Pirates: Martial Arts Masters on the Straw Hat Ship

Ronan watched this scene without saying a word, but instead turned his gaze to the silent boy who had been standing to the side with his straw hat pulled low.

He is waiting.

Waiting for the captain's decision.

But before that, he must put the stakes on the table, making the decision more weighty and real.

"Hey, Luffy."

Ronan spoke, his voice calm and rational, devoid of any emotion:

What do you think?

Ronan pointed to the dying dragon king, his tone laced with seduction:

"The best dragon bone is right in front of us. This is a creature that has lived for thousands of years, and its marrow is filled with the essence of life."

"These bones, imbued with the spirit of a creature, are not something you can just come across easily."

"If we miss this opportunity, even if we encounter a giant sea king in the future, the effect of its skeleton will be far from reaching this standard."

"With it, our Thirteen Bodyguards' external hard qigong... can all achieve a qualitative leap."

"By killing it, we can become stronger. On this dangerous sea, strength... is the key to survival."

Ronan's words were like a sharp scalpel, dissecting the warm facade to reveal the bloody core of self-interest.

Upon hearing this, Abis's eyes were filled with despair.

Looking at the terrifying men in front of her, she knew she couldn't stop them at all.

"Waaah..."

Apis bit her lip and made her final compromise.

She pointed to a distant mountain peak and cried out:

"If... if you want dragon bones... I can take you to the 'Dragon's Lair'!"

"There are many bones of dead Thousand-Year Dragons there! Please take those away! Stop harming the living Thousand-Year Dragons!"

"The withered bones in the dragon's lair?"

Ronan shook his head and once again played the role of the ruthless villain.

He looked at Apis with indifferent eyes:

"Little sister, you probably don't understand."

"The essence of the dead dragon bones has long since been lost; they are now just a pile of rotten wood, of little use."

Ronan took a step forward, his Armament Haki faintly emanating from him, exuding an overwhelming sense of pressure.

"Only the bones of living dragons, freshly dead, and the marrow extracted while they are still warm... are truly priceless treasures."

"You—!!" Apis was trembling with anger, but had no way to refute it.

The atmosphere froze at freezing point.

Zoro gripped his sword tightly, Sanji stubbed out his cigarette, and Ronan was poised to strike.

All the pressure fell on the boy wearing the straw hat.

Is it to kill in order to become stronger? Or to give up because of the tears of a strange little girl?

The sea breeze howled, making Luffy's red vest flutter in the wind.

He kept his head down, the shadow of his straw hat obscuring the upper half of his face, making it impossible to see his expression.

silence.

A suffocating silence.

Until the dying thousand-year-old dragon king let out a faint sigh, seemingly having resigned himself to his fate and closed his eyes.

That's enough.

A calm yet undeniable voice rang out.

Luffy slowly raised his head.

In those dark eyes, there was no greed, no hesitation, only a deep, clear clarity like the ocean.

He looked at Ronan, his gaze as firm as a rock:

"That's enough, Ronan."

Those four simple words instantly shattered all the killing intent in the room.

Zoro raised an eyebrow, removed his hand from the hilt of his sword, seemingly having anticipated this outcome, and a helpless yet relieved smile appeared on his lips:

"Tch, I knew it."

Sanji shrugged, lit another cigarette, and turned his back to the Dragon King.

"Since the captain has spoken, there's nothing we can do. It's a shame about such a good soup."

Looking into Luffy's determined eyes, Ronan's initial hesitation vanished.

The Armament Haki on his body slowly faded, and his clenched fists loosened.

"Since it's the captain's order..."

A gentle smile appeared on Ronan's face, and his cold, demonic aura vanished instantly, as if the villain who had just interrogated the little girl was not him at all.

"Then I will obey unconditionally."

In fact, Ronan knew from the beginning what Luffy would choose.

But he had to ask, he had to force Luffy to make this decision.

Because this is the "way" of the Straw Hat Pirates.

They pursue power, but they will never become slaves to power.

They are pirates, but they have a purer moral compass than the Navy.

"Let's go!"

Luffy turned around, put his hands behind his head, and strode towards the direction where the Going Merry was docked, his back view was incredibly dashing.

It was as if the priceless treasure that had almost been within their grasp was just an ordinary stone.

"Huh?"

Apis was stunned.

She stared blankly at the group of men who had been menacing just moments before but were now turning and leaving, her mind completely blank.

"You...you're not going to harm the dragons anymore?" Apis asked incredulously.

Luffy stopped, turned around and glanced at Apis, revealing his signature carefree, bright smile:

"Because you don't want it to die!"

"and……"

Luffy pointed to the Dragon King who was bowing to him and chuckled:

"This thing doesn't look very appetizing! It's all hard, scaly scales; it'll definitely be tough to chew!"

"Let's go! I'm hungry! Sanji, I want to eat meat!!"

"Okay, okay, stop nagging me," Sanji complained from behind.

"Hey, Ronan, is that dragon bone really that miraculous?"

Zoro walked beside Ronan and asked in a low voice. Although there was still a hint of regret in his voice, there was no longer any killing intent.

Ronan glanced back at the thousand-year-old dragon king who had survived the ordeal, and at the little girl kneeling on the ground, weeping with joy, and said softly:

"Perhaps. But..."

Ronan patted Zoro on the shoulder and said meaningfully:

"Some things are more important than dragon bones. For example... this strong heart that will not be tarnished by greed."

"As long as our will is strong enough, we can still reach the top of the world even without dragon bones."

Zoro paused for a moment, then grinned, his eyes shining even brighter:

"Ah, that's right."

Under the setting sun, the shadows of the four people were stretched very long.

Behind them, hundreds and thousands of ancient dragons let out a loud roar, which was no longer an angry howl, but a farewell filled with gratitude.

The dragon's roar resounded through the sky, as if offering the most ancient blessing to these powerful individuals who possessed unique gentleness.

Ronan walked at the back, listening to the dragon's roar behind him, feeling the Armament Haki within his body, which, though small, was still surging and turbulent, and his mind was clear.

Although one ingredient was missing, the journey... has already yielded more than enough.

The seed of Conqueror's Haki has been planted.

"Next stop... Loguetown."

Ronan gazed at the distant sea and clenched his fist.

"The real adventure has only just begun."