One Piece: Hell Pirates

By the time Xiaofeng brought Beaver into Hell Pirates territory, Rocks had already received word through his intelligence network.

"Hahaha! Whether they like it or not, the Overlord Alliance is finished. Nothing but a loose pile of sand now. The chance to unify the New World is finally here!"

Rocks didn't believe the Hell Pirates—home to several users of Conqueror's Haki—would tolerate Jack's intrusion. Even if that old man Diger managed to calm Brook down, there'd be no hope of restoring their alliance after this.

And so, Rocks immediately cooked up a sinister plan—he'd use Jack, the flirtatious playboy, as a sacrificial pawn to stir things up. Could Angel be his Achilles' heel?

He glanced sideways at the cunning old crone. Perfect. Deceit and ambush were her specialties. Who better to handle a sentimental fool like Jack?

Still, Rocks couldn't leave everything to her. He needed to personally handle Willank and Saracha—those two had never really clicked with Diger, and they likely wouldn't show up even if summoned.

"Higurashi, just like last time, disguise yourself as me. Take Scorpion Dragon, Sawa, Jonas, Saxe Way, and the others. Head straight into Brook's territory. If you can lure that old man Diger over, even better. Just make sure it all looks legitimate—like a formal visit."

While Higurashi carried out her covert mission, Rocks led his elite squad—Wang Zhi, Silver Axe, John, and the Karns brothers—toward the territories of Saracha and Willank.

---

Meanwhile, on Snowy Winter Island, Willank, and on Horn Island, Saracha had both received Diger's message—a plea and a warning. Diger urged them to join him in confronting Brook, hoping to pressure him into maintaining the fragile alliance. He also warned them: if they stayed isolated, they risked being picked off by Rocks.

If Brook attacked Jack, Diger would be forced to handle the fallout himself. That meant he couldn't protect Willank or Saracha if Rocks made a move.

"Let's regroup," Diger said bluntly. "If you're attacked and fall, don't say I didn't warn you."

Willank scoffed. "All this 'gathering forces' talk over your bastard son's woman trouble? Seriously? It's pathetic."

The idea that two overlords and a pseudo-overlord would join forces over something as petty as Jack breaking into Brook's turf to chase a girl? Utterly disgraceful.

But Saracha took the warning seriously. He'd seen Rocks play this kind of trick before.

Instead of heading to the meeting, Saracha had one of his men wear his clothes and stay behind to act as a decoy. Meanwhile, he took a small team of trusted allies and quietly slipped out on a ship—off on a little "adventure."

He'd wait until the Brook–Jack–Diger mess played out, and then resurface. If Rocks attacked his island while he was gone? Whatever. It wasn't worth the risk of being caught in the crossfire.

He even tried to convince Willank to do the same.

"You think you're smart? You're not," Saracha muttered. "Just don't get yourself killed."

Willank brushed him off. "I'll patrol more. That's enough."

Saracha sighed. There was no reasoning with idiots. He could only hope Rocks didn't use the same old trick twice.

Snowy Winter Island lay two territories away from Brook's. If Diger left to handle Jack, and Rocks struck Willank, not even the gods could save him.

All of this—all of it—was Jack's fault. One woman, and the entire Overlord Alliance was crumbling. Saracha knew that in the New World, strength was everything.

Of the four overlords, Saracha was now the weakest. Without the strength of a true Overlord, he had no say in anything.

And Diger? Useless ally. He refused to teach Saracha how to master the advanced Haki entanglement technique.

Rocks? No chance he'd help.

That left one option—the Old Ice Demon, hidden away in the isolated, frozen land. But that guy was impossible to find, and even if you did, he wouldn't teach you a damn thing.

Gritting his teeth, Saracha made a decision. He'd gamble everything on the Ruined Island—the battlefield where Rocks killed the previous Overlord.

It had once been the base of an ancient powerhouse. Maybe, just maybe, there was still some kind of method or relic that could unlock the secrets of Conqueror's Haki Entanglement.

If he was going to run, he might as well run toward power.

---

Naturally, Diger and Brook both noticed Rocks' large-scale movement.

Diger was deeply worried.

Brook? Not so much. He figured he could move faster and avoid a direct clash with Rocks.

Diger suspected another tiger-luring ploy like before. But if he had to choose between his son's life and the safety of his crew, the answer was obvious.

Willank and Saracha had refused his call. That left him with no choice. If either of them were killed by Rocks and turned against the Hell Pirates, they'd be screwed. There'd be no hope of standing up to Rocks' power.

Jack… damn Jack. The kid was turning into his greatest disappointment.

One son… versus everything he'd built.

Still, if Brook could be convinced to hold the alliance together, there might still be a path forward. With their combined strength, they could still challenge Rocks.

And so, Diger assembled his top cadres and set out for Squid Island, determined to end this mess.

He just hoped Brook wouldn't burn everything down over a woman.

---

The chaos in the New World was spiraling fast, and Jack—clueless as ever—had no idea what his actions had triggered.

He was still in the middle of a heated duel with some upstart rookie named Roger.

They'd been going at it for hours, and Jack couldn't believe how strong the guy was. It was like he was burning his very life to fight.

"What the hell kind of potential-boosting technique is this?" Jack muttered, struggling to keep up.

----------------------

Roger was nearing his limit—his breathing was labored and shallow. Rayleigh fared even worse, his body riddled with sword wounds. He had been thoroughly overwhelmed by Xiaofeng blade techniques and the power of the Wind Control Fruit.

Meanwhile, Gaban had barely been scratched in his clash with Beaver.

It wasn't that Rayleigh and Gaba were vastly different in strength—the problem was the huge gap between Xiaofeng and Beaver. No one knew what dark deeds Beaver had committed to earn such a high bounty. Honestly, his strength didn't seem to justify a 700-million bounty.

Elsewhere, Angel and Bull led their crew and Roger's pirates in defeating the enemy's elite forces. They even managed to tie up the enemy's captains to use them as hostages against Jack, Xiaofeng, and Beaver.

They were clearly lacking in top-tier fighters, so this was all they could do to buy time. They just had to hold out until Captain Brook arrived.

But Roger and Rayleigh... they looked like they wouldn't make it that long.

"Jack! Xiaofeng! Beaver! Stop now or we'll kill your crew!!"

Angel shouted, raising a pistol to the prisoners.

Jack hesitated, his attacks slowing slightly. But Xiaofeng sneered, unfazed, and his strikes grew even fiercer. He was dead-set on killing Rayleigh, then Angel and the others, and finally rescuing his crew.

Beaver, on the other hand, didn't care about his subordinates at all. He had hoped that by surrendering more men, he could raise his rank in the Diger Pirates. But to his dismay, even after joining, he was still treated worse than some old veterans with only 300 or 400 million berries on their heads. The Diger Pirates had let him down.

Now, even though Beaver wanted to back off, he couldn't. Jack and Xiaofeng kept pressing forward, and he was too afraid to retreat alone. So, he kept fighting Gaban. Eventually, both began to sense the other was holding back, and they started faking it—exaggerated swings, flashy moves, but little power behind them. Outsiders wouldn't notice; they looked like they were fighting harder than ever.

Angel's face was blank as she coldly shot several of Xiaofeng's men on the spot. That made Xiaofeng's expression turn murderous. After one slash at Rayleigh, he unleashed several waves of sword energy at the Ewald Pirates' crew.

Several of them were instantly torn apart.

"You kill my people, I kill yours," Xiaofeng sneered.

He knew he couldn't touch Angel or Bull with their bounties over 500 million berries, but he could slaughter their subordinates. That was enough for now.

Angel and Bull were furious. They ignored Rayleigh's warning not to interfere and attacked Xiaofeng together. That gave Rayleigh a chance to breathe for the first time in the fight.

Though reluctant to accept help, Rayleigh couldn't deny it—without those two joining in, he'd be dead by now. He could feel it—his body was burning up. He was close to collapse, but at the same time, he had grown stronger. This was what it meant to fight on the edge of death.

But even with Angel and Bull joining the fray, Xiaofeng was still confident. Their teamwork was lacking, and he took advantage of every opening.

Soon, Angel and Bull had fresh sword wounds across their bodies. Blood soaked their clothes.

"Why don't you go help your good brother? Trade opponents—leave those two to me,"

Beaver whispered to Gaban mid-duel.

Beaver knew he couldn't beat Gaban, but Angel and Bull? He was sure he could take them. He'd been waiting for a chance to get rid of Angel. If Jack married her, his own life would be at risk.

Gaban paused. It made sense—he worked better with Rayleigh anyway. And Angel and Bull might be able to handle Beaver.

"Alright. Knock me out."

As soon as he said it, Gaban was sent flying by Beaver and landed right in the middle of Rayleigh's fight with Xiaofeng.

"Gaban! Are you alright?" Rayleigh shouted, thinking he had been overwhelmed.

"I'm fine! Angel, Bull! Switch! Go fight that bastard—leave Xiaofeng to us!!"

Gaban didn't look weak at all as he charged toward Xiaofeng. Rayleigh joined him without hesitation, and the two brothers stood side by side once again.

Angel and Bull didn't waste time. They spun around and rushed toward Beaver, who was charging toward them with a wicked grin.

When enemies meet, it's always bitter. They had been partners once, but now all they wanted was to kill each other.

At that moment, Beaver made his move. He was determined to kill Angel. He unleashed a burst of power far beyond anything he'd shown before. Bull met his attack, but Beaver's real target was Angel!

The two were knocked in opposite directions. Angel crashed hard into the ground, blood pouring from her mouth, her face pale as death. She looked like she could die at any moment.

Beaver stood there, panting from the force he had just unleashed. He had poured all his strength into that one attack. Bull had held back, but Beaver had gone all in—just to make sure Angel wouldn't get up again.

He smirked. Her internal organs must be shattered. Let's see if Jack still wants to marry that "filthy woman" now.

"Angel!!"

Bull roared.

He hadn't expected that bastard Beaver to go for a finishing move so suddenly. How could he do that to the captain's daughter? Did he have no humanity left?!

"Damn it… Urgh…"

Angel coughed, blood spilling from her mouth along with fragments of her organs. Her injuries were horrifying.

She was dying. She hadn't even avenged her father. She hadn't led the Ewald Pirates to glory. And now, she was dying at the hands of a traitor.

She tried to speak, but only blood came out.

Pain. Regret. Fury. Endless memories flickered behind her eyes. Tears streamed down her cheeks. Was this really it?

She thought of that bastard who had forced her to surrender… the same one who had stolen a kiss from her. Too bad… she'd never see him again.

Her pupils trembled, then began to fade.

Everyone around felt it through their Haki. Her life force was vanishing.

Bull was sobbing. He had failed her. She was Ewald's only daughter, and he hadn't protected her.

Even Jack, locked in battle with Roger, froze. His blade slowed. His face turned pale. Then, slowly, he turned and glared at Beaver, rage boiling in his eyes.

Suddenly, the sky darkened—and a golden ship tore through the clouds.

From it descended a white puff of cloud. On it stood Brook, holding onto the ship's doctor, Crocus.

Angel's eyes fluttered open slightly as she saw them, and a faint smile curled on her lips before she finally passed out.

Brook moved quickly. He pried open her mouth and stuffed in a handful of Blood-Dandelions, an extremely rare herb.

"Captain Brook… You're too late… Miss Angel… she's… she's stopped breathing," Bull wept, his voice breaking.

But then, something miraculous happened.

Angelique's body began to glow faintly. Her pale face turned a warm pink again.

Jack, Roger, and even Beaver were stunned. Their Haki had sensed her death—how could this be?

Angel… was coming back to life.

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