The small, plague-ravaged island of Lorre had never attracted this much attention.
People continued to arrive, and countless more were on their way.
They were all coming for Maude.
To be precise, they were after Maude's bounty—valued at around one billion berries.
To them, Maude was a walking treasure vault; whoever claimed his head would be set for life.
Just now, 500 people had landed on the northern coastline, and now another 200-300 bounty hunters were gathered here. They were part of the first wave, acting quickly.
They had made it to Lorre Island ahead of the others.
But what awaited them was not the surprise they hoped for, but disaster.
The first group, along with their ships, had been swatted away to some unknown corner of the world by Kuma.
As for this current group of bounty hunters, they had just discovered Maude and hadn't even had time to rejoice before spotting the Tyrant, Bartholomew Kuma, standing alongside him.
In an instant, it was as if they had been plunged into an icy abyss.
Based on the intelligence they had, there was no way they could have predicted that Maude was connected to Kuma.
This massive group of bounty hunters froze in place, paralyzed with fear.
What they didn't realize, however, was that the real threat wasn't the figure they identified as Kuma. It was the seemingly unremarkable middle-aged man holding a wooden staff.
If Kuma swatted you away, you might still survive.
But if you were left behind, your fate was sealed.
Maude looked at the bounty hunters frozen in terror, amusement flickering in his eyes.
Thanks to Sabo's earlier warning, he knew that in the coming days, a steady stream of bounty hunters would descend upon Lorre Island, all hoping to claim his head and cash in on the bounty.
However…
No matter how many came, none would be able to overcome the towering presence of the man beside him—Issho.
And perhaps, they might even have to contend with another wall: the Seven Warlords of the Sea's Tyrant, Bartholomew Kuma.
Now that was interesting.
Maude's lips curled into a smirk.
It had been a long time since he'd earned any experience points.
In this final stretch before eradicating the plague, the arrival of troublemakers like these was a welcome sight. The more, the merrier.
At that moment, Issho, acting as a powerful enforcer, made his move.
With a single "Infernal Voyage" technique, he crushed the group of jubilant bounty hunters to the ground.
Against someone of Issho's Admiral-level strength, numbers were meaningless as long as the opponents fell below a certain power threshold.
This one move, "Infernal Voyage," functioned much like Conqueror's Haki, instantly revealing the weight—or lack thereof—of his enemies.
The results were clear: this group of bounty hunters wasn't up to par. Crushed under the full force of "Infernal Voyage," more than half of them lost consciousness in seconds.
"Uncle Issho, you and the others can head back to the village."
Maude stepped forward, drawing Chidori.
Issho looked at Maude approaching the fallen bounty hunters, somewhat surprised but ultimately unconcerned. Without hesitation, he turned and headed back toward the village.
Kuma, however, remained rooted in place, silently watching Maude.
As a member of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, Kuma's duties were limited to responding to emergency summonses. Beyond that, the Warlords enjoyed more freedom than most pirates.
Kuma had come to Lorre Island with the intention of dealing with the plague.
But if Maude encountered trouble, Kuma, considering the secret ties between Maude and the Revolutionary Army, would step in to help.
Especially now, with so many hostile bounty hunters en route to Lorre Island, Kuma doubted the Maude Pirates could handle the sheer numbers.
But now, it seemed he had underestimated them.
Kuma shifted his gaze from Maude to Issho, who was walking ahead.
"This man…"
A ripple of emotion flickered in Kuma's eyes.
There weren't many people in the world who could exert pressure on him in a direct confrontation.
This man, Issho, was one of them.
But what kind of relationship did this powerful man have with Maude?
After a brief pause, Kuma followed Issho.
Their departure left the bounty hunters torn between fear and confusion, mingled with a flicker of hope.
But Maude's icy voice shattered their illusions.
"You're celebrating too soon."
Maude stared coldly at the bounty hunters, who had been planning to exchange his head for a fortune.
With those words, he unleashed a deep blue slash of sword energy, cutting through the unconscious bounty hunters who had succumbed to "Infernal Voyage."
Those who couldn't withstand the technique didn't even qualify to be recorded in Maude's Hunter's Notebook.
After a few more slashes, nearly 200 corpses littered the ground.
The remaining 50 or 60 bounty hunters seemed to finally remember something crucial:
The man before them, Bacardi Maude, was a pirate with a bounty of 360 million berries!
An hour later…
The plains were littered with corpses.
Maude closed his Hunter's Notebook with satisfaction.
Without Lafitte's hypnotic abilities, interrogating the remaining prey for information had cost Maude considerable time and energy.
"Experience points… it's been a while."
Maude dismissed the Hunter's Notebook and sighed softly.
Over the past two months on Lorre Island, he hadn't been idle. When not hunting to provide food for the villagers, he had been training relentlessly.
But those two months of training hadn't brought him as much progress as the spoils from just a dozen prey today.
"This is only the first wave."
Maude glanced at the field of corpses, a faint smile on his lips.
Nearby were several craters left behind from Issho's and Doflamingo's earlier battle.
Before leaving, Maude deliberately buried the bounty hunters' bodies in these craters.
Given Lorre Island's environment, leaving the bodies exposed could spark another plague.
After burying the last corpse, Maude rose to his feet and headed toward the village.
"If you're after my bounty, then come at me…"
Maude looked forward to the next wave of uninvited guests. If he had known that Kuma had already swatted 500 people off the northern coast, he might have felt some regret.
No matter what, as long as the formidable enforcer Issho was around, Maude could keep collecting heads.
He intended to make the most of this rare opportunity.
While reaching Issho's level of strength might take time, Maude at least wanted to ensure that, the next time he faced a similarly powerful foe, he wouldn't be completely helpless.
Maude's desire to grow stronger had never wavered.
Even if it meant that Issho might notice something unusual about him, Maude didn't care.
Two hours later, Maude returned to the village.
The moment he arrived, he saw Philo, wearing her crow mask, repeatedly pecking at the wall of the "Operating Room."
It was her way of expressing her emotions.
"What's wrong?"
Maude walked over.
Hearing his voice, Philo stopped her pecking and puffed out her cheeks in frustration.
"That big guy, Kuma, just got here and was allowed to observe Law's surgery in the "Operating Room," but no matter how many times I ask, Law won't let me in!"
"Uh…"
Maude glanced at the door to the "Operating Room," unsure how to respond.
He hadn't expected Law to allow Kuma to observe his surgery.
Was there some specific reason behind it?
Speaking of which…
If Kuma and Law worked together, could they force the Devil Fruit's power out of a user and preserve it intact?
If the success rate was nearly 100%, it would be a game-changer.
But no…
Such information, if unnecessary, couldn't be revealed carelessly.
If the Navy got their hands on this key intel…
The Devil Fruit users locked in Impel Down would be in for a world of trouble.
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