BOOM!!!
Binz and the others, who were carrying their unconscious classmates affected by Doflamingo's Conqueror's Haki onto the ship, had not yet finished loading all the injured when they saw the five large pirate ships landing.
"Kill!"
"Steal the Celestial Dragons' treasure!"
"This is awesome! I never thought I'd have a day when I could steal from the Celestial Dragons!"
Alucard's crew was eager. As soon as the ships came to shore, many couldn't wait for the ladders to be lowered. They jumped directly off the side of the ship with weapons in hand, their eyes bloodshot with greed as they looked at the treasure chests covered in mud.
Gulp…
Many of them involuntarily gulped. They had also heard what the Heavenly Tribute was. The treasure was a combined offering from over 170 government-affiliated countries to the Celestial Dragons. If each country contributed just 100 million Berries, that would be nearly 20 billion
Berries. Of course, it was far more than that. The thought of how extravagant the Celestial Dragons were made the total amount even more mouthwatering.
Urdaha, who was leading Alucard's forces, glanced at the Donquixote Pirates' officers who were disembarking from the Numancia Flamingo. He felt a surge of malice and sneered. "Now that we're here, I feel like Doflamingo is useless. Wouldn't it be great to get rid of them all and have the Heavenly Tribute for ourselves?"
Many of Alucard's crew members had the same thought. Why should we split it with them? My crew is stronger, and you're useless to us now. The Heavenly Tribute is within reach, so if I kill you, won't the remaining 45% be ours?
As soon as Urdaha said this, hundreds of his crew members surrounded Trebol, Diamante, and the others, their faces twisted into greedy grins. Pica, Diamante, and Trebol led the way, with Gladius, Lao G, and the others shortening the distance between themselves and their comrades, looking warily at their surroundings. The more timid Baby 5 and Buffalo were so scared they broke out in a cold sweat.
"Your Captain and our Young Master have an agreement." Trebol leaned on his cane. Cooperating with a Yonko was a dangerous matter, and he knew it was not unexpected for them to betray them after they had crossed the river. He tried to use Alucard's name to intimidate Urdaha and the others because he knew that Doflamingo's name wouldn't work.
"Huh?" Urdaha laughed mockingly, twisting his prosthetic iron hand. "45 percent. After stealing this much money, the Captain wouldn't mind, would he?"
"Besides, I think the Captain secretly wants the same thing." Urdaha was just spouting nonsense. It was he and his crew who wanted to get their hands on the rest of the Heavenly Tribute. But even if Alucard didn't want it, surely he wouldn't be angry if he got so much money.
"Brothers, kill the Donquixote Pirates for me!" Urdaha ordered.
The moment the order was given, one of Urdaha's men quickly drew his sword. He decided to go for the weakest target, the youngest-looking Sugar, who looked like a little girl. Sugar's fighting ability wasn't high, but her power was extremely important. Trebol quickly stepped in front of her to prepare for a counterattack.
"Pistol Kiss!"
Suddenly, a small, heart-shaped projectile hit the pirate who had lunged forward, but it wasn't a fatal blow. It just interrupted his attack and sent him flying to the ground. Urdaha and his men were stunned, then turned to their right and saw Hancock with her right hand held up in a pistol shape, pointing at them.
"Snake Princess, what is the meaning of this?" Urdaha's forehead bulged with a visible vein.
"Master said there would be no killing, so there will be no killing. If you defy Master's orders, I have the right to kill you first, you disgusting man," Hancock said with extreme disdain, without even looking at Urdaha.
"Tsk." Urdaha clicked his tongue in displeasure but ultimately waved his hand and commanded, "The enemy right now is the government. Let's just steal the Heavenly Tribute first!"
Seeing Alucard's crew gradually dispersing, the Donquixote Family officers finally breathed a sigh of relief. Gladius's eyebrows furrowed under his sunglasses. "Thankfully, Boa Hancock stepped in to prevent the worst from happening."
"But… But we now know that many of Alucard's crew want to kill us and keep the Heavenly Tribute for themselves. We must leave as soon as possible," Trebol said like a strategist, quickly analyzing the situation.
"I know. Let's make a move," Diamante said.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the island, the battle between Alucard and Zephyr had reached its climax.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Alucard seized an opening in Zephyr's movements, and before he could react, he shot him three times in the abdomen and collarbone.
"Whoosh~~~"
Alucard blew on the smoking muzzle of his white pistol, Casull, and smiled sinisterly. "It's a shame you're not a Devil Fruit user, or you would have already fallen."
Zephyr's hands trembled as he reached for his wounds. With a hardened heart, he dug the bullets out of his wounds with his bare hands, which tore his wounds open even more. However, with the restorative power of the Blacklight Virus, his wounds began to heal gradually.
"Oh… You're already quite proficient at using it, aren't you? Not bad," Alucard said. He wasn't angry that Zephyr was using his own power; in fact, he found it quite amusing.
"Ugh…" Zephyr wanted to save all his strength, even the strength to speak. He could see that the chaos had already begun. No matter what, he had to buy time for Ain and the others to escape.
With that thought, Zephyr's arms turned black with Haki once again. He teleported behind Alucard.
Clang!
Sparks flew as two Armament Haki-coated fists collided. Alucard sneered. "The gap is too wide, old man!"
Zephyr raised his other hand and swung it, forcing Alucard back a few meters. He then didn't choose to pursue him, but instead turned and "ran away."
"Hey, hey…" Alucard's eyes narrowed. He knew what Zephyr was trying to do. Normally, he might not have cared, but he had another plan coming up, so he couldn't just let Zephyr get away.