Meeting Tsuru and Leaving
Vice Admiral Tsuru's Marine warship approached the Night Pirates, stopping fifty meters apart, with the two groups facing each other from a distance.
"Vice Admiral Tsuru, it's been a long time. You're still in great health." Looking at Vice Admiral Tsuru in the distance, Teach couldn't help but smile, waving and giving a friendly greeting.
"Have we met before? Kid from the Whitebeard Pirates." Vice Admiral Tsuru crossed her arms and said calmly, but her gaze swept over Teach's companions, wanting to gain more strength and sense their current power.
It must be admitted that the Night Pirates have already earned the right to conquer the New World, and their overall bounty is the highest in the first half of the Grand Line.
Furthermore, she could vaguely sense a tremendous threat emanating from Teach. The Wash-Wash Fruit, though merely a support ability, was something no one wanted to experience being washed away, because once you were affected, you didn't know if you would still be yourself after being washed away.
More importantly, combined with her Observation Haki, which grants her the ability to sense good and evil, Doflamingo is the epitome of evil and possesses extremely dangerous thoughts. It is precisely because of this that she does not want to let Doflamingo go and wants to capture Doflamingo.
As for Teach, just by looking at her, you could feel Teach enormous ambition. Her abilities allowed her to see things very clearly. The last person like that in her memory was the Golden Lion.
"Of course, we've met more than once, but it's normal for a big shot like you to not care about a nobody like me," Teach laughed as he looked at Crane.
Even when facing her, Teach wasn't afraid at all. Crane could sense that unbridled arrogance, which made Teach extremely dangerous. Teach had a plan, she had premeditated it.
This made her frown. "What? You want to leave me here?"
Unsure of Teach's thoughts, he didn't fight her, but instead chatted with her.
"Haha, how could that be? I don't want to face those two monsters, Garp and Sengoku. I'm just saying hello. We might meet again in the future." Teach shook his head with a smile.
He knew that Tsuru was comrade-in- Sengoku with Garp and Garp. If something really happened to Tsuru, he would very likely die under Garp's iron fist or Sengoku's shockwave.
In Teach's mind, Admiral -level combat power is divided into four tiers. The first tier is ordinary Admiral, the second tier is peak Admiral, the third tier is also known as Emperor-level, capable of facing two Admiral- level powerhouses alone without defeat, and the fourth tier is the strongest among Emperor-level, also known as Legendary-level. The current Garp, the deceased Roger, the current peak-era Pops, Golden Lion Shiki, "The Lone Red" who has been sent to Impel Down, and even the former world ruler, Rocks, are all in this tier.
"What an arrogant brat!" Crane shook her head. Teach's words implied that he had the ability to defeat her.
"Then let's give Vice Admiral Tsuru a little something to say." As soon as Teach finished speaking, everyone else was ready. "Fire!"
Boom boom boom!
Dozens of shells were fired at Vice Admiral Tsuru's warship at once.
Suddenly, Tsuru's expression changed. Under her Observation Haki, she could sense the trajectories of these shells, which were all flying towards the warship.
This is quite terrifying. Although I had heard about it before, this is the first time I've seen it with my own eyes. This is no longer just a problem with the gunner; there must be some mysterious force at work.
As the Navy's intellectual leader, Vice Admiral Tsuru immediately focused on the abilities of Devil Fruit.
But there was no time for him to think; these shells were enough to blast the warship to pieces in an instant.
You should know that this warship is home to her trained female soldiers, known as "Wash & Clean!"
With a wave of its hand, the crane unleashed a vast expanse of green light, instantly enveloping the falling cannonballs. The cannonballs shimmered brightly, then fell helplessly into the sea.
At this moment, Teach had no intention of confronting Vice Admiral Tsuru head-on. He commanded three pirate ships and three warships to flee while firing cannons.
The crane was unable to pursue them. Each round of cannonballs was easily blocked by the crane. How could a few cannonballs possibly deal with this elite pirate from the previous era?
The ability to Wash-Wash Fruit is effective not only on living things but also on inanimate objects. Wash-Wash Fruit have developed this ability to its fullest extent, to the point that it can cleanse the soul.
Crane had no intention of continuing the pursuit; she had already achieved her goal, and she also knew that the Night Pirates were beyond her reach.
"Let's go," Crane said to the female soldiers behind her, watching the departing figures of the Night Pirates, lost in thought.
The port of Modern Island had been extensively damaged, indicating that a major battle had taken place. Some of the pirates from Modern Island fled, some died, and a few were captured by the Navy.
Because news of the Navy's arrival was known in advance, many pirate crews fled ahead of time. However, the Navy's results were still quite good, as they eliminated a large number of pirates.
Of the original eighteen warships, twelve remained. Three were stolen by the Night Pirates, and the remaining three were encountered by fleeing pirate crews who collided with the approaching warships at sea.
One of the warships was destroyed, and the other two were stolen by pirates. Because the Night Pirates set a good example, many other pirate crews followed suit, and a saying arose on the high seas, "If you want to get rich quick, just rob a warship."
Such remarks infuriated the Navy, especially the Night Pirates.
"Crane, did he get away?" Brom had already resolved the matter on Modern Island. Seeing Crane approaching, he couldn't help but ask, still holding onto a sliver of hope.
Seeing the crane shake its head slightly, Brom was somewhat disappointed.
"Brom, be careful of Teach, the captain of the Night Pirates. He's not as simple as he seems," Brom of the Tsuru Team warned.
"Yes, of course I know. Don't worry, I'll definitely catch him," Brom said through gritted teeth, his fists clenched.
Seeing Brom's expression, Tsuru knew he hadn't listened. The fact that Tsuru could sense a threat from Teach meant that Teach was quite powerful.
However, she didn't say much. Teach was also a very dangerous guy and needed to be kept an eye on. Brom, as a veteran Vice Admiral, should have no problem dealing with the Night Pirates.
"Then I'll head back to the North Sea first. I'll leave the Night Pirates to you," Tsuru said, walking towards the warship.
She had just received intelligence that the Donquixote Family had been discovered on an island in the North Sea, which should be an important stronghold of Doflamingo.
She naturally wouldn't let such a good opportunity slip by. Although Doflamingo was very cunning and escaped from her grasp time and time again, she had already achieved her goal: to suppress the development of Doflamingo's forces.
If they can capture him, that would be ideal. If they can't, it will at least slow down the expansion of Doflamingo's power. Recently, the situation in the North Blue has become even more chaotic, not only because of the Great Pirate Era, but also because wars have broken out between various countries, with arms dealers stirring things up in the shadows.
Although there is no evidence, she believes that Doflamingo is lurking in the shadows.
Even with her interference, Doflamingo's strength continued to grow.
But that was all she could do.
North Sea.
An ordinary little town, where the Donquixote Family's stronghold is hidden.
And Donquixote Doflamingo, the head of the Donquixote Family, is hiding here.
The other outposts were all exposed by him to evade Tsuru's pursuit and to draw Vice Admiral's attention.
The contest between Doflamingo and Tsuru was more of a battle of wits; one would grab, the other would dodge, it was a test of who was more capable. Of course, there was also Doflamingo's fear of Tsuru's abilities.
The Wash-Wash Fruit's ability is a great counter to his String-String Fruit. No matter how strong his strings are, once they are washed by Tsuru, they become soft and harmless.
Most of his techniques are based on the String-String Fruit. While his physical skills are decent, they are still inferior to Vice Admiral Tsuru, Vice Admiral is far stronger than him.
"Dover, we have intelligence on Vice Admiral Tsuru." He held a scepter in his hand, wore a cloak that looked like a cotton blanket, and snot was dripping from the upper part of his nose.
He leaned close to Doflamingo, who was sitting on the sofa reading a newspaper, causing Doflamingo to turn his head away, looking exasperated.
"Hey! You're too close," Doflamingo said, disapprovingly.
However, he was used to it. He took the intelligence from Trebol. Doflamingo was very concerned about Tsuru's whereabouts because for the past two months, Tsuru had been targeting him and trying to capture him.
In recent days, he has been put in a very embarrassing situation several times.
"They actually went to the West Blue?"
"The Night Pirates?"
"Baboon, baboon, interesting." Doflamingo looked at the intelligence in his hand and couldn't help but laugh, the image of Teach flashing through his mind.
He had been keeping an eye on Teach, "It seems like I should make contact with him."
"Doflamingo, who? Is he the captain of the Night Pirates?" Having followed Doflamingo for so many years, Trebol immediately guessed who Doflamingo was referring to.
"Hmm, we met once before. I didn't expect his power to expand so quickly. They must be collecting Devil Fruit, right?" Doflamingo chuckled, then, as if remembering something, asked Trebol.
"That's right, the Night Pirates are collecting Devil Fruit, probably to strengthen their crew." Trebol nodded.
"Then let's trade with them. Didn't we get two Devil Fruit before? We need funds to expand our power, and the Night Pirates have them. Trading with them would be mutually beneficial." Doflamingo smiled and thought for a moment.
"Who should we send? We haven't even reached the West Blue yet."
"Never mind, I'll go myself and see him while I'm at it," Doflamingo muttered to himself. "Get the Devil Fruit ready; I'm heading to the West Blue later."
"But, Doflamingo, Vice Admiral Tsuru has been watching us closely. They should have returned to the West Blue by now. What will we do if you leave?" Trebol said anxiously, trying to dissuade Doflamingo.
Doflamingo is the backbone of their family, and this is a dangerous time for the family. Although their strength is developing, they could collapse at any moment.
"Don't worry, I'll be back soon. We'll consolidate our forces for the next few days, and if necessary, we can abandon a few more strongholds." Doflamingo had made up his mind.
"Baboon, if it succeeds and the deal is finalized, our development will be much faster," Doflamingo said confidently.
"Some things can't be stopped just by wanting to. This is the inevitable trend, irreversible. I'm just going with the flow, you baboon!"
Doflamingo stood up from the sofa, a red feather coat draped over his back, fluttering slightly. He exuded an invisible aura that made Trebol involuntarily lower his head.
Meanwhile, Teach had obtained the information he wanted from the Night Pirates: the Nonoak Kingdom was his next destination, closer than the Kraken Kingdom. However, the original course of action had to be changed, as the route had deviated somewhat.
Teach was looking at detailed information about the Kraken Kingdom. The information Shakky had given him on the Den Den Mushi had given him a general idea.
The Kraken Kingdom is a war-mongering nation, populated by warmongers.
Located on a super-large island, Karnosfa Island is similar to Lodestar Island, where Alabasta is located. However, compared to Lodestar Island, which is mostly desert, Karnosfa Island is undoubtedly much better off.
However, the Kraken Kingdom only occupies one-sixth of the Karnosfa Island. The other five-sixths belong to another super-kingdom, the Tiresfa Kingdom, one of the few super-kingdoms in the world, which possesses strong economic and military power.
With abundant resources and no domestic rebellions, the kingdom's rulers, while not necessarily great tyrants, have always been competent monarchs.
Such a kingdom would rank among the top ten in the world, possessing immense hidden power, and even the World Government would not dare to offend it.
The Tiresfa Kingdom and the Kraken Kingdom are located on the same island, and the relationship between the two countries is undoubtedly hostile.
The Kraken Kingdom originated from a general of the Tiresfa Kingdom who eventually rebelled and established the Kraken Kingdom. This all happened more than a hundred years ago.
However, the fact that it was able to hold out for so long under the rule of the Tiresfa Kingdom was partly due to the covert support of the World Government, or rather, the World Government's intervention in the General's rebellion.
For these powerful nations that are beyond our control, World Government generally adopt this approach: divide, support, or weaken.
In the New World, the Christie Kingdom, also targeted by Teach on Saint Louis Island, was weakened in the same way.
One reason for this was that the Kraken Kingdom was waging war to resist the power of the Kingdom of Sirifa; otherwise, they would have had a hard time holding out against the sheer size of the Kingdom of Sirifa.