Are You All Children?!

Inside the Achino Family house, Aqi Nuo himself was drinking with Zoro, looking quite content.

"I didn't expect to find wine here, thank you so much," Zoro said.

Upon entering, he inexplicably found himself in a room that resembled a sauna. The moment the other person saw him, they invited him over for drinks.

It has to be said, they were incredibly lucky.

"Haha, don't worry about it," Aqi Nuo laughed. "It was supposed to be a banquet, but my family all went out. It's nice to have someone to drink with now."

Aqi Nuo looked at Zoro with a smile, not attacking him just because Zoro was a pirate, but treating him like a friend.

"You're leaving even for a banquet?" Zoro asked, somewhat surprised. "Did you run into some trouble?"

"More or less."

"Need my help?" Zoro grinned and said, "I'm quite strong too."

The other person kindly offered him a drink, and he didn't mind helping out.

Aqi Nuo, wearing Sunglasses, looked at Zoro with a strange expression, never expecting the other to say something like that.

Ask him for help?

What kind of help? Should I send him to attack the Straw Hat Pirates?

If he dares to say that, the other party will definitely cut him.

Although he didn't care, it was better to calmly have a drink before a full-blown fight broke out.

Seeing that Aqi Nuo remained silent, Zoro asked in confusion, "What's wrong?"

"It's nothing, not a big problem. My family can handle it." Aqi Nuo shook his head and said, "Let's drink."

"All right."

Seeing that his host had said that, Zoro stopped insisting.

"I just don't know where my companions went," Zoro said, somewhat troubled.

"Oh?"

"Have they disappeared too?"

"Yes, these guys are a real headache," Zoro said. "They got lost just because I wasn't paying attention to them for a moment."

After saying that, Zoro sighed, looking like he really couldn't do anything about them.

Aqi Nuo:...

Zoro's serious expression was really making Aqi Nuo uncomfortable. Who was lost anyway?

They should be together, but one of them shows up at their own hideout and claims the others are lost. It's a really strange feeling.

'Is this guy directionally challenged?' Aqi Nuo thought to himself.

Just then, a soldier suddenly burst in, holding a Den Den Mushi (a Den Den Mushi).

"Lord Aqi Nuo, something terrible has happened!!"

"Didn't you see I was entertaining guests?" Aqi Nuo looked at the soldier with displeasure, his body temperature noticeably higher than before.

"Sailan'er, you'd better have a reason that satisfies me."

"It's Lord Salugo calling."

Sailan'er held up the Den Den Mushi in his hand, gesturing for Aqi Nuo to look at his hand.

"Dad, it's me!"

"Salugo?"

Aqi Nuo was somewhat surprised, clearly not expecting it to be Salugo calling; usually, it was his daughter who contacted him.

"Dad, something terrible has happened! Brother Cambaccino and the others have been defeated by the Straw Hat Pirates!" Salugo said anxiously. "Arubell and Lilu are missing too."

"I suspect they're in the hands of the Straw Hat Pirates..."

"What did you say?!"

Aqi Nuo jumped to his feet, his eyes blazing with rage, and said, "How dare those bastards do such a thing?"

"I will not let them get away with this!"

At this moment, Aqi Nuo was truly enraged, and his body temperature gradually rose, causing more water vapor to rise in the room.

"So you were talking about us..."

Zoro put down his wine glass, his expression turning serious.

He stood up and said, "While I appreciate the drinks, I cannot allow you to lay a hand on my partner!"

Who's there?

"It's the Pirate Hunter Zoro," Sailan'er said.

"What?"

Salugo, who was holding the Den Den Mushi, was dumbfounded. Wasn't this guy with the Straw Hat Pirates? How did he end up at his house?

So, the Straw Hat Pirates ' target is their house?!

Thinking of this, Salugo immediately said, "Dad, maybe the Straw Hat Pirates will be home soon."

"Yes, I've already seen it."

Aqi Nuo glanced out the window and could clearly see two pirate ships drifting in from a distance, heading towards their location.

"Hmph, if you want to attack my companions, you'll have to get past me first!"

After Zoro finished speaking, he drew Wado Ichimonji, intending to cut the Fat Balloon down first.

Upon seeing this, Sailan'er immediately rushed to the side and slapped a red button.

The next moment, a hole appeared beneath Zoro's feet, swallowing Zoro whole.

"Ah!!"

Zoro, who had fallen to his death, was filled with disbelief. How could the other person have set a trap in their own home? Were they crazy?!

"Well done, Sailan'er!" Aqi Nuo said. "Perfect timing, we'll deal with this guy when we get back."

The most urgent task is to rescue our children; as for the pirate's head, we can get it later.

"Lord Aqi Nuo, what do you need us to do?"

"Send out the Ferocious Penguin to clean up their minions," Aqi Nuo said.

"Dad, we probably can't go to the Ferocious Penguin..." Salugo said.

He glanced at the large number of Ferocious Penguin floating on the water's surface, his heart filled with unease. What kind of power could possibly kill these underwater beasts?

"What's the meaning?"

Those guys are dead.

"What?" Aqi Nuo asked incredulously, "Dead?"

He knew all too well how ferocious that creature was underwater.

Their family relied on these animals to drive so many pirates into the Ice Sea and kill them, but now Salugo is telling him they're all dead?

"Yes, dead."

Aqi Nuo:...

For a moment, Aqi Nuo was at a loss for words.

After a moment, Aqi Nuo said, "Okay, I understand. You should come back soon too."

Yes, Dad.

After watching the Den Den Mushi end the call, Aqi Nuo glanced at Sailan'er and said, "Sailan'er, mobilize all the family's soldiers and come with me to wipe them out."

"Clear!"

After watching Sailan'er leave, Aqi Nuo turned to look at the Thousand Sunny in the distance and said, "Dare to touch my child, and you'll regret it."

This time, he'll personally take down these Highland pirates!

"So this is Achino's House?" Usopp exclaimed in surprise. "It's quite a unique design."

What was this Bounty Hunter Family thinking when they built such a strange structure in a place full of ice?

"Your family has quite unique taste, huh?" Xi Yan said, glancing at Arubell.

"There's nothing I can do, my dad likes it."

"Isn't this quite funny? Hahahaha!" Luffy said with a loud laugh.

Clearly, he didn't see anything wrong with the strange building; on the contrary, he thought the other person had quite good taste.

"Can you let me go now?" Arubell asked.

Her hands were now tied, naturally to prevent her from causing trouble.

"That won't do." Nami shook her head and said, "The battle isn't over yet, how can I let you go?"

While we won't take action against this guy, it doesn't mean we'll let him go out and cause trouble.

Upon hearing this, Arubell sighed and said nothing more.

"Hey, look! Someone's coming out of that house!"

"Really? It's... a Fat Balloon?" Luffy exclaimed in disbelief.

Luffy was completely stunned as he stared at the Fat Balloon wearing shorts in the distance.

"Who is this guy?"

He is my father.

"So it was him..."

"Ah, you've arrived, Straw Hat..." Aqi Nuo glanced at Luffy and said, "My children are truly fortunate to have such a warm welcome."

After saying that, Arubell glanced at Arubell and Lilu again, and only after seeing that both of his daughters were alright did he secretly breathe a sigh of relief.

"They attacked us, so of course we had to retaliate," Luffy said. "Fat Balloon, why did you steal someone else's Pirate Flag?"

"Of course it's because I like it!"

Aqi Nuo spread his arms wide, making a gesture of embracing the sky, and said, "These flags, which symbolize the spirit of pirates, are my favorite collectibles."

"After all... this is the honor of a bounty hunter!"

"Ha ha ha ha!"

"And... once they lose their flag, the pirates might just collapse. Don't you find that interesting?"

As he spoke, Aqi Nuo glanced at the Phoenix Pirates, who had followed the Straw Hat Pirates onto the ice field, and said with a mocking smile, "Just like them."

He remembered clearly how those guys humbly begged for survival back then; it was quite a show to watch.

"That damned guy..."

Kyle's face immediately darkened; wasn't this just rubbing salt into their wounds?

"Captain..."

"Fine, even if the captain doesn't make a move, we can't let these guys get away with it!"

"Yes, get ready to move!"

Except for Pazeru, all Phoenix Pirates had a fierce glint in their eyes, ready to attack at any moment.

"Everyone..."

Pazeru clenched his fists, a fierce internal struggle raging within him. Could they truly regroup and rise again?

Bigaro, am I really okay?

"Hmph, just a bunch of rabble," Aqi Nuo scoffed.

"I really hate guys like you," Luffy said, pulling down his hat. "I'll just beat you up first."

This bastard is wantonly trampling on the honor of pirates, which Luffy very unhappy.

"Let's see if you can do it!"

"Then let's try it, Rubber Pistol!"

Without the slightest hesitation, Luffy threw a punch without holding back!

But Aqi Nuo just watched calmly as Luffy attacked, without even moving an inch, which puzzled everyone, who didn't know what Aqi Nuo meant.

As soon as Luffy's fist approached Aqi Nuo's body, he was burned and cried out in pain.

"It's so hot!"

"Hot?" Sanji asked in surprise, "Why is it hot?"

"This guy must be a Devil Fruit User," said Xi Yan, his Sharinggan, staring intently at Aqi Nuo's body. "His body turned red just now, it looked like it was suddenly heated up."

Devil Fruit User to control temperature or something similar?

"That's right, I'm Heat Person who ate the Heat-Heat Fruit!" Aqi Nuo said proudly, "Anything I catch will melt!"

After saying that, Aqi Nuo thoughtfully picked up a parasol from the side, and a terrifying heat burst forth, melting the object in the blink of an eye.

Xi Yan:...

The enemy's intelligence gathering is so easy; Xi Yan doesn't even know what to say.

"Damn it, it's high temperature!" Luffy said, clutching his fist. "No wonder it's so hot."

"Not only that, I can also do this kind of thing~"

Aqi Nuo raised his hands and began to glide slowly across the ice, his speed increasing.

"Using the power of the Heat-Heat Fruit to heat the soles of my feet, the resulting steam propels me to move freely on the ice, just like now!"

"Squeak~"

With his abilities activated, Aqi Nuo began to glide freely on the ice, occasionally making some strange movements.

This scene made Luffy's eyes light up.

"How interesting!"

And so, under the watchful eyes of the entire Straw Hat Pirates, Luffy ran to the ice bridge that had risen up to the side, and using the momentum of the slide, he began to glide freely on the ice, looking as if he were racing against Aqi Nuo.

The two skated back and forth on the ice, neither giving an inch.

Finally, the two stopped and looked at each other with a mutual respect.

"I need to re-evaluate the power of the Heat-Heat Fruit!"

"Hmph, no wonder he's a pirate with a bounty of 420 million Beli." Aqi Nuo grinned and said, "He's really impressive."

"What's so great about that?" Nami retorted. "Are you guys kids?!"

"This looks so fun!" Merry exclaimed excitedly. "Chopper, why don't we go play too!"

Nami:...

This is definitely something only children would enjoy doing!

"Hmph, time for playing around is over. Now it's time to get serious." Aqi Nuo suddenly stopped smiling and said, "Straw Hat, this time I'll personally take your heads!"

"I won't let you succeed."

"Then let's give it a try!"

As they spoke, a number of soldiers emerged from the building marked "Achino's House," carrying weapons and walking towards them.

"Straw Hat, leave these guys to us!" Pazeru shouted.

"Um?"

Luffy glanced back, then smiled and nodded, saying, "Understood."

"Captain!"

Ji Nuo looked at Pazeru with excitement. Had the other guy finally pulled himself together?

"I'm sorry to have worried you all. Let's continue to fight side by side."

"Profound!"

"Just a defeated foe, yet they dare to bark here." Aqi Nuo said disdainfully, "Sailan'er, don't let them disturb my dealings with the Straw Hat Pirates."

"Yes!"

Sailan'er shouted, "Go! Follow me and kill them!"

"Yes!"

"Straw Hat, you must have lost a crew member, right?" Aqi Nuo said, looking at Luffy.

One of them got lost...

"It's Zoro, you idiot!"

"That's right, it's the Pirate Hunter." Aqi Nuo grinned maliciously. "That guy is in my cell right now. If you want to save him, you'll have to fight with all your might."

"At least... let me have my fill!"

"Boom!!"

Aqi Nuo's body temperature suddenly rose, the terrifying heat even scorching and distorting the air, and the surrounding ice showed signs of melting.

"Hmph, I'll beat you to a pulp."

As Luffy spoke, he began searching for something that could help him cool down.

"What a terrifying temperature! Your dad seems pretty tough," Merry said.

"Um."

"Dad is very capable," Lilu nodded.

After she finished speaking, she wanted to say something like "be careful," but she swallowed the words back down.

Although Merry is her friend,... the other one is also her father.

"Luffy," Xi Yan suddenly appeared beside Luffy and said, "Want to try Genin?"

"Is it possible?" Luffy asked excitedly.

"While I can't give you complete control over Ninjutsu,... I can still let you experience it."

"Please, Xi Yan!!"