Chapter 224: Island of Blood and Ash: Banquet and Blade

The reason no one stopped the Golden Lion from retreating was that Rayleigh and the others were almost completely spent as well.

There were swarms of pirates—not strong, but endless in number—and they hadn’t stopped swinging their swords all night.

Now, the island’s ground was carpeted with pirate corpses. Blood flowed in rivers, creeping toward the sea and luring hungry sharks that waited just offshore.

“Let’s go too,” Roger said, waving his hand to dispel the heavy scent of blood and iron in the air.

So many had died that the sharp, metallic tang nearly made the air unbreathable.

Everyone else was nearly out of strength, but at Roger’s command, no one dared hesitate. They quickly grabbed their things, headed for the shore, and loaded up the ship. Despite exhaustion, Jabba forced himself to pilot the ship away from the deserted island.

Roger’s words were right and everyone knew it.

They hadn’t forgotten that Garp had been following them, even if his whereabouts were now unknown.

If Garp arrived while they were still recovering, things could go very badly for them.

The best move was to get to someplace safe and recover their strength as quickly as possible.

Otherwise, if they ran into Garp in this state, none of them wanted to see how that would end.

The ship slipped away from the deserted island, racing toward the heart of the New World as fast as it could go.

After the Golden Lion led his fleet away from the island and tallied up the casualties, he let out an angry roar. “You worthless fools!”

“Get out there and round up more pirates!”

“Y-yes, sir!”

His crew scrambled out of the room, leaving the Golden Lion clutching a slip of paper, seething with rage.

He’d taken nearly a hundred thousand men to the island, and now only twenty thousand or so remained. In other words, he’d lost over seventy thousand men in a single battle.

Who would have guessed that years of hard-earned power would be wiped out in one night?

With so many seasoned pirates lost, how long would it take to recover? The more he thought about it, the angrier he got.

“Damn you, Roger! I’ll never let this go.”

A howl of rage echoed from deep inside the room, then faded into silence.

The next day, news of John’s death spread like wildfire.

Somewhere in the New World, aboard the Moby Dick, a blue-haired boy waved a newspaper with the bounty and shouted at a towering man.

“Dad, you’ve gotta see this headline!”

The burly, blond man took the newspaper from him.

“John is dead?”

“Was it Karl who did it?”

“Gurararara!” He laughed, grabbing a massive tankard and downing it in one go.

This was Newgate. When he saw the news of John’s death, he couldn’t help but feel happy for Karl. After all, Karl had wanted John dead for a long time—he just hadn’t expected it to finally happen now.

“Dad, did you know him before?”

Marco, with his childish voice and big blue eyes, looked ridiculously cute.

Newgate ruffled Marco’s blue hair, saying nothing.

He didn’t want his sons to know about his past. In his mind, there hadn’t been much to cherish from his time with the Rocks Pirates—not the kind of memories worth sharing.

“I knew him, that’s all.”

“Gurararara!”

“Anyway, this is worth celebrating. Let’s start the banquet!”

Jozu came running over. “A banquet? For real, Dad?”

Jozu was just a half-grown kid with a monstrous appetite, always the first to cheer when there was a party.

“Gurararara!”

“That’s right, boys. Time for a feast!”

“Yeah!”

“Banquet time!” Newgate looked at his excited sons and smiled. This was the family he’d always wanted.

Vista, Blamenco, Rakuyo and the others rushed out from below deck, directing the crew to set up the banquet on the deck.

Thatch came out with the chef’s apron still on. “Dad, we’re running low on supplies. There’s an island up ahead—should we…?”

He pointed his spatula at a nearby island.

“Alright, everyone, head for that island!”

“Aye!”

…

“What’s that? Pirates?”

“Quick, run! Pirates are here!”

In the blink of an eye, the harbor was empty. The islanders, used to constant raids, bolted the moment they saw pirate ships coming.

Newgate and his crew didn’t care. Once ashore, Thatch led a team inland to buy supplies while the rest got started on the preparations.

“Lord Oden, some pirates have landed by the harbor. What should we…”

The village chief looked troubled, standing at the entrance of a cave where Kozuki Oden waited.

Pirates really had plundered the village for years, but since this man arrived, invading pirates had been met with swift and deadly force. Word had spread: this island was home to someone you didn’t want to cross. The villagers finally enjoyed a stretch of peace.

But today, pirates had reappeared, forcing the chief to seek Oden’s help once again.

“Don’t worry. Since I’m living in this blessed place, it’s only right for me to help out.”

Without another word, Kozuki Oden grabbed Ame no Habakiri and Enma, heading for the harbor.

“Alright!”

“What’s going on?”

Still on the ship, Newgate suddenly sensed a powerful malice radiating from the island.

He stood up and grabbed Cloud Cutter.

“Dad, is there an enemy?”

Marco, seeing his father tense up, grew serious and stared inland.

If there was danger on the island, none of the sons would let Dad fight first.

After all, if their father had to handle every battle himself, what good were sons like them?

If not for Newgate, they’d probably be lost somewhere now, just worrying about their next meal.

“Gurararara!”

“I haven’t moved in so long, my bones are rusting.”

Catching his sons’ determined looks, Newgate gave a proud, contented smile.

“Don’t worry!”

With Cloud Cutter in hand, he stepped off the ship and walked into the island. Marco and the others, uneasy, followed close behind.

Rustle. Rustle.

As they reached the shore, a figure dropped from the trees.

That man charged at Newgate, twin swords flashing.

Newgate faced him without fear, swinging Cloud Cutter upward, blades meeting with a resounding crash.

“Boom!” The deafening clash echoed in the air.

Cracks split the ground as seawater at the shore surged backward.

Their Armament Haki collided, sending black streaks of liquid lightning arcing through the air.

A white shockwave blasted outward from their feet, spreading for hundreds of meters.

“Who is that guy?”

“Why haven’t we ever heard of him?”

“What’s with that power? Is Dad in danger?”

“Should we help him?” Jozu shouted in worry, unable to stand still.

Seeing his Dad and that stranger locked in a duel, watching the shockwave sweep out, everyone knew this wasn’t just an ordinary enemy.

Marco stretched out his hand, then shook his head.

“Just relax—we’re nowhere near the real fight yet. Dad’s not even going all out.”