"All contestants, please take your positions! Our third round, the Water Balloon Attack and Defense Battle Royale, is about to officially begin!"
"Next, let me give you a brief introduction to the rules!"
Festa's commentary echoed from the airship above.
In the inland sea enclosed by the ring-shaped island, pirate ships were currently floating, each carrying three participating crew members.
Between the ships, numerous rubber balloons of various colors bobbed on the surface of the sea, their contents unknown.
Nami, Gin, and Perona stood at the bow of the Freewill, observing the nearby pirate ships while listening to the broadcast from the sky.
The rules of the match were simple. The rubber balloons on the sea contained a special mixed gas. As soon as a balloon ruptured, the gas inside would react with the air and trigger a massive explosion.
Among them, twelve balloons did not contain the special gas. Instead, they held a small box containing an item needed for the fourth round of the competition.
In other words, the pirate crews that secured the boxes from those twelve balloons first would advance to the final round.
To encourage the pirates in the arena to actively attack, the rules stated that if a ship was sunk by an exploding balloon, the crew would lose their qualification to advance.
"There are only twelve spots for the fourth round? That means two-thirds of the pirate crews will be eliminated in this round," Gin estimated as he scanned the sea.
"Finding twelve balloons with treasure boxes hidden among hundreds or thousands of explosive ones is an incredibly high risk. Who knows how powerful the explosions are," Nami said with a frown, a hint of worry in her eyes as she looked at the colorful balloons floating around their ship.
After hearing the rules, the pirates in the arena began to strategize their next moves in advance.
Right at that moment, the broadcast gave the command.
"Now! The match officially begins!!"
"It's a bit of a gamble, but if we don't make a move, we'll never find the right balloon. Let's just try one first!"
On another ship near the Freewill, Sai's eyes darkened. Locking onto a distant balloon, he raised his naginata and unleashed a Flying Slash.
Boom!!
The slash landed, and the balloon detonated without surprise, kicking up a massive wave on the sea.
The intense shockwave rippled out, triggering a chain reaction of explosions among several nearby balloons!
Boom!! Boom!! Boom!!
"Oh no!!"
"Protect the ship!!"
Seeing the situation turn dire, Sai hurriedly shouted.
Several nearby ships rocked violently, caught in the shockwaves of the chain explosions.
"Where did this brute come from?! You bunch of idiots, were your brains eaten by zombies?!" Perona cursed at them, standing firm with her legs turned inward in a pigeon-toed stance while tightly gripping the railing.
On the sea, several balloons were blown toward them by the explosive shockwaves.
Nami hastily pulled out her Clima-Tact. Facing the sea outside the ship, she spun the Clima-Tact rapidly in her hands and shouted, activating her ability:
"Miracle Weather: Gale!!"
Whoosh—!!
The Clima-Tact emitted a faint blue glow as a powerful hurricane materialized out of thin air and swept outward, blowing all the balloons on the surrounding sea far away!
While the Freewill escaped danger, some of those balloons flew toward other ships, triggering another round of explosions.
Boom!! Boom!! Boom!!
"Damn it! The balloons are flying over here!"
"Hurry! Get them away!"
For a time, the sound of explosions echoed continuously across the sea as the various pirate crews began detonating the bomb balloons near each other.
"I'll take charge of steering the ship!" Nami shouted. She quickly leaped onto the deckhouse, using the localized air currents generated by her Clima-Tact to blow the sails and control the vessel.
Perona spread her hands, and streams of white ghosts flew out from her palms.
"Leave it to me, Nami. I'll handle the scouting and finding the treasure boxes. Go, my ghosts!"
With Perona's delicate shout, a massive swarm of ghosts quickly scattered.
Utilizing their intangible bodies, the ghosts continuously phased in and out of the balloons, completely unconcerned about detonating them.
"You can do that? What a convenient ability," Gin sighed in admiration as he watched the ghosts search with incredible efficiency. Then, he turned his gaze forward.
He saw a massive wooden raft ship aggressively bearing down on them. Gin's eyes narrowed, and his body gradually expanded and grew larger.
"In that case, I'll take responsibility for the defense."
Opposite them, Burgess raised his two thick arms, standing at the bow in a muscle-flexing pose as he threw his head back and laughed loudly:
"Wihahahaha! Long time no see, Demon Lion Pirates!"
"It's these lingering ghosts again. Are they here to avenge their captain?" Nami frowned. Seeing the figures clearly, she abandoned steering the ship, grabbed her Clima-Tact, and leaped to the bow to stand beside Gin, ready for battle.
"Avenge? Wihahahaha! Don't joke around. We don't do boring things like that, but that doesn't mean we'll just hand Teach's ability over to you!" Burgess laughed arrogantly.
Behind him, Vasco Shot sat lazily on the wooden planks, holding a large gourd full of liquor. He looked completely drunk and entirely indifferent to Burgess's actions.
Meanwhile, Doc Q lay sickly on his horse's back, looking troubled as he said:
"I say, Teach is already dead. Why do you still want to provoke them? If you're going to go against that guy, don't drag me into it, Burgess."
"We just happened to run into them. Did you forget how badly they beat us up before? Besides..."
A dark glint flashed in Burgess's eyes. He clenched his fists and said with absolute resolve:
"Teach said he could steal other people's abilities. I suspect it has something to do with the Dark-Dark Fruit. No matter what, I'm going to get my hands on that power!"
Whoosh!
Just as he finished speaking, a figure rapidly flew over!
Gin stepped on the air, his eyes filled with ruthlessness as he quickly closed the distance.
"Moonwalk!!"
"Get ready to fight!" Burgess shouted in alarm. He stepped forward, sinking into a half-squat, and bent his elbow to gather his strength.
"Surge・Elbow Strike!!"
As Gin closed in, Burgess let out a loud shout and rapidly swung his elbow!
A shockwave flew through the air!
Boom!!
Gin stomped hard under his feet, elevating his body to dodge the attack. The shockwave landed on the sea, plowing a one-meter-wide vacuum channel across the surface.
Gin arrived above Burgess's head, flipped once in the air, and violently smashed down his spinning tonfas with the momentum!
Bang!!
Burgess raised his arms in a cross to block. Struck heavily by the solid iron balls, his feet skidded across the deck, sliding back ten meters before his back slammed heavily against the mast.
"This bastard! How is his strength so much greater than before?!" Burgess cursed through gritted teeth. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, and a look of apprehension flashed in his eyes. The arms he used to block the attack stung with a burning pain.
"Feels like they're fractured. Damn it."
"Compared to back in the City of the Spring Queen, I am now more than several times stronger. All of you, sink to the bottom of the sea!" Gin shouted deeply. Landing on the ship, his gaze narrowed as he swiftly charged toward Doc Q.
"Look at the stupid thing you've done! I told you not to provoke them, you idiot!" Doc Q cursed in exasperation, hastily grabbing a few explosive apples and throwing them out.
"Iron Body!!"
Gin quickly raised his arms to defend, his entire body's muscles tensing up as hard as steel.
Boom!! Boom!! Boom!!
The apples detonated violently, engulfing Gin's figure in flames mixed with black smoke.
However, in the next second.
Swish!
With his arms crossed in front of him, Gin rapidly dashed out of the smoke, his cold gaze locked onto Doc Q.
To Doc Q's disbelief, Gin, who had just tanked a round of explosions head-on, didn't seem to have a single scratch on his entire body.
With his Buccaneer Tribe bloodline activated, Gin's constitution was already exaggeratedly tough. After using Iron Body, ordinary firearms and artillery attacks could be completely ignored.
"Explosives of this level aren't nearly enough!"
Arriving in front of Doc Q, Gin held his twin tonfas parallel at his side, let out a loud shout, and violently swept them outward!
"Bone Hammer Burst!!"
"You've exposed a flaw, idiot! Liquor Furnace Fire!!"
The drunkard Vasco Shot suddenly darted out from the side, his cheeks puffed up. Taking advantage of Gin's attack on Doc Q, he abruptly spewed out a massive mouthful of liquor!
"Wait a minute, you bastard! Are you trying to burn me to death too?!" Doc Q screamed in terror and cursed.
Boom!!
The surrounding air ignited out of nowhere. The massive mouthful of liquor instantly turned into a roaring, high-temperature flame upon being spewed out, engulfing Gin along with Doc Q in an instant!
Bang!!
Within the flames, Gin's eyes flashed with ruthlessness. Without the slightest pause in his movements, his pair of solid iron balls violently smashed into Doc Q's chest!
"Puh-wah—!!"
Struck by this blow, Doc Q's bloodshot eyes widened. He spat out a large mouthful of blood in agony as his entire chest caved in, his ribs completely shattered!
Amidst the flames, Gin exerted force with his arms and flung Doc Q away, sending him splashing into the sea!
Then, he abruptly turned his head to glare furiously at Vasco Shot, hurling the iron-ball tonfa in his hand with all his might!
Vasco Shot hastily stopped breathing fire and leaped backward, creating an alcohol bubble in the air to land and steady himself.
Escaping the flames, Gin's skin was burned bright red and emitting white smoke. Gritting his teeth to endure the excruciating pain, he tried to pursue, but after taking just one step, he nearly lost his footing and almost dropped to one knee.
'A prisoner from Impel Down? This guy seems quite a bit stronger than Burgess and the others. Damn it...'
Gin thought to himself, glaring angrily at Vasco Shot floating in the air.
Right at that moment.
"Miracle Weather: Lightning Summon!!"
Rumble—!!
Following a delicate shout, a bright light suddenly flashed in the sky!
All the pirates in the arena instinctively looked up, bizarrely witnessing a bolt of lightning suddenly appear in the clear sky, striking down with pinpoint accuracy right at Vasco Shot's position!
"What!!"
Vasco Shot's pupils shrank in shock. Before he could even react, the violent lightning bolt had already struck him, the electrical current instantly piercing through his entire body and connecting to the sea!
Boom!!
The delayed clap of thunder echoed across the arena, deafening to the ears!
The lightning vanished in a flash. Vasco Shot, charred black and smoking, rolled his eyes back and lost consciousness. His body went into a freefall, plunging into the sea and kicking up a wave several meters high!
Click-clack.
A pair of red high heels landed on the bow of the Freewill. Nami stood up, twirled the Clima-Tact a few times, and aimed one end at the massive wooden raft pirate ship.
The Gas Dial and Breath Dial activated simultaneously, filling the air with a pungent odor.
"Gin! Get out of the way!"
"W-Wait a minute, Miss Nami!"
Gin's face paled in shock. He hurriedly leaped off the enemy ship with all his might. The moment his back foot left the deck, the very next second—
"Flare Cannon!!"
Nami shouted loudly, and a beam of blue flames containing terrifyingly high temperatures blasted out from the Clima-Tact!
Boom!!
The blue flame beam pierced through the wooden raft and detonated explosively!
In an instant, a blinding light illuminated the entire surrounding area. Wood splinters exploded outward as the single Flare Cannon blasted Burgess and his ship straight into the sea!
By the time the light faded, there was no sign of the ship on the sea; only a few charred, shattered wooden planks remained floating on the surface.
Thud!
Gin landed back on the Freewill, stumbling before collapsing onto the deck. He glanced back at Nami with lingering fear, cold sweat unconsciously beading on his forehead.
Gulp.
Perona swallowed hard. Recalling Nami's earlier threat that anyone who dragged them down would be sunk to the bottom of the sea along with the enemies, a wave of delayed terror washed over her.
"The enemies are taken care of. Let's get back to finding the treasure boxes. Keep up the good work, Perona," Nami smiled faintly as she turned back to her.
To Perona, that smile looked like the devil's. Terrified, her face turned pale green as she immediately stood at attention and saluted.
"I guarantee the mission will be completed!"
...
Afterward, the three continued their advance.
Nami took charge of steering the ship, while Perona used her ghosts to rapidly search the balloons along their path.
The battlefield in the distance was fiercely contested, but no one nearby dared to provoke them anymore.
Having witnessed everything that just happened, Sai coughed awkwardly and suggested,
"Ahem, we'd better go check somewhere else."
"Yeah, I was just thinking the same thing."
His younger brother Boo, with his arms crossed over his chest, nodded and replied with feigned composure.
Following that, several nearby ships, including theirs, tacitly sailed away from the area.
Before long, thanks to Perona's highly efficient search, they finally found a balloon containing a treasure box.
"Beautifully done, Perona! Shishishi, one hundred million Berries are mine!"
Bringing the balloon onto the ship and popping it, Nami ecstatically pulled out the treasure box with both hands.
Hearing the commotion, two nearby ships slowly turned around, preparing to come over and snatch it.
Perona leaped onto the ship's railing and summoned back her ghosts. With a Negative Hollow in her left hand and a Kamikaze Bomb in her right, she unleashed a combo that directly blew the opposing ships to the bottom of the sea.
"Ohhh! The third pirate crew to advance has appeared! Let's congratulate the Demon Lion Pirates, representing the Warlords of the Sea!"
The voice echoed from the broadcast, confirming that Nami's trio had secured their spot to advance on the spot.
...
Up above, Allen and his crew watched everything unfolding below from the stands near their camp.
There were a total of twelve spots for the finals. Barring any accidents, they were guaranteed to take one. Aside from the Nyaban Brothers, any three people Allen sent down would have the strength to pull it off.
After all, the rule for this round was that captains couldn't participate. Out of the thirty-plus pirate crews down there, only the Emperor crews and a few Warlord teams were actually worth watching.
As for the rest, once their captains were removed, they didn't have much strength left—and that included the Supernova crews.
Comparing the overall strength of the crew members, among the Warlords, only the Donquixote Family with their numerous officers, and the Kuja Pirates where everyone mastered Haki, could compete with Allen's crew.
Moreover, Nami, Perona, and Gin were currently the three strongest members on the ship.
Unless they went up against the Animal Kingdom Pirates' Tobi Roppo or the Big Mom Pirates' Charlotte Family members, ordinary teams couldn't do anything to them.
Especially Perona's ability—against the pirates down in the arena, it was an absolute massacre.
"To think Red Hair only sent a few minor characters into the arena. That's a bit beyond my expectations."
"I've heard they're a capricious bunch. Perhaps they didn't come for the tournament prize in the first place," Robin chuckled softly in response.
Allen leaned back, half his body sinking into the soft backrest of the sofa, and said dismissively:
"It's best if that's the case. The next round will have the captains of each team stepping up. Snatching the Dark-Dark Fruit from Red Hair's hands would be asking a bit too much."
Tsk, if he had known Red Hair was going to send a few minor characters, he would have instructed Nami to eliminate them right from the start.
Unfortunately, hindsight is 20/20.
A short while later, the third round of the competition finally came to an end.
The other Supernovas were completely wiped out in this round; not a single one advanced.
Doffy's subordinates, the Kuja Pirates, the Animal Kingdom Pirates, and the Big Mom Pirates advanced just as Allen had expected.
In addition to them, World's pirate crew and Sai from the Happo Navy also demonstrated the strength expected of veteran pirate crews.
What surprised Allen was that those few minor characters from the Red Hair Pirates actually managed to secure a spot in the finals.
He later learned from his subordinates that the bounties of those three apprentice pirates from the Red Hair Pirates were actually around one hundred million Berries each.
"Tsk, they truly live up to the title of the [Iron Wall] pirate crew. Even their standards for rookies are this high," Allen couldn't help but sigh in admiration.