A place on Hachinosu Island.
Halfway up a small mountain.
This side of the mountain was a sheer cliff. Other than people with flight abilities or tools, no one could reach this place.
CP0 Chief Cloud gazed at the fierce battle raging in the sky, worry showing on the face beneath his mask.
"Aries fighting Rocks means Rocks refused to exchange hostages..."
"With the battle this fierce, Rocks is utterly determined to execute the Celestial Dragon. No one can stop him."
His mood was heavy. The execution date was drawing closer, and the plan was on the verge of failure.
Beside him.
Katakuri was bound tightly, Seastone handcuffs locked around his wrists.
He, too, had seen the Azure Dragon Ares had transformed into in the sky.
Big Brother Ares is so strong. Just who is fighting the captain?! Katakuri's curiosity began to stir.
He knew how powerful Ares was. There were few people across the seas who could stand against him.
"It's Rocks..."
CP0 seemed to sense what Katakuri was thinking and gave him an answer. He continued, "Ares is fighting Rocks because of you."
"I demanded that you be used as a hostage in exchange for the Celestial Dragon."
"Although I expected this to fail from the beginning, I didn't expect Ares to actually fight Rocks. Looks like your captain cares about you quite a bit."
Hearing CP0's words, Katakuri froze, his eyes filled with emotion.
Yet his heart was a tangled mess. The captain actually started fighting Captain Rocks for my sake...
"But Captain Rocks is someone even Mother fears deeply."
He had grown up on Hachinosu Island, growing up listening to the legends of Rocks. In his mind, Rocks was an invincible, untouchable existence.
Most importantly...
Within a pirate crew, challenging the captain's authority meant facing the