Chapter 196: Punching the Celestial Dragon, Escalating Situation.

Ten days later:

Silence, dead silence—

Although the Celestial Dragons are rich, very rich, extremely rich, but:

That wealth belongs to the entire 'Celestial Dragon' group, nineteen families with a lot of people. Divided among each person, it can make any Celestial Dragon 'as rich as a nation', but that 'nation' is just a small, insignificant one. Compared to a real big country:

It's nothing.

"You... you..."

The old Celestial Dragon's trembling hand raised and lowered, lowered and raised again. But he couldn't give the order to 'kill him', because he didn't see a trace of familiar fear in Roman's eyes, only an impatient warning:

Say another word, and I'll kill you!

A Marine Admiral is indeed a powerful deterrent, but this world is full of madmen who would risk their lives to bring down an emperor. The old Celestial Dragon wasn't as ignorant as the younger generation; he knew a bit about the world's cruelty:

In fact, every few years, there are incidents of Celestial Dragons 'disappearing' during their travels, especially in the New World, where Celestial Dragons go at their own risk. The Marines can't be your bodyguards all the time! Not to mention the Marines wouldn't want to, and the Five Elders wouldn't allow it.

Without the Five Elders, ordinary Celestial Dragons... are nothing special.

"Hmph!"

With a heavy snort, the old Celestial Dragon turned and sat down. The surrounding gazes... well, actually, no one dared to look at him. But he still felt as if countless questioning and disdainful eyes were on him, making him feel like he was sitting on pins and needles.

Compared to the 'wise' old Celestial Dragon, his children were not convinced. How could there be people in this world who dared to oppose the Celestial Dragons? This is outrageous—

"Roman..."

Nami tugged at Roman, the tense atmosphere turning the auction house into a powder keg, ready to explode at any moment!

"Don't panic,"

Roman started with his usual phrase, and just as everyone feared he would follow it with 'panicking won't help', Roman pointed behind him.

"Luffy is here."

Luffy?

The few who had just breathed a sigh of relief quickly became serious again. Because:

Unlike Robin, Franky, and Nami, who had seen the world's darkness and knew when to bend and when to stand tall, Luffy's personality...

Boom!!

With a loud bang, the auction house doors exploded, and a group of people 'rolled' in.

"Luffy! Can't you find a better way to travel?"

Zoro stood up from the rubble of the door, shaking off wood chips from his hair! The others also got up, rubbing their backs and arms. Luffy's 'Rubber Group Move' was quick, but those who experienced it...

It's hard to describe.

"Oh, Roman, you're here too!"

Luffy looked up at the auction house and saw Roman and the others next to a pile of gold, as well as on the stage:

"Camie! I Finally found you~~ hahaha!"

With Luffy's temperament, he naturally charged straight for the stage! But Hachi immediately grabbed him from behind.

"Wait, Straw Hat!"

"Don't be impulsive, this is an auction—"

But once Luffy made up his mind, how could Hachi hold him back?

"Camie is right there, what do you mean impulsive?"

"Wait, she has an explosive collar on her neck, and those people in the front row..."

Rip,

One pulling with all his might, the other charging forward, in the chaos, Hachi's clothes were suddenly torn, revealing six arms...

"Ahhh, it's an octopus!!"

"Filthy creature, who let you appear on human land?!"

"Guards, guards, kill this lowly fish—"

If Hachi was previously just a strange-looking human in the eyes of these nobles, the moment he exposed his fish-man identity, he became a complete 'animal'.

"Camie~~!!"

In an instant, the surrounding angry shouts and curses surged like a tide, making Hachi instinctively let go. And Luffy, who continued to charge forward, was tripped up by the guards who reacted. In this chaotic moment:

Bang!

A gunshot rang out, and Hachi fell into a pool of blood.

?!

Luffy, who was charging forward regardless, turned back in shock.

"Hmph hmph hmph hahaha,"

The snot-nosed Celestial Dragon who fired the shot danced with joy.

"I hit the fish-man, I knocked him down~~"

"This is my captured fish-man, so it's free—free, fish-man, free, octopus~~"

Seeing this guy's excited look, as happy as a 300-pound child, he didn't even notice the silent Luffy already turning towards him.

Snap,

Hachi, lying in the pool of blood, grabbed Luffy's foot.

"Wa... wait... Straw Hat!"

"Don't... be angry... I'm fine..."

"I was a pirate... did wrong things... deserve to die! You saved me despite my past, so I want to help you... atone to Nami..."

"Stinky fish!"

Facing Hachi's heartfelt words, the snot-nosed Celestial Dragon beside him jumped with rage.

"You got shot by me, and you still dare to talk, it pisses me off..."

Slap!

Luffy took a step forward, anger climbing onto his face.

"You make me very angry too!"

??

"Hey hey hey, that guy can't be..."

"Is he serious?!"

"Stop, Straw Hat—"

Swish,

Taking a step forward, before the snot-nosed idiot Celestial Dragon could react, a fist was already rapidly enlarging in his pupils!

Boom—

If everything were slowed down thousands of times, you would see that compared to Luffy's fist, everything else seemed so slow.

Before Luffy's fist even touched the snot-nosed man, the bubble on his head instantly burst! Then his face caved in under the force of the punch, followed by the fist slamming into his face, ripples spreading across his fat, instantly turning his face into a twisted, abstract painting!

Then came the surging power that spread throughout his entire body. The fat Celestial Dragon's body flew backward from the punch, crashing heavily into the nearby venue! The intense shockwave emanated from his body, instantly creating a huge crater in the ground, which shattered into countless fragments and dust that roared in all directions! And then:

Boom!

With one punch, Luffy sent the Celestial Dragon named 'Charlos' flying through half the venue. Luffy clenched his fist.

Crack,

What a tough guy!

Roman's gaze fell on the snot-nosed man who had left a trail of destruction in the venue. Although he had passed out, he was not actually in any life-threatening danger, once again impressing Roman with the Celestial Dragons' resilience.

Hmm...

Luffy's innate Observation Haki allowed him to distinguish between friend and foe, enabling him to act as he pleased. He never missed, but—

The Celestial Dragons were undoubtedly enemies; Hatchan had indeed repent. So, combining the two, fighting enemies for friends was undoubtedly correct, but what about afterward? Many things are not just about right and wrong; the consequences must also be considered...

"I heard that if you hit these guys, a Marine Admiral will come?"

Zoro drew the sword at his waist.

"Then we must act quickly!"

Sanji lit a cigarette.

"I'll go find the collar key,"

Franky nodded and headed to the back of the stage amidst the chaos.

"I'll treat Hatchan,"

Chopper opened his medical kit.

"Rebellion, rebellion!!"

The elderly Celestial Dragon couldn't sit still! He suddenly stood up and pointed his cane-shaped gun at the Straw Hat crew.

"How dare you hit a Celestial Dragon? There's no place for you in this world—"

Snap,

His hand suddenly empty, the cane-shaped gun fell into Roman's hand.

"Nice thing,"

A casual glance revealed the exquisite mechanical structure, pointed metal bullets, and high-strength alloy that didn't deform in Roman's hand... No wonder it could take down Hatchan with one shot; it was a 'special supply' weapon for the Celestial Dragons.

Could it be something Vegapunk made? Hmm, it would be good to modify it for Nami's self-defense~~ 

"You—"

The furious old Celestial Dragon was about to say something when he met Roman's calm eyes.

"It's mine now."

"I... I..."

A child at sea bullies me, an old man with no strength, but can I endure facing a thief?!

But:

Now it was no longer a matter of 'quick gun and quick fist.' At this close range, Roman only needed to raise the cane gun, and it would be both fast and accurate!

"Danger, Saint Rosward!"

Fortunately, the old Celestial Dragon was not alone. The black-suited, sunglasses-wearing men and armored guards around him rushed forward, pulling him back while using their bodies to separate Roman.

"Quick... call the Marine Admiral and fleet!"

The retreating old Celestial Dragon hid behind the many guards, his mind filled with the face of the young man just now.

The cold expression, and those eyes... why do they seem familiar?

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