The tiger couldn't bear the pressure Weiss exuded. Its entire body lowered to the ground—not out of submission, but as a clear sign of an impending pounce, just like any big cat before an ambush.
Roar!
The king of beasts shook the mountains and forests with its mighty roar. Birds scattered in fear, beasts fled in all directions. The aura of a ruler radiated without restraint.
Clang!
A blinding flash of light cut through the air. The roar stopped abruptly.
Drip, drip...
Scarlet blood trickled down the blade and fell to the forest floor. With a thud, the enormous tiger collapsed behind him. Its massive body lay still—head separated cleanly from neck. A trace of confusion lingered on the beast's savage face, as if it still wondered how its opponent had moved so fast.
Weiss stood with his longsword angled casually toward the ground. With unhurried steps, he walked behind the tiger.
He wiped the blood from his blade on the tiger's fur, leaving behind a lifeless carcass. Without so much as a backward glance, he continued toward the mountains. Maybe only that massive flying creature he'd seen earlier could offer him the faintest bit of excitement.
As for why the tiger had been one-shotted?
What, did you think training hard for twelve long years just to become a Sword Grandmaster was so he could trade blows equally with a wild beast?
...
...
Weiss was ranked fourth in the East Blue—almost third.
If you don't one-shot your opponents... if you don't show off your power... then what was all that training for?
Unfortunately, this display of dominance went unseen. Other than the moon in the sky, no one witnessed what had happened. Even the jungle beasts would need time before they realized.
If you can't show off in front of people, then what's the point of showing off at all?
Rustle...
Rustle, rustle...
"Ugh...!"
"Ow! Damn bird, that really hurt!"
Roughly ten kilometers later, a pained cry suddenly echoed from ahead. Weiss paused and focused—it was Deuce's voice.
Well, for the sake of that 800,000 Berries, Weiss headed toward the source of the voice.
He soon spotted Deuce hanging upside down, caught by the foot in a tangle of high branches. His head was dangling toward the ground as he struggled to free himself.
"Hey, Deuce! What the hell happened to you?"
"Ah! Captain Weiss! Could you please get me down first? My head feels like it's going to explode. Thanks a ton!" Deuce's face was flushed—though it was unclear if it was due to the blood rushing to his head or sheer embarrassment.
Clang!
A cold flash of steel. Weiss leapt up, performed two and a half somersaults midair, caught the upside-down Deuce with a graceful spin, and landed with practiced ease.
"Safe at last," Deuce exhaled as he slumped to the ground, catching his breath. His flushed face gradually returned to normal.
"Captain Weiss, thank you for saving my life. If not for you, I'd be dead meat for sure."
"No big deal. You're worth 800,000 Berry, after all," Weiss replied offhandedly.
"Wait... what??"
"Ah—no, I mean—no need to thank me. We're on the same ship. Helping each other out is only natural." Weiss quickly changed the subject.
"So how'd you end up hanging from a tree like that?" I mean, surely he wasn't trying to travel through the treetops like some kind of monkey?
"I was just walking along the ground when I crossed an open clearing. Suddenly the sky darkened, and this giant bird dove from above, snatched me up, and flew off!"
"Luckily, there was a tree below when it dropped me—otherwise, I'd be a splatter mark right now," Deuce said with lingering fear.
"And... where's your captain? Weren't you two together?" Weiss suddenly felt a sense of unease.
Sure enough...
"Oh right! My captain got grabbed too! That bird's terrifying—one strike per person. We couldn't fight back at all. Just before it dropped me, my captain managed to land a hit on it, making it flinch."
"Captain Weiss, please! I beg you—save my captain!"
Deuce finished pleading and dropped to his knees, forehead pressed to the ground, refusing to rise.
Weiss couldn't help but feel like laughing but held it in and helped him up. "Alright, alright. Leave it to me. Since you're technically passengers on my ship now, it's my responsibility as captain to keep you safe."
Still... how the hell did his captain manage to hurt the bird's leg while being carried? Come to think of it, that bird did look a little odd—turns out it had someone in its claws.
Weiss didn't continue strolling leisurely anymore. Not that he doubted Ace's strength—it's just that flying beasts are a whole different problem. Even that massive tiger wouldn't faze him, but a bird?
You throw a punch, and it just flies out of reach. You can't hit it—it mocks you from the sky. What can you even do?
---
Meanwhile, high above a cliff, the giant eagle dropped Ace into its nest, where three eaglets waited.
Ace lay motionless on a pile of dry twigs.
The eagle prodded him with a talon, but he didn't move. Satisfied that he was dead, it spread its wings and flew off—this meager catch wasn't even enough to feed its chicks.
Once the eagle left, the three eaglets hopped over, ready to peck at his flesh with their barely-formed beaks.
But just as they were about to bite, the supposedly lifeless human sprang to his feet and jumped to the edge of the nest.
Ace peered into the distance—the eagle was already out of sight. He glanced around. He was on a sheer cliff, sky above, abyss below. The full moon overhead shone with soft brilliance.
He scanned the area. About a dozen meters away, several rocky outcroppings jutted from the cliffside.
He crouched, then leapt, landing firmly on one of them. Looking up, he estimated about 50 meters to the top. "Looks like I can make it," he muttered.
Just as he prepared to scale the cliff...
Gurgle...
His stomach growled.
Compelled by hunger, he turned to look back at the nest. The eaglets trembled and huddled against the wall.
Ace licked his lips. "Well, I haven't had dinner yet."
And so... he jumped back into the nest.
Dry twigs? Check.
Firestarter paper in his pocket? Check.
Young birds with downy feathers that don't even need plucking? Perfect.
Deliciously convenient!
---
At the same time, Weiss stood at the mountain's base, gazing up at the towering peak. Every beast that tried to stop him had already fallen to his blade.
From afar, the mountain looked impressive. But up close, its sheer size was overwhelming.
"Ace... I don't expect you to defeat that thing. Just dodge well enough to stay alive," Weiss muttered.
He wasn't being pessimistic—Ace wasn't yet the same man who'd one day become the Second Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates and trigger the Paramount War.
That bird had a natural advantage. Aerial predators were no joke.
"If you die, where am I supposed to collect my 10 million Berry? From Garp? He'd probably beat me to death."
With that, Weiss activated his Observation Haki. In a ten-mile radius, no creature escaped his senses.
They say spring brings life, but summer? Summer brought even more chaos.
Seriously—middle of the night, and every beast is prowling? Give it a rest!
Fortunately, no sign of the giant eagle's nest appeared within the area. Weiss deactivated his Haki and immediately felt more at ease.
"Damn it... that eagle's nest must be up on the cliffs or near the summit. What was I thinking searching down here?"
He smacked his forehead, then turned and dashed toward the peak. Maybe it wasn't at the summit, but at least he'd get a better view from up there.
---
A/N: Sorry for the late update. There was no internet in our house yesterday.