Chapter 99: Parting
Ace, are you trying to screw me over?
Didn’t you see me doing everything I could just now to avoid revealing my name? And then you go and blurt it out like that.
But just as Ian was thinking this, Ace continued, “You’re a bounty hunter. We just happened to save you. You don’t have to become a pirate because of us.”
Hearing Ace’s words, Tina immediately shifted her gaze to Ian and asked in surprise, “You’re actually a bounty hunter!?”
Ian thought for a moment and quickly understood. Ace wasn’t trying to screw him over; on the contrary, he was helping him get off the hook.
Even if Ian hadn’t revealed his name, the Marines would eventually find his photo. By then, they’d wonder why a bounty hunter was on a pirate ship. Combined with Ian hiding his name, they might mistakenly think he’d become a pirate.
But by openly admitting Ian’s name and identity in front of all these Marines, the Marines would be able to verify it. Without any concealment, Ace’s following words would actually be more believable.
After all, the Spade Pirates had originally come to rescue Marine soldiers after receiving a distress signal. So saving Ian, a bounty hunter, would naturally make sense.
Realizing Ace’s true intention, Ian couldn’t help but glance at Ace’s back. He understood that Ace had taken his earlier words to heart. Ian had told him he couldn’t become a pirate and needed to maintain his identity as a bounty hunter. Ace hadn’t said anything, but he’d remembered. This unexpected encounter with the Marines was unavoidable, and since Ian was on his ship, it could easily lead to misunderstandings. So Ace stepped forward to clear Ian’s name.
Perhaps for Ace, no one understood better that everyone has their own path. Even though he really wanted Ian to be his first mate, he didn’t take this opportunity to drag Ian into trouble.
Letting out a sigh, Ian didn’t know what to say. Facing Tina’s question, he nodded and said, “Yes, I’m a bounty hunter.”
“…” Tina stared at Ian in silence for a long moment before finally speaking. “Since you’re a bounty hunter, step aside. After I arrest these pirates, I’ll deal with you.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Ian said, lowering his head and moving to the side.
Tina stopped paying attention to him, but she didn’t know that behind his lowered head, a sharp glint flashed in Ian’s eyes.
“Arrest them!” the Marine soldiers shouted, following Tina’s orders as they surrounded Ace and the others behind him.
But at that moment, Ace suddenly kicked a Marine soldier and shouted to Jimmy and the others, “Jump into the sea and get out of here!”
Jimmy and the others knew that being caught by the Marines and thrown into prison would be worse than death. So they didn’t hesitate. Struggling to their feet, even though Tina’s shackles bound them, they could still move their legs. They charged toward the ship’s railing.
“Stop, or we’ll shoot!” the Marine soldiers yelled.
Jimmy and the others ignored them, not looking back as they rushed to the railing. Just as they were about to jump, the Marine soldiers panicked, raised their guns, and aimed at them, ready to fire.
But at that moment, Ace let out a roar: “Don’t you dare hurt my crew!!!”
As he shouted, an invisible force suddenly erupted from Ace, sweeping across the entire deck. The Marines who had been raising their guns to shoot suddenly rolled their eyes back, foamed at the mouth, and collapsed.
It wasn’t just the soldiers on the deck. The Marines standing on the two warships on either side were also affected, fainting one by one and falling to the ground.
This invisible force didn’t discriminate. Even Tina and Ian were affected. When the force hit him, Ian felt a wave of dizziness in his head. Though he quickly recovered, he could clearly feel the powerful surge of this energy.
The cigarette Tina had been holding finally fell from her red lips. Her usually calm expression now showed intense shock.
“Conqueror’s Haki!?”
Tina stared blankly at Ace, then at the Marine soldiers lying unconscious on the deck. She finally realized what had happened. This kid in the cowboy hat actually possessed the quality of a conqueror, something that only appeared in one in a million people!?
Ian also realized what power Ace had just unleashed. It was Conqueror’s Haki, triggered by his emotional outburst. This was Ian’s first time witnessing such power firsthand.
Seeing the large number of soldiers unconscious and Tina frozen in shock, Ian knew this was a perfect opportunity. He pulled something from his pocket and lunged toward Tina with all his strength.
The moment Tina saw Ian move, she reacted instantly, lifting her leg to kick him. Regardless of whether this guy was a bounty hunter or a pirate, she planned to take him down first.
Seeing Tina’s leg coming at him, Ian raised his hand to block it. This made Tina sneer inwardly.
But something strange happened. Ian’s right hand actually blocked Tina’s kick. Not only did her leg not pass through his palm, but he also grabbed it firmly.
“You!” Tina was startled. As her kick was blocked, a sudden wave of weakness washed over her. Only then did she see clearly that Ian was holding a black cuff in his hand, which had locked onto her kicking leg.
“Sea… Seastone…” Tina muttered, her body going limp as she began to collapse.
But halfway down, she felt an arm wrap around her waist.
Looking up, she saw that the person holding her was Ian.
“You… why do you have Seastone!?” Tina asked weakly.
“Sorry, beautiful,” Ian said with a grin. “I can’t let you catch these guys. Only I can catch them. So even though I’m a bounty hunter, I have no choice but to take you down this once.”
With the Seastone handcuffs locked around her ankle, Tina’s power faded. The shackles on Ace softened, and he easily broke free.
“Ian, didn’t I tell you not to get involved?” Ace said, looking at him with a complicated expression.
“I’m not that rigid,” Ian shrugged. “Besides, I’m not helping pirates. I’m helping a friend.”
Then Ian said to Ace, “You guys go. You’ve stirred up a big mess. From now on, you’ll really be a pirate and get a bounty. The Spade is done for. Take Jimmy and the others and commandeer a warship to leave.”
“What about you?” Ace asked.
“I’m staying,” Ian said, glancing at Tina in his arms. “She’s a Devil Fruit user too. She can’t swim. If the Spade sinks, she might die. I need to get her to the other warship.”
Tina said nothing, just quietly listened to the conversation between Ian and Ace.
Ace looked up and saw the third warship slowly approaching. He knew this wasn’t the time for long talks, so he said to Ian, “Alright, we’re leaving. Ian, even though our paths are different, I hope you live a brilliant life.”
“You too,” Ian sighed. He realized that Ace had also noticed that if he kept hanging around with him, more trouble would follow. That’s why he said what he did.
Ace jumped onto the second warship on the right side and lowered a rope ladder for Jimmy and the others, who were in the sea, to climb up. Though there were still unconscious soldiers on that ship, Ian knew that with Ace’s personality, those Marines would wake up tied up but unharmed. Maybe after Ace and his crew reached some island, they’d let the soldiers go.
As for the Log Pose, that was up to Ace and his crew. Maybe the warship had a pointer to the next island.
With Jimmy and the others, they could barely steer the warship. Soon, Ian saw it turn around and slowly sail away.
The third Marine warship arrived and was about to chase after Ace, but Ian stood at the railing, holding Tina, and shouted to the ship, “Come over here! Captain Tina is here!”
Through their telescopes, the Marines on that ship saw the situation on the Spade and had to give up chasing Ace, steering toward them instead.
“When we get on the ship, I’ll want a thorough explanation from you,” Tina said weakly, held in Ian’s arms, grinding her teeth.
“As you wish,” Ian shrugged. “Oh, by the way, the Seastone handcuffs locking you were actually given to me by Vice Admiral Garp.”
“Vice… Vice Admiral Garp!?” Tina was stunned.
At that moment, Tina began to believe that Ian really was a bounty hunter. But before she could say anything, they both heard a loud crash from beneath the Spade.
The Spade had been unlucky this time. Both sides had been pierced by Tina’s “Black Spear Formation.” Full of holes, and with over a hundred Marine soldiers jumping onto it, it had held out for this long but was finally breaking apart.
Ian felt the ground beneath him give way. He only had time to tighten his grip on Tina and press down on his hat. Then a cold sensation hit him as they plunged into the sea…