Chapter 173: This is My Meeting Gift
On Silver Island, "2 of the Whitebeard Pirates' 3 Division Commanders are here! Is that Fire Fist Ace, the one who's been making waves recently? Issho, Spartan, it seems you both have opponents now!" Aramaki felt incredibly excited; he had originally thought Jack was the only big fish. He didn't expect the Whitebeard Pirates to deploy even more big fish.
"Jack seems to have appeared behind us as well. This isn't good, Your Majesty. We can't handle 2 Four Emperors' high-ranking officers." At Van Augur's reminder, Bege and Laffitte also spotted the Mammoth, and their expressions became a little panicked. They had originally thought they would only deal with Jack and Buffalo Atmos. But now, Vista, Diamond Jozu, and Fire Fist Ace, these formidable individuals, had arrived. They seemed unable to withstand them.
"Don't panic, they're not allies; they might even fight amongst themselves." Even with so many powerhouses arriving, Kael remained calm; as long as the Four Emperors themselves didn't make a move, it was fine. "Jack only has 1 pirate ship; he shouldn't be foolish enough to clash with Whitebeard, right?" Bege bit his cigar, quickly analyzing the battle's situation. Fortunately, even if they couldn't win, they could use Issho's Gravity Fruit ability to retreat from the air. Or activate the Exile Emperor's submarine function to withdraw.
"Do you know why Fire Fist Ace could become the Whitebeard Pirates' 2nd Division Commander? Because the original 2nd Division Commander died at the hands of Kaido." Kael looked at the Division Commanders who had appeared, and Izo of the 16th Division was among them; this guy probably couldn't wait to start a war with the Beasts Pirates. "Legend has it that Edward Newgate, Charlotte Linlin, and Kaido all originated from the Rocks Pirates. I never thought Kaido would actually kill the Whitebeard Pirates' 2nd Division Commander." Most of the Goa Empire's people were unaware of these maritime secrets.
"Never mind all that, pick opponents, pick opponents. Since there are guys with higher bounties, Jack is yours, Spartan." Aramaki immediately gave up on Jack, who had a 1 billion Berries bounty, and set his sights on Diamond Jozu and Vista. Vista's bounty was 1.25 billion Berries, and Diamond Jozu's was 1.111 billion Berries. The Whitebeard Pirates' 3 Division Commanders, whose actions were not as ruthless as King the Wildfire, and who did not cause as many plague casualties as Queen the Plague, had slightly lower bounties. However, bounty does not necessarily correlate with strength. The threat to the World Government is the important criterion for determining bounties.
Diamond Jozu could fight Aokiji and rapidly injure Aokiji and Crocodile; his strength was still very formidable. And Vista could also fight Dracule Mihawk, the world's greatest swordsman; his strength should not be underestimated. Vista and Mihawk, these 2 'Legendary Binding Kings'. Their strength seemed to grow stronger as the versions continuously updated. In the future, Dracule Mihawk, the world's greatest swordsman, when linked with Red-Haired Shanks, had his bounty skyrocket to 3.59 billion Berries. Higher than Buggy the Clown and Straw Hat Luffy, those 2 new Four Emperors; this is simply outrageous.
"I want to fight Vista, who has the highest bounty!" Aramaki's eyes were fervent, and he shouted in his heart, "The position of Duke, I'm coming for it." Zoro also wanted to fight Vista, this renowned great swordsman, but he knew that at present, he simply couldn't be Vista's opponent.
"Aramaki, let me try this dual-wielding swordsman." Issho, who usually didn't contend for anything, suddenly spoke seriously; he also wanted to know the difference between his swordsmanship and Vista's. "Eh~~, you're trying to snatch my opponent, Hereditary Title?" Aramaki looked at Issho in surprise, but seeing Issho's serious expression, he said, "Alright, alright, I'll fight Diamond Jozu." Aramaki reluctantly accepted Issho's rare request, but Diamond Jozu was also good; defeating him would elevate him to Imperial Duke anyway. Piercing through diamond, that's quite a challenge.
Besides wanting to witness Vista's powerful swordsmanship, Zoro also wanted to know how hard diamond was. Unfortunately, neither of these powerful opponents was for him. He didn't even have the qualifications to fight those Division Commanders right now; he could only pick those affiliated Captains to fight. Even the affiliated Captains would probably be very troublesome, with a possibility of dying in battle.
"Your Majesty, then Jack is for me!" Spartan clenched his fists; he wasn't confident he could defeat Jack, but he wouldn't retreat. He had no desire to be promoted to Duke; he just wanted to prove his strength. "Granted. As long as you fight Jack to a draw and bring back a bit of his blood, We can bestow upon you the title of Duke." Kael spoke softly; for the title of 3 Dukes, Kael appropriately lowered the standard a bit, not requiring Spartan to defeat Jack.
"Yes, Your Majesty!" Spartan's tiger-like eyes lit up; defeating Jack was difficult, but fighting to a draw and obtaining blood gave Spartan confidence. This time, he would give his all. "I hope that after today, the Emperor and 3 Marquises will become the Emperor and 3 Imperial Dukes. Gentlemen, do not disappoint Us." Kael walked to the shore, looking at the mighty Whitebeard Fleet and the Mammoth, revealing a serious expression.
"We will not disappoint Your Majesty." Aramaki, Issho, and Spartan all became very serious. "As for you all, act within your capabilities, and live well." Kael spoke sternly to the other Hereditary Titles; this battle would be very dangerous for these Viscounts and Barons. One wrong move, and they could truly die in battle.
"Don't worry, Your Majesty, if we truly stop here, it just proves that we are nothing special." Zoro's eyes were filled with longing, and his blood seemed to boil. Facing the Four Emperors' forces, he had advanced another step on his path to becoming the world's greatest swordsman. "Fate will filter out the true protagonists." Van Augur spoke calmly; today was the day he would be promoted to Viscount.
"This is a Four Emperors' force, it's too exciting." White-haired Saga, Eric, Bartolomeo, Bege, Laffitte, Burgess, Eldoraggo, Desire, these Barons, were all filled with fighting spirit. Their eyes were filled with a desire for fame. It was Kael who brought them to this highest stage to fully display their strength.
On the sea surface, "How about we take down this arrogant Jack first!" Seeing the Mammoth accelerate forward, attempting to land on Silver Island before the Whitebeard Fleet, Fire Fist Ace's eyes were filled with the desire to act; he had been to Wano Country and knew the terrible situation there, and he hadn't forgotten his promises to O-Tama and Yamato. He had proposed attacking the Beasts Pirates to Whitebeard more than once, but Whitebeard had refused him every time.
Hearing Ace's words, Izo's eyes lit up; he looked intently at Vista. The overall person in charge of this operation was the more composed Vista, not Jozu. "The guys on the island seem even more impatient than us…" "No! Get out of the way!" Vista was about to reply when he saw movement from the island. As a result, a terrifying sword energy, carrying raging Conqueror's Haki, whistled forth. The Exile Emperor had struck first! "This is Our greeting gift… Those who can't endure it are not qualified to see Us!"
[Inorin Note:
If you wish to support me so I can continue to survive and afford proper food, you can join my membership on Patreon [patreon.com/InorinTL]. Be sure to check out "The Founding Pillars"—a special, limited-time tier that offers all the benefits of "The Plot Uncoverer" at a discounted price! Slots are limited, so grab yours before they run out. Besides membership, you can also donate via Ko-Fi [https://ko-fi.com/inorintl].
I hope I am still worthy of your support. My life truly depends on this... haha, I know I'm so shameless.]