his finger nails.

The other party gave him a rather troublesome feeling.

However, just as Dorans was about to make his move, a blade of light, as dazzling as a streak of fire from the heavens, slashed down directly towards the neck of the Strawman, forming a red line that sliced through the straw man's neck. The person who made the move also flipped and landed on the ground.

He was a one-eyed swordsman with incredibly long, flowing hair that reached his waist. He wore a flowing black gauze robe, and from behind, he appeared to be a woman. But he was actually a man... He had an eyepatch over his left eye, so it was unclear whether he was blind.

One hand gripped the gleaming blade.

After Hawkins' straw doll body was severed, a large area of flames burst into flames, which spread wildly throughout his body.

It was as if they wanted to burn him completely.

However, because of the presence of the substitute straw doll, the fire was mysteriously extinguished after it spread, leaving only wisps of black smoke... and the severed neck was reconnected by straw branches.

"You!"

Dorans looked grim.

Unexpectedly, someone stole his chance!

This person was the very person he had previously considered an outcast who might become a full member of the ship.

The long-haired man raised an eyebrow as Hawkins's Strawman returned to normal. "Oh? Your abilities have become quite powerful again..."

He appears to be an old acquaintance of Hawkins.

Whoosh! A gust of wind swept by, and the long-haired man dodged it, standing next to Dorans.

He raised his katana, and as he slowly ran his other hand along the blade, the sword was suddenly enveloped in blazing flames.

"Devil Fruit?"

Hawkins mumbled in a low voice.

When she saw the man's face clearly, her heart skipped a beat.

It's different now... the other person's appearance...

"No...this is the power my captain bestowed upon me..." The swordsman's expression was strange; he seemed to possess some kind of privilege and was not wearing a mask.

Grant... power? "Get out of my way... he's mine!"

Dorans interrupted their reminiscing, speaking coldly.

"I've already asked..."

The swordsman, whose features were strikingly beautiful and revealed a single, almond-shaped eye, sneered, "I asked that on my very first day on the ship..."

"On the ship... there are no rules, whoever is stronger... gets to do what they say. Besides, apart from those two who are truly high-ranking officers... you seem to be just... a shipwright? I admire the strength of those two, to be honest... I'm even a little afraid of them. But you... you just got on the ship earlier than us, so you have the status of a formal member."

"It's fine if you can fool those guys, but don't put on airs in front of me."

"..."

This man's blatant sarcasm immediately darkened Dorans's face.

His murderous intent suddenly shifted towards his companion.

Internal strife?

Hawkins and the others were taken aback.

"Want to try and fight?"

The swordsman continued his provocation, "If I killed you, maybe a spot on the official team would become available right now."

The other members of the Hell Pirates around them were also stunned, looking at each other in bewilderment, not knowing how to handle the situation.

For a moment, no one dared to interrupt.

"Hey, you two."

Suddenly, a cold voice cut in.

As if possessing some kind of magic, it shattered the tension between the two who were about to explode.

The crowd parted, and Dom, dressed in bandages, stared intently at Dorans and the swordsman.

"If you want to cause trouble, at least consider the occasion!"

Upon hearing this, Dorans and the swordsman immediately separated, as if they had been woken up by a bucket of cold water.

"You are very lucky... to have met our king."

Dom stared at Hawkins and said calmly.

As soon as the words were spoken, the people on the ship seemed to realize what was happening and looked up at the same time.

Suddenly, Oboro appeared, standing on the mast of Hawkins 'One Piece ship, watching the farce with a smile.

"Hello, Basil Hawkins."

Long raised his hand in greeting.

Splash!

On the deck, all the ghost-faced One Piece, including Dorans and his two companions, knelt down at the same time.

Was he... always on top?

At that moment, Hawkins' mind was only focused on and repeating this one sentence.

Not to mention not noticing... the man was right in front of him, but his sensory system didn't give him the slightest feedback.

Hawkins felt a chill run down his spine.

This is... the captain of the Hell Pirates, the man who caused a dramatic change in the North Blue's landscape.