I'm A Plunderer In The World Of One Piece. - Chapter 167: 166: Clash at Mock Town

Van Auger tried his best to suppress the fear pressing down on him.

He silently walked toward Shirogai.

The Plunderer’s strength was beyond comprehension.

“I can’t match him. But since he didn’t kill me outright, I’ll see what he intends first.”

Van Auger steadied himself, trying to keep his tone calm as he said:

“You’re the Straw Hat Pirates’ Vice Captain, Shirogai Yamikuro. A pleasure to meet you.”

Shirogai grinned faintly.

“And you are the Blackbeard Pirates’ sniper, Supersonic Van Auger. I’ve long heard of you.”

The two stepped out of the alley side by side.

Van Auger, towering over three meters tall, looked like a small giant compared to Shirogai, who stood just under 1.8 meters.

Yet their presence told a different story. The shorter Shirogai dominated the atmosphere, while the sniper found himself shackled by his every move.

“What a chaotic town, so many fights in just one street,” Shirogai muttered while eating the fried fish in his hand. He glanced casually at Van Auger.

“Van, where are the rest of your crew?”

‘This man… he even knows the name of our Pirate Crew,’ Auger thought. His expression remained calm as he replied:

“I don’t know. We split up on this island and are moving independently.”

“Oh? I see. Doesn’t matter. Fate will guide me to them anyway.”

Shirogai teased him with a smirk.

“Right, Van?”

Hearing the word fate from someone else almost made Van Auger choke. He kept silent.

‘Say what you want,’ he thought grimly, ‘once you meet the Captain, your Devil Fruit power will mean nothing. That’ll be your death day.’

The sniper steeled himself. ‘This humiliation is temporary. I’ll use your head, Shirogai, to wash it away.’

But his silent oath was quickly interrupted.

A booming laugh roared from down the street.

“Wehahahahaha!! Is there no one else!?”

Van Auger’s face stiffened.

That obnoxious laugh was unmistakable.

Only one person loved provoking fights with it.

Champion Burgess.

The martial arts fanatic.

Now, Auger could only pray that Shirogai wouldn’t recognize Burgess.

But deep down, he knew the truth: from the earlier skirmish, he’d realized that even if Burgess fought alongside him, they still wouldn’t be able to bring Shirogai down. The bullets Shirogai had flicked carried the force of actual gunfire. His close-combat prowess had to rival Burgess’s own.

And he was a Devil Fruit user.

Until Captain Teach arrived with the power of the Dark-Dark Fruit, they couldn’t afford to fight him head-on.

“I think it’s lively over there. Want to come watch the fun with me?” Shirogai asked casually, though the killing intent behind his tone froze Auger’s blood.

Refuse, and he would die on the spot.

“Good,” Auger answered flatly.

Shirogai smiled in satisfaction. “See? We get along perfectly.”

Van Auger’s thoughts churned bitterly. Then maybe stop radiating killing intent when you say that.

—

In the middle of the crowd, Champion Burgess stood with one boot crushing a muscular man’s head into the ground. Blood pooled beneath the man’s face, staining the dirt red.

“Wehahahahaha!” Burgess roared, raising his fists high. “Anyone else? Is there no one here who can fight me?”

The surrounding pirates glared, seething with anger.

“Damn it, this outsider Champion is too arrogant!”

“But who can beat him? Even Bargel went down!”

Bargel, their strongest fighter with a bounty of twenty-five million Berries, lay unmoving under Burgess’s boot.

If he couldn’t stand up to the Champion, no one else here stood a chance.

“Wehahahahaha! Cowards, all of you!” Burgess kicked Bargel aside and sneered at the trembling crowd. “Not a single pirate in this town can satisfy me!”

Suddenly, a hand waved from outside the circle.

A calm, smiling voice followed:

“Close-quarters freestyle fighting? Sounds interesting. Mind if I try?”

At last, someone had stepped forward.

The crowd shifted aside to make way. But when they saw who it was, their excitement faltered.

“A skinny, black-haired young man?”

“Who is he?”

“Never seen him before. Another fool about to get crushed.”

Under their stares, Shirogai looked at Van Auger and smiled.

“You stay here. I’ll spar with him.”

He took two steps forward, then remembered the fried fish still in his hand. With a grin, he handed the bag to Van Auger.

“Hold this for me, thanks.”

“…”

Van Auger silently accepted the bag, looking more like a servant than an ally.

—

Across the circle, Burgess squinted.

“Van Auger? Why does he look like that guy’s lackey?”

The sniper’s lips barely moved as he whispered a warning.

“Be careful… The Plunderer, Shirogai…”

“Oh? Interesting!” Burgess’s eyes lit up with wild excitement.

“Wehahahahaha! You’re The Plunderer Shirogai, aren’t you? We’ve been looking for you!”

The entire square erupted.

“A supernova with a bounty over a hundred million berries! Here, in Mock Town!”

“That’s him! The Plunderer!”

“His first bounty was one hundred million the moment he set sail! He made history!”

The pirates buzzed with awe, though a few still scoffed.

“But he looks weak, just a spoiled noble’s son.”

“Idiot, that’s the composure of a real master.”

—

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