Clang, clang—
The wheels of the Sea Train collided rhythmically with the tracks on the sea surface, creating a steady, muffled noise that made one feel drowsy just listening to it.
After a round of "friendly sparring"—
Lucci returned to his usual aloof demeanor. Wearing a white hat, arms crossed, he sat in his seat silently.
Only the white pigeon perched on his shoulder occasionally turned its bird head, sneaking glances at Rorschach with its lively little eyes.
This pigeon was actually quite interesting.
Rorschach glanced at the white pigeon in its tiny suit, and a thought crossed his mind.
Originally, he thought Lucci used the pigeon as a cover, speaking through ventriloquism to pretend it was the bird talking.
But to his surprise, sometimes the one actually talking was the pigeon.
It was quite intelligent, and clearly understood human behavior.
Rorschach extended a finger, and the pigeon on Lucci's shoulder flapped its wings and flew over, landing on his finger.
Coo coo.
The pigeon made a sound in its throat and gently pecked Rorschach's finger with its sharp beak, blinking its dark, glossy eyes.
"Cute little thing."
Rorschach smirked and couldn't resist playfully teasing the seemingly innocent bird.
Suddenly, his expression shifted slightly as he looked out the right window toward the sea, then stood up.
Lucci noticed the movement and, still wearing a frosty expression, followed Rorschach's line of sight.
But he saw nothing.
"Found those guys. Come with me."
Rorschach tossed out the sentence, opened the Sea Train's window, and leapt out with agility. In a flash, he shot forward dozens of meters, stepping through the air with Moonwalk.
Lucci didn't say a word and silently followed.
The white pigeon, still dressed in its little suit, flapped its wings and followed at a distance behind the two of them.
Over a dozen li (approx. 5–6 km) away, on a patch of sea, two ships of vastly different sizes were locked in a standoff.
On the smaller ship, a wooden boat barely five meters long, sat three burly men.
In front of them was a two-masted sailing ship over fifty meters in length. At the bow stood a massive man with a bushy beard, over six meters tall, arms crossed over two ridiculously muscular arms, flanked by over a hundred men and women armed with rifles and cannons.
Additionally, more than a dozen black cannon barrels protruded from the ship's front, all pointed at the small boat.
On the sails drooping from the masts was a symbol—crossed sword and gun.
It signified that the ship belonged to the Bounty Hunters' Guild.
"Andre! What the hell is this supposed to mean?!"
William Hanks, sitting in the small wooden boat, clearly recognized the giant man before him.
He spoke up angrily, demanding an explanation.
"What do I mean? Hmph! You know damn well." The giant, called Andre, gave a cold snort, looking down on the three men with a frosty expression.
"Can't you just say it straight? I really don't know what you're implying."
Hanks frowned.
"Andre doesn't want to talk because he has no time for backstabbing traitors like you."
At the bow below the giant stood a woman wearing a leather jacket and jeans, her body adorned with metal chains. She had short pink hair and tattoos covering her exposed arms. Her black high-heeled boots swung lazily as she sneered.
"You were sent to capture Jean Ango, and not only did you fail after half a month, but you started cozying up with Morishita Ichirou—that guild traitor. Hah, what was all that talk in front of the old man before? Didn't you swear you'd never betray the Bounty Hunters' Guild?"
The woman's face was full of undisguised scorn, and it made Hanks furious.
He shot to his feet and glared at the woman who had just spoken. "Sera! Don't you dare slander me like that! What part of me—William Hanks—has ever betrayed the guild?!"
Hanks pointed to Jean Ango, who was on the other ship holding the Heavenly Dragon Halberd, and to the silent, heavy-set samurai beside him.
"Jean Ango may not be strong, but his ability to escape is top-tier. Even for me, capturing him isn't easy.That's why I brought Morishita along to help halfway through.
Why are you calling Morishita a guild traitor? Haven't we all gotten along just fine until now?"
Hanks was genuinely confused.
Half a month ago, he had received orders from the guild master to set out and capture Jean Ango, who had stolen loot from a fellow member.
But because Jean Ango possessed the Javelin Fruit, which allowed him to explode with bursts of speed, and Hanks himself wasn't particularly fast, he had asked Morishita Ichirou—who specialized in speed—for help along the way.
The giant Andre stared closely at Hanks' face, watching for any sign of deception. Seeing none, he finally spoke in a deep, heavy voice:
"Morishita Ichirou already betrayed the Hunters Guild. He defected to the newly established Assassins Guild founded by Gulliver.
The Hunters Guild raised him for so many years. The old man even gifted him a Devil Fruit.
But he turned his back on the old man's kindness and joined Gulliver for profit."
"What did you say?"
Hanks was stunned, seemingly unable to believe it.
He turned to the hefty samurai beside him. "Morishita… Tell me, is what Andre said true? Did you really betray the old man…?"
"Hanks, we have to face reality."
Morishita Ichirou was in the middle of wrapping bandages around his scorched, exposed skin.
When he heard the question, a faint, mocking smirk tugged at the corner of his lips.
"I really am grateful for the old man's guidance. But we have to admit it—Jonathan is old."
He slowly raised his head and swept his gaze over the unfriendly faces of the hunters on the large ship, then looked at Hanks and Jean Ango on their smaller vessel.
"The same Jonathan who once roamed the Seven Seas and even briefly opened guild branches in the New World—he's long past his prime, a hero fading with the sunset."
"Shut up, Morishita! Don't you dare insult the old man!"
Andre's eyes widened in rage as he clenched his massive fists with cracking sounds, deep lines splitting across his bearded face.
"Whether you admit it or not, it's still the truth," Morishita Ichirou sneered.
"Just look at what the guild has become.
Go to Whiskey Peak and see for yourself how those disgraceful members turned the sacred title of 'hunter' into something hated by both pirates and marines—a bunch of sea scavengers."
Morishita stood up, his round face calm and emotionless.
"Jonathan is old. President Gulliver is now the strongest in the guild world.
The time has come for the profession of bounty hunting to end and retreat from history. No one dares hunt the infamous pirates anymore.
All those past glories? Long gone."
He looked at Hanks, whose expression had grown uncertain.
"Hanks, what are you hesitating for? Join me in the Assassins Guild President Gulliver founded.
If you join now, you'll be a high-ranking member like me.
What's waiting for us is endless wealth, beautiful women, and status.
Jonathan is old. His enemies are about to crush his decaying bones.
If you stay in the Hunters Guild, ask yourself—how long do you think you'll survive the pirates' revenge?"
"I…"
Hanks hesitated, visibly shaken by his words.
But on the large ship opposite them, the pink-haired woman Sera had already raised her right hand without hesitation—
"Fire!"
(End of Chapter)
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