I'm Calm, So I'm Going to Beat Him to a Pulp!

At that moment, atop the warship that looked like a cola bottle.

The soldiers of the Detention Unit felt that everything that had happened so far was like a dream.

First, they had unexpectedly encountered the Spade Pirates while celebrating the successful completion of their mission.

Then there was Luo Yi's display of power.

In fact, the Marines of the Detention Unit had seen Luo Yi's Wave Fist more than once.

But no matter how they looked at that attack just now, wasn't it a little too outrageous?

That punch had practically split the sea apart and annihilated the famed 'Fire Fist' Ace along with his pirate ship. It had nearly made them wonder—was the force they were in really the Detention Unit, a team notorious for its weak combat power?

But that still wasn't everything.

What they found hardest to understand was that after 'Fire Fist' Ace and the Spade Pirates began fleeing, another major figure had actually appeared.

"King of Lizards. He actually showed up here."

Fal's face was covered in grim, cold sweat, and even the usually carefree Hans was now gripping the flintlock in his hand nervously.

They had no choice but to be nervous.

Although his reputation had declined somewhat recently because Sand Crocodile had been killed,

the Shichibukai were still the Shichibukai!

They were one of the three great powers of the sea, mighty figures who suppressed the Grand Line.

And 'King of Lizards' Hanafuda was one of the most senior among them, as well as one renowned for his brutality.

This great pirate, who had once made a name for himself in the New World, had reportedly even opposed the Four Emperors' Kaido. The two had acknowledged each other and become close friends.

And at that very moment—

"Officer Luo Yi! Sergeant Hans, Sergeant Fal—the explosion just now happened because the stern was hit by a stray shot. The stern propeller and power furnace were both damaged, and there's also a hole in the bottom of the ship, and—"

A Marine soldier came anxiously up from the cabin to report the situation.

"Morr and Lanster, who were responsible for adjusting the stern propeller and repairing the power furnace, were injured in the explosion. We can't determine whether they're alive or dead at the moment."

"What!?" ×2

After hearing the Marine's words, Fal and Hans' expressions changed instantly.

They gritted their teeth, their eyes immediately filling with fury.

"Damn pirates..."

Anyone who wasn't blind could tell that Hanafuda's target was undoubtedly the Speeder, which had already fled far into the distance. They had only been hit because his aim was so poor.

This kind of indiscriminate bombardment was precisely the habit of the brutal 'King of Lizards'.

But at that very moment—

"Fal, Hans."

Fal and Hans heard a voice.

When they turned around, they saw Luo Yi standing with his back to them.

"I taught you long ago—there's an old saying from my hometown: only those who can remain calm when a mountain collapses before them are qualified to become generals!"

"What you should do now is send the other brothers into the cabin to look for Morr and Lanster, repair the hole in the bottom of the ship while you're at it, and then hide temporarily to ensure your safety."

"Calmness is the first priority in battle!"

Because Luo Yi had his back to them, Hans and Fal couldn't see his face.

But they could see—

Luo Yi's clenched fist, and the veins bulging across it.

"Boss, calm down. I know about Morr and Lanster—"

Hans didn't finish, because Luo Yi had already interrupted him.

"I'm very calm, Hans."

Luo Yi raised his hand, tugged at his sleeve, and cracked his neck.

"To be precise, I've never been this calm before."

He looked at the battered deck of the warship and the Marines behind him.

Just as he had said before, Luo Yi had no sense of belonging to the Marines' justice.

Usually, even if a pirate ship passed by him, unless it was his target or was doing something he truly couldn't stand, Luo Yi generally couldn't be bothered to act. To him, pirates weren't even worth as much as a plump Sea King.

And this time, his decision to attack the Spade Pirates was of course not for 'justice'.

His thoughts were simple.

Fight Ace, analyze the Flame-Flame Fruit, damage the warship during the battle, and gain the perfect excuse to go to Water 7.

He could also test the power of the Great Buddha Fruit and measure his own progress.

And even if Ace escaped and he failed to analyze the Flame-Flame Fruit, it didn't matter.

Unlike Sengoku, he bore no enmity toward Ace, the son of the Pirate King. Besides, he already possessed the Magma-Magma Fruit, a superior Logia to the Flame-Flame Fruit.

As far as he was concerned, aside from increasing the number of entries in the Fruit Encyclopedia by one, the Flame-Flame Fruit was of little use to him in the short term.

That was his purpose. Nothing more. From beginning to end, he had been confident that nothing would go wrong.

But now, the situation was different.

Of course he remembered Morr and Lanster—one was a cheerful shipwright, while the other was an engineer with two daughters.

And as he had said, Luo Yi didn't care about Marine justice, but the soldiers of the Detention Unit who had lived and worked alongside him for eight years were another matter entirely.

So—

"I'm very calm, so I'm going to beat that bastard to a pulp."

He spoke in a cold voice.

No! That doesn't sound calm at all!

Hans and Fal muttered inwardly.

But seeing Luo Yi's reaction, they couldn't help feeling moved.

Even though they were touched by Luo Yi's attitude, they still advised him, "Boss, I know you're angry. We're angry too—but the other side is the Shichibukai, after all. We'd better not attack them..."

At that point, however, they saw Luo Yi smile again.

"Idiots. I taught you this before: when something happens, observe first."

As he spoke, Luo Yi's gaze had already shifted toward the distance.

"Look. We aren't the ones about to attack the Shichibukai."

"Rather—it's exactly the opposite."

As he spoke, Fal and Hans finally noticed it too.

The Giant Dinosaur Fleet, which had originally been far away on the sea and belonged to Hanafuda, had already approached extremely close to them.

Yet the several enormous pirate ships showed no sign of slowing down.

No—as Marines, Fal and Hans could tell for certain. At this distance, even if the other side lowered its sails and slowed down, it was already impossible to stop!

They were going to crash into them!

At the same time—

"Admiral Hanafuda, are we really still going full speed ahead?"

At the bow of the flagship of the Giant Dinosaur Fleet, the Tyrannosaurus, a pirate wearing a Dinosaur Helmet looked hesitantly at the tall Shichibukai beside him.

"..."

Beside him, 'King of Lizards' Hanafuda stood with his hands behind his back.

His breathing was heavy, making him resemble a humanoid dinosaur.

At that moment, his gaze completely ignored Luo Yi's warship and instead looked toward the distant Speeder.

The Speeder had already fled a great distance. The only thing visible was the obvious firelight curling around its stern and hull.

"He's using a Logia ability to drive the ship, expending so much energy just to escape. Portgas D. Ace, that weak newcomer."

He sneered and delivered his verdict.

That was right.

He actually had no idea what had just happened here. When he and his fleet discovered the Speeder's trail, all they had seen from afar was the Speeder fleeing.

But he knew at least one thing:

"With that level of ability consumption, he can't get far. I'll catch up to him, then tear him apart."

He gritted his teeth and said with a savage grin,

"He destroyed one of my fleets transporting weapons, causing the weapons shipment I promised Big Brother Kaido to fall short. This humiliation must be washed away with his blood."

"Dinosaurs are very vengeful."

No, I think dinosaurs may not be as vengeful as you are.

His subordinate grumbled inwardly.

Besides, who asked you about that?

"Admiral, what I mean is—are we really not going to change course? The ship ahead seems to be a Marine warship from the Detention Unit."

The subordinate asked again, and then—

"Bang!"

He suddenly let out a wail as Hanafuda kicked him away.

"Idiot!"

Hanafuda glared furiously at the subordinate.

"You said it yourself—it's the Detention Unit. Not Garp's warship, not an admiral, and not an elite unit. They're weaklings!"

"I'm a Shichibukai. My relationship with the World Government is merely one of cooperation. Since a weak insect is blocking the road, of course we'll crush it beneath our feet!"

He sneered.

"Power is authority. The destruction of the weak is only natural!"

This was the creed he had always believed in.

"Yes, yes!"

The other pirates on deck hurriedly went to carry away the pirate who had been kicked unconscious.

However, before they could do anything—

"Boom!" "Boom!"

The entire pirate ship suddenly shuddered. Its speed visibly slowed, and sounds of impacts continuously came from below.

The pirates were instantly thrown off their feet by the shaking, then hurriedly scrambled back up.

"What happened?"

"What's going on?"

They spoke in alarm as they crowded around the railings.

Then—

"S-so cold!"

They suddenly felt a piercing chill.

Then they saw what their ship had struck—it was floating ice gradually forming across the sea below.

"How could there be ice?"

Naturally, they were baffled.

But they clearly knew what they should do.

"Admiral, don't worry. We'll immediately—"

But when they turned around while speaking, they saw that their admiral had completely ignored them.

At that moment, 'King of Lizards' stood on the deck, his body rigidly straight. His eyes had transformed into the vertical pupils of a lizard, making him resemble a wary beast.

His gaze was fixed on the cola-bottle-like warship not far away.

And then—

"Bang!" "Bang!"

A figure leaped into the air from the warship.

"Geppo."

Hanafuda could recognize the technique at a glance. It was 'Geppo'.

At that moment, the Marine cloak on the figure's body billowed in the wind.

And on his left fist—

"Vmmm!"

Golden radiance and shock waves erupted.

But unlike before,

this time, the pale golden light clearly carried a faint blue hue.

Cold air erupted continuously alongside the shock waves.

The floating ice across the surrounding sea had formed from the overflow of those shock waves.

And that effect had been produced by merely a fraction of the attack's power. Hanafuda could hardly imagine how powerful the punch itself would be.

"Turn the rudder immediately!"

So he immediately let out a low roar.

But obviously—

it was already too late.

In the next instant, Luo Yi, who had crossed the air above the sea with Geppo, threw his punch!

"Ice Wave Fist: Eternal Frost!"