Time ticked by, but Lafitte still hadn't appeared. The Vasco were getting bored; such a large island, and yet not a single person was there to witness this historic moment—how he burned the legendary Hero of the Marines to death!
Of course, there were witnesses. Among those henchmen who hadn't escaped yet, although some had already suffered mental breakdowns, quite a few were still watching. But in the Vasco' eyes, could these people even be considered human? They weren't even on the same level of beings, and they had no right to share in his spoils!
"Um?"
A short while passed, Lafitte still hadn't appeared. Even the tipsy Vasco sensed something was wrong. How could that old man, Garp, be so resilient to burning? It's been so long, and he hasn't turned to ashes yet? Is his flesh too tough?
The figure in the flames was still the same figure, not much different. Although the flames were still burning, the Vasco felt a sense of dread as they looked at the figure in the flames!
"Hmph! Looks like I can't fool them!"
With a heavy snort, the flames around Garp exploded and disappeared without a trace, leaving no burn marks on his body. Vasco stared wide-eyed, feeling the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end!
This old guy wasn't physically weak and unable to dodge the flames; he was imitating them by using a self-inflicted injury as bait. It's just that Lafitte was too cunning. The old guy was burned by the flames for so long but he didn't come out. He was very patient!
Garp was indeed fishing. He had already sensed Koby's presence, but there was an even stronger presence nearby. The two were so close, they were clearly hostages!
It's not a good time to use force, lest that guy get cornered and try to take us all down with him. Then there would be no point in him coming here. What's the point of dealing with these pirates? He can do that anytime, anywhere. It's not even worth a hair on Koby's body!
So Garp tried to use a trick to lure the man out, but he underestimated the man's wisdom and patience. He was burned by the fire for a long time, but the two people's breaths did not separate, which meant that burning for a longer time would be useless!
Only in the first few breaths could they possibly lure someone out, but that would involve being burned by flames, and if it went on for too long, it would definitely arouse suspicion. Thus Garp's plan failed!
"Since that's the case, then I'll just cripple you first."
Garp no longer pinned his hopes on scheming; the person in the shadows was not someone to be trifled with, so he decided to eliminate their allies first before considering anything else.
With a single stride, he punched away the flames that were spraying towards him, instantly catching up with the Vasco who was sitting on an alcohol bubble, ready to fly away. He thought he could just run away after spraying fire? Not so easy. And it's time to repay the grudge for the time he burned you.
Garp teleported above Vasco and delivered a powerful backfist to the guy's head. The force was so great that Vasco's head almost went into his neck!
Fortunately, there were no rocks or metal below him. The Vasco burst through the alcohol bubble and crashed into the ground like a meteorite. The surrounding soil and rocks surged and spread like ocean waves, demonstrating the power of the punch. The Vasco was rendered incapacitated by this punch and lay dead in the crater!
" Lafitte! I know you. You were the devilish policeman of the West Blue. Two years ago, you joined the Blackbeard Pirates as a navigator and helped Blackbeard earn the title of Shichibukai. You have made a lot of contributions to Blackbeard!"
Now you're the only officer left here, right? Hand over Koby! I might let you go this time.
If you can't make a decision, then let Teach know. He'll make the right choice. Trading a new recruit for several experienced officers is a good deal. You don't want to risk your life for a young guy, do you?
After knocking down the Vasco with a single punch, Garp shouted loudly, his tone forceful, his voice echoing throughout the town.
For Koby's life, he could spare these officers he had already defeated. In Garp's eyes, the lives of these pirates combined were not worth as much as Koby's!
As long as we can rescue Koby, we can deal with these guys anytime. However, we can't be too hasty, or we'll be put on the defensive. An experienced veteran wouldn't handle things that way, even if the hostage is his own disciple. So we need to be casual yet firm in our attitude!
" Mr. Garp! You're a smart man, don't act rashly. Your disciple is closer to me, and you don't want me to fail, do you?"
Now that things have come to this, Lafitte has no choice but to show himself. Hachinosu is only so big, and the other party is a powerful and Haki figure. There's no way to avoid him; he'll have to show himself sooner or later.
Since Garp had already spoken, there was still room for negotiation. There was no need to be prepared to die together. So, after hearing Garp's words, Lafitte appeared with Koby a hostage.
However, he didn't dare get too close to the Hero of the Marines. For a strong person, a distance of over a hundred meters could be covered in less than a second. Although Garp had a good reputation, he still had to be careful!
" Mr. Garp! I'm sorry!"
Koby was held captive by Lafitte, his hands cuffed behind his back, though his feet were relatively free. However, he was very listless, his face full of apology and guilt, and he also hated his own weakness for causing trouble for everyone.
" Koby!"
" Koby! Are you alright?"
Seeing that Koby had finally appeared, Hibari and Kujaku also came to Garp's side and confronted Lafitte from a distance. The two women were very worried about Koby's safety and were also afraid that Lafitte would disregard everything and perish together with Koby.
" Koby! That wasn't your fault, don't worry about it. Just focus on your training from now on!"
" Lafitte! What do you think of my suggestion? Or are you worried that Blackbeard will cause you trouble later? Given the current situation, Blackbeard can't be blind to how things will develop."
Garp comforted Koby and then stopped paying attention to him. Koby had only been training for two and a half years at most, which was still far behind Blackbeard, a powerful figure who had accumulated decades of experience.
Furthermore, Koby's indecisive nature is a major flaw, as it can easily lead to significant losses. Garp only hopes that Koby can learn from his mistakes; otherwise, no matter how strong he is, he won't amount to much!
In this respect, he admired another newly accepted disciple, Smoker, more. Although Smoker was quite old, he was more mature and reliable in his conduct and dealings with others.
Garp had no idea that Blackbeard had already been killed by his disciple Vic, who wasn't actually his disciple. Even if Lafitte had tried to contact him, he wouldn't have been able to reach him at all!
At this point, only Lafitte remained standing in the entire Blackbeard Pirates. No, wait! Blackbeard, Doc Q, and Stronger were all standing, but in a different way. Blackbeard was even more outrageous; he was disassembled and then reassembled, creating a kind of broken beauty!
"Snort!"
Lafitte snorted and took out a Den Den Mushi. Garp was right. Even if he were considering things from Blackbeard's perspective, he would give up the Marine kid in his hands in exchange for the safety of the other officers. It was a sure-fire deal. Any one of the officers was far superior to this Marine kid!
However, he was also afraid that the old man was deceiving him. Although the old man had a good reputation, he was holding the old man's disciple in his hands, so he couldn't think about it in the usual way. Therefore, he also wanted to ask his captain Blackbeard where he was and whether it was possible for him to come back to rescue him. He could even consider keeping the old man around!