"Hahahahaha!" Alucard laughed manically, continuing to pursue and shoot at Marco. Before long, Marco felt his strength gradually waning, but he finally managed to fly back to the central area of the Whitebeard Pirates’ territory.
Kazusa and the others of the Black Crow Pirates watched in astonishment, their jaws nearly hitting the deck.
Marco was actually dodging helplessly, like a fledgling being hunted.
It wasn’t that Alucard’s strength genuinely surpassed Marco’s to an insurmountable degree; the more crucial reason was that Marco had no desire to fight.
He knew he couldn’t win, and this was Whitebeard’s territory anyway. Whitebeard had also instructed him not to engage Alucard on his own; he was merely there to scout. So, Marco simply gave up on fighting.
However, the result was exactly as Kazusa and the others had feared: he became a mere target for Alucard’s gun, like a chick being chased by a hunter. If other pirate crews or the Marines saw this, the Whitebeard Pirates would lose face.
"Ah... what an interesting game." Alucard reloaded his Jackal, a look of ecstatic joy on his face.
He had aimed for Marco’s heart multiple times, yet Marco had managed to narrowly dodge each shot. Truly worthy of a Whitebeard Pirates division commander, and Marco was indeed skilled in aerial combat.
If the battlefield were on land, he might not be stronger than the future Ace, but at sea, the outcome was clear.
"Who dares to take the lives of my beloved sons?"
Suddenly, from a small island to their right, a massive white whale ship rapidly burst forth from behind it.
Alucard turned to look and saw a man standing at the bow of the large white whale ship, wielding a naginata. He had a white crescent-shaped mustache and striking golden hair, looking to be just under fifty years old. Surrounding him were countless pirates renowned throughout the New World.
It was... Whitebeard! Whitebeard Edward Newgate! Beside him were the division commanders of the Whitebeard Pirates! And that wasn’t all; behind the Moby Dick, Whitebeard Pirates’ personal ship, followed over ten more pirate ships, all well-known pirate crews in the New World. Of course, some had gained fame by associating with Whitebeard.
While Alucard turned to observe the approaching Whitebeard Pirates, Marco seized the opportunity. He landed on the Moby Dick and reverted to his human form the moment his feet touched the deck.
Although his phoenix healing ability had mended most of his injuries, Marco still had several bloody holes on his body in human form.
"My apologies, Pops." Marco knelt on one knee, looking at Whitebeard’s back. The Whitebeard Pirates’ medical team quickly rushed forward with a medical kit to staunch Marco’s bleeding.
"Gurararara~ You did well, Marco. Leave the rest to me." Whitebeard tapped the front of the Moby Dick with the blunt end of his naginata and roared at Alucard ahead, "Was it you who killed my son?! You snot-nosed brat!"
Alucard steered his ship to turn and slowly moved in front of the Moby Dick.
Due to the vast size difference between the two ships, Alucard, sitting on his throne, had to look up to meet Whitebeard’s gaze. "Isn’t that a bit excessive, Whitebeard?"
"Hm?" Whitebeard raised his head slightly, momentarily unsure what Alucard meant by that.
"I’m just one person, and you’ve brought out such a grand display. Are you afraid you can’t defeat me alone? Or does the Whitebeard Pirates only win by sheer numbers?" Alucard crossed his hands on his knee, which was propped up in a relaxed manner, his eyes sweeping over the pirate ships surrounding the Moby Dick.
"How dare you insult the Whitebeard Pirates!"
Upon hearing Alucard’s words, many on the Moby Dick and the other Whitebeard Pirates’ affiliated ships instantly flew into a rage. Some of the more hot-tempered gunmen raised their weapons and fired at Alucard.
Over ten large pirate ships, with thousands of crew members, and many pirates were already short-tempered. Because of Alucard’s words, over thirty people on the ships fired at him in anger!
Facing the storm of bullets raining down, Alucard maintained a smile and remained seated, allowing the bullets to strike his body.
In the eyes of Whitebeard’s crew, Alucard was instantly riddled with bullets, like a beehive. Blood dripped from his stone chair onto the iron ship’s deck, staining it red.
"Did... did it work...?" Vista took a step forward, just as he saw Alucard’s neck tilt, as if he had breathed his last.
Suddenly, Whitebeard’s eyes narrowed. He used his Observation Haki and discovered that Alucard, who should have been dead, had suddenly regained his presence.
Covered in blood, still with his head tilted, Alucard suddenly raised his right hand, aimed his gun, and fired. The shot, hundreds of times more powerful than the previous bullets, erupted with a dazzling light blue flash.
Suddenly, a pure white, net-like sphere appeared at the tip of his naginata.
Whitebeard lifted his naginata and swept it, instantly blocking the bullet that was about to hit his son with a spatial tremor. The violent spatial roar caused the sea surface to undulate, and wave after wave crashed, rocking all the ships in the area.
"Oh, is that the Tremor-Tremor Fruit, said to be the strongest Paramecia?" Alucard asked, tilting his head back.
"Go play target practice at a Marine base, you immortal brat," Whitebeard grinned, revealing his large white teeth.
"Is protecting the weak so much fun, Whitebeard?" Alucard retorted with a smile.
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