Kanata and Scotch hurried back to the ship.
They had managed to slow their pursuers down, but they had only created one ice wall. If the enemy was forced to take a detour, it would all be over.
Dragging the unconscious man with one hand, Scotch kicked Kanata's rear to hurry him along.
"Move it! They're coming from behind!"
"Huff, huff...! This is all I can manage! Why are you so calm?!"
"We're trained differently. From now on, you'll have to train harder. You might lose your life in battle against the navy."
"I don't want to die! Go easy on me!"
"I'll go easy on you, but I won't hold back."
Ignoring Scotch's confused gaze, Kanata made her way to the ship, displaying physical abilities that made one doubt whether this woman was really injured.
Scotch was clearly exhausted from running, but Kanata jumped onto the ship without breaking a sweat.
She tossed the battered man overboard, claiming he was a souvenir, and ordered the crew to bind him so he couldn't move.
"How's the procurement of food and weapons coming along?"
"Well, it's not finished yet. We were told to spend whatever it takes, so the negotiations themselves ended quickly, but..."
"Hurry up. This is getting complicated."
She received a report from the person left behind as a messenger.
If the negotiations for the items themselves were finished, all that remained was to transport them.
She didn't want to do it because it was too conspicuous, but having Feiyun handle it was the fastest option.
He had been dozing in the cabin while guarding the ship with Zen, but upon hearing that he could help, he eagerly disembarked.
They were told the location by the messenger and hurried to assist.
In the meantime, Kanata decided to make contact and connected the den den mushi.
"Junshi, can you hear me?"
"What's up? Another headache?"
"You're spot on. I think it's probably the Rash Family. They seem to have it out for me. I sent Feiyun to handle the cargo, so hurry up with the loading."
"You sure know how to attract trouble."
"I didn't ask for any of this."
At least in this case, it was a complete misunderstanding.
Their relationship with the Rash Family was only that of a broken deal. They were taking it as a matter of honor and picking a fight, so there was no avoiding it.
That said, she had no intention of letting them get away with it.
"But we need to be careful."
"About what?"
"I don't think the entire town is involved, but if they've poisoned part of the food, it'll be hard to tell. It might be safer to wait until we're out at sea before consuming anything."
"...I see."
The Rash Family controlled both the town and the merchant guild on this island. As long as they didn't neglect maintenance of their weapons, they should be fine, but food was another matter.
It came down to how much they could trust them.
In that sense, choosing this town as their supply point might have been a mistake.
They had chosen it by chance, so it was hard to tamper with beforehand, but they couldn't be sure the family was trustworthy.
The biggest problem was that they didn't have a ship's doctor.
"If someone gets poisoned in this situation, we're as good as dead. We can't even administer an antidote."
"Then should we just transport the weapons and abandon the food?"
"We have some preserved food on the ship. If we need fresh provisions, we can hunt sea beasts to survive."
If necessary, they could even hunt Sea Kings.
The ship was small for the number of people aboard, but with a giant among them, consumption would be fairly rapid. Sea beasts alone wouldn't be enough.
From a nutritional balance perspective, it was concerning, but in this situation, they had no choice.
"Hmm... Understood. Let's just load the weapons."
"Hurry up. They seem to be trying to block the harbor."
Judging by the faint outline of ships in the distance, they probably thought they could surround and defeat them.
They should know the crew were Devil Fruit users. Were they planning to throw them into the sea, or did they simply not know much about ability users?
This was a rural sea. The latter possibility was quite likely.
"As soon as you return, we'll set sail immediately. If we can capture even one Island Whale, we'll be safe for a while."
"A fishing ground? It'll be a bit of a detour, but should we ask the fishermen at the port?"
"Unfortunately, we don't have time for that. Let's just settle for some ordinary sea creatures."
After finishing his communication with Junshi, Kanata took a deep breath and collapsed into her chair.
The air outside was still cold, but as someone who could manipulate cold air, the chill didn't bother her much.
Watching the crew hurriedly prepare for departure, she pondered what to do about the approaching ships that were gradually closing in.
Freezing them would be best, but then our ship wouldn't be able to move either. If only we could convert it into an icebreaker...
There were many ships, but it seemed that few of them were particularly strong.
Closing her eyes, she concentrated her Observation Haki to scan the area, but there were no enemies with high-level abilities. The enemy seemed to be simply surrounding them without issuing any attack orders, keeping them at a distance.
"Well," she said, slowly standing up.
She could see Feiyun returning. Not only was he a giant, but with his ability to grow even larger, he could carry even more cargo. It was heavy, but he had the strength to support it.
Ignoring the rush to load the ship, Kanata looked up at the sky.
"...It looks like rain."
It had been cold enough for snow lately, but today the wind had picked up.
"It might snow heavily," she murmured.
"Captain, we're done loading."
"Good work. Is everyone on board?"
"Yeah, everyone's here."
After hearing Kuro's report, she headed to the deck.
Preparations were already complete, and the ship was ready to set sail at Kanata's command.
"Let's go! We're heading out now!"
"Uwoooooo!!!"
"First, break through the Rash Family's encirclement! Get ready!"
Shouting loudly to motivate themselves, they ran around frantically and set sail.
The wind grew stronger. At the same time, snow began to fall, and the storm began to take shape.
The enemy fleet, suddenly panicking, began preparing their cannons, but Kanata's group launched their attack first.
"Fire the cannons!!"
The cannons fired with a deafening roar.
Though they had aimed accurately, the shots slightly missed their mark, causing the waves to tremble and sending up a massive spray of water. But they didn't stop there, continuing to fire one cannon after another.
Kanata and her crew deflected the incoming cannonballs one after another, but the enemy ships seemed unable to do the same.
The cannonballs struck the enemy vessels, igniting them and sending them sinking into the water.
However, Kanata's attack did not stop there.
"Feiyun, go!"
"Yes! I'm going!!"
Kanata froze seawater into ice blocks, which Feiyun threw like baseballs, smashing them into the enemy ships.
The ice blocks themselves were massive, but when thrown with the strength of a giant, they had the same, or perhaps even greater, power than cannonballs, sinking the ships one by one.
"Damn it! Why? Why can't we sink that one ship?!"
Angry voices could be heard from the enemy vessels.
No matter how many cannonballs they fired, they were all deflected by Kanata and Junshi. Since long-range attacks were their only option, the battle was already tilting in their favor.
"I don't have time to waste on the likes of you. Our true enemies are far greater."
Kanata raised her right arm.
She interfered with the growing wind and snow with her abilities, transforming them into even more vicious entities.
"Ice Crystal Blossom."
The snow touched the enemy ships. Like seeds sprouting, ice flowers bloomed where they made contact. Even if the snow fell into the sea, the flowers bloomed like moonflowers in the night.
The wind, strengthened by the storm, caused the enemy fleet to bloom with ice flowers one after another, halting their movement.
Even a navy fleet would have been stopped by this power.
There was no way for mere mafia members like the Rash Family to escape.
"Damn it! You bastard, Kanata!"
"Get lost. We have no use for you."
However, this power was difficult to control.
If Kanata were fighting alone, there would be no need to think about it, but the flowers bloomed even on her own ship.
However, there was another Devil Fruit user on this ship.
"...What would we have done if I hadn't been here?"
"We wouldn't have used it. Your ability is quite convenient."
"I envy you."
The darkness spread like an umbrella, swallowing the falling snow and the ice flowers that bloomed in the direction of their advance. The shadow that wrapped around the ship consumed them, allowing the crew to escape danger.
The vicious ice flowers, frozen solid and unable to move, bloomed when they touched people, stealing their body heat.
Riding the stormy winds, Kanata and the others scattered the Rash Family and headed toward Reverse Mountain.
Reverse Mountain.
Four ocean currents flowed into it, creating a canal that even mountains could climb, allowing access to the Grand Line's interior.
They had been heading straight here from Troa, hunting sea beasts along the way to replenish their supplies, and now they looked up at the massive wall blocking their path.
"...I see. It's huge, even for me."
"This is..."
The next time they would see this mountain, they would have circumnavigated the world. And if they saw it a third time, that would be the moment they had survived as the Pirate King of the sea.
Will I be able to defeat the formidable foes and reach the final island?
Worrying now wouldn't change anything, but Kanata smiled faintly at the unknown world ahead.
"From here on, it's the Grand Line! Don't let your guard down, you all!"
Everyone raised their spirits as if it were obvious and began climbing the canal.
From here on, the sea defied common sense. If you didn't overcome everything, you wouldn't survive.
***
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