New World, sea area, Marine warship deck.
"Report! A pirate ship has been spotted ahead, flag confirmed to be 'Iron Tomb' Bymon, with a bounty of 410 million Berries..."
The Marine soldier on the lookout post had barely finished speaking when Sakazuki's fist ignited with magma, his eyes icy: "Another small fry."
"Small fry? Then Libo will go this time!!" Libo raised her left hand like a student.
Gern leaned against the ship's rail, glancing at the eager Libo, a slight smile playing on his lips: "You're going this time?"
Libo nodded vigorously, her drooping ears trembling slightly with excitement.
"If Uncle Sakazuki makes a move, there won't even be dregs left!
And you, Gern, always cripple people, making it hard to draw blood!"
"Be careful."
Because it was a small fry, Sakazuki snorted coldly and, unexpectedly, did not object, merely standing with his arms crossed.
Gern didn't think much of it either; after all, with the recent encirclement, there couldn't be any major pirates in the nearby sea area.
A pirate crew worth around 400 million Berries was nothing; letting Libo get some practice was fine.
So Gern chuckled, raising a hand in a "please" gesture: "Then I'll leave it to you, partner of justice."
"Understood!" Libo tapped her toes, her petite figure using Moonwalk, sweeping across the sea like a white lightning bolt, leaping onto the enemy ship's deck in a few bounds.
........
At the same time, on the sea, a pirate ship named "Drunken Whale," flying an unfamiliar flag, bobbed with the waves.
Vasco Shot—the "Great Drunkard" with a bounty of 825 million Berries—was tilting his head back, chugging a large mouthful of strong liquor.
The liquor dripped down his sausage-like nose, soaking his wrinkled clown suit.
Ever since Gern and Sakazuki teamed up, the New World pirates instantly exploded!
So this notorious great pirate had to put away his skull flag and disguise himself as a common small pirate.
After all, ships flying unnamed pirate flags had a chance of escaping detection, sometimes even deceiving inexperienced patrol ships.
"Haven't we left the sea area under G-3 Base's jurisdiction yet? Those two lunatics are truly terrifying..."
Vasco Shot let out a loud burp, narrowing his drunken eyes, and looked at the petite figure that had suddenly appeared on the deck.
"Burp... Marine?" He shook his head, thinking he was having hallucinations from drinking, "No, is it a rabbit?"
Libo, who had boarded the pirate ship, stood by the rail, her drooping ears slightly perked due to static electricity, her pink eyes locked on Shot, her small face serious.
"Are you 'Iron Tomb' Bymon?"
Hearing that name, Shot froze for two seconds, then glanced at the flag he was currently flying.
After realizing, he suddenly burst into wild laughter.
"Hahahaha! 'Iron Tomb' Bymon?"
Vasco Shot swayed his giant liquor flask, his sausage-like nose gleaming with oil from drunkenness.
"And just a Warrant Officer? Do the Marines send children to capture people now?!"
Slightly more sober, he narrowed his drunken eyes and re-examined Libo.
He saw the rabbit-eared girl in a Marine uniform tilting her head, observing him, her pink eyes crystal clear in the sunlight, her snow-white drooping ears gently swaying with the sea breeze.
"Hmm! Not bad!" Shot let out a loud burp, liquor fumes spewing out.
His gaze swept back and forth over Libo's body, finally resting on her slender waist and long legs, a disgusting grin spreading across his face.
"Heheheh... Is the little rabbit lost?" Shot swayed as he stood up, his loose clown suit swaying with his movements.
"Want to come have a drink with Uncle? Uncle will make you... burp... very comfortable..."
Seeing their Captain, the surrounding pirates immediately burst into a lewd roar of laughter. Some whistled, and others deliberately shook their liquor bottles, making vulgar gestures.
But more people had already drawn their swords, surrounding her with ill intent.
"Pirates are truly disgusting." Libo didn't reply; she just took a deep breath, slowly clenching her fists.
"Zzzzz!" Faint electric currents coursed over her body, activating the Mink Tribe's natural electrical discharge ability!
The next second, she pushed off with her feet, the deck "crack"ing, and her petite figure Shot out like a cannonball!
"Bang!" The pirate in the front row didn't even see the movement before a direct punch struck his chest, sending him flying backward, smashing through the cabin wall!
"What?!" Shot's drunkenness instantly cleared by half.
Libo didn't stop; the rabbit tribe's unique leaping ability allowed her to move at high speed across the deck, each landing accompanied by a thunderous kick.
Pirates were sent flying like bowling pins, screaming continuously.
"Damn it! Grab her!" Shot roared, grabbing his liquor flask and taking a big gulp, then "poof"ed out a cloud of liquor mist.
"Sake-Sake: Mist!"
The strong alcohol instantly permeated the entire deck, and Libo's movements paused slightly.
This mist not only obscured vision but also had a dizzying hallucinogenic effect!
"Hahahaha! Little rabbit, let's see how you jump now!" Shot grinned menacingly and lunged, his fat body surprisingly agile, raising his liquor barrel and smashing it down hard!
Libo sharply leaned back, the liquor barrel grazing her nose as it crashed down, the deck collapsing with a roar.
She used the momentum to flip backward, her drooping ears rotating nimbly in the mist—the Mink Tribe's hearing wouldn't be disturbed by alcohol!
"Left!" She suddenly turned sideways, a spinning kick accurately striking the chin of a sneak-attacking pirate, whose teeth flew out as he passed out.
Shot narrowed his eyes: "A little interesting..." He violently pounded his stomach, letting out a deafening burp, "Sake-Sake: Ignition!"
"Whoosh—!" The liquor mist he sprayed out instantly ignited, the air above the entire deck turning into a sea of fire!
In the flames, Libo's figure flashed rapidly, but a corner of her clothing was still singed.
The sea wind howled, and the atmosphere on the deck suddenly solidified.
"Is this a 400 million Berries pirate?" Cold sweat beaded on Libo's forehead as she clearly felt something was wrong.
And Vasco Shot's laughter abruptly stopped, the liquor flask slipping from his hand, hitting the deck with a dull thud.
A trace of bewilderment flashed in his narrowed, drunken eyes, immediately replaced by ferocity.
"It's not that I'm strong, little rabbit; you've found the wrong person." Shot's voice was hoarse and dangerous, his massive body slowly straightened, his shadow enveloping Libo's petite figure.
"However, since you've delivered yourself, don't blame me for being impolite!"
Libo's drooping ears instantly perked up, her pink pupils contracting.
She instinctively took half a step back but quickly steadied herself, clenching her fists, her not-so-proficient Armament Haki coiling around her like black lightning.
"Don't look down on me!"
Shot grinned, revealing his uneven yellow teeth: "Interesting!" Before his words even finished, his fist, imbued with violent Haki, slammed down with a roar!
"Bang!" The deck cracked under the immense force, wood splinters flying.
Libo's figure dodged like a white lightning bolt, counterattacking with a whip kick aimed at Shot's knee.
However, though Shot's body was massive, his movements were surprisingly agile.
He sidestepped, grabbed Libo's ankle, and swung her fiercely towards the mast like a sandbag!
"Crack!" The mast broke, Libo's figure embedded in the deck, dust rising everywhere.
Then she coughed up a mouthful of blood, struggling to get up, her drooping ears trembling slightly from the pain.
Shot looked down at her from above, his eyes full of mockery: "Is this all the Marines are capable of? How disappointing."
Libo wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth, took a deep breath, and a soft green light glowed in her palm, the power of the Healing Fruit rapidly mending her injuries.
"It's not over yet!" She leaped up fiercely, her legs springing towards Shot's chest.
"Too weak!" Shot scoffed, his Armament Haki-covered fist punching out to meet her!
The two forces collided with a roar, Libo's petite body sent flying several meters like a broken kite.
Her back slammed heavily against the ship's rail, the wooden railing shattering with a snap.
Her Armament Haki was not yet fully refined, making her utterly unable to contend with Shot.
"Cough... cough cough..." Libo curled up on the deck, her Armament Haki dissipating. In her blurry vision, Shot's massive body approached like a nightmare.
This was the overwhelming power gap of a New World mid-tier pirate; facing Libo was simply a crushing defeat from the first move!
"Heheheh... I haven't tasted a Mink Tribe yet..."
Shot exhaled cloudy liquor fumes, his crimson tongue licking his lips, raising his giant palm, ready to grab those trembling rabbit ears.
Suddenly, the air in the entire sea area froze.
"I knew something felt off..." A cold voice, like a spring from the netherworld,
Froze Shot from his spine all the way to the back of his head, his outstretched hand frozen in mid-air.
"So it's you! 'Great Drunkard' Vasco Shot!!" The moment the words fell, the entire pirate ship groaned under the unbearable pressure.
The deck cracked like a spiderweb, and the air shattered.
"This Haki?!" Shot's pupils constricted. Gern was already standing behind him like a ghost.
Dark purple Haoshoku lightning coiled around his entire body like thunder snakes, crackling, and black blade eight desolations was unleashed amidst the high-frequency buzzing of trembling pale particles!
"Gern..." Libo looked at Gern, calling out softly with a hint of grievance in her tone.
She had truly been scared just now.
Looking at Libo, Gern's violent killing intent instantly condensed, his gaze coldly fixed on Shot's face, twisted with fear.
"If my Libo loses even one hair, I'll carve off a piece of your flesh."