The battle was about to begin. The Fire Wolf Pirates were all ready to fight, prepared to board the merchant ship and slaughter its crew, then seize its cargo.
Suddenly, a cannon roared beside them. It seemed to be a signal. Two more shots followed, and three cannonballs flew toward the pirate ship. At such close range, the pirates had no time to react—not even Hog. The explosions went off nearby. Two cannonballs struck the hull, setting off blasts below deck.
The most important cannonball landed right on the ship's deck. Most of the Fire Wolf Pirates were gathered there, preparing to board, which resulted in heavy casualties.
Terror flashed in their eyes. They turned to run, but the cannonball had already exploded.
The blast was deafening, and the air filled with the pungent smell of gunpowder. The explosion tore a huge hole in the deck, which began to burn. Its powerful shock wave knocked many people off their feet, while those caught in the blast at close range were killed or wounded in droves.
Hog stood stunned. "How could there be cannons on this ship?" They hadn't even made a move, and the ship had already suffered such heavy damage. Hog could guess without looking: more than ten dead and over twenty wounded. Cannons were still a formidable threat at sea.
But a moment later, excitement crept into Hog's eyes. This merchant ship even had cannons. That meant the Devil Fruit had to be aboard.
Another few cannonballs flew toward them. Seeing them, Hog knew he couldn't let the ship suffer any more damage. He sprang lightly into the air, used Armament Haki, and kicked the three cannonballs aside in quick succession, sending them splashing into the sea.
Seeing Hog kick the cannonballs into the sea, the Fire Wolf Pirates cheered. "Hahaha! That's our captain!" "Everyone, attack! Get ready to board!" Hog shouted. The two ships were now only about twenty meters apart. At his words, the pirates showed no fear. It was only a merchant ship. It had just caught them off guard with its cannons, but the Fire Wolf Pirates would soon slaughter every last one of its crew.
Cheers rang out aboard the merchant ship, too. They'd dealt the Fire Wolf Pirates a heavy blow. What a great start to the battle! "Don't celebrate too soon. The cannonballs won't help us now. They're vicious pirates, and they outnumber us by more than two to one. Get ready to fight."
"Crack!" "Boom!" The Fire Wolf Pirates' ship slammed hard into the merchant ship's Dragon Bone. Their ship was somewhat smaller than the merchant vessel, but its hull was sturdier. The merchant ship's keel cracked, and the two vessels locked together.
"Kill! Kill! Kill!" Pirates armed with weapons and guns leaped aboard the merchant ship and charged at the guards and sailors who had been waiting for them.
But they were met by a row of cold gun barrels. After acquiring these firearms, the merchant ship's crew had upgraded their equipment considerably. In just a short time, many pirates were mercilessly gunned down.
But these pirates had fought many battles in the New World. Guns were only a nuisance to them; close-quarters combat was what they truly relied on. And they had the advantage in numbers.
"Mobius, go fight them too," Teach said, glancing at Mobius beside him. Watching the battle outside, Mobius had been itching to join in for some time.
At Teach's words, Mobius looked at him. "What about you, Teach?"
"Zehahaha! I'll cover you, of course. Be careful, and don't get yourself killed." Teach laughed and drew the black-and-white pistols from his waist.
Touched, Mobius grabbed a long sword and ran into the fight. He was in luck: a pirate was right there. "You little brat, looking to get yourself killed? Hahaha!" the pirate taunted, swinging his cutlass at Mobius. Mobius leaped aside to avoid the blow and countered with a slash, but the pirate blocked it with his own long sword.
"Kid, you're still green." The pirate laughed and pressed Mobius hard. Mobius braced himself with one hand on his sword. Hearing the pirate's words, he couldn't help smiling. A bad feeling suddenly stirred in the pirate's gut. Then a snake-shaped arm whipped around his neck and constricted it tightly.
The pirate's face turned red, and he struggled to breathe. Mobius seized his chance, shoved the pirate's sword aside, and brought his own blade down hard on the man's wrist. "Aah!" The pirate screamed in pain, and the sword fell from his hand. Mobius immediately plunged his blade into the pirate's abdomen. The man collapsed to the ground, dead.
Just then, another pirate crept up behind him with a long sword. Gripping it in both hands, he raised it high and brought it down hard toward Mobius. Hearing the movement, Mobius turned—and saw the blade already falling. There was no way to dodge.
Mobius couldn't help closing his eyes. "Bang!" A gunshot rang out. Remembering Teach's warning, Mobius opened his eyes. A bloody hole had appeared between the pirate's brows, and he toppled to the ground.
"You have to be careful, Mobius. Always keep an eye on your surroundings when you're fighting." Teach wasn't there, but Mobius heard his voice in his ear.
"Mm." Mobius nodded. He had truly felt his life in danger just now. If not for Teach, he'd be dead. He committed this lesson to memory and wouldn't make the same mistake again.
Then Mobius went in search of his next opponent. Teach couldn't help smiling. People only grew through experience.
Fights raged all over the ship. Usually, two pirates were up against a single guard or sailor, while the old captain kept Hog occupied. Mobius was improving quickly, growing through the bloodshed. In a short time, he'd killed seven pirates, and his attacks had become more decisive and precise.
After cutting down a pirate, Mobius caught the attention of three others. They'd been working together and had already killed three guards. Mobius noticed them coming his way. They were all formidable. He could handle two with his Snake Hand, but three were too much for him to manage.
He couldn't help taking two steps back. But there was no way the pirates would let their prey escape. One kept his eyes on Mobius while the other two quickly moved behind him, one to either side, cutting off his retreat.
In that case, I'll just have to fight. Mobius let out a breath.
While the three pirates watched him, apparently intending to toy with him, "Crack, crack, crack, crack!" Mobius quickly loosened his joints. Waves of pain shot through his nerves, but his expression didn't change.
What was he doing? Was he hurting himself? The three pirates had never seen anything like it during their time at sea. The moment they hesitated, Mobius seized his chance and attacked. He took two quick steps toward the pirate in front of him, closing the distance.
"Snake Hand: Constrict!" Mobius's Snake Hand instantly coiled around the pirate's sword-wielding right arm. He pulled back hard with his left arm, which was wrapped around the man's right.
Mobius's strength pulled the pirate a step forward, straight into the sharp, bloodstained sword that plunged into his chest.
"You little bastard, die!" The other two pirates hesitated. They hadn't expected Mobius to attack even while surrounded by three of them. Feeling insulted, they charged at him with their swords. But they weren't fools. After witnessing his bizarre, extendable arm, they were on guard.
They attacked from both sides to divide Mobius's attention. But he wasn't afraid. He could feel himself getting more and more accustomed to fighting with his Snake Hand, though he was still far from controlling it freely.
He picked up the dead pirate's sword. Wielding two swords increased his reach, making them a useful tool before he could train his Snake Hand further.
"Wild Strikes!" His arms stretched out, each holding a cutlass, and he attacked them again and again from bizarre angles. They struggled to block and dodge Mobius's rapid sword strikes.
But Mobius's attacks had a weakness. They were erratic, with no fixed pattern, but if they could track the path of his arms, they could predict his attacks. And he had one even more serious weakness: his arms. Until he learned Armament Haki, he would have to be careful.
The two pirates were about as strong as Mobius. Though his attacks were bizarre, he hadn't managed to hurt them. They soon began adapting to his style as the fight wore on. Mobius realized this and grew anxious, searching for a way to break the stalemate.
I'll take one of them out first. He'd already made up his mind. He whipped his left arm hard at the pirate on the left. The man didn't block the blow, instead leaping backward to avoid it. But that was exactly what Mobius wanted. He pulled his left arm back and struck toward the right, stepping forward at the same time. Faced with the two swords, the pirate panicked. Mobius slashed both his arms, then finished him off.
At that moment, the other pirate charged in. Seeing his companion die again, he swung his sword hard at Mobius's chest. Mobius wouldn't make the same mistake as before; he'd already noticed the man's movement.
But dodging was difficult. A fierce glint flashed in Mobius's eyes. He leaned sideways and back, but the sword still struck his chest, carving a thirty-centimeter gash from top to bottom.
He didn't cry out, merely grunting through clenched teeth. His left hand wrapped around the pirate's sword-wielding right arm, while the tip of the sword in his left hand pointed at the man's throat. It came within a hair's breadth of piercing it. But Mobius wasn't finished. He moved his right hand, driving the sword into the pirate's abdomen. This was another of Mobius's favorite attacks.
With injuries like these, Mobius couldn't keep fighting, so he quietly returned to his room. Along the way, he saw several corpses—all pirates, each with an identical bloody hole between the brows.
He knew Teach had done it. The bullet holes in the walls around him had all come from Teach's room.
They'd all been hit between the brows. Teach's skill with guns, Armament Haki, and Observation Haki was terrifying. Mobius wasn't the clueless beginner he'd once been. Back then, he'd known only a little about these things, but during their training over the past few days, Teach had also explained various things about the sea, Haki, and swordsmanship.
After all, Mobius couldn't stay by Teach's side forever, and Teach wouldn't allow it. He still had to return to the Whitebeard Pirates, while Mobius had to learn to grow on his own.
Back in the room, Teach sat with his eyes closed, but his Observation Haki was focused on a battle. It was the old captain fighting Hog. The fight was fierce, but Hog had the upper hand overall.
In Teach's eyes, the old captain was about as strong as a pirate with a bounty of one hundred million berries. Hog was younger and more vigorous, with greater strength and stamina. On top of that, the old captain was aging, his recovery had slowed, and the injuries he'd suffered on Devil's Island still hadn't healed.
A fight between two men with bounties of only around one hundred million berries shouldn't have been enough to hold Teach's attention so closely.
What Teach was really watching was Fire Wolf Hog's boxing style—his Fire Wolf Fist, which had earned him his epithet.
Fire Wolf Hog's boxing was a form of martial arts that used punches to produce flames. Teach could learn a great deal from it. His claw techniques imitated sword moves to increase their power, but a hand could never slash with the force of a sword executing those same moves. His techniques were always one or two levels weaker. The two needed a point of convergence. Once he found it, he could completely fuse sword moves with his claw techniques and bring his vision to life.
So Teach watched Hog's movements, his breathing, and how he generated force with his body when using Fire Wolf Fist.
A long while passed, and the battle was halfway over. The fighting below was evenly matched, because both sides had lost more than half their men. The outcome depended mainly on the fight between the old captain and Hog. Ivan, the leader of the merchant ship's crew, watched from hiding, terribly anxious, with five guards protecting him. He hoped the old captain would win, but he had already prepared a last resort.
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