The atmosphere aboard the Moby Dick was tense.
Every single member of the Whitebeard Pirates was on edge, their eyes glued to Ray standing on the deck.
In just twenty days, two monsters on the same level as their "Pops" had shown up one after another.
Red-Haired Shanks showing up earlier was manageable, at least he was an old acquaintance, even if he was annoying.
But this Ray guy? They had never met him before.
And the timing was terrifying.
This guy just killed Big Mom of all people a few days ago.
The crew was sweating bullets while thinking.
'Did killing one Yonko not satisfy this guy? Is he here to take down our Old Man next? Does he want the title of "Yonko Slayer" or something? What a cocky bastard!'
Although they had absolute faith in their father's strength, worry was eating them alive.
Aside from Ace who was missing, the 14 Division Commanders of the Whitebeard Pirates formed a wall around Whitebeard—Edward Newgate.
Commanders like Diamond Jozu and Flower Sword Vista knew damn well their Pops was the strongest man in the world.
But looking at the IV drips hooked up to his arm and the scars of old age... they felt it was their job to be the first line of defense.
If Ray attacked, they would be the meat shields to wear him down.
That was the bond between father and sons.
They would die for the old man without blinking!
Only Marco the Phoenix, the 1st Division Commander, looked different.
He just scratched his pineapple-shaped head, finding the whole thing troublesome because his gut told him Ray wasn't here to start a war.
...
Meanwhile, on the deck of the White Horse parked right next to the Moby Dick.
Cavendish, Frieda, and the rest of the crew were so nervous they could barely speak.
Their legs were shaking.
"Captain... are we gonna die? That's Whitebeard! The strongest man in the world!"
"Yeah! Isn't it a bit too arrogant to park our ship right next to theirs like we own the place?"
"And you have the nerve to say that? Who was it that shouted at the Whitebeard Commanders to 'shut their traps' earlier?!"
"Damn it! I was just protecting Boss Ray's image! You guys were shouting just as loud!"
Watching his subordinates bickering like panicked chickens, Cavendish finally snapped.
He stabbed his rapier, Durandal, into the mast and roared.
"Shut up! All of you! Watch quietly!"
"Stop acting like a bunch of amateurs! In the eyes of outsiders, we represent Boss Ray's reputation. Stand up straight!"
Seeing his crew zip their lips, Cavendish leaned against the railing, trying to look cool as he observed the standoff on the Moby Dick.
His expression was calm, his posture elegant and he was radiating a pure main character energy.
But inside his head? He was screaming!
'HOLY CRAP, this is so damn cool! I've openly docked my ship right beside the Whitebeard Pirates. Who in the entire sea besides a Yonko has the balls to do this? I, Cavendish, am simply dazzling right now!'
He was already daydreaming about sitting at a dinner table, drinking sake with Whitebeard!
'This could actually happen! I need to make Frieda take photos later. If those pictures hit the papers, my popularity will explode! Hahaha! Following Boss Ray was the best decision of my life!'
...
Back on the Moby Dick.
The tension was nearing a breaking point.
Only three people remained completely composed: Marco, Whitebeard, and Ray.
Marco, with his heavy eyelids, was the first to break the silence.
"Ray... you're undoubtedly the most dazzling rookie on these seas right now. So, I'm quite curious—what business does a man like you have with our Whitebeard Pirates today? I hardly think you came all this way just to pick a fight."
Ray didn't answer Marco immediately.
His eyes were fixed on Whitebeard.
'He's truly in a state of decline. Let me take a closer look.'
With this thought, Ray reached for the sword at his hip.
With a casual swing of his forearm, he drew the blade.
SHING!
He didn't pull out the transformative Tessaiga. Instead, he kept it in its base form—the healing blade, Tenseiga.
(Forgot to explain this but Ray could switch his sword form, between tessaiga and tenseiga).
But to the pirates, a drawn sword is a declaration of war!
This single action instantly triggered every commander except Marco.
CLANG! CLANG!
Weapons were drawn in a heartbeat.
Everyone glared fiercely at Ray, ready to jump him.
Even the young no-name pirates who had recently joined the crew brandished their cutlasses, surrounding Ray like a pack of wolves.
The air immediately turn heavy with killing intent.
Just as Jozu was about to signal a joint attack to crush Ray, Whitebeard raised a massive hand to stop them.
"My sons... stand down. No need to rush."
Whitebeard grinned, his crescent-moon mustache twitching.
"This brat carries not a shred of killing intent."
As a Yonko, Whitebeard had seen countless battles.
He was highly sensitive to bloodlust.
When the Old Man gave his judgment, the commanders grudgingly sheathed their weapons.
Observing Whitebeard's reaction, Ray silently approved.
'Good.'
This was exactly why he hadn't brought Cavendish aboard to speak for him yet.
He needed to test the old man first.
Ray drawing his sword served two purposes:
First, he was using Tenseiga's power to assess the severity of Whitebeard's illness.
Through the eyes of the sword, he could see the "messengers of the underworld"—the little demons of sickness clinging to the old man's body.
Second, he needed to gauge Whitebeard's combat instincts.
If Whitebeard had flinched or reacted with aggression, Ray would have concluded he'd misjudged the man.
He would have turned around and left, abandoning any plan to ally with him.
Why? Because if Whitebeard couldn't even distinguish between a test and a real murder attempt, it meant his mind had rotted along with his body.
To Ray, a senile Whitebeard—capable of destruction but blind to the flow of battle—would just be a massive liability.
Ray was already thinking about the future.
After finally rescuing Ace, that reckless, hot-headed fool would probably see Whitebeard get hurt and run back to throw his life away in a rage.
Knowing Ace's personality, the chances of that happening were extremely high.
If Whitebeard was too slow or too dull to handle the battlefield, Ray would rather fight the World Government alone.
Bringing a liability along would just make things harder.
However, Ray was quite satisfied with Whitebeard's reaction just now.
His combat awareness was sharp.
His gut instincts were intact.
As long as his physical ailments were cured, this old monster would undoubtedly be a tremendous asset in the war to come.
Through the vision of Tenseiga, Ray had already identified the little imp-like monsters causing Whitebeard's illness.
With a single swing of the blade later, the cure would be delivered.
Having passed the test, Ray sheathed his sword with a click.
He turned slowly, intending to walk to the railing and call Cavendish over to handle the boring negotiation stuff.
But suddenly, two rookie pirates from the Whitebeard crew stepped in front of Ray, blocking his path.
"Hey! Our Commander asked you a question, pretty boy!" one shouted, trying to look tough.
"Are you ignoring him?"
"Yeah! Looking down on the Whitebeard Pirates like this—aren't you getting a little too cocky just because you beat Big Mom?!"
Ray stopped.
Even a saint has limits, let alone someone like Ray, who usually keeps his anger suppressed under a calm face.
'I already showed your Captain enough respect by not immediately blasting all of you weaklings with my Haki.'
'But now you trash are getting in my face?'
Marco, being sharp, noticed he didn't recognize these two loudmouths.
He immediately sensed something was off.
"Wait—"
Just as Marco prepared to deal with these idiots who were speaking out of turn, it was too late.
BOOM!
Violent red lightning, mixed with an eerie demonic aura, erupted from Ray's body like a bomb going off.
The newcomers didn't even have time to regret their stupidity.
Their eyes rolled back into their heads instantly!
THUD! THUD!
They hit the deck cold.
But it didn't stop there.
The pressure wave slammed into the ship.
CRACK!
The deck planks of the Moby Dick, which had been cracked by Shanks' Conqueror's Haki just 20 days ago and only recently repaired, split open again with a loud snap.
Of the thousand pirates standing on the Moby Dick's deck...
After being baptized by Ray's sinister demonic Conqueror's Haki, fewer than thirty remained standing!
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