One Piece: Invincible Starting From The Fruit Of Words

"Stunning tens of thousands of people?! Are you kidding me? Is something like that even possible?"

A group of pirates swallowed hard, cold sweat dripping from their foreheads.

They had never imagined that someone's Conqueror's Haki could be so overwhelmingly powerful.

With such a force, what was the point of fighting? Surrender seemed like the only option.

Boom!

Shanks stepped onto the Moby Dick, and an even stronger wave of Haki erupted from him, instantly shattering part of the ship's side.

Of the more than a thousand pirates on board, fewer than half could remain conscious.

"Apologies for the mess," Shanks said with a slight smile, "but I couldn't resist showing off after stepping onto an enemy ship."

Whitebeard glanced at him, his expression unamused. "Seeing your face makes my old wound ache—the one that bastard left me."

Whitebeard's mind drifted back to decades ago when the Sunbeard Pirates frequently clashed with the Roger Pirates.

Both Whitebeard and Roger had dealt heavy blows to each other. Though their rivalry was fierce, they had developed mutual respect and camaraderie over time.

Shanks spoke up, "I brought some healing water with me. I'm not here to fight."

Whitebeard let out a booming laugh. "That's rich, coming from the man who just unleashed his Haki all over my ship. You brat!"

At that moment, Marco interjected, "Father, let's leave for now."

Whitebeard nodded. "Alright, he says he's not here to fight. Let's give him some space."

"Got it," Marco replied.

As Marco, Jozu, and the others prepared to leave, Shanks called out to Marco with a playful grin. "Hey, Marco! How about joining my crew? We could use someone like you."

Recruiting Whitebeard's "son" in front of him was a bold move—something only Shanks could pull off without fear.

Marco simply gave Shanks his signature deadpan stare, his "dead fish eyes," and ignored the remark entirely.

The others left, leaving only Whitebeard and Shanks aboard the Moby Dick.

Shanks poured some wine into a bowl and tossed the flagon to Whitebeard.

"It doesn't look like good wine," Whitebeard remarked.

Shanks chuckled. "I've traveled all over the world, but I still miss the wine from my hometown. It's made with water from West Blue. Give it a try."

Whitebeard took a sip and nodded. "Not bad."

"As long as you like it," Shanks replied.

Whitebeard suddenly sighed, a rare moment of solemnity crossing his face. "Roger, Garp, Sengoku... all the old 'friends' from the past are dwindling in number."

"Time moves too fast," Whitebeard continued. "In the blink of an eye, even you, a brat back then, have risen to prominence."

"Yeah," Shanks agreed with a nod. "Time flies, and the world's balance changes too quickly."

The red-haired pirate's expression grew serious. "But it's not me who stands at the forefront now—it's Lucifer."

Shanks looked directly at Whitebeard, his tone heavy. "You know who Lucifer is. He's the one who killed Big Mom, Akainu, and even Garp."

"I've fought countless battles, suffered innumerable scars, and brushed shoulders with death more times than I can count. But I've never been afraid."

"Yet this time... I feel uneasy. No, it's not just unease—it's fear. True fear."

Shanks clenched his fists. "I've never met Lucifer, but just the thought of him terrifies me. It's not death that I fear; it's what he represents. He reminds me of someone... a man from the past."

Whitebeard's eyes narrowed. "You mean... Rocks?"

Shanks nodded solemnly.

Whitebeard's expression grew unusually serious. After all, he had firsthand experience with Rocks D. Xebec.

Whitebeard, Golden Lion, Charlotte Linlin, and Kaido were all monsters in their youth, each with terrifying strength. Yet Rocks had managed to dominate them all, forming the most fearsome pirate crew the world had ever seen—the Rocks Pirates.

It was only through his unmatched power and ruthlessness that Rocks could tame these "monsters."

"The Rocks Pirates of that era were the undisputed strongest in the world," Whitebeard reminisced. "Even today's Nether Pirates can't compare."

Back then, the entire New World had been under the rule of the Rocks Pirates. A single word from Rocks could destroy entire nations and obliterate millions of lives.

At that time, not only was the New World shrouded in the rule of the Rocks Pirates, but even the World Government and the Marine Headquarters were constantly threatened by Rocks' presence.

Later, Rocks' ambitions grew, and he sought to become the king of the world.

So, he led the Rocks Pirates to challenge the World Government, which eventually led to the decisive battle at the Valley of Gods.

If it weren't for the lack of unity within the Rocks Pirates and the eventual disbandment of the crew, it's still unknown whether the World Government would even exist today.

The redhead said seriously: "The current Lucifer has become the second Rocks."

"Although I never met him, I can tell that his ambitions are identical to Rocks'. He will one day follow in Rocks' footsteps and challenge the World Government."

"And before that, he will inevitably conquer the entire New World."

"You and I are the targets Lucifer wants to defeat."

"Big Mom is dead, Kaido is the second target Lucifer has chosen, and the next one is either you or me!"

Whitebeard's voice was flat, emotionless, and calm. "Then what do you want me to do? That's the point of today's conversation, right?"

The redhead responded, "Let's join forces."

"If you want to fight Lucifer, teaming up is the only possibility."

Heh heh heh, hahahahaha.

Whitebeard burst out laughing. "Is the brat speaking now?"

"However, I'm not interested in teaming up."

"No matter what happens with that brat Lucifer, I have no interest."

"He's a pirate, and I'm a pirate too."

"Since we've chosen this path, we all have our own choices."

"Will Lucifer turn into Rocks? Or does he want to start a war? That's his choice."

"Strong people will win, weak people will lose. This is an eternal truth."

"But I, Whitebeard, need to team up with someone to deal with a kid in his twenties? Who do you think I am?"

A powerful momentum erupted from Whitebeard, instantly triggering howling winds.

The high-altitude clouds were stirred by the strong wind, and a huge dark cloud vortex appeared.

Thunder rumbled, and electric snakes danced wildly, as though the end of the world was near.

Whitebeard had been famous for decades, and his pride ran deep.

It was impossible for him to ally with someone just to deal with a young man in his twenties—it would be an insult to him.

Facing Whitebeard's Conqueror's Haki, the redhead remained calm and expressionless. "If you face him alone, you'll die."

"Gulala la la la, everyone must die," Whitebeard laughed boldly. "As I said, strong people win, weak people lose. This is an eternal truth."

"As long as he's stronger than me, then he'll win and I'll die."

"But if I'm stronger than him, he'll die!"

"Whether Lucifer wants to start a war for the world—it's none of my business."

"I'm not like Roger, the red-haired brat."

"I don't care if the World Government is overthrown, and I don't care if the world's structure is broken."

"After all, I'm just a pirate!"

The reason why Rocks failed back then wasn't just because the Rocks Pirates were divided and fought amongst themselves, but also because the Roger Pirates teamed up with the Marines—this was one of the key reasons for Rocks' downfall.

Shanks was taught by Roger and inherited his will, which made him very similar to Roger in terms of behavior.

Both Shanks and Roger believed that pirates like Rocks and Lucifer, who threatened the world, must be eradicated, even if it meant teaming up with the Marines.

But Whitebeard was different—his heart wasn't as strong as Roger's.

Though Whitebeard had been the strongest in the world for many years, at his core, he was just a pirate.

Wasn't it ridiculous for a pirate to worry about the world's structure and whether the World Government would be overthrown? 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

Whitebeard gulped down the wine in the flagon and roared angrily. "You know, red-haired brat, I won't join hands with you."

"It's a hundred years too early for you to tell me what to do!"

The redhead was silent, drinking the wine in front of him, before drawing his famous sword, Griffin, from his waist.

"This era is about to run amok, and no one can stop it!"

"There's nothing to be afraid of, I'm Whitebeard!"

Whitebeard also drew his naginata, Cong Yunqiri, and slashed toward Shanks.

Rumble!

The two used their Conqueror's Haki simultaneously, and the clash of their weapons caused a fierce Conqueror's conflict.

Conqueror's Haki soared into the sky, shaking the clouds above.

A crack, more than ten kilometers long, appeared in the deep clouds as if splitting the sky in half.

On this day, the cooperation negotiations between the Redhead and Whitebeard came to an end.

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