Various Ways to Deal with Logia Users

Even Xia Le, far from the center of the storm, soon felt it.

First came an order from Marine Headquarters.

"Stay on high alert. We must stop certain pirates from launching a frenzied counterattack under Roger's influence."

"To that end, headquarters authorizes you, Rear Admiral Xia Le, to take harsher, more ruthless action!"

The order was different from those he usually received. Xia Le narrowed his eyes.

Normally, aside from a handful of marines who used brutal methods, such as himself and Sakazuki, most tried to capture pirates rather than kill them outright.

Do they want to intimidate the pirates as quickly as possible and prevent a greater upheaval across the world?

Second, over the past few days, he, T Bone, and the others had clearly felt the pirates growing wilder in the second half of the Grand Line.

In just half a month, they had encountered ten powerful pirate crews.

Every encounter had turned into a fierce battle.

Roger's rise to Pirate King had fired up other pirates. Countless people around the world, pirates and would-be pirates alike, now looked to him as an example.

While Xia Le sailed from place to place suppressing pirates, elsewhere another meeting took place.

On an unnamed island, two figures sat facing each other beneath a cherry tree in full bloom.

"Gurararara!"

"Roger, you actually dared come to me alone."

The towering blond man with a crescent-shaped mustache laughed.

"Hahahaha!"

"Newgate, we've fought countless times. We may be rivals, but I consider you one of my few friends."

Roger laughed too.

The towering man seated opposite him was Whitebeard, Edward Newgate, one of the world's three living legends.

"Out with it. Why have you come?"

"A man like you wouldn't show up before me for no reason, not right after becoming Pirate King."

Newgate raised his drink and drained it in one gulp.

At those words, Roger's expression grew a little more serious. He looked Newgate in the eye and spoke in a low voice.

"I reached Laugh Tale and found the Great Treasure, One Piece!"

"I came here to ask you something."

After a brief pause, Roger's mustache twitched, and he broke into a grin.

"Newgate!"

"Do you want to know where Laugh Tale is?"

Whitebeard froze. His pupils contracted.

After years of fighting Roger for that destination, he knew how hard it was to discover Laugh Tale's location. And now Roger was offering to tell him?

A moment later, he burst out laughing and shook his head.

"Not interested!"

Roger stared at him, then laughed just as loudly.

"That's the Newgate I know."

They raised their bowls again and clashed them together.

"I'm about to retire."

"Before I do, there's one more thing I want to warn you about."

Roger smiled, as though something had just occurred to him.

"Oh?"

Newgate listened with a smile.

"There's a young marine named Xia Le."

"If you come to rule these waters one day..."

"Watch out for him."

Roger's expression turned solemn.

"Xia Le?"

Newgate searched his memory for the name among the navy's strongest, found nothing, and scoffed.

"He's just some kid!"

"You don't need to worry about me!"

Roger shook his head with a rueful smile and said no more.

A little later, Whitebeard was alone beneath the trees. No one knew where Roger, now the Pirate King, had gone.

Whitebeard silently finished his drink, his face clouded with mixed emotions.

"There are fewer and fewer old friends left on this sea."

Roger's visit had given him a faint sense that something was wrong.

After decades of climbing to a height ordinary people could never reach, Roger had chosen to turn away from the summit.

"Farewell..."

"Gol D. Roger."

His whisper drifted through the air.

A gust swept past, sending cherry blossoms spiraling into the wine jar. Whitebeard, too, was gone from the grove.

Meanwhile, in the Edd War Waters, Xia Le met up with Kuzan's warship and received a new assignment from headquarters.

"What's wrong, Xia Le? Is this guy giving you trouble?"

Kuzan smiled and glanced at the wanted poster in Xia Le's hand.

It showed a young man with slicked-back hair and a cigar between his teeth. His name and bounty were printed below.

Crocodile?

"No. He just reminded me of something."

Xia Le smiled.

He had not expected news of Crocodile to reach him here. According to the assignment, three groups of marines had already clashed with the pirate and failed.

And Xia Le happened to be nearby.

"It's been more than two years. You've been promoted too."

He glanced at Kuzan's shoulder. Kuzan now held the rank of rear admiral as well.

"Hahahaha! The three of us have come a long way in these two years, Xia Le."

"I might not lose to you now!"

Kuzan grinned.

"Is that so?"

Xia Le chuckled.

"But I don't have time to spar with you."

He lifted the wanted poster.

"I've got a rookie to catch."

Kuzan nodded. "Then I'll see you back at headquarters!"

The two warships soon passed each other. Xia Le watched Kuzan go, feeling a little wistful.

Time kept moving, and everything was changing.

He was not the only one growing stronger. The others were advancing rapidly too. The moment he had seen Kuzan today, he had felt the power radiating from him.

With the Ice-Ice Fruit at his command, Kuzan had clearly made enormous strides over the past two years.

Xia Le lowered his gaze to the wanted poster again.

"The rookie, Crocodile?"

A faint smile touched his lips. He had an idea.

From what Xia Le remembered, Crocodile was powerful. Aside from his defeat by the protagonist, King Luffy, he was famous for holding his own against opponents regardless of how strong they were.

He was also quick-witted and skilled at making plans. Later, in Cross Guild, he had served as its strategist and manager.

In other words, he would be an excellent ally.

With some training, he could reach the level of an emperor's right-hand man.

"Sir, headquarters says Crocodile and his crew are on Rien Island, ten nautical miles northwest of us."

Mina reported their location soon after contacting headquarters.

Xia Le nodded.

"Set course for Rien Island!"

Ways to Fight a Logia User ### Rien Island was small and cold year-round. Merchants and pirates generally used it as a stopover.

As a result, fights broke out there often.

It was already afternoon when Xia Le and the others arrived.

Bright sunlight struck the snow blanketing the ground, making the whole world gleam white.

The biting wind made Rosinante hunch his shoulders and rub his hands together. Beside him, Evens and the others hurried to hand out winter coats.

None of them had expected Rien Island to be this cold.

Their warship docked along the shore, where no other pirate ships were in sight. Xia Le guessed Crocodile's crew had landed on the other side of the island.

T Bone draped a heavy coat over Xia Le's shoulders, and Xia Le thanked him with a nod.

Once everyone had changed into winter coats and boots, they jumped off the warship and trudged through the deep snow onto the island.

"Crocodile. Bounty: eighty-one million beli."

"According to the marines he defeated, he's a Logia user."

"He made a name for himself last year by fighting Douglas Bullet to a draw."

"The bounty set by the World Government clearly doesn't reflect his strength."

Evens repeated the information from headquarters with a sigh.

The others looked grim.

Logia users were almost invariably formidable. The powers their fruits granted them were enough to carve out a place in this world.

Their immunity to physical attacks and their ability to control the elements were hard to contend with.

Xia Le merely chuckled as he listened.

After crossing the snow-covered forest, they spotted a bustling town ahead.

"They've taken over the town, but the villagers are still alive."

"They don't seem to have harmed the civilians."

Evens spoke in a low voice.

To the east of town, he spotted a makeshift harbor. A pirate ship flying a skull flag was moored there. They had docked on the wrong side of the island, but it made little difference now.