Wanna read ahead? Join my Patreon for just $7 to get early access to all upcoming chapters!
› Patreon.com/NegativeTranslations
──────────────────────────
Chapter 304: Suppressing Kaido with a Single Finger!
Looking at the Golden Lion nodding and bowing with such fawning sycophancy, everyone in the tavern felt as if they had swallowed a fly.
Was this truly the Great Pirate who had threatened to destroy the world and contended for supremacy with Roger? He looked like nothing more than an old dog wagging its tail for mercy!
"Shiki..."
"What kind of nonsense are you barking?"
Kaido finally snapped out of his shock. His wild, vertical pupils instantly became bloodshot as he glared at the Golden Lion. The humiliation of being played caused his very blood to boil.
"Who are you calling a wine-guzzling barbarian? Who is the fool who doesn't know the height of the heavens? I am Kaido! Hundred Beasts Kaido!"
Boom!
Raging Conqueror's Haki exploded from Kaido once more. This time, it was even more violent and unrestrained than before!
"Die for me!"
Kaido roared, his mace [Hassaikai] wreathed in black-and-red lightning. He swung it down toward Shiki with crushing force!
"It's over..."
Shanks covered his face, unable to watch. Katakuri closed his eyes. Even Whitebeard couldn't help but shake his head with a sigh.
"That stupid ox... he's a goner."
In the face of this world-destroying strike, Blake didn't even raise an eyebrow. He merely sighed softly and set down his coffee cup.
"I say..."
"Do you all have some kind of misunderstanding regarding the 'Shop Rules'?"
The voice was light, yet it eerily smothered the roar of the lightning.
In the next second, Blake slowly raised a single finger. He tapped it lightly against the massive, descending mace.
"[Still.]"
There was no earth-shattering collision of energy. No fancy light effects. Not even a ripple in the air.
But!
The mace, wreathed in the aura of destruction, stopped eerily in mid-air! It was like a frame from a paused video. No matter how Kaido roared or strained—even as his face turned the color of pig liver—the club remained welded into the space itself. It wouldn't budge an inch!
"What?!"
Kaido's pupils shrank to the size of needle points. An unprecedented chill raced up his spine.
How is this possible?! Even the Whitebeard of old or that mad dog Garp couldn't have blocked his [Thunder Bagua] with a single finger!
"Are you done playing?"
Blake looked up, a hint of impatience flashing in his deep eyes.
"Starting a fight in my shop... and threatening to tear my home down. It seems if I don't give you a lesson, any random stray cat or dog will think they can take a sh*t on my head."
Before the words had even faded, Blake's finger pressed down slightly.
"[Kneel.]"
BOOM!!!
An indescribable, terrifying gravity instantly descended upon Kaido! This wasn't ordinary gravity; it felt as if the entirety of Mt. Sumeru had been moved onto his shoulders!
Pfft—
Kaido spat out a mouthful of blood. His knees buckled. Before the horrified eyes of everyone, the being known as the World's Strongest Creature slammed into the floor like a mangy dog with broken legs! He hit so hard that his knees carved two deep pits into the solid wood!
"Aaaaarrgh!"
Kaido let out a roar of extreme humiliation. He tried to struggle, to stand, but the power was too immense—it was like the Laws of the world themselves, impossible to defy!
"And you."
Blake turned his head toward Golden Lion Shiki, who was trying to slip away quietly. A faint, knowing smile played on his face.
"Shiki, where do you think you're going?"
Shiki's body froze. He squeezed out a smile that looked more painful than crying.
"Bo... Boss... I was just going to get some rope... to tie up this suicidal idiot..."
Blake chuckled.
"No need for that trouble. Since you both enjoy releasing Haki in my shop so much—since you love ruining the atmosphere—you can go to the entrance and cool off properly."
"You too."
The smile on Shiki's face instantly solidified.
"Wait! Boss! I'm an ally! I was trying to uphold your rules! I—"
Blake didn't even bother listening. He crooked a finger.
"[Wood Release: Tree Bind Eternal Burial.]"
Crr-ack! Crr-ack!
The massive ornamental tree at the tavern entrance suddenly came to life. Countless thick branches grew at a frenzied pace, darting like spirit snakes. They surged into the tavern instantly.
Before anyone could react, Kaido and Golden Lion Shiki—two figures whose every step could make the seas tremble—were bound tight by the branches! And they were bound in an incredibly shameful position: the legendary "Turtle Shell Bind"!
"Off you go!"
Blake gave a casual wave of his hand.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Two black shadows flew straight out the tavern door. Then... they were hoisted high and hung from the crossbeam at the entrance!
They looked exactly like two pieces of sun-dried jerky. On the left, Hundred Beasts Kaido. On the right, Golden Lion Shiki. Hanging neatly, swaying in the breeze.
"There."
With that done, Blake clapped his hands as if he'd just swatted two flies. He picked up his coffee cup, which hadn't even gone cold yet, and smiled at the stunned crowd.
"The flies have been handled. Everyone, continue drinking and chatting. Oh, and Makino."
Blake turned toward the gentle proprietress behind the bar, who was staring in shock.
"Add a dish to the menu tonight. That stupid ox has plenty of meat on him. If anyone else dares to cause trouble, we'll have a [Full Dragon Feast]."
Silence.
Still, deathly silence.
Everyone looked at the silver-haired youth who seemed so calm and composed, then looked back at the two "Emperors of the Sea" swaying in the breeze outside. Their Adam's apples bobbed frantically.
Is this something a human can even do? Those were the Four Emperors! The rulers of the sea! And they were just hung up like dried meat? In such a humiliating position?!
"Pfft..."
Someone couldn't hold it back any longer and let out a sound like a leaking tire. Then, like a chain reaction—
"Pffft-hahahaha!!"
"That position... Hahaha! I'm dying!"
"Kaido, you bastard, you finally got what was coming to you!"
"Serves him right! It really does!"
"Is that Shiki? Look at his two prosthetic legs still swinging!"
The ones laughing loudest were the members of the Whitebeard Pirates. Marco laughed until tears came out, slapping his thigh as he doubled over. Even the usually solemn Whitebeard had the corners of his mouth twitching violently. Finally, he couldn't help himself.
"Gurararararara!"
"Satisfying! Truly satisfying! Kaido, you brat, and you, Shiki, you old bastard! I've never seen a more magnificent sight in all my life!"
"Boss! Bring out the best liquor! This scene is worth a grand toast!"
Even Red-Haired Shanks now wore a look of schadenfreude. Although he'd nearly wet himself a moment ago, seeing his two formidable rivals suffer like this felt... incredible!
"Beckman, quick! Get the camera and take a picture!" Shanks urged while laughing. "Tomorrow, I'm sending this to Morgans! I've already got the headline: 'Shocking! Two Emperors of the Sea Caught Doing THIS in an East Blue Tavern?!' It'll sell for a fortune!"
Outside, Kaido and Shiki hung in mid-air. Listening to the piercing laughter from inside, their faces had turned as black as a soot-covered pot. Kaido was still struggling madly, cursing under his breath.
"Let me go! Bastard! Have the guts to fight me one-on-one! What kind of skill is this, hanging me here?!"
By contrast, Golden Lion Shiki had become much more "enlightened." Though his sense of shame was through the roof and he wished he could find a hole to crawl into, the thought that the person who hung him up was the unfathomable Boss Blake caused him to settle into an eerie calm.
He even turned his head to look at the raging Kaido beside him and spat with disdain.
"What are you howling for? You country bumpkin with no world experience. To be personally hung up by Lord Blake... that is your good fortune! What do you know?!"
Kaido nearly had a brain hemorrhage on the spot. "I'd rather die in battle than suffer this insult! Good fortune? You can have this 'fortune' if you want it!"
Shiki rolled his eyes. "Nonsense. If not for this bit of 'fortune,' do you think you'd be leaving that door alive? If that man truly intended to kill, you'd be nothing but a pile of ash in that cup by now!"
Kaido froze. He looked at the silver-haired silhouette chatting and laughing inside the tavern. Recalling the irresistible, terrifying power from a moment ago, even a stubborn brute like him couldn't help but shudder.
Could it be... is this guy actually a God?
──────────────────────────
Support this fanfic by leaving reviews, comments, and Power Stones!
For advance chapters, visit:
› Patreon.com/NegativeTranslations c✍️🍁🐣