Chapter 43

Meanwhile, Doppol was busy inspecting a tree. A strange tree. It was the one he had his eyes on earlier.

Doppol examined the tree, trying to remember if he ever saw it or read about it, but there was nothing that came to his mind. So, he tried taking samples of it before returning to the Ashen Dragon.

But, Doppol had no blade or any sharp tool to cut trees with. Frankly, he didn't need one. With his brute strength alone, he can shatter a tree's trunk or uproot it whole and carry it by himself.

Doppol tried chopping the tree down with his bare hands. He observed the strange tree and chose where to cut it. The lower part of the trunk was straight, like any other normal tree. It was the middle part of the trunk that was strange, bending and twisting in weird ways.

With a swing of his hand, Doppol tried cutting one of the strange trees by the lower part of its trunk. He used enough strength that would do the job for any other tree, but it seems the tree in front of him was no normal tree.

The tree bent at the part where Doppol tried chopping it with his hand before snapping back to its original position. Doppol's hand was pushed away, the force he used to try and chop the tree seemingly was returned to him.

"FAFAFAFA! A youngster trying to cut down Nika's Palm with his bare hand is a rare sight to see," an old voice spoke with clear delight from behind Doppol.

Doppol turned around to see who it was that spoke to him. It was an old man with a hunching back and drooping eyelids. Doppol had no idea how that old man could even see. The old man looked friendly enough and not threatening at all. He was so old that he had to use a cane to help him walk.

"Nika's Palm?" Doppol asked. He assumed that was the tree's name. It was a rather strange name if it was indeed the name given to it.

"Aye, lad. That tree you see right there, is called Nika's Palm." The old man walked closer to the tree and stood beside Doppol, a small distance between them.

"Strange name for a tree," Doppol honestly commented.

"Aye, it is!" The old man was laughing in sheer joy. "Tell me though. What interest does a lad like you have for a tree like this?"

"Hmmm. Curiosity?" Doppol answered.

"You a shipwright?"

"I am."

"Then, don't waste your time with this tree. No one uses it to build ships." The old man sighed. "Not anymore, at least."

"Why not? It seems like it's good wood." Doppol said.

"Do you really think so?" The old man chuckled. "You must be a crap shipwright!"

Doppol felt annoyed at the comment, but didn't let it bother him. He felt like he was close to what he needed with the tree in front of him.

"I don't need normal wood. I need one that's light and not so dense. I think the wood from this tree is just what I've been looking for!"

"What exactly do you have in mind for it?" The old man looked curious.

"I'm a crap shipwright. Don't listen to me."

"FAFAFAFA! You got me there, lad." The old man sighed again.

Doppol watched the old man walk up to the tree. He raised his cane. Doppol's eyes widened at seeing the old man's cane get covered in Armament Haki.

The old man swiped his cane horizontally like a sword at the lower part of the tree's trunk. Nika's Palm was cut down.

"...you-!"

"You could use a blade or an axe, of course. But, I don't see any of us having one of those. So, don't mind me." The old man grinned at Doppol.

"...who are you?"

"A fossil of a bygone era." The old man answered. "It makes me happy to see a youngster take an interest in this tree. It hasn't been used for anything for centuries, you see. It's at the point where this tree's name and use in ancient times has been… lost and erased from history."

"Just what is this wood?"

"An adventurer's companion!" The old man proudly proclaimed. "This wood right here can sail through any sea, no matter how rough the waves or terrifying the storm. It always bounces back. You've seen it for yourself."

"Sounds like a great wood to me," Doppol honestly said. "I don't get it. Why have I never heard of this tree before? It's really not in any of the books I studied to be a shipwright!"

"You see, lad. The era of adventurers has been overturned by an era of war." The old man said, his tone wistful and… regretful. "This tree can survive the sea, but it can't survive through the wrath of man. The wood from Nika's Palm is very light. It burns easily. Cannonballs are fast and heavy enough to punch through its natural bounciness."

The more the old man described the wood of Nika's Palm, the more Doppol's grin grew wider. The description of the qualities that the wood of Nika's Palm possessed weren't issues for him since he has the Ashen Wood formula already basically complete.

"All the more reason for me to use the wood for our ship then!" Doppol decided that Nika's Palm will be the wood that will upgrade the Ashen Dragon closer to the ship of his dreams.

"Are you serious?"

"Can I chop down more of these trees, old man?"

"FAFAFAFA! Sure, go ahead. It's more like grass for the people of this island anyway. Grows everywhere only to be cut and used for kindling fire."

With the old man's permission, Doppol began chopping down Nika's Palm trees with his bare hands covered in Armament Haki. The old man didn't comment on Doppol's ability. He just watched Doppol cut down tree after tree, seemingly already calculating the amount he'll need.

Then, Doppol realized something. He turned around to face the old man.

"Say, old man. I don't suppose you know how to treat these woods? I kinda don't like how it… twists and bends weirdly."

"FAFAFAFA! Follow me, lad. I'm probably the only shipwright left who can answer your question."

…

"Hepha, there's trouble."

Hepha was interrupted from her work by a knock on the forge's door followed by Vash's voice. Still, from what he said, she wasn't bothered. If Vash says it's trouble, she better take it seriously. She got up and got dressed before opening the door.

"What is it?" she asked.

"Marines," Vash said. "Strong ones."

Hepha followed Vash up the deck. She stood at the helm and used the binoculars near it. Vash pointed in the direction where he and Augur saw the marines. Hepha peeked into the binoculars and saw them as well.

It was a Buster Call fleet. Or at least, the size of one.

"Five warships. Damn it. That must mean…"

Hepha zoomed in the special binoculars and searched along the deck. There, she saw them. There was one in each ship. A Vice Admiral.

"Damn it!" Hepha clicked her tongue. "We need to call Ace and the others back. Now."

"Actually, we don't," Vash said as he stared at the fleet in the distance using his sight and Observation Haki. "Augur and I only called you up here to help us deal with them."

"Are you crazy?" Hepha looked incredulously at Vash. "That's a Buster Call fleet! It can wipe out a whole island! You think you can take that?"

"No," Vash said. "I know we can take them out."

"You don't know anything yet, Vash! Trust me!"

"I know enough. Those Vice Admirals don't feel that much stronger than us." Vash turned to Hepha. "It's you who's afraid."

"I… I'm not!" Hepha tried denying it, but the small shake in her voice gave her away.

Hepha watched Vash turn his Evolvers into a long rifle similar to Augur's. Then, the two of them shot their first bullet. Hepha looked into the binoculars to see the result of their shot.

They didn't hit.

Augur's bullet was caught by a burly looking Admiral. Vash's bullet hit through its target.

"Of course." Vash didn't look surprised.

"Within expectations." Augur said.

"We need to get Ace…"

"No, we don't." Vash and Augur simultaneously disagreed with Hepha. "Our Captain entrusted us to guard this ship. We are doing exactly that."

"What if we fail?" Hepha asked through gritted teeth, trying to reason with the two stubborn men.

"Then, we don't deserve to be in the crew of the man who'll become Emperor of the Seas," Augur proudly declared before shooting at the ships with the modified bullets Hepha made.

Augur didn't aim at marines. He aimed at the masts of the ships. With precise and consecutive shots, Augur shot at his targets.

Not one of the marines tried to block his bullets. Why would they? It was like trying to stop an ant from charging at an elephant. It was pointless. But, Augur's bullets were no ants.

The moment the bullets hit the masts, they exploded with the force of a dozen grenades. A bullet like that was only made through Hepha's genius and skill as a forgemaster as well as Vash's mysterious Living Metal.

Augur, Vash, and Hepha watched the masts of the ships go down, broken and splintered. Augur and Vash grinned at seeing the marines on the ship panic and rush about on their ship, trying to recover.

But the two marksmen didn't let them.

Vash turned his Evolvers back into their usual form, two revolvers in his hands, and began an assault. Augur followed him. They thinned down the number of the marines, raining a hail of bullets from a great distance.

They watched the marines panic even more and move around like a bunch of headless chickens. They had to suffer a great amount of loss before regaining their wit by listening to their Vice Admirals who have been trying to command them in vain for the past minute.

The marines tried firing back by using their cannons. They were not at optimal range, so the first few volleys missed. Vash and Augur knew that would be the case, so they relentlessly kept up with their assault.

Eventually, the marines got the bearing of the Ashen Dragon's position. There was only Vash, Hepha, and Augur aboard, so sailing the ship to move it out of the way will be impossible. But, Vash and Augur kept calm. They shot at the cannonballs that would hit their ships, exploding them in midair.

"Impressive. Those Vice Admirals are good leaders," Augur commended the skill of the enemy.

"Well, they wouldn't have reached that kind of rank otherwise," Vash said.

The marines developed a rhythm. The bearing they had got more precise. More and more shots from their cannons would have hit the Ashen Dragon if it wasn't for Vash and Augur's efforts.

Vash and Augur currently had their hands full with blocking cannon shots. It was a battle of attrition. Who would run out of bullets first? The marksmen of the Royal Aces or the fleet of Navy warships? It was obvious which one would eventually win.

"Your assistance would be quite welcome right now, Hepha," Augur snarkily remarked.

Hepha was just silently staring at the two men in front of her. She was rather in disbelief at what she was seeing. Two men were bravely having a shootout against an entire Buster Call fleet, guns against cannons. Her breathing was rather short and quick as her heart pounded fast. She was reliving memories of that day…

"I know you're afraid, Hepha," Vash said. He also knew what Hepha went through. The first members of the crew did. "But you have to remember. You're strong now, and you're not alone. Don't doubt yourself. Have faith."

Vash's words were like shining beacons of light in the darkness that shrouded Hepha. It cracked through the bleak and black fog that enveloped her past like a looming omen of misfortune. Slowly, Hepha felt… freed.

Hepha grit her teeth. She took out Clear Sky, a weapon whose name symbolizes the hope that maybe her days will indeed be optimistic with the crew she found. With a renewed courage and force of will filling her heart, Hepha let out a devilish grin and leaped into the sky.