Chapter 175: Dragon Hunter VS Kuja Pirates
Watching Ian leave, Momonga's expression was gloomy, but he didn't order the Marine soldiers to stop him, which was essentially a tacit approval.
He had no choice. Fighting Dog had one arm severed and urgently needed treatment. He couldn't just ignore Fighting Dog and focus solely on fighting Ian.
Moreover, and more importantly, the Marines couldn't stay on Stripe Island any longer. From the moment the island was attacked by the Marines, Momonga knew that Whitebeard was coming soon!
If they delayed too long here, the Marine warships would definitely be caught by Whitebeard. When that happened, Momonga was certain that the enraged Whitebeard wouldn't care whether they were Marine Vice Admirals or not; he would send them to feed the fish in the sea.
The Four Emperors, the emperors who rule over the New World—this wasn't just an empty saying.
Thinking about all these circumstances, Momonga felt a headache coming on. How had things turned out like this?
He called for the Marine medics to bandage Fighting Dog. Once it was done, they carried Fighting Dog back to the warship on a stretcher.
Taking this opportunity, he approached Boa Hancock and asked coldly, "Who exactly are these Dragon Hunter Pirates?"
If anything, Boa Hancock wanted to ask him the same question!
However, Ian's Dragon Hunter Pirates were at least her excuse for coming ashore. Boa Hancock wasn't foolish enough to reveal that. So, she lifted her chin arrogantly and said, "Are you interrogating me? I may be a Warlord, but I'm still a pirate. I have no obligation to cooperate with the Marines, do I?"
"Damn it!" Momonga said, furious and embarrassed. "Do you think I didn't notice? That kid with the bell wasn't going all out when he fought you! What are you two playing at!?"
"How dare you speak to me in such a loud voice!?" Boa Hancock got angry as well. She crossed her hands in front of her chest in a heart shape and unleashed her Mero Mero Mellow at Momonga!
A proud woman like the Pirate Empress would never tolerate a man losing his temper at her. So, at the slightest disagreement, she attacked!
Momonga was startled and quickly dodged, but because the distance between them was so close, he couldn't completely avoid it. The Mero Mero Mellow grazed half of his body.
Seeing that half of his body was about to be petrified, Momonga swiftly drew the sword at his waist and stabbed himself in the leg.
The pain diverted his attention and finally stopped the petrification effect.
"Damn it, this woman is completely unreasonable!" Momonga was sweating profusely from the pain, but he only dared to say this in his mind.
"Didn't expect you to be quite clever," Boa Hancock said with a cold smile. This was how she treated men she didn't care about—noble, cold, and as icy as a block of ice.
Even if Momonga was a Marine Vice Admiral, Boa Hancock wouldn't hesitate to petrify him. In her eyes, whatever she did would be forgiven.
Call it narcissism or confidence, but this was the unique style of the Pirate Empress.
Ignoring Momonga, Boa Hancock turned and walked away with elegant steps. Without looking back, she said, "Tell Marine Headquarters that I'm going after this Dragon Hunter Pirates! I'll capture them!"
Women's hearts were truly hard to guess. Hearing this, Momonga couldn't help but be stunned. He couldn't tell whether Boa Hancock really had a grudge against the Dragon Hunter Pirates or not.
Watching Boa Hancock leave gracefully, Momonga's expression was extremely complicated.
He also understood that these Warlord members couldn't be fully trusted. But unfortunately, this woman was also very powerful, and he had no way to deal with Boa Hancock.
Hopefully, she really was going after the Dragon Hunter Pirates... right? Momonga could only console himself with that thought.
Just as he was thinking this, he heard Blackbeard's "Zehahaha" loud laughter from the side.
"What are you laughing at?" Momonga asked coldly, looking at him.
"A very fiery beauty, isn't she?" Blackbeard laughed heartily, holding his stomach. "If she could be my woman, that would be amazing!"
"You'd better stop dreaming!" Momonga sneered at him.
Boa Hancock's current status as a Warlord member was not something Blackbeard could aspire to. So, Blackbeard didn't mind Momonga's mockery. He just said, "But is it really a good idea to let her leave like this?"
"What do you mean?" Momonga asked with a frown.
"Zehahaha!" Blackbeard laughed loudly again, pointing at the Marine soldiers who had been "accidentally" petrified by Boa Hancock. "Are your men going to be stones forever?"
"D... Damn!" Blackbeard's reminder made Momonga realize the problem.
It wasn't just the Marine soldiers who were petrified. There were also the Whitebeard Pirates members at the port, like Ramos and the others. If they couldn't be turned back, Whitebeard's fury would be even greater!
"Go after Boa Hancock immediately!" Momonga turned and ordered. "Have her undo the petrification!"
A Marine Rear Captain immediately took the order and went after Boa Hancock.
"Have everyone return to the warship at the port!" Momonga then ordered.
They had to evacuate. Momonga couldn't be sure if, even if the Rear Captain caught up with her, Boa Hancock's capriciousness would lead her to undo the petrification for the Whitebeard Pirates and the Marines.
Stripe Island was no longer a place to stay. Momonga now deeply felt how weak the Marines were in the New World. As a Marine Headquarters Vice Admiral, he was forced to retreat in humiliation because of his fear of the Whitebeard Pirates.
It wasn't just Momonga. Many people in Marine Headquarters were also aware of this. Especially the Fleet Admiral, the wise strategist Sengoku the Buddha. He knew very well how much influence the Four Emperors had in the New World. If the Marines wanted to gain a foothold in the New World, a war with the Four Emperors was inevitable sooner or later.
At this point in time, the Marines were already planning. Whitebeard was the target they had chosen to challenge. First, as a legendary figure, Whitebeard's influence was strong enough. Second, it was because Whitebeard was indeed aging due to his age. Compared to the other three Emperors, the chance of challenging Whitebeard was greater.
If they won, it would be a cause for celebration. The Marines would have opened a path into the New World. But if they lost, the Marines would have to continue controlling only the first half of the Grand Line.
Starting a war required thorough preparation and a good excuse for intervention. For now, the Marines were still in the planning stage, so it wasn't suitable to directly confront the Whitebeard Pirates.
So, for the time being, Momonga and his men had to retreat. Even if they were unwilling, Marine Headquarters wouldn't allow them to act recklessly.
As the Marines began to evacuate, Blackbeard naturally didn't need to run. After watching the Marines leave, he grinned and laughed again.
"That kid with the bell... I wonder what his Devil Fruit ability is. It looks very strong!" Blackbeard said softly, scratching his chest hair with his ring-covered fingers. "Once I get the Devil Fruit I dream of, maybe I can steal his ability?"
"Ah, no, no! No matter how I look at it, Old Man's Tremor-Tremor Fruit power is stronger! This kid with the bell is better recruited as a companion. If he refuses, then kill him!"
Blackbeard was a man who deeply revered power. He felt no gratitude towards Whitebeard, his nominal "Old Man," nor did he agree with some of his ideals. He had been on Whitebeard's ship for decades, and Whitebeard had taken care of him for just as long. But his respect for Whitebeard was limited solely to Whitebeard's immense power.
Earlier, watching Ian fight against the two Vice Admirals, Blackbeard had gotten a good idea of what kind of person Ian was. Now, he was already starting to scheme against Ian...
.........................
Ian was the first to leave the scene, so he was also the first to arrive at the port.
This trip to Stripe Island was originally for supplies, but due to the incident with the fake masked man, a series of events had occurred, ruining Ian's supply plan.
The Marines, the Whitebeard Pirates, and Boa Hancock, a Warlord, had all gathered on this island. It had now become a place of trouble. Staying too long would only drag them into another vortex, so leaving as soon as possible was the right choice.
However, what Ian didn't expect was that when he arrived at the port, he found his Dragon Hunter Pirates already engaged in battle with the Kuja Pirates!
Earlier, Sardine and the others had followed Ian's instructions and left first to prepare the ship for departure. They had been waiting for Ian to return. But unexpectedly, the Kuja Pirates' ship was also docked at the port. Seeing the flag of Ian's ship and learning the name of their pirate crew, they immediately launched an attack on Ian's ship!
This incident was actually Boa Hancock's fault for not explaining things clearly. She had come ashore under the pretext of investigating the Dragon Hunter Pirates, hoping to find a chance to obstruct the Marines' capture of the masked man in black. But of course, she couldn't explain this too clearly to her subordinates. As a result, her Kuja warrior women believed that this Dragon Hunter Pirates had truly done something blasphemous against their Snake Princess.
Similarly, the members of Ian's Dragon Hunter Pirates didn't understand the relationship either. Upon learning that the Kuja Pirates were a Warlord's ship, they assumed they were allied with the Marines!
And so, the fight broke out between them...
Ian could roughly guess Boa Hancock's intentions, so when he saw this scene, his eyes nearly popped out of his head.