Pirates: Martial Arts Masters on the Straw Hat Ship

East China Sea, waters around Gunkanjima Island.

Like a white arrow, the Merry cut through the waves and locked onto the group of green figures that blotted out the sky.

As they drew closer, a peculiar island slowly emerged on the horizon.

The island's shape was extremely bizarre, with towering cliffs reaching into the clouds. From a distance, it looked like a huge warship anchored on the sea, exuding an aura that kept strangers away.

This is the legendary Battleship Island.

However, what should have been a peaceful moment of returning home was ruthlessly shattered by the deafening sound of gunfire.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Countless black shells, trailing long plumes of flame, shot into the sky from the sea surrounding the island, instantly engulfing the ancient dragons that were preparing to land in a dense barrage of fire.

"hold head high--!!"

A mournful roar echoed through the sky.

Several smaller, slower-flying old dragons were hit by artillery fire, their feathers flying as they cried out in despair and fell into the sea.

"What happened?"

Zoro frowned, his hand already on the hilt of his sword, his sharp gaze fixed on the distance: "There... is there an ambush?"

Usopp frantically pulled out his binoculars, adjusted the focus, and the next second, his face turned deathly pale, cold sweat dripping down his long nose.

"It's the navy! So many navy warships! They...they've surrounded the island!"

"What? Let me see!"

Nami snatched the binoculars from her.

Through the lens, she could clearly see eight large warships neatly arranged around Gunkanjima Island.

"It's the fleet of Admiral Nelson Roy of the 8th Branch!" Nami exclaimed. "Why are they ambushing the Thousand-Year Dragon here?"

Standing to the side, Ronan carried a long iron spear on his back, his gaze deep and profound.

As expected... the plot took a turn.

Ronan thought to himself.

According to the original storyline of the anime, this fleet was supposed to be hunting down a little girl named Apis in order to learn the secret of the Thousand-Year Dragon.

But now, Luffy failed to save the girl, yet the Navy still found the place and laid a trap beforehand.

It seems that my intervention caused our journey to be delayed during the few days we spent practicing at sea.

The butterfly effect has already manifested; the Navy may have found the girl again and forced her to reveal the location of her hometown.

Ronan shook his head, clearing his mind of these distracting thoughts.

"Who cares what happened?"

Ronan looked at the enraged dragons in the sky and a cold smile appeared on his lips. "However, these marines seem to have underestimated the power of legendary creatures."

"Nami, take another look."

Upon hearing this, Nami raised her binoculars again.

Upon seeing this, her expression changed from fear to blankness.

"This...how is this possible?"

In the footage, the naval fleet that initially seemed to have the upper hand is now suffering a devastating blow.

Instead of scattering and fleeing, the enraged thousand-year-old dragons, led by a massive dragon at their head, launched a furious counterattack.

They swooped down, their enormous claws tearing through the decks and masts of the warships as easily as ripping paper.

"Boom—!"

A warship was overturned by several ancient dragons working together, its massive hull upside down on the sea, creating towering waves.

Naval soldiers screamed as they fell into the water like dumplings being dropped into a pot, and the artillery became mute in the face of the claws.

"This isn't a battle at all..." Nami murmured to herself, her voice trembling, "This is... a one-sided massacre."

"What?! Are those bird-like dragons really that powerful?!"

Upon hearing Nami's description, Usopp shuddered and his legs went weak as he clung to the mast.

"Hey! Luffy! Let's think about this some more! That's a monster! We'll die if we go!"

"That's amazing!!"

Luffy, however, showed no fear whatsoever. Instead, he excitedly jumped onto the ram's head, his eyes shining, and pointed at the chaotic battlefield, shouting:

"Let's get there quickly! Full speed ahead! I want to see the dragon!!"

As the Going Merry approached, the brutal melee became clearly visible to everyone.

It was less a chaotic battle and more a brutal massacre.

The air was thick with the smell of gunpowder and blood.

The Thousand-Year Dragon's body, covered in green feathers and hard scales, remained unharmed amidst the gunfire.

In contrast, the navy's proud steel cannons were as fragile as toys under the dragon's claws.

"Aaaaaah! Help!"

"Fire! Fire now! Monsters! They're monsters!"

Screams echoed throughout the room.

Ronan and his men moored the Merry near a secluded cave on the back of Battleship Island, temporarily avoiding the center of the battlefield.

"Nami, Usopp, are you going?"

Luffy cracked his neck, making a snapping sound, looking eager to try.

"I'm not going!!"

Nami and Usopp shook their heads vigorously, shouting in unison:

"Only a fool would go! A battlefield of that level—you'd never come back!"

"Alright."

Ronan held his eighteen-foot iron spear, gave it a slight shake, and the spear trembled, emitting a buzzing sound.

"Then you'll stay here and guard the ship, ready to provide support at any time. This level of combat is indeed not suitable for you."

Under Nami's watchful, nodding approval, Ronan, Luffy, Sanji, and Zoro, like four wild beasts unleashed from their cages, charged toward the central battlefield of Gunkanjima.

We crossed rugged rock walls and climbed over towering mountain ridges.

When the four arrived at the edge of the battlefield, the scene before them was nothing short of hell.

The once formidable naval fleet has now been completely annihilated.

All eight warships were reduced to wreckage floating on the sea, engulfed in flames and billowing with thick smoke.

Countless naval corpses and broken planks floated on the sea.

And above those ruins, hundreds of ancient dragons coiled.

Among them, there is an exceptionally large, thousand-year-old dragon king, standing on the highest reef on the shore.

It stands ten meters tall, its feathers displaying an ancient, deep blue hue, and each scale on its belly resembles a shield.

Its eyes were filled with both wisdom and ferocity, and the dragon horns on its head were as majestic as a crown.

It was like a proud monarch, coldly looking down at the torn human fleet at its feet.

At the feet of this dragon king, Admiral Nelson's obese corpse had been torn in two, and his naval coat, a symbol of power, had become a shroud.

"What a ferocious creature..."

Zoro gripped his sword hilt, his gaze fixed on the dragon king, the fighting spirit in his eyes burning even brighter than before.

"To destroy an entire fleet with sheer physical strength... Is this the legendary dragon?"

"It seems that obtaining dragon bones will not be so easy."

Ronan frowned; he could sense an extremely terrifying fluctuation of blood energy emanating from the dragon king.

That was the suppression of a life level accumulated over thousands of years, far surpassing that of the previous fishman Arlong.

"We still have to give it a try."

Zoro's lips curled into a bloodthirsty smile as he slowly drew his Wado Ichimonji: "Since it's a legendary creature, cutting it... must feel pretty good, right?"

"Yoshi!"

Luffy pulled his straw hat down low, his fists clenching so tightly they cracked: "Meat! So much meat! Let's go!!"

"Hey! Luffy! Wait a minute!"

Just as Ronan was about to devise a strategy, Luffy suddenly pushed off with both legs and shot out like a spring!

Ronan: "......!"