Pirates: I Maxed Out Conqueror's Haki First Because I'm Immortal

Laughter came from beside him. Xia Le grinned and swung the dumbbell in his hand again.

He was quiet, but because he was young, the other officers aboard looked after him.

A colonel named Simboo often chatted with him, passing on what he knew about surviving and fighting at sea.

At the bow, Rear Admiral Jerry heard the commotion behind him and glanced at Xia Le.

The one they call a monster, just like Kuzan and those other two kids.

And they put him on my ship.

Jerry had heard plenty about Xia Le at G-5 Base lately.

He's only begun to master the Six Powers. His fundamentals must be weak, but he has enormous potential, so they assigned him to a relatively safe area.

Is this the higher-ups looking out for him?

I suppose it makes sense. He's still green.

That was Jerry's guess.

He also considered his assigned area safe. The mission might end without them ever encountering an enemy.

I hear headquarters has decided to grant a batch of Devil Fruits to the new generation to strengthen them.

Will he get one too?

But that had nothing to do with Jerry. He was getting on in years, and his limits were plain to see. The best resources would naturally go toward younger people with greater potential.

At the same time, in another area...

"Sengoku, why isn't Xia Le on our ship?"

"That kid's strong enough to fight the Golden Lion Pirates and the Roger Pirates head-on!"

Garp held a Den Den Mushi and roared into it.

His dear student had been separated from him during the mission by his old friend.

The younger men accompanying Garp were Kuzan and Sakazuki.

"I have my reasons, Garp."

"You still don't understand. Our mission isn't to fight Golden Lion Shiki. It's to observe him from a distance."

"While those two great pirate crews clash, we need to pay even closer attention to the safety of the Marine Bases and headquarters."

Sengoku's voice was grave.

"What reasons? All I know is you've sent Xia Le off somewhere else!"

Garp shouted.

"He's only been a Marine for a short time. His fundamentals are still weak, and what he needs now is time to grow."

"It's too dangerous for him to be with you. Can you guarantee his safety?"

Sengoku lost his temper on the other end of the Den Den Mushi and shouted back.

If a youngster with that much potential met with disaster while following Garp, it would be a tremendous loss for the Marines.

Even a gifted genius needed time to grow.

As for Kuzan and Sakazuki, two of the three monsters, their physical abilities and combat experience were already well developed. They could shoulder heavy responsibilities.

"Of course I can!"

Garp shot back without hesitation.

He knew perfectly well that his student could not die.

A remarkable kid like Xia Le could play an unexpected role in a head-on battle.

"You bastard!"

Sengoku cursed.

"Where is he? At least tell me which area he's responsible for!"

Garp barked.

"Northwest. A13 Sector."

Sengoku snapped.

Edd War was a vast stretch of sea, and the Marines' forces in the New World were at a disadvantage. In this era, they could hardly contend with the pirates there.

For this operation, Sengoku had divided the waters into countless sectors. Their orders were only to monitor the area and quietly look for an opportunity.

Once the two pirate crews began fighting, they would choose their next move according to the situation.

It was an undeniably thorough and cautious strategy.

But it had one unpredictable element: Garp.

"Hahahaha! Got it."

Garp burst out laughing. A quick look at his sea chart showed that Xia Le's sector was not far from his own.

The danger levels of their sectors, however, were complete opposites. Sengoku had rated Garp's as high-risk and Xia Le's as low-risk.

The Flying Pirates

Things went much as Rear Admiral Jerry had expected. Over the next few days, Xia Le and the others did not encounter a single pirate crew.

All they saw was the boundless sea.

One thing worth noting was that his system had inexplicably gained a point yesterday.

I didn't die, but my points still went up.

Xia Le soon worked out why.

Yesterday marked exactly one month since I arrived in this world.

So they increase even if I don't die. One point a month.

It isn't much, but at least it's something I can count on.

In other words, even if he kept his head down and avoided risks, his strength would still rise steadily.

Without hesitation, he put the point into Conqueror's Haki, raising it to level 86.

Two more days passed.

Unlike the clear skies of the past few days, a vast, dark cloud now hung over everyone's heads. Thunder rumbled faintly within it.

The sea surged beneath the warship, rocking everyone aboard.

"A downpour's coming!"

Saron said in his deep voice.

"When we run into weather like this on a mission at sea, we have to be even more careful and stay alert for danger."

"Rainstorms and changing conditions cut visibility at sea. That can be fatal."

Simboo's expression was grim.

For some reason, he had a bad feeling.

Xia Le looked grave too and nodded slightly.

He remembered clearly that a massive storm had struck during Golden Lion Shiki's battle with Roger at Edd War.

And that meant an unknown danger was approaching.

He looked toward the bow. Rear Admiral Jerry stood with his back to them, smoke swirling around him. Xia Le could not tell what he was thinking.

Before long, the sky darkened further and the sea heaved violently. Thick bolts of lightning flashed between the clouds, sometimes striking the water and throwing up white mist amid a blaze of electricity.

The sight alone was awe-inspiring and terrifying.

Time passed slowly. Thunder boomed among the clouds, and the sea grew rougher and rougher, but the rain still did not fall.

"Looks like this will be a Storm unlike anything we've ever seen!"

Simboo's face was grave. He turned to Xia Le again.

"Xia Le, remember this. Out on this sea, the greatest danger isn't always the enemy. Sometimes it's the weather."

Xia Le nodded.

The entire Warship was bustling now as everyone prepared for the coming Storm.

Whoooosh!

A fierce wind swept over their heads.

Then, without warning...

Wheee!

A shrill whistle pierced everyone's ears. Xia Le jerked his head up and saw an officer on the lookout platform pointing straight ahead, shock written across his face.

He turned at once. The first thing he saw was Rear Admiral Jerry's back, wreathed in smoke.

Then he saw the dark, churning sea beyond. Countless black specks had appeared on it, so many that they seemed to stretch endlessly beyond sight.

The shock swept through him. For an instant, even his heart seemed to stop.

Everyone around him froze as though time itself had been paused.

After two or three breaths, a sharp, frantic shout finally tore through the air.

"Pirates! It's pirates!"

"It's the Flying Pirates' fleet!"

"They're coming straight for us!"

No one could have imagined that an enemy would appear in the sector Sengoku had judged least likely to see one. And judging by that dense mass of black specks, this was undoubtedly the enemy's main force.

Xia Le drew a breath and stared ahead, the corners of his eyes trembling.

As the moments passed, the specks grew clearer. Strange ships emerged one after another on the sea, spread in an arc across everything he could see.

And as those specks grew larger, ships appeared in the sky as well, their paddles turning, their skull flags flying as they advanced in grim formation.

The pressure was overwhelming!

Their numbers seemed endless, bearing down on everyone with a weight almost impossible to endure.

"Flying Pirates fleet spotted in A13 Sector."

Rear Admiral Jerry kept his voice steady, but the fine sweat beading on his forehead betrayed how tense he was.

"Repeat, Flying Pirates fleet spotted in A13 Sector!"

The Den Den Mushi answered quickly. Xia Le was standing close enough to recognize Sengoku's voice.

"Received. Report enemy numbers!"

Jerry pressed his lips together. "Impossible to count."

The other end fell silent for a moment. Standing at the bow of his own Warship, Sengoku tightened his grip on the Den Den Mushi. "Rear Admiral Jerry."

"Your orders are to do everything you can to escape the Flying Pirates' attack range."

Jerry shuddered, then answered loudly, "Received!"

The call ended. He took a deep breath and looked once more at the dense fleet stretching beyond sight. His despair was beyond words.

No matter how he looked at it, escaping a fleet that vast seemed all but impossible.

The weather had limited the lookout's visibility. By the time the Marines spotted the enemy, their Warship had little time left to withdraw.

And there was more.

The enemy had fleets both at sea and in the air. The ships above them could move faster.

"All hands, listen up!"

"Withdraw at once! Give it everything you've got!"