15 Chapter 15: The Battle Between Marco “The Phoenix” and Boa Hancock “Queen of the Pirates”

"Hmm?" Allen, who had just walked out of the guild, immediately felt the presence of someone with strength above Marko and Hancock. Allen's gaze immediately looked towards the figure where he found a figure that was quite familiar to him, "Oh? Kuzan? He seems to be in this place"

Allen who discovered the whereabouts of Kuzan was a little surprised but he didn't show it directly but only in his heart, "The Marines have started to move and maybe…Is this the effect of Whitebeard and Akagami sudden movements? But…Supposedly, Kuzan couldn't—Ah, was it because of Hancock's existence? Or… Was there perhaps another reason he could be in this place? Or maybe it's just a coincidence?… Well, whatever the reason, with her being here, the Marines can already be counted on to become an adventurer in the dungeons."

"…By the way, I'm quite interested in the developments that will occur next. It was likely that Kuzan already knew about this place. What decision will the Navy make next? Are they going to tell about this place to the World Government side or…Are they going to cover it up? Interesting enough to anticipate what will happen in the future. Uhm…Well, I guess…There's no need to wait for the arrival of Whitebeard or the others…As long as Kuzan comes here today and registers as an adventurer…I need to move on from—"

Before Allen could finish his current thought, he suddenly felt a powerful wave of tyrannical power coming from the ship belonging to the Kuja pirate group, "This power…Ah~ Is this the power of Hancock? It's interesting, even though their strength isn't a power that can be used as reference material or whatever… At least, they can entertain the boredom that exists right now."

Allen immediately looked for a comfortable place and immediately sat there while taking various kinds of snacks from the ring used by Marko before and started eating them casually.

Meanwhile on a ship belonging to the Kuja pirates.

The tyrannical wave was so frightening that it instantly knocked out several members belonging to the Kuja pirate group who were unprepared and weak, unable to fight again. Nearly half of the members of the Kuja pirate group had fainted from the tyrannical wave currently spreading in the surrounding area.

"Open!..."

The cabin door opened with great force as if it was pushed and the sound of someone walking out was heard not long ago Hancock appeared with clothes that had been changed but had bandages on several parts of her body which were used to cover the wound she had just received.

"She's injured…" Marko who saw this was slightly surprised and immediately calmed himself down, "It seems that the wound was obtained by her from the dungeon. Is it possible that she was on a mission when she was ambushed by several monsters?"

"Hebihime-sama!"

The appearance of this Hancock instantly made all the members of the Kuja pirates who were currently still able to maintain their consciousness immediately cheered excitedly.

Hancock didn't care about the cheers made by her members and only looked at Marko with a very sharp gaze, "What did you come here for?" A cold voice without any emotion immediately left Hancock's mouth.

"I want you not to bring your members to the guild at this time"

"Hah?" Hancock who heard this immediately frowned and said coldly, "What right do you have forbidden me to do it?! I am free to do whatever I want! You are unfit to give orders to me!"

"Guilds?" Curiosity was currently rising among the people listening to that.

"Guilds?" This also applies to Kuzan who can hear the conversation, "Was the building that the two entered before called a guild?"

"Besides, are you sure about this action you took?" Hancock didn't give Marko a chance to say anything, she immediately continued, "Do you want to make Allen angry with this action of yours?"

"Allen? Who's he?" Kuzan frowned hearing that name pop up, "Could he possibly be the owner of that place? Hancock's words…Why does it seem like she's referring to this figure as a very frightening figure?"

Kuzan's gaze then glanced at a man who was sitting casually in front of the guild while eating snacks, "That person…Is he the Allen that Marko and Hancock meant?"

"Why should he be angry with me for this action taken by me?" Marko replied in a cold voice, "As long as the conflict is not within the guild…He won't interfere in our matters."

"Not inside the guild? Do you mean inside the building? Then…If the conflict wasn't inside the building…How could Hancock receive such injuries?" a sense of confusion rose within Kuzan.

"Then what do you want here?" Hancock asked back in a colder voice than before, "Do you want to fight us? Do not be arrogant! Even though you are the First Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates, do you think I'm afraid of you?!"

"I don't want to fight you since you have a relationship with Shakuyaku" Marko replied in a serious voice, "I'm only here to ask you not to bring any troops to the guild for some time to come"

"Nonsense!" Hancock immediately refused firmly, "Why should I do what you said?! Anyone is free to bring their troops there, Allen is not against it and why do you have to ban me!"

"Do you know the consequences as long as you bring troops there?" Marko replied coldly, "As long as the numbers are met, Allen will close down the place and find a new one. As long as that happens, we have to wait for some time until he tells us the whereabouts of his new place."

"That's your problem and it's not mine" Hancock shot back, "I'm fine as long as she does it. It is a right that belongs to him. Besides, even if he were to close down the place now, it wouldn't hurt our side since we registered beforehand. "

Marko's eyes became very sharp hearing that, "Hancock, do you want to fight against our group?"

"Huh?!" Hancock snorted disdainfully, "Do you think I'm afraid of you?"

Hancock quickly mobilized her devil fruit ability where she raised one of her hands and kissed it.

"Love Bow"

A layer of pink color appeared from his hand then started to form a shape like love slowly started to grow rapidly. Hancock then immediately pulled the back of the love arrow and immediately pointed it at Hancock.

Marko, who saw that Hancock had started to attack, also started mobilizing his devil fruit abilities. Marko knew that even though Hancock was currently suffering quite a lot of injuries, he still possessed extremely terrifying strength. Marko wasn't going to underestimate the woman he was currently playing against. Soon Marko's hands immediately turned into the wings of a Pheonix followed by his two legs which changed into bird's feet.

"Love arrow!"

Hancock immediately released her ability to Marko. A large number of pink arrows where the tips were shaped like love directly attacked Marko.

"Danger!..."

Marko through his Observation Haki could feel a very big danger in the attack released by Hancock. Marko quickly flapped his wings and immediately flew followed by avoiding the attack released by Hancock.

"Arara~ The two of them start fighting" Kuzan who saw the battle that had already started sighed and also started to pay close attention. Kuzan will help Hancock as long as Hancock is in a bad state.

Hancock who saw that the attacks she released didn't hit Marko quickly canceled her attack and moved at full speed towards Marko who was currently in the sky.

"Perfuru Femuru Magna!"

Hancock immediately released her foot attack where it was seen that her right leg which was going to be used to attack Marko had been imbued with Advanced Armament Haki.

"Hmm?"

Marko, who had just finished dodging the attack released by Hancock, knew the melee attack that was carried out by Hancock. Marko wouldn't appear to be able to avoid the attack since this attack made by Hancock was carried out at the same time as he was still in the previous unfavorable condition.

Marko immediately canceled his devil fruit ability and then immediately crossed his arms to the front where both of his hands had been coated with Armament Haki to block the attack released by Hancock.

"Explosion!..."

The attack released by Hancock finally reached Marko. It's just that, due to the difference in Haki levels between the two, Marko was not ready to take the attack. Marko was immediately knocked back by the attack released by Hancock.

Marko's body quickly fell to the ground in Area 13 and caused a tremendous shock when he fell.

"Great!"

"Beat him Hebihime-sama"

"Do you think we can be looked down on like that?!"

"That's right! Even though he is the First Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates, does he think he can act arbitrarily towards us?!"

"Don't spare him, Hebihime-sama! Show him the fighting power we have!"

The sound of cheers immediately sounded loud enough to give Hancock a boost.

"Arara~ This is quite surprising" Kuzan was quite surprised by the current development, "I didn't expect that Hancock could beat Marko back like this"

"Hmmm, well seeing Hancock's abilities, this isn't something surprising." Allen who saw this incident also commented, "Hancock's Weapon Haki is already at an advanced level while for Marko, it's only at the basic level. Of course, it would be difficult for Marko to withstand the attacks unleashed by Hancock at his current level."

"Damn it!" Marko who was previously beaten back by Hancock immediately got back up where his body was covered with blue flames which is one of Marko's abilities "Regeneration" or healing. As long as the wound is not caused by a heavy attack from Advanced Armament Haki, Marko will be able to heal the wound instantly at the cost of reducing his stamina.

"Is this the power possessed by the First Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates?" Hancock asked disdainfully, "It's weaker than I expected. Did you just borrow the big name from Whitebeard to be able to stand at this point? Disgraceful"

"Bastard! Don't underestimate me!"

Marko, who heard this became very angry. He immediately mobilized his devil fruit ability where his hands again turned into phoenix wings and his legs turned into bird claws again. Marko quickly immediately rushed towards Hancock to attack him where both of his legs had been pierced by Armament Haki.

Hancock who saw the attack released by Marko at this time also did not relax. Hancock immediately ran towards Marko to welcome the arrival of the attack that was released by her where her right leg was already flowing with advanced Armament Haki.

"Explosion!..."

The two attacks met each other causing the surrounding area to instantly shake from the collision of the two attacks.

"Agh!..."

Marko could feel the pain from the impact of the attack released by Hancock. Advanced Armament Haki has an effect that can directly damage the inside of an object and right now Marko can feel that the inside of his leg is being attacked by Hancock's Armament Haki.

Marko quickly used his regeneration ability to heal the impact his leg had received.

Even though it was Marko who received more damage from the impact of the attack. The strength of the two was equal as both of them immediately retreated several meters backward after the impact of the attacks.

"I didn't expect that this woman has mastered the advanced application of Armament Haki" Marko thought bitterly, "It will be difficult to win against her. It's just…Luckily right now she still hasn't fully recovered…Otherwise, it would be impossible for me to win against her."

Marko finally admitted that his current strength was weaker than Hancock's. The difference between the two lies in their Armament Haki. Hancock's Armament Haki had reached an advanced level while her Armament Haki was only at a basic level.

"…Damn it! After this battle…I should start studying—"

Before Marko finished his thought, through his Observation Haki. He could feel Hancock immediately moving to attack him back. Marko quickly used both wings to avoid the attack released by Hancock.

"Explosion!..."

The impact of that attack instantly caused the ground where Marko had been standing before to shatter. Marko who saw this opportunity quickly dived down and attacked Hancock using his claws that had been coated with Armament Haki.

"Explosion!..."

Too bad, before the attack could hit Hancock, Hancock had already dodged the attack which caused the attack released by Marko to only hit the ground where Hancock had previously hit.

Hancock quickly backed away several tens of meters from Marko's current position and immediately mobilized her devil fruit ability. She quickly made a love arrow and immediately unleashed an attack from the bow.

"Love arrow!"

A large number of pink arrows with love-shaped tips directly attacked Marko at this time. Marko who saw the attack immediately rushed to avoid the attack released by Hancock while he changed his body shape into a full phoenix.

Marko very agilely avoided all the attacks released by Hancock followed by himself starting to move at high speed towards Hancock. It didn't take long for Marko to arrive in front of Hancock where he immediately canceled the change and then released a leg attack imbued with Armament Haki at Hancock.

"Ongel!"

Hancock, who knew about it had prepared herself. Hancock immediately raised one of her hands to block the attack that was released by Marko which caused the devil fruit ability that she used before to be immediately cancelled.

"Explosion!..."

The ground that became Hancock's foothold immediately shattered as a result of her holding off the attack that was released by Marko.

"Heavy…"

Hancock could feel the power of the attack that was released by Marko where it was seen that she was gritting her teeth to withstand the impact of the attack.

Marko didn't stop his attacks there. He quickly spun his body and then released a kick with his left foot straight to Hancock's stomach.

"Explosion!..."

"Agh!..."

"Hebihime-sama!"

Hancock didn't anticipate Marko's attack and was directly hit by it. All members of the Kuja pirates who saw this incident immediately exclaimed in a worried tone,

Hancock who was hit by Marko's attack was immediately knocked backwards while also trying to recover her current body balance.

"Did you think I would give you a chance?!"

Marko quickly mobilized his devil fruit ability where his hands again turned into phoenix wings then he flew at full speed towards Hancock.

"Blue Bird!"

Marko immediately released one of his abilities where he gathered several fires on both of his wings then released a fire that was shaped like a fireball towards Hancock.

"Explosion!..."

Hancock, who still couldn't stabilize her current position, was completely hit by the attack that was released by Marko.

"Hebihime-sama!"

All of the members of the Kuja pirate group immediately showed worried faces when they saw this incident.

Hancock who was hit by the attack was immediately knocked back very quickly towards the back.

"Explosion!..."

And finally stopped when her body reached one of the mangrove trees in Area 13. It was seen that Hancock was stuck deep enough in the roots of the mangrove trees in area 13 while her face was enduring the pain from receiving the attack that was released by Marko earlier.

"Ha!"

Marko didn't give Hancock a chance to get up because he knew how terrifying Hancock's strength was. Marko quickly began to mobilize his devil fruit abilities and fully transformed into a phoenix. He quickly directly flew towards the current Hancock.

"Looks like it's time to move."

Kuzan who saw the incident immediately rose from his seat. He had seen the situation that Hancock was in and in her current situation, it would be impossible for her to win against Marko. As long as Kuzan stays silent in this situation, there is a big possibility that Hancock will get great damage which will only reduce the combat power of the Shichibukai which of course will hurt the Marines.

Apart from that, Kuzan also wanted to use this opportunity so that Hancock would have a forest of kindness over him whereby he could get the information he wanted.

"Oh? Are you moving?" Allen discovered the moves Kuzan would make and felt that the events that were currently happening were getting more and more interesting.

"Hebihime-sama!"

Members of the Kuja pirates who saw Marko moving back to attack Hancock immediately shouted with worry. They wanted to help but they knew that with their current strength, it would be impossible for them to interfere in this battle.

Marko who didn't know that one of the admirals was there and was watching the battle between the two already started preparing his attack.

"Danger!..."

It's just, suddenly, through his Observation Haki. He felt an extremely dangerous threat suddenly appear.

"Ice Wall!"

A cold sound immediately resounded in the area followed by a very thick and high ice wall that immediately appeared in area 13 where the ice wall immediately separated Marko and Hancock. The appearance of the ice wall also immediately made Marko, who previously wanted to attack Hancock, immediately stop the attack he was carrying out.

"That…"

"That ability…"

"How could it be…"

"Why…"

"Why is that person here…"

"Why are you guys so weird about his appearance? We should be happy because then Hebihime-sama can be saved!"

"Arara ~" Kuzan who has shown his ability is impossible for him to hide anymore. Kuzan slowly walked out of hiding at this time "You can't attack her more than this, Marko. Even though that woman is a pirate, she is a Shichibukai and as long as you dare go any further…I will suffer a fatal loss, in particular, having to explain this matter to the ones above."

Hancock, who had previously been stuck in the roots of a mangrove tree, where she had managed to get out, could see that the bandages she had previously used had been opened and fresh blood was flowing out of the wounds he had previously received. Hancock was also seen currently enduring the pain from receiving the impact of the attack that was released by Marko at her earlier. Her breathing was also getting heavy.

"Damn it!… How could I be indebted to this bunch of bastards?" Although at this time it can be said that she was saved by Kuzan. Hancock was not happy about it. Her face looked so angry as she gritted her teeth.

"Aokiji" Marko's expression immediately became heavy when he saw the appearance of Aokiji. Cold sweat immediately broke out of his body. Marko knew how terrifying Kuzan's strength was and with his current strength, he couldn't fight Kuzan and then win. What's more, having Hancock here would make things even more difficult for him.

"Why is an Admiral like you in this place?" Marko asked with a serious facial expression while also never lowering his guard against Kuzan at all.

"If I said that I accidentally got here, would you believe it?" Kuzan asked in a joking tone.

"Nonsense!" Marko immediately said firmly, "It's impossible for an admiral to accidentally come to this place. You must have some sort of purpose in coming to this place."

"Hmm? Why are we both upside down like this?" Kuzan asked confusedly and continued, "Besides, my existence here isn't something to be questioned about. Your presence here should be the question."

Kuzan paused for a moment and continued in a serious tone, "What is the First Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates in this area of the sea especially this island for?"

Although Kuzan already guesses that answer. He still wanted to put some kind of pressure on Marko and also didn't directly reveal the reason behind him being in this place.

The appearance of Kuzan made the atmosphere around this place even heavier than before.