[134] : Those Who Fear Monsters Are Cowards
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"That lightning...it's wilder than Mama's Zeus. If I'm not mistaken, 'Thunder God' Arthur is fighting there," Katakuri observed, his Observation Haki—already surpassing his siblings'—picking up the distant electrical disturbances.
"Let's go take a look...If he's not worthy, we'll just kill him." Amande, her cold eyes narrowed beneath the brim of her hat, her voice as sharp as her blade, exuded a chilling bloodlust.
"ONWARDS! ONWARDS!" Perospero licked his candy cane, his long tongue snaking out.
"I'm a ship!"
"I'm a ship!"
The grinning figurehead of the Queen Mama Chanter continued its bizarre chant as the ship accelerated.
——
Squard floated in the water, his body scorched black, his life only saved by his Armament Haki.
The burns, inflicted by high-voltage electricity, the searing pain mixed with lingering numbness—it was agonizing.
He wished he were dead...
But more than the physical pain, it was the humiliation that broke him.
After having his ambitions crushed by Roger, he had found himself facing another insurmountable foe, another crushing defeat.
The despair was overwhelming!
"I have to go back to Pops—" he mumbled, his voice barely a whisper, his faith in himself shattered, his spirit broken. Only Whitebeard's presence could offer him solace now.
"Go back to Whitebeard?" Arthur's laughter echoed across the waves, his tone dripping with contempt.
Squard—his spirit broken, his mind consumed by fear—was finished, even if he survived.
"Nah, I'll send you to hell. You pathetic excuse for a pirate—" Arthur raised his hand, lightning crackling in his palm, a dangerous energy coalescing.
"WAIT! Seabury D. Arthur!" one of Squard's crew yelled from the wreckage. "Do you even know who our captain is?"
"Captain Squard is Whitebeard's son! You can't kill him!"
"Whitebeard..." Arthur's lips curled into a cold smile. "I saw your Jolly Roger. SO WHAT?"
"You know who Whitebeard is! He's one of the Emperors of the Sea! You kill his son—HE WILL COME FOR YOU!" The pirate, clutching the tattered remnants of their Jolly Roger, tried to use Whitebeard's reputation to intimidate Arthur.
Whitebeard wasn't yet universally recognized as the "Strongest Man in the World," but his power was undeniable, feared by all but a handful of the New World's Strongest pirates.
Who would have the audacity to cross him?
Did Arthur think he was like Shanks or Buggy, those fearless rookies who'd once mocked Whitebeard, challenging him to dye his beard red, escaping unscathed?
——
Zzzzzzt!
Arthur's lightning intensified. He wouldn't waste his breath answering their foolish questions.
Several bolts of Divine Judgment shot out, sending the pirates to a watery grave.
The sea calmed, the only evidence of the battle the scattered debris of Squard's ship, drifting aimlessly on the waves.
"What about it? I will surpass Whitebeard eventually. And a spineless pirate like Squard, clinging to his daddy's coattails? He'll be crushed by the changing tides." Arthur's voice was cold, indifferent.
Almost everyone on the Grand Line had a dream, a goal—some grand, some small, some easy, some impossible.
Dreams and freedom—They were the driving forces of this world.
Whitebeard, in his youth, had wanted a family.
A simple dream—and one he'd achieved.
He was a powerful man, arguably the strongest in the world, though not yet officially recognized as such. Arthur respected his dream—but he couldn't respect Whitebeard as a pirate.
Whitebeard had coddled his sons—Their reverence for him, their absolute loyalty—it stifled their growth. They all worshipped him as a father figure—except for Blackbeard.
And if Whitebeard fell?
If that pillar of strength crumbled?
His sons, without their protector, would be lost, easily crushed by any "Little Whitebeard" wannabe.
And Whitebeard, a man without true ambition—how had he even become an Emperor? His reign wouldn't last. It was only a matter of time before the old generation faded, the New World having no place for those clinging to the past.
A glorious death, a final battle against the world's strongest—that would be a fitting end, a worthy curtain call for a legend.
——
Arthur looked up, his gaze fixed on a ship approaching—a vessel that didn't belong in these waters.
The ship's cheerful singing and the boisterous conversations of its crew couldn't be missed by Arthur's Haki.
The Queen Mama Chanter, parting the waves, quickly approached.
"You killed Whitebeard's son? 'Thunder God' Arthur, you've got guts—picking a fight with a monster like that so soon after arriving in the New World..." Charlotte Oven, his three-pronged hair and boxer's build unmistakable, said, his voice laced with amusement.
Perospero, Compote, Katakuri, and Amande joined him at the bow, their youthful faces masking their formidable power.
Even Big Mom wouldn't provoke Whitebeard.
His Tremor-Tremor Fruit—a force of nature, its destructive power unavoidable—made him the one opponent she preferred to avoid. Shiki only threw islands.
Whitebeard—he cracked the earth, causing tsunamis, sinking islands. His power posed a greater threat to Whole Cake Island.
They'd spotted the remnants of Squard's ship—the distinctive Whitebeard Jolly Roger—and immediately reconsidered their plans for Arthur.
Having made an enemy of Whitebeard in his prime—Arthur's chances of survival were slim. They wouldn't risk the entire Charlotte Family for a dying man.
"Made an enemy of Whitebeard? Please. That's laughable." Arthur scoffed, hovering above them.
"Only cowards fear monsters. What about you, Big Mom pirates? You think your 'MAMA' is any different?"
"Do you even hear what you're saying—BRAT?" Oven's eyes blazed, the air around him shimmering with heat, the deck of the Queen Mama Chanter beginning to smolder. He was on the verge of attacking.
Katakuri's hand shot out—stopping Oven, his gaze meeting Arthur's—calm, steady, and intense.
"What are you doing here? Shouldn't the Big Mom Pirates be on Whole Cake Island?" Arthur asked, his eyes fixed on Katakuri's.
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