Chapter 384: Brutality
Green Bit was actually a small, separate island adjacent to Dressrosa. It was very small in area, and the people of Dressrosa had connected it to the mainland via an iron bridge, treating it as part of Dressrosa itself.
Therefore, this small, isolated island also functioned as a port. Although no docks had been built, ships could still land there.
It was here that Jack the Drought of the Beast Pirates and his ship had come ashore.
Back when Ian was still being pursued by Marine Admiral Kizaru on Salamis Island, Doflamingo had already established contact with the Beast Pirates and the Four Emperor Kaido.
How to put it? Doflamingo was a man who, as a Warlord of the Sea, a top-tier underworld broker, the King of Dressrosa, and also connected to the World Nobles, the Celestial Dragons, had wealth, status, and power all within his grasp. In a sense, Doflamingo was already no different from the Pirate King himself; all he lacked was a bit of fame. One could say Doflamingo had no more ambitions.
However, when a person has no ambitions, they are capable of anything. Doflamingo possessed an unparalleled destructive tendency. This destructive tendency was so extreme that one could say he wanted to destroy the world. Similarly, the Four Emperor Kaido of the Beasts was also a madman. Not only did he constantly want to commit suicide, but he also wanted to start a grand, spectacular war, regardless of who the opponent was, as long as he could have a satisfying fight.
These personalities of theirs made them hit it off immediately upon meeting, quickly reaching a cooperation agreement. Since Doflamingo had the evil scientist Caesar in his hands, he started doing business with Kaido, trading Artificial Devil Fruits.
Kaido, as a Four Emperor, was already strong enough, yet Doflamingo spared no effort in providing him with a large number of Artificial Devil Fruits to expand his army. It would be strange if Doflamingo didn't have some ulterior motive... Perhaps he was hoping Kaido would become strong enough to challenge the World Government and the Marines, completely overthrowing the World Government's rule.
With this kind of cooperation, Doflamingo and the Beast Pirates naturally had close ties. Unfortunately for him, a few days ago, Kaido learned from Doflamingo that the first batch of Artificial Devil Fruits was estimated to be almost ripe. So Kaido sent one of his Three Calamities, Jack the Drought, to retrieve this first batch once the cultivation was successful.
Jack was undoubtedly flying the flag of the Beast Pirates, that goes without saying. But the Beast Pirates were far too famous in the New World. If Jack were to appear openly and arrogantly at the port of Dressrosa, the entire country would likely panic.
Furthermore, Doflamingo would inevitably be implicated and subjected to stricter investigations by the World Government.
So Jack ultimately chose to land at Green Bit. Since the fighting fish would attack anyone trying to cross the iron bridge, no one went to that small island anymore. By landing here, Jack could avoid alerting anyone and causing trouble for Doflamingo. He would simply get the Artificial Devil Fruits from Doflamingo and then leave quietly, so no one would ever know the Beast Pirates had been there.
In fact, Jack had already landed on Green Bit a few hours earlier. If Ian and the Germa Group hadn't appeared on the island, the Donquixote Pirates would likely have sent people to welcome Jack the Drought and finalize the deal. But as luck would have it, Ian and the Germa Group subsequently started a massive ruckus on Dressrosa Island. Doflamingo could only send his men to intercept them, to the point where he actually forgot that Jack the Drought was still waiting.
This was really...
Clearly, Jack the Drought was not a man of good temper. If it weren't for the fact that his boss valued this transaction highly, preventing him from causing chaos in Dressrosa, his personality would have led him to lose his temper after waiting for several hours.
And then, just as Jack was becoming extremely agitated, Ian started fighting Doflamingo several miles away from Green Bit. Even from that distance, Ian's Black Dragon Wave soaring into the sky and Doflamingo's Birdcage could be seen.
Under these circumstances, Jack naturally reacted immediately. Something was happening on Dressrosa Island. So he came out of his hiding place, intending to cross the iron bridge to see what was going on.
It was under these circumstances that Reiju, the Germa soldiers, the Dragon Hunter Pirates, and the Kuja Pirates encountered Jack the Drought...
The moment she saw Jack the Drought, Reiju felt terrible. Because her father, Judge, had previously thought of selling Germa's technology for a good price. He considered cooperating with a Four Emperor, using their power to gain greater strength and fulfill his long-cherished wish of ruling the North Blue again. For this reason, Reiju naturally understood some information about the four Emperors and thus knew of Jack the Drought.
"Why is this madman here!?" Reiju's pretty face turned pale with fright, her curly eyebrows involuntarily knitting together.
Just as she was thinking about how to deal with this, she heard Jack opposite her speak: "Are you people from the Donquixote Family? Where is Doflamingo!?"
Jack the Drought had mistaken them. Although Doflamingo and Kaido of the Beasts were cooperating, Jack only recognized Doflamingo himself. He didn't know any of his subordinates, or rather, he couldn't be bothered to know them. In his view, Doflamingo's men were all ants, unworthy of attention.
So when Reiju, a stranger, appeared, he immediately thought she was someone sent by Doflamingo to welcome him. He pressed further: "What the hell is happening on the island? Why did you keep me waiting so long!?"
Encountering Jack the Drought here was something Reiju didn't want to happen. She had no intention of provoking this madman. So when she heard Jack's question, she had a flash of inspiration and immediately said, "The boss is behind us!"
Reiju just wanted to get rid of Jack the Drought for now, so she pretended to be a member of the Donquixote Family.
Jack didn't suspect a thing. He immediately strode forward, saying, "I'll go find him!"
So Reiju and the Germa soldiers quickly made way for Jack to pass. Sardine and the others from the Kuja Pirates also reacted immediately and stepped aside.
However, they forgot one thing. Jack was one of the captains of the three fleets of the Beast Pirates, so he had subordinates with him. Jack disdained talking more to Reiju and these "Doflamingo's subordinates," paying them no attention. But some of his men were more observant. As they followed behind Jack, one of Jack's trusted subordinates suddenly noticed the tattoo of the Dragon Hunter Pirates on Sardine's arm!
This trusted subordinate immediately sensed something was wrong. Remembering what that tattoo emblem meant, he suddenly shouted, "Jack Boss! We've been tricked! They're not Doflamingo's men!"
In an instant, Jack the Drought whirled around, his bloodshot eyes locking onto Reiju. He roared, "You dare to trick me!?"
Without giving Reiju a chance to speak, he threw a punch directly at her!
Reiju sensed the danger and immediately raised both arms to defend. The moment Jack's fist connected, an immense, monstrous force transmitted through. Reiju heard a crack from the bones in her arms, and then she was sent flying!
This sudden punch sent her flying over a hundred meters. When she hit the ground, she bounced several times. When she finally stopped, she found that her wrist armor had cracked from Jack's punch, and both her wrist bones were broken.
Struggling to get up, Reiju couldn't hold back the breath in her stomach and spat out a mouthful of blood.
Just one punch, and Reiju was severely injured by Jack the Drought. Even her steel-like body couldn't defend against his monstrous strength. Jack was a Mammoth Fruit user; strength was his most formidable attack method. Reiju, who relied on technique, was no match for him...
After spitting out blood, Reiju felt the world spin. She saw Jack and his men going on a rampage, attacking the Germa soldiers, the Dragon Hunter Pirates, and the Kuja Pirates. She wanted to do something, but her vision suddenly blurred, and she fainted right there on the spot.