At Udon Prison, a group appeared at the entrance.
"Hey, what's wrong with you guys?"
A Beast Pirate crewmember noticed his comrades collapsing one after another, and quickly went to check on them.
Thud!
Another one fainted.
"You too?! What the hell is-"
Before he could finish, he too hit the ground, unconscious.
King and Queen saw this scene, then turned toward the gate. They already guessed who had arrived.
In this world, only one person's Haki could leak out to such an overwhelming degree.
Of course, in their opinion, Roy's Haki was even stronger, but his control over it far surpassed that of Red-Hair.
"One Emperor after another… All four Emperor had gone to Wano now," King said, taking a deep breath.
First Kaido, then Charlotte Linlin, then Roy, and now Shanks.
"Red-Hair Shanks."
Queen glanced at the four figures approaching. At the forefront was the man himself, Shanks.
"You two look rough," Shanks remarked with a grin.
"What are you doing here?" King asked.
At this point, they were prisoners. If Shanks wanted them dead, so be it.
They were too exhausted to care.
"I heard a Marine Admiral came, so I came to check things out. Looks like it's already been handled," Shanks said with a smile.
"You are indeed a little late. That guy has already been taken down and captured. This is the first time I've ever heard of a Marine Admiral being captured alive," King replied.
"First time for me too," Shanks chuckled. "Where is he?"
"Over there."
King gestured ahead. Shanks and his crew walked over and saw Admiral Ryokugyu unconscious, shackled with seastone chains.
"Damn. It really is an Admiral," Yasopp muttered.
"Never thought I'd see the day," Lucky Roux added. "Why keep him alive, though? Could've just killed him."
"Right now, Cross Guild has a bounty out on Marine Admirals, 3 billion berries for an Admiral's head," Beckman said with a smile.
"That guy wouldn't be planning to hand the Admiral over to Cross Guild, would he?" Lucky Roux exclaimed.
"Would Cross Guild even dare accept him?" Yasopp wondered.
"Bet they will," Beckman said.
"To stir up conflict between Cross Guild and the Marines?" Yasopp guessed.
"Cross Guild's led by Buggy. Your old crewmate, Captain," Lucky Roux reminded.
"Mm."
Shanks drew his sword. The moment the blade left its sheath, a surge of Haki erupted, jolting Ryokugyu awake.
Whoosh!
The Admiral barely twisted aside as Shanks' slash grazed past him.
"RED-HAIR!!"
Ryokugyu was drenched in sweat, panting heavily.
Just moments ago, he had sensed the threat of death, which forced him awake from deep unconsciousness to dodge the attack.
Shanks stared coldly at him, drawing his blade again, but this time, a hand grabbed his wrist.
Beckman, Lucky Roux, and Yasopp instantly raised their guns at the newcomer.
"You planning to damage my trophy?"
It was Roy's voice in Shanks' ear.
"I just wanted to check if he's still alive," Shanks said with a smile.
Smack!
A slap landed squarely on Shanks' face, followed immediately by three gunshots.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The three fired at Roy, but their bullets couldn't harm him; he dodged them all with ease.
Roy and Shanks locked eyes.
Boom!
Two overwhelming Conqueror's Hakis clashed, shaking all of Wano to its core. Both men's Haki ranked among the top in the world; their collision was catastrophic.
The sky darkened, the earth trembled, and Beckman's group was blown backward by the shockwave.
"My stuff, and you dare try to take it?!"
Roy stared coldly at Shanks, who returned the look with equal frost, both exuding the presence of kings, each refusing to yield.
At this moment, it was king versus king, and only one could stand.
"You plan to hand him over to Cross Guild," Shanks said.
"What I do is none of your business. Get lost. Not everyone's going to give you face, in my eyes, you're nothing," Roy sneered.
"I can't stand by and watch you hurt Buggy."
"What's that got to do with you? He's got his crew, you've got yours. If you're that nosy, why don't you go wipe out the Celestial Dragons instead of killing my trophy?"
"…"
Shanks was silent; he had no comeback. If words wouldn't work, there was only one way left: strength.
Reasoning with a pirate? You'd have better luck reasoning with your mother.
"Divine Departure!"
Without another word, Shanks unleashed his move, Conqueror's Haki coating his blade as he slashed at Roy.
Clang!
Roy met the attack with his fist, also coated in Conqueror's Haki. They didn't physically connect; their Hakis collided midair.
Boom!
The sky exploded open, moonlight spilling onto the earth as their figures appeared again.
In the Flower Capital, many celebrating citizens fainted in the streets. Momonosuke was busy leading people to carry them to safety.
"Haki can travel that far?" Zoro said, looking toward Udon Prison.
"Hey, Kid, where do you think you're going?" Killer grabbed Kid, who was stumbling toward the prison.
"I'm gonna take that guy down. I'll kill him," Kid snarled.
Beckman had shot off Kid's arm; he hadn't even seen Shanks' face before losing a limb.
His heart was full of hatred toward the Red-Hair Pirates; he wanted Beckman dead.
"You're in no condition to go. We'll go after Red-Hair later," Killer said, holding him back.
Others came to help restrain him, keeping him from rushing to Udon.
"Luffy, should we move in?" Sanji asked.
"Shishishishi, no need. That's Shanks' fight," Luffy said, grinning from a rooftop.
"A battle between Emperors, terrifying," Nami said.
"It really is. Fighting in Udon, yet affecting the Flower Capital," Usopp said.
"What even started this fight? So many pirates here, Roy came, now Shanks too," Franky said.
"Think it'll affect Wano?" Momonosuke asked worriedly.
"Probably not. The momentum is huge, but the destruction is contained in Udon. The real danger is their Conqueror's Haki; it affects living beings," Sanji explained.
"A clash between Emperors… I'd love to see it," Zoro said.
"You'd probably get squashed like an ant," Sanji replied.
"I don't talk to abnormal people."
"Who are you calling abnormal?"
"You, you pervy kappa."
"Die, moss-head!"
...
If you enjoy the story, my p@treon is 30 chapters ahead.
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