One Piece: Failure’s Road to the Pirate King

Sage said someone was coming to the port, but when Lily arrived, aside from the Navy and Pirates who were passed out on the ground, she didn't see anyone else. The sea was clear of any ship tracks, except for the merchant ships and Pirate ships docked.

Just as Lily was about to ask, her gaze suddenly sharpened, astonished as she looked out at the sea. What should have been an empty expanse now revealed the outlines of several ships. "Navy?"

Lily took out the telescope hanging at her waist and scanned the area, gasping in surprise.

Only now could she see clearly with the telescope that these Warships hadn't appeared when Sage mentioned someone was coming.

"So this is the power of Haki," she murmured.

Haki—Sage was confident in heading to the Grand Line because he had mastered this power.

But this was something Sage said he couldn't teach; it was the strength of heart and will, only grasped through battles with the strong. If it were Sage teaching her, he wouldn't go all out against Lily, and even if he forced the teaching, it would be slow.

She still had to rely on herself.

Shaking her head, she cast aside those thoughts and focused intently on the Warships on the sea, saying, "Sage, there are a total of ten Warships."

These were certainly not the ten large Warships from the Demon Slayer Order, but rather the ordinary Warships from the branch, likely called in by the Navy for reinforcements during the battle with these Pirates.

Ten branch Warships, each fully crewed with around two hundred people, so that was quite a number. If it were normal Pirates, they would definitely retreat upon seeing this reinforcement.

But Sage was no ordinary Pirate. The number of people meant nothing to him.

His eyes glowed a deep crimson as he glared at the sea, and the falling storm seemed to freeze under that gaze. The waves that had been rising also stilled at that moment, as if a ripple was sent towards the approaching Warships.

Boom!

After a brief silence, thunder roared in the sky, and the sounds of wind and rain continued to echo in Log Town, sweeping the nearby waves to crash against the shore.

Sage chuckled, "In the East Sea, no one can stop me, at least not at this critical moment!"

Under the power of Conqueror's Haki, no matter how many people there were, they were all just fish in his eyes!

The Navy on the Warships had already been stunned by him, yet the Warships continued to sail towards Log Town beneath the sails.

"Lily, once the Warships hit the shore, gather the people to loot weapons and ammunition. Any excess, leave it outside the town to sell together."

Sage walked towards the Death Star Ship, "I'm going back to the ship for a drink; this storm is giving me a headache."

"Sage, wait! There's another Warship!"

Lily suddenly shouted. Through the telescope, she saw a massive Navy Warship appearing behind the ten Warships.

"A large Warship, coming from headquarters. What's going on? Why did the headquarters' Warship arrive so quickly? How did they navigate against the current of Inverted Mountain?!"

"Hmm?"

Sage looked out at the sea, and indeed, behind the ten Warships that had come with the wind, a large Warship far exceeding the size of the branch Warships appeared. But after just one glance, he lost interest.

"The Navy has special technology that allows them to cross the Doldrums. If they want to go to the four seas, they can just pass through. But that doesn't matter. I said, at this critical moment, no one can stop me."

Before planning to rob Log Town, he had also studied the Navy's deployments. The Vice Admiral from headquarters would patrol the four seas, but they always came with a mission.

The Navy wasn't that free; they operated under orders, unlike Pirates who roamed the seas at will, attacking whoever they wanted.

A 'Navy Hero' like Garp, unless on leave, would inevitably come to the East Sea with a mission.

However, he was a 'Navy Hero,' perhaps a bit reckless, but Sage hadn't heard from him that he was coming with a mission to capture him.

Moreover, Sage had already learned from the newspaper that Garp had crossed the Inverted Mountain. Regardless of whether the rumors about crossing the Inverted Mountain were true or not, he couldn't possibly turn back.

Even if he did turn back temporarily, there wouldn't be enough time.

Similarly, even if the Log Town Navy discovered him and called for reinforcements from headquarters, they wouldn't arrive at Log Town at this moment.

That large Warship wasn't targeting him.

It should still be aimed at the batch of Pirates that had arrived in Log Town early, perhaps a nearby headquarters Navy received orders and crossed the Doldrums to come here.

After all, Log Town was quite close to the Doldrums.

It just happened that Sage caught up with them.

But even if a large Warship was dispatched for a batch of Pirates worth around ten million, it wouldn't be anything powerful.

Under the pressure of his Conqueror's Haki, if anyone could still stand, it would be a miracle, at most a colonel from headquarters.

Even coming with the wind wouldn't change anything.

In this regard, Sage was confident in his plan.

"My plan is perfect."

"Sage!!"

Boom!!

A meteor suddenly streaked across the sky, crashing down on Sage, who was still speaking, accompanied by Lily's scream. A massive explosion erupted from the port, kicking up a huge cloud of dust.

Amidst the dust, Sage's body was almost turned into an afterimage as he was violently thrown back, crashing into a building beside the port and burying it.

Clang! Lily instantly drew her Fine Sword, gripping it with both hands, standing in front of the ruins, staring intently at the cloud of smoke.

"Oh? White Thunder? This sword is one of the fifty fine swords, how did it end up in your hands, little girl?" A hoarse voice emerged from the smoke.

Bang! Before Lily could respond, the ruins behind her exploded, and amidst the flying debris, Sage's figure slowly stood up from the wreckage.

"Sage, are you okay?" Lily turned back to speak, but was taken aback.

Because at that moment, Sage's face was terrifyingly dark! "Ah!"

He tore open the damaged fabric of his chest, ripping off his entire upper garment, only draped in a black and red fur cloak, stepping forward to Lily's side, staring intently at the figure in the smoke.

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"

Sage's teeth were about to shatter as he shouted at the figure in the smoke, "How could it be you! You old immortal, haven't you retired from the Navy yet?!"

The smoke before him slowly dispersed, revealing a massive mechanical arm!

And the owner of that arm was a burly man with purple hair, clad in a Navy cloak!

"Why should I retire from the Navy?"

The purple-haired man swung his mechanical arm, fixing his gaze on Sage, "Was that Conqueror's Haki just now yours? What is that Garp guy up to? He was clearly still in the East Sea before, yet he didn't notice such a dangerous element like you."

A vein bulged on Sage's forehead as he roared, "So, you came specifically to catch me? Answer me, Zephyr!"

This man, no matter how hazy his memories were, Sage wouldn't mistake him when it came to the strong on the sea! The former Navy Admiral, known for his 'no kill' policy, Navy Black Arm, Zephyr!!

"What's wrong with the Navy capturing Pirates?"

Zephyr stared at Sage for a while before realizing something, exclaiming, "Oh, I've seen your Bounty Notice, Norton Sage, the great sinner who destroyed the kingdom, an extremely dangerous individual!"

"That doesn't matter!"

Sage shouted, "Let me confirm again, are you here specifically for me? This is very important to me; even if you're an enemy, it's okay to answer the question!"

Zephyr was taken aback, unsure why this guy was so fixated on this, but still replied, "Not really, I was just on patrol. I heard that a large batch of Pirates appeared in Log Town, so I came to take a look. The Pirate guerrilla can catch Pirates anywhere, not limited to the Grand Line."

So he wasn't here targeting him.

He knew it! His plan couldn't possibly go wrong.

His assumptions and plans were still correct; it was just Zephyr who came, not some colonel from headquarters.

In other words, he was just plain unlucky! "See, Lily!"

Sage turned back to explain to Lily, "It's not that my plan went wrong; it's just bad luck! My plan is perfect; it won't go wrong!"

Lily: "…"

No one asked about that.

What's with that eager-to-explain expression of yours?

Moreover, Lily glanced at Zephyr. Although this man was referred to by Sage as an old immortal, the aura he exuded was clearly not to be trifled with.

He was a strong one!