"Alarm! Alarm!" The one-eyed pirate on the observation deck yelled to his comrades below, loudly informing them of what he saw.
Kazusa, captain of the Black Crow Pirates, one of the Whitebeard Pirates’ affiliated crews, heard from his subordinate that Alucard was approaching their position. After a few seconds of shock, he decisively ordered, "Evade for now! Give me the Den Den Mushi! I’m calling Pops!"
This was no joke. A man who fought Kaido of the Beasts to a draw was someone even the top-ranking Whitebeard Pirates division commanders couldn’t handle alone, let alone a pirate captain like him with a bounty under 100 million.
Soon, on the Moby Dick, Whitebeard’s personal ship located nearly a hundred nautical miles away, Whitebeard quickly received Kazusa’s call through the Den Den Mushi.
Many Whitebeard Pirates crew members were present when Whitebeard learned of the situation. When they heard of Alucard’s arrival, they were all furious, clamoring to immediately set sail and take the head of that bastard who killed Drew.
"Hold on, hold on. There must be a reason that guy came here alone," Marco, the First Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates and an old veteran like Drew, calmed the enraged crew members. He analyzed, "We need to confirm whether he deliberately entered our territory or just stumbled in by mistake."
"Marco-san, are we just going to let him go if he stumbled in?" asked a member of the Whitebeard Pirates’ Second Division. He harbored extreme hatred for Alucard, who had killed his captain.
"That’s not what I mean. Drew was my dear friend; I also want to avenge him," Marco said, placing one hand on his hip and turning to face Whitebeard, who sat in the main seat. "Pops, can I go ahead and scout? With my ability, I can get there faster."
Marco, the owner of the Mythical Zoan-type Devil Fruit, Model: Phoenix, possessed the ability to fly and excelled in aerial combat. With this power, he had taken down countless pirate ships and Marine vessels.
"Marco, he’s a guy who fought Kaido to a standstill. Are you sure you’ll be alright going alone?" Vista asked, quite concerned.
Marco half-closed his eyes, a smirk playing on his lips. "Don’t worry. Even against Kaido, I can easily escape. Besides, this is just a reconnaissance mission. Nothing will happen."
Marco’s confidence was well-founded. He was never arrogant enough to believe he could defeat Kaido, but he was absolutely certain that if he wanted to leave, Kaido couldn’t stop him!
What’s more, don’t forget this was at sea, not on land; the sky was his home turf.
"Is it okay, Pops?" Marco asked Whitebeard again.
"Gurararararara~~" Whitebeard laughed heartily, then his eyes sharpened. "Then I’ll leave it to you, Marco."
"Understood!" Marco leaped, and in mid-air, his body ignited with blue flames. In half a second, he transformed into a phoenix and soared into the distance.
"My sons! Change the Moby Dick’s course! We’re going to support Marco and Kazusa!" A few seconds after Marco left, Whitebeard roared his command.
While a ship would take at least an hour to reach the location, Marco arrived in just over ten minutes, and he wasn’t even flying at full speed, just in case he had to fight Alucard. As he said, the sky was his domain, and this ability was indispensable for him to serve as the Whitebeard Pirates’ No. 2.
Soon, Marco rendezvoused with Kazusa.
On the Black Crow Pirates’ ship, Kazusa first shook Marco’s hand warmly, then apologized, "My apologies, we avoided him."
"No, you did the right thing..." Marco replied after releasing his hand. "Pops and the others won’t take long to arrive. I’ll scout ahead. If I can fight, I’ll stall for time. If it’s not suitable for a fight, I’ll retreat. Don’t worry then."
"Marco-san, please be careful," the members of the Black Crow Pirates said.
Marco spread his wings again, transforming into a phoenix and ascending into the sky. However, to his surprise, the moment he took flight, a bullet suddenly flew out and struck his wing. It carried immense force, making Marco involuntarily flip backward.
"Marco-san!" the Black Crow Pirates below screamed.
"I’m fine," Marco grunted, suddenly remembering that Alucard seemed to use a gun. ’Could it be...? No, it couldn’t be!’
As soon as the thought formed, Marco sharply shook his head. Kazusa had just said that Alucard was at least ten nautical miles away, at the two o’clock direction. Could his Observation Haki sense that far, and could a bullet travel that far?
Actually, Marco had guessed correctly. It truly could shoot that far. The Casull White Gun, enhanced to LV5, had completely surpassed the limits of ordinary firearms. It simply couldn’t be judged by the conventional understanding of a gun’s construction.
Soon, countless bullets rained down, but this time, Marco was prepared. He dodged high in the sky while flying towards the source of the bullets.
Ten nautical miles away, Alucard held his Casull in front of his sunglasses. Through his Thermal Vision, he fired at a small white dot scrambling in the sky. A smirk played on his lips as he muttered to himself, "An ability to fly in the sky... That must be Marco, the First Division Commander."
"Hehe, Marco... have you ever played a bird hunt game when you were a kid?" Alucard asked with a smirk, regardless of whether Marco could hear him.
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