Chapter 98 Is Bai Ye dead?

Author: Xiao Yifeng

Translator: PapaSmurf0700

SLASH!!!

A blood-red blade, charged with a swirling mixture of electricity, fire, and wind, pierced through the sky above Alabasta, cleaving the heavens and earth beneath. BOOM! The ground trembled fiercely, and the sky resounded with a mighty howl.

In the midst of this chaos, Bai Ye stood suspended in the air, as if floating in a void. He closed his eyes, utterly drained of energy, no longer able to sense even the life and death of Stainless. The blood-red aura that had engulfed him began to fade, and Bai Ye's long hair fell gently onto his back, swaying with the wind. His hair, resembling three thousand strands of white silk, danced in the breeze, symbolizing what seemed to be the twilight of Bai Ye's life.

Having consumed the Blood Demon Pill, Bai Ye knew that not even an immortal could save him now. This was the knowledge he had gleaned from his book, "Taomen Jilu." He murmured to himself, half in hope and half in resignation, "Really, is this the end? Maybe some miracle would happen? Ehh." But it seemed that no miracle was forthcoming. Bai Ye couldn't even complete his self-mocking thought before losing consciousness completely.

In the very next moment, Bai Ye, still suspended in the air, began to plummet towards the ground in a free fall, his body succumbing to gravity as his consciousness faded away.

"Bai Ye!!"

In the critical moment when Bai Ye was about to crash into the ground, a elongated figure emerged from the other side, racing towards him. It was Luffy, who had broken out from the swamp. Bai Ye's Water Swamp technique had a unique characteristic: it added a swamp to the existing ground rather than creating it from nothing. Essentially, this meant dealing with the hardness of the land and the suction of the swamp. Consequently, Luffy had to forcefully break through the ground, which was full of sharp gravel, leaving him with numerous wounds. Yet, Luffy paid no attention to the blood covering his body; his focus was solely on Bai Ye, who was plummeting down like a falling kite.

Gomu Gomu no Balloon!!!

Just as Bai Ye was about to hit the ground, Luffy acted swiftly. He inhaled deeply, transforming himself into a rubber balloon to cushion Bai Ye's fall. He managed to catch him just in time! Luffy smiled, relieved. In his eyes, his only task was to catch Bai Ye, believing Bai Ye was merely severely injured and that he could be healed by Chopper, their doctor. Also Luffy had faith in the miraculous pills Bai Ye often produced. After all, Bai Ye had healed Zoro, himself, Nami, and Vivi on several occasions.

Luffy reassured himself, "All you need is Chopper and some pills. You will be all right! It must be so!" He couldn't fathom the thought of Bai Ye dying. Luffy knelt, holding Bai Ye tightly in his arms, expecting any moment to be jokingly reprimanded by Bai Ye for being too rough. But this time, there was no response from Bai Ye.

If Bai Ye had been conscious, he would have certainly complained, "Don't use such force, bastard!!" Overwhelmed by the situation, Luffy looked up to the sky, tears streaming down his face, and let out a heart-wrenching cry, "AH!!"

The weight of his emotions overwhelmed Luffy. The thought that his crewmate, Bai Ye, could be dead was almost too much to bear. Memories of their time together rapidly flashed through Luffy's mind, each one a poignant reminder of their bond:

- Bai Ye introducing himself: "I am Bai Ye, a Daoist priest."

- Their playful exchanges: "Then, let's make a fuss with you, Captain."

- Bai Ye's faith in him: "My captain is the man who wants to become the Pirate King."

- Light-hearted complaints: "Really, don't just give me more work, Captain."

- Moments of frustration: "Bastard!!"

- Last words: "You must continue to travel together!"

Overcome with grief, Luffy couldn't contain himself any longer and shouted towards the heavens, "Without you, I can't be the Pirate King at all!!" His cry, "Sob sob sob!!!", was filled with agony, a raw expression of his sense of loss.

As he shouted, Luffy's deep anguish triggered a powerful release of his Supreme King Haki, a dark red aura erupting wildly from his body. The sheer force of this outburst not only reflected his emotional turmoil but also caused physical damage to the surrounding area, with its intensity even affecting nearby buildings. Luffy was on the edge, teetering on the brink of total collapse from the unbearable pain of loss.

It wasn't until this moment that Ace, donning a cowboy hat, finally made his way to the scene. "Luffy?" he called out, concern evident in his voice. Earlier, Ace had sensed the immense sword strike that had split the sky, a power he found shockingly comparable to that of Whitebeard. This realization had filled him with urgency, anxious to discover what had befallen his younger brother, Luffy.

However, nothing could have prepared Ace for the sight that greeted him. Amidst the ruins of what looked like a city struck by an apocalypse, he found his younger brother, Luffy, kneeling on the ground, weeping inconsolably. The unintentional release of Luffy's Haki aura was so intense that it made it difficult for Ace to approach.

In Luffy's arms lay another figure, a man who appeared lifeless. "What happened here?" Ace wondered, his heart racing. He gritted his teeth and slowly made his way towards Luffy, fighting against the pressure of the Haki. Ace refrained from releasing his own Haki, not wanting to further disturb Luffy.

Upon reaching Luffy, Ace could see that his brother was in a state of shock, almost like a walking dead, unresponsive even to his presence. It was then that Ace got a clear view of the man in Luffy's arms - the Deputy Captain of the Straw Hat Pirates, Priest Bai Ye. Ace's pupils contracted in shock. Even without knowing the full story, he instantly understood the depth of Luffy's sorrow.

'Luffy lost a friend so soon after reaching the Grand Line,' Ace thought, a pang of distress washing over him. Being a pirate himself, and once a captain, Ace could deeply empathize with Luffy's pain. He knew Luffy's nature all too well and the extent of grief he must be enduring. 

Just as the scene was settling, another voice suddenly broke the stillness: "Fire Fist Ace! And the Straw Hat Boy!! Get them!!" It was Smoker and Hina, accompanied by soldiers, arriving from the other end of the street. However, the soldiers quickly found themselves overwhelmed by Luffy's Haki aura, falling to the ground one after another, unintentionally injured by the sheer force of it. Only Smoker and Hina, enduring the pressure, continued to advance.

When Smoker saw the lifeless form of Priest Bai Ye in Luffy's arms, his eyes widened in shock. "Is Priest Bai Ye dead?" he wondered aloud. Processing the situation, Smoker speculated, "So it looks like Stainless was responsible?" Considering the Navy's potential involvement, Stainless, a Vice Admiral, seemed the likely candidate for such a deed.

As Smoker pondered whether Stainless was behind the sword attack they had witnessed earlier, he surveyed the surrounding destruction. There, he discovered a scene that shocked him. A man in a navy cloak, Stainless himself, lay atop the rubble, his cloak of justice split in two by a massive sword mark. Shockingly, Stainless's right leg and arm appeared to have been severed by a sword, his blood soaking the stones beneath him.

Realizing the gravity of the situation, Smoker concluded that the Straw Hat Pirates must have killed a Vice Admiral. He didn't dare to think that Bai Ye had defeated Stainless alone, so he attributed the act to the entire Straw Hat crew. Resolutely, Smoker instructed Hina, "We need to prioritize arresting the Straw Hat Pirates." Hina nodded in agreement, understanding the severity of the situation.

Ace, overhearing their plan, angrily confronted the two navy officers, "You want to catch my brother?" he challenged, "You'll have to beat me first!" Smoker and Hina were taken aback, both surprised and confused. The revelation that the Straw Hat boy was Ace's younger brother raised questions about a possible connection to Whitebeard.

Despite the potential implications of clashing with the Whitebeard Pirates, the situation had escalated too far for Smoker and Hina to back down, even in the face of Whitebeard's formidable reputation. Smoker launched an attack with Hina's support, using his Smoke-Smoke Fruit powers.

Smoke-Smoke Fruit - White Blow!!

However, in the next instant, unexpected counterattacks came

"Three Swords Style · Tiger Hunting (Tora Gari)!!!"

"Black Leg Style - Shoulder Meat Shoot (Épaule Shoot)!!!"