Although Ozz had such thoughts in mind, he did not say them out loud.
After all, there was still some time left.
Everything could still be changed.
As the voyage continued, the pirate ship flying the flag of the Rocks Pirates finally arrived at Hachinosu.
This was a paradise for pirates.
It was also the true base of Rocks, the man who could practically be called the Pirate King in all but name.
"Look!"
"The captains are back!"
The villains threw their arms around each other's shoulders and looked toward the returning pirate ships.
"I heard they went to settle things with the Roger Pirates. If those captains went personally, then those guys must have all been killed!"
The current Rocks Pirates could be called an evil all-star lineup.
Nearly every famous pirate on the seas had joined this crew.
And the captains were the terrifying few who stood at the very top.
"Look! That man walking among the captains!"
At that moment, someone noticed a young man with long black hair mixed in among Whitebeard and the others.
His appearance was calm. Even after seeing Hachinosu, he showed no reaction at all. His eyes only looked forward quietly.
Facing the malicious gazes of those who looked down on him because of his youth, Ozz merely gave them a casual glance.
"He looked this way, that rookie..."
A veteran member of the Rocks Pirates noticed Ozz's gaze.
Then...
"Gah!"
A violent explosion erupted among the villains. The impact blasted straight toward the sea, tearing a trench hundreds of meters long and dozens of meters wide into the ground.
All the underlings of the Rocks Pirates who had been looking down on him broke into cold sweat.
"What was that?!"
"Is he a Devil Fruit user? But doing that with just one look is way too ridiculous!"
"A warning just because of one glance? Another monster has joined the Rocks Pirates!"
Gick's eyes shone brightly.
Of course he had no sympathy for these rotten bastards. He was only amazed by Ozz's powerful bearing.
"So cool! Captain Ozz!"
Seeing the old man's reaction, Ozz thought the effect was rather good.
Little by little, replacing Rocks's influence in Gick's heart might not be a bad thing.
With that thought, Ozz walked toward the interior of Hachinosu, toward the giant skull.
His footsteps were not loud.
Yet they seemed to carry some mysterious power.
The pirates within several hundred meters all heard those footsteps clearly. Then, for some reason, a terrifying pressure descended upon them.
It was as if they had been thrown into a horrific gravity field. These wicked men, who usually did whatever they pleased, began to chatter their teeth.
Their bodies could not withstand it. They sank downward, and in just a few seconds, all of them were crushed to the ground with horror in their eyes.
Their heads were forced into the earth, as if they were unworthy of looking directly at the figure walking forward.
Where he passed, all living beings bowed.
Through such a terrifying display, Ozz successfully won himself respect and the right to speak within the Rocks Pirates.
Gick's eyes nearly turned into lamps.
This sight perfectly matched every expectation he had for monsters and true powerhouses.
This was how cool a strong man should be!
"Is it the Paramecia Gravity Fruit?"
Shiki's expression stiffened slightly, but he quickly denied the possibility.
After all, the Gravity Fruit could not allow spatial movement.
But no matter what, this kind of wide-range control and destruction ability was extremely unfavorable against his Float-Float Fruit.
Under the fearful and trembling gazes of the pirates, Ozz and several captain-level figures walked toward the center of the island.
Inside the skull that served as headquarters, several men were already there.
John, Silver Axe, Wang Zhi, and others.
The man sitting deepest inside was a domineering man with striped hair. He was drinking heavily.
"So this is the legendary rookie?"
"I've never heard of him before."
They examined Ozz, but not one of them acted rashly.
After all, whether it was the information Shiki and the others had sent back, or the hand Ozz had just revealed upon landing, it all proved that he was qualified to stand on the same level as them.
He was a true monster.
"You are... Ozz?"
Rocks seemed to have only just noticed the figures entering. He smiled as he spoke.
"That's right."
Today, Ozz finally saw the great pirate who had only existed in old Gick's rare memories and in the stories Captain Roger mentioned when drunk.
Rocks D. Xebec.
When strong men met, the first thing that came was, of course, a very familiar cliché.
"Crackle, crackle, crackle!"
"Thud!"
"Thud!"
"Thud!"
How long had it been since Ozz last felt this?
The feeling of his Conqueror's Haki being suppressed.
Although he had already used his full strength, against Rocks, whose natural talent did not lose to his and who was already at his peak, Ozz's terrifying Conqueror's Haki lightning storm was rarely suppressed.
It was not crushed.
It was suppressed.
The current Ozz was still young. Although his Conqueror's Haki already had few rivals among Emperor-class fighters, he still found it difficult against a man who could kill an Admiral alone and escape unharmed.
"Hahahahahahaha!"
Through the clash of Conqueror's Haki, Rocks could naturally tell just how much ambition and spirit the young man before him possessed.
It was a spirit that did not lose to his own dream of becoming King of the World.
Even so, he showed no surprise.
That was the bearing of a true world ruler.
He had never feared other strong men, because a man like him possessed absolute confidence.
"What a wonderful way to get acquainted..."
A few drops of cold sweat appeared on Ozz's face, but overall, he remained calm.
Ozz's spirit and strength successfully earned Rocks's recognition.
A new captain was born.
After that introduction, the pirates, who followed the principle of respecting the strong, began throwing a banquet for Ozz's arrival.
There were men and women among the pirates, and no shortage of beautiful women. They indulged themselves freely in the feast.
But the main figure of the banquet had come to the eye socket of the skull.
There, a man was drinking while looking into the distance.
Sensing Ozz's arrival, Rocks smiled. His gaze fell on Ozz's eyes, which occasionally flashed with scarlet light.
"Those eyes of yours..."
"Yeah. Future sight."
Ozz sat beside him, holding a glass of orange juice in his hand.
He already knew what Rocks was about to say.
"And what I can see is a very, very distant future."
Rocks froze for a moment, then smiled again.
He had an instinct.
The instinct of the strong.
The other party was a "strong man" on the same level as him, not merely a subordinate like the others.
"An extension of Observation Haki?"
"That's right. Do you want to know your future?"
Ozz's gaze was calm, like a passerby looking upon the world. His scarlet eyes stared at Rocks.
Most strong men would say they did not need it, that they believed they could change the future.
At worst, they would ask whether their dream was fulfilled, or whether their ambition had been achieved.
But Rocks's answer made Ozz's eyes flicker.
"Is that so? If you can do it, then help me take a look."
"The future of my family."
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