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Witnessing this, Byakuya silently acknowledged the strength of the Red-Haired Pirates.
'No wonder they're called the most unshakable crew under two Emperors,' he thought.
'Ben Beckman's power is easily on par with Shanks'. It makes me even more curious—just how powerful is the Whitebeard Pirates, the crew that stands above all other Emperor crews?'
'Or rather, just how powerful is Whitebeard—the man hailed as the "Strongest in the World" when his peaks?'
However, now was not the time for such thoughts. Byakuya's priority was stopping Ben Beckman from taking Luffy away.
Beckman hadn't expected his sudden shot to have any effect on Byakuya at all.
Suddenly, Byakuya appeared before him and coldly said, "I hope your close-combat skills are as good as your marksmanship."
"Otherwise, the Red-Haired Pirates will lose their vice-captain from today onward."
As Byakuya closed in, his sword, Kazemime, darted out at a bizarre angle, like the antlers of a prancing antelope.
Being an Emperor-level powerhouse, Beckman's marksmanship was unrivalled on the seas, and his close-combat skills were no less impressive.
He treated his half-meter-long flintlock like a dagger, parrying the thrusts.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Each strike of Byakuya's sword, comparable to a vice admiral-level strength, left only faint white marks on the flintlock.
This was no surprise—if Beckman's weapon were so fragile, it wouldn't be his trusted companion.
Beckman pushed his Observation Haki to its limit, sweat forming on his brow. In his perception, Byakuya's movements seemed to slow down several times, making it easier to dodge or block.
Yet, despite his strength, Beckman's close-combat skills fell short compared to Byakuya's mastery. In mere moments, the two exchanged a flurry of blows.
Beckman attempted to create distance, but Byakuya clung to him relentlessly, leaving no room to retreat.
Forced onto the defensive, Beckman had no choice but to rely on his Observation Haki to hold out, hoping Shanks would join the fight soon to fend Byakuya off.
Byakuya's strength far exceeded their expectations. At this point, Beckman had abandoned any hope of killing Byakuya at Loguetown.
"The next strike is going to my left!" Beckman thought, watching Byakuya's slowed-down movements and swinging his flintlock to block on the left.
But the next moment, Beckman broke into a cold sweat.
The sword that should have been slashing left suddenly appeared on his unguarded right side, aiming directly at his gun-wielding hand.
The ever-composed Beckman, always exuding a sense of intellectual dominance, let out a scream of agony, his face twisted in pain.
"Beckman!" "Vice-Captain!"
The Red-Haired Pirates' cries of alarm filled the air as Beckman's right arm, still clutching his flintlock, was severed by Byakuya's blade and fell into the sea, likely to become a meal for some lucky Sea King.
Byakuya looked at the space where Beckman's arm used to be and chuckled.
"Shanks lost his left arm, and now you've lost your right. The two of you can work together to make a complete pair."
Shanks arrived just in time to see Byakuya sever Beckman's arm.
Overwhelmed by rage, he gripped Gryphon tightly and roared, "Byakuya, I swear I'll kill you today!"
With Beckman now missing an arm and his weapon, his combat ability had diminished drastically.
Byakuya raised his foot and slammed it into the stunned Beckman's chest, sending him hurtling toward the sea like a falling meteor.
"Damn it!" Shanks cursed, abandoning his attack on Byakuya to save Beckman.
Byakuya hesitated momentarily, considering whether to eradicate the Red-Haired Pirates entirely at Loguetown.
While his feats of wounding Shanks and severing Beckman's arm could already raise questions about his strength, these were achieved in one-on-one combat.
Shanks and Beckman hadn't teamed up against him.
Only Whitebeard could accomplish something similar on the seas, so Byakuya wasn't concerned about his power being doubted.
However, if he wiped out the Red-Haired Pirates here, it would reveal an excessive level of strength.
After a brief moment of thought, Byakuya made up his mind. Kill them.
The animosity between them had already reached a point of no return.
Rather than letting them leave and scheme in the shadows, it was better to finish them off now.
As for the consequences, Byakuya decided to deal with them later. He could upend the game anytime—if things escalated, he simply wouldn't play along anymore.
Resolute, Byakuya charged toward Shanks, who had just caught Beckman, exuding a murderous intent so intense it chilled the air.
"Shanks, didn't you say you were going to kill me? Let's see who walks away from Loguetown alive today!"
"You're courting death!" Shanks roared, his Conqueror's Haki bursting forth so powerfully it almost materialized.
Even pirates with bounties in the hundreds of millions would likely faint just by stepping within 100 meters of him.
As Shanks steadied Beckman and prepared to strike, Beckman stopped him with his remaining left arm.
Despite his injury, Beckman had regained his usual composure.
With a tone hinting retreat, he said, "Don't fight him anymore."
"Byakuya's strength isn't something you can handle now. I fear his power is now comparable to Whitebeard's, or what I fear most is that he might be stronger than him."
"Damn it, we should have attacked together earlier," Shanks grumbled, anger evident as he glanced at Beckman's missing arm.
"With our combined strength, we could have easily subdued Byakuya. But now, he's taken us down one by one, leaving us in this humiliating predicament."
"It's clear that Byakuya isn't going to let this go. Even if we don't want to fight, he'll keep pursuing us until one of us dies," Shanks said.
Beckman replied calmly, "I have a plan. We'll launch an all-out attack on Loguetown."
"As a Marine Admiral, Byakuya won't stand by and let us destroy the town. While he's preoccupied, we'll use the chance to escape the East Blue."
Beckman's suggestion offered hope for the Red-Haired Pirates' survival.
However, Shanks hesitated, his concern evident. "But Luffy is also in Loguetown. If we attack…"
Beckman interrupted firmly, "Don't worry, Byakuya won't let Luffy die."
Shanks, not one to waver in critical moments, nodded.
In previous life-and-death situations, Beckman's advice had always guided them to safety.
Without hesitation, Beckman pulled out a small, silver, pocket-sized gun from his coat.
It contained only one specially crafted bullet, but its destructive power was enough to obliterate an entire island.
He aimed the weapon toward Loguetown and shouted, "Do it!"
"Boom!" A silver bullet shot out, streaking across the sky and leaving a faint white trail in its wake.
At first, Byakuya thought the bullet was aimed at him. Preparing to intercept it, he noticed the bullet suddenly veer off course.
At the same moment, Shanks unleashed another Haoshoku Haki-imbued attack.
This time, a smaller, purple-black orb shot forth, moving at a speed far exceeding the previous one.
Just as Byakuya had anticipated, the purple-black orb and the silver bullet bypassed him and flew toward Loguetown.
In an instant, Byakuya realized their intent.
Shanks and Beckman were forcing him to abandon Loguetown to eliminate them or save the town and let them escape.
"Damn it, pirates will always be pirates," Byakuya muttered coldly.
"No matter how honorable or friendly they try to seem, it's all just a façade."
Turning to face them, he declared, "The next time I see you, the Red-Haired Pirates will be annihilated!"
Without another word, he dashed toward Loguetown.
Though Byakuya wasn't a Saint or Hero, he wasn't about to let tens of thousands of innocent civilians die because of him.
This was something only Akainu could do—sacrificing Loguetown's residents without hesitation if it meant killing the Red-Haired Pirates.
As the silver bullet neared Loguetown, it exploded mid-air, scattering hundreds of smaller, silver-white bullets in all directions.
"A cluster bullet? Where does Beckman even find all these flashy tricks?" Byakuya muttered.
Meanwhile, Shanks's Haoshoku Haki-imbued purple-black orb bore down alongside the smaller bullets.
Just as the deadly rain of destruction was about to strike, Byakuya arrived at the town's harbor.
His hands were enveloped in a reddish aura as Armament Haki poured from them in torrents.
The reddish flow caught Each falling bullet, neutralizing its destructive power.
With Byakuya's seemingly limitless supply of Armament Haki, none of the explosions caused any harm to Loguetown.
Meanwhile, his right hand focused entirely on the purple-black orb.
Layering his Armament Haki with precision, Byakuya gradually drained the orb's strength until it dissipated completely.
As Byakuya stood at the harbor, victorious, the Red-Haired Pirates had already disappeared into the horizon. However, Byakuya felt no regret.
What mattered most was what Luffy had witnessed during this critical moment.
Injured and weak, Luffy had seen everything: how the man he idolized—Shanks—had chosen to endanger innocent lives to escape, while the man he had seen as an enemy—Byakuya—risked everything to protect the same people.
Luffy's mind spiraled into confusion like never before.
At the same time, the townsfolk, who had been hiding in fear, began to emerge.
Realizing that Byakuya had single-handedly defeated the Red-Haired Pirates and saved their lives, they broke into jubilant cheers.
"Admiral Byakuya is the strongest!"
"Thank goodness Admiral Byakuya was here! Otherwise, we'd all be dead because of those pirates!"
Amid the people's roaring applause and heartfelt gratitude, Luffy sank deeper into his bewilderment.
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