On the other side of the unnamed isnd.

  The Fortune’s Favor had anchored near the mouth of a small river, and a few crew members were pretending to fetch water.

  On the deck, Noah sat beside Galdino, casually sipping a cup of Earl Grey. "Mr. Galdino, many are obsessed with Roger’s great treasure. Why haven’t you set sail in pursuit of it?"

  "Uh... I’m not that ambitious!" Galdino chuckled awkwardly, waving it off.

  Noah smiled and shook his head. "I see. There are fewer and fewer people like you these days, Mr. Galdino—people who know their limits."

  Galdino didn’t respond, taking a sip of his tea instead.

  Suddenly, a rge ship bearing a pirate fg appeared on the horizon.

  The lookout atop the mast shouted, "Pirate ship approaching!"

  Bang! Bang! Bang!

  Gunfire erupted from the jungle on the isnd.

  Galdino’s face darkened immediately, and he conjured a wall of wax. "Wax Wall!"

  Kuro adjusted his gsses calmly. "Everyone, engage at will!"

  "Understood!"

  Boom! Boom!

  The two cannons aboard the Fortune’s Favor fired in succession, unching shells at the pirate ship closing in from the sea.

  Galdino’s Wax Wall added an extra yer of defense to the ship, blocking many of the incoming bullets and cannonballs.

  At that moment, a strong wind blew through the jungle, and a figure emerged from the shadows.

  "Heh... I didn’t expect to run into the famous Wax Hunter, Galdino..."

  Galdino, standing on deck with his gun at the ready, paled when he saw the woman on the beach. His voice was low and tense:

  "Noah, that’s Catarina Devon, captain of the Crescent Moon Pirates. She’s no pushover. I might not be able to protect you ter, so you’d better watch out for yourselves."

  Before Noah could respond, Galdino's hands transformed into Gatling guns: "Wax Gatling!"

  Bang! Bang! Bang!

  A barrage of wax bullets tore through the air toward Catarina Devon and the pirates behind her.

  Catarina’s body swelled up, instantly shifting into a hybrid beast form—nine fox tails whipped through the air, her hands and feet morphed into fox cws, and fox ears sprouted from her head.

  "Eek! Hahaha... Let’s see what the Wax-Wax Fruit can really do!"

  Galdino wasn’t foolish enough to engage an animal-type Devil Fruit user in close combat. Instead, he created a dozen wax soldiers, using them as cover while he sniped from the back.

  A fierce battle unfolded on the beach, with both sides exchanging blow after blow.

  …

  Meanwhile, the Crescent Moon Pirates’ ship continued to draw closer, unaware of the impending danger.

  Noah, sipping his tea calmly, made no move to intervene. Even Ari seemed disinterested.

  When the two ships were less than a hundred meters apart, Kuro casually took off his bck jacket and, with a single Moonwalk, appeared on the pirate ship’s deck.

  The Crescent Moon Pirates' vice-captain, Sean, didn’t even have time to react before Kuro’s Ten-Bde Cat Cw sliced his throat open.

  Spt! Blood sprayed across the deck, and Sean fell to the ground, convulsing silently as he bled out.

  "Pathetic. Utterly worthless scum!"

  Before the words were out of his mouth, five more pirates had their throats slit.

  Terror quickly spread through the hearts of the remaining pirates.

  Some began trembling uncontrolbly.

  "Shoot! Shoot him!"

  "Everyone, charge together!"

  "Kill him!"

  But the difference in strength was overwhelming. Kuro didn’t even need to use Armament Haki to massacre the entire crew of the Crescent Moon Pirates.

  Meanwhile, Catarina Devon, who was still locked in battle with Galdino, had no idea what was happening on her ship. Galdino’s hit-and-run tactics were keeping her occupied, with both sides seemingly evenly matched.

  Kuro, his suit spotless, returned to the deck of the Fortune’s Favor.

  "Shall I step in, sir?"

  Noah shook his head. "Wait. If Galdino starts to struggle, then you can finish it."

  "As you wish." Kuro stood to the side, wiping the Ten-Bde Cat Cw with a towel, his eyes fixed on the battle unfolding on the beach.

  At the same time, the remaining pirates were swiftly eliminated by the temporary crew members.

  It was only then that Catarina Devon realized something was wrong. She noticed her crew on the beach had been sughtered, and there was no movement from her ship, filling her with a deep sense of unease.

  Galdino, too, had sensed the change.

  ‘All the other pirates... dead?’

  ‘Something’s wrong! Very wrong!’

  Both Galdino and Catarina Devon stopped fighting, warily scanning their surroundings.

  They were shocked by what they saw—every pirate had been killed cleanly, most with a single blow.

  And then there was Noah and his crew on the Fortune’s Favor—calm, unscathed, and suspiciously competent.

  Seeing the two of them pause, Kuro knew it was time to stop watching. In an instant, he appeared in front of Catarina Devon using Shave.

  When Catarina saw him, a memory fshed through her mind—of a Marine captain she had once encountered who used a simir technique to appear out of nowhere.

  "What a waste of a Mythical Zoan Fruit!"

  Kuro’s Cat Cws turned pitch bck with Armament Haki: "Silent Killing Technique!"

  Danger! Catarina’s instincts fred, her body reacting like a startled cat, her hair standing on end.

  Ssh! Five deep wounds appeared on her abdomen, blood gushing out before her brain could even register the pain.

  "Throat... heart... femoral artery... kidneys... spine..."

  Ssh!

  Ssh!

  Kuro’s silent, lethal strikes avoided her vital organs, but left Catarina Devon’s body covered in wounds, her blood pouring out uncontrolbly. If she hadn’t been a Mythical Zoan user, she would have died instantly.

  From a distance, Galdino felt a chill run down his spine. He hadn’t expected the quiet navigator on their ship to possess such terrifying strength.

  Suddenly, Noah’s brow furrowed as a faint electromagnetic pulse emitted from his body.

  About 11 kilometers away, a News Coo bird was flying in their direction.

  The next second, an invisible current surged through the bird, causing it to burst into smoke and plummet into the sea.

  Back on the isnd, Catarina Devon y on the ground, her entire body stained with blood.

  Noah casually flicked a card, sealing her away inside it.

  Meanwhile, a few crew members who had been pretending to fetch water earlier emerged from the forest, leading five boys who looked utterly broken.

  It was clear they had cleared out the pirate camp on the other side of the isnd, and the boys had been rescued in the process.

  Noah knew all too well that these boys had suffered terrible abuse at the hands of Catarina Devon. Their minds and bodies had been severely damaged, and they would need to be sent to the training camp for psychological rehabilitation.

  But first, there was someone else who needed attention.

  Noah turned his gaze to Galdino, fshing him a sharp-toothed smile. "Mr. Galdino, after reading those books, what insights have you gained?"

  "Huh?" Galdino froze for a moment before realizing what Noah was implying. "You... you set me up?"

  "What do you think?" Noah asked, his voice calm.

  Galdino’s heart sank. He realized he had boarded a pirate ship—a very dangerous one at that. With a bitter smile, he asked, "What do you want?"

  "I simply wish to extend an invitation. Join our family, Mr. Galdino, and help us create a new world. What do you say?"

  ‘Like hell I want to!’ Galdino thought to himself, but he knew he had no choice.

  Especially with Kuro standing nearby, cracking his knuckles, Galdino caved immediately.

  "Fine! I’ll join! I’ll join!"

  ----------------------------------------------------------------

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