One Piece Gunslinger

Yuri hesitated for a moment, as was his habit. Anyone would hesitate when faced with such a miraculous situation. With all sorts of illogical things happening at the same time, anyone would have doubts.

This hesitation prevented them from launching a timely attack, and Hardman unleashed another barrage of fire, sinking two of their cannon fodder ships.

Yuri took a deep breath, temporarily disregarding any oddities, and like Hartman, boosted his men's morale before ordering the attack. However, unlike Hartman, Yuri didn't launch into a lengthy speech; he simply roared:

"Charge! All of you, charge with me!"

This command was remarkably down-to-earth, completely different from the military management and command methods of Hardman's side. The gang's orders were all about what sounded good and what felt comfortable to say, as long as the meaning was conveyed. If Hardman had said the same thing, he would have said, "All troops, charge! Full speed ahead!"

At Yuri's down-to-earth roar, the gangsters howled and charged forward in their boat.

These gang members had been holding back their anger for a long time, enduring constant attacks, and finally they were waiting for the order to charge.

If Hardman and his men were acting with a do-or-die mentality, unleashing extraordinary strength, then this group of gangsters were born desperados. Each one was a reckless brute, incapable of anything but reckless bravado.

They couldn't grasp the sophisticated tactics and ingenious strategic orders. On the contrary, they could unleash their full strength and momentum with Yuri's down-to-earth, all-out, and aggressive commands.

Even from a distance, Hardman was somewhat moved. For some reason, a powerful aura suddenly erupted from the gang's fleet. They charged forward without hesitation, disregarding their own lives.

Even the shouts of battle mingled together. From a great distance, Hardman and his many soldiers could hear the bursts of cannon fire clearly, demonstrating the overwhelming force of the attack.

But so what? Hardman's soldiers didn't flinch at the overwhelming killing intent; instead, they intensified their actions, unleashing their full potential. Even a rabbit will bite when cornered; if you push someone to the brink, they'll fight you to the death.

On either side of this battlefield, one side is well-equipped and determined, while the other boasts a large and imposing force. This clash between two tigers promises a fierce battle. And the final outcome remains uncertain.

Chapter Ninety-Four: Too Smooth

"You've successfully instigated a bloody battle between the two sides. Even though we're so far away, we can feel the intensity of the battlefield over there. But haven't our spies been put in danger as well?"

Jack replied, "There's nothing I can do about that. I can only hope that no matter who wins in the end, our spies will be safe. As long as nothing unexpected happens, our spies' survival rate is quite high."

Fujitora asked curiously, "So who do you think will win this battle in the end? I think Yuri's side has a better chance of winning."

Haku, however, expressed a different opinion: "I think it was fine at the beginning, but after a while, the internal discord within the gang came to light, and I guess Hardman will win in the end."

Faced with their differing opinions, Jack said, "Can we stop worrying about that? No matter who wins, we'll just clean up the battlefield in the end. But I reckon it's not that simple."

As everyone expected, this battle was far more intense than any of the battles they had experienced before.

Tactics and strategies were all gone. Once the cannons were loaded, they fired; if they got too close, they opened fire; and if they got any closer, they engaged in hand-to-hand combat.

Of course, close combat was definitely Hardman's weakness, so in this situation, Hardman tried his best to maneuver and make use of advanced artillery and firearms to defeat his opponent.

However, the enemy wasn't a bunch of fools. They knew that close combat was their strength, and that they were at a disadvantage in a firepower battle, so they tried to get as close as possible to Hardman's ship.

Hardman was furious. It wasn't that he didn't want to command, or that he didn't want to implement brilliant naval tactics; it was just that Jack had tricked him before leaving, resulting in many ships still having leaks in their hulls, significantly reducing their maneuverability and giving the enemy numerous opportunities. One ship even tried to charge directly at Hardman's flagship, but was sunk by concentrated fire from nearby cannons.

Hardman now truly wishes he could tear Jack to pieces. It was all Jack's doing; Jack had led Hardman to this point, step by step, causing him such agony.

Meanwhile, Yuri and his crew had gotten quite close to Harman's fleet, but they still couldn't find Captain Jack's location. Had Jack run away to avoid the battle? But if Jack had truly fled, Harman wouldn't have let him go so easily.

Yuri's thinking was simple: rather than having a four-way battle later, it would be better to take advantage of this time and have the three major gangs work together to eliminate Jack, thus reducing one of their opponents.

As for allies? Impossible. There can be no true alliances between gangs. As for the meticulous intelligence Jack provided, which helped Yuri and the others escape, they can only thank him at his grave.

Yuri wasn't the only one with this idea; Maxim and Vasily thought so too, but unfortunately, they couldn't find Jack's ship. Jack's ship was a size smaller, so it should have been easy to find.

"Could it be that Jack has switched to a larger ship?" This thought was immediately dismissed. "Impossible. Hardman can give away everything else, but he would never entrust this capital ship to Jack. Otherwise, if Jack turns against us, we'll be in trouble."

Yuri was completely baffled, and had a nagging feeling that this might lead to unexpected consequences. So he summoned Maxim to discuss the reasons behind it.

Vasily wasn't called because after Jack, Vasily would be next. This was something Yuri and Maxim had planned long ago.

“Jack? Now that I think about it, I really didn’t see him.” Maxim shook his head and said, “But I did notice a few smaller ships mixed in with Hardman’s fleet during the first leg of the journey. That is to say, Jack’s fleet was still there at that time, but now not a single one can be found.”

Yuri asked, "Do you think it's possible that Hardman arranged for Jack to do something, that he's here to intercept us, and then after Jack finishes what he's doing, he'll come back and catch us off guard?"

Maxim feigned surprise and said, "Are you out of your mind? How is that possible? Why didn't Hardman leave Jack behind and send a trusted confidant out on the mission?"

“Of course I understand that, but I really can’t understand why Jack just disappeared,” Yuri said, shaking his head in anguish.

"That kid is a real problem, he's got a lot of tricks up his sleeve. Maybe he used some kind of crazy idea to escape the battlefield while Hardman wasn't looking."

Yuri suddenly remembered something and said, "Wait, what did you just say? What kind of crazy idea did Jack use, and then take advantage of Hardman..."

Maxim, puzzled, scratched his head and asked, "Fled the battlefield?"

“No, no, no, my brother.” Yuri finally understood and realized the reason for the incident. “He didn’t flee the battlefield at all. Instead, he used his tricks to do something ruthless to Hardman behind the scenes.”

"What? What did you say? No matter how brilliant Jack's ideas are, how could he possibly have this kind of ability?"

Yuri said confidently, "Think about it, from the very beginning, from the moment Hardman fired the first shot, haven't we been doing very well?"

“Sounds right? Isn’t sounding right good?” Maxim said. “Wait, what exactly do you mean…”

"Yes, we are facing a formidable opponent, not some ordinary cat or dog. Moreover, we are fighting a naval battle in a location that is very disadvantageous for us, a battle we are not good at. Yet, we have had a smooth journey so far. Although we have suffered some heavy losses, we have been proceeding according to plan without making a single mistake."

Yuri continued, “After we broke through the first line of defense, Hardman retreated a distance, but look here, there’s absolutely nothing unusual about it, not a single reef was hit. That’s the biggest anomaly. How could Hardman choose such an unremarkable area to fight us a second time? If it were me, I would definitely retreat to the next area with a lot of reefs before engaging in combat.”

Maxim suddenly understood: "In other words, the fact that we've been able to proceed so smoothly means that Hardman's situation has been incredibly difficult, with all his plans and arrangements rendered useless. And the culprit behind this situation..."

"It can only be Jack."

Chapter Ninety-Five: The Heat Reached

“I thought I had given him a lot of credit for getting this kind of information. I never expected him to pull off something like this behind the scenes. We actually underestimated him,” Maxim said helplessly.

Yuri also looked somewhat gloomy: "And we still don't know how he tricked Hardman, and by the way, he tricked us as well. Now he's like a venomous snake lurking in the shadows, ready to pounce and deliver a fatal blow at any moment."

"Yes, now we not only have to take out Hardman in front of us, but we also have to be careful of Jack who might suddenly appear later."

Yuri could only shake his head helplessly and say, "Easy for you to say. Do you really think we have the energy to spare any manpower to guard against Jack right now?"

"This..." Maxim also realized this and was speechless for a moment.

"Hardman must also want to guard against Jack, but he has no choice but to devote all his attention and manpower to this war. And so it is for us. If we really spare some manpower to guard against Jack, Hardman will immediately seize an opportunity."

"Looking back now, it was he who provided the intelligence, just to get us out of the game early that night and lure us into a final battle with Hardman. This is the second time he has lured us into a war with Hardman's side. I never thought I would fall into the same trap twice. And compared to this, the first time we robbed supplies was child's play."

Maxim meticulously pieced together Jack's actions, ultimately letting out a heavy sigh. But his expression quickly changed, and he roared, "However, this kind of blow won't defeat me! Once we've dealt with the tiger, Hardman, we'll go after Jack, the viper. Then we'll show him that even with all his scheming, in the end, it's all about fists. We'll tear him to pieces then!"

Well, Maxim and Yuri didn't know that Hardman thought the same way. Both sides harbored deep resentment towards Jack and wanted to execute him. This shows how "outrageous" Jack's actions were.

Meanwhile, Jack sneezed several times on the ship. He muttered to himself, "So what if I tricked you guys again? First, I devoured you like a tiger, and then I had two tigers fighting each other. Do you have to be so petty and secretly curse me?"

Hey, looks like this guy understands that both Hardman and the mob are cursing him; he's quite self-aware. But if people on both sides knew his assessment, they'd probably vomit blood on the spot.

What does "petty" mean? How big does my heart have to be to forgive and forget, even if my heart is so big that it can fit the moon in space.

Fujitora, who was standing to the side, was also speechless. After a while, he asked, "What would you do if someone else treated you like that?"

"Hmph! I'll beat him so badly his own parents won't recognize him. I'll subject him to every kind of cruel torture imaginable in the world, a full-service treatment from head to toe," Jack said matter-of-factly.

That's your mindset; those people are already very tolerant compared to you.

Seeing the expressions on their faces that made them want to complain, Jack quickly changed the subject, saying, "Emma, ​​let's not dwell on these issues for now. They've been fighting for a while now, haven't they found their target yet?"

"No, we haven't found a suitable target yet. Should we go a little further?" Fujitora answered truthfully.

"Well, no? Then let's go somewhere else."

On the battlefield, Yuri and Maxim, to avoid any unforeseen complications, immediately decided to stop observing and join the battle. The two easily leaped from the flagship, landing on a ship ahead. From there, they jumped to another ship. They continued climbing and leaping, more agile than Persian monkeys.

Hardman had actually been waiting for this moment for a long time. He wasn't afraid of you making a move, but he was afraid that you would stay put and not come out, then his thing would be useless.

"Hatton, I need you to stall Yuri for a while. You don't need to eliminate him, just stall for time."

With his most trusted aide, Francis, beheaded, Hardman had no choice but to entrust the task to the ambitious General Hatton, who was now the only one capable of handling it. Hardman believed that even if Hatton was ambitious, they were now in the same boat and wouldn't do anything outrageous.

Meanwhile, Maxim and Yuri had already boarded two ships belonging to Hardman's side. After giving Hatton some instructions, Hardman hurriedly went to fight Maxim. In terms of close combat ability, Hardman could only be said to be evenly matched with Maxim; neither could gain the upper hand in the short term. Therefore, any turning point in this war depended entirely on whether Hatton could defeat Yuri.

While Hatton's skills are somewhat inferior to those of the top-tier players like Maxim Yuri, he can still hold his own against Yuri for a while. However, as Hardman said, at most he can only stall for time. If no change occurs, Hatton's eventual defeat is almost a foregone conclusion.

Hatton, having no other choice, jumped off the ship's side to face Yuri, determined to make his winning weapon work.

Once on the ship, Hatton didn't say a word and kicked Yuri.

At this moment, Yuri's right side was facing Hatton. Hearing the rapid wind from the side, without even seeing the person's appearance, he waved his right hand and sent out a ball of silver matter, which shot straight at the person.

"Hmph, attacking me from the air? Now I'll see how you dodge my mercury ball."

However, the result was beyond Yuri's expectations. Although Hatton could have stopped in mid-air and dodged with Moonwalk, he did not do so. Instead, he continued to maintain his forward kick posture, facing the ball of silver mercury and Yuri's kick head-on.

"Wave!"

The moment the foot touched the mercury, it vanished instantly without having any effect.

"Oh no! I can't dodge this." Yuri thought to himself, then crossed his arms in front of his chest and took the kick head-on.

This attack, though seemingly weak and less powerful than a casual strike from Hardman and Maxim on the other side, still sent Yuri flying.

"This thing is really useful for dealing with people like you who have special abilities."

As Hatton spoke, he immediately lunged forward and kicked Yuri, who had been sent flying.

This time Yuri saw it clearly: the stone embedded in Hatton's shoe sole was none other than sea stone.

Chapter Ninety-Six: Procrastination

Hatton understood that if he acted like a fool and directly confronted Yuri, he would be utterly thrashed. Yuri's troublesome Devil Fruit ability alone left Hatton speechless. He didn't possess any Armament Haki, and against Logia or special Paramecia types, he was destined to be beaten.

On the other hand, Yuri not only possesses the power of the Logia-type Mercury-Gilt Fruit, but he also knows how to use Haki. The difference is too great.

However, Hatton wasn't entirely without resources. His shoes had two Seastone stones hidden in the soles, which Hatton could only use against Yuri. Yuri lost all strength upon contact with the Seastone stones, and even when he used Armament Haki for defense, he was easily kicked away. Hatton also easily neutralized the ball of mercury he had previously unleashed.

So this is both Hatton's weapon and Hatton's shield.

However, this was the first time they caught someone off guard. If Yuri had known that Hatton's shoes were inlaid with seastone, he definitely wouldn't have just smeared them with a ball of mercury. Instead, he would have fired a row of tiny mercury needles. Such a small seastone would not be able to protect Hatton, and that would have forced them to retreat from the attack.

So, don't be fooled by Hatton's initial success; he dealt Yuri a heavy blow. Once Yuri is on guard, things won't be so simple.

This time, Yuri had learned his lesson and certainly wouldn't be foolish enough to block the kick with his body. Since he was already on the ground, he didn't care about his image and simply rolled away to avoid the kick.

"Tch, it's not easy to handle once they're on their guard," Hatton thought to himself as he saw the kick land on the floor.

After dodging the attack, Yuri quickly transformed into an elemental form, reforming from a lying position to a standing one.

"As expected of the famous Mercury-Mercury Fruit, this ability to turn the entire body into liquid mercury is really useful," Hatton praised, observing Yuri's unusual way of standing up. Since fighting and talking both involve dragging things out, Hatton naturally wanted to avoid fighting if possible and prolong the conflict as much as possible.

However, Yuri showed no intention of responding. Without uttering a word, he waved his hand, sending dozens of silver needles hurtling towards Hatton. Out of fear of Seastone, close combat was out of the question. Against Hatton, who lacked the power of Dominance, ranged combat was the best option.

Hatton was not alarmed when Yuri didn't respond and just threw out a row of silver needles. He calmly raised his leg and slashed, sending a slash flying towards the silver needles.