"The Red Hair Pirates are attacking!" a pirate who had burst into the lab exclaimed.
The entire place was stunned. Currently, the Red Hair Pirates are the most talked-about pirate crew, second only to the Yonko crews.
"Red-Haired Shanks, is it? Just because he took down one of Kaido's islands, he's arrogant enough to assault the main base of another Yonko?"
Zephyr chuckled, shaking his hand. "However, there's currently no one on the island who can defeat him in a one-on-one fight. I'll handle this."
Zephyr figured that Shanks must have become excessively arrogant and overconfident after recently seizing a territory from the Beasts Pirates, foolishly daring to attack Arderay. Of course, who could have guessed Shanks was doing all this for a young kid from the East Blue?
This was the perfect opportunity to test the effect of his new gauntlet. If it could genuinely suppress the rampaging virus, he could fight without any reservations or concern.
....
Whoosh!
With a single slash, Shanks's fierce red sword energy instantly sliced one of the Immortal Pirates' battleships in half, causing it to immediately begin sinking.
Shanks was now standing on another ship belonging to the Immortal Pirates. He executed several flying kicks with his right foot, scattering the many pirates who had surrounded him. He drove his saber into the deck, looking utterly arrogant as he declared, "You're not even a challenge. Call your boss out here!"
The surrounding crew members of the Immortal Pirates frowned deeply, continuously cursing the Red-Haired bastard for being lucky enough to launch a sneak attack while Alucard was away.
Shanks was naturally aware of this. The reason for his actions was to pressure the Immortal Pirates to quickly notify Alucard, forcing him to hurry back to the New World from the East Blue.
On the Red Force, after defeating Hydaelyn Eorzea, Ben Beckman rested for a few minutes, allowing his breathing to even out. He looked around, frowning, and muttered to himself, "Their average strength is very high. It's almost like fighting the Marines. So well-trained, this is quite different from the Immortal Pirates of the past."
Even the regular foot soldiers of the Marines are generally stronger than pirates on average, especially those from Headquarters. This is because they are well-trained, unlike pirates who focus more on pleasure than on training. During the eventual Paramount War, the Marines were able to suppress the Whitebeard Pirates not only because Whitebeard was gravely wounded by a sneak attack, but also because their overall average strength was a critical factor.
"Alucard took a lot of the high-ranking officers with him, but the trouble will start once we land on the island: those strange monsters, and that power to control swarms of Sea Kings..."
Just thinking back to their previous failed attempt, Ben Beckman couldn't help but shiver. Humans always harbor fear for things they have never seen before.
Hoo!!
Suddenly, like a falling meteor, a straight line cut through the night sky and landed directly in front of Shanks.
"Finally, someone powerful is showing up?"
Feeling the terrifying aura behind him, Shanks turned around. The moment he saw his opponent, the smile on his face instantly froze, and his eyes widened. "Ze-Zephyr?"
He was topless, wearing black military trousers and long boots, and donned a great cloak. His original non-prescription glasses had been replaced with sunglasses, but there was no mistaking him: it was "Black Arm" Zephyr, who had fought his captain, Gol D. Roger, numerous times in the past.
"Z-san is here!"
"He's here! The strongest guardian!"
Seeing Zephyr descend, everyone on the ship raised their weapons and cheered loudly. The people on the other ships of the Immortal Pirates also felt a surge of morale upon hearing the cheers—an Admiral-level fighter had arrived!
"Shut up, you trash!"
Zephyr roared back, silencing the pirates who were usually trained to within an inch of their lives. Zephyr bit down on a bamboo skewer, his voice infused with Haki, sweeping across the battlefield: "What an ugly display. When we get back, all your training will be doubled!"
In an instant, the crew members who had just been cheering turned to bitter complaints. "Also, Red-Haired Shanks, I no longer use that name."
As Zephyr spoke, he concentrated Haki, turning both his arms a glossy, jet-black. He shot toward Shanks like a meteor. "My name is Z now!"
In the nick of time, Shanks raised his sword to block, but he was still sent flying by Zephyr's powerful punch. He crashed through the ship's side, carving a hundred-meter-long wake across the sea surface.
About ten seconds later, a water splash tens of meters high exploded from the sea. Shanks leaped onto the mast of a ship next to Zephyr's and shouted, "W-wait! What's with this scene? Alucard is an enemy you've fought many times, right?"
If there was one current Yonko Zephyr had the deepest grudge against, besides his old rival Whitebeard, it was Alucard. It wasn't strange that Zephyr left the Marines, and joining a pirate crew... was barely acceptable, but there was no way he should be joining Alucard's pirate crew!
"I am simply acting according to the justice in my heart, just as striking you down here and now is my justice, Shanks!" Zephyr used Geppo to move rapidly, showcasing his perfectly mastered Rokushiki.
"This is troublesome. I didn't expect Alucard's main base to be hiding a tiger like this."
Shanks raised his sword to block. The powerful shockwave created by the clash whipped up large furrows in the surrounding sea.
The real explosion was just beginning! "Hmph!"
Shanks reversed his grip on his sword, and the blade erupted with red lightning, launching a crescent-shaped upward strike toward Zephyr's abdomen.
"Hahaha! I should praise you for being able to train to this extent without being a Devil Fruit user!"
Zephyr laughed wildly. The red markings on his body expanded, but the gauntlet on his wrist also brightened, temporarily suppressing the berserker trend. Yet, Zephyr's power increased further, easily nullifying Shanks's sword energy.
The cornered red lightning shot up into the sky, illuminating the night for several seconds.
Meanwhile, over ten nautical miles away, a man aboard a small, black coffin-shaped boat looked up toward the source of the red light, slightly furrowing his brow. He murmured to himself, "That is... Red-Hair's..."