Ahem

Marco glared at the man, grinding out a name through clenched teeth.

"Blackbeard!"

Yes, the newcomer was none other than the infamous Blackbeard, Marshall D. Teach!

Blackbeard had a rugged appearance, thick body hair, a burly build, and brown skin. His black hair was fluffy and shaggy, and he wore a headscarf. Two necklaces hung around his neck, bracelets adorned both wrists, and each of his ten fingers bore a different jeweled ring.

Three flintlock pistols were tucked into the left side of his waist, while a bottle of strong rum rested on his right. He wore a white shirt, hanging open to expose his broad, hairy chest.

Blackbeard's proportions looked rather unbalanced. He was clearly a powerful man, but compared with his massive torso, his limbs seemed somewhat slender. His legs in particular made one wonder whether they might snap under his weight at any moment.

As for his height, it certainly fit the standards of the One Piece World. Su Yu's bar already had a high ceiling, yet once Blackbeard stepped inside, he could touch it simply by reaching up.

Despite Marco's blatant murderous intent, Blackbeard seemed oblivious, the same nasty grin lingering on his face.

"Don't be so hotheaded, Captain Marco. Oh, right, how's Pops doing? I've been thinking about him all this time! Zehahahaha!"

Hearing Blackbeard say the word "Pops" felt like a needle stabbing Marco:

"Shut up, Blackbeard! You have no right to call him Pops!"

Blackbeard did have some history with Whitebeard. He had once been a member of the Whitebeard Pirates, serving in the Second Division.

Later, however, for a Devil Fruit that he believed to be the world's strongest-the Dark-Dark Fruit-Blackbeard murdered his own crewmate, Thatch, the Fourth Division commander, and then defected from the Whitebeard Pirates.

It was the deepest betrayal. In most pirate crews, such things might have been commonplace; after all, they were bands of vicious criminals with no education or decency. But the Whitebeard Pirates were different. Whitebeard regarded his men not as subordinates, but as family. To him, Blackbeard's actions meant betraying his own kin, an unforgivable crime.

In truth, if one only considered how Blackbeard had spent so many years as Whitebeard's son for the sake of a single fruit, working without complaint, hiding every trace of his ambition, and maintaining a flawless disguise, he had certainly put in the effort.

But the way he had gone about it was hard to stomach. Perhaps this was what people meant by "those who achieve great things don't sweat the small stuff." As for what exactly counted as small stuff, that depended on how the person "achieving great things" chose to define it.

History was written by the victors, as the saying went. If Blackbeard emerged as the ultimate winner, this incident might no longer seem so unacceptable. It might even become an amusing anecdote. Or he could simply erase that chapter of history altogether. The method was simple enough: kill everyone who knew about it.

But if Blackbeard lost in the end, he might be forever branded with shame. Not that it would necessarily matter to him, since defeat had only one possible outcome for Blackbeard: death.

Blackbeard said, "What brings you here instead of staying by Pops's side, Captain Marco? Has Pops finally reached his limit, so you've come here to stake everything on one last gamble? Zehahahaha!"

Teach did not care how Marco reacted. That was just the sort of man he was: once he got his way, he grew arrogant, saying whatever came to mind without restraint.

Those words were like oil poured on a fire. Marco's fury surged past its breaking point. Flames flashed in his pupils, then brilliant wisps of blue-and-orange phoenix fire rose from his body as his presence soared to its peak.

Seeing Marco about to explode, Blackbeard quietly gathered his own power. Black smoke gradually appeared behind him, making anyone who looked at it feel as though their soul might be sucked away. It was pure darkness.

Though Marco was powerful enough to rival an Admiral, Blackbeard was no pushover either. He had already possessed tremendous strength before eating the Dark-Dark Fruit, which could nullify Devil Fruit powers and force ability users into a contest of physical strength. And when it came to physical strength, even two Marcos could not match him!

They stared each other down, their gazes striking sparks in midair. But just as their battle was about to erupt, both suddenly heard a cough.

"Ahem-"

Seeing that the two were about to fight, Su Yu could no longer stand by, so he gave them a little reminder.

It was only a soft cough, yet to Blackbeard and Marco, it sounded like thunder exploding beside their ears. Their hearts abruptly spasmed, leaving them dizzy and so sick they wanted to cough up blood.

When they recovered, both were stunned to discover that the flames and darkness they had released were gone. Instinctively, they tried to summon their powers again, only to realize in horror that their Devil Fruits seemed to have been sealed. No matter how they tried, nothing happened.

Cold sweat broke out on both of them...

"Ahem. Gentlemen, this is a modest little business. Please don't fight inside."

Su Yu's calm, indifferent voice dragged their frightened wits back into place.

They glanced at Su Yu, the same profound terror in their eyes, and hastily agreed.

"Sorry, boss. I lost control of my emotions for a moment."

"Zehahahaha, sorry, sorry."

Then they discovered that the seals on them had lifted, and they could feel their Devil Fruit powers again!

Instinctively, they glanced at Su Yu once more, this time with reverence for his power.

When Marco had spoken with Su Yu earlier, he had seemed like an ordinary person. Marco had almost forgotten that this unremarkable, merely handsome bar owner had utterly thrashed Kaido just a month ago! And he had done it effortlessly from start to finish, clearly without using his full strength!

But the owner's cough, along with his ability to seal their Devil Fruit powers without any warning, had awakened their reverence for strength once more.

As expected of Su Yu, the owner of the Wish-Granting Bar and the White Emperor who stood above the Four Emperors. He was truly as unfathomable as a god or demon!

Seeing that both men had calmed down, Su Yu nodded.

"All right, now that you've both come to your senses a little, let's continue. Is our new guest here for a drink, or do you have a wish?"