Double-transformation: I, Sakura Haruno! Will crush the pirates!

"Alright, you and Caesar stay here and watch over him. Once he wakes up, tell him everything we've done."

Seeing her like this, Sakura couldn't bring herself to scold her anymore.

After giving the reckless guy his instructions, he tossed his coat and walked toward the perimeter of the research institute.

Amidst the roar of the elevator starting up at the research institute, the area not illuminated by the lights trembled for a moment.

Dark wings slowly unfurled on the ground, and the shadow of the Night Sparrow silently arrived, a sharp claw gently reaching out towards the only figure in the elevator lobby.

"What are you doing? Sneaking around like that!"

Sakura stretched out her domineering hand and tore a long, narrow feather off the wall.

"Ah, it hurts!"

The shadow cried out in pain, and a delicate little boat sprite wearing a raincoat emerged from the wall.

She put her hands on her hips and glared at Sakura, "Sakura, you're so mean!"

"You idiot, you were the one who started the joke!"

Sakura chuckled and stepped forward, cupping Leviathan's cheeks and rubbing them.

It had been a while since I'd rubbed her face; it felt so plump and soft, it made me nostalgic.

The petite ship spirit waved its arms and legs, but it was powerless against Sakura's strength.

Finally, after giving her a disgruntled look, he used the information she brought to distract Sakura.

"Stop playing around! A thief has broken into the island, and Kuina is fighting him!"

"Thief? You can deal with that kind of thing yourselves after you defeat it, why did you specifically notify me?" Sakura glanced at Leviathan, who seemed to be up to no good, and wondered what he was up to.

After taking over the medical island of Milian, the island's defenses are now stronger than ever before.

As the crew battles against pirates, marines, and bounty hunters who keep coming after Sakura's head, each member's strength improves.

If they couldn't defeat the enemy even when they joined forces, then Sakura should have been able to sense the intruder's momentum and the aftershocks of the battle.

Unlike now, the world of the living and the world of the dead are peaceful and tranquil.

"Hehe, you'll see when you get there!" Leviathan raised an eyebrow at Sakura with a strange smile.

Then the entire bird dissolved like ink, dripping onto the ground and quickly disappearing into the shadows.

"Playing mysterious!"

Sakura made a sarcastic remark to her, and after the elevator reached the top, she turned into a white line and quickly traversed the sea of ​​clouds.

—Damn it, what is this all about?! Riddler, get out of Miriam!

The Observation Haki expanded across the island, eventually locking onto a place where a clash of forces was erupting.

Sakura, who was flying, took out a map and found that the conflict had broken out in a warehouse on the upper floor.

Following the map, Sakura passed through several tall buildings in the city and quickly headed to the address on the map.

.

.

On the other side, in the southwestern part of Yangjie, there is a cold storage warehouse for medicines.

Two figures were fighting amidst the encirclement of numerous winged warriors wielding guns.

"You bastard, you'll pay for injuring the guards and stealing medicine with your labor!"

Kuina shouted loudly, gripping the demon sword Muramasa tightly!

Lightning-attribute chakra surged across her body, and intense Armament Haki enveloped the blade, turning its markings black.

—One-Sword Style: Lightning Bhagavad Gita!

The incredibly fast Iai Slash erupted with a high-pitched cry in the air, and the world seemed to be out of sync with time for a second.

Then, a vicious blade, emerging from the carnage, slashed towards the black-haired youth before him.

"Get out of my way! I just want to save my companion. I'm willing to go to jail or pay compensation afterward, whatever you want!"

The freckled boy with black hair widened his eyes as he drew his long sword to counterattack against the fierce sword light that was slashing towards him.

His masterful swordsmanship revealed its sharpness, and the cold, gleaming light unleashed a swirling sword aura.

—Wild Soul!

Clang!

The clash of swords produced the sound of steel scraping against steel. Kuina's Armament Haki collided with that of the black-haired boy, and dark and blue lightning, centered on the swords, cleaved the world in two.

"Damn it, get out of my way!!!"

The freckled boy with black hair gritted his teeth, his muscles tense, squeezing out all his strength.

Barely managing to deflect Kuina's sword, creating a path for his own survival, he grabbed the potion and ran outside.

"Oh, so it's you, the newcomer with a bounty of 100 million Berries, the one who defeated the former Shichibukai, the Lizard King Hanafuda—Portgas D. Ace!"

Kuina's smile was fierce as she stared wide-eyed at the freckled boy in front of her through the smoke.

The young people who were recently featured in the World Economic Daily have appeared in the new world so quickly.

"Are you planning to take our captain's head and make a name for yourself?"

The girl, sword in hand, made a deduction, and the lightning around her intensified. "Then, I won't let you leave alive today!"

Being targeted by such a promising newcomer is actually a very dangerous thing. In the world of One Piece, there are countless examples of letting weak enemies go only to have them return stronger and kill them.

Although Kuina wouldn't actively attack these people because of her status as a member of the Pirate Emperor's crew, now that they've come to her doorstep, being killed by them is her own fault!

"No, why would I lay a hand on her? Please listen to me for a second, okay?"

Forced into a corner, Ace ran frantically while trying to persuade the girl behind him to give up, his voice trembling with exhaustion.

"Do you think I will believe you?"

Kuina was struck again, and her lightning-type chakra was completely concentrated in her sword.

—Gathering Thunder!

"Ah...."

On the wide main road of the mortal realm, Ace, looking dazed, gave a weak smile.

He raised his hand, as if he wanted to speak but hesitated, yet he couldn't utter a word.

Only the trembling hand raised the sword again, and Armament Haki enveloped it.

In the deathly silence of the scene, only the hissing sound of thunder constantly tearing through the air remained.

But the illusion of time and space shattered in the next instant, and a figure in a flowing coat arrived late.

"Hey kids, I'm here!!!"

With a dashing and stylish entrance, Sakura, feeling confident that she had successfully shown off, laughed heartily, her powerful aura surging as she prepared to teach this nobody a lesson.

"So, where is the enemy?"

Unfortunately, no one responded.

The girl looked up in confusion and saw only Kuina, who was under her feet and surrounded by a faint sense of death, and Ace, whose eyes were empty and who looked as if he had been played with.

He froze in place.

"Ah this..."

Chapter 309 Young man, what will become of my prestige if you do this?

"Ahem, you don't need to fight anymore." Using a cough to cover up her embarrassment, Sakura helped Kuina up and patted the dust off her.

"Sakura-nee, you jerk!" Kuina glared at her resentfully. "So, why did you stop me?"

Sakura didn't answer her, but just gestured with her lips towards Ace's direction.

"Sister Ying, it's been a long time." The black-haired boy with freckles raised his hand and scratched the back of his head.

"Huh? You thief, what's your relationship with me!" Kuina pressed down on the hilt of her knife in displeasure when she saw that the other person was calling her by the same name.

"Alright, I taught him swordsmanship before."

Sakura patted Kuina's head and rubbed it, saying, "He can be considered half of my disciple."

"No wonder this guy's swordsmanship always feels familiar to me!" Kuina's eyes widened, and she slowly lowered the knife in her hand.

Standing to the side, Ace clutched the potion in his arms tightly, took a few deep breaths, and bowed: "I'm sorry for the trouble I've caused you, but my companion is seriously injured. Deus said that if we could get the medicine here, it would heal him."

"Yes, you can buy them. You can buy universal blood plasma and healing potions directly from shops in the city. The prices aren't high, are they?" Sakura shook her head, her voice full of helplessness.

Ace looked away guiltily and chuckled awkwardly, "Well... we ran out of money on the way here."

“…”

Sakura fell silent.

I can't speak for other things, but his unwavering honesty is definitely a trait he inherited from Captain Roger. Also, the fact that he never keeps the treasure he gets his hands on for more than three days is quite similar.

Fortunately, he only demolished a warehouse, so the loss was still within an acceptable range. Sakura herself didn't intend to hold him responsible; after all, what family doesn't have a couple of spendthrift kids?

Just as she was about to speak, the surrounding shadows surged, black wings unfurled, and a giant night sparrow swam out from beneath the ground.

"Sakura sauce".

Leviathan flapped its wings and gradually shrank, then greeted the girl and perched on her shoulder.

Then, she turned her head toward Ace, raised her wings and waved them: "And little Ace, it's been a long time."

"You're really good at keeping people in suspense!" Sakura tapped Leviathan's head lightly with her fist. "Why didn't you just say it was Ace?"

"Hehehe, isn't it because I didn't want to make things difficult for you?" Leviathan chuckled.

His Devil Fruit power activated, manipulating the surrounding darkness to slowly expel several unconscious people with their heads drooping.

Upon seeing these figures, Ace's eyes widened. "Deus, Michal, Vores, Boncy? What are they doing here?"

Leviathan spread its wings, flew to Ace's shoulder, and pecked Ace's head with its beak. "That depends on what good deeds your companions have done~"

Leviathan's languid voice rang out, and Sakura frowned, sensing that something was amiss. "What happened?"

"They set fire to our luxury department store to distract this guy," Leviathan said, pecking Ace's head a few more times.

It seems that Leviathan is extremely dissatisfied with the guys who keep making her work overtime.

"Luxury goods?!" Ace's heart skipped a beat, and he had an urge to turn around, grab the boat, and run away that very night.

Why do these bastards have to burn down luxury goods streets? Do they think their captain is too rich and want him to pay off Sakura's debts for the rest of his life?

But the Spade Pirates members also have something to say!

If we don't burn down other people's luxury shopping malls and put those celebrities and dignitaries in danger, how can we maximize the diversion of the other side pirate crew's defensive forces?

Suppressing the urge to curse, Ace asked, "What are the losses? Were there any casualties?"

"There were no casualties, after all, there are many ability users on the island, it was just a big fire..." The dark Night Sparrow squinted its pleased little eyes and drew out its tone.

"Then!" Ace's face showed anticipation.

There were no casualties, so as long as we grit our teeth and make up for Sakura's losses, there shouldn't be any problems, right?

"Unfortunately, that fire set off our flags hanging in the mall." Leviathan ruthlessly shattered the hopes that had just risen in the young man's heart.

"Pirate... flag?"

Ace's voice was hoarse as he raised his hand and drew a square shape. "The one with the pirate crew's exclusive symbol, the one that represents the crew's honor, that... flag?"

Leviathan nodded, stretching out her little wings to put her arm around Ace's shoulder. "And boy, do you know who was among the people playing on that street back then?"

"—Big news! Morgans took the photos and then slipped away! How about that? Surprised? Unexpected?"

In just a few minutes, he went from elation to despair. Finally, Ace's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, died completely.

Tired, destroy it!

Does anyone in the family understand? While he was stealing medicine, a huge black pot suddenly smashed onto his head.

It's true that Ace wanted to challenge the Pirate Emperor and take their throne, but he never thought of targeting Sakura.

Now that your comrade-in-arms has burned someone else's pirate flag and Morgans even took a picture of it, it'll probably be in the newspapers and spread all over the world by this afternoon, right?