A ship? And a beauty?
Greed instantly lit up in Blackbeard's eyes.
He was already in a foul mood and itching for a way to vent.
Following the direction Burgess pointed, he soon spotted a curvaceous woman with wine-red hair and heart-shaped lips.
"Zehahaha! I know that little beauty. She's one of the Worst Generation—Big Eater Jewelry Bonney. She's just barely qualified to be my woman!"
Grinning with his gapped teeth, Blackbeard steered his ship toward Bonney.
Bonney noticed him immediately. Her heart skipped a beat, then anger flared as she shouted:
"Blackbeard! So it's you, you disgusting, ugly bastard! What do you think you're doing getting close to me? Get the hell out of here!"
"Zehahaha!"
Blackbeard's laughter grew even more greedy and unrestrained.
"You've got quite the temper, little beauty. A real spicy one, huh? Doesn't matter—I like that!"
Bonney jumped in rage.
"You perverted, filthy piece of trash!"
But the more she cursed, the more excited Blackbeard became.
Bonney ordered her crew to open fire, but it did nothing to stop the Blackbeard Pirates from boarding her ship.
In no time at all, her crew was slaughtered by Burgess and the others.
Bonney herself was subdued by Blackbeard and tied to a pillar.
Blackbeard licked his lips, his greedy gaze sending a chill down Bonney's spine.
This crude, ugly man… was he actually thinking of doing something to her?
Like a toad lusting after a swan—utterly ridiculous!
Bonney kept hurling insults, calling Blackbeard worse than filth.
Yet he didn't get angry in the slightest—if anything, he was getting so excited he could barely hold himself back.
Unfortunately, during the battle, the ship had been damaged. A large hole had formed in the hull, and seawater was already pouring in. It would sink soon.
There was no private space for Blackbeard to indulge himself.
No matter how shameless he was, he wasn't about to act right in front of his crew in broad daylight.
Reluctantly suppressing his desires, he ordered Burgess to set sail at once and find an island.
They soon landed, bringing Bonney ashore—still bound.
Navigator Lafitte spoke up:
"Captain, the priority right now is finding a proper ship. Without one, we can't go anywhere."
Blackbeard glanced at Bonney, who was still cursing nonstop.
As a Supernova, she could likely be exchanged with the Marines for a warship.
But truth be told, Blackbeard had taken a liking to this violent beauty and felt a bit reluctant to part with her.
Still, for the sake of his ambitions, there was nothing he wouldn't sacrifice.
He quickly made his decision.
"Send a message to the Marines. Tell them Jewelry Bonney is in my hands. If they want her back, they'll bring me a warship!"
…
But there was no need for Blackbeard to send the message.
Fleet Admiral Sengoku already knew Bonney had been captured.
While en route to Mary Geoise, Sengoku received a call from X Drake.
Through the receiver, Drake's voice came through:
"I saw Jewelry Bonney being captured by Blackbeard. She's on an island near the entrance to the New World."
Sengoku and Kong were both startled.
Bonney's identity was far from ordinary.
Back when they learned she had escaped from Mary Geoise, it had already caused quite a shock.
She had to be rescued.
After a moment of thought, Sengoku said:
"I'll have Aokiji handle Bonney's rescue. Drake, your mission from here on is to infiltrate the Beasts Pirates at all costs!"
In the original timeline, it was Akainu who captured Bonney.
But at this point, Akainu was still recovering from his injuries—and Sengoku clearly intended to let Aokiji claim this merit.
Drake replied:
"Understood, Fleet Admiral!"
After hanging up, Sengoku immediately contacted Aokiji and informed him of the situation.
Once everything was arranged, Sengoku let out a long sigh.
"I'll be stepping down as Fleet Admiral soon. With the Beasts Pirates growing more aggressive by the day, the only hope of turning things around… lies with Drake."
Drake, a user of the Dragon-Dragon Fruit, Ancient Zoan, Model: Allosaurus, perfectly fit the style of the Beasts Pirates.
As long as he showed a willingness to join, Kaido would undoubtedly accept him.
And once Drake infiltrated their ranks, the Marines' current disadvantage could be greatly improved.
On one hand, Drake could relay the Beasts Pirates' movements in real time, allowing the Marines and World Government to prepare in advance.
On the other hand, he might even steal some of Luo Xing's absurd inventions—like the Senzu Beans, the Fusion Earrings, or that Anywhere Door that had toyed with Sengoku and the others!
If they could truly obtain such things, it would be an unimaginable gain.
Sengoku and Kong couldn't help but cling to that hope.
Unfortunately…
That hope was doomed to fail.
Because the Drake they believed would be flawlessly accepted by the Beasts Pirates…
was about to lose his head.
…
After finishing his call with Sengoku, Drake took one last look at the island where Blackbeard and Bonney were.
Confirming they wouldn't be leaving anytime soon, he quietly returned to the first half of the Grand Line.
But his destination—
was none other than the Sabaody Archipelago, where the war had just ended.
Drake carried the heavy responsibility of infiltrating the Beasts Pirates.
Rather than seeking out Kaido, who was far away, it was far more practical to approach someone closer—
the Beasts Pirates' young master…
the Fifth Emperor, Luo Xing.
After all, Luo Xing had recruited countless criminals from Impel Down.
He was clearly a man of ambition who valued talent.
Drake was confident that with his strength and Devil Fruit ability, Luo Xing would gladly take him in.
And once he earned that man's trust, whether it was gathering intelligence or stealing those incredible inventions, everything would become far easier.
With that in mind, Drake calmly arrived at Sabaody.
At this moment, the entire archipelago had been transformed into a massive war base by the Beasts Pirates.
The defenses were incredibly tight.
Not only was the island itself heavily guarded, but in the waters to the right loomed a massive ship as large as an island—the Thriller Bark—forming a pincer position with Sabaody.
A ferocious army of criminals, combined with an undead zombie legion…
Such defenses were nothing short of impregnable.
Even if the Marines and World Government gathered another army to attack, the Beasts Pirates could respond with ease.
Seeing such a terrifying defense, Drake couldn't help but feel a surge of shock—and tension.
The moment he set foot on the island, he was spotted by a soldier from the criminal army.
The man pointed a gun at him and barked:
"Who are you?"
Drake immediately raised both hands to show he meant no harm.
"I'm X Drake. I've come to join Lord Luo Xing."
"X Drake?"
The soldier seemed to recognize the name and sneered.
"So you're one of those so-called Worst Generation Supernova, huh? Heh, at least you know when to submit. Fine—wait here. I'll report to Lord Luo Xing."
The soldier hurried off toward Luo Xing's residence.
The disdain he had just shown Drake vanished completely, replaced by extreme humility the moment he arrived.
Dropping to his knees, he said:
"Lord Luo Xing, a Supernova named X Drake has just arrived on the island. He says he wants to join us."
Seated at the head, Luo Xing raised an eyebrow.
Then a faint, ambiguous smile curved at his lips.
Glancing sideways at Shiryu of the Rain, he said indifferently:
"Are just any stray dogs worthy of becoming my subordinates?"
"Shiryu… go bring me that man's head."
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