Two days passed quickly.
Xia Chen and his group finally arrived at their destination – the Vatali Kingdom.
Of course, in order not to alert the enemy, Xia Chen and his crew's pirate ship did not dock at the port of the Vatali Kingdom, but instead stopped on a small island not far away, and then boarded a passing merchant ship to arrive.
All that's left to do is wait for the Heavenly Tribute to arrive.
Xia Chen didn't bring many people with him; it was just him, Whitebeard, and Kaido who came.
The three of them randomly chose an inn in the kingdom and settled in.
Quietly awaiting the interesting things to happen tomorrow.
The next day.
A Marine warship arrived at the port of the Vatali Kingdom.
Then the two men slowly walked off the ship side by side, followed by a large group of sailors.
One of the two men was wearing a strange mask, and the other was a middle-aged man wearing a cloak.
As soon as the two disembarked, a waiter who had been waiting there greeted them respectfully and said:
" Admiral Black Crocodile, my lord! Our king has prepared everything. Please follow me, gentlemen!"
After saying that, the waiter turned and walked away in a certain direction.
Their kingdom has offered Heavenly Tribute as tribute more than once or twice. When someone wearing a mask comes, you only need to address them as "sir." Saying too much will only bring you death.
Furthermore, due to the Rocks Pirates' recent frequent attacks on Heavenly Tribute, the tribute of Heavenly Tribute now requires escorting it from its origin to its destination.
And they rarely lingered like before, always taking their food and leaving immediately, so the servants didn't invite the two into the palace to eat and sleep well.
A short while later, the group arrived in front of a house made of Seastone. The waiter turned to the two and said:
"My lord! The Heavenly Tribute we offered as tribute is all in here!"
"Hmm!" Admiral Black Crocodile nodded, then beckoned a group of marines behind him to go inside and move things.
A minute later, countless huge boxes were pulled out one by one by carts.
Then, these boxes were surrounded by numerous navy personnel and transported outwards.
However, before they had gone more than a few meters, three figures blocked their path.
Two of them were tall, while the other was only a few dozen centimeters taller than average.
" Black Crocodile, it's been a long time!"
Whitebeard looked at the Black Crocodile opposite him and said with a faint smile.
That's right, these three are Xia Chen and his two companions. Xia Chen had already spotted them when the navy landed on the island, but they were only just coming out now.
Black Crocodile, on the other side, also smiled upon seeing Whitebeard and his two companions.
" Newgate! I must say, your Rocks Pirates are really bold!"
"You've repeatedly stolen the Heavenly Tribute; do you really think the Navy and the World Government can't do anything about it?"
"Aren't you afraid we'll send our entire crew to wipe out your pirate crew?"
"Come on then! Stop just talking! We're right here in Hachinosu, come on over if you dare!"
Kaido jumped out and mocked, his face full of disdain.
"Um?"
Hearing this, Black Crocodile was taken aback, looked at Kaido, and after thinking for a few seconds, said uncertainly:
"You're the monster rookie that's been making headlines lately, Kaido?"
"That's right! It's your grandpa! Looks like I'm quite famous! Even you, a black devil, know me!"
Upon hearing this, Black Crocodile's eyes narrowed, a murderous intent surging within him, and he said in a low voice:
"Do you want to die, you brat!"
Due to his physical constitution, his skin was extremely dark.
To put it simply, it's the kind of thing you can't see at night.
As a child, he was ridiculed by countless people because of his skin color. Later, after he became powerful, he killed all those who mocked him, and gradually no one dared to laugh at him anymore.
After he became Marine Admiral a few years ago, such voices became even less likely to exist, and countless people treated him with utmost respect.
Until he encountered the Rocks Pirates!
Every time he fought against the Rocks Pirates, he would be mocked by their officers. The problem was that while those officers weren't as strong as him, they weren't much weaker either.
So even though he was extremely angry, there was nothing he could do.
But... since when did a kid who's only been at sea for a short time dare to laugh at him?
Did you think he couldn't lift the knife anymore?
"Phew~"
Black Crocodile exhaled, forcibly suppressing his anger, and turned his gaze to the only unfamiliar face among the three.
"You are..."
But Kaido interrupted him as soon as he spoke.
"Tch~"
"This black guy is not only black, but also a coward! And he's Marine Admiral? Is the Navy really this useless? How can a black guy like this be Admiral?"
"With looks like that, any random dog I leash could be a Admiral!"
Kaido unleashed a barrage of attacks on Black Crocodile; normally, his words wouldn't have been so sharp.
However, during this time, while receiving training from Xia Chen Xia Chen, I did learn some knowledge from him.
Therefore, its attack power naturally increases.
"Court death!"
Hearing Kaido keep calling him a "black devil, "Black Crocodile couldn't hold back any longer. He stomped his feet and shot forward in an instant.
The ground was shattered by the immense force.
In the blink of an eye, he was in front of Kaido, raising his fist, which was covered in Armament Haki, and smashing it down at Kaido.
Kaido was startled when he saw the Black Crocodile suddenly appear in front of him, but he quickly recovered and threw a punch to meet it.
"Boom!"
The moment the two fists collided, a shockwave spread outwards, shattering all the wooden crates piled up on the street and revealing their contents.
The fight between the two didn't last long before Kaido was sent flying with a single punch.
Although Kaido has made significant progress in strength under Xia Chen's training during this period, he is still far behind the Admiral.
Even if Kaido could defeat an ordinary Vice Admiral, the difference between an ordinary Vice Admiral and Admiral is enormous.
Just like in the original story, it's basically the Three Admirals fighting, and the Vice Admiral are all weaker than the last, it's hard to even describe.
After Kaido was knocked away, Black Crocodile pressed his advantage and closed in on Kaido.
He's going to take care of this foul-mouthed brat right here today.
Just as he reached Kaido, ready to deliver another punch, a fist had already landed on his face without him even noticing.
"Bang!"
A dull thud was heard, and the Black Crocodile's figure streaked across the sky like a shooting star, flying away into the distance.
" Admiral Black Crocodile!!"
The sailors shouted in unison.
The Black Crocodile continued to fly backwards, its trajectory tracing several interconnected, massive mountain peaks.
"Boom!"
In an instant, the Black Crocodile's body slammed heavily onto the mountain peak, producing a tremendous roar.
And that's not all; his body moved through the mountains, and soon he passed through a mountain peak and emerged from the other side.
But his body, which was flying backwards, had not stopped; it was still flying towards the mountain behind him, and its speed had not decreased much.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
"..."
After countless loud bangs, the Black Crocodile finally landed on the ground.
From the crowd's perspective, a huge cave entrance stretched across seven or eight mountain peaks, with loose rocks constantly falling from its edge.
"!!!"