The gun loaded with seastone bullets was ripped from Mr. 11's trembling hands before he could even blink.
Mr. 11 stood there dazed for a moment, but then his expression twisted into pure rage.
Some nobody thinks they can mess with me?
"You powerless piece of shit, what the hell are you acting all high and mighty for?!"
He drew Kashu from his waist and swung it straight at Marcus' neck.
It was a fierce strike, meant to decapitate. But the blade stopped dead against Marcus' throat, the edge pressed against skin but unable to penetrate even a millimeter.
"That's it? For such a famous sword to end up in your hands is a real waste."
Marcus had deliberately taken the strike head-on, shaking his head in disappointment. The blow hadn't even managed to chip away at his diamond armor's durability.
You could tell just how weak Mr. 11's attack really was.
He stood there stunned, his palm numb from the recoil.
"Uh... what if I said this was all a misunderstanding? Would you believe me?"
Marcus immediately reversed his grip and snatched Kashu away from the trembling man.
"I believe you. Which is why I'm gonna return the favor."
The blade flashed through the air.
Mr. 11 died with his eyes wide open, still not understanding how he'd gone from hunter to prey in seconds.
Marcus turned his head toward a nearby alley where he'd spotted movement during the fight.
A woman dressed like a dancer was pressed against the wall, terror written across her face. The moment she saw him looking, she quickly averted her gaze and tried to make herself smaller.
"His partner, huh?"
As Marcus walked over, the woman naturally shrank back in fear, collapsing to sit on the ground and putting on a pitiful, helpless expression. Eyes filled with tears, trembling lips, the whole innocent victim act.
He lost interest immediately. He'd seen this routine before.
But just as he turned his back to leave, the woman drew a hidden pistol and aimed it directly at his head.
BANG!
Gunpowder smoke filled the narrow alley.
"Haha! Men really are such fools."
But before her laughter could finish, she felt something cold and sharp press against her throat.
"I already gave you a pass. Why'd you have to push it?" Marcus sighed, quite disappointed in human nature.
"S-sorry! Whatever you want, I'll cooperate! Please don't kill me!"
Her seductive dancer persona vanished instantly.
When Marcus finally emerged from the alley and made his way back through the port district, the streets were littered with bodies sprawled everywhere. Some were dead, many more were gravely injured and groaning in pain.
The aftermath of Ace's rampage had left the entire Baroque Works operation in ruins.
He just shook his head at the carnage and headed back to the ship.
Once aboard, he tossed Kashu over to Zoro, who caught it reflexively.
"Hm?" Zoro was immediately surprised, he could sense that the sword was clearly a famous blade, not inferior to his Yubashiri.
"Huh?"
"Belonged to their leader. Should be one of the 50 Skillful Grade swords, if I had to guess."
"It really is a fine sword." Zoro examined the weapon. "You're not going to use it yourself?"
After all, while Marcus usually wielded swords of his own crafting, he was definitely a swordsman at heart.
Marcus gave his diamond sword a little shake.
"A sword and a katana aren't the same thing. I'm used to straight blades."
"Fair enough." Zoro didn't press the issue. After all, he was most comfortable with katanas himself, he could use regular swords if needed, but they didn't feel natural in his hands.
Still, he accepted the blade gratefully. Having an extra quality weapon never hurt, especially one this well-made.
The chaos around the port finally began to settle down.
Ace climbed back aboard their ship.
"Sorry about that mess. There were just way too many of them to deal with quietly." He laughed, clearly aware of what had happened on their end as well.
Luffy, of course, didn't care in the slightest. "Don't worry about it! But hey Ace, why are you sailing alone? I heard from Makino that you formed the Spade Pirates. Where are all your crewmates?"
Ace didn't try to hide anything. "I'm not the captain of the Spade Pirates anymore."
"Huh?" Luffy looked confused.
Ace pointed to the tattoo on his back, visible through his open vest.
"I'm now the 2nd Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates. So Luffy, how about you join Whitebeard's crew too? Don't worry, your crew wouldn't be disbanded or anything. You'd just sail under his banner."
Luffy shook his head without even thinking about it. "No way."
"Hahaha, just as I expected. I was only asking to be polite."
But aside from Luffy and Marcus, everyone else who heard the name Whitebeard was completely stunned.
"Wait, that Whitebeard? One of the Yonko?" Alvida's eyes went wide. "The one they call the world's strongest man?"
"Yep, that's the one. So? Anyone want to join up?" Ace grinned as he confirmed it, clearly enjoying their shocked reactions.
Luffy immediately got defensive. "Ace! You better not try to steal my crew members!"
"Thanks for the offer, but I think I'll stay right where I am," Alvida said, shaking her head firmly.
Ace wasn't surprised by the rejection. He'd expected as much.
"You've found yourself quite the crew, Luffy. They're loyal."
Then his expression grew more serious. "By the way, have any of you heard of a pirate called Blackbeard? Or the Blackbeard Pirates?"
Luffy glanced around at his crewmates, but they all shook their heads.
"In that case, I guess it's time for us to part ways." Ace didn't seem disappointed, and he prepared to set sail again.
"Why the rush? Can't you stay a little longer?" Luffy asked, clearly reluctant to see him leave so soon.
Marcus was puzzled too. Didn't Ace originally travel with the Straw Hats for a while during the Arabasta arc? Why leave so quickly this time?
He'd been planning to ask about Haki training, maybe get some pointers from someone who'd actually made it in the New World.
Ace sighed and explained his situation regarding Blackbeard, how the man had killed a fellow Whitebeard pirate and fled, breaking the most sacred rule of their crew. How he had volunteered to hunt that guy down and bring him to justice.
"So that's what this is about... then I really can't forgive him either," Luffy nodded seriously. Betraying your crewmates was unforgivable in his book.
The others also expressed their understanding. Even pirates had codes they lived by.
"Well then, see you all in the New World!" Ace waved as he climbed into his small striker boat, flames already beginning to propel it forward.
As Ace's boat disappeared into the distance, Marcus let out a quiet sigh.
He didn't try to stop him or offer warnings about the danger ahead.
After all, he was just someone they'd met recently. Even with his connection to Luffy, he had no right to interfere in Ace's personal mission.
If even Whitebeard couldn't convince Ace to let someone else handle Blackbeard, what could he possibly say? A set of diamond armor wasn't going to change the course of this story.
Come to think of it... could Blackbeard's Dark-Dark Fruit actually nullify his diamond armor? After all, it seemed to work like another Devil Fruit power, and Blackbeard could supposedly cancel out Devil Fruit abilities entirely.
Just then, he suddenly vanished from the deck in a swirl of purple particles.
The Straw Hats weren't even surprised by the teleportation anymore. They'd gotten used to their crewmate disappearing at random moments.
"Looks like Vivi's negotiations didn't go too well," Sanji said calmly, taking a long drag from his cigarette.
"Should we move on to Plan B?" Alvida asked.
When they'd first arrived in Arabasta, the crew had already held a strategy meeting aboard the ship. They had two main objectives for this mission.
First, stop the rebel army through diplomacy. With Vivi leading the effort, that was at least possible, and as pirates, it was better if they didn't get too directly involved in political negotiations anyway.
The second option, if talking failed, was for Marcus to help through his... unique modifications to the landscape. Creating oases, improving farmland, that sort of thing. That was the ideal scenario.
Of course, there was also the backup plan if all peaceful solutions failed, defeat Crocodile, who was orchestrating the entire civil war from the shadows.
"Let me check on their situation first," Nami said, pulling out an eye of ender.
---
Meanwhile, in Katorea, Vivi was now surrounded by countless rebel soldiers. Their faces were hard with years of drought and suffering.
"Koza! Please, you have to believe me. This is the truth, my father would never do something like this!" she pleaded desperately.
"But the evidence is right there!" Koza gestured angrily toward the tent behind him. "We've intercepted shipments of Dance Powder heading to Alubarna over ten times now! Are you telling me that's all fake?!"
She immediately shot back, "Those were all planted by Baroque Works! They're trying to frame the royal family!"
"Where's your proof?!"
Vivi fell silent. She had nothing concrete to show them, no evidence that would hold up against what they could see with their own eyes.
Koza sneered at her silence. "You live in the palace, wearing silk and eating fine meals every day. You can't possibly understand what real hunger feels like."
"I..."
"Enough. Just leave."
"Koza..."
Vivi stared at her childhood friend. Now he had absolutely no trust left for anything she said.
Igaram gently tugged at her sleeve, urging her to retreat before the situation got worse.
"What if... what if I told you there was a way to change the environment? So everyone could have enough food and water? Would you stop then?"
"If everyone had enough food and water, why would we even need to rebel in the first place?" one of Koza's lieutenants spoke up.
"Kebi's right. You should leave now," another rebel added. "We can still keep this information contained for now. But if more people find out you're here, it won't just put you in danger, Koza will be in an impossible position too."
But the more you try to avoid something, the more likely it is to happen.
Suddenly, a man bearing a Baroque Works tattoo on his arm shouted out the news of Vivi's presence to all the surrounding rebels.