One Piece: Blue Scale Admiral

"You boastful little dwarf! I'll chop you in half!"

Little Oz roared as he swung his sword with both hands.

"Clang!"

Amidst a deafening explosion, and under the glaring eyes of the onlookers, a blade over ten meters long whistled through the air as Pamel's right fist slammed into Little Oars' face with undiminished force.

"Crack!"

With a sharp crack, one of Oz's huge fangs snapped off, and his massive, mountain-like body arched backward. He was actually sent flying off the ground by Palmer's punch, like a giant bird, flying back at an even faster speed than when he arrived.

With a tremendous roar, Little Oz crushed a large swath of forest, crashing to the ground with a thud. His eyes rolled back, and blood gushed from his mouth and nose as he passed out.

"Oz!"

Not only were the surrounding pirates stunned, but Ace and more than a dozen other captains were also stunned.

When they raided G5's warship and captured Palmer and Bepo, they didn't realize that Palmer possessed such terrifying strength.

The white-bearded man, who was drinking, became interested, slowly got up, stepped out from under the parasol, and extended his large hand to the solemn-looking Palmer.

"Gurararara, Giant, your strength is impressive. You must have eaten the Strength-Strength Fruit, right? No wonder even Little Oars couldn't beat you. Come and be my son! Bear the name of Whitebeard and gallop across this sea!"

Chapter 601 Whitebeard's Benevolence

Salk Island was the territory of the Octopus Pirates, one of the vassal pirate crews under Whitebeard.

Walking through the town on the island, you can see the Whitebeard Pirates' flag flying atop the tower in the center of town from afar.

In the New World, almost everyone knows the name Whitebeard, so places that fly Whitebeard's flag are rarely raided by other pirate forces.

So at this moment, as Rorschach and Enel walked through the town of Salk, they could clearly feel that the people living here were indeed very relaxed.

The town was not exactly bustling, and the surrounding buildings were all ordinary brick and tile wooden houses.

Along the street, you can see some simply dressed ordinary people going about their daily lives.

Occasionally, children of about half their age would run by, chasing and playing, shouting that they wanted to be pirates and follow the nursery rhyme of the invincible white-bearded old man.

Everything seemed ordinary and peaceful.

"It seems those pirate captains weren't talking nonsense. People in Whitebeard's territory are indeed living a relatively peaceful life."

Enel said softly.

Rorschach glanced at him, knowing that Enel must have drawn this conclusion from more than just a corner of the town.

With the enhanced Observation Haki amplified by his Rumble-Rumble Fruit ability, he could easily cover the island beneath his feet.

With his exceptional Observation Haki, he can also keenly perceive changes in the emotions of others.

Therefore, it is possible to clearly distinguish whether the people living on the island are truly at ease.

Rorschach simply smiled and pointed to a house on the street corner ahead, saying, "Don't jump to conclusions too soon. Let's go check out the tavern up ahead."

No matter where you are, bars and teahouses are always the most convenient and quickest places to get information.

The two entered the bar with more than a dozen tables one after the other. Their identical appearance and tall stature attracted the attention of many drinkers.

Luo Xia didn't care at all. He ordered two large glasses of ale and a few side dishes, and casually found a table to sit down.

The bar was noisy, with patrons loudly boasting, playing drinking games, and guessing dice to outdrink each other.

Those who have spare money and time to drink in bars during the day are basically pirates.

Luo Xia and his companion didn't deliberately try to strike up a conversation with these drunkards. They simply sipped their cheap ale and savored the smoked bacon and cherry pie pizza.

After sitting for about half an hour, Enel finished the beer he was holding, and Rorschach showed no intention of getting up to leave.

Enel was somewhat impatient and puzzled.

He dislikes riddles the most, so he just asked directly.

What exactly do you want to know?

Rorschach picked up a piece of slightly salty ham, chewed it, finished the last of his ale, waved to the bar owner to come and refill his drink, and then looked at Enel.

"It's very simple. I just want to know whether Whitebeard was a good person or a bad person, and whether he deserved to die."

He didn't lower his voice, but strangely, neither the pirates drinking at the surrounding tables nor the bar owner who came to their table to refill their drinks seemed to hear Rorschach's voice at all.

Otherwise, based on what Luo Xia just said, the pirates in the entire bar would probably gang up on him.

This is the territory of the Whitebeard Pirates.

“We’ve been sitting here for a while now, Enel. What are your thoughts now?”

Rorschach glanced at the pirates in the bar.

Enel frowned slightly, but still spoke the truth.

"I don't have any particular thoughts. All these pirates are saying is praise for Whitebeard and the Whitebeard Pirates."

He didn't hear much useful information.

Since arriving on the island, Enel's biggest impression has been that the people of Salk Island have a strange kind of worship for the Whitebeard Pirates.

This is somewhat different from the territories ruled by other pirates in the New World.

Enel has been in the New World for over a year now, and has visited quite a few islands in the New World.

For example, the people living on the islands within Totto Land have extreme fear and awe of their former rulers, Charlotte Linlin and the Big Mom Pirates.

Life there may seem prosperous and affluent, but the people living there are required to hand over a portion of their soul lifespan to the old woman every year, according to regulations.

It's equivalent to paying rent with one's entire lifespan.

Of course, compared to the territory ruled by the war-monger Kaido, the residents of Totto Land, who pay their lifespan rent on time, actually live a relatively peaceful life.

After all, in this godforsaken place called the New World, no one can guarantee they'll still be alive tomorrow.

Even if I still feel fear, I can barely accept the possibility of living a peaceful life by shortening my lifespan.

But this place seems really different.

Contrary to his imagination, a world ruled by pirates should be filled with fear and despair. The people here lived a surprisingly peaceful and tranquil life, which was quite unexpected for Enel.

"Since we can't tell, then why don't we..."

Rorschach suddenly smiled and made a suggestion that surprised Enel.

"Let's join the Whitebeard Pirates."

A few minutes later, at the Octopus Pirates' base in Salk Town.

"Captain Karma, these two guys want to join our Octopus Pirates."

A drunken, bearded pirate pointed at Rorschach and Enel who were following behind him, and shouted at an octopus-man with six arms and an octopus hat on his head.

This octopus-man is Karma, the captain of the Octopus Pirates, and one of Whitebeard's subordinate captains.

According to the files compiled by the Navy regarding the Whitebeard Pirates, Karma was a notorious slave trader in the New World.

It's worth mentioning that when Amezuki traveled from the past decades ago, he was captured by Karma's subordinates when he met Kozuki Oden, and they wanted to sell him into slavery.

Karma was also recruited by Whitebeard around that time and became a vassal pirate crew under Whitebeard's command.

However, Rorschach wouldn't believe it completely, so he wanted to see for himself.

He didn't want to show any mercy in their future encounters.

Because if you're soft-hearted, your fists won't be hard enough.

"You want to join my pirate crew? Who are you? Where are you from?"

Karma is of average height, less than 1.8 meters, which is basically the most ordinary height for the murloc race.

He was packing up his six long swords, seemingly preparing to go out.

Upon hearing his subordinate's report, Karma looked up and glanced indifferently at Rorschach and Enel, showing little surprise.

In the New World, people who are two or three meters tall are as common as hairs on a cow. Rorschach and Enel's current height of two and a half or six meters is considered quite ordinary.

Only their identical appearances and contrasting hair colors—one gold and one silver—made them stand out slightly.

Enel didn't speak, so Rorschach quickly nodded with a sheepish grin and said, "Yes, Captain Garma. My name is Enel, and this is my younger brother, El. We came from Totto Land. The fighting there was too intense, and we couldn't survive, so we thought we'd join the Whitebeard Pirates. Originally, we were looking for Whitebeard..."

"They came from the Tottoran Sea again?" Kalmar suddenly realized.

Since Big Mom's death, many pirates have indeed fled out of Totto Land.

This kind of situation, as Rorschach and Enel described, is frequently seen.

The Whitebeard Pirates grew significantly as a result.

"You guys used to be pirates too? Which pirate crew were you in? How much was your bounty?"

Karma hung the six longswords on his waist and asked another question.

"We are not pirates, and we have no bounty. We are just ordinary people."

Rorschach's answer made Karma frown.

He looked Rorschach and Enel up and down.

Although Enel kept a straight face and didn't say anything, Rorschach also acted honest and simple.

But as a seasoned pirate who had been adventuring in the New World for many years, Karma's keen intuition made him notice that there was a hint of ferocity hidden deep in the eyes of the two brothers, Enni and El.

That's the kind of aura you only have after killing someone.

Moreover, he has killed quite a few people.

Karma sneered inwardly, drawing a long sword from her waist. She glared menacingly at Rorschach and said coldly, "You're not telling the truth, Enni. You know yourself, this is Whitebeard's territory. We, the Whitebeard Pirates, are the most united pirate crew in the world. We are all Whitebeard's children, and we trust each other unconditionally. We don't welcome people like you who hide their past."

"Captain Kalma, I...we..."

Rorschach hesitated for a moment, but under Karma's piercing gaze, he told the truth.

“We brothers are really not pirates. We used to be... petty thugs in town. We just ran away after killing a lot of people in a fit of rage because we didn’t obey the town’s security officer.”

"Why are you hiding this?! Killing a few people in the New World isn't a big deal! Kid! Tell me! Is there something else you're hiding from me?!"

Karma's longsword flashed and pointed at Rorschach's neck with lightning speed.

Luo Xia was so frightened that his face turned pale, large beads of sweat appeared on his forehead, and his body began to tremble.