บท 34: Chapter 34
After returning to the inn, Carnes still maintained his joyful mood.
During the long voyage, apart from encountering a few minor incidents, his plans had been progressing little by little.
However, today he encountered an unexpected person.
Portgas D. Ace, the Second Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates!
It was he who made Carnes clearly see the progress of his plans.
"Knock, knock~"
At that moment, a knocking sound could be heard.
Carnes turned his head to look.
"Come in!"
With a creaking sound, Demiurge slowly entered as the wooden door opened.
"I have found the map you requested."
"Good job," Carnes replied, taking the map from Demiurge's hand.
After confirming their current location, Carnes began searching for the location of "Banaro Island" on the chart.
Soon, Carnes found the island on the map.
And it wasn't too far from their current position.
A slight smile appeared on Carnes' face as he turned to Demiurge and asked, "Has he set sail?"
"Not yet. He is still in the town! After you left, he contacted the Whitebeard Pirates again, and it seems he is quite concerned about you," Demiurge said.
"Is that so?" Carnes smiled faintly, then put away the map.
Looking outside the window once again, Carnes suddenly said something unrelated.
"It's about to begin. Everything will fall into place! We... will be able to meet soon!"
Rather than searching the vast New World for Whitebeard, it would be faster to have Whitebeard come to the paradise!
"Banero Island" is where Marshall D. Teach captured Ace.
After that, Teach will hand Ace over to the Marines in exchange for the position of one of the Seven Warlords.
Ace will be publicly executed at Marineford, and Whitebeard will come! Garp and the others will be there too!
At that time, it will be the moment to completely resolve the enmity!
Before that, what Carnes needs to do is recruit more crew members to prepare for a full-scale war against the Whitebeard Pirates!
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The next day, it was time to set sail according to the plan.
Carnes and his companions left the inn, crossed streets and alleys, and headed to the location where the Eternal Gale was docked.
However, just as Carnes and the others were about to reach the spot where the Eternal Gale was anchored, Carnes stopped in his tracks.
Demiurge, who was beside him, immediately stepped forward and said, "I'll take care of him."
But before he could make a move, Ace slowly walked out and stood in front of Carnes and the others.
"What are you here for?" Carnes's voice was cold.
Ace raised his hand, lightly lifting the brim of his hat, and looked at Carnes. "Pops said you're around the same age as him, but you don't look old at all!"
Carnes remained silent, quietly watching Ace.
Ace then continued speaking.
"Although Pops doesn't want anyone to interfere with his affairs, since you are an opponent Pops recognizes, it means your strength must be formidable, right?"
"Let me fight you first!"
As he spoke, flames ignited on Ace's body.
"Buzz!"
However, upon hearing Ace's words, Carnes couldn't help but laugh.
With a hint of disdain, Carnes looked at Ace and taunted him.
"What? Do you also think your strength is on par with Newgate's?"
He himself claimed Carnes to be an opponent acknowledged by Whitebeard, yet he was blocking the way and wanting to test his own strength?
Asking for trouble?
"As for how strong you are, we won't know until we fight, right?" Ace's face showed a faint determination, his right fist engulfed in flames.
"You ignorant bug! Do you think you can challenge our captain?!" Demiurge said, stepping forward.
Playing with fire, that's what he excelled at!
But at that moment, Carnes raised his hand to stop Demiurge, who was ready to fight.
Looking at Ace across from him, Carnes spoke calmly.
"If you can hold out against me for one minute, I'll tell you where Marshall D. Teach is."
Upon hearing the news about Marshall D. Teach, Ace raised his head abruptly.
"You know where Teach is?"
Carnes didn't respond, reaching for the hilt of his sword at his waist.
"Clang!"
With a clear sound of the blade being unsheathed, Carnes slowly drew out "Eclipse".
At the same time, a powerful and terrifying aura suddenly surged from Carnes.
"Boom!"
A tremendous pressure enveloped the surrounding area.
"This guy?!" Feeling the overwhelming aura, Ace's face tightened, shocked in his heart.
Without hesitation, Ace fully activated his Devil Fruit ability.
And the flames on his fist surged again at that moment.
In the next second, he took a step forward and swung a punch towards Carnes, shouting.
"Fire Fist!"
"Buzz, boom!"
In an instant, a scorching flame, capable of covering the entire street like a torrent, rushed towards Carnes.
But Carnes seemed unaffected by it.
Not only him, even Demiurge, as well as Yuta and the other crew members.
Facing this overwhelming wave of fire, they showed no trace of fear.
They stood their ground as if the fire didn't exist at all!
Carnes raised "Eclipse" slightly.
"Buzz!"
With a slight humming sound, the Conqueror's Haki instantly enveloped the blade of "Eclipse"!
In the next moment, Carnes fiercely struck with his sword at the oncoming flames.
"Divine Strike!"
"Clang, buzz!"
A dark red sword aura appeared.
In just an instant, the flames that surged toward Carnes and his group, flooding the entire street like a torrent, were split in half!
"Boom!"
The flames separated, splitting in two and passing by Carnes and his group.
Seeing this scene, Ace was greatly shocked and his face showed an incredulous expression.
"My attack... was split apart?!"
However, while his attack was easily split by Carnes, Carnes' attack was not dissolved by Ace's Fire Fist.
That dark red sword aura broke through the flames that covered the entire street and directly hit Ace!
In the blink of an eye, it arrived in front of Ace.
"Fire Fist!" Ace angrily shouted, fully activating his Devil Fruit ability in response.
The scorching flames rushed out, meeting the dark red sword aura head-on.
"Bang!"
The sword aura and the flames collided fiercely, causing a loud rumbling sound!
"Thud!"
"Boom!"
The tremendous shockwave turned into visible heat waves, sweeping in all directions.
At this moment, Ace's eyes rolled back, and like a kite with a broken string, he flew backward and fell heavily to the ground.
"Thud!"
Within five seconds of the battle starting, the area returned to silence.
Carnes looked at his hand holding "Eclipse".
"It's been a while since I swung a sword. I've gotten a bit rusty..."
"However, it's surprising that you couldn't even take a single hit." Saying that, Carnes looked toward Ace, who was lying motionless a short distance away.
Sheathing his sword, Carnes and his crew continued on their journey.
They arrived at the unconscious Ace, lying sideways in the middle of the road.
Carnes saw the horrific wound left on Ace's chest, extending from the collarbone to the lower abdomen, oozing warm, crimson blood.
Carnes looked at Ace's disheveled appearance and shook his head slightly.
"He almost died from a casual strike. Truly disappointing."
"Although he is Roger and Newgate's son, he doesn't even measure up to half of them. How boring."
"Thud!"
With that, Carnes kicked Ace, who had passed out, to the side with his foot.
Leaving with his crew, they continued on their way.
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