Upon hearing Roger question, the three of them fell into a brief silence.
After a long pause, Rayleigh twitched the corner of his mouth and spoke up.
"Earlier, we wanted to test Bob mettle, so we had a fight with him!"
"Three against one?"
"Bob strength was evident back on the ship, so it was only reasonable for the three of us to team up. We thought we'd pin him down and give him a beating first!" Gaban said with an awkward expression, crossing his arms in front of his chest.
"So, where are your two axes? Why are they gone?" Roger frowned as he noticed Gaban's empty hands.
"Shattered! Bob shattered them again!" Gaban face turned pale, and he spoke with difficulty. Having suffered twice at the hands of the same person, Gaban now wished he could vanish into thin air.
Hearing this, Roger twitched his nose, utterly speechless.
The expensive pair of axes he had bought were shattered again, adding insult to injury for the already financially strained Roger Pirates.
"So, the three of you fought one person, and Bob single-handedly took you all down?" Knowing that Gaban must be feeling worse than him about the loss of the axes, Roger didn't dwell on it and instead changed the subject.
"Yes, and he defeated us in just two moves. Bob current strength is far greater than it was two months ago!" Rayleigh said slowly.
Although such a defeat was humiliating, he knew he had to be honest. This was about Bob's current strength, and there was no room for exaggeration.
"Hahaha! Bob is truly a monster! Defeating the three of you in just two moves—that's something even I might struggle to do!" Roger laughed heartily.
"I really want to have a good fight with Bob and see what he's capable of!"
Rather than feeling any fear from Rayleigh description, Roger felt his blood boiling with excitement.
Just how much had Bob grown in two months?
At that moment, Roger was eager to test his strength against Bob.
And he acted on that thought immediately.
The next second, Roger shifted his gaze away from the three of them and turned toward the Rocks Pirates' ship. His aura erupted suddenly, and his eyes locked onto Bob.
However, just as he was about to charge toward Bob, a familiar, deep voice interrupted his action.
"Gurarara! Roger, before you fight Bob, let's have a match first!" Whitebeard laughed heartily.
After disengaging from his battle with Sengoku, he had immediately leaped toward Roger.
When all the members of the Rocks Pirates began to converge around Bob, the fight between Sengoku and Whitebeard had already come to a halt.
It wasn't because their relationship had improved, but because Sengoku realized that the battle was at a stalemate, and Bob had now become the backbone of the Rocks Pirates.
Someone needed to deal with him.
Sengoku knew that the current Marine forces had no one who could directly confront and defeat Bob.
They needed high-level reinforcements.
So, he proposed a ceasefire to Whitebeard, who agreed without hesitation.
After all, Whitebeard initial intention was to have a good fight with Roger. Now that Roger was free and Sengoku was no longer interested in fighting, Whitebeard was more than happy to oblige.
Sengoku, however, was taken aback by how readily Edward agreed, and he couldn't help but furrow his brow.
But he didn't dwell on it for long and immediately headed toward Kong's location.
"Hahaha! Edward, since you've invited me so earnestly, how could I refuse?" Roger burst into laughter after hearing Whitebeard's words.
As soon as he finished speaking, his aura surged dramatically, and an overwhelming domineering presence spread out.
The Supreme Grade Sword, Ace, in his hand was enveloped in Conqueror's Haki.
In the next moment, he shot toward Whitebeard with undiminished momentum, no less intense than when he had faced Rocks.
It seemed that Rocks' direct punch hadn't caused much of an impact.
This was largely because Rocks was already at the end of his strength at that time, so the damage wasn't as severe as one might have imagined.
Moreover, after some time to recover, aside from the unsightly mark on his face, the effects were minimal.
Whitebeard narrowed his eyes, watching Roger as he charged toward him.
His Murakumogiri swung with great force, the power of the Gura Gura no Mi (Tremor-Tremor Fruit) infused into the blade.
A milky-white aura flickered eerily.
The two figures collided head-on, and the resulting impact was thunderous, sending shockwaves rippling out and making the entire island tremble.
"Why is Commander Edward fighting Roger?"
"What's going on? He hasn't even finished his fight with Sengoku, and now he's going after Roger!"
"Somehow, it feels like Edward is putting more effort into fighting Roger than he did against Sengoku!"
"Damn it, who cares? Just kill Roger! Commander Edward must be trying to avenge Captain Rocks!"
"That's right! Commander Edward, take down this traitor among pirates!"
"..."
The members of the Rocks Pirates were somewhat incredulous when they saw Whitebeard suddenly break away from Sengoku and engage Roger.
But when they remembered how Roger and Garp had killed Rocks, they felt an intense surge of anger.
Rocks' death had not only ruined their plans to dominate the world but had also left them teetering on the edge of life and death.
Seeing Whitebeard take the initiative now, they automatically assumed he was seeking revenge for Rocks, aiming to kill Roger in the Valley of the Gods and make him pay for their captain's death.
On the other side, Kong, the Fleet Admiral, watched the battle between Edward and Roger with a faint smile.
This fight was highly advantageous for the Marines.
Not only had they managed to keep a high-level combatant like Whitebeard occupied without deploying Marine forces, but they had also gained an additional strong ally.
Sengoku, who had separated from Whitebeard, now stood beside Kong.
"Sengoku, how did you manage to get Edward and Roger to fight?" Kong asked, turning to the man beside him.
"I have no idea. I saw that you needed help, and after I suggested a ceasefire to Edward, he agreed surprisingly quickly!" Sengoku shrugged.
"Then he just went straight after Roger!"
"I think Edward and Roger must have known each other before. Their relationship is definitely not simple," Sengoku added.
"Hahaha, whatever their relationship is, as long as they're fighting now, it's good for the Marines!" Kong laughed, not particularly concerned about the details.
"Now that Rocks is dead, the Rocks Pirates are leaderless. Currently, only Bob can keep them in check. Our next move should be to deal with Bob!"
"This is exactly why I rushed here!" Sengoku's eyes gleamed with a sharp intensity. "With the two of us working together, he is bound to fall here!"
"Bob, prepare to face the wrath of the Navy!"
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