Chapter 74: Ambush
If Su Xiao were to exchange Roger's pistol for 10,000 Pirate Prestige points right now, then Ku Tu and Qian Meng would definitely pursue him relentlessly.
Not only would Su Xiao not exchange Roger's pistol, he would also slow down his rate of gaining Pirate Prestige. For the top five, higher prestige doesn't mean more rewards; the rewards for the top five are fixed.
This way, when Ku Tu and Qian Meng surpass Su Xiao again and maintain a gap of 3,000 or 5,000 or more, the two might not relax, but they wouldn't be as urgent as they are now.
All Su Xiao had to do now was wait—wait for Qian Meng and Ku Tu to surpass him again in Pirate Prestige.
After handling the pistol-related matters, Su Xiao headed straight for Zone 21. This was a very risky move, but he needed to deal with the large crater caused by Apollo.
The Marines couldn't openly enter Zones 1 to 29, as that would cause conflicts with the many pirates. Moreover, the mangrove trees on the Sabaody Archipelago were very dense, and the Marines stationed in Zone 60 would at most hear the explosion of Apollo.
Su Xiao needed to clean up the traces of Apollo's explosion to avoid attracting people like Garp, Kizaru, and Vice Admiral Tsuru.
It took him an entire afternoon to deal with the traces of the explosion. Zone 21 had no civilians left, so there were no witnesses.
After doing all this, Su Xiao headed to Zone 42, a coastal area with a thriving fishing industry.
Su Xiao rented a boat and a fishing rod and started fishing. Or rather, he needed to disappear for a while to prepare for his next plan.
Five days later, a small boat drifted on the sea. Su Xiao was lying in the boat, taking a nap. The fishing rod in his hand had long been pulled into the sea by some fish.
Amu had arrived at the Sabaody Archipelago this morning without any accidents along the way. The Fish-Man Island beneath the sea was still under Whitebeard's territory, a relatively stable area.
"Haah~"
Su Xiao yawned as he lay in the fishing boat. With nothing to do, he checked the Pirate Prestige rankings. He hadn't gained a single point of Pirate Prestige in five days. Ku Tu and Qian Meng had already surpassed him. Ku Tu was now first, Qian Meng second, and Su Xiao was third.
The gap in prestige was within an acceptable range, so Su Xiao continued to stay in the shadows.
In the past few days, the Sabaody Archipelago couldn't be described as just lively. Not to mention the Contractors fighting among themselves, the arrival of several pirate crews in the archipelago had gradually heightened the tension.
These pirates were known as the Supernovas among pirates. There were eleven of them in total, and five had already arrived at the Sabaody Archipelago:
Eustass Kid
Death Surgeon Trafalgar Law
Scratchmen Apoo
Massacre Soldier Killer
Glutton Jewelry Bonney
...
Although these five were pirates, they kept a low profile compared to the Contractors because they were afraid of the Marines coming after them.
Su Xiao was even more low-key than these pirates. He was waiting for an opportunity. Since he killed Ranzo, no Contractor had dared to come looking for trouble.
When the time limit for the Promotion/Main Quest was only 48 hours left, he left the fishing port. At the same time, a pirate ship docked at Zone 41's mangrove area.
As soon as the pirate ship docked, an octopus fish-man jumped off the ship. Before the fish-man landed, a boy wearing a straw hat had already jumped off the ship.
"I'll go first."
The straw-hat boy pressed his hand on his hat and quickly ran toward the island, exuding inexplicable joy.
"Don't forget the number of this mangrove, everyone."
The octopus fish-man spoke. His name was Hachi, and behind him was a mermaid named Camie.
That's right, the ones landing at Zone 41's mangrove port were the Straw Hat Pirates.
Behind the trees and buildings not far away, pairs of eyes watched the Straw Hat Pirates as they disembarked. Monkey D. Luffy, as the protagonist of the story, naturally attracted the attention of many Contractors. If someone dared to bear the world's rejection, it wasn't impossible to kill this protagonist.
Two kilometers away, inside a clock tower, Su Xiao observed the Straw Hat Pirates through the scope of the Duke of Annihilation.
Monkey D. Luffy, Roronoa Zoro, Nami, Sanji, and the others were all there. Among the group was a familiar figure—Bubu Wang.
Bubu Wang had been eating and having fun on the island for the past few days, gaining at least three pounds. After blending into the environment, the Straw Hat Pirates didn't even notice it.
"Finally here."
Su Xiao's gaze sharpened. Over the past ten days, he had barely left Zone 42, all in preparation for what was to come.
The Straw Hat group gradually disappeared from sight. Su Xiao put away the Duke of Annihilation and took out a Den Den Mushi to make a call.
"They're here."
"Are you sure?"
A drunken voice came from the Den Den Mushi.
"Of course."
"If your information isn't accurate, I won't pay you a single Berry."
The slave trader on the other end chuckled sinisterly.
"Up to you."
Su Xiao hung up the Den Den Mushi. He needed to keep monitoring the Straw Hat Pirates to ensure things went according to his plan. If anyone tried to interfere, Su Xiao would blow their head off with a single shot.
...
A few hours later, at Zone 33's mangrove area, inside the Sabaody Amusement Park.
A figure dressed in a plush bear costume walked out of the amusement park. On his shoulder was a long cloth bag, inside which something alive was moving, and faint sobbing could be heard.
This was a small-time leader of a slave trader group named Peterman, working under Disco. He had made a good catch today. No, to be precise, if this deal went through, he could leave the slave trader group and enjoy the rest of his life.
Boo-loo, boo-loo, boo-loo...
The Den Den Mushi in Peterman's pocket rang. He hesitated for a moment, then took it out, pulled the receiver off its back, and released the Den Den Mushi.
Normally, providing information about a mermaid would earn one-tenth of the final auction price. But this time, Peterman didn't plan to give the informant a single Berry. He wanted to keep all the profit for himself.
As Peterman released the Den Den Mushi, Su Xiao had already aimed the crosshairs at his head. Things were going smoothly. The surrounding Contractors were just watching, and no one stepped in to play hero.
With Su Xiao's intelligence, the mermaid Camie, who was traveling with the Straw Hat Pirates, was captured. Although this green-haired mermaid was plain-looking, her identity as a mermaid could fetch a sky-high price.
The Don Quixote Family's slave auction house hadn't seen a mermaid in a while. Since Whitebeard took over Fish-Man Island, mermaids had become a "scarce resource."
At 10 a.m. that day, the mermaid Camie was sent to the Don Quixote Family's auction house, where mermaids could fetch the highest price.
Around noon, news spread that the slave auction house would be auctioning a mermaid. This was a deliberate promotion by Disco.
At 12:36 p.m., Su Xiao lay on a hundred-meter-tall mangrove tree, the perfect sniping spot.