Chapter 98: Are All People Named Royal... This Ruthless?
The moment the words fell, both moved simultaneously.
Smoker's body transformed into smoke, spreading like a giant net to envelop Ralph.
Ralph didn't dodge.
He raised his right hand, the surface of his palm quickly coated in pitch-black Armament Haki.
Then, facing the oncoming smoke, he shifted his stance and threw a high-speed punch.
The instant Smoker's smoky form made contact with Ralph's fist, it abruptly halted.
The smoke swiftly retreated, coalescing back into human shape.
Smoker landed on the deck, took two steps back, and looked down at his chest.
There, on the fabric of his Navy uniform, was a clear fist imprint.
"..."
Smoker lifted his head, his gaze fixed on Ralph, filled with shock.
"You really can... and the Straw Hat Girl can too..."
He recalled Lufia's Armament Haki-coated fist back in Loguetown.
Then he remembered just moments ago, Lufia trying to grab him with her Armament Haki-covered hands.
And now, it was Ralph.
"In the weakest East Blue..."
Smoker's voice turned hoarse, "A previously unknown small pirate crew actually produced two Haki users?"
It was utterly absurd.
Haki, an advanced combat skill, was rare even in the first half of the Grand Line, only becoming standard among strong fighters in the New World.
But here in the East Blue, known as the "Weakest Sea," where even pirates with bounties over ten million were few and far between, two had emerged at once?
And both looked so young?
Ralph withdrew his hand, the Armament Haki fading away.
"Our Lufia's Haki," he said lightly, "was taught by me."
There was a hint of inexplicable pride in his tone.
Smoker's eyebrow twitched violently.
"Are you boasting to me," his voice turned cold, "that you're stronger than your captain?"
"No,"
Ralph shook his head, "Just stating facts."
"Then why let the Straw Hat Girl be captain?"
Smoker stared at him, growing puzzled, "With your strength, you could easily be captain yourself if you wanted, even form a stronger pirate crew. Why lower yourself to follow the orders of what seems like... not very bright young girl?"
This was something Smoker had wondered about back in Loguetown.
When he saw Ralph and Lufia together, it struck him as odd.
Though at the time, the two were pretending to be lovers to slip past him.
But judging from how Lufia carelessly got captured at the execution platform and Ralph rescued her at the last moment, Ralph was clearly the more calm, cautious, and intelligent one!
Why was the Straw Hat Pirates led by the straw-hat-wearing girl?
Now, this doubt grew stronger.
Ralph looked at Smoker for several seconds.
Then, he smiled.
"Because of love."
Ralph said.
Smoker's expression instantly froze.
A few seconds later, his face began to contort.
From shock, to confusion, to disbelief, finally settling into an expression mixing anger and absurdity.
"What kind of bullshit reason is that!"
Smoker growled, "Are you joking with me?! You bastard!"
He couldn't understand.
Nor could he accept it.
A master of Armament Haki, capable of sinking warships with a kick and cutting masts with a wave, joining a pirate crew, even serving as vice-captain...
The reason for everything was actually "because of love"?
What kind of absurd fairy tale was this?!
"I have nothing to say to someone like you who doesn't understand love."
Ralph shrugged.
Smoker's anger was completely ignited.
He charged forward abruptly.
His jutte thrust straight ahead, carrying a whistling wind.
This time, he didn't fully transform into his Logia state.
Facing an opponent who could use Armament Haki, elemental transformation would instead expose weaknesses.
He relied on pure, hard-trained martial arts from his time in the military.
Fast speed, tricky angles.
But Ralph's reaction was even faster.
The moment the jutte thrust toward his face, he sidestepped, dodging it.
At the same time, his right hand shot out, fingers spread, grabbing for Smoker's wrist.
Smoker abruptly retreated, flipping his wrist, and swept the jutte horizontally.
Ralph didn't retreat; instead, he stepped forward.
His left hand rose, covered in Armament Haki.
"!"
He used his arm to forcefully block the horizontal sweep of the jutte.
The sound of metal clashing exploded across the deck.
Smoker's pupils contracted.
He felt the recoil from the jutte, which numbed the base of his thumb.
Yet Ralph's arm wasn't even scratched.
"..."
Ralph glanced at the jutte.
"It's effective against Devil Fruit users. But against me..."
He pushed hard with his left hand, giving a forceful shove.
Smoker was pushed back half a step.
In that instant—
"Soru."
Ralph's figure vanished.
Not truly vanished, but moving too fast.
So fast that Smoker couldn't even see his movement trajectory.
The next second, Ralph appeared at Smoker's side.
His right hand formed a knife-hand, the edge of his pitch-black palm as sharp as a real blade.
"Knife-Hand Slash."
He swung down.
Smoker had no time to dodge.
He could only barely raise his jutte to block.
"Clang—!!"
An even louder metallic crash.
Smoker felt as if he had been struck by a real sledgehammer, his entire body flying backward uncontrollably.
His back slammed into the ship's railing, shattering the wooden balustrade.
His chest churned, a sweet taste rose in his throat, and he nearly spat out a mouthful of blood.
He forced it back down, but a trace of blood still seeped from the corner of his mouth.
On the deck, the few Navy soldiers still conscious were completely stunned.
They stared dumbfounded at Smoker lying on the ground, then at Ralph standing there, not even out of breath.
Their faces were filled with disbelief.
Navy Headquarters Captain, White Hunter Smoker, Logia-type Moku Moku no Mi user...
The one who was immune to blades and axes, unharmed by guns and cannons, who had captured countless Pirates in the East Blue, known as the Gatekeeper of Loguetown, regarded by branch Navies as a "monster" and a "legend"...
Was he just... knocked flying with a single move?
And the opponent didn't even use any complicated techniques.
Just a simple knife-hand strike.
"Is... is that..." one Navy soldier stammered, "the Nameless Swordsman, Ralph?"
"Even without a sword in hand..." another soldier murmured, "using his hand as a blade, he has such power..."
Ralph himself was somewhat surprised.
He looked at his hand, then at Smoker lying on the ground.
"Is it... over already?" he whispered to himself.
Easier than expected.
He knew Smoker was among the top fighters in the East Blue, but in the entire One Piece world, he wasn't particularly strong.
Even two years later, Smoker's performance... would still be quite concerning.
But he never expected that his current self could already suppress Smoker.
How long had it been since he crossed over?
Even before the East Blue arc fully concluded, he could already defeat Smoker.
...
Ralph's lips unconsciously curled upward.
"It seems taking off came earlier than expected."
But just as he prepared to advance further, charging toward the flagship—
A sudden change occurred.
"BOOM—!!!"
Cannon fire.
Not just one shot.
Dozens of them.
Echoing from all directions.
Ralph abruptly looked up.
Only then did he notice that while he was fighting Smoker, the surrounding Eighth Branch warships had somehow adjusted their formation.
Centered on the ship he was on, they formed a perfect encirclement.
All the warships' cannons were aimed in this direction.
Then, uniformly—
They fired.
"WHOOSH—WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH—!!!"
The sound of cannonballs tearing through the air was like the whistle of death.
Dense and relentless, like a storm of steel.
And the target was precisely the ship Ralph was on.
With complete disregard for all the still-living Navy soldiers on board.
"No, stop!!!"
On the deck, a Navy soldier who had just regained consciousness let out a desperate scream at the sight of the incoming cannonballs.
"We're allies! On the same side! Stop firing!"
Another Navy soldier hugged his head, curled up in a corner of the deck, his voice trembling with tears.
"Captain! Send a signal! Tell them to cease fire!"
"It's useless... They saw... They intend to blow us up along with that Pirate..."
"I-I'm bleeding badly... Someone help me..."
Cries, pleas, curses.
But the cannonballs wouldn't stop because of their pleas.
"BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM—!!!"
The first volley hit.
The deck was blasted with gaping holes, the mast completely shattered, and the ship began to tilt.
Seawater poured in through the breaches.
The second volley followed immediately.
"KABOOM—!!!"
Even more violent explosions.
The entire warship was crushed as if by countless invisible hands.
Navy soldiers fell into the sea like dumplings.
Some were torn apart by the explosions, others impaled by deck fragments, some fell into the water but couldn't swim, sinking into despair.
A patch of the sea surface was stained red with blood.
Smoker rose from the deck, transforming into smoke to avoid being hit by stray fire, his pupils contracting as he watched the scene.
He never expected.
He never imagined.
That Vice Admiral Nelson Royal of the Navy's Eighth Branch would issue such an order.
To bombard their own ship.
To sacrifice an entire ship of soldiers just to kill one Pirate.
This kind of cruel justice... reminded him of... a certain Admiral.
He looked toward the flagship.
Toward that obese figure standing at the bow, holding binoculars, a mad grin on his face.
Then, he looked back at Ralph.
Two "Royals".
"Are all those named Royal... this ruthless?"
The cannonballs kept falling.
The explosions continued.
The entire warship had completely turned into floating debris and wreckage.
Ralph stood on a larger plank, steadying himself as he looked at the struggling Navy soldiers in the surrounding sea, then turned his gaze toward the warships still adjusting their cannons, preparing for the next round of volleys.
His expression remained calm.
But deep in his eyes, a flicker of coldness passed.
Meanwhile, Smoker, transformed into smoke, hovered in mid-air, watching the same scene.
The two of them stood separated by the smoke and flames, by the floating wreckage and struggling soldiers, by the blood-stained seawater—
Their eyes met.
Time seemed to freeze in that moment.
Only the roar of cannons and the churning of the waves remained.
And in the distance, the clear, mournful cries of the Sennenryu flock, as if lamenting something.
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