Pirates: Martial Arts Masters on the Straw Hat Ship

Gunkanjima, the devastated central battlefield.

The suffocating stench of blood in the air had not yet dissipated, and the scalding dragon blood splattered onto the rocks, making a "sizzling" sound.

Ronan stood before the collapsed Thousand-Year Dragon King, though he no longer held his eighteen-foot iron spear.

However, the Armament Haki that had just awakened and resembled a black aura swirling around his right fist exuded an aura even more dangerous than a sharp blade.

"it's over."

Ronan lowered his eyelids, his killing intent already made up.

For martial artists who pursue the limits of the human body, the dying thousand-year-old dragon king before them is no longer a life, but a walking, priceless "great medicine".

Just as he was about to deliver that fatal blow—

"Um?"

Ronan's brow furrowed sharply.

In his perception, which had just undergone tenfold honing and was now extremely sharp.

An extremely faint yet exceptionally clear aura rushed into this hellish battlefield like a moth drawn to a flame.

The aura was very weak, as weak as that of a child without any strength.

But strangely, the surrounding ancient dragons, which were originally restless and eager to tear apart any intruders, were now gone.

The moment they sensed this aura, they strangely fell silent, even withdrawing their claws and making way for each other.

"don't want--!!!"

A heart-wrenching cry, tinged with sobs, pierced through the clamor of the battlefield.

Ronan slowly withdrew his fist and looked up.

From the smoke and dust of the ruins, a little girl with short blonde hair dressed in ethnic minority clothing rushed out.

She ran unsteadily, her face streaked with tears, and she even lost one of her shoes.

Her fair feet were cut and bleeding from the sharp pebbles, but she seemed not to feel the pain.

He spread his arms and stood resolutely in front of the enormous, thousand-year-old dragon king.

"Please...please stop hurting the Thousand-Year Dragon!!"

Apis

As Ronan looked at the petite figure, information from the original plot instantly flashed through his mind.

Paramecia-type Devil Fruit user - Whisper-Whisper Fruit... able to understand the thoughts of animals and communicate with them.

So that's why these thousand-year-old dragons stopped attacking—it was because of her presence?

With the arrival of Apis, the tense battlefield momentarily froze.

The thousand-year-old dragon king, lying in a pool of blood with its abdomen mangled by Ronan's attack, let out a low, mournful whimper.

Its enormous head was slightly raised, and the savagery in its golden vertical pupils had faded, leaving only deep weariness.

It tried to rub against the little girl in front of it, but due to excessive blood loss, its huge body swayed and collapsed to the ground again.

Apis turned and hugged the Dragon King's enormous nose, tears streaming down her face like broken beads, soaking the Dragon King's hard scales:

"I'm sorry... I'm late... I'm so sorry... I've failed Master Long's expectations..."

"The thousand-year-old dragons are gentle in nature; as long as you don't attack them first, they will absolutely not harm people!"

Apis turned around, looking at Ronan and the others with her bloodshot eyes, and pleaded desperately:

"Please...stop! Don't hurt them anymore! Okay?"

This sudden turn of events left the group, who had just been in a frenzy of fighting, stunned.

"Who is this brat...?"

Zoro casually wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand, his eyes still cold.

The Wado Ichimonji in his hand was still dripping blood, and his murderous aura had not yet been completely subdued.

For swordsmen, once a battle begins, there is no reason to stop unless one side falls.

"A little girl?"

Sanji straightened up with some difficulty, straightened his white shirt which was now reduced to tattered strips, and frowned.

"Why...why is there a child on this kind of battlefield?"

"call--!"

A gust of wind blew.

Luffy leaped over from the distant group of dragons.

He was also covered in bruises, with several holes torn in his red vest, but he still looked energetic.

"Wow! These big birds are really tough! They're so strong!"

Luffy landed next to Ronan and only then noticed the situation. He tilted his head and looked at Apis with curiosity, "Eh? Who are you?"

Apis did not answer. She simply clung tightly to the Dragon King behind her, like a little beast protecting its cub. Despite trembling with fear, she refused to back down an inch.

"I promised Master Long..."

Abis sobbed, her voice choked but firm:

"I will protect the Thousand-Year Dragon Clan... I am the guardian of the Thousand-Year Dragon Clan! As long as I have a breath left, I will not allow you to kill it!"

Seeing this, Ronan slowly exhaled a breath of stale air, his fist slowly loosening, but the light in his eyes became somewhat complicated.

It seems... the thousand-year-old dragon bone that I had in my hands is about to fly away.

As the person who knows Luffy's personality best, Ronan has a clear understanding of it.

When this little girl stands in front of the Dragon King, and when this dragon is no longer just a "beast" but someone's "friend," Luffy's stance will instantly undergo a complete 180-degree turn.

In that guy's value system, friends and promises are above all interests.

but……

Ronan turned to look at Zoro and Sanji beside him.

Not everyone is as "naive" as Luffy.

"Kid, get out of the way."

Zoro, sword in hand, walked step by step toward the Thousand-Year Dragon King.

His footsteps were heavy and suppressed, each step striking Abis's nerves.

"After all that effort, it was so hard to finally take down this trophy..."

There was no pity in Zoro's eyes, only an unwavering determination to become stronger.

"How could we possibly give up just because you say so? Do you know how much blood we shed to defeat it?"

"That's right."

Sanji also took a deep drag on his cigarette, even though he usually adhered to the chivalrous code of "not kicking women".

But when faced with the corpse of a legendary creature (or about to become a corpse), he displayed the ruthlessness expected of a pirate.

Having just escaped from the brink of death, he understood the importance of strength better than anyone else.

Without power, let alone protecting Miss Nami, even self-preservation would be a problem.

"The bones and meat of this large bird are rare, top-quality ingredients and medicinal materials."

Sanji exhaled a smoke ring, his eyes coldly fixed on the Dragon King:

"I'm sorry, little sister, this is the adult world. The law of the jungle, the survival of the fittest, is the law of the sea."

The three men's murderous intent intertwined, pressing down on Apis like a mountain.

Apis turned deathly pale with fright, but she still held her arms wide open and cried out in despair:

"Bad people! You...you also wanted Lord Dragon's bones! You greedy villains!!"