Watching Kōtemu Sheng writhe in agony, his blood instantly staining the ground, he who was already like a dead dog, was now truly dead.
The CP0 members, along with some pirates who had stayed in the hall to watch the spectacle, and those who hadn't yet managed to leave, froze in place.
An extreme chill surged from the soles of their feet to the crowns of their heads, and then back down again, chilling them to the bone and filling the onlookers' hearts with boundless fear.
Merely harming a Celestial Dragon would warrant the deployment of an Admiral.
What about killing one?
"Run, run far away, preferably set sail now."
They didn't need to think to know that the Sabaody Archipelago would be incredibly dangerous from this moment on.
The pirates no longer wanted to stay and watch. They stood up, intending to leave.
However, just then, Kōta spoke.
"Since you want to watch, then watch till the end. You can't just leave halfway!"
As his voice rang out, an indomitable aura erupted from Kōta, sweeping through the entire hall.
An extreme pressure descended, rendering the pirates unable to move.
The aura was targeted, affecting only the pirates, while others continued to rush out unimpeded.
In a short while, the once bustling auction hall became desolate.
Kōta lowered his head, looking at Kōtemu Sheng, who had completely ceased to breathe. He retracted his foot and flicked it.
Although there was no blood on his shoe, he couldn't help but flick it, as if he had stepped in dog excrement, filled with disgust.
He then raised his head, not glancing at the CP0, nor at the pirates still frozen in the hall, but looked towards a glass window on the second floor.
His gaze seemed to pierce through the one-way glass, as if seeing into the room beyond.
"He, he... saw us."
Gulp—
Pika and Gladius's hearts leaped, and they swallowed simultaneously.
Crack crack crack...
Just then, the glass in front of them, as if under immense pressure, suddenly emitted cracking sounds.
As the sounds intensified, cracks appeared on the glass.
These cracks felt as if they were etched onto their hearts. As the cracks spread, an unprecedented pressure bore down on their bodies and souls.
"Heh heh!! And the two of you. Since you enjoy watching, you can all stay!"
As Kōta's light chuckle echoed, the glass of the private room shattered, revealing Pika and Gladius.
Gazing at Kōta's cold stare, Pika and the other dared not move rashly. In their eyes, Kōta was no longer a man, but had transformed into a black hole, giving them a feeling that surpassed anyone they had ever encountered.
Including their young master, and even the Four Emperors.
"This guy is too terrifying!"
This was their shared sentiment at that moment.
If they could choose again, they would never have stayed to watch the show.
Of course, the pirates remaining in the hall felt the same.
"Silver, silver... silver hair."
The leading CP0 member snapped back to reality, his face pale as he looked up at Kōta, his lips trembling as he shouted, "You, you, you, you are making an enemy of the World Government, an enemy of the entire world!"
Perhaps it was the World Government that gave him courage, for his speech no longer stuttered, and the fear in his eyes lessened considerably.
He puffed out his chest, took a deep breath, suppressing the pounding in his throat, and then shouted in a stern voice, "From this moment on, you will have no place in this world. The Marines, CP0, bounty hunters, even pirates, will all be after your head!"
"Oh..."
Kōta withdrew his gaze and looked back at the CP0 member.
As his gaze shifted away, Pika and Gladius, now exposed, subconsciously breathed a sigh of relief.
Then, their hearts racing, they exchanged glances and turned to flee.
They couldn't wait any longer. If they stayed here, that silver-haired fellow might just make them stay here forever.
Knowing Kōta disliked them and yet lingering here, wasn't that asking for death?
However, since Kōta had decided they should stay, how could he let them leave?
He wasn't without companions, after all.
So, the moment Pika and Gladius turned, Kuina, who was behind Kōta, moved.
She tightened her grip on Wado Ichimonji, and crackling blue arcs of electricity rapidly enveloped her body.
Then, she transformed into a bolt of lightning and shot into the sky with a thunderous roar. In an instant, she crossed the not-so-great distance, burst into the private room, and landed in front of Pika and Gladius, blocking their escape route.
Gazing at the sudden lightning, and at the beautiful girl who emerged from it, her waist adorned with a long sword, her entire body crackling with blue arcs.
Pika and Gladius simultaneously stopped their advance.
"Goro Goro no Mi."
There were many Devil Fruits in this world that could generate electricity, but only the Goro Goro no Mi, known as the strongest Paramecia, could allow one to transform into lightning and elementalize.
"Blue-haired GuīＮＡ."
Pika stared at Kuina, frowning.
Although the girl before him had eaten the Goro Goro no Mi, he didn't feel the same fatal threat as he did from the silver-haired man below. Therefore, he wasn't overly afraid at this moment.
Pika spoke, his shrill voice, severely at odds with his build, caused the arcs of electricity on Kuina's body to momentarily flicker.
She looked up, staring at the giant before her, her lips involuntarily curling upwards. Then, unable to contain herself, she burst into laughter.
"Hahaha!! I am Kuina! Haha!!"
"I say! You big guy, your voice is just too, too, too..."
For a moment, she couldn't find the right adjective, so she continued to laugh, "Too unique! Hahaha!!!"
"This is bad."
The moment Kuina's laughter erupted, Gladius knew trouble was brewing.
Don't let Pika's outwardly taciturn and approachable demeanor within the family fool you. He wasn't like that with outsiders.
When family members mocked his voice, he generally let it slide, as they were family.
But when outsiders mocked his voice, he would instantly transform into a berserk beast, becoming a completely different person.
"Enough."
Just then, a shrill roar echoed throughout the hall.
However, Pika's anger did not elicit a halt in Kuina's laughter; instead, she laughed even louder.
Gazing at the woman who wouldn't stop laughing before him, Pika's veins bulged, his entire body swelled by a notch, and the pupils within his mask flashed with bloodthirsty crimson light.
"Lord Pika, ignore this woman. Let's leave first."
Gladius quickly stepped forward, grabbed Pika's hand, and shouted loudly, hoping to awaken Pika's reason, which was obscured by rage.
"Leave?"
The laughter abruptly ceased. Kuina lowered her head, staring at the two before her, a sharp glint flashing in her eyes, piercing straight through to the heart.
"Kōta told you to stay, so you stay. You want to leave? I think you're dreaming."
As soon as she finished speaking, her body slightly crouched. Her left hand, holding Wado Ichimonji, lifted upwards, and her right hand instantly gripped the hilt of Wado Ichimonji.
Although the sword was not yet drawn, at this moment, Kuina exuded the aura of a sky-splitting sword about to be unsheathed.
The sharpness emanating from her body instantly suppressed the surging rage within Pika, like a bucket of ice water poured over him, instantly clearing his mind.
Furthermore, Kuina's presence gave him a stinging sensation on his skin, as if he were being pricked by countless needles.
Danger, extreme danger.
Instantly regaining his composure, he found himself unable to take a single step forward against the current Kuina.
Instead, he took a step back, his entire body instantly covered in Armament Haki, radiating wariness.