"Hey!"
"You're the brat who killed Scar." Baku's voice was hoarse. Then he put on a fierce expression and threatened him. "Kid, get on your knees and beg for mercy, and maybe I'll be in a good enough mood to let you go."
When the pirates behind him heard their captain, they raised their weapons and brandished them menacingly at the two.
Roy shook his head helplessly as he watched the pirates shouting in front of him. Did none of these pirates have brains? Now that they'd found their enemies, shouldn't they have attacked right away? Instead, they were standing around running their mouths. Just thinking about it was laughable.
"Kid, are you shaking your head because you're rejecting my offer?"
"I'm Giant Axe Baku, captain of the Giant Axe Pirates, with a bounty of thirty-eight million... Mmph!"
Before Giant Axe Baku could finish introducing himself, Roy stretched out his palm. Invisible Telekinesis activated instantly, gripping Baku by the neck and slowly lifting him off the ground.
Roy stepped forward, watching the pirate struggle in midair as he suffocated.
"How much did you say your bounty was again?"
Seeing Giant Axe Baku's terrified expression and flushed face, and that he had almost no strength left to struggle, Roy found it rather dull. With a thought, he snapped Baku's neck and tossed him down in front of the pirates.
The pirates who had come with him were scared witless. Their captain, who had always been brave and invincible, had been killed the moment he faced his opponent, and they didn't even know how. Some of the more timid pirates fell to the ground in fright.
"Boss, should we kill these pirates too?"
Tesoro had been watching from behind for a while. He wanted to try out the results of his training over the past few days.
Seeing how eager Tesoro was, Roy flicked a finger. Pebbles rose from the ground and shot toward the remaining pirates, leaving only the rookie pirate who had identified them.
After all, as Roy saw it, Tesoro was still too weak after only a few days of training. A rookie was just right for him to practice on.
If he couldn't even beat this rookie pirate, who was clearly not very strong, he would hardly deserve the title of "Gild Tesoro" in the future.
"Hey, Tesoro, don't kill him. We still need to find out where their pirate ship is."
Without waiting for Tesoro to answer, Roy enveloped himself in Telekinesis and flew swiftly toward the inn.
Marineford, Marine Headquarters.
"Brr... Brr... Brr..."
The Den Den Mushi on Admiral Sengoku's desk suddenly rang while he was handling some routine duties.
"Hello. This is Sengoku."
"Admiral Sengoku! I'm the officer in charge of the Marine Base near Maple Leaf Island. Someone reported spotting the pirate Roy on Maple Leaf Island."
Hearing that Roy had been found, Sengoku gave an order without hesitation.
"Depart for Maple Leaf Island immediately and hold the pirate Roy there. I'll send Borsalino to support you at once. Be careful not to engage him head-on; just hold him there."
"Yes, sir!"
"Click."
After hanging up, Sengoku gave another order to the messenger outside his door.
"Contact Borsalino immediately and tell him to come see me."
"Yes, sir."
Borsalino was training hard at the training grounds. He was rather annoyed that he had nearly died at Roy's hands last time.
He was clearly much stronger than Roy, yet his carelessness had led to his defeat at the kid's hands. When he returned to headquarters, quite a few Marines from his own cohort had mocked him.
"Rear Admiral Borsalino, Admiral Sengoku orders you to report to his office immediately."
Borsalino looked at the panting messenger before him.
"Did the admiral say what it was about?"
"No, he didn't."
Hearing the messenger's answer, he hesitated no longer. His body turned into yellow light, and he appeared in Admiral Sengoku's office in an instant.
"Admiral Sengoku!"
"Borsalino, Roy and his group have appeared on Maple Leaf Island. I've already ordered the nearby Marines to deploy. Go support them immediately."
"Yes, sir."
Hearing that Roy had been found, the usually laid-back Borsalino's face grew serious for once. He turned to set out and capture Roy and his group.
"Don't let your guard down again this time, Borsalino."
Roy had just arrived at the inn. Ignoring the curious looks around him, he went straight inside and spread out his Observation Haki. He had intended to check whether Stella was in her room, but he sensed an interesting piece of information from the innkeeper's emotions.
Roy glanced at the innkeeper, who was struggling to look calm behind the counter, but paid him no mind. He went upstairs to get Stella, intending to set out.
After telling Stella to pack her belongings, Roy used his ability to make everything float behind him, then flew out of the inn with her toward the weapon shop.
Tesoro had just defeated his opponent and was sitting proudly on the pirate. But from the way he rubbed his chest now and then, he clearly hadn't won so easily.
Seeing Roy and Stella fly over, Tesoro immediately stood up.
"Boss, I've found out where the ship is. Should we keep this pirate alive?"
"Then kill him."
Tesoro didn't waste any words. He took the long saber that floated over to him and drove it straight into the pirate's heart. Judging by his expressionless face, killing and being killed had apparently long since become the main theme of the pirate world.
Roy brought Tesoro into the air beside him, while Stella transformed into a white dove. Following Tesoro's directions, the three flew toward the harbor.
Only after the three had left did the passersby dare approach to see what had happened. When they saw that the man who had been killed was Giant Axe Baku, the news soon spread through the town.
"'Giant Axe' Pirates provoked a monster kid and were wiped out."
Roy and the other two descended slowly onto the Giant Axe Pirates' ship. Finding a few lackeys left aboard, Roy activated his ability and tossed them straight into the sea as the pirates looked on in terror.
They boarded, raised anchor, and set sail.
Stella skillfully handled the ship, while Tesoro helped out and learned how to operate the sails.
Roy stood at the bow, watching the island recede as the sea breeze blew through his long golden hair.
Looking at the shimmering sea in the distance, Roy called out happily.
"Destination, Endless War Country! Set sail!"
"Yes, Captain!"
"Hahaha~~~"
The three looked at one another, then all burst out laughing.
Not long after the three set sail, three Marine warships appeared on the horizon and closed in on them in an encircling formation.
"Boss, it's the Marines!" Tesoro shouted nervously.
Roy stood at the bow, his long golden hair flying in the sea breeze. A mocking thought surfaced in his mind: Looks like that innkeeper really did tip off the Marines.
"Tesoro, Stella, ignore them and keep going. We'll face them head-on... and crush them!"
A Marine commodore on the lead warship picked up a loudspeaker and shouted, "Pirate Roy! Surrender immediately, or we will use force..."
Before he could finish, a cold light flashed in Roy's eyes. He raised both hands, and invisible Telekinesis surged forth.
The approaching Marines saw an enormous wall of water rise from the sea and descend toward their warships.
"Hey, hey, hey..."
"Is that real? You've got to be kidding."
"Is that kind of attack something a person can control?"