"What? Luo Chen, you can't be mistaken, can you? How could anyone in this sea area know our identities and still dare to launch an attack? Aren't they afraid of death?"
Upon hearing Luo Chen's words, Catherine thought he had lost his mind. Didn't he realize that Xiao and his group were already quite famous, practically invincible in this sea area? Who would be so foolish as to provoke them?
"No, I'm not wrong, Catherine, look for yourself. Those people are definitely after us. They couldn't possibly not know our true identities."
Luo Chen shook his head and handed her the binoculars, explaining that he had just seen a distinctive flag on the ship's sail—the flag of a powerful pirate force capable of shaking the entire ocean. He also knew that they should have been in the New World, but their sudden appearance here and attack on them made their intentions quite obvious.
"Hmm, this is... the Charlotte Family's banner. With their strength, they certainly don't fear our reputation. But how come they're... here? Shouldn't they be in the New World?"
Catherine took the binoculars and peered through them, only to see that the flagship of the fleet was flying the flag of Charlotte Linlin, the ruler of the New World. Her expression changed drastically, and she exclaimed in disbelief.
"What? Charlotte, could it be the forces of Four Emperors has personally come to besiege us? If so, just how much influence do you have, Captain Luo Chen?!"
The others, upon hearing Charlotte's name mentioned by Catherine, all paled and panicked.
"No, it's unlikely that she would personally intervene. With our current strength, we probably can't even earn her a second glance, let alone take action ourselves. It's probably her children leading the attack. However, our situation is also difficult because Katakuri is leading the attack, along with two other ministers, and so many ships..."
What should the captain do now? Should he try to escape? But even if he did, it would be very difficult!
Catherine shook her head, denying their guess, but then her face became serious as she stared at the leading ship, or rather, the person on board.
" Katakuri? It seems we're in a very difficult situation. Captain, what should we do? Please decide quickly—fight or flee! We need to decide fast, or it will be too late!"
Having traveled the world to participate in cooking competitions, Monbuma had a more comprehensive understanding of the news from the New World. When she heard the name Katakuri, her pupils contracted slightly, and then she looked at Luo Chen with a cautious and solemn expression.
"Escape? No, even if we wanted to escape now, it's impossible. All we can do now is fight. Let's prepare ourselves and have a good fight with the Charlotte Family, so the world knows that the Luo Chen Pirates are not to be trifled with! Charge!!"
Upon hearing Katakuri's name, Luo Chen knew they had no way out. To survive, they had no choice but to fight. Any tricks were useless against Katakuri, the man whom Big Mom called Charlotte's greatest masterpiece. Everything was laid bare before him by his Observation Haki, which allowed him to see into the future.
Luo Chen already knew that there was no way out for them and that they had to fight their way out. He immediately issued orders to engage the Charlotte Pirates.
"Yes!!"
The men solemnly accepted the order and immediately began their operation, taking their designated positions and preparing for battle.
Bang bang bang...
Just as they decided to fight, the opposing ships launched another artillery attack. Heavy iron cannonballs struck the ships, creating waves and causing them to rock violently.
Bang bang bang...
Dozens of shells came hurtling towards them. These were shells fired from Charlotte's three main ships. Each one had been imbued with a soul by Big Mom and thus came alive. The moment they were fired, they autonomously pursued and bombarded the target.
"Hmph, a homing missile? But that won't work on us. One Flash... Flowing Blade Slash!!"
Luo Chen rested his left hand on the hilt of his sword, watching the oncoming cannon fire, a slight smile playing on his lips.
Then, with a clang, One Flash sword light disappeared. Luo Chen had already unleashed his slash, and cannonballs were instantly sliced in half in mid-air before exploding Extreme Speed. The resulting Impact caused the sea below to churn continuously, and the Isel swayed like a piece of duckweed.
"A slash? It must be that Luo Chen. Interesting, I didn't expect him to possess the skills of a swordsman. Heh, keep firing! At the same time, notify the others to bring the ships closer to them and completely encircle and annihilate them..."
On the opposite side, Katakuri stood on the bow of his ship, watching as the cannonballs fired by his three ships were easily destroyed. His eyes narrowed slightly as he looked at Luo Chen wielding his sword on the Isel, slightly surprised. Then, without hesitation, he ordered a second wave of attack.
"Up! Lord Katakuri has ordered us to approach their ship and launch a full-scale attack to eliminate the Luo Chen Pirates..."
After receiving his order, the flag bearer waved a series of special flags at the other ships. Then, the dozen or so pirate ships that Katakuri and his crew had gathered slowly formed a semi-circular arc and approached them in a semi-encircling manner.
Bang bang bang...
As they approached the Isel, the cannons on their fleet kept firing, igniting a barrage of shells that overwhelmed Luo Chen and his crew, leaving them no time to react. They could only watch helplessly as the dozen or so pirate ships surrounded them, blocking all their path forward.
Swoosh...
Clang!!
Bang bang bang...
As Luo Chen unleashed a slashing attack, cleaving through all the incoming cannonballs and detonating them in mid-air, he gritted his teeth and watched as his companions were unsurprisingly surrounded by the pirate ship, unable to advance or retreat.
"Damn it, what do we do, Captain? We have nowhere to turn!"
George clenched his fists, widened his eyes, stared straight ahead at the pirate crews surrounding them, and gritted his teeth as he spoke, word by word.
"What else can we do? Prepare for battle. I'll rush onto that ship first to hold off Katakuri and the others. You all just need to repel the enemies attacking from the Isel, and then find the right moment to sail away. I'll follow you, understand?"
As Luo Chen spoke, his eyes were fixed on Katakuri, who was only a short distance away from them, before he gave instructions to his crew.
"But Captain, isn't this too dangerous for you?"
Singh replied anxiously, saying that he was the last person who wanted his captain to take such a dangerous step to cover them.
"I think so too, Luo Chen. It's far too risky. We should just stay on the ship, repel all the enemies that board, and then find a chance to escape. Why risk our lives to challenge Katakuri and the others?"
Catherine walked to his side and said the same thing with concern. She didn't want Luo Chen to risk his life to fight a bloody way out for them.
"No, you don't understand that man at all. As long as he's around, none of us can escape. I can only hold him off to give us a chance to catch our breath and escape, otherwise..."
Luo Chen understood Katakuri better than any of them. After all, having read the original work, he knew that an attack commanded by Katakuri nearly wiped out the Straw Hat Pirates. Only when Luffy chose to fight Katakuri and hold him off were his crew members able to escape safely from the siege of the other ministers and Sweet Commander.
"But..."
The others wanted to say something more, but Luo Chen raised his hand to interrupt them. He emphasized again in his unyielding tone, "..."
"There's no need to discuss this further. I've already made up my mind. You all better get ready. Once I'm on board, do exactly as I say. Do you understand?"
Luo Chen glanced at them and spoke in a deep voice.
"We understand. Be careful, there's a new adventure waiting for us, don't let him defeat you!!"
Catherine replied, and reminded him to focus on their adventure and not to get bogged down in battle, lest they be tied up and unable to leave.
"Don't worry, even Garp and Akainu couldn't stop me, so Katakuri will be no exception. Well then, I'm off!!"
call out...
With that, Luo Chen pushed off with both legs, and his body shot out like a cannonball.
Bang...
Luo Chen landed on the main ship instantly, and the powerful recoil caused the entire ship to tilt heavily forward. The people on board were startled by the sudden movement, and some even lost their balance and almost fell to the ground.
"W-what's going on? How could the ship be...? Hmm? That's... it's the pirate Luo Chen! How did he get here? Quick, guards, arrest him immediately!"
One of Katakuri's servants was startled by the commotion caused by Luo Chen. After standing up straight, he suddenly saw someone break into their ship. Upon closer inspection, he realized it was Luo Chen, the captain of the Luo Chen Pirates. He quickly ordered the other guards to surround him.