Chapter 19: Captain of the Eighth Division
Faced with the overwhelming presence of Rocks, Charlotte had no choice but to agree to join the Rocks Pirates.
After all, he didn't want to die.
"Hahahaha! Welcome to the crew, Charlotte!"
Rocks said with a satisfied smile.
Charlotte nodded in response.
Edward Newgate stood silently, his expression unreadable.
Golden Lion Shiki watched with amusement, puffing on his cigar.
Charlotte Linlin continued eating her cake, paying no attention to the scene.
Kaido, standing behind Linlin, maintained his usual expressionless demeanor, blending into the background.
Charlotte glanced at them all, silently sizing up the infamous figures around him.
Rocks, clearly pleased, stood up and leaped down to the port.
"This is a beautiful and prosperous port!" Rocks D. Xebec remarked, scanning the area with interest.
Charlotte's heart clenched at those words.
"Captain Rocks, I have a request. Please don't harm this island because of my involvement," Charlotte said cautiously.
Hearing the word captain, Rocks turned to Charlotte.
Standing at three meters tall, Rocks looked down at Charlotte with a wide smile.
"Of course, no problem. This is your hometown," Rocks said, patting Charlotte's shoulder.
"But!" Rocks' tone shifted. "I can promise not to act, but I can't guarantee that my subordinates will do the same. You'll have to show them how powerful you are!"
Rocks gestured towards the group of pirates disembarking from the ten ships behind him.
The pirates, seeing the prosperous port and peaceful town beyond, looked around with greed and hunger in their eyes.
Charlotte turned to face them.
"You want to kill these people or let them live?"
Charlotte glanced coldly at the crowd of pirates before looking back at Rocks.
Rocks raised an eyebrow.
"That's up to you, my dear crew member," Rocks replied indifferently.
Charlotte understood.
He unsheathed his sword and walked toward the pirates who were now streaming off the ships.
"You want to plunder? Survive my blade first!" Charlotte declared coldly.
Rocks and his top officers stood aside, ready to enjoy the show.
"Hahahaha! Newgate, I'll bet this kid can clear them out in under half an hour!" Shiki the Golden Lion laughed, biting his cigar.
Edward Newgate glanced at him but said nothing.
Shiki smirked, knowing better than to expect a reaction from Newgate. Apart from Rocks, the only person Shiki respected—or feared—was Newgate.
If anyone else dared ignore him, Shiki would have cut them down without hesitation.
Hearing Charlotte's challenge, the pirates were momentarily stunned, then burst into roaring laughter.
"Kid! Who do you think you are? Come on, brothers, let's take the treasure and the women!" shouted a pirate leader wielding a massive club.
The pirate's words rallied the others.
They drew their weapons and charged at Charlotte, some even firing their flintlock pistols.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Countless bullets flew toward Charlotte.
But with Observation Haki, Charlotte easily dodged them, tilting his head slightly and shifting his body with minimal effort.
Although the bullets missed Charlotte, their trajectory carried them toward the group behind him—Rocks and his officers.
"This brat is definitely doing this on purpose," Shiki muttered, tilting his head to dodge the incoming bullets.
Edward Newgate shattered the bullets heading his way with a casual punch, reducing them to powder.
Charlotte Linlin and Kaido didn't even bother to dodge. The bullets struck them directly but fell harmlessly to the ground.
"What monsters," Shiki said enviously, glancing at Linlin and Kaido.
The Golden Lion bit his cigar, sighing inwardly. Among the group, he often felt like the only ordinary human.
Wait—he reconsidered—maybe this kid wasn't so ordinary either.
Shiki turned his gaze to the battlefield.
Charlotte's sword danced wildly, releasing countless flying slashes as if they were free. His face remained expressionless, and he showed no signs of tiring.
"Alright, I take it back. This kid is a monster. His stamina is ridiculous," Shiki admitted silently.
Charlotte's attacks wrapped his sword in Armament Haki with every swing.
None of the pirates could get within ten meters of him. Limbs flew, and wails filled the air as Charlotte's blade carved through the attackers.
This relentless slaughter overwhelmed the pirates' morale.
"No! No more treasure or women—I don't want to die!" a terrified pirate screamed, dropping his weapon and running for the ships.
But Charlotte gave no quarter.
A thirty-meter slash raced after the retreating pirates, cutting them down before they could escape.
"This kid is ruthless," Edward Newgate said with a frown. He detested those who killed indiscriminately, especially those who slaughtered the defenseless.
But none of the others responded to his comment.
Rocks watched with a smile.
Shiki puffed on his cigar nonchalantly.
Linlin continued eating her cake, seemingly unaffected by the bloodbath.
Kaido stood silently, his expression unchanged.
Edward Newgate sighed, questioning whether joining the Rocks Pirates had been the right decision.
Charlotte methodically cleared the port, leaving behind piles of corpses.
At least three to four hundred pirates lay dead, their bodies forming a grisly mountain.
The pirates still aboard the ships looked on in terror, not daring to make a sound.
Charlotte's control was impeccable. Despite his nearly one hundred slashes, none struck the ships—they stopped precisely one meter short.
After finishing his work, Charlotte sheathed his sword and walked back to Rocks.
Rocks, clearly pleased, grabbed Charlotte's right hand and raised it high.
"I declare that Rockefeller Charlotte is now the captain of the Eighth Division of the Rocks Pirates and an official cadre of our crew!"
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