Chapter 93: Rocks' Interference! Showdown with Golden Lion
Lotte had already figured out most of Rocks' plan.
Though he didn't know the exact details of how to control God Valley, one thing was clear—Rocks had no intention of letting him survive.
So Lotte obviously had no plans to help him obtain that ancient weapon.
In any case, Roger and Garp would be there.
Letting the two of them, along with Marine Headquarters, handle it would be more than enough.
Then,
With Lotte's return to the Rocks Pirates,
Whitebeard Newgate walked forward laughing and patted Lotte on the shoulder.
"Long time no see—you're finally back!"
To him, Lotte was a rare friend. Seeing the other return safe and sound naturally made Newgate very happy.
Though the Vivre Card had confirmed his safety, seeing him with his own eyes
Was far more reassuring.
Beside him, Golden Lion also burst into loud laughter.
"Brat, you're finally back! I thought you got scared!"
"The captain announced the next operation not long ago—you've prepared yourself, right?"
"By the way, how much stronger have you gotten in the past half year? If you're still the same as before, that won't cut it!"
As someone he had long earmarked as his future vice-captain, Golden Lion would never let anyone else take Lotte's spot.
All he needed now was to defeat Lotte head-on.
Fulfill the promise from a year ago, and he could successfully bring the kid into his own crew.
Simple, right!
Lotte's expression immediately turned playful upon hearing this.
Golden Lion's words were loaded—he was clearly impatient to defeat him.
Lotte chuckled softly.
"My strength has improved?"
"Golden Lion, if you're so capable, why don't you come test it yourself?"
He had just returned—
This was the perfect moment to show his value.
Defeating Golden Lion would also fulfill the promise he made back then—a win-win for him.
The other man's flying slash swordsmanship
Would surely bring him even more insight.
The crowd was immediately shocked.
Golden Lion Shiki was one of the top cadres on this ship—his strength could even contend with Marine Admirals. And Lotte had only been gone for half a year.
Yet he dared to provoke such a powerhouse?
At that moment,
Rocks, standing at the bow, narrowed his eyes slightly.
If Lotte had progressed in the past half year to the point where he could stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Golden Lion Shiki,
Then surpassing him in the future might not even be impossible.
He needed to be cautious about this.
Right then,
Rocks suddenly thought of a good method.
Since Marine Headquarters valued Lotte so highly, they would surely deploy Admiral-level forces to surround him.
That would thin out the defenses at God Valley.
After all, if Lotte had truly reached Golden Lion's level, a single Admiral clearly wouldn't be enough to kill him.
At minimum, two Admirals would be required for certainty.
Thinking of this,
The ferocious grin on Rocks' face grew even wider.
No matter how much of a genius Lotte was, he was still being played perfectly by him, right?
While Rocks was smugly thinking this,
Golden Lion Shiki—already irritated by Lotte's words—snapped.
"Good kid, you've got some nerve getting so cocky after just half a year!"
"Fine—let's fight right now?!"
Though internal killing was forbidden in the Rocks Pirates, pure sparring was allowed.
After all, without fighting strong opponents,
How could one improve?
Whitebeard Newgate frowned upon hearing this.
"Golden Lion, if you want to fight, at least wait a few days."
"He just got back—it's not the time."
Though he was also curious about Lotte's current strength, the other had only just returned. Challenging him immediately
Would be a bit too disrespectful.
Golden Lion's face stiffened.
Though he also felt it was inappropriate, he still snorted coldly and turned to leave.
At that moment,
Rocks' calm yet authoritative voice rang across the ship.
"Golden Lion, Lotte."
"Since both of you want to fight, let's schedule it for noon three days from now."
"I'd also like to see just how much you've improved."
The more Lotte had progressed,
The higher the success rate of Rocks' plan.
Since the kid dared to provoke Golden Lion, he must have confidence.
As his words fell,
The entire ship full of pirates froze for a moment.
Then they immediately erupted into excited discussion.
"For real… the captain actually approved a fight between Lotte and Golden Lion?"
"Does the captain really think Lotte has the strength for it?!"
"If Lotte wins… he'd be the most monstrous talent in history!"
Anyone who had been on this ship for a while knew
What kind of monster the Azure Emperor Lotte was.
In just a few months he had gone from having no mastery of the three Haki types to causing havoc in Sabaody Archipelago alongside Whitebeard, killing two Celestial Dragons and escaping unscathed.
Even the veteran cadre Silver Axe had died by his hand.
After disappearing for half a year and returning, if Lotte fought Golden Lion Shiki,
Who knew what kind of sparks would fly!
Golden Lion's expression was somewhat stiff.
He had only said it in anger just now—how did even Rocks get involved?
Though Golden Lion did plan to fight Lotte eventually, he had originally intended to do it after God Valley.
Since it was being moved up, there was no helping it…!
No matter when it happened, the winner would undoubtedly be him—Golden Lion!
Lotte narrowed his eyes and smiled.
"Captain, rest assured—I won't disappoint you."
Right now, using Voice of All Things to peek at Rocks still carried the risk of being discovered.
So Lotte had no intention of taking that risk for the time being. But as the saying goes: meet soldiers with generals, meet water with earth—there was nothing to fear.
Whitebeard narrowed his eyes.
This was the first time he had seen the captain intervene like this. There must be some ulterior motive behind it.
But since Lotte hadn't refused, he must have confidence. There was nothing to worry about.
Rocks' hearty laughter echoed across the entire ship.
"Hahahaha! Let's put this on hold for a few days. For now—let's have a banquet!"
"To celebrate—all the cadres of our pirate crew are finally assembled!"
"The next target… is preparing to seize that treasure island controlled by the Celestial Dragons!"
"God Valley!"
The pirates immediately cheered wildly. A heated banquet thus began.
Three short days passed in the blink of an eye.
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