Gurgle... Large bubbles rose to the surface.
"Something's coming up."
Rayleigh, Hancock, Shakky, and the others stood on the shore, staring gravely at the sea.
Hancock was soaked to the skin. When she had jumped into the sea earlier, her subordinates had rescued her before she could drown.
With a splash, Werther burst from the water.
"Cough, cough..."
After coughing up some seawater, Werther's breathing steadied.
Werther had known his pursuit of the Straw Hat Pirates into the deep sea might fail.
He was human, after all, not a Fish-Man. No matter how strong he was, his fighting ability was limited underwater.
I wonder how preparations are going at Fish-Man Island. It would be no fun if that reckless fool died there after being so badly wounded.
The water pressure had injured Werther, but once he floated to the surface, he realized his wounds were not as severe as he had thought.
The constant pressure in the deep sea had thrown off his assessment.
Judging by how his body felt, he would recover within two days.
Werther was fine, but Luffy was not.
Werther had struck him dozens of times. Beyond the wounds and blood loss, Intent Blood had drained a great deal of his Life Force and wounded his soul.
Even if Luffy survived, he would pay dearly for it. Werther's sword was not so easily withstood.
When Werther swam ashore, he found a large crowd waiting.
Rayleigh, Hancock, and the others were there, along with a great many Marines.
"Mr. Werther, what happened to the Straw Hat Pirates? Did you kill them?"
A Marine officer hurried forward.
"They're not dead, but they shouldn't be far from it."
Werther ignored the officer after that. He took off his coat, wrung out the seawater, and draped it over his shoulder,