One Piece Gunslinger

Li Ang sniffed the air. The aroma emanating from this berry was quite complex, with a faint earthy smell, the fresh scent of air, the rich fragrance of fallen leaves and decaying wood, and some floral notes.

However, all these flavors can actually be summarized in one sentence: the flavor of nature.

So that's how Kumogakure came to be hidden here. They were just trying to deceive Enel, whose Observation Haki was broad but not detailed enough, to hide traces of human activity and make Enel think that this was a natural forest where no one lived.

However, these tricks only allowed Waver and the others to escape Enel's Observation Haki search, but they could not cause any harm to Enel.

"Excuse my bluntness, but if the person you're dealing with is the same one who launched the attack, then I don't see where your chances of winning lie. Are you really not just throwing your lives away?" Li Ang asked with a look of suspicion.

"Wait, we're more concerned about who you are. Ordinary people can't withstand Enel's attack." Waver didn't answer Leon's question, but instead looked wary.

Although Li Ang helped them, as a Qinghai native from the lower realm, Li Ang was quite powerful. Combined with his previous claim of searching for the Golden Land, Weber had to proceed with caution.

“However, it would be pointless for me to tell you that I am the Chief of Staff of the Revolutionary Army, named Li Ang. Even if I were telling the truth, it would still be a secret that could cause quite a stir below.” Li Ang said truthfully, “After all, you were born on the Sky Island and have no communication with the people below. You don’t even know what the Revolutionary Army is or what my identity is.”

As expected, even after Li Ang introduced himself, Weber and the others could only understand that Li Ang was not some nobody, but a person of importance with a powerful backer, and that was all.

Seeing this, Li Ang continued, "So let me be frank: I came to Sky Island not to start a war, but with the idea of ​​peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation. My goal is to find the legendary Golden Land of Shandiya. If the civilization of Shandiya still exists, then we can certainly engage in friendly exchanges."

"Tch, well said, but in the end, isn't it all about Shandiya's gold?" Weber said with a disdainful look.

“Uh, that’s true.” Li Ang scratched the back of his head.

Indeed, no matter how noble Leon's intentions may be in the end, for now, Leon is simply there to find gold, which ultimately belongs to the people of Shandiya. On the surface, Leon, like Enel, is also looking to take this gold.

However, Leon wouldn't give up so easily, and continued, "You're right, who doesn't like gold? I'm here to find gold. But if you think of me as a pirate or a raider, you're mistaken. We're not taking your gold for nothing. We can trade, we can fight and cooperate. For example, I can start by helping you deal with this guy named Enel."

Obviously, even if they didn't know that Webber and the others were from Shandya, they themselves made it very clear that anyone with a normal IQ would realize that they were from Shandya.

Therefore, Waver was not surprised to hear Li Ang's words, but tacitly accepted Li Ang's conjecture, and then sneered on it: "Help us deal with Enel? Hmph, do you really think that was Enel's strength just now? He could only withstand one of his attacks. He could launch such an attack a hundred times without getting tired."

Hearing Waver's sneer, Li Ang curled his lip in disdain and said, "You're talking about me, aren't you? If I hadn't blocked that attack, you would have been injured or killed. You can't even withstand one hit from Enel, yet you dare to challenge him, so why can't I? Do you really want to go and die?"

Well, after all this, the problem has come full circle and we're back to where we started.

To be honest, going to challenge Enel was practically suicide. Even though Waver dealt Enel a heavy blow with his ultimate attack, he still couldn't truly defeat him. Furthermore, Waver only had that chance because Enel suddenly lost his temper, allowing Waver to get close. He didn't even manage to transform into his element to dodge the attack.

If a mage gives you a melee opportunity, takes all your ultimate attacks, and still manages to completely overwhelm you, then you're guaranteed to lose.

Waver and the other Shandaria members looked rather grim upon hearing Li Ang's sarcasm. Waver and the others had indeed come with a do-or-die mentality, and they themselves weren't entirely confident, but speaking their minds had been hurtful. There's no way around it; sometimes, the truth is just that hurtful.

Weber, barely suppressing his anger, said, "So what? Even if he's strong, he's not invincible. He calls himself a god, but he's not really a god. We're not unprepared either." As he spoke, he took out the shell and showed it to Li Ang.

"This thing is called a 'walking impact shell.' It can store a huge amount of impact force, enough to split mountains and shatter rocks. If I can release this force on him, even if he is a god, he will die."

Very well, although Li Ang had already foreseen the outcome and knew it was impossible, at least Waver didn't say things like, "This is our business, don't interfere," "We have nothing to talk about," or "I'll kill you before I kill Enel," which were all angry and low-IQ remarks.

This shows that Weber was actually interested in Li Ang's proposal, and his lack of explicit rejection indicated a possibility of cooperation.

So Li Ang decisively continued his attack: "Tch, even if your Barrage Shells could blow up the entire Sky Island, it's useless. It's all a lie if you miss. Judging from the attack just now, I can be sure that Enel must have eaten the Rumble-Rumble Fruit. The enemy is a Logia-type Devil Fruit user, capable of elemental transformation. So all the attacks you prepared are just a joke."

Without Armament Haki and Seastone, physical attacks are not ineffective against Logia-type Devil Fruit users, but you need something that can counter their abilities. For example, splashing water on Crocodile.

Do Waver and the others have something like that? Of course not. Only Luffy, the rubber man, can launch an attack on a ball of lightning.

Honestly, I still think it's a bit far-fetched that Luffy, even though he's made of rubber, could hit Enel. There are plenty of insulators in the world; if being hit by rubber prevents you from becoming an elemental, then wouldn't other insulators work too? You could just throw a rock at Enel's face. However, the fact is, Enel can shatter rocks with a wave of his hand using lightning. And nothing in the world is completely insulated; rubber is just a material with high electrical resistance. But whatever Oda says goes.

"Elementalization?" Clearly, Waver had no idea what elementalization was, and he probably didn't even know much about Devil Fruits, otherwise he wouldn't have prepared such a flawed action plan.

So, Li Ang explained to Waver what elementalization was, a unique ability possessed only by Logia-type Devil Fruit users.

"According to what you're saying, the only way to hit the elemental form is through a method of restraint, or with that Seastone thing." Waver, his intelligence kicking in, said thoughtfully, "And you said you could help us, which means you have a way."

Ultimately, any fight boils down to two questions: first, how to inflict damage on the enemy; and second, how to avoid being killed by the enemy.

Of these two points, the first is the most crucial. If they cannot inflict damage on the enemy, the question becomes how to escape or survive. And right now, the first point is a major problem for the warriors of Shandiya.

There was a problem that Li Ang pointed out, but it turned out to be unsolvable. Fortunately, Li Ang volunteered to help.

“That’s right. I’ve traveled all over the country and naturally prepared a lot of things. Among them, I happen to have some Seastone to deal with ability users.” As he spoke, Li Ang took out a Seastone.

"This tiny stone can defeat Enel? It just looks a little strange in color, how can it be so powerful?" Waver asked with a look of suspicion. He had never seen Seastone like this in his entire life.

"Hehe, don't believe me? You can try it and see if you can destroy this stone."

While seastone may not be as hard as diamond, it is still much harder than steel, and damaging seastone is not an easy task.

Despite Webber and the others trying several methods, including using rocket launchers and other weapons, they couldn't damage the stone in the slightest. Webber guessed that perhaps a Repulsion Dial could work, but that Repulsion Dials would have to be reserved for Enel. This also proved that it was indeed Seastone, and Leon wouldn't risk his life.

“Alright, then the first problem is solved. Now let’s study the second problem.” Li Ang put away the Seastone and continued.

"The second question is, isn't this enough?" Weber asked curiously.

Li Ang said irritably, "Nonsense! I don't want to die together with Enel, and I don't want to see you all die at Enel's hands either. Don't say you're just asking for trouble. Now we can not only attack Enel, but we also need to be able to withstand his attacks."

Chapter 360 Knight of the Sky

If only the first question, how to kill Enel, is considered, then even if victory is achieved, it will likely be a Pyrrhic one, and countless Shandaria warriors will be struck by lightning and killed in this battle.

Moreover, if Enel were to catch Li Ang and attack him, Li Ang wouldn't be able to withstand many blows and would be finished off as well.

So no matter what, we still need to seek the help of the strongest shield, Rubber Man Luffy. As long as Luffy steps forward to block, ninety percent of Enel's attacks can be ignored.

Unfortunately, there is no rubber on this sky island, otherwise, making a few rubber shields would have been enough to defend against Enel's attacks.

Thinking about it this way, the seemingly invincible Rumble-Rumble Fruit isn't actually that scary if you use your brain a little. It's also because Enel was too reliant on his Devil Fruit power that his own combat abilities were weak. Otherwise, he would have been chased and beaten by Luffy. Luffy, at this point, hadn't even learned Gear Second, and his close-combat skills weren't very strong either. Otherwise, his rubber armor would have been useless; he could have been torn apart with just a couple of claw attacks.

"So? Is there a way to solve this too?" Waver asked excitedly. Although having Seastone made the assassination of Enel halfway certain, even with this, the final victory would still come at a heavy cost. If they could minimize casualties during the operation, that would be ideal.

“Yes, that’s right.” Li Ang nodded and said, “If we had something like rubber, we could withstand Enel’s attacks.”

"And what is rubber?"

Weber felt like a complete country bumpkin, a disgrace to his ancestors. Four hundred years ago, his ancestors were so glorious in Qinghai, with Shandiya astonishing and opening the eyes of visiting travelers. Today, it was others who were opening his eyes.

However, after Li Ang explained the industrial material rubber, Weber said dejectedly, "But we don't have anything like rubber on our sky island."

“It’s alright, I happen to know someone who is also a Devil Fruit user. He became a rubber man after eating the Gum-Gum Fruit. You could say he’s a living piece of rubber,” Li Ang explained confidently.

Hehe, enlightenment isn't free, so you'll have to pay for it with your body.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the Sky Island, on Angel Island...

"Achoo! Achoo!" Luffy sneezed several times in a row.

"Luffy, what's wrong? Are you alright?" Nami asked curiously from the side. Then she added in her mind, "Didn't they say idiots don't catch colds? There's no pollen or anything in the air, so why is he sneezing?"

Luffy looked up at the sun radiating immense heat in the sky and said in confusion, "Wait a minute, Nami, I'm not cold at all right now, but I suddenly felt a shiver just now."

"Hmm? Oh, that might just be your imagination. It's alright." Hearing this, Nami probably understood what was going on. This chilling feeling seemed to be the same as when she was being targeted and schemed against by Li Ang.

"It seems this idiot captain has a kind of intuition that surpasses even that of wild beasts. It's terrifying. He can even detect the schemes of that old rogue Leon. Did he trade his intelligence for this?" Nami thought to herself, drawing both of them into the discussion.

Just then, a group of people wearing berets and dressed in neat, uniform clothing, who appeared to be security patrol members, ran up to the group of people in straw hats.

The leader announced, "We are the Beret Squad, responsible for maintaining order on Angel Island. I am the captain, Manager Mai. I am informing you that as illegal immigrants, each of you will be fined ten times the entry fee."

"Um, how much is this tenfold fine?" Nami forced a smile.

Then she learned an astonishing figure: "Ten billion Extors!"

"What?! Why don't you just rob someone?!" Nami, who loved money more than anything, roared.

Not only Nami, but everyone else was also shocked by this number. They couldn't get that 10 billion even if they sold themselves.

When the Straw Hat crew refused to confess and pay, McKinley, the leader of the Berets, had no choice but to order their arrest.

However, the Oversold Pirates were not someone the Beret Squad could hold back. As a result, they caused a huge disturbance on Angel Island and then escaped on the Going Merry.

In reality, the ratio of Extortion to Berries is 10,000 to 1. That means 10 billion is equivalent to 100,000 Berries. Dividing that by 10, the entry fee is only 10,000 Berries. While that's not a small amount, it's not outrageous robbery.

"What the hell? These Sky Island people are so unfriendly! They want a billion yen just for the entry fee. Who can afford that?" Nami was still somewhat indignant after the others left Angel Island.

But just as Nami was complaining, an old man in armor came up to them and said, "Young lady, you've misunderstood."

The old man hovered in mid-air, riding a strange-looking winged horse. Just hearing "pegasus" and "rider" might conjure images of handsome princes on white horses. But upon closer inspection, one would find... utterly hideous.

Not to mention that the person on top wasn't a handsome prince at all, but just an old man with a beard and a face full of wrinkles. And the celestial horse he rode was a strange sight—a pinkish-red horse with black spots—a horse that even a real prince in white couldn't control.

"Um, old man..." Luffy said, looking constipated, "You're so weird!"

Luffy's limited knowledge was beyond description. He should have been thrilled to see Pegasus and fully armed knights, his eyes practically sparkling with excitement. But instead, he felt no excitement whatsoever. Similarly, Usopp and Chopper, who shared Luffy's interests, wore the same expression.

In contrast, Zoro and Sanji were at the other extreme, becoming wary. Zoro even drew his sword hastily, mainly because they didn't know who this uninvited old man was, whether he was hostile, or what his purpose was. Judging from the old man's appearance, he was certainly not a weakling.

However, Nami remained calm and took on the diplomatic responsibility, asking, "We are the Straw Hat Pirates, we came up from below, and we are not familiar with the situation here. May I ask what happened when you said I misunderstood something earlier?"

"Hehe, no need to be nervous. I am Gan Fall, the Sky Knight, a freelance mercenary on Sky Island," Gan Fall said. He then explained the exchange rate between the Sky Island's local currency, Extoruer, and Beli.

"I see, so the entry fee is only 10,000 Berries." Nami said with a smile, then her expression changed. "Are you kidding me! 10,000 Berries is no small amount! That's 60,000 Berries for our whole ship! That's enough to fully resupply an empty ship with food and water!"

However, that wasn't the issue. Ganford asked in confusion, "What 60,000 Berries? Aren't there seven of you?"

Luffy and the others were just about to say the same thing. They clearly had seven crew members, and seven crew members should be worth 70,000 Berries. Luffy understood this elementary-level math.

However, Robin understood her and knew what Nami meant. She smiled slightly.

Nami picked Chopper up in one swift motion, patted his head, and said, "This reindeer is our pet. Do we have to charge for pets?"

Well, so Nami was planning to save money wherever she could, because saving money was a bonus.

"Huh? This is a reindeer. I thought it was a raccoon dog. And I didn't say that pets have to pay an import fee. What's with this explanation?" Ganful asked suspiciously. "I was wondering, isn't that man over there, the one named Leon, with you?"

Alright, now everyone understood. It turned out that Li Ang had already met Gan Fu'er beforehand and had even told Gan Fu'er that his group was together.

So here's the question," Robin asked, "Did Leon send you to find us?"

Ganford nodded and said, "That's right, he's the one who sent me to find you. I told him I was a mercenary, so he hired me to take you there. That's why I flew all over the place for so long to find you. Could Pierre come down and rest for a bit?"

After obtaining everyone's consent, Ganford's Pegasus descended from mid-air. Ganford then jumped off the Pegasus, and the pink-spotted Pegasus subsequently transformed into a sharp-beaked bird.

"How did it turn into a bird?" Luffy asked, tilting his head.

“Oh, its name is Pierre. It’s not actually a horse, but a bird that ate horse fruit,” Ganfort explained.

"I see, that makes it look much more normal." Robin nodded. Indeed, the previous Pegasus design was really ugly, but if it were a bird with spotted fur, it would look much more normal.

However, this also shattered Luffy's fantasy, indicating that the legendary Pegasus does not exist.

As Ganford sailed the Merry toward the agreed-upon location, he chatted with the group. Upon learning that they had arrived by riding the rising ocean current, he said, "To be honest, I've seen some people from Qinghai who have come to the Sky Island before, but I've never seen anyone as reckless as you guys."

"What? Other people have been to Skypiea? And there are other routes?" Nami asked in confusion.

“Of course! There were clearly other ways, but you chose to ride that monstrous current.” Ganford said with admiration.

Not only Ganful admired them, but Li Ang himself was also very impressed. This group of people were crazy and courting death, yet they were still living better and better lives. It was simply unreasonable.