They instantly teleported, their presence almost disappearing into the distance in the blink of an eye, vanishing from his senses.
With that troublesome ability, capturing someone is still quite difficult.
But if they can't be caught, then so be it. At their level, no one can stop them from escaping.
However, human life is also categorized; those who haven't experienced a complete journey and can't find their own worth, naturally cherish life, believing it's more important than anything.
But those who have gone through a complete journey, who have found their own worth, who have a path they deeply want to follow, care more about the lives along their journey than their own lives.
To cut off Teach's pirate journey is more painful than killing him.
Just like Sage, who fought for his dreams as a landlord, even when he was down and out and couldn't eat, giving up his dream would be more painful than death for him.
The end of a journey marks the time of a depressed will.
To destroy a person, such overwhelming force is entirely possible.
"When I drive you to desperation, what good is escaping alone against a rushing wave? You are but harmless remnants. Hahahahaha, hohohohoho!"
Sage's mad laughter echoed on that half-broken island, causing the snow from the sky to fall more fiercely and the temperature to plummet, just like the New World which would lose all warmth soon.
...
"Ring, ring, ring!!"
At the Navy Headquarters, amidst the piercing alarm, a large number of Navy personnel rushed through the corridors.
"Confirmed! The 'Four Emperors' Blackbeard's main base, Hive Island, has been destroyed by 'Tensei'!"
"Yes! The surveillance ship has already arrived, Hive Island is completely gone, has turned into a cold climate, and icebergs have appeared!"
"The whereabouts of the Blackbeard Pirates are unknown, confirmation is underway from multiple sources!"
"Intelligence! We need more intelligence to confirm whether Blackbeard himself is still alive!"
The Navy personnel hurriedly moved about, confirming their communications while receiving new orders.
In the upper level of the massive central keep, Akainu sat at the head, observing Hive Island's current situation projected on the screen by the Radio Snail, with cigar smoke masking his expression.
Kizaru, with his head still bandaged, leaned against the desk corner, hands in pockets, watching the screen with interest.
On the sofa on the other side, a middle-aged man with a slicked-back hairstyle wearing sunglasses sat, his face stern.
Along with Sengoku and Tsuru, two elderly figures.
"Hive Island was destroyed by Sage..."
Sengoku slightly lowered his head, a white light flashed across his glasses, "No sight of Garp, was he transported away?"
Tsuru pondered for a moment and said, "Coby has returned, they mentioned that Garp was unable to make a final stand, must have been captured, currently missing... they plan to use Garp as a contingency."
"There are demands..."
Sengoku sighed, "Lately, these pirates keep coming forward."
Tensei has demands, Blackbeard has demands too, different from the pirates we know.
These demanding ones, it seems, might be the most troublesome now.
From the Navy's perspective, this is correct; however, from the World Government's point of view, it's quite different.
"These old things always make trouble."
Akainu snorted coldly, "Why not just do some retirement activities after retiring! Sage alone is already troublesome enough!"
Besides the scars from his right neck to his face, there was a new, massive scar at the center of his chest, still showing some fresh red.
Sage dealt this blow, covering his entire chest with an indelible wound.
"Oh~ Ended up like this, how scary indeed."
Kizaru puckered his lips in surprise and continued, "But it's also good, pirates fighting pirates means less trouble no matter how it ends."
"If that guy only occupies the New World and then stops."
The man with the slicked-back hairstyle added, then looked at Akainu, "Since Sage has a deal with those above, let's not focus on him for now. Saka, what matters more now are the uprisings worldwide, we need to hurry to address them. As for Mary Geoise, there's no need for investigation, the Divine Knight Order has already taken over and started operating."
He paused, then continued, "Regarding Tensei's bounty, we will reassess it, for defeating a Four Emperor's stronghold deserves an increase."
The speaker was a Navy Vice Admiral, Director of the Navy Criminal Investigation Bureau, codename 'Black Horse', Tensei.
"Increase further?"
Tsuru frowned, "Some people on the seas are already comparing Tensei to Roger, you know, pirates at this level, the higher the bounty, the more renowned they become, they don't care about those aiming at their heads. Further increase will only add to his fame."
"What's wrong with that? We want him to become more famous; if he could replace Gol D. Roger, even better." Tensei replied indifferently.
Pirates' bounty assessments come from his department; he knows them better than his colleagues, whether they're famous or not.
Sage's bounty, after being passed from the lower department, has been directly under his attention.
All the crimes committed, he confirmed personally.
He is more aware of the danger Sage poses than anyone else.
However, compared to this threat, the uprisings shaking the foundation of the World Government are of utmost importance.
People at sea, due to lack of connectivity, have little awareness of rising prices, or else they wouldn't be comparing the deceased Gol D. Roger to Sage.