16: Righteous and Noble!
"I didn't expect him to be a Logia-type Devil Fruit user, the strongest among Devil Fruits."
Klen, burned beyond recognition, no longer resembled the vice-captain he once was. His screams grew weaker, and soon he perished in the flames—a fitting punishment for his vile nature, meted out by fate in the form of Tony. Without a second glance, Tony tossed Klen's charred corpse overboard, like one would discard trash. His body slowly sank into the ocean, resting in eternal silence.
Ignoring Goro's shock, Tony kept his Sharingan fixed on Goro's every move. "Oh, there's probably a lot you didn't expect. What's the matter? Regretting coming back now?"
"Looking to pick off an easy target, weren't you? Saw a lone figure on board and thought you'd get an easy kill… Well, let's see who's doing the killing now."
In this world where only the strong survive, Tony felt no sympathy for them—especially since they had come back to finish him off. Letting them go was out of the question.
"Brat, don't get cocky!" Goro growled, disappearing from Tony's sight in an instant.
But Tony didn't budge. He knew through his Haki that Goro lacked even a hint of it himself, putting Tony at a natural advantage as a Logia Devil Fruit user. The defining trait of a Logia-type fruit was the ability to "transform" one's body, making physical attacks useless.
In a flash, Goro's razor-sharp claws appeared in front of Tony, swiping through his head—only to pass straight through. Tony's face broke into a smug smile as Goro's repeated attempts at hitting him continued to fail. Instead, Goro's hands were burned by Tony's flames.
For the first time, Goro felt the utter helplessness of being powerless against an opponent. His hands, now singed, shook as he realized the trap he had stumbled into. The fierce tiger, now just a frightened cub, regretted turning around for one last raid when he had nearly reached the Sabaody Archipelago.
But Tony had tired of toying with him. His eyes narrowed, and with a swift movement, he launched a "Fire Fist" straight at Goro, engulfing him in a massive blaze. The flames quickly spread across the deck of the Tiger Pirates' ship, a testament to the progress Tony had made in controlling his abilities during his training on Ruskaina Island.
Goro screamed in agony as the flames seared his body. "Curse you, you Devil Fruit user! I won't let you kill us without a fight! I'll take you down with me!" He charged at Tony in a crazed fury, but once again, his physical attacks passed right through Tony's intangible form, rendering them utterly ineffective. With every attack slipping through Tony as though he were a ghost, Goro's despair grew, watching as the ship he had built burned around him.
Seeing their terrifying captain so effortlessly toyed with, the remaining three pirates realized the battle was lost. They rushed forward, dropping to their knees before Tony.
"Please, spare us! The captain abandoned us anyway, and we swear we'll never do any more bad deeds."
"All of the Fierce Tiger Pirates' treasure… we'll hand it over, no conditions!"
At first, Tony didn't react, but the word "treasure" snapped him to attention. He licked his lips as his eyes sparkled with excitement, barely concealing his greed.
Yes, he had nearly forgotten—he had left on this journey practically penniless! Rayleigh and Shakky had been in hiding and hadn't provided him with any money to live off. And as an adventurer, he knew he needed a well-lined pocket to keep going.
Daily needs and supplies on board all required money. "Treasure, huh? Show me what you've got. If I'm satisfied, I might consider sparing you three," Tony stated bluntly, openly declaring his intent to rob the Tiger Pirates and claim all their wealth.
Goro's tiger face twitched with rage as he watched his three remaining crew members betray him, shouting, "Do you still call yourselves crew? To save your skins, you're telling the enemy about our treasure!"
Tony sneered at Goro, retorting, "Now you remember they're your crew? You didn't think so earlier. To you, they were nothing but disposable tools, easily replaced."
Goro was momentarily silenced, realizing his hypocrisy. He had indeed spoken those words, and now it was impossible for these three to listen to him anymore.
Without hesitation, the trio ignored their captain's orders, heading below deck. Soon, they returned with three chests filled to the brim with golden jewelry and coins, leaving Tony wide-eyed in astonishment.
He roughly calculated that the treasure could be worth around 80 million Berries if exchanged in a big city. It seemed the Fierce Tiger Pirates had been quite successful in their plundering.
To someone like Tony, who despised evildoers… there was only one course of action: confiscate all of it. He couldn't let these pirates use the treasure to acquire powerful weapons and ships to harm others again!
"Bring those three chests onto my ship, and you may go. But remember what you promised. If you dare commit any more atrocities, I'll hunt you down," Tony declared, radiating a righteous air as he sternly lectured the three.
Goro, watching his hard-earned fortune being handed over, turned red with fury. His murderous intent flared as he extended his sharp claws toward his three crew members, intending to kill them and knock the treasure overboard in one fell swoop.
"You won't get away with my treasure!" he roared.
"Rest in peace!" Tony rebuked, standing tall and righteous. "Trying to pull off such a vile deed in front of someone as just and honorable as me?"
His Sharingan had already detected Goro's movements. Tony gripped Ryūjin Jakka, his Zanpakutō, and quickly intercepted Goro. With one swift stroke, he severed Goro's proud arm, then followed up with a spinning kick, sending him flying off the pirate ship.
"You filthy scum! Even in death, I'll come back to haunt you!" Goro screamed, seething with resentment as he plunged into the sea.
Tony knew well that Devil Fruit users were powerless in water, sealing Goro's fate. The Tiger Pirates had been effectively wiped out.
The three remaining crew members gulped, utterly terrified. They weren't fools; they understood that, whether Tony had truly meant to save them or not, they would likely be dead if their captain hadn't been slain.
So, regardless of Tony's true motives, the only thing that mattered now was survival. They obediently loaded the treasure onto Tony's ship, then took a small boat from the Tiger Pirates' ship and sailed toward the Sabaody Archipelago.
True to his word, Tony spared the last three, as he wasn't one to kill indiscriminately. If they could genuinely turn over a new leaf, he saw no harm in giving them a chance.
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T/N:
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