"Impossible!!!"
"My ambition… how could it end here?!"
Staring at the terrifying blow descending from the heavens as if delivered by a god, Blackbeard's face was instantly filled with disbelief and horror.
An unprecedented sense of crisis enveloped his heart.
In the next instant, pitch-black darkness erupted around Blackbeard's body, thick and surging, rapidly forming a massive dark giant. With eerie fists, it swung forward, colliding head-on with Luffy's incoming punch.
Yet it was as if Blackbeard's reckless switching of Devil Fruit powers had earned the disgust of the very will of the pirate world.
Just as the darkness—seemingly capable of devouring the entire world—was about to collide with Luffy, that power abruptly lost its natural authority. Bathed in blazing light, it rapidly dissipated.
At this moment, Luffy was like a miniature sun descending from the sky, annihilating all heresy!
"I… won't fall here!!!"
With no other options left, Blackbeard let out another furious roar and immediately raised his arm, striking upward toward the fist in the sky.
But before the Armament Haki within his body could fully condense, Luffy's massive fist had already pierced through layer after layer of darkness and came crashing down!
BOOM!!!
A colossal wave nearly a hundred meters high suddenly erupted within the calm, windless sea, surging violently in all directions.
Under Luffy's fist, Blackbeard's body instantly bent grotesquely. His eyes rolled back, unfocused and white, as a streak of fresh blood spilled from the corner of his mouth.
Elemental power originating from the Pokémon world relentlessly ravaged Blackbeard's body, leaving him utterly incapable of resistance.
Splash—crash—!
The towering waves transformed into a torrential downpour, drenching the entire sea.
Bathed in seawater, Luffy's body was instantly weakened. He slowly withdrew from his Martial God State, standing in midair and gasping for breath.
"It's over…"
At that moment, a voice suddenly sounded behind Luffy.
Luffy turned around, his face lighting up with joy as he raised his fist triumphantly.
"I did it, Red!"
"Blackbeard's been defeated by me!!!"
"You were right—this guy didn't fight us seriously last time at all!"
"No wonder you said Ace lost to him~"
"If I hadn't used Facade, I definitely wouldn't have been his match!"
Looking down at the still-churning sea below, excitement flickered in Luffy's eyes.
After such an intense, high-level battle, there was no way his emotions could settle so quickly.
But soon, a trace of apology appeared on Luffy's face.
"Sorry about that, Red."
"I really couldn't control myself and knocked him into the sea again."
"With that bastard's vitality, he probably won't die that easily, right?"
For some reason, Luffy could clearly feel that Red harbored deep hostility toward Blackbeard.
And that hostility had nothing to do with how Blackbeard's crew had nearly assassinated Vivi back then.
Luffy even suspected…
That Red's animosity toward Blackbeard came from Red himself.
After all, Red possessed a pair of eyes that could see the future.
Still, since Red hadn't said anything, Luffy naturally didn't bring it up either.
In response to Luffy's apology, Red merely shook his head lightly and smiled.
"Don't worry, Luffy."
"I won't make the same mistake twice."
As he spoke, Red suddenly raised his hand.
Beside him, a pitch-black Hyperspace Hole abruptly appeared.
Immediately afterward, like a Water Gun attack, overwhelming water pressure forced massive seawater to erupt straight from the deep ocean.
Along with it, a figure was swept out by the torrent—only to be precisely caught by Red's grasp.
That figure was none other than Marshall D. Teach—Blackbeard himself—who had just been smashed into the sea by Luffy.
Unlike his previous miserable plunge.
This time, Blackbeard had fought Luffy for over an hour and then taken a full-power blow head-on…
By now, he was already gravely injured and completely unconscious.
If not for the slight trembling of his abdomen, still filled with seawater, he would have looked no different from a corpse.
Red chuckled softly and explained to Luffy:
"I left a Psychic Mark on him the very first time we came into contact."
"He won't be escaping our control the same way again."
As he spoke, a ruthless glint suddenly flashed in Red's eyes.
The next second, a Psychic Blade instantly condensed in his hand!
Shing—
Without the slightest hesitation—
To prevent any future complications, Red swung the blade in a single, decisive arc toward Blackbeard's neck.
Under Red's immense psychic pressure, the blade's sharpness was enough to rival a slash from a great swordsman.
If Blackbeard were in normal condition, Red might not have had an easy way to deal with him.
But this half-dead Blackbeard…
"Ugh—!"
As if sensing death's approach, the unconscious Blackbeard suddenly snapped his eyes open.
Yet the moment he realized what was happening and tried to struggle…
It was already too late!
Slash!
The razor-sharp psychic blade pierced his flesh without resistance, then cut through in one clean stroke!
In an instant, a wide-eyed head filled with shock flew into the air and dropped precisely into a Hyperspace Hole, where Red teleported it straight to Amazon Lily.
With a flick of his other hand, Blackbeard's headless corpse was sent there as well.
Red refused to believe…
That if Blackbeard still didn't die after this—and somehow escaped—then he'd really have Morgans hype Blackbeard's abilities to the entire world and usher in a so-called "Age of Great Immortality."
Let every powerhouse scour the seas for Blackbeard's shadow, all in pursuit of the secret of immortality.
But…
Blackbeard's fate clearly wasn't enough to support the birth of a new era.
This time, he was truly dead—beyond any doubt.
...
...
After feeding Luffy a Super Potion, Red brought him straight back to Amazon Lily.
Once Usopp successfully secured Blackbeard's corpse, Red shifted his gaze toward the woman who had just returned to the palace, drenched in sweat—
The ruler of Amazon Lily, the Pirate Empress, Boa Hancock!
"Well then, Lady Hancock?"
"As agreed, we've successfully dealt with the attackers threatening Amazon Lily."
"So now… shouldn't we discuss our terms?"
"..."
Hancock paused, her exquisitely beautiful face flushed with an unusual redness from exhaustion.
She had originally intended to maintain her regal composure, but the moment she met Red's gaze, her expression wavered briefly.
She quickly turned away, forcing calm into her voice.
"Not… not right now!"
"Such a major incident has just occurred. There are still many injured civilians in the city. I must oversee the situation."
"Once everything has settled, we'll talk."
"Rest assured, I will not go back on my word."
"Sandersonia, the side hall shouldn't have been affected by the fighting. Arrange accommodations for the Straw Hat Pirates."
With a light wave of her hand, Hancock issued the order to her younger sister.
Sandersonia froze, then exclaimed in shock:
"W-Wait, Sister!"
"You're not really going to agree to that man's conditions, are you?!"
Beside her, Marigold wore the same stunned expression and raised her hand, trying to dissuade Hancock.
Their reaction was hardly surprising.
After all, the condition Red had proposed when he chased them down was to help Amazon Lily defeat an enemy they couldn't handle—and then…
Receive the complete loyalty of Amazon Lily!!!
At the time, Hancock had scoffed at the idea, dismissively saying, "Do it first, then we'll talk."
But looking at the current situation, Red's words had undeniably come true.
Did that mean the Amazon Lily Kingdom truly had to bow before another pirate crew?!
Even if…
The Straw Hat Pirates' strength was far beyond their imagination?!
Sandersonia and Marigold were about to argue further when Hancock's expression suddenly turned icy.
"What? Are you questioning my orders?!"
"W-We wouldn't dare!"
With a flick of her flowing black hair, Hancock's tone softened slightly.
"I know what I'm doing."
With that, she strode out of the palace, her long, pale, flawless legs moving with regal grace.
But just as Hancock was about to leave, her gaze unconsciously lingered on Red for a brief moment.
This man…
Was he the one who had orchestrated that livestream execution that utterly humiliated the Celestial Dragons?!
How extraordinarily bold.
Carrying emotions she herself couldn't quite explain, Hancock quickened her pace and left to oversee the city's relief efforts.
However…
Though Hancock's fleeting glance seemed insignificant, no one present was weak—many had long refined Observation Haki into an almost passive sense.
So once Hancock departed, several members of the Straw Hat Pirates immediately turned their eyes toward Red.
Naturally, the first to react was Sanji, who had already decided this place was paradise.
"Damn you, Red! While we were risking our lives in battle, what were you doing behind our backs?!"
Sanji grabbed Red by the shoulders, squeezing so hard his face twisted with strain.
"H-Hey, calm down, calm down~!"
Completely confused, Red waved his hands awkwardly at the massive face looming in front of him.
Then, in a flash of Teleport, he vanished from Sanji's grip.
Nearby, Zoro rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"From my experience, the Pirate Empress's look toward Red was definitely not normal."
"Looks like our vice-captain's charm is on another level."
"You're absolutely right, Zoro!"
Standing beside him, Usopp immediately wore the same gossip-loving expression and grinned mischievously at Red.
"So enviable, yohohoho~" Brook chimed in from the corner of the palace, holding a cup of hot tea with a gentle smile.
After fighting alongside the entire crew, he seemed to have integrated even more into the Straw Hat atmosphere.
Only Nami pouted in displeasure.
"Tch~"
"I think she just values Red's abilities!"
"Red, you'd better be careful—beautiful women are the best liars!"
"Don't you think so, Robin?!"
Robin smiled softly when named but said nothing.
For a moment, the Straw Hat crew's mood became light and cheerful, nothing like a group that had just fought one of the world's top powers.
At that moment, Sandersonia, who had stayed behind to arrange their accommodations, suddenly shouted:
"Hey! You people, don't go too far!"
"Just because you helped Amazon Lily doesn't mean you can casually gossip about my sister!"
"There's no way Sister would ever fall for a man!"
Even though Sandersonia had noticed Hancock's odd behavior, as someone who had followed her sister since childhood, her faith in Hancock remained unshakable.
Hearing this, Luffy—who had been silent—nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, yeah… you guys shouldn't talk nonsense."
"Red said it himself—women only slow you down in battle!"
"So before achieving our dreams, there's no way he'd get married!"
"Right, Red?!"
"You little brat…"
Seeing Luffy decide his entire marriage prospects based on an old joke, Red could only smile bitterly.
But after all the teasing from the crew, Red ultimately chose silence, bringing the joke to an end.
...
...
And so, the Straw Hat Pirates temporarily settled down within the palace of Amazon Lily.
That night, the crew was unusually quiet.
Facing powerful opponents had left many of them deep in thought.
They needed this calm environment to digest everything they had experienced in battle.
This was precisely why Luffy and the others always made tremendous leaps in strength after major fights.
Still, not everyone was enjoying the peaceful night.
After nightfall, Red took Usopp with him. Riding the Going Merry at full speed, the two returned once more to the terrifying three-masted ship sailing toward Amazon Lily.
...
...
"Fos! Fos! Fos~!"
"This is unbelievable!"
"To think a human body could be trained to such an extent…"
"Is this… the world of the strong?!"
"Fos! Fos! Fos!"
Inside Hogback's operating room, the surgeon—dressed in a white coat and surgical gear—let out a series of astonished laughs.
Lying on his operating table was none other than the freshly dead corpse of Blackbeard, who had perished earlier that very day!
(End of Chapter)