Chapter 18: The Battle Begins
"Haha, what we need in our pirate crew are young people like you—idealistic, ambitious, cultured, and with guts!" Kado slapped Sanchi on the shoulder. "Besides, if you become our partner, you can still pursue your own dream. Our pirate crew is very free. I'm the captain, and my profession is a master thief." Kado pointed at Fite. "This guy is a sniper, and his profession is a writer. His dream is to write a brand new travelogue, documenting the unique features of every island. Apparently, his family has a long history in the travelogue business—I've heard that everything published about regional descriptions before was done by his family. But since there's no information on the New World and OP, this guy went on an adventure himself and decided to head to OP. Now he's one of my nakama."
"Who's your nakama? We're just in a temporary partnership, working together for OP," Fite quickly defended himself.
"Thief, writer, haha, your pirate crew is quite interesting," Sanchi laughed heartily. "But I still can't join you. I just want to create brand new dishes, that's all."
"Hey, hey, what's the big deal? Cooking and being a pirate aren't mutually exclusive," Kado shouted. "Besides, we just saved your life! You should be grateful. At the very least, you can work as our chef for a while. When we find another chef, you can leave if you want!"
The two of them had suffered greatly from not having a chef, especially when they were forced to eat raw fish at times to get by. This made Kado eager to find a decent chef. When they came to Loguetown, they were secretly hoping to find one.
"Maybe we can make a deal. If you help me get the Golden Scaled Fish, I'll work as your chef for a while," Sanchi thought for a moment and made his offer. It seemed that his interest in this legendary ingredient wasn't just about seeing it—it was more than that.
"Alright, it's a deal," Kado said, extending his hand to Sanchi. "As long as we help you get the Golden Scaled Fish, you'll be our chef until we find the next one."
Slap!
A clear sound of a handshake echoed, and both Kado and Sanchi spoke at the same time:
"Deal!"
"Hehe, you're really something, I'm starting to like you more and more," Kado said, slinging his arm around Sanchi's shoulder with a grin. "Chef, I wonder if you can make scrambled eggs with tomatoes?"
"Hey, Captain Idiot," Fite said with a disgruntled look on his face, "You're really going to let this guy have the Golden Scaled Fish, you know that's a Devil Fruit that's worth two hundred million Berries!" .
"Haha, don't worry about that," Kado said, pounding his chest confidently, looking completely assured. "A wise man has his own clever plans."
"Alright, but I'm not your chef just yet," Sanchi took a step back, putting some distance between himself and Kado. "We're only allies once you get the Golden Scaled Fish."
"Oh, right," Kado chuckled. "Fite, looks like it's time for us to get to work. If we don't hurry up, those guys might snatch it away from us."
"Tch," Fite snorted coldly, casting a glance toward the direction of the Green Hat Pirates' ship.
The Green Hat Pirates' ship was still anchored in place, but no other ships dared to approach them. What had once been dozens of pirate ships now numbered only four or five, lingering at a distance and staying away from the Green Hat Pirates.
Among the four or five pirate ships, including Kado's and the Snow Bear Pirates, none were worth less than 30 million Berries. They all had the mindset of "fishermen waiting for the catch," waiting for the right moment to strike.
Seeing that the number of pirates on the sea had already decreased significantly, the Snow Bear Pirates steered their ship toward the Green Hat Pirates.
The other pirate crews quickly followed suit. In their minds, the Snow Bear Pirates, with a bounty of 84 million, were much more formidable than the Green Hat Pirates, who had a bounty of just over 50 million. If the Snow Bear Pirates got their hands on the prize, they might really have to give up.
The Kado ship also moved forward along with the others. On the deck at the bow stood three people: Kado, Fite, and the chef Sanchi. The other helpers hired by Sanchi had already gone below deck—none of them had the guts to get involved in the pirates' fight.
The two members of the Beinmei crew also returned to the Green Hat Pirates' ship. It seemed they weren't overly arrogant, knowing they couldn't defeat the remaining powerful pirates.
On the Snow Bear Pirates' ship, a few people stood at the bow as well. These were the main subordinates of the Snow Bear Pirates. Leading them was the captain himself, the Snow Bear, with a bounty of over 80 million. Standing second behind him was the man previously referred to by Fite as "Mantis Hand"—Hesslu.
On the other pirate ships, there were also several powerful pirates standing. These pirates, with bounties in the range of 30 to 40 million, were not like the previous ones who only cared about fleeing.
As the several pirate ships got closer to the Green Hat Pirates' ship, a few figures reemerged from the cabin of the Green Hat Pirates' vessel. Surrounding their captain, the slick and green-skinned Bellar, they made their way toward the approaching pirate ships.
The Snow Bear Pirates' ship stopped just a short distance away from the Green Hat Pirates' vessel. The short and stout Snow Bear looked at Bellar, who was now within sight, and said, "Failures of the Grand Line, hand over the Golden Scaled Fish, and I might spare you."
It must be said that Snow Bear's voice was deep and authoritative, giving off a strong leader-like presence. However, with his short and stocky build as a backdrop, no matter how commanding his voice was, it was hard to imagine that it could put much pressure on anyone.
Hisssss...
Bellar's tongue flicked in and out like that of a snake, making a hissing sound, almost like a real python, eyeing its prey.
"Is that so?" Bellar said, his expression turning dreamy as he looked at Snow Bear. "I can smell the scent of blood. It's such an intoxicating feeling." He grinned, his eyes gleaming. "How does the taste of an 80-million-Berry powerhouse compare?"
Upon hearing Bellar's words, Snow Bear's expression shifted. He gestured to his subordinates behind him. "Hesslu, clear the area!"
"Yes, Captain," Hesslu replied, nodding respectfully. He and a few of his subordinates stepped back, heading toward the other pirate ships that were preparing to take advantage of the chaos.
"Hehe, I too would prefer not to be disturbed by other scum," Bellar said, seeing Snow Bear's gesture. He immediately understood the meaning behind it. As the two of them fought, it was likely that other pirates would try to take advantage of the situation. Clearing out the other pirates would reduce a lot of unpredictable factors in their scramble for the prize.
"Captain, I understand what you're saying. Leave the others to us," Bein said, immediately grasping Bellar's intent. An excited expression appeared on his face as he charged toward the other pirate crews.
Beimei and the rest of his subordinates weren't far behind, quickly following suit and rushing toward the other pirates.
"They're clearing the area. This could be a bit of a problem," Fite muttered, furrowing his brows.
"Hehe, let them clear the area. It has nothing to do with us," Kado said with a grin. "These two idiots dare to look down on me, Kado the Great? Let me teach them a lesson." Kado leapt onto a small dinghy attached to the Kado ship, strapped on his master thief gear, and with a mischievous glint in his eyes, set course toward the Green Hat Pirates' ship.
"Oh, right, Fite, don't go running off. There's over a billion Berries on the ship!" Kado suddenly remembered his treasure still aboard and quickly reminded Fite to guard it.
"Wahaha, over a billion Berries? Looks like my luck is pretty good!"
Suddenly, Fite heard a strange laugh. He looked up, only to see a massive human cannonball coming straight at him, heading toward him with incredible speed.
"Kid, was it you who just tried to ambush me?" Sanchi, holding a large frying pan—clearly something he'd found somewhere—stepped in front of Fite to block the attack.
"Move aside, you're not even our pirate crew's chef yet. Just watch from the side," Fite said, patting Sanchi on the shoulder and urging him to step aside.
End of chapter
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