Chapter 963: Have You Seen the True Face of the Pirates, Luffy? [Request Self-Subscription]

"No matter what…"

"I must stop these shells from hitting Windmill Village!"

"Red-Haired!"

"You damned pirates! You're really something!"

Captain Kapu was utterly enraged.

He hadn't expected it.

Red-Haired, so upright and honorable, would actually resort to such low tactics.

Targeting ordinary villagers!

And yet…

Villagers who had once hosted Red-Haired and his crew!

This filled Captain Kapu with fury.

He had misjudged them!

At this moment,

Captain Kapu had to admit.

"Pirates…"

"They are ultimately just pirates!"

"No matter how they change or how many good deeds they do, they cannot escape the truth of being pirates."

"And pirates are, by nature, utterly ruthless."

"Deep down, every pirate is vicious."

He took a deep breath, his face darkening.

The more he thought,

the stronger his killing intent toward the Red-Haired Pirates became.

He stepped on Moon Step, shattering the air with piercing sonic booms.

Boom! Boom! Boom! …

Each step seemed to tear apart space itself.

Emitting the shrill sound of space trembling and cracking.

Captain Kapu stepped on Moon Step and activated the Six Powers technique: Shave, moving at his maximum speed through the air to reach the spot where the dozens of black shells were about to land.

"Good."

"I made it in time."

"Otherwise, '183'… the consequences would have been unimaginable."

"The Red-Haired Pirates? I'll remember you."

"You thought you could force me to halt my pursuit by threatening the lives of Windmill Village's villagers? I must admit—you succeeded!"

"Your plan worked."

"But never let me encounter you again on this sea. Otherwise, you'll learn exactly what happens when you anger me!"

Captain Kapu was seething with rage.

He felt profound revulsion toward the Red-Haired Pirates' actions.

"Here they come!"

He looked up,

watching the black shells descending.

Clenching his fists,

Armored Color aura gathered into his fists—a visible layer of invisible armor, unbreakable, the hallmark of Armored Color霸气 pushed to its peak.

Enraged, Captain Kapu charged forward, rushing headlong into the dozens of incoming shells.

"Get the hell down!"

One punch, one shell.

In midair,

he shattered and pierced each shell in succession.

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

…

A series of thunderous roars echoed like heaven's drums.

Shaking the clouds.

As each shell exploded, the terrifying shockwaves, rising from hundreds of meters above, reached the sea below, churning the ocean into rolling waves.

Splash! Splash! Splash!

Ocean currents spread outward,

waves crashing into one another, producing crisp, melodious sounds.

Ripples from the bomb explosions rippled across the sea, stretching over a thousand meters into the distant waters.

Countless shattered fragments and debris of shells…

Drifted slowly down from the sky.

Shards danced gracefully through the air.

For a moment,

gray-white smoke curled upward, completely obscuring Captain Kapu's figure.

Captain Kapu's iron fists wildly smashed apart the countless incoming shells.

Ensuring Windmill Village would not be affected or damaged by these shells…

Meanwhile,

this scene unfolded with perfect clarity before Red-Hair and the others.

At this moment,

Red-Hair understood.

"So that's how it is…"

"Is this the plan you used to save us?"

He let out a bitter sigh.

Blame?

Accusation?

Anger?

As captain of the Red-Hair Pirates, he had no right to voice any of it.

Simply because…

These crew members resorted to such measures only to save the two of you.

If not for saving you,

those crew members would never have committed such despicable acts.

Yet,

to allow the Red-Hair Pirates to escape death, these crew members threw caution to the wind—even bearing the weight of disgrace—they gritted their teeth and carried out these vile actions.

Red-Hair had initially been furious and confused.

But now,

he understood everything.

"You really went to great lengths…"

"You must have suffered inner torment, mustn't you? You must have endured moral condemnation, mustn't you?"

"It's my fault that I disappointed you."

"If I hadn't been bearing a heavy burden, driven to the brink of death, I believe you would never have broken your own limits and resorted to such mad actions at this moment."

Red-Hair shook his head.

He felt profound guilt.

The blame lies…

With me, their incompetent captain.

Had I not been so weak,

my crew would never have resorted to such measures!