Jango pondered for a moment, then a sly smirk spread across his face.
"Since that's the case," he announced, "then this enemy will be entrusted to the Sniper King who claims to have awakened Observation Haki. I, Jango, will personally provide the Sniper King with cover fire!"
Luffy and the others nodded in agreement. "Oh, we'll leave it to the Sniper King then."
"Sniper King? Who's that?"
Usopp glanced around, then suddenly pointed at his own nose. "Could it be that the Sniper King... refers to me?"
Jango shrugged. "The Straw Hats only have one Sniper King. Who else would it be besides you? You were so confident earlier, hurry up and take down that guy!"
"You praise me too much... oh."
Usopp, feeling he had no choice, flapped his wings and took to the sky, facing Shura.
Jango also leaped off the Going Merry, landed on a large tree, swiftly cut away the irritating threads surrounding him, and silently leaned against the trunk to observe.
"Captain Luffy, you guys go on ahead. With me and Usopp here, everything will be fine."
"Oh, alright then, Jango. Be careful."
Luffy didn't intend to stay and watch the fight.
He sensed that Shura was quite weak, making this battle uninteresting to witness.
Besides, Luffy was still eager to find Enel and give that self-proclaimed god a good thrashing. He wouldn't feel right until he did.
The Going Merry continued its journey forward. As for the thin lines blocking their path, Zoro and Law simply sliced through them with a single stroke of their swords, encountering no resistance whatsoever.
"Hey! Don't leave!" Shura yelled, rushing towards them on Pierre, his three-foot bird.
"Priest Shura, your opponent is my Sniper King."
Usopp stood calmly in front of Pierre, and his Kabuto fired Gunpowder Stars, but they had little effect and were easily brushed aside by the bird.
Then, Pierre opened its beak and spewed forth a large burst of flames.
Usopp, startled, flapped his wings rapidly, retreating again and again.
"Hmph! Just a piece of trash that can fly, and you think you can stop me?" Shura scoffed coldly, continuing his pursuit of the Merry.
"You won't catch up."
Usopp remained composed, showing no immediate signs of attack, but his wings beat faster and faster, soon generating a powerful hurricane that actually buffeted Pierre several times in the air.
By the time Shura managed to stabilize Pierre, the Going Merry had already sailed far away.
Letting the Merry escape had become a significant blemish on Shura's pride, and he was furious.
Consequently, Shura directed all his anger towards Usopp, convinced that the long-nosed pirate was entirely to blame.
"Since you desire death, then I shall grant it to you!" Shura roared, charging towards Usopp on Pierre.
At that moment, numerous Shandians suddenly emerged from the surrounding area. Leading this group of fierce warriors was the mantis-like Kamakiri, a high-ranking Sandian warrior.
"It's the Blue Sea people and Priest Shura! Kill them all!"
Kamakiri barked the order, and a dozen or so Shandians frantically lunged towards Shura. As for the two Blue Sea pirates, they could be dealt with later; the priest was the primary target.
Seeing this, Shura temporarily abandoned Usopp and turned his attention to the Shandians, treating them as a serious threat.
However, after Kamakiri and the others had taken only a dozen steps forward, they suddenly found themselves unable to move. The more they struggled, the tighter the unseen restraints became.
"What's going on? Why can't I move?!"
The Shandians were all shocked, their faces turning to horror as they stared at Shura.
Shura revealed a cruel smile. "Hahahaha, the Ordeal of the String has already begun! You fools rushed right into it, seeking your own deaths! I won't be polite. Go to your graves, Shandians!"
As he spoke, he prepared to attack the immobilized Shandians.
Usopp and Jango immediately chose to disengage and stood aside to observe.
The battles of others were of no concern to them, and there was no benefit in rashly intervening. Besides, they had clearly heard the Shandians' intent to kill them as well, so why should they help them?
"That's enough! Shura!"
An aged voice echoed, and Pierre flew over swiftly.
Gan Fall thrust his knight's lance directly at Shura, who met the attack with his own lance without any fear.
The clash of the two lances produced a shower of hot sparks.
Gan Fall followed up with a backhanded strike, his spear skills displaying superb precision, aiming to force Shura to retreat. However, Shura was no weakling. His lance followed his initial attack, piercing Gan Fall's arm armor in an instant.
Bang! A ball of flame erupted directly on Gan Fall's arm.
"Hahahaha! Gan Fall, you old 'god' is already past his prime, yet you still try to resist? In that case, why don't I send you off to the next world!"
Shura withdrew his knight's lance, and Pierre opened its beak to unleash a torrent of flames, forcing Gan Fall to retreat.
Usopp and Jango were slightly surprised. "The tip of his lance actually spewed flames! And what's with that bird? It can breathe fire too?"
However, it was just a fleeting surprise; they didn't take it too seriously.
It was just fire breathing. Akainu could also breathe fire, yet Carl still defeated him, didn't he?
He, Usopp, wasn't Carl, but Shura certainly wasn't Akainu, so defeating Shura shouldn't be too difficult.
It was just that Shura's words seemed to carry a deeper meaning, hinting at hidden secrets. But Usopp and Jango weren't particularly interested.
Gan Fall backed away, clutching his injured arm, and spoke in a low voice once he was a safe distance away. "...The new 'god'? They are indeed a formidable force, and my old tricks have been seen through!"
Shura declared loudly, "Gan Fall, by coming to Skypiea, you are defying God, just like the Shandians!"
Gan Fall retorted, "I can no longer allow you to do as you please. Though I am old, I don't want to witness so many lives disappear at your hands. I will fight Enel today, even if it costs me my life. I will do whatever it takes!"
"Hahahaha! Then go ahead and die!"
Shura and Pierre charged towards Gan Fall, the knight's lance aimed directly at Gan Fall's chest.
However, Gan Fall nimbly flipped off Pierre's back. He pressed his palm against a large tree, activated an Impact Dial, and blasted the tree apart. The resulting force severed the thin strings restraining the Shandians, finally freeing them.
"Don't think we'll thank you, Gan Fall!" Kamakiri yelled.
"I don't need your thanks. This time, let's work together to defeat Enel first, and then how about we settle our differences later?" Gan Fall suggested.
Kamakiri remained silent.
In truth, Enel was a more formidable opponent than Gan Fall, so Kamakiri wasn't opposed to a temporary alliance. However, he feared Weber's volatile temper would lead to a resolute rejection of any cooperation. Therefore, Kamakiri simply chose silence, which he deemed the best response.
Gan Fall didn't press the issue when he saw Kamakiri's silence.
Pierre caught him at that moment, and Gan Fall urged his steed to attack Shura once more.
Kamakiri snorted, fired Cloud Dials to create a path of clouds, and rushed towards Shura as well.
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