The presence or absence of Conqueror's Haki infusion was a watershed for pirates.
Even Monkey D. Luffy, who had developed Gear Fourth and was pre-empting his future, was immediately cured of his "King's Addiction" by a single blow of Conqueror's Haki infusion.
Hanafusa would naturally be no exception.
If there had been no Noro, and Kaido hadn't powered up, he might still have been able to fight Kaido now.
But when Kaido learned Conqueror's Haki infusion ahead of time, and used it as a basic attack, Hanafusa's defeat was sealed.
Hassaikai, wreathed in dark red lightning, struck down with irresistible force.
Hanafusa's hand, gripping the scythe, couldn't withstand the impact. His weapon was knocked away, spinning a few times in the air before falling to the ground.
And Hassaikai had already slammed heavily into Hanafusa's chest.
"Wah!"
Even at the last moment, Hanafusa hastily covered his chest with Armament Haki, but it was difficult to completely block this terrifying blow.
Hanafusa felt a sweetness in his throat, and a mouthful of fresh blood sprayed from his mouth. He was sent flying backward like a kite with a broken string.
He crashed through countless towering trees along the way, finally coming to a halt when his entire body was embedded in a small mountain.
"Captain!"
"Captain!"
Hanafusa's crew members exclaimed one by one, quickly rushing towards their captain.
Kaido rested Hassaikai on his shoulder, walking step by step towards Hanafusa.
Seeing this, the crew members immediately blocked Kaido, drawing their swords.
Hanafusa struggled free from the mountain, coughing up another mouthful of blood.
"Cough cough cough… Stand down!"
The crew members hesitated, but still obeyed, slowly retreating to the side.
Hanafusa clutched his chest, seemingly talking to himself, yet also asking Kaido, "It really hurts. What was that move just now?"
Kaido tilted his head, teasing, "Want to learn? I can teach you."
Hanafusa frowned, asking in confusion, "You're not going to kill me?"
"Worororororo…"
Kaido grinned widely, extending his broad hand towards Hanafusa. "Join my Beasts Pirates!"
Hanafusa's eyes widened in disbelief, as if he had heard some fantastical tale. "Join your pirate crew?"
Kaido smiled, nodding. "Yes, carry the flag of the Beasts Pirates, and ride freely across this sea!"
"Hahahaha…"
Hanafusa couldn't help but laugh loudly. "That sounds really good. I'm almost tempted."
Pausing, under Kaido's expectant gaze, Hanafusa decisively refused. "But I'm sorry, not now. I still have my own things to do!"
Kaido's smile instantly vanished, his eyes filled with murderous intent, and he said, enunciating each word, "Then, your choice is for me to kill you now?"
Hanafusa smiled freely. "Even if you kill me, I would still choose this."
"Forget it."
Kaido suddenly turned and walked away, carrying Hassaikai, saying indifferently, "Get lost!"
His old habit of not killing talented individuals.
Hanafusa's lips curled into a smile. "Are you sure?"
Kaido snorted impatiently. "Hurry up and get lost, or I'll regret it soon."
"Hahahaha… Men, let's go!" Hanafusa laughed, calling his crew members to leave.
The Beasts Pirates crew members gathered around Kaido. Englar Alaric couldn't help but ask, "Captain, are we just letting them go like that?"
Kaido waved his hand carelessly. "Ah, yeah."
Looking at the puzzled expressions of his crew members, Kaido didn't explain further.
He had a premonition that he and that Hanafusa would meet again.
Kaido smiled, patting Englar Alaric's shoulder. "First, go plant our Beasts Pirates' Jolly Roger on the island, then we'll have a feast!"
Englar Alaric nodded. "Yes, Captain!"
"Oh, right."
Kaido seemed to remember something. His dragon eyes swept over everyone, warning sternly, "You are not to tell the Vice-Captain about this. Understood?"
The crew members nodded repeatedly.
At this time, Hanafusa, with his crew, retreated to his ship. Looking at Kaido's direction on the island, Hanafusa murmured to himself, "Kaido, we will meet again."
What Kaido didn't know was that he had been backstabbed by a newsbird.
A belated newsbird, which hadn't captured the battle between the two, only photographed Hanafusa piloting his ship, leaving from beside the Beasts Pirates' Azure Dragon.
Coupled with the editor-in-chief's biased writing, a brand new piece of news made the newspaper headlines:
"Beasts Pirates Captain Kaido clashes with Lizard King Hanafusa in the New World over territory. Hanafusa, though outmatched, manages to retreat unscathed."
Wano, Ringo.
Noro no longer knew how many pirates he had killed these past few days.
The pirates of this era were much purer than those so-called dream and freedom-seeking pirates of the Great Pirate Era.
The pirates now were true pirates. What they sought was wealth, fame, and power.
The soaring reputation of the Beasts Pirates, the wealth of Wano's armory, and Wano's territory.
They could obtain all three simply by defeating the Beasts Pirates.
At the port, cold light flashed. Noro, wielding his Sun Eater halberd, directly beheaded a pirate captain.
The remaining crew members, seeing this, immediately knelt and kowtowed, their movements so fluid that they didn't even take a moment to mourn their recently deceased captain.
Noro was accustomed to this. Pirates were just like that.
If their captain had won, they would immediately rush into Wano, enjoying the fruits of victory.
"Aharu."
"Vice-Captain."
"Take them back to the Udon quarry and hand them over to Kru."
"Yes, sir."
Aharu, with his crew, escorted these pirates to mine.
Making good use of resources, isn't it?
"Mr. Noro…" King hesitated, wanting to speak.
Noro smiled calmly. "Just say what's on your mind."
King hesitated for a moment, then asked tentatively, "It's just that my injuries are healed. I can fight the next pirates."
Noro smiled and nodded. "Alright, then I'll leave it to you."
This guy was truly a blood-tank. A nearly fatal injury, and in such a short time, he had recovered so much.
In the waters below Wano, a pirate ship was anchored, looking up at the towering waterfall.
One of the pirates ran to a burly man in a black military uniform, asking tremblingly,
"Sir, do we really have to climb this waterfall? I saw many damaged ships drifting…"
Before he could finish speaking, the burly man, with a powerful physique but a youthful face, pressed his hand on the pirate's head. His huge palm, like crushing a watermelon, crushed the pirate's head.
Red and white matter stained the white glove. The burly man's face showed a cruel smile, grinning savagely:
"I'll say it again. You just need to do as I say."
===
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