One Piece Gunslinger

“Of course we won’t make a profit,” Jack said matter-of-factly. “Their fighting was part of our plan, and now we have such a golden opportunity right in front of us. If I don’t take advantage of it, I feel like I’m losing out. Not making a profit is a loss.”

"What does it say you should do there?" Fujitora asked helplessly. "Given this terrible situation, we're lucky if we can even break free. You're asking for too much."

"Then I have to be more demanding," Jack thought to himself. "Back when we ate at restaurants, every waiter knew that the most demanding customer was coming."

“First, send this thing to those gangs. Anyway, even if Hardman wants to modify it, he'll have to get past us first. He definitely won't get past us. If he does, my surname will be ‘Harman’.” Jack explained to the two of them step by step how to proceed. “Then, we'll do this and that.”

"Your idea is actually quite profitable," Fujitora said with a smile after hearing this.

“This is going to be a huge loss for both sides’ assassins.” Haku nodded and said, “You’re really good at coming up with tricks, you’re really good at scheming.”

Chapter 86 Undersea Operation

The following day, everyone seemed carefree and happy, thoroughly enjoying themselves.

To Hardman, this composed attitude made it seem as if they were on vacation.

When asked about the Hartman problem, and I was so relaxed and at ease, Jack replied matter-of-factly, "Since the general has devised such a brilliant plan, what pressure do we still have? Those gangsters are nothing to worry about."

Of course, this carefree state can only be attributed to one person: Fujitora.

Compared to the others, Fujitora was constantly on edge. He kept his eyes glued to the large area around Hardman, watching to see if anyone had gone into the water.

"Come on, relax and have a glass of juice."

"You said you wouldn't let me lift a finger? It's true, I did everything except lift a finger," Fujitora joked, taking the juice Jack offered.

“Well, the capable should do more,” Jack said shamelessly. “Otherwise, you’re taking action because your actions are so earth-shattering and powerful, comparable to a naval admiral. We should keep a low profile. But we don’t have as many concerns about other aspects, so we’ll naturally have to go through more trouble.”

"So all those action plans we discussed in the meeting before are now useless?" Fujitora asked.

"It's just that the change happened too fast, but it's not useless. We still have our trump cards, and some parts can still be carried out. It's just that we've optimized the process because of this particular issue," Jack replied, shaking his head.

"Tonight is our last chance. If our guess is correct, Hardman will definitely send people underwater to modify the seabed topography soon. If we guess right, then we'll have successfully optimized the site."

"So if we guessed wrong, then my whole day has been wasted, right?" Fujitora said with dissatisfaction.

"How can you call that a waste of time? It's also a way for us to eliminate a wrong option. I'm not omniscient, how could I predict their movements with 100% certainty? And now I'm almost 100% sure that they're going to change the terrain."

"Oh? Why?"

"Didn't you notice? Just now, Hardman adjusted the ships' formation into a semi-circle. Just like he told me before. It's only evening now, and there's still a long time before the live broadcast, which means Hardman isn't planning to change the formation. After all, the newly modified terrain can't be familiarized with by the sailors right away. He might as well set up the formation first."

Fujitora nodded in agreement, saying, "Now that you mention it, it's true. They're already prepared to start the war tomorrow; all that's left is to send people down to break ground."

"However, according to our sources, and based on our indirect inquiries, Hardman had previously led his soldiers in a drill to deceive the enemy, as if he was afraid the enemy wouldn't know about his strategy. In other words, the soldiers have already memorized this tactic. It can't be changed."

"Seriously, I've never had such a headache. From now on, you guys can worry about these things. I feel like I'm just an old man. I'll just relax and throw away some meteorites from now on." Fujitora picked up his juice and took a sip through the straw.

Fujitora and Jack sat quietly in the cabin, drinking cup after cup of tea. They waited until dawn, growing increasingly impatient. Finally, Fujitora solemnly announced, "Someone has gone underwater and is diving towards the seabed."

"Great, the fish has taken the bait!" Jack exclaimed with delight. "Haku, in the water! Don't let him get away!"

"Don't worry, there aren't many people who can stand against me underwater," Haku said confidently. "He can't escape."

Fujitora chimed in, "Besides, there's me too. He can't even move."

……

There was only one diving suit, and Hardman could only watch Francis slowly sink from the boat. Little did he know that this seemingly simple mission would truly turn into a farewell.

At first, Francis was a little uneasy. He wondered if this metal suit would be enough, but after sinking a distance, he found it to be quite good.

However, there are still many problems. First, it's not very convenient to move around, and the field of vision is somewhat limited. The large metal shell is also almost touching the body, and it feels a bit cold underwater.

Fortunately, they won't be staying long. The agreement is that once they've been there for two hours, they'll be pulled up, regardless of whether the work down below is finished. If it's not finished, they'll be given a new oxygen tank before going back into the water. According to the plan, an hour should be more than enough.

Since this area is shallow sea, with the deepest point being no more than two hundred meters, it didn't take Francis long to descend to the seabed.

Francis turned on the searchlight and couldn't help but exclaim, "Wow, this is the seabed! It's unexpectedly beautiful. I never thought that eating a Devil Fruit would lead to a day when I could go underwater. No, even before I ate a Devil Fruit, I never thought I would be able to come to the seabed."

"Alright, let's get ready. After we finish this job, I'll take a good rest for a while." Francis tried controlling the seabed soil and found that there were no problems.

"I'll ask Hardman for this outfit later, and then I can go swimming in the sea every day. I'll do what other ability users dream of every day," Francis muttered as he manipulated the surrounding soil.

Just as Francis was fantasizing about how he would live a carefree life after pulling off this heist, a tremendous pressure came from him.

"not good!"

Francis, being a skilled fighter, immediately realized that the unusual pressure meant someone was attacking him.

It was Fujitora, who was standing in the cabin, who launched the preemptive attack.

It has to be said that Fujitora's Devil Fruit cultivation is incredibly advanced, coupled with his excessively wide Observation Haki range. He managed to suppress Francis across a straight-line distance of several hundred meters.

However, Fujitora didn't dare to use too much force, after all, it would be bad if he damaged the clothes.

Haku was like a fish in water underwater—no, he was like a fish-man in water, much stronger than he was on land.

Francis, constrained by the water pressure and the massive iron shell, had his strength significantly reduced, and with Fujitora's intervention, the combined effect of his weakened state left him truly beyond saving.

Faced with Jack's long-planned ambush, what could Francis do? Nothing. Miracles didn't smile upon him either. Whether a god was there at that moment is hard to say, but even if one existed, he certainly wouldn't come to his rescue.

So Haku, facing the clumsy Francis, didn't spend much time on him. He removed Francis's helmet in no time.

Francis watched helplessly as his helmet was removed, and faced with the raging torrent of water, he could only close his eyes in despair.

Chapter 87 Borrowing a Game (Part 1)

So Jack didn't have to wait long before Haku appeared, along with the unconscious Francis and a diving suit with chains hanging from his back.

"Hurry, time is of the essence!" Jack said with delight. "Call Prince Sergei over here now."

Then, Jack took out a knife and stabbed it into Francis's neck, who was lying down: "I'll borrow your Devil Fruit, unknown Devil Fruit user."

Poor Francis. Jack and the others didn't even know his name. He didn't even get to show his strength before he was defeated.

After taking out the Devil Fruit, Jack even pretended to say, "Every Devil Fruit is a user; without buying and selling, there would be no killing."

The two had become immune to Jack's occasional incomprehensible remarks. They continued according to plan, taking Francis out of the tin can and then temporarily hiding his body.

Not long after, Johnny arrived with Sergei.

Sergei saw that Jack was holding a Devil Fruit and that there was a strangely shaped large iron shell on the ground.

"Stop asking so many questions, just eat it." With that, Jack pulled Sergei over and shoved the fruit into his mouth.

Ever since Jack discovered that Hardman might do this, he thought that if he didn't take advantage of it to make a fortune, it would be a huge loss compared to this golden opportunity.

Thus, this idea came about: whoever gets the fruits of the labor can modify the seas. As long as we follow Hardman's plan and create a sea area that only Jack knows about, then the other two will have no choice but to deal with it.

Jack struggled with the choice of Sergei for a long time before finally deciding on him. Firstly, a ruler of a country needs some strength, and if he doesn't have much talent for martial arts, trying to develop his Devil Fruit is not a bad option.

Secondly, Jack doesn't have anyone around him suitable for this fruit. Those he knows well and can trust already have fruits. For Haku, a fish-man, to eat a Devil Fruit would be too foolish; in Jack's eyes, it's like picking up a sesame seed and losing a watermelon.

As for why Sergei was on Jack's ship, that relates to another plan of Jack's. This was well hidden, and only a small group of Jack's trusted men knew about it. No one else knew that there was a prince on the ship.

"Wow!"

Sergei took a bite and immediately started gagging, but nothing came out: "This is worse than poop."

"Hey, stop throwing up. You can't get this out." Jack retorted, "And you all say this tastes worse than poop, have you ever eaten poop?"

Before anyone else could react, he pulled Sergei aside and gestured for him to put on the iron suit.

"It might be a little uncomfortable, but try to bear with it. If this goes well, saving the world will be just around the corner." Although no one understood how this would save the world, Sergei obediently put on the bulky diving suit.

"Haku, the rest is up to you." With that, Jack pulled Sergei to the ship's side.

"Yes, don't worry, I remember everything perfectly. There won't be a single mistake." With that, Haku grabbed Sergei and jumped down.

"Huh?! What's going on?" Compared to Haku's composure, Sergei was still completely bewildered, having been dragged into the mess by Haku before he could even figure out what was happening.

During the descent, Haku explained to Sergei, "Now you need to adapt to the current quickly, we don't have much time."

"Huh? What!" Sergei exclaimed in surprise from inside his diving suit, "Mr. Haku can talk underwater?"

Haku explained, “We fish-men and mermaids all have this ability, and we also have other vocal organs. But that’s not the point. The point is that you have a very important task to do right now.”

So Haku explained Jack's general plan and what he needed to do.

Fortunately, Sergei was a clever boy. After descending to the seabed, he quickly grasped the basic techniques of controlling the soil. However, he could only control it to a simple extent; more advanced techniques still needed to be developed.

However, this is enough. What Sergei needs to do is control the raising and lowering, bringing down some parts and raising others, so that he can control the reefs and ensure a safe route.

Compared to the project Hardman wanted to undertake, Jack's project was actually much simpler and wouldn't take much time. Plus, with Haku as a means of transportation, Sergei didn't have to awkwardly walk step by step; Haku could carry him underwater.

To be honest, Sergei's job wasn't too difficult, but Haku was the one who was exhausted, basically doing most of the work by himself.

When Haku came back up, he looked completely exhausted. He gasped for breath and said, "Working underwater is much more tiring than fighting. I'm going to rest now."

"Alright, that's all for now. Once we've finished this, everyone get some rest and prepare for tomorrow's big battle."

Jack then had Johnny take Sergei back to the hide. They retrieved Francis's body, dressed him in a diving suit again, but ultimately decapitated him, taking the head along with the helmet. They didn't want Hardman to immediately recognize it as a human act.

Then he made some marks on the wetsuit, dents and tears, just like Francis threw it back into the sea.

On the other side, Hardman could only wait anxiously.

"My lord, it's almost time."

"Alright, quickly pull him up."

At Hardman's command, the others quickly began to turn the winch.

"Splash, splash." The thing down there wasn't heavy, and the Americans pulled it up in no time.

……

"What do you think will happen when Hardman sees that man's body? Will they change their tactics? Or move to another location?" Fujitora finally couldn't help but ask with concern.

"Changing the location is of course impossible. The live broadcast notification has already been sent out. Changing the location would inevitably delay the broadcast, which is absolutely insurmountable. As for changing tactics, what tactics can be changed now? Hardman can only hope that the person did some work after going down there and that it will have some effect."

"Of course, none of that is the point. The point is that the work we did after we sent Sergei down completely cut off all their escape routes, leaving them no choice but to obediently bombard them for a few rounds before engaging in hand-to-hand combat."

At this point, Jack began to chuckle maliciously.

"Although I cannot see or sense your thoughts, your laughter is far too cunning. It's just like something out of a play."

"Thank you for the compliment. Whether it's a smirk or acting, I, Jack, am second to none."

"Hey, what's so great about that?"