Year 1511 of the Sea Calendar.
Boom, boom, boom, boom...
On the vast, boundless blue sea, the rumbling of cannons tore through the gentle sea breeze and the sound of the tides.
Under a cloudless, clear sky, a large ship flying a pirate flag swelled its massive sails, using the strong winds to move forward at top speed. However, cannonballs kept whistling past from behind, landing in the sea to its front, back, left, and right, sending water columns over ten meters high into the air.
Behind the pirate ship, at a distance of about 500 meters, a large warship with an iron outer shell and a three-barreled turret on its bow also had its three massive white sails unfurled. It was firing cannons at the ship in front of it while relentlessly giving chase. It was clearly a Marine pursuit of a pirate ship.
Under normal circumstances, the standard Marine warships had a steel outer shell, making them very durable. Ordinary solid cannonballs would have a hard time penetrating their hulls, requiring powerful high-explosive shells instead.
Furthermore, large warships had high-caliber double- or triple-barreled turrets on their bows. The devastating power of a few shots was enough to severely damage or even sink an all-wooden pirate ship.
For this reason, pirate ships were a motley crew—from advanced steamships to large three-masted sailboats, from armed merchant ships to small sloops. Whether they were stolen or built, they could not match or surpass the firepower, speed, and defense of a standard Marine warship.
Therefore, when ordinary pirates encountered a Marine warship on the sea, they would usually turn around and run. Of course, some pirates would modify their ships to focus on speed, using that advantage to escape the Marines' pursuit.
However, the pirate ship currently fleeing didn't seem to have been modified for speed. It was struggling to keep up but couldn't seem to shake off the Marine's pursuit.
"Yohohoho, yohohoho~"
"Yohohoho, yohohoho~"
"Binkusu no sake wo, todoke ni yuku yo~"
"Umikaze kimakase namimakase~"
"..."
On the deck of the warship, Cross lay in a chair under a large parasol, leisurely smoking a cigar and drinking orange juice with ice. He was in such a good mood that he even started singing.
Marduk and Surtur, like two guardians, were also in a cheerful mood and joined in the chorus. Even the shadow at Cross's feet was twisting its graceful body, a clear sign that Scáthach had joined in. Only Bastet was lying on the ground, covering his ears with his front paws, looking like he was fed up with life.
"I have to say, for a Marine Commodore to be singing a pirate song on a Marine warship..." A Marine wearing a military cap and a striped shirt, with yellow hair tied in a ponytail and a katana at his side, walked over. He looked at Cross with a pained expression and a hint of helplessness. "And you're completely tone-deaf, it's like a noise attack! Don't you think you've gone too far?"
"Oh, it's Kibin!" Cross slightly raised an eyelid, looked at the newcomer, and, after recognizing his classmate, said indifferently, "I wanted to sing a Marine song, but they're all too sad and not cheerful at all. In comparison, this pirate song is more to my liking!"
"Yeah, yeah!"
"He's right!"
Marduk and Surtur nodded repeatedly, echoing his words. At this moment, Bastet noticed that Cross's demonic singing had stopped and let out a sigh of relief. He looked up at Kibin, his eyes filled with gratitude.
"Um, isn't it a bit inappropriate for you to say that given your position?" A cold sweat dripped from Kibin's forehead, and the corner of his mouth twitched uncontrollably. He complained, "And you really don't care about being tone-deaf?!"
"Uh... it seems a little inappropriate..." Cross thought for a moment, scratched his head a little sheepishly, and changed the subject. "Right, did you come here for something?"
"What a stiff transition!" Kibin couldn't help but complain again before his expression turned serious. "We've entered the Tiger Shark Sea. Should we continue the pursuit?"
"Did we drift that far off course? We ended up near the Tiger Shark Sea? How annoying!" Cross's expression showed some surprise, and he quickly stood up.
The Tiger Shark Sea was a famous forbidden sea on the same route as Branch G-2. This sea area was not only environmentally unstable, but also filled with reefs, and most importantly, it was home to a terrifying swarm of tiger sharks.
Of course, the tiger sharks of this world were not the same as those on Earth. The terrifying tiger sharks in the Tiger Shark Sea were as big as blue whales, with sharp teeth that could chew through iron plates. Two or three of them could capsize a standard-length (50-meter) warship, and dozens or even hundreds of them could overturn this 70-meter-long second-class warship.
Furthermore, the purpose of this voyage was to train new recruits, so more than two-thirds of the people on board were new recruits. If they were to rashly enter the Tiger Shark Sea, it was likely that only Cross would make it out alive.
"Are you going to do it yourself?" Kibin's expression lit up, and he couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement. He knew his monster of a classmate's strength and had seen him in action before, but every time he saw Cross fight, the powerful visual impact still captivated him, thrilling him beyond measure.
"Phoo..." Cross calmly bit his cigar and slowly exhaled a puff of smoke. "There's nothing to be done. I originally wanted to let you guys get more training, but the situation doesn't allow it!"
"Marduk!"
"Yes, Master!"
In an instant, Cross's eyes sharpened, and he grabbed Marduk, whose body of black clouds immediately burst forth with chaotic electric arcs.
Kraaakk—Boom!!!
A blinding lightning flash almost illuminated the entire sea, making the sun's light seem much dimmer. Accompanied by a huge rumble of thunder, a pillar of lightning as thick as a water barrel shot out in a horizontal line, crossing several hundred meters and hitting the fleeing pirate ship.
The enormous and towering masts were snapped by the flash of lightning, and the sails and ropes caught fire, causing the pirate ship's speed to drop noticeably until it came to a halt on the sea, drifting with the wind.
"Where did that lightning come from?"
"Ahhhh—all four masts are broken!"
"It's over! It's over! We're all gonna die!"
"Help me! My leg is pinned down! Hurry and help me!"
"..."
On the pirate ship, the toppling masts and flying ropes killed many pirates on deck. The remaining pirates were first shocked, then dumbfounded, and finally began to scream in despair and fear.
In a sea battle, once one side loses its speed, it's pretty much as good as defeated. What's more, the sails, ropes, and broken masts on their ship had all caught fire. If they didn't put out the fire quickly, they would all be burned to death.
However, the Marines wouldn't give them a chance to put out the fire, so their only choice was to surrender if they didn't want to die.
"Alright, it's time to take the captives!" On the deck of the warship, Cross released Marduk, clapped his hands together, and said in a relaxed tone.
"Even though it's not the first time I've seen it, it's still unbelievably powerful!" Kibin's expression was full of reverence, his voice filled with emotion. It took him a while to calm down his excitement.
"Brothers, let's move in and capture those pirates!"
"Yeah!! It's our turn!"
A large number of Marines gathered on the open deck, their expressions eager as they excitedly raised their weapons and cheered.
It didn't take long for Cross's warship to get close to the pirate ship. Some pirates who were unwilling to surrender tried to resist, foolishly attempting to board and seize the warship. But Kibin was already prepared, having 30 Marines with muskets lying in ambush on the deck. They fired a volley of shots at the pirates who were trying to board, killing and injuring over a dozen of them on the spot.
The failure of the resistance made the remaining pirates no longer dare to fight back. Furthermore, Marduk had manipulated the weather, causing a cloud to cover the sunny sky. Surtur transformed into a giant fireball and hovered over the pirate ship as a deterrent.
Under this three-pronged threat, the pirates became terrified and had no choice but to obediently drop their weapons and allow the Marines who boarded their ship to tie them up, without a hint of resistance.
"Bounty of 37,000,000 Berries, Captain of the Mas Pirates—'Kangaroo' Mas. His crimes are murder, arson, attacking towns, killing Marines... and human trafficking..." Cross stood in front of a tall, thin man with abnormally muscular legs. He took out a stack of wanted posters from his pocket, flipped through a dozen of them, and found the man's.
"Cross, this ship... is a human trafficking ship!" Just then, Kibin emerged from the cabin, his face grim. "There are cells in the lower deck with dozens of people locked inside. I've already ordered the men to rescue everyone!"
"I know you. The most notorious up-and-coming talent in the Marines, Amphitrite Cross!" "Kangaroo" Mas sat weakly on the deck, covering his shoulder, which had been injured by a musket shot, with his left hand. Blood continued to flow from between his fingers as he spoke in a hoarse voice, "Let me go! I was just catching slaves for the Celestial Dragons. In a way, we're on the same side!"
"Bullshit! How could we Marines be on the same side as a pirate like you!" Kibin cursed angrily.
Mas didn't argue with Kibin and only looked pleadingly at Cross.
Cross looked back at the man with no expression, put the stack of wanted posters back in his pocket, and was about to speak when a child's angry roar came from the cabin. "Let go of me... I'm gonna kill him... Let go of me..."
Then everyone saw a child with a topknot hairstyle and a dirty, light green kimono run out. His eyes were red and his expression was wild. Despite the pulling and stopping of several Marines, he still took a step-by-step approach in the direction of "Kangaroo" Mas.
That outfit... is he a kid from Wano?!
Cross frowned as if he had thought of something. He took a big step forward and said with displeasure, "A few adults can't even hold back one kid. What useless people. Get out of my way!"
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