The night soon passed.
Kazu and the others easily found the port where the Celestial Dragon would land.
Crowds surged around the port. Every official and noble in the kingdom had long been waiting eagerly.
All sorts of welcome banners and fireworks were already prepared, and everyone was either nervous or excited.
Kazu's Observation Haki was powerful. He knew exactly what was happening without having to go over and see for himself.
More than an hour later, Kazu's Observation Haki picked up the Celestial Dragon's cruise ship.
There were plenty of skilled people aboard, presumably those so-called Cipher Pol agents.
They were more than enough to deal with ordinary people, but against someone as powerful as Kazu, they only had a couple of tricks.
Yes, just two: one was screaming to protect the Celestial Dragon, and the other was sinking to the bottom of the sea to feed the fish.
"We've got work, boys."
Kazu directed their course, slowly crossing the Celestial Dragon's shipping lane. Before long, they came into view of both the port and the cruise ship.
"Hey, what's going on with that ship? It's actually sailing into Saint Kolva Norsman's path."
"We're doomed. Won't this anger Saint Nosman?"
"Soldiers, get out there on a boat and drive that ship out of the way!!"
The nobles and king broke into cold sweats. Since Kazu had deliberately lowered the pirate flag, they did not recognize him or his crew.
Kazu had done this on purpose, too. What if they knew it was his crew blocking the way and were too afraid to attack?
Although an ordinary Celestial Dragon's pig-brained stupidity meant he would most likely choose to attack anyway, it was better to be safe than sorry.
"Whose ship is that!!"
"Lowly insects! How dare they block my path!"
"You bastards, sink it right now! I want them at the bottom of the sea feeding the fish!"
Saint Nosman had been standing at the bow, ready to receive the Sade Kingdom's welcome. Seeing someone blocking his path infuriated him. Their actions were nothing short of contempt for him as a Celestial Dragon.
He was a descendant of the gods. If he did not kill them, wouldn't his prestige as a Celestial Dragon suffer?
"As you command, Your Highness Saint Nosman."
The dozens of Cipher Pol agents beside him hurriedly directed the cannons, aimed roughly toward Kazu, and opened fire at full strength.
Over a dozen cannons thundered, firing five consecutive volleys.
Dozens of cannonballs sped toward Kazu's pirate ship. But to everyone's surprise, every cannonball swerved eerily away from the hull like mice encountering a cat and plunged into the sea.
"All right, we can raise our pirate flag now."
"Aye, Captain Kazu!"
Behrens had been ready for ages, just waiting for Kazu's order.
The Blond Hair Pirates' flag rose swiftly. The CP0 officer, who had been about to prepare another barrage, recognized it at once and broke into a cold sweat.
He worked in intelligence himself. He had long since committed the details of a powerhouse capable of going toe-to-toe with a Marine Admiral to memory. He hurriedly ordered his subordinates to stop firing, then rushed to Saint Nosman's side.
"Your Highness, those are the Blond Hair Pirates ahead. Their captain, Her Kazi, is a great pirate with a bounty of 1.5 billion Beli."
"For your safety, let's wait until they've passed before proceeding."
Bang!
The moment the Cipher Pol officer finished speaking, Saint Nosman drew a jewel-encrusted golden pistol, turned, and shot him.
Norsman's face twisted as he snapped, "I'm a Celestial Dragon, and you dare tell me to make way for him?"
"You idiot! Just die!"
The Cipher Pol officer did not dare dodge. The bullet went straight through his chest, and he fell miserably to the deck.
This was his duty. If Saint Nosman was injured, or if he dodged Saint Nosman's attack, everyone, including his family, would die.
"Sink them! Great pirate, my ass! If he dares block my path, he can die!"
After seeing what had happened to the Cipher Pol officer, the others did not dare offer any more objections. They hurriedly resumed firing at Kazu and his crew.
Cannonballs poured out like rain. Ahead of them, Kazu stood at the bow and gave a casual wave.
"Space Collapse."
The space high above shattered like glass, and every cannonball exploded in midair.
"Hmph. Since you dare attack me, get ready to be wiped out."
Kazu condensed three layers of space in succession with his right hand. This power, released after compressing space to its utmost limit, needed only one layer to pulverize the cruise ship and Celestial Dragon opposite him.
"Triple Space Compression."
Kazu swiftly hurled a milky-white ball of light, which erupted directly above the Celestial Dragon's cruise ship.
Boom!
With a deafening blast, the entire cruise ship was annihilated in an instant. Even the sea's surface was blasted into a vacuum.
Click, click!
Beside him, Carlmand quickly took several photographs as mementos.
This was a Celestial Dragon, after all. Their status had long been deeply ingrained in the minds of ordinary people in the pirate world.
To them, Celestial Dragons were the noblest people in the entire world. Breaking their established perceptions was no easy matter. These photographs were absolutely priceless as mementos.
"Bring forth a flower!"
Kazu noticed Carlmand's actions as well and silently gave him a thumbs-up.
He pulled a rose straight out of his Independent Space, struck a dashing pose, and tossed it gracefully toward the sea.
He had to look good in the photographs. Kazu planned to give them to a newspaper-delivering seagull later, which would pass both the photographs and his instructions on to Morgans.
That Big News bird was hardly one to stay out of trouble. To keep the Five Elders from smearing him, he needed to use Morgans to set the record straight.
This would be a win-win situation for both Morgans and Kazu.
He could accept being hunted by the Celestial Dragons, but he would not let them pin false blame on him.
Kazu's attack had not merely obliterated Saint Nosman. It had also blasted away the spirits of the king of Sade and the nobles at the port.
That was a Celestial Dragon! What had been a perfectly good occasion had turned straight from a celebration into a funeral.
Next, they would have to face not only a great pirate worth 1.5 billion Beli, but also the World Government's demands for accountability.
Given how the Five Elders operated, their country might very well be struck off the map outright.
Wails and howls filled the port as sorrow, despair, anger, and other emotions churned through their hearts.
"It's over. It's all over."
"What are we supposed to do now?"
"Your Majesty, hurry and decide what to do! You're the one who invited Saint Nosman!"
"Yes, exactly, Your Majesty! You must take responsibility for this."
The nobles cried and wailed. Some of the more ruthless and clever ones turned on him on the spot. Better someone else die than them. They could only push the highest-ranking person forward to take the blame; that way, they would still have a sliver of hope.
Once the first person took the lead, nearly every noble followed suit, heaping all the pressure onto the king.
"I... this..."
"You..."
The nobles had cornered the king into speechlessness. For a moment, he was too furious to utter a complete sentence.