Chapter 340: Chapter 341: Please, Give Me a Little Respect
One hundred thousand meters below the Red Line, on Fish-Man Island.
The skull flag with the crescent mustache fluttered high over the port of Fish-Man Island. It was the flag of the Yonko, the Whitebeard Pirates, intimidating other lawless individuals.
Waterwheel Town.
"Ah! Pirates!"
"Run!"
"Quick, go find the Neptune Army!"
"Damn it, those cursed pirates!"
The streets were in chaos, with countless Fish-Men and Merfolk scattering in terror.
Boom!
A coral house was struck by a cannonball, exploding into smithereens instantly, with flames soaring into the sky.
Over a hundred dark-skinned, muscular, fierce-faced men gathered in the streets, each wielding swords, firearms, rocket launchers, and other weapons, wantonly destroying their surroundings.
"Hahahaha~ So many beautiful Merfolk! We’re going to make a fortune this time!" A burly pirate holding a massive cleaver gazed at the many graceful Merfolk maidens on the street, letting out a wild, arrogant laugh.
"You’re right, Captain! We’re going to get rich!" The surrounding pirates echoed, raising their weapons.
"Captain Gedo, this is Whitebeard’s territory. Isn’t it a bad idea to cause trouble here?" one pirate, more clear-headed than the rest, asked worriedly.
"I’m going to be the Pirate King! What’s a mere Whitebeard to me?!" The burly pirate named Gedo roared, raising his cleaver, his voice filled with arrogance.
"You’re right! Captain is the future Pirate King, Whitebeard will flee at the mere mention of his name!" Hearing Gedo’s words, the pirates started boasting again.
"This place is so good! Why don’t we do what that Aeridar guy did, take this place over, and the Captain can be King? That way we can easily sell these beautiful Merfolk!" another pirate suggested.
"Good idea!" Gedo’s eyes lit up, and he praised, "Yes, that’s a great idea."
Then, Gedo grinned menacingly as he looked around, then waved his hand and shouted, "Boys, charge! Take this place! Kill all who resist! We’ll..."
"Hey~ Can you guys stop? Please, give me a little respect-yoi."
Gedo’s words were cut short by a lazy voice that seemed to come from nowhere.
"Who’s there?" Gedo and the others were startled, immediately looking around.
Whoosh!
A rushing sound came from above. Everyone looked up to see a strange, massive bird, engulfed in blue flames, rapidly flying down from the sky.
"What kind of bird is that?" The pirates on the ground discussed amongst themselves.
Soon, the monstrous bird descended, transforming into a man with a golden punk haircut. His lifeless, fish-like eyes looked incredibly lazy. He wore a purple top, and the Whitebeard Pirates’ tattoo adorned his bare chest. A dagger was tucked into his waist, and he wore seven-quarter pants with black sandals.
"He turned into a man!"
"A Devil Fruit user!"
"Who are you?!"
"That’s the Whitebeard Pirates’ symbol!"
Seeing the man transform from the monstrous bird, the many pirates on the street were startled. They all raised their blades and guns, pointing them at the golden punk-haired man.
"Oh no! This man... It’s the Whitebeard Pirates’ First Division Commander, Marco the Phoenix!!!"
At this moment, a pirate recognized Marco’s identity.
"D-damn it! How is such a big shot here?!" The pirates backed away in terror, cold sweat dripping down their faces. Despite their earlier arrogant words, they were just running their mouths. They weren’t naive enough to truly believe they could contend with a Yonko commander.
"Why are you backing off?!" Gedo grabbed a nearby pirate, spitting as he shouted, "I’m not afraid of Whitebeard himself, much less some Marco!"
"Y-you’re right! Captain Gedo is known as ’Ferocious Tiger,’ a great pirate with a 98 million Berry bounty!" a pirate with a sword cheered.
"Y-you’re right! Besides, there are so many of us! Let’s all go at once!"
Another pirate, holding a flintlock, aimed at Marco’s head, hooked his index finger, and pulled the trigger.
Bang!
A gunshot echoed. A black bullet, propelled by gunpowder, swiftly flew from the barrel, instantly blowing a large hole through Marco’s head.
"Hahaha~ I hit him! Nani...!" Seeing his shot blow a large hole in the man’s head, the pirate couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
But after a couple of laughs, he realized something was wrong. The man’s head wasn’t bleeding like a normal person’s, and he hadn’t fallen. Instead, the large hole in his head was burning with blue-green flames and gradually healing.
"Hmm~ Shanks’ words never work, do they? But why does he always succeed when he says them-yoi?" Marco scratched his head in annoyance, muttering with a puzzled expression as he saw himself being pointed at by a bunch of swords and guns, and even shot.
"The g-gun didn’t work!!!" The pirates stared at the completely healed Marco in shock, their eyes wide, almost bulging out of their sockets.
"He must be a Devil Fruit user! I hate those kinds of people the most!"
Gedo’s eyes blazed as he took a step forward. His two-meter-tall, burly body moved incredibly fast, lunging instantly toward Marco. He spun the massive cleaver in his hand and chopped down directly.
Boom!
The giant blade slammed down, cutting into the ground and instantly creating a crack several meters long.
"Missed him? No, he dodged!" Gedo was startled, seeing Marco just inches from his blade.
"Drawing guns and drawing swords, by pirate rules, that’s a challenge!" Looking at the massive cleaver embedded in the ground beside him, Marco rolled his lifeless eyes and said, "Looks like I have to accept the challenge, otherwise the Whitebeard Pirates will be looked down upon."
Thump!
Marco suddenly threw a punch, incredibly fast, striking directly into Gedo’s abdomen. With a muffled thud, Gedo’s abdomen caved in.
Whoosh!
Gedo instantly flew backward, transforming into a blur, emitting a piercing whoosh through the air.
Rumble~
A black silhouette crashed into a coral mound nearby, shattering the entire mound. The force of the impact turned into a whirlwind, kicking up dust everywhere.
Clang!
The massive cleaver fell to the ground.
When the dust settled, Gedo lay in a pile of coral ruins, blood oozing from his mouth, his eyes rolled back, completely unconscious.
"O-one punch!!!"
"N-no way! Am I seeing things?"
"Hey, hey, stop playing around, Captain."
"Captain, get up! Aren’t you the future Pirate King?!"
Seeing their captain knocked out by a single punch from Marco, they were all in disbelief, their hearts filled with horror.
Pere pere pere... Pere pere pere...
Click!
Hearing the Den Den Mushi in his pocket ring, Marco rolled his lifeless eyes and casually answered, "Moshi moshi~ This is Marco."
"Commander Marco! One of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, Aeridar of the Golden Ring, has arrived at Fish-Man Island!"
Suddenly, a shocking piece of news came from the other end of the Den Den Mushi.
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