Pirate: I was just slacking off, do you really think I'm bad?

Sakazuki glanced at her and immediately understood why Charlotte Linlin wanted those islands.

These islands are located within the Charlotte family's control area, representing a gap in the Charlotte family's defenses.

If the Navy intends to attack Charlotte Linlin, then these islands would be the best springboard.

However, before coming here, Sakazuki had already spoken with Raleigh on the phone and learned about Raleigh's strategic plan. After careful consideration, Sakazuki decided to adopt it!

While losing these islands will allow Charlotte Linlin to mend her defenses, she will also need to offer sufficient compensation.

For example, the islands near the New World.

The Navy has been out of the New World for a long time since the Rocks Pirates took over it.

From top to bottom, all the insightful men in the navy were filled with determination, and they vowed to return to the New World.

This reaffirmed the Navy's dominance, and it was precisely because of this that even Raleigh and Sakazuki, who had always looked down on pirates, decided to make a deal with them.

Unfortunately, while the Navy's combat power seems strong, the World Government is busy suppressing Raleigh. Ever since he made a name for himself in Loguetown, he hasn't been assigned any missions by the Navy Headquarters.

Of course, all of this suited Raleigh's wishes perfectly.

Charlotte Linlin was naturally unaware of the Navy's far-reaching plans, but she knew that nothing in this world comes for free. The Navy's exorbitant demands only served to lower her guard.

"Mama, Sakazuki, it's not that Mom doesn't want to give it to you, but these islands are a very important source of income for our family."

"The islands you gave us are important to the Charlotte family, but they are not of equal value."

Charlotte Lingling said jokingly.

Sakazuki's eyes grew even colder than before as he stared expressionlessly at Charlotte Linlin.

"This wasn't something I wanted to do in the first place."

"As a marine, I would rather pay the price of blood to take back this island from the pirates, but I have a friend whose words moved me."

Charlotte Linlin, I'm telling you, this is the most sincerity the Navy can offer. If you still disagree, then tomorrow the Navy will officially begin its attack on these islands.

After hearing these words, Charlotte Linlin's smiling face turned cruel:

"They actually dared to threaten Big Mom! It seems the Navy is getting stronger and stronger!"

The tension between the two sides had intensified even further.

Just then, Charlotte Linlin suddenly broke the silence.

A smile returned to her previously cruel face. "Mama, although the value of these islands isn't equal, Mom is just being generous."

"Sakazuki, I've decided to make the trade."

"Katakuri, have the people on these islands evacuate tomorrow and take over the islands we've exchanged."

Charlotte Linlin's uncharacteristic actions left the Charlotte family members, who were originally prepared for battle, completely bewildered.

Katakuri reacted the fastest, and he came to his senses and said to Charlotte Linlin:

"Yes, Mom, I'll contact them right now."

Charlotte Linlin nodded in satisfaction, then extended her right hand and said!

"Sakazuki, it's a pleasure doing business with you."

Sakazuki frowned slightly, then calmly extended his right hand to shake hands with Charlotte Linlin.

The moment they shook hands, they both launched a rapid and fierce attack simultaneously.

Armament Haki swiftly covered the arms of the two people.

Charlotte Linlin's eyes were filled with excitement, while Sakazuki's eyes showed no surprise whatsoever.

Rumble!

The two suddenly erupted with powerful energy, colliding and creating such immense pressure that the ground beneath them cracked.

Charlotte Linlin raised her hand and summoned her weapon Napoleon. Holding a knife in her left hand, covered in Conqueror's Haki, she slashed at Sakazuki's chest. Meanwhile, Sakazuki's left fist had somehow condensed into a dog's head made of magma.

"A dog devours a red lotus!"

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Charlotte Lingling clashed Napoleon and Sakazuki's iron fists several times, and neither of them retreated an inch.

Charlotte Linlin relied on her exceptionally strong physique and was not afraid of Sakazuki's lava at all.

Sakazuki, as a vice admiral in the Navy, possessed an inner pride that would never allow him to back down even a step in front of pirates.

The two exchanged blows several more times. Napoleon, wielding Conqueror's Haki, slashed at Sakazuki's chest with his sword, while Sakazuki, wielding Armament Haki, struck Charlotte Linlin's right cheek with his iron fist.

!

After a loud noise, the two figures quickly separated.

Sakazuki looked down at his ripped suit and the several-centimeter-deep wound inside.

Charlotte Lingling spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva and stared calmly at Sakazuki.

Prometheus, flames! Burn him to death for your mother!

Heeding Charlotte Linlin's words, Prometheus flew above Sakazuki, took a deep breath, and then fiercely spewed deadly flames at Sakazuki.

Sakazuki snorted coldly:

Playing with fire in front of the Magma Mash Fruit, I really don't know whether to call you ignorant or what.

Sakazuki's entire body turned into magma; he was completely unafraid of Prometheus's flames.

It's important to know that the Magma-Magma Fruit is almost a superior fruit to fire, and Prometheus's flames are still quite a bit weaker than magma.

Sakazuki clasped his hands together, and a three-meter-long magma blade was wrung out from his hands.

"Come on, pirates!"

boom!

The battle between the two officially entered its most intense phase from this moment on.

Sakazuki and Charlotte Linlin clashed again, and the energy around them surged wildly.

The lava falling from Sakazuki began to transform the island's surface into a lava-like state.

The sword energy flying everywhere forced Katakuri and Miles to hide and dodge.

They couldn't spare any time to help the two men fighting; all they knew was that if they didn't leave, they would likely be killed without warning.

Both sides called for their men to return to their respective ships, then sped away into the distance.

After Charlotte Linlin and Sakazuki collided again, they each landed in their own altered home field.

'mamamama

As expected of the Navy, they can turn on you in an instant.

Charlotte Lingling made no mention of the fact that she had been the one to provoke them earlier.

Sakazuki didn't want to waste any more words with Charlotte Linlin, and simply coldly uttered:

"You're the first pirate to try and attack me in a deal. I'll show you what the price will be."

Charlotte Lingling was not worried about Sakazuki's threat at all, and chuckled.

Whether you can take these islands from your mother depends on your strength.

Under Charlotte Linlin's manipulation, Prometheus took Napoleon's sword hilt into his mouth, and Napoleon's sword pierced through Hertz's body.

Sakazuki could clearly sense a terrifying attack brewing within the long sword named Napoleon.

He put down his injured lava sword, raised his right arm high, and continued to draw lava from the ground with his left hand.

Both sides looked at each other simultaneously, and then shouted out their long-awaited attacks.

"Fire the light cannon!!!"

"A massive fireball!!!"

The intense collision between magma and lasers caused uneven subsidence around the island.

Under the violent energy of the two attacks, Charlotte Linlin and Sakazuki's figures collided once again.

At this point, both sides abandoned the use of weapons and opted for pure physical combat.

The two frenzied fighters even abandoned their physical defenses, concentrating all their domineering aura into their fists.

!!!

Even the two ships, which were far from the island, could clearly hear the loud thud of flesh colliding.

"Mom will definitely beat that navy officer."

Young Katakuri comforted his younger family members who were standing behind him.

He didn't believe Charlotte Linlin would lose to a navy man.

At that moment, Miles on the other ship clenched his fists.

He had been on Sakazuki's ship for a long time, and although he had made rapid progress, he was still unable to participate in such a battle of the strong.

Even the aftershocks of their battle were not something he could easily withstand.

Miles couldn't help but think of his mentor, Christine Rory. If he were here, he could definitely team up with Sakazuki to deal with Charlotte Linlin.

Miles carefully straightened his military uniform, believing that he would be able to participate in such battles in the near future.

The battle on the island is becoming increasingly intense.

Charlotte Linlin and Sakazuki have gone completely berserk!

The dark clouds that were already above the island continued to churn, with countless bolts of lightning appearing and disappearing within them. Charlotte Linlin grabbed Hertz and flung him into the sky, then pointed the tip of Napoleon's sword at Sakazuki's body. Sakazuki's suit was already tattered, and he suddenly tore his clothes apart.

Lava churned over his body, forming a thick protective barrier.

Charlotte Lingling narrowed her eyes.

"Thunder!!!"

Hertz, which had already assimilated a large area of ​​dark clouds, received a command from its soul. Without hesitation, it immediately released all the lightning contained within its body!

As Charlotte Linlin's Napoleon fell, a bolt of lightning flashing with dazzling light struck Sakazuki's head.

Sakazuki, of course, would not surrender without a fight, and he slammed his hands on the ground.

"Pillars of Lava!"

Sakazuki extracted the magma from the Earth's core with all his might, and it burst forth from Sakazuki's location, shooting into the sky like an erupting volcano with a thunderous roar!

Lightning and magma collided again in mid-air.

After an unknown amount of time, with a final loud bang, the dark clouds surrounding the island completely dissipated.

The rare sunshine of the New World shone on this parched and scarred island.

No one would recognize this as the vibrant island from just moments ago.

On the island today, vast swathes of land and rock have been transformed into molten lava.

The remaining area looked as if it had been bombed by the Buster Call, with shocking craters and bottomless cracks everywhere.

At this moment, Sakazuki and Charlotte Lingling stopped fighting face to face, separated by a crack several meters wide.

"Mama, Sakazuki, no wonder people nicknamed you 'mad dog'."

"You really are a relentless, mad dog."

Charlotte Lingling's once indestructible body now has a patch of skin scorched by lava.

On the other side, Sakazuki, after removing his magma armor, had a very obvious scar on his chest. This battle was merely a test of each other's strength.

If a fight were to break out between such evenly matched opponents, this small island would likely be sunk.

It will be difficult to determine a winner without three to five days. Since both sides have already tried using force and found that it could not resolve the issue, they can only proceed according to the previous agreement.

"Mama, mama, I'll give your navy face this time and trade you those islands!"

Charlotte Linlin said nonchalantly,

She didn't lose out on this deal; at least it made her defenses complete from then on.

From now on, whether it's the Navy or other pirates who want to attack her, they'll have to get past the entire defensive line.

Sakazuki wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and snorted coldly:

"Since we already knew this would be the outcome, why did we foolishly start a war?"

Charlotte Lingling did not answer Sakazuki's question, but turned around, boarded the thundercloud Hertz, and flew towards her ship.

After a moment of silence, Sakazuki used Moonwalk to return to his warship.

Miles quickly brought over a brand-new suit and navy cloak for Sakazuki to wear.

Lieutenant General Sakazuki, has this deal already been reached?

Sakazuki, who had just finished bandaging his wounds, nodded and said:

Charlotte Linlin has agreed to exchange those islands with us.

Miles, you go to those islands. Lead them to the islands we exchanged for and station them there.

Sakassky explained to Miles.

Miles saluted Sakaski and then turned to contact a warship to take him to the island.

Sakazuki let out a long sigh and muttered to himself;

Raleigh, this layout is done according to your plan. Hopefully, it won't disappoint us.

The atmosphere on the Charlotte family ship was somewhat oppressive. Charlotte Linlin was clearly unhappy after her return, and neither the ministers nor Charlotte Linlin's children dared to speak.

Only Katakuri stepped forward;

"Mom, what should we do next?"

Charlotte Linlin closed her eyes, thought for a moment, and then said;

"I've just made a deal with the Navy. Tomorrow, Katakuri will lead our people to evacuate from several islands near the New World."

"But remember this, Katakuri. Before you leave, make sure you take everything on the island with you. Don't leave anything for the Marines."

We have encountered a formidable opponent.

Although Charlotte Linlin said it was scary, there was no fear on her face.

His tone even carried a hint of joy.

Although we can't get more benefits from the navy, the current outcome is still a win-win situation.

When both sides are evenly matched and fighting is pointless, exchanging benefits becomes the best option.