Chapter 212Gordon also didn't expect that the'student' he had briefly taught in a place like the East Blue would cause such a massive stir in less than a year.To be honest, he was a bit surprised, and even felt a little proud.If you round it up, it wouldn't be excessive for Luffyto call him 'Teacher,' right?Of course, Gordon wouldn't go around telling people about this, otherwise, he wouldn't be happy for more than two days before the Marine came knocking on his door.In the eyes of the world, that was a group of quite dangerous individuals."Uta, this place is a den of all sorts of people; we had better leave quickly as well..." Gordon said.His words were interrupted by a sudden commotion.Someone in the restaurant recognized Uta, the singer who had recently risen to fame, and they crowded around asking for autographs.Soon, the restaurant entrance was blocked and became almost impassable.Meanwhile, in another corner of the restaurant, the atmosphere was completely different.A group of burly men dressed in black suits and carrying weapons, looking just like the mafia, half-surrounded a dining table, guarding a short, stout man.The man was slowly and methodically cutting a steak."Honestly, these people scurrying around in front of me is ruining my appetite."The short man was none other than the mobster Capone Bege. He picked up a napkin to wipe his mouth, shot a cold glance at the rowdy crowd, and said in a frigid tone, "Go and deal with those noisy fellows for me.""Godfather, that might not be a good idea."A subordinate hesitated and stepped forward to dissuade him."This island is right under the nose of Marineford, and that singer is quite famous. If we cause too much of a scene..."Squelch!Bege suddenly grabbed a fork from the table and slammed it hard into the subordinate's eye!The latter let out a shrill scream, clutched his eye, and collapsed."My orders only need to be executed, not advised," Bege said coldly.Just then, the restaurant doors were pushed open again, and another group of people walked in.The waiter, already distracted by the chaos at the door, accidentally bumped into the newcomers as he turned around. The plate in his hand nearly flipped, and pasta sauce splashed onto the clothes of a man with dreadlocks in the group."I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" the waiter apologized hurriedly."You brat! Do you want to die?!" The dreadlocked man flew into a rage, drawing a machete to strike."Stop."A calm voice stopped him.The speaker had wavy long blonde hair, with long bangs covering his left eye; it was the Magician, Basil Hawkins."Why, Captain? He got pasta sauce on my new clothes!"The dreadlocked man said defiantly."That is simply the fate of those clothes," Hawkinssaid expressionlessly, then turned to the panicked waiter. "I'm sorry for scaring you."He had performed a divination today; if he committed a killing, his luck would turn bad.For a diviner, everything is done according to the results of the divination.From within the crowd, Uta recognized Bege and Hawkins at a glance."Are they pirates with bounties over a hundred million, just like Luffy?"Uta curled her lip. "Luffy is much more impressive than them."Seeing these dangerous figures, Gordon's internal alarm bells went off. He quickly dispersed the people asking for autographs and whispered to Uta, "Uta, it's too dangerous here. Let's leave first."Uta also felt the atmosphere wasn't right and nodded.Meanwhile, Bege noticed Hawkins, who had just entered. His eyes narrowed, and a slight smile squeezed onto his face. "The Magician Hawkins, is it? You've arrived on this island too, as expected. How about it, would you consider joining my family?""A foolish request,"Hawkins expressionlessly drew a Tarot card and said calmly, "Capone Bege. You do not have the face of death today. Otherwise, I wouldn't mind letting you die here."Hearing this, the guards around Bege all gripped their weapons with hostile expressions.The atmosphere instantly became tense and volatile.Uta took this opportunity to quickly leave the restaurant with Gordon.She couldn't wait to find Luffy.After they separated in the East Blue, she had specifically lowered her pride to coax their general route out of Nami's mouth and had followed them all the way here.She had originally thought she could catch up in Alabasta, but she was still one step behind.Just as she stepped out the door, her gaze swept around, and she saw Luffy's group not far away, riding Bubble Bikes toward her."Luffy!"Uta's eyes instantly lit up, and her two-toned hair seemed to bounce with her excitement.She rushed over recklessly, shouting with excitement."Hmm?"Luffy was looking for Rayleigh while keeping an eye out for any suitable targets. Hearing the familiar shout, he looked up and also showed a surprised smile: "Uta?"Uta was like a young swallow returning to its nest, rushing into Luffy's arms. The massive impact caused Luffy's rubbery body to bounce back slightly.Fortunately, Uta held on tight."How come you're here?" Luffy asked, happily hugging her back.Uta lifted her head from his chest and giggled, her face showing a mix of pride and shyness: "It's a coincidence, a total coincidence!"She wouldn't admit she had come here specifically to wait for Luffy.Her 'guilty as charged' appearance prompted Nami, who was nearby, to curl her lip and sourly expose her: "Is it a coincidence? Is it really just a coincidence?"It would have been fine if Nami hadn't spoken, but once she did, Uta immediately pulled away from Luffy's embrace, rushed in front of Nami, pulled her aside, and questioned her in a low, indignant voice: "What is wrong with you?! How long has it been since I left?! How did so many more..."Her gaze swept over the nearby Vivi, Robin, Merry, Bonney, and even Camie, for a moment not knowing what words to use to describe it.Nami felt a bit guilty being questioned, but she refused to back down, feigning composure as she said:"What do you mean 'what's wrong'? These are the companions Luffy found. He's the Captain, not me! If he wants someone to join the ship, can I stop him?"Uta was so angered by her sophistry that she laughed."Damn it!""Nami, you're useless!""You were quite arrogant before; was that only directed at me?""Or are you planning to keep it all within the crew now that you're companions, and exclude me?""I was here first!"Vivi and Robin watched this scene and looked at each other. They didn't know Luffy had such a close childhood friend and were somewhat surprised.Merry, however, was not a stranger to her. Although she had transformed into a Klabautermann after separating from Uta, Utaactually deserved some credit for Merry being able to become one.So, she briefly introduced Luffy's childhood friend.Before they could reminisce for more than a few sentences, and just as Gordon finished greeting Luffy, sounds erupted from inside the restaurant....Bang!A gunshot shattered the brief moment of peace.Inside the restaurant, a tiny window strangely appeared in Bege's right eye. Immediately after, someone inside set up a gun, fired, and quickly retracted. The bullet fired instantly grew to normal size in mid-air, accurately hitting Hawkins in the forehead and snapping his head back."A Devil Fruit ability?" Hawkins lifted his head expressionlessly."Likewise, you're a troublesome fellow yourself." Bege glanced to the side, where one of his subordinates had a bullet hole mysteriously appear in his head and collapsed with a scream.Meanwhile, a straw substitute doll with a bullet hole in its head slowly crawled out from Hawkins' arm."I see that you now have the face of death."Hawkins drew the longsword at his waist with a 'clang,' his tone grim."Since you're unwilling to be my subordinate, then die." Bege didn't yield an inch.Chapter 302: Supernova Melee, King Luffy's StrengthConflicts between pirates, especially these arrogant Supernovas, were all too common.Hawkins and Bege clearly both wanted to test the other's Devil Fruit abilities. Between their verbal sparring, battle was imminent.At the same time, in a tavern not far down the street.A man with Red Hair and goggles, wearing an arrogant expression, was gulping down alcohol."Where's that guy Killer?""Captain Kid, Vice-Captain Killer is still on his way," a nearby pirate reported.The man before them was none other than CaptainEustass Kid.If not for Luffy's sudden rise, he would have been the pirate with the highest bounty among the Supernovas.Although bounty amounts often don't represent actual strength, Kid was still very annoyed that a so-called 'Fifth Emperor' had mysteriously appeared above him.As he drank, he noticed a man not far away who was dressed strangely, with long braids and teeth like piano keys."Hey, who's that idiot-looking guy over there?" Kidasked his subordinate."Captain, that's 'Roar of the Sea' Scratchmen Apoo, with a bounty of 198 million," the subordinate replied.Apoo also seemed to feel Kid's gaze. He turned around, looked toward Kid, grinned, and arrogantly flipped him the middle finger.Kid blinked, then an arrogant smile spread across his face.With a 'crack,' he crushed the wine glass in his hand.Boom!In the next second, the wall of the tavern was suddenly smashed open, creating a large hole amidst flying wood splinters."If you're going to fight, go fight on the other side of the cliff!"Apoo jumped out and shouted, "Hey, do you not know how powerful I am?""I can't stand this,"Kid licked his lips, revealing a grisly smile as he drew two short, magnetic daggers hanging at his waist. "Don't go staring at me, you nauseating-looking bastard."Apoo had just flipped Kid off, which was clearly a provocation."Who knew you were so sensitive,"Apoo had a mischievous smile on his face, his body moving to a strange rhythm. "Guys like you won't survive until the end."Almost at the same time Kid and Apoo were facing off, another battle was taking place in an open area nearby.Urouge, the 'Mad Monk' with a tall build, dressed in something like a sumo wrestler's outfit and having a pair of small wings on his back, was swinging a massive pencil-shaped pillar, locked in a fierce battle with the 'Massacre Soldier' Killer, who wore a mask and used two scythe-like weapons.The two exchanged swift and ruthless blows, each move aimed to kill.The massive diamond-shaped pencil pillar slammed down violently. Killer retreated quickly, moving with extreme speed."You're using a strange pair of blades, silent one," Urouge laughed.The blades in Killer's hands began to spin, and in response to Urouge's shout, he charged again without a word.Just as Urouge and Killer had a violent clash and their weapons were about to collide again, a figure rapidly inserted himself between the two!Clang!Clang!Two crisp sounds rang out as a longsword and a battle-axe respectively blocked Urouge's pencil pillar and Killer's scythes.The one who intervened was a tall man wearing a swordsman's hat and an eye patch. He said in a deep voice, "If you want to fight, go fight in the New World! This is no place for you to show off!""I see, so it's the Fallen Marine, Drake?"
