Chapter 49

Releasing tomorrow's chapter in advance, since I finished it early.

And at the end of the chapter, I have a question to ask; I hope that y'all will provide your opinion for that. With that said, enjoy!

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After the moment of the bright light, there came the darkness. Though the rain continued, the swirling clouds settled down, and all marines and pirates, gulping in anticipation, gazed at the site of the clash between Smoker and Diego's techniques.

It was an important moment, for the outcome of Smoker and Diego's fight is a crucial determinant of the entire battle.

And when the smoke cleared from the scene,

"...Is that all?" Diego, still conscious, revealed himself. He, grinning with murderous demeanour, growled while raising his head up to where Smoker was standing until the previous moment, "I ASKED IF THAT'S ALL YOU GOT, WHITE HUNTER...!!!!"

However, Smoker whom Diego was looking for, wasn't present in the sky he gazed at, putting the pirate in confusion.

"C-captain..." Then, one pirate stuttered in disbelief.

"Diego!!!"

Diego heard a terrified shout from a very familiar voice. Turning to the source, he raised his eyebrow, "Enrico? What's wrong—"

"Y-Your chest!!!"

Diego froze. Meeting Enrico's fright-filled eyes with his own, Diego slowly lowered his face and found, a clean hole in his chest, where the blood was rapidly gushing out.

"It sure took long for you to realize." And then, a voice from Diego's back. And this voice, Diego didn't have to turn around to know to whom this voice belonged to: Smoker.

Smoker, standing with his back facing Diego, currently had the unsheathed Shusui leaning on his shoulder.

'He…' Diego realized, '…Stabbed me while my senses were obstructed by the smoke…?'

"Was it fun?" Smoker, without bothering to look at Diego, said calmly to the blonde, "To burn away every single island that you've come across, and to succumb to arrogance from the power which you acquired without any hard work—was it fun to live within a worthless delusion, Hell Blaze?"

"I-I..." Diego, placing his hand on his chest, felt his own warm blood. From his lips, the blood gushed out, and his face, now pale in colour, exhibited nothing but horror.

Smoker, in truth, could've ended the fight right from the start if he wished to do so. However, who was 'Hell Blaze' Diego? He was an apathetic monster, murdering and harming everyone in his way simply for the sake of his entertainment. Smoker knew, that he couldn't grant a simple, painless death to this psychopath. Instead, he's granted,

"Now, it's time for a wake-up call, filth of the sea." Smoker whispered in a cold rage, "Die in regret, for that's the only task left for you to do."

a despair. From the moment Smoker witnessed Diego's antics, he decided to crush this man's dream.

"...No. This can't be." Diego clenched his head with his bloody hands. Vomiting out a substantial amount of blood, he huffed in growing fatigue. His entire body trembled, filled with all sorts of negative emotions, "Wasn't I the chosen one? The man of fire, destined to rule over the sea and seize the world's greatest treasure... if that isn't me, then... who am I?"

The Blaze pirates, watching their captain's pitiful breakdown, were filled with despair of their own. Knowing that they had no chance of victory, they dropped their weapons and willingly knelt. Raising their hands up, they cowered in front of the marine soldiers, letting themselves be arrested without any resistance.

"...To think I lost to a person like him... age surely has gotten me." Darby, watching Diego's state, let out a hollow chuckle. Dropping his sword, he sat down on the deck and said to Cancer, "Kill or arrest, do as you wish."

"DIEGO!!!!!" On the other hand, Enrico, who was immobilized by Aramaki's plants all the way to the neck, screamed at his lungs, "WHAT HAPPENED TO OUR PROMISE?! WHAT HAPPENED TO BECOMING THE GREATEST PIRATE CREW IN THE WORLD?!! YOU BASTARD, HOW DARE YOU LOSE—"

BOOM!

"Rahahaha, shut up!" Aramaki, grinning in content, smashed his fist on Enrico's face, interrupting the latter's scream, "But this isn't that bad of a loss for you guys."

Aramaki, looking at Smoker, claimed with a gleam of admiration, "From the moment I sighted him back at the bar, I knew, that he'll be the strongest marine in the future."

He then whispered with a cold sweat on his back,

"After all, knocking those pirates unconscious back then..."

Smoker then slashed Shushi horizontally, beheading Diego in an instant,

"...was without a doubt, the will of Supreme King that granny mentioned before."

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[Whiskey Peak]

"Why, weren't I being underestimated far too much,"

It was within the peaceful-looking island filled with green vegetation,

"for Marine to dispatch a weakling like you?!"

In front of the fallen marines, one huge triceratops stood. This dinosaur was none other than 'Overflowing' Sasaki using his devil fruit, Dragon Dragon fruit, model: Triceratops.

The Commodore in charge of the division, Commodore Kadar, was sprawled across the ground, with him having been knocked unconscious from Sasaki's single slam. Sasaki's crew too grinned upon witnessing the pitiful sight of the marine division's commander, having foreseen their victory.

"...C-Commodore Kadar!!" One Marine Officer shouted with his teeth gritted, but the unconscious man didn't respond. The Marine Officer, feeling that there was no chance of victory in this fight, was about to order the withdraw, however,

"Hey." A tall, red-haired man with a metal mask on his face, Bastille, daringly approached the triceratops, with a greatsword on his back, "Don't scare my fellow marines too much, will ya-dara?"

And he wasn't it.

"Heh, what's with you acting so high and mighty all of a sudden?"

Maynard.

"...Fucking noisy all around. Where's the need to chat within a battlefield?"

Dalmatian.

"Let's get this over with already. I got ladies swooning over me."

Masterson.

The four new Marine Officers stood side by side, facing off the giant triceratops fearlessly.

"Ho... quite confident, aren't you?" Sasaki's eyes gleamed in interest, "Then let's see, for how long you four manage to last."

Bastille laughed, "Dararara!!! Last?! Oh yes, it is the 'last' as you say-dara!" Subsequently, he pointed the tip of his greatsword at the pirate, "Though it's for you instead of us."

Then, Sasaki kicked off the ground with his muscular dinosaur-legs, beginning his charge at the marines.

BOOM!

And that signaled the start of the battle between division 26 and Sasaki pirates.

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In the middle of the sea where night has arrived, Sidecha, the Vice Admiral who's responsible for leading division 15, was seen tied up to a pole of his marine ship, along with his subordinates.

"...Yes. Yes. I see. Of course, Pierro-sama. The change of plan, I got it loud and clear."

And at the large pirate ship that floated right next to the marine ship, one man with an exquisitely designed pirate captain's hat, 'Martini' Hook, was seen conversing with someone by the Den Den Mushi. Judging by his demeanour, the recipient seemed to be someone of a higher ground, with Hook willingly speaking in a submissive manner.

'...What is going on? What are the Martini pirates doing here, in Paradise?' Sidecha thought with growing despair in his heart.

Hook, he was given the title of 'Martini' due to his habit of leaving an empty bottle of Martini at the sites of his crime. Though this man was termed as one of the 'Seven Rookies' due to beginning his piracy after the start of the 'Great Age of Pirates,' everyone knew that he lied in an entirely different class than the rest of the seven.

"...Listen."

And now, Sidecha watched as Hook made his way to Sidecha's marine ship, while gulping down a bottle of martini,

"We have sad news for you." Hook, coming to a stop in front of Sidecha, crouched down and gazed at the Vice Admiral with hollow, lifeless eyes, "Unfortunately, you, along with your entire division, will have to die here. You know, balancing stuffs, this and that."

Sidecha, suppressing his urge to gulp, turned his eyes at Hook's ship, where his crew members were gazing back at him and his division. Sidecha noted, that unlike any other pirates he's come across, this crew was filled with fatigue and hollowness.

"...I see." And during the final moment of his life, Sidecha seemed to have realized, "You were specifically targeting my division. Since our route to Banaro is only known to the Marine Officers at the Marineford, it means... you work for someone within there. Within the rank of Marine, there exists a betrayer."

Hook, finishing the entire bottle, shrugged, "Eh, you are half right there, though not entirely."

"...Is it Mozambia?" Sidecha gazed into Hook's eyes. Hook, looking back, didn't reply.

"Hemington?"

"..." Sidecha's eyes trembled in a horrifying thought, as Hook stood still without any reaction. He, after a momentary pause, whimpered, "...Admiral... Seidohebi…?"

Hook, upon hearing the name, finally raised up his hand that was holding onto a pistol. And as Sidecha expressed disbelief,

BANG. The loud noise of a gunshot resounded across the sea.

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[Kuragaina]

"..." In an old, broken castle that wasn't tended for years, there was one young man with hawk-resembling yellow-coloured eyes. With a huge sword, Yoru, sheathed on his back, he was sitting down on an old chair, enjoying a cup of tea.

This man was 'Hawkeye' Dracule Mihawk, the man to be known as the 'Strongest Swordsman in the World' in the future.

And at the outside of the castle, there lied the mountain of corpses, all wearing marine attire. They, while alive, were known as the 14th division of the Marine.

"Boring." Mihawk commented as he looked at the corpses through the window, "Among the hundreds of marines who's come after me until now, not even one has given me the fun. Weak and pompous fools, filled with nothing but a hypocritic ideal that they call justice... hm?"

At the entrance of the castle, the doors opened, revealing a masked man wearing a white suit. That man, walking elegantly, bowed in front of the still-seated Mihawk,

"Greetings, Mr. Hawkeye."

Mihawk, taking another sip from the tea, asked, "What? Are you here to challenge me like any other fool out there?"

"I don't fathom to think of matching the great swordsman. Instead, I'm here to suggest you an offer on behalf of the World Government." the man, reaching into the inner pocket of his top, took out a tightly sealed envelope. Mihawk, snatching it from the man's hand, raised an eyebrow.

"What may be this be?"

"It's the invitation letter to the Mariejois, the land of gods. From there, we will discuss," The man stated, "the opportunity that will guarantee your entertainment."

"...Mariejois?" Mihawk, for the first time, smiled in amusement, "Inviting a pirate, of all possibilities, to the so-called 'Sacred Land'... how amusing."

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"Ha... ha..."

In a blue sea without any sign of tidal wave or wind, Calm Belt, one man was found to be breathing heavily, with his left arm missing a hand. He, having slicked back black hair, was 'Sir' Crocodile, one of the currently known 'Seven Rookies.'

"...My crew."

From the island of Maximus, he barely escaped from the marines' assault. He, the man who aimed to defeat Whitebeard and reach the throne of Pirate King, not only lost his left hand, but also his entire crew.

And for the past three days, Crocodile was drifted in the Calm Belt. Dehydrated and starved, the situation seemed hopeless for him.

"...Whitebeard? Pirate King? One Piece?" Crocodile, while bursting out the self-mocking laughter, let out tears full of anguish, "KUAHAHAHA!!! How delusional have you been, Crocodile...!!!! Rushing stupidly without any preparation, and losing to a mere Marine Commodore... ONE PIECE MY ASS!!!!!"

From Crocodile's shout, the water underneath his ship rippled.

"A better preparation...! A suitable strength which no one can oppose...! If only I am given the second chance..."

SPLASH! At the next moment, Crocodile's ship was flipped, as a huge Sea King revealed itself from the depth of the sea.

And Crocodile helplessly watched, as the Sea King engulfed him along with his ship, to its dark inside.

However, whether he truly died or not... remains unknown.

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[New World]

Within the violently churning sea, one huge ship that resembled a whale in terms of appearance, Moby Dick, calmly sailed by. And this ship was owned by the infamous Whitebeard pirates, the true powerhouse of the New World whom not even the Big Mom pirates and Beast pirates could fathom of going against.

"Oh... just how turbulent has the sea become." And atop this ship, one man with long, wild, and yellow-coloured hair, who had swords embedded on his severed legs and a missing left arm, 'Golden Lion' Shiki, was found sitting in front of a huge, domineering man with a wavy blonde hair and white mustache that formed a crescent-shaped arc: 'Whitebeard' Edward Newgate.

Around Newgate and Shiki stood the rest of the Whitebeard pirates, who monitored the movement of Shiki with great caution.

"...What are you here for, Shiki?" Newgate, leaning his cheek against his huge hand, said with a notable dislike for the fellow blonde, "If you are here to whine about losing your entire crew, then go cry elsewhere."

"Heh... you're speaking of a past event that has already passed by. I'm not here to whine as you say, but..." Shiki grinned, though with an underlying sadness, "to make an offer."

"...An offer?"

"Yes indeed, an offer. Though I wished to do it myself, I am aware... that my will has been uttered shattered." Shiki, opening his arms wide with a joy-filled expression, exclaimed, "So Whitebeard, no, Newgate, become the ruler of this world in my stead! I will gladly become your underling, and it will be just like that time during Xebec's era!"

Newgate immediately replied with a deep frown, "...Do you want me to drown you?"

"...And as I expected, you dislike the idea of it." Shiki, chuckling knowingly, then revealed a small treasure chest from his back, "Therefore, I brought a treasure, one so valuable that you won't be able to refuse. In return for this treasure and my loyalty, Newgate, you must conquer the world."

Without any hesitation, Shiki then opened the treasure box in front of the entire Whitebeard pirates.

"Shihahaha! Voila, the Dark Dark fruit... the fruit that I stumbled upon in midst of my despair-filled steps!" Shiki stated with certainty that Newgate will accept his offer, "Though none of us can eat this, if one of your crew members were to take this powerful devil fruit—the fruit that Rocks D. Xebec himself ate in the past… we will be invincible!!!"

And as a thunder roared from the sky, as if frightened of something, one obese-looking man with a long nose among the Whitebeard pirates, Marshall D. Teach, locked his eyes on the treasure chest, greedily.

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So, to you who finished this chap, what do you think of giving Conqueror's Haki to Smoker? Yes or no? I'm willing to change this part depending on your answers.

1. Yes, CoC is the 'gift' from the being that transmigrated Smoker

2. No, Smoker isn't supposed to have it, and it ruins the immersion

Also, probably no chap until Saturday or so, haha… getting busy again.