The afternoon sun warmed the sea, and gentle waves shimmered with flecks of gold. A few white seabirds took flight as a gigantic raft-like wooden ship slowly pushed through the waves. [Watermark removed.]
From more than a thousand meters away, smoke could already be seen rising from fires all over Hachinosu. The buildings there were shattered and looked like a field of ruins.
"They turned my Hachinosu into this mess. Damn the Straw Hat Crew!"
Teach stood alone at the bow, clenching his fists. Seeing the island in ruins, he ground his teeth in rage.
Creak~
The door to the cabin behind him opened, and a tall, slender figure stepped out. Under a dark blue cap, he had a head of black, curly hair. Aokiji came up beside Teach and raised two fingers to adjust his sunglasses.
"What are you planning to do once we get there? If we fight, we probably won't have much of an advantage."
"Hmph. That depends on whether they'll leave."
Teach turned to look at Aokiji, then broke into a sinister grin and asked in a probing tone:
"Now that it's come to this, you don't regret it, do you, Kuzan?"
"Well, now that I'm aboard, I can only see it through. At least I won't go back on a decision I've made."
Aokiji spoke lazily, one hand resting on his head.
He had left the Marines to find his own path and see this Great Pirate Era from another perspective.
He hadn't rejected Blackbeard's invitation at the time, and he wasn't going to regret it now.
The black sails, marked with three skulls, billowed in the wind as the wooden warship continued toward Hachinosu.
"Luffy! They're here!"
At the same time, Usopp, keeping watch from the roof of a low building on higher ground,