Teach clamped a hand tightly around Hancock's throat as darkness slowly churned beneath his feet.
The arrogant grin on his face had completely vanished, replaced by a grim expression.
Across from him, Sandersonia and Marigold staggered forward despite their injuries, while the Kuja warriors began pressing in little by little.
Some drew their bows, while others tightened their grips on their spears.
The Adventurer's Guild guards who had arrived from behind also spread out into formation.
The moment Teach let go, Hancock's Love-Love Fruit powers would immediately return.
But if the Kuja dared to rush in, Hancock's neck could be crushed at any moment.
The two sides remained locked in place, neither daring to make the first move.
Just then.
Crack. A faint sound of loose gravel rolling came from behind them, and Sandersonia suddenly whipped around.
"Who?!"
Swish! Two thick beast claws suddenly reached out from the darkness.
One from each side, they seized Sandersonia and Marigold by the throat.
"What?!"
The sisters' bodies stiffened abruptly as sharp claws pressed against their skin.
Pfft.
With only a slight push inward, several bloody gashes split open at once, blood slowly trickling down the claw tips.
"Nobody move. Behind the shadows, a head with white bull horns slowly emerged, brown mane bristling around its neck, its mouth stretched into a wide grin.
"Meow~"
Sandersonia's pupils shrank.
"When did you..."
"I was here the whole time."
Pizarro grinned happily.
"You just didn't notice me."
From the very beginning, when Hancock's first wave of Captive Arrow swept across the ship's bow—
Jote Demei had been petrified.
Right after that, Burgess had been pinned down and battered by the two snake princesses.
Pizarro had already stopped charging forward.
It was not because he was afraid. That petrification ability was simply too troublesome.
The