One Piece Gunslinger

In order to reach Li Ang, Sabo ran as fast as he could, fearing that Li Ang would already be dead by the time he arrived.

Even so, by the time Sabo arrived at Leon's side, the battle was already over.

"How did you do that?" Sabo stared at Vergo lying on the ground, his mouth agape in astonishment. "Was he actually weak? That's why you took him down so easily?"

Vergo is weak? Of course not. Vergo is the strongest enemy Leon has ever encountered.

"No, he was very strong. It took me a lot of effort to finally defeat him."

However, Sabo was reluctant to believe it: "Looking at you, there isn't a single wound or blood on your body. How can you tell that the battle was intense?"

Leon did not answer Sabo's question.

Going back to the time, Li Ang had already jumped down from the roof and quickly slipped into a house. It's common sense to fire and move on.

This was an area that Li Ang had specifically inquired about before. The Enix army took this route when they retreated, and then arrested all the civilians in this area, leaving behind empty houses.

Leon knew that his sniping could only inflict minor injuries on Vergo and would not be able to break through his defenses, which proved to be true.

Therefore, the only thing more powerful than a sniper rifle and capable of breaking through its defenses is a butterfly.

The butterfly's various weaknesses are well-known, and in order for the butterfly to hit its target, Leon and Vergo had to maneuver around this complex terrain for a while. If they fought in an open area, Leon would have absolutely no chance.

The only thing Leon is better than Vergo at is his Observation Haki; only in such a place can he maximize his advantage.

As for Vergo, after arriving at the rooftop where Leon had been, all he could find were a few shell casings on the ground, proving that Leon had indeed been there.

Vergo glanced at the surrounding terrain and said coldly, "A cat-and-mouse game, huh? Interesting."

In fact, Li Ang is currently in the house opposite, using his full Observation Haki to sense everything about Vergo.

The sounds, the ground vibrations, the smells in the air—at this moment, all became information that revealed Vergo's location.

Vergo, who had served in the navy for many years, was also searching for Leon's location by following the clues he had left behind. Now it was a matter of who could find the other's weakness first.

"Did he run into this house?" Vergo whispered as he approached a house.

Vergo bulged his upper body muscles, gripped the green bamboo covered in Armament Haki, and swung it down forcefully. Instead of risking his life by walking into what might be a trap set by the enemy, Vergo opted for a simple and brutal method, destroying the house in one fell swoop.

However, Leon had already jumped out of the window on the other side when Vergo approached the door of the house, leaving the place.

"How did he know I was in this house?" Li Ang wasn't stupid; he certainly wouldn't have left obvious traces on the road. Yet, even so, his location was easily found.

"Heh, not here? Or have you moved to another location?" After the smoke cleared, Vergo looked at the ruins in front of him and said loudly, "But no matter where you hide, I will find you."

Then Vergo followed this direction and walked towards the next house, which was the place where Li Ang had jumped out from behind earlier.

Vergo walked up to me, but instead of destroying the house as he had done before, he turned ninety degrees and walked toward another house next to it.

"Wait, there's something wrong with this route. How did he know my location?" Leon was, of course, in the direction Vergo was facing. Having learned from his previous experience, he had already changed houses twice before the dust settled.

However, Li Ang completed all the transfers in mid-air, his feet never touching the ground, and he moved between windows the entire time.

In other words, Vergo's tracking route was illogical; it didn't actually follow Li Ang's path, but rather he knew directly which direction Li Ang was in.

After Vergo destroyed another mobile home, Leon had to seriously consider this issue.

This cat-and-mouse game between the two was actually a contest of Observation Haki. Leon consistently managed to evade Vergo's search, repeatedly attempting to get behind him and fire a sneak attack. This was based on Leon's ability to precisely track Vergo's movements.

While Vergo could locate Li Ang, he was always a step too slow and couldn't pinpoint the exact location.

"So what exactly was it that allowed him to discover my location, but only from where I was a few seconds ago?"

In the end, Li Ang realized that the key issue was actually just this one.

Just as Li Ang was pondering, he caught a whiff of blood: "Sigh, I'm downstairs again."

Li Ang had no choice but to quickly jump out of the window and continue moving to a new location. Vergo, seeing that Li Ang was still nowhere to be found in the ruins, remained unperturbed. As things continued to unfold, the places to hide would dwindle, and he would inevitably emerge victorious.

But since Vergo understands that there are fewer and fewer places for Leon to hide, why not just demolish the whole area? If he demolishes everything in sight, wouldn't Leon have nowhere to hide in a few minutes?

Leon also noticed this problem, and incidentally discovered another one as well. That is, after Vergo destroyed a house with a single strike, he would always wait in place for a while, until the dust settled slightly, before continuing his actions. It was as if Vergo's tracking ability had vanished during those ten or so seconds.

With his Observation Haki fully activated, Li Ang sensed Vergo standing amidst the smoke and dust, and also felt the faint smell of blood emanating from Vergo's wounds. Li Ang finally understood.

"Damn it, it was the shots I fired that caused the gunpowder to cover me and give away my position."

Li Ang was misled by experience and fixed mindset this time. In reality, most people wouldn't be able to detect that faint smell of gunpowder unless they were right next to Li Ang and smelling it themselves. To reach Vergo's level, one would need at least a dog's nose.

However, like Leon, Vergo doesn't identify scents through his nose, but rather through his Observation Haki. Furthermore, Vergo's Observation Haki isn't as strong as Leon's, and its range is smaller, only allowing him to roughly determine the direction from which the scent is coming.

No wonder it took Vergo a few more seconds to pinpoint Leon's location; there was a slight delay in time.

So it makes sense that Vergo stood in front of the ruins for a while before continuing the pursuit. The faint smell of gunpowder on Leon was already hard to detect, and with the heavy smoke and dust masking it, it would be impossible for Vergo to find him.

"So you're not destroying a lot of houses because you don't want to create a lot of smoke and dust all at once?" Li Ang fully understood Vergo's calculations and reliance.

Indeed, if Vergo were to recklessly cause destruction in order to reduce Li Ang's hiding space, it would actually cause Li Ang to lose his scent of gunpowder and allow him to escape.

Li Ang hadn't considered this point before, which was due to his long-standing way of thinking. It's like a heavy smoker who wouldn't find the smell of cigarettes strange because he himself always smells like that.

However, he is someone who has never smoked before, so he is quite sensitive to the smell of smoke. He will often notice if someone suddenly lights a cigarette in the room.

Now that we understand the key to this problem, things will be much easier.

As the smoke cleared, Vergo caught a whiff of gunpowder again. "Oh? He's been staying in this house over there, not moving an inch. Is he too tired to run anymore, or did he get injured?"

This time, Vergo showed no mercy, swinging the green bamboo again and smashing it against another house next to him.

"Wait, the smell is still there!" Vergo exclaimed, realizing the gunpowder smell was still coming from the ruins. He didn't believe Leon would be dealt with so easily.

Sure enough, Vergo quickly noticed a bullet heading straight for his back. Leon had already run up behind Vergo.

While Vergo waited for the smoke to clear, Leon quickly took off his shirt. Then he hurriedly took out a bullet, poured out the gunpowder, and spilled it onto his shirt.

Li Ang then left his shirt where it was, while the real Li Ang continued to move to another location through the window.

So Li Ang wasn't in the house that Vergo later destroyed; Li Ang had already arrived behind Vergo.

Observation Haki has no blind spots; it can sense everything in all directions, essentially an extension of the five senses. However, while it has no blind spots, it also has limitations. The reason Leon was circling around Vergo was to shoot him from behind, where Vergo couldn't see or sense him.

So that Vergo would have no way to avoid it.

So by the time Vergo sensed the bullet, it was too late; there was no time to dodge. He could only unleash his full Haki, covering his back completely.

However, even with his mastery of Armament Haki, Vergo was still far inferior to an Admiral. Fujitora was injured even under the power of the Butterfly Technique; how could Vergo possibly withstand it?

So when Sabo finally arrived, belatedly, he only saw Vergo lying on the ground, blood everywhere. But even so, Vergo did not die on the spot; he was still alive.

"So there was another expert. It seems that even if time drags on, I'll still lose in the end. I never thought I'd die from an accident." I knew today was my doom.

“This guy is actually quite handsome. Should we try to save him?” Sabo suggested to Leon, seeing that Vergo was still alive.

Chapter 241 Follow-up Reactions

"Forget it, there's still a slight chance with others, but there's absolutely no hope with this one." Without even thinking, Li Ang shook his head and rejected Sabo's suggestion.

"Why?" Sabo asked, puzzled. "Didn't you always say that there's no wall that can't be undermined?"

"Hmph! Although I lost this time, don't even think about me joining you." Upon hearing this, Vergo immediately expressed his firm stance.

"Wow, that's pretty tough." Sabo said with a sneer. He had seen plenty of tough people, but very few could persevere to the end and truly choose death over surrender.

"Alright, our plan to capture Dressrosa is more important right now, and we shouldn't cause any unforeseen complications. If he manages to escape and send a message to Doflamingo, we're doomed." Leon gestured for Sabo to quickly eliminate Vergo.

However, Vergo was shocked to hear this: "What?! The target is actually Dressrosa."

"Seeing that you still seem unaware, I'm relieved." Li Ang nodded in satisfaction, then had Sabo end Vergo's life.

Li Ang still needs to be careful and handle Doflamingo with caution.

Although Vergo is a talented individual, Li Ang has no idea where the limit of this talent's loyalty to Doflamingo lies.

Logically speaking, as a vice admiral—and one who had been a vice admiral for a long time—the Navy had already given him everything Doflamingo could. What more could he want than to be an admiral? Did he think he could be an admiral?

Furthermore, his appointment to the G-5 branch was also for convenience, to provide cover for some of Doflamingo's actions. A dignified Navy Vice Admiral, just for this job.

Frankly speaking, in this situation, anyone with average loyalty would have betrayed them long ago; it's hard to see any future in following Doflamingo. Yet Vergo, a spy who's been a veteran Marine for over a decade, an undercover agent for over ten years, has managed to wait on.

What kind of belief could make him so loyal?

Perhaps we can glean some clues from how Vergo and other executives address Doflamingo.

The title "Young Master" suggests that Doflamingo doesn't truly see himself as a pirate, but rather as a Celestial Dragon. He's probably plotting how to rejoin the Celestial Dragons, or perhaps even become one of their equals.

This is precisely why he essentially positioned himself as a "king," rather than a "boss" or "captain." His relationships with some veteran officials like Vergo were closer to those of a monarch and his subjects.

Regardless, given this level of loyalty, Li Ang dared not be complacent, especially since Sabo couldn't guarantee he could guard Vergo alone. Li Ang dared not entertain any further thoughts.

But even if given the chance, Leon wouldn't consider poaching Vergo. Vergo's crimes are numerous, comparable to Doflamingo's, and Leon doesn't know how to clear his name.

From a moral standpoint, Li Ang wouldn't want someone like that. Not to mention, this kind of action would offend Law, whose future achievements and strength would surpass Vergo's. From a purely pragmatic perspective, it's clearly not worthwhile.

However, before he breathed his last, he successfully probed and discovered that the Revolutionary Army's operations remained clandestine, remaining undetected by either the underworld or the legitimate world. He also deduced that Vergo was there to inspect the shipwreck, not to investigate the identity of this suddenly appearing army on Doflamingo's orders.

“Even so, Vergo’s death will inevitably raise alarm. We need to act as soon as possible,” Leon said, scratching his head.

Sabo nodded in agreement with Li Ang's point of view: "Yes, I'll also make some preparations quickly, leave some people to guard this place, and continue on to the next country."

There was no other way. Regardless of whether Vergo was alive or dead, if he didn't return to the G-5 base within two or three days, then something was bound to go wrong.

A few days later, in Dressrosa, on the high ground in the middle, Doflamingo was wondering why the merchant ships that had gone to the two neighboring countries in the past few days had not returned. Could something have gone wrong?

“Dover,” Torrepol said, sniffling, “I’ve recently discovered a problem: merchant ships sent to these countries have never returned, and these countries haven’t sent any merchant ships over recently.”

Although Torrepol always had snot hanging from his nose and looked like a mentally challenged person, he always played the role of a strategist and was the highest-ranking officer in the family's Plum Blossom Army.

At this moment, a burly man said in a high-pitched voice, "That's no big deal. When sailing in the New World, you'll always encounter a lot of unexpected things, such as bad weather or a lot of pirates."

Only Pica, the highest-ranking officer of the Spade Army, could produce such a high-pitched sound.

“Pica, this is different,” Torrepol said. “This time, even the ships of those underworld mafia have gone missing. They’re not pushovers; anyone who can hijack their ships is no ordinary pirate. And as long as they’re not heading to those countries, they’re fine. Do you understand what I mean?”

"So, someone is up to something, acting with a specific purpose, targeting these places?" This was said by a top-ranking officer, Diamanti, the highest-ranking officer of the Square Army.

Doflamingo asked in confusion, "Battles between factions are common, which means there's been a fierce fight in these places. Whether it's pirates or underground gangs, this kind of thing has happened before, so why is it attracting your attention today?"

“Dover, take a close look at this map.” Torrepol said, spreading out the map and speaking seriously, “Here, here, and here. These countries all have one thing in common.”

"They're all near us?!" Diamanti exclaimed in surprise after seeing the map. "Aren't these some of the countries closest to us?"

In fact, it's not just these few countries; all the kingdoms between the Revolutionary Army and Dressrosa are mired in war. It's only been a few days, but in a few more days, we'll find that even more distant countries are in the same situation.

“That’s right, that’s it,” Torrebol said after wiping his nose. “I suspect someone is trying to harm me.”

Looking at the map, Ming said thoughtfully, "Would anyone really target us? There aren't many forces in this world that can reliably take us over. Even if they have their eyes on Dressrosa, they could just attack directly. Why go through the trouble of attacking these places? I don't know what the benefit would be."