Bloodsail Landing

The Bloodsail Pirates' ship slammed violently into the beach, sending sand flying as if swatted up by a giant beast's claw.

The next second—

"Charge!!!"

Like a horde of demons rushing out from a crack in hell, they poured down the gangplank, carrying madness and the stench of blood.

A lookout stepped onto the sand, spotted smoke rising from the forest, and a cruel gleam flashed in his eyes.

"Captain! There are definitely people here—it's a village!!!"

"Flayer" Barto Lomiu landed heavily, blasting the sand beneath his feet apart.

He rolled his neck and swept his surroundings with a sinister gaze.

Deep in his mind, a scene that still humiliated him flashed by—

Back then, after he had arrogantly massacred a village, a purple-haired Marine passing by had punched him straight into the mud.

Dozens of his men had been unable to resist and were all subdued.

But that Marine had not killed him.

Nor had he killed anyone else.

He still did not understand why, but it no longer mattered.

Because today, he would continue the "game" he had failed to finish back then.

Barto Lomiu licked his teeth and chopped his arm down. "Go!"

"Find those pieces of trash—!!!"

Dozens of pirates behind him let out beastlike howls, raising curved blades and torches as twisted, crazed smiles spread across their faces. Like animals, they charged deep into the forest.

What they wanted was people.

Corpses.

Cries.

A bloody "feast."

Deep within the island.

The little village had originally been peaceful and tranquil.

But with Rock's sudden arrival, everyone had become alert as if facing a great enemy.

Only when they saw his Marine uniform did the village elders burst into tears. "Marine sir..."

But just as everyone breathed a sigh of relief, Rock's Observation Haki suddenly stirred.

Several teenagers, around ten years old, gripped the wooden wall tightly and stared fixedly at Rock.

That was not fear.

That was hatred.

Rock's heart sank.

Their gazes became mournful cries ringing in Rock's mind: Someone wearing that uniform... spared the murderer who killed our fathers...

Rock took a deep breath, his gaze growing heavy like the sky before a storm.

He faced the villagers, his tone calm. "Hide yourselves first."

"The pirates from back then have returned."

The moment those words fell, the villagers' faces turned pale, and panic spread through the crowd.

Crying, prayers, and hurried footsteps blended together.

These people... were the elders, women, and children who had barely survived the old village massacre.

Rock's expression turned solemn. "This time, I'll give you an answer."

The village chief nodded through tears and immediately led everyone toward the underground shelter built over the past two years.

Those teenagers looked back at Rock. As the heavy wooden door closed with a creak, the firelight vanished, as though even their breathing had been pressed back into the darkness.

At the same time, beastlike howls rose from the dark forest. "Ooh ooh ooh—! Search everything!!!"

"Women! Children! Drag them all out!!!"

The footsteps of the Bloodsail Pirates drew closer and closer.

Rock stood alone at the village entrance, his cloak of justice snapping in the wind.

The boy slowly raised his head. Lightning quietly flickered in his black eyes.

Dozens of Bloodsail Pirate thugs surged through the brush like a tide and burst into the village entrance.

But what greeted them was not screaming, nor chaos—

It was a deathly silent "empty town."

A wooden basin by the roadside had been overturned, and the food still retained some warmth.

The chicken coop stood open, with a single feather swaying in the wind.

Every house door was tightly shut, as if an invisible hand had muted the entire village.

"Huh? Where are they?"

"There was clearly cooking smoke earlier... how did everyone vanish all at once?"

"Damn it, did the little rats hide? Think they can escape us? Hahahaha!"

As they made their racket, everyone's eyes finally fell upon the figure standing in the center of the village gate.

It was a boy wearing a Marine cloak.

He stood there quietly, as though he had been waiting for them all along.

Barto Lomiu's steps abruptly halted.

"...A Marine?"

He instinctively took half a step back, but quickly realized there were no other Marines around.

No naval cannons, no soldiers, no encirclement.

Only this... young man who looked no older than sixteen or seventeen.

Then the corner of his mouth slowly twisted into a vicious grin. "Hahahaha..."

"What are you doing standing here alone? Got lost?"

His malicious words spread like wolf howls, and the pirates immediately gathered around in excitement.

"Haha! Did this brat come here to die on his own?"

"Catch him! I want to hear him scream!"

"Marine flesh must taste especially good—hee hee hee!"

But Rock ignored them. His Observation Haki spread out like a tide—

Every pirate's thoughts, impulses, and murderous intent became clear, as if engraved beside his ears.

Catch the village children and skin them for fun...

I'm gonna drag that little girl out...

Who cares if these lowlifes die? Nobody will bother with them anyway...

Malicious thoughts crisscrossed one another, reeking like a swamp.

The look in Rock's eyes gradually turned cold to the extreme.

"As expected..."

"Most pirates are still things that need to be eliminated."

He raised a hand and lightly pointed toward the sky. The surrounding pirates looked confused.

The gesture was as casual as brushing away dust, but the sky was instantly lit up by lightning.

"—Lightning Roar."

"BOOM—!!!"

A colossal pillar of lightning roared down from the clouds and struck directly in the middle of the pirates!

Light swallowed everything, and the sound shattered the air.

More than a dozen pirates did not even have time to scream before they turned into charred husks, collapsing to the ground and twitching like broken puppets.

The stench of burnt flesh rapidly spread through the air, and flocks of birds at the forest's edge took flight in terror.

Barto Lomiu froze completely, his pupils shrinking as though pierced by needles.

His throat moved, but no sound came out.

A moment earlier · Marine landing point

The entire Marine squad was already on high alert, but no one took a single step forward.

Zephyr stood at the front of the formation, his brows tightly furrowed.

He slowly turned toward the intelligence officer. "Rock said he went to gather information?"

"Did we really arrive before the pirates?"

The intelligence officer stiffened, his eyes darting left and right as he completely dared not meet Zephyr's gaze—

That reaction was more revealing than an answer.

Seeing this, Zephyr's heart sank. "Did Rock tell you to do this?"

The intelligence officer clenched his teeth. His silence was an admission.

Zephyr took a deep breath and looked around.

Soon, he noticed the intelligence files clutched in the soldiers' hands. The records of those horrifying crimes nearly stabbed his eyes.

At that moment, the intelligence officer could no longer hold back the thought he had suppressed for so long. "Vice Admiral Zephyr, those pirates are too brutal!"

"They have to die!!!"

Those words were like a spark tossed into a powder keg. Zephyr's fury surged into his chest, and he immediately rebuked him. "Absolute nonsense!!!"

"Even if they must die, it must be decided by order!"

"They—are living beings too!!!"

The moment his words fell, a young Marine recruit suddenly roared.

"Then what about the lives of those innocent people?! Vice Admiral Zephyr!!!"

That question stabbed directly into the softest, deepest part of Zephyr's heart.

He froze.

His throat moved, but he could not form a complete rebuttal.

It was the question he had always avoided, yet could no longer escape.

In the instant he fell silent—

"BOOM—!!!"

A pillar of lightning that tore through heaven and earth suddenly rose from the center of the island!

Lightning pierced the clouds, making even the sea tremble!

Zephyr's expression changed instantly. "Rock...!!!"

He no longer hesitated. He rapidly kicked off the air with Geppo and charged straight toward the village!

At the village gate, the charred air seemed to be smoking.

The surviving pirates had their limbs pierced by lightning spears and lay on the ground, twitching and screaming.

Barto Lomiu's face was smeared with tears, snot, and ash. Pinned beneath Rock's foot, he trembled like a leaf.

Rock's lightning spear was pressed against his heart.

If it advanced another half inch, he would become a pile of charred bones.

"Marine sir, spare... spare me...!!!"

"I don't want to die... I was wrong, I was wrong, I was wrong!!!"

His terror seemed magnified tenfold, yet beneath it was utter disbelief—

Because in his eyes, the person standing on him was so young, yet possessed power as terrifying as a demon god.

Electric arcs danced at the tip of the lightning spear, already scorching through the cloth over his chest.

Just then—

"Rock!!! Stop—!!!"

Zephyr charged in and seized Rock's wrist!

His voice was hoarse with a tremor he had never shown before. "Our duty is to arrest them!!!"

"Hand them over for judgment under the law!!!"

"You cannot kill them!!!"

The spear tip stopped half an inch from Barto's chest, and the smell of burnt cloth filled the air.

When Barto Lomiu saw Zephyr's unmistakable purple hair, his expression changed from extreme terror to shock...

Then to uncontrollable ecstasy...