"Impossible!" Perona exclaimed, her ability was supposed to make her impervious to physical attacks. Before she could think, Baki pressed a hand to her collar and said, "Split!"
Perona's face flushed crimson as her clothes were torn apart, and she vanished in a flash of embarrassment. "What kind of messed-up ability is this?" she shrieked.
"Women in this world are really easy to deal with," Baki said with a grin. She was about to leave when she turned her head slightly. "Did I look good just now?"
A sharp sound of something gushing rang out from a nearby corner. Two streams of nosebleed shot into the air from a seemingly empty space. Baki stomped on the ground with her golden foot. A light flashed, and a figure emerged from the invisibility: Absalom, his body split in two from head to groin.
"No!" Absalom screamed, his body falling to the ground in two halves as he bled to death.
Baki looked at him with indifference. As a swordsman's nemesis, her research into the blade was extensive. She then thought of her captain, his muscular body, and her smile vanished. "That's the captain!" she thought. "How can I think like that?"
Just then, a roar interrupted her thoughts. "You're dead!" Moria, who had just come downstairs, saw his partner's body on the floor. "I'm going to cut out your shadow and put it in a zombie!" he roared. "Shadow Corner Grab!"
Baki, her face now serious, caught the shadow spear that was hurtling toward her. With a flick of her hand, the spear shattered into hundreds of pieces. "Shadow Mage!" Moria growled, and the shattered shadows reformed and poured into his feet.
"You're boring," Baki said, appearing in front of him. Moria's heart skipped a beat, and he used his ability to switch places with the Shadow Mage. But when he exchanged, the Shadow Mage shattered like glass, preventing the ability from working. "Impossible! You can't harm it!" Moria yelled.
"Sorry, I'm not obligated to answer you," Baki said, slicing her sword straight through Moria's torso.
"Clatter!" Moria flew backward through a wall and landed outside the castle. "Damn it," he said, his forehead bleeding. "How could such a powerful woman be on the sea without a name?"
Realizing he was outmatched, Moria used his ultimate move. "Shadow Gathering Place!" All the shadows on the island rushed toward him, making his body enormous. "No matter how strong you are, you'll die here today!" he roared, but then a shadow flew out of his mouth. Baki's legs had kicked Moria's gut, forcing the shadows out. She then wrapped her weapon in a red glow and swung at his neck.
Just as her sword was about to strike, Kizaru, who had been fighting Mihoko, appeared. He kicked Baki's sword away. "I can't let you succeed!" he said.
"Sorry, I already have," Baki said with a smile. She had used her other hand to stab Moria in the heart. Moria stood stunned, unable to react. He looked at Kizaru, who had failed to save him, and then at the woman who had just killed him. "One crew member..." he thought, his eyes wide. "What the hell is this Devil Pirates crew?"
And with that, Gekko Moria, a Warlord of the Sea, was dead.
Kizaru sighed. Two Warlords were dead, and things were getting complicated. Being a Marine was a difficult job.
A few minutes earlier, on the Ark Maxim, Tashigi had jumped off the ship. Rodin, about to do something, was interrupted by the system.
[Ding... The famous place has been detected, do you want to sign in immediately?]
"Yes," Rodin replied.
[Congratulations on signing in on the famous 'Thriller Bark'! Obtained a "Ship Spirit" grant qualification + a special mission opportunity!]
"Ship spirit?" Rodin wondered.
[1. Eligibility for the ship spirit: You can appoint a soul at will to fuse with the ship's body and turn it into a ship spirit. (Note: The ship spirit can control the hull (similar to the autopilot function). If the materials are sufficient, the hull can also be upgraded!) Absolutely obey the Host]
[Disadvantage: Once the soul body enters the hull, it will be inseparable after successful fusion! In other words, once you become a ship spirit, you will lose your original body forever! ]
[2. Special task: Go to the capital of seven waters to strengthen the "Ark of Proverbs" and protect it from damage in the capital of seven waters (the specific reinforcement time is to be determined, if it is damaged during the period, or the mission fails if you leave the island)]
[Reward for accepting the task: (The next time you draw, you will definitely get a four-star 'special' Female character!) / Reward after completing the task: 'Mysterious' triple draw! (An additional Female world channel card will be given as a gift)]
[Female World Passage Card: Only available under certain conditions.]
[May I ask if you accept this 'Ark' mission!]
[Mission acceptance countdown 60, 59, 58s...]
Rodin quickly digested the information. A ship spirit... the concept was simple enough. But who would willingly give up their body to become a part of an icy hull? He decided to set that aside for now.
The next task, however, was far more interesting. Or, more accurately, the rewards for the task were. Just accepting the mission would guarantee him a four-star character! It was a win-win. Currently, his only four-star was the newly promoted 'Mihawk,' so the new addition would be a huge boost to the crew. He'd been worried his next draw would be a disappointment, a three-star or below, but this solved that problem completely. The new character wasn't a member of the 'Shichibukai,' he guessed, which made Marine or a Four Emperor a strong possibility.
And that wasn't all. Completing the mission would earn him three "mysterious" consecutive draws and a "Female world pass card." He didn't care much about the card for now—there would be a time to use it eventually.
"And the mission itself..."
He had to go to the Capital of Seven Waters, strengthen the Ark, and guard it on the island for two days. This would likely draw the attention of the World Government and lead to trouble. If he was surrounded by Marine troops...
"No, it's too dangerous," Rodin said to himself, watching the countdown tick down to ten seconds. He gritted his teeth, ready to give up.
Then, a thought struck him. There was no punishment for failure. Why not? Even if he got into real danger, with the speed of his Thunder Fruit, running away wouldn't be a problem, right?
"Accept the mission!" Rodin declared instantly.
[You can accept the 'Ark Quest'! Note: Please arrive at the capital of seven waters within one day and complete the protection and reinforcement tasks!]
Rodin let out a sigh of relief.
It was at that moment he was distracted by a movement.
Below the Ark, he saw Tashigi falling. She was waving her hands, a silly, confused expression on her face. Her high-speed descent ended with a gruesome "chi" sound. A wooden thorn pierced straight through her heart, and her body slid down it like a skewer. Blood dripped from the end of the thorn. Before she died, a look of pure disbelief was etched on her face.
Ten meters away, a wave of air exploded. Sentomaru's bulky figure lay in a crater, turning his head just enough to meet Tashigi's clear, dying eyes.
"Hahaha, did the Rodin fleet finally die?" Sentomaru struggled to get up, a hint of gloating in his voice. "It's a boost to morale. I don't know which Marine stabbed her, but it was beautiful!" He felt a surge of encouragement. If the other Marines could get a kill, so could he. He grabbed his battle ax and got ready to fight again.
Nearby, Crocodile was stunned. "Tashigi's, dead?" From Logue Town to now, despite their poor relationship, they were still acquaintances. Seeing her die so horribly filled him with anger. He glared at Sentomaru, fists clenched.
"Desert Sword!!!"
Whoosh...
Crocodile transformed a super-condensed sand blade, a sandstorm sweeping towards Zhan Taowan at incredible speed.
Puff...
Blood spurted from Zhan Taowan's waist. The smile on his face froze as he, already injured, couldn't hold on any longer and collapsed to the ground.
On the Ark, Rodin stood up abruptly, shocked by Tashigi's death. How? This was completely out of line. It was utterly ridiculous.
"Wait!" His heart skipped a beat, and his elemental form disappeared. He reappeared a hundred meters below, right beside Tashigi's body.
"System, her breath hasn't completely dissipated. Can she become a ship spirit?" Rodin asked urgently.
[Within three minutes, there is no problem.]
"Good!" Rodin nodded and pulled a glowing bead from the system space. A medium was required to create a ship spirit, and this bead was it. He placed it on Tashigi's head.
The bead immediately lit up. Tashigi's body, taking its final breath, closed her eyes. Rodin didn't delay. He took her slender arm and, with a little force, pulled her from the wooden thorn. He quickly placed her into a storage ring. He couldn't leave her body exposed.
Whoosh...
An arc of thunder flashed, and Rodin was back on the Ark. He pressed the translucent bead onto the deck.
The bead melted, its icy essence seeping into the ship's wood.
[Note: It takes three hours to integrate, and there is a small probability of failure if the consciousness is weak. Please wait patiently!]
Rodin sighed. "Tashigi, Tashigi, I can only help you this much, woman."
Just then, the system chimed again.
[Ding, congratulations to your crew for killing a Shichibukai! The countdown to the lucky draw has been shortened to two days, and there are 48 hours left to draw again!]