Cruel Hog's Departure

At this point, the merchant ship, with its guns, clearly had the advantage. The pirates suffered far more losses than the merchants.

"You, go help the old captain fight, or we'll all die," Ivan told the guards beside him.

"But..." They hesitated, concerned for Ivan's safety. The guards had long since stopped worrying about their own lives. Even if they died in battle, their families would receive a generous compensation. But their duty was to protect this cargo—and, more importantly, the person in charge of it: Ivan.

Ivan might have been an insignificant figure in the merchant association, but in their eyes, he was an important man of noble status. Protecting him was their first priority.

"If the old captain loses, none of us will survive. If we help him defeat Fire Wolf Hog, the remaining pirates will be no threat," Ivan said calmly.

Ivan's reasoning made sense. At his order, the guards grabbed their weapons and charged toward Fire Wolf Hog, who was fighting.

"Damn it, old man! Why don't you just lie down and stay down?" Hog raged. The man in front of him was the biggest obstacle in his way. He punched toward the old captain's chest. The captain stepped back twice and blocked the punch with his sword. A metallic clang rang out.

"Haha! I'm not so old that I can't move yet, Hog!" the old captain laughed. He kept raising his sword to defend himself. It wasn't that he didn't want to attack; he was trying to conserve his strength and stamina. Hog's assault was too fierce.

Hog was giving it everything he had to defeat the old captain quickly, unwilling to give him a chance to catch his breath.

Just then, the guards Ivan had sent over arrived. The remaining pirates wanted to go reinforce Hog. The battle between him and the old captain would decide the outcome, and they didn't want anything to change that.

"Bang! Bang!" Gunshots rang out one after another, firing toward the pirates. The merchant ship's sailors and the other sailors joined the fight, blocking the pirates' path.

The guards' arrival added a new variable to the battle between the old captain and Hog, giving the captain a chance to catch his breath. But compared with Hog, they were far too weak.

Hog easily dodged their attacks, then slammed a punch into one guard and sent him flying. With his next punch, his cruelty was laid bare: he smashed it into another guard's head. There was a crack, as if his skull had split open.

His blows carried all his anger and ambition. What he wanted was right in front of him, yet one person after another stood in his way, keeping it from his grasp.

He vented his fury on the guards charging at him. Suddenly, a blade thrust toward him. A flash of steel—the old captain seized his chance. While Hog was venting his anger on the guards, the captain had spotted an opening.

Facing that sword thrust, Hog naturally sensed the danger. He had plenty of combat experience, but a guard charged in, unconcerned for his own life, and held Hog back. Wearing armor, he swung his long blade at Hog. Hog snorted and coated himself in Armament Haki, blocking the attack, then kicked the guard in the stomach and sent him flying.

But that left him unable to dodge the old captain's blade, now right in front of him.

"Shhk!" The sword thrust toward Hog's chest. He twisted aside, but even though he used Armament Haki, the blade still struck him, piercing his left arm.

A smile appeared on Hog's face, a cruel one. He coated his right hand in Armament Haki and grabbed the blade embedded in his arm. At the same time, he kicked at the old captain. With his weapon caught, the captain had no choice but to let go of his sword.

He dodged the kick. Hog had taken a sword wound, but the old captain had lost his weapon, greatly weakening his fighting ability. Hog endured the pain and yanked the blade from his arm, tossing it aside. Then he rushed toward the old captain. With Hog watching him, the captain didn't even have a chance to retrieve his weapon.

"Quick, quick! Everyone, get in there and stop Hog!" Ivan shouted as he watched the fight. He hadn't expected such a huge turn in the battle, and he had underestimated Hog's ruthlessness. Hog was merciless not only to others but to himself as well.

He was anxious, too, and kept sending out the remaining guards to help the old captain. After all, the only way to win was to rely on the old captain.

Meanwhile, while they were still fighting, Teach had already made his way into the room of the man in charge, Ivan. There was no one there, so Teach slipped inside with ease. He spotted the luggage by the window at once. It had two compartments, and the second had a mechanism that made it difficult to open. But none of that could stump Teach; he quickly worked out how the mechanism functioned.

Teach easily unlocked it and took out the Devil Fruit hidden inside. It was a deep purple Zoan Devil Fruit. He couldn't identify it, since he hadn't seen a complete Devil Fruit Encyclopedia, and the encyclopedia was constantly being updated. There were far more unknown Devil Fruits than people imagined.

Devil Fruits were exceedingly rare and precious, but that was how things were among the great powers and Great Pirates. If they wanted one, they could get their hands on many. The Whitebeard Pirates' storehouse, for example, held dozens of Devil Fruits, though only the most powerful abilities caught their eye.

Still, Teach felt this Devil Fruit was probably of good quality, so he put it away carefully.

He closed the luggage, returned it to its original place, and left everything just as he had found it. Then Teach slipped out, closed the door, and quietly left.

Ivan and Hog had no idea that the Devil Fruit they were so intent on protecting had already been taken by Teach.

The guards charged in one by one, using their lives to hold Hog back. The old captain had time to retrieve his weapon and, under their protection, kept attacking Hog.

"Damn it." The guards were easy enough to deal with, but they kept distracting him and giving the old captain openings. A battle between two equally matched fighters allowed no room for carelessness. With the guards' help, Hog soon began to fall behind.

The other crew members grew anxious when they saw this. Their losses in this battle had been enormous; more than half the crew had died here. They hadn't expected such a small merchant ship to have such a powerful defense.

"Captain, retreat, or we'll all be left here!" one crewman shouted. Hog heard him and felt reluctant, but he understood that if this kept up, he would not only fail to get the Devil Fruit but would die here as well. His plan had failed, and his life mattered more. He knew what was worth more.

Using Fire Wolf Fist, he forced the guards back one by one, then retreated two steps. "Then let's go!" Hog shouted. He ran to the side of the ship and jumped back onto the Fire Wolf. The remaining pirates followed him.

The people aboard the merchant ship didn't pursue them. They were exhausted and couldn't afford any more losses. They watched as Hog's Fire Wolf pulled away into the distance.

Smoke filled the air, and bodies lay everywhere—enemies and companions alike. Blood ran across the deck, and sorrow hung in the air. The battle was over, but there was no joy of victory. Their losses this time were far greater than those they had suffered on Devil's Island.

Seeing the bodies of companions they had joked with not long ago, people they had spent every day alongside, many of the sailors wept.

The old captain looked at the sailors' bodies on the ground. He knew every familiar face, but they were gone now. Cracks ran across the ship. The worst damage came from the Fire Wolf Pirates' ship ramming into it, leaving a chunk missing. The other cracks had mostly been caused by the battle. This old ship, too, had reached the end of its journey.

"Haah!" That sigh came not only from an aging body but from an aging heart. He would find somewhere to settle down and enjoy his retirement. At his age, he couldn't take any more hardship.

But two people aboard were happy: Teach and Ivan. Teach was happy because he had obtained a Devil Fruit and gained a lot of inspiration from Hog's Fire Wolf Fist, which could help him improve his own fighting style.

Ivan, meanwhile, was glad he had kept the Devil Fruit safe and driven off the pirates who had targeted it. Now all he had to do was deliver it back, and his task would be done. But he had no idea what awaited him.

"Damn it! Now I can't get that Devil Fruit. Those damn guards, and that old man!" On the Fire Wolf Pirates' ship, a huge crash came from the captain's quarters. Hog's eyes were bloodshot. Everything around him had been smashed or thrown aside; the once fairly tidy quarters had been wrecked into a mess.

Outside, the pirates heard the commotion and their captain's furious roars. They stayed quiet and cautious, afraid to provoke him while he was in such a rage.

"If I can't have it, then that Devil Fruit won't be delivered back easily, either." A cold glint flashed in Hog's eyes as he gritted his teeth and spoke slowly.

The Fire Wolf Pirates returned to Mud Island in a sorry state. Their enormous losses shocked the entire island. They were one of the strongest pirate crews in the area, yet they had suffered such heavy casualties—losing a full eighty percent of their crew.

Everyone was curious. Before long, they learned that the Fire Wolf Pirates had attacked a merchant ship, underestimated its defenses, and ended up with both sides suffering heavy losses.

More importantly, the merchant ship carried a Devil Fruit. Fire Wolf Hog had attacked it for that very fruit, but he had failed.

The news came straight from the mouth of the Fire Wolf Pirates' captain, Hog.

At once, the pirates across Mud Island grew excited. A Devil Fruit, a great treasure of the sea, was aboard a merchant ship. The Fire Wolf Pirates had already been weakened by the battle, so nearly every pirate crew set out. Even those without the strength to take part wanted to go watch.

Fire Wolf Hog kindly pointed them in the right direction.

"W-what happened? Where's the Devil Fruit?" Ivan was going mad. He had come back happy to check on the Devil Fruit he had hidden, only to find it gone when he opened the luggage. He rummaged through the small compartment, but found nothing but empty space.

Ivan's face twisted. He had gone to so much trouble and thought he had protected it in the end, but it had still been stolen. He couldn't believe it.

"Right, right. It must have been the Fire Wolf Pirates. They came in force, and even after suffering such heavy losses, they kept fighting. They must have been after the Devil Fruit." Ivan seemed to have lost his mind, blaming the departed Fire Wolf Pirates for the fruit's disappearance. "They must have left because they'd already gotten the Devil Fruit."

After traveling nonstop, the merchant ship soon reached the second island on this route: Cedar Island. The island produced abundant timber, mostly cedar trees, so it had been named Cedar Island. It was one of the New World's leading shipbuilding islands, home to many shipwrights and numerous shipyards, and a major gathering place for shipwrights in the New World.

The merchant ship docked at the island's harbor, and Teach and Mobius disembarked. "Teach, are we not taking the ship anymore?" "Zehahaha! This ship's fate is already decided. After losing so much of its strength, it's no longer safe. The other passengers have gotten off, too," Teach laughed.

Mobius glanced around. Just as Teach had said, the ship was no longer safe. The passengers he had met in passing had already disembarked with their luggage.

He looked back at the merchant ship. Damaged and rather worn-out, it seemed to be in decline.

A lit cigarette in hand, the old captain took a drag and slowly breathed out the smoke. The sailors stood behind him as he told Ivan, who was in charge, "I'm very sorry, but for the sake of this ship and its sailors, I can only take you this far. As for compensation for failing to complete the trip, I'll pay you shortly."

"How can that be? Didn't we agree you'd take us back to Pet Island? You're the most reputable captain in these waters!" Ivan grew anxious. He hadn't expected the old captain to abandon him at such a crucial moment. Most of the hardships along the way had been overcome thanks to the old captain's great strength.

"I'm sorry. I've decided to retire, so my reputation no longer concerns me." The old captain smiled at Ivan. "You should go. The sailors will help unload your cargo."

Seeing that the old captain had made up his mind, Ivan knew time was short. He quickly found another transport ship and hurriedly left. But he didn't know that someone had been watching them from the shadows on the island. With Den Den Mushi, news that he had a Devil Fruit had already reached Cedar Island. Ivan hadn't expected Hog to be so ruthless and reveal that he had a Devil Fruit.

The old captain watched Ivan's back in silence. After so many years sailing the seas, he had grown sensitive to the way others looked at him—especially the greedy stares of those who didn't even know how to hide their intentions. That was the real reason he had made this decision. Just as he had said, it was for the sake of the ship and its sailors.