#53 Whitebeard's Worries

"Who knows... I just hope it doesn't come to that. Otherwise, Ace will be in big trouble..."

"That stubborn son of mine, I really hope he doesn't catch up with that brat Teach!"

Thinking about this made Whitebeard's head hurt even more. He felt uneasy but couldn't pinpoint why. So, he picked up his drink again and started gulping it down.

"Captain, you can't drink anymore! You've already exceeded your limit for today. Drinking more will make your condition worse!"

Several small nurses standing by Whitebeard hurriedly tried to stop him, but they were too small to actually do anything.

"Nonsense! Drinking what I like won't make me sick!"

Ignoring them completely, Whitebeard used the copious amount of alcohol to suppress his bad feelings.

There was nothing they could do now but hope Ace stayed safe and that the incidents weren't connected to Blackbeard. If they were, Blackbeard would be terrifyingly powerful, and even someone as strong as Ace would suffer.

But... the more you fear something, the more likely it is to happen. Whitebeard's premonition was eerily accurate!

Over the next period, the impact of the Saraca Island incident grew as more people learned about it. However, thanks to the Navy's stern warnings, few dared to blame them.

The incident was now tied to the Celestial Dragon disappearance, and no one wanted to mess with that.

Even the bold World Economy Newspaper President Morgans, who never feared the Four Emperors or the Navy, didn't dare accuse the Navy in his news reports this time.

Firstly, there was no evidence linking the Navy to the incident. Secondly, the Celestial Dragon matter was too dangerous to touch.

But, as time went on, more and more people set sail for Saraca, eager to investigate the mystery themselves.

Of course, none of this mattered to Blackbeard and his crew.

After half a month of sailing, they had managed to evade everyone's attention and were nearing Blackbeard's target.

"…Seriously, you guys are terrible at training!"

"It's been almost half a month, and despite having such powerful Devil Fruits, you've made so little progress? How could you let me and Teach down?"

On Blackbeard's ship, Carlo's scolding voice echoed. Standing before him were Lafitte and three others recruited from Saraca Island.

All four of them hung their heads like scolded schoolchildren, not daring to talk back.

Ever since they left Sarakaza Island, they had been sailing towards Blackbeard's target. The journey was long, taking over half a month at high speed.

To not waste time, Carlo had immediately put them into intense training to develop their Devil Fruit abilities. But after almost half a month, their progress was minimal, making Carlo furious!

He felt like valuable treasures were wasted on them!

Of course, their progress was only considered minimal by Carlo. In reality, they had made significant strides, much faster than normal people. But for Carlo, it wasn't enough.

As members of Blackbeard's crew, with such incredible abilities, they needed to progress ten or even a hundred times faster than ordinary pirates to meet his plans!

"Burgess, why are you still messing with that jet device?"

"As a Behemoth, you have top-tier strength and defense. Do you think that gadget can surpass the power your fruit gives you?"

"From now on, just focus on strength training! Nothing else!"

Carlo glared at Burgess, pointing out his training flaw.

Then he turned his gaze to Van Augur.

"What's the point of just researching bullet speed?"

"As a sniper, you just need to hit your target. Extra speed is pointless if it doesn't help."

"Can't you use your fruit to speed yourself up, too? As a sniper, positioning is key. Use your fruit to move quickly, find the best spots, and keep a safe distance from enemies. That's how you become the toughest target on the battlefield."

"And think outside the box. Your fruit can speed up reloading or even your teammates."

"Start practicing your movement speed now."

After scolding these two, Carlo's expression softened a bit when he looked at Lafitte.

"Lafitte, focus on improving your reconnaissance abilities. In pigeon form, avoid detection as much as possible."

"Try making your pigeon form look more like a seagull. On the ocean, that would make you even harder to spot and more useful to us."

Lafitte's fruit wasn't the strongest, but he was smart. Carlo knew how to balance praise and criticism to keep morale up.

But as soon as he finished with Lafitte, Carlo's face darkened again. His eyes locked onto the last person, Doc Q, almost scaring the sickly man to death.

"I thought your whole routine was leading to some brilliant poison creation."

"But this is it???"