I Punch the Tailed Beast Ball

"Has it ever occurred to you that I might actually be one of the two Admirals opposing the Seven Warlords?" Nagasawa said leisurely.

"An Admiral?" Gloriosa looked at Nagasawa with a puzzled expression.

What are you talking about? You’re a wanted criminal with a bounty of 2.95 billion Berries, yet you’re saying you’re an Admiral? An Admiral of the Revolutionary Army?

At this moment, there were only three people in the palace. Aside from Nagasawa, only Gloriosa and Hancock remained.

When Nagasawa brought up the Revolutionary Army, Gloriosa had already sent everyone else outside to stand guard.

Under Hancock’s and Gloriosa’s astonished gazes, Nagasawa dispelled his Transformation Technique and returned to his original appearance.

"White Horse Admiral!" Gloriosa was dumbfounded. She even wondered whether the White Devil’s Devil Fruit ability allowed him to transform into other people.

"You even have such an ability." The Pirate Empress was also somewhat surprised. If he transformed into her appearance, wouldn’t he directly possess the world’s most beautiful face?

"Proof of my identity? Pirate Empress, some time ago, you should have received a message from Shakky asking you to treat the Marine Admiral who would soon arrive on your island normally.

Also, Dragon’s son, Luffy, should be training on an island near Amazon Lily under Rayleigh’s guidance. Some time ago, Rayleigh left for a while. In fact, he went to meet me," Nagasawa said calmly.

Seeing that Nagasawa even knew about Luffy’s whereabouts, the Pirate Empress’ expression turned serious.

"So something like that happened? Snake Princess, why didn’t you tell me?" Gloriosa glared at Hancock as she asked.

She had no idea Shakky had been exchanging information with the Pirate Empress.

"Why should I tell you?" Hancock retorted.

Gloriosa was speechless. She felt it was probably because Hancock didn’t think it was a big deal, so she had forgotten to mention it.

"Should I call you Admiral Nagasawa, or Advisor Senju?" Gloriosa sighed.

Even if Nagasawa hadn’t revealed all that information, proving his identity was simple, because Marine Admiral Fujiwara Nagasawa was currently on this island.

Gloriosa felt that Amazon Lily was truly going to be dragged into all this. It wasn’t just because Nagasawa had revealed intelligence about the abolition of the Seven Warlords system.

More importantly, they now knew the secret that Nagasawa was an undercover agent within the Marines. Would Nagasawa really let them leave so easily? Even if they wanted to refuse now, they had to consider the consequences.

"It’s better to address me by my identity in the Revolutionary Army. After all, this is only a clone. My main body usually acts as the Marine Admiral," Nagasawa said.

"A clone?" Hancock and Gloriosa both looked confused.

"I have an ability that lets me create clones. The clone has the same appearance as my main body and also possesses some of its abilities. Otherwise, did you think I had been infiltrating the Marines all this time without doing anything? Most of the time, my main body handles Marine affairs while the clone carries out Revolutionary Army operations," Nagasawa explained briefly.

"What a convenient ability!" Gloriosa exclaimed.

Whenever people became busy, they would wish they could split into two people to get things done together. Nagasawa, however, had literally become two people working at the same time.

Moreover, Gloriosa noticed that the clone wasn’t powerless. It possessed a portion of the main body’s abilities. As for how much that "portion" was, only Nagasawa himself knew.

If the entire Sabaody Archipelago incident had truly been carried out solely by a clone, then Gloriosa could only say that Nagasawa was terrifying.

"Now you should believe me. The Seven Warlords system will disappear very soon. When that happens, Amazon Lily will once again become a pirate nation and an enemy of the World Government. Think it over carefully."

"Rather than perishing as pirates, it’s better to become part of the Revolutionary Army and fight together to liberate the entire world. Under the World Government’s rule, too many nations and people have suffered oppression. Our Revolutionary Army exists to free them one by one, eliminate the Celestial Dragons, and create a peaceful world where everyone is equal." Nagasawa began promoting the Revolutionary Army’s ideals.

One reason Nagasawa had come to Amazon Lily was because he had a certain degree of confidence. Due to the Pirate Empress’ childhood experiences, she deeply understood the meaning of oppression.

"Everyone is equal... eliminate the Celestial Dragons..." Hancock fell into deep thought. She had to admit that the world Nagasawa described sounded incredibly beautiful, so beautiful that it resembled a fairy tale.

The reason Hancock always behaved like an arrogant tyrant actually had a profound cause. She didn’t want anyone to discover that she had once been a slave of the Celestial Dragons. An extremely proud person could never have a history as a slave, so she wore the mask of a proud tyrant.

This secret had always remained buried deep within Hancock’s heart. She was terrified that others would discover it. Every time she bathed, she arranged heavy security and forbade anyone from entering Kuja City, all to prevent anyone from seeing the Celestial Dragon slave mark on her back.

Only Luffy had been an exception. By chance, Luffy had seen the mark on Hancock’s back. After a series of events, Hancock saw the side of Luffy that attracted her, and in the end, she voluntarily told him everything about her past.

"Everyone is equal? How is that possible? Does that mean an empress would have the same status as an ordinary citizen? The strong and the weak would receive the same treatment?" Gloriosa voiced her doubts.

"Equality doesn’t mean rigid, absolute sameness. It means equality regardless of race. It means people are equal in dignity and before the law," Nagasawa replied.

"So eliminating the Celestial Dragons doesn’t simply mean killing every one of them. It means completely destroying the Celestial Dragon class itself while preventing such a class from ever emerging again.

A class like the Celestial Dragons, born with every privilege imaginable, is fundamentally unreasonable. In the world after the revolution, Celestial Dragons will no longer exist."

Nagasawa’s words once again touched the deepest part of Hancock’s heart. If she had lived in such a world, she would never have suffered so much as a child.

"What a remarkable Revolutionary Army. No wonder the World Government fears you so much." Hancock praised him as she stood up and looked directly at Nagasawa.

"Snake Princess, you..." Gloriosa looked at Hancock as she suddenly stood, already guessing what she was thinking.

"You must think carefully. You’re the Empress of Amazon Lily now," Gloriosa sighed.

Although Nagasawa had painted a wonderful picture of what the world would become after victory and how Amazon Lily would be freed from its awkward position forever, all those happy endings depended on one thing.

Victory.

Defeating the World Government would not be easy. At least judging from the Revolutionary Army’s current strength, Gloriosa didn’t believe they could defeat the World Government.

Forget the World Government—even the Marines alone were not necessarily an opponent the Revolutionary Army could overcome.

Although the Marines were the World Government’s strongest military force, they weren’t its only force.

If the Revolutionary Army might not even be able to defeat the Marines, could they really overcome the mighty World Government? Gloriosa remained skeptical.

Maintaining their current status meant Amazon Lily faced hidden dangers, but throwing their lot in with the Revolutionary Army meant an even more uncertain future.

However, the Pirate Empress was calmer than Gloriosa had expected.

"The reason I became one of the Seven Warlords wasn’t because of anything else, but because I’m strong. Therefore, cooperating with the Revolutionary Army only requires me alone."

Hancock’s meaning was simple. She intended to leave Amazon Lily out of it and cooperate with the Revolutionary Army by herself.

After thinking about it, Gloriosa felt that the Pirate Empress’ decision was surprisingly wise. This way, they would still be cooperating with the Revolutionary Army, so Nagasawa wouldn’t take action against them because of the clone secret, yet the entire island wouldn’t be dragged into the conflict.

"I understand your concerns. But that’s fine as well. We can first get to know each other better," Nagasawa said with a smile.

Although he hadn’t succeeded in bringing all of Amazon Lily onto the Revolutionary Army’s side as originally planned, the result wasn’t too different.

Once the Pirate Empress was on board, the Amazon warriors would follow sooner or later.

"I’ll have the Revolutionary Army send over a cadre. From now on, she’ll be responsible for our cooperation," Nagasawa said.

Considering Amazon Lily’s unique circumstances, he planned to send Koala. Although she was relatively young, she was intelligent and capable.

Amazon Lily still held some importance in Nagasawa’s eyes. Because the island revered strength, the nation as a whole was actually quite powerful, with many warriors who had mastered Haki.

After discussing their cooperation, Nagasawa casually informed Hancock that he intended to visit Luffy.

"Since he’s Dragon’s son, and I’m passing by anyway, I might as well go see him," Nagasawa said.

Naturally, Nagasawa was interested in meeting the protagonist, and he could also harvest Luffy’s Devil Fruit ability.

Hancock had no objections. However, she asked Nagasawa what kind of person Dragon was and whether he had any requirements for a future daughter-in-law.

Nagasawa merely smiled without answering.

He felt that winning Luffy over romantically would be difficult for Hancock. Would Luffy really have thoughts like that?

...

On a small island beside Amazon Lily, two figures were engaged in fierce combat. One was a silver-haired old man, the other a black-haired young man. Their intense battle wreaked considerable damage upon the surrounding flowers, grass, and trees.

Compared to the black-haired young man, the silver-haired old man appeared completely at ease, even pointing out the younger man’s shortcomings while fighting.

In the end, the young man was kicked away by the old man and slammed heavily into a tree.

"Both your Observation Haki and Armament Haki have improved tremendously compared to when you first learned them. Very good," Rayleigh said with satisfaction.

After teaching him for a little longer, it would be about time for Luffy to train on his own. He had already taught him nearly everything he could. What remained was beyond anyone else’s help and depended entirely on Luffy’s own efforts.

"Hahaha! It’s already noon. Shouldn’t it be time to eat?" Luffy laughed loudly as he suddenly felt hungry.

Rayleigh smiled, about to say something, when he sensed something and looked in a certain direction.

Following Rayleigh’s gaze, Luffy saw a figure wearing a Justice coat slowly walking toward them.

"A Marine? Damn it! They actually tracked me all the way here!" Luffy thought the Marines had come to capture him.

"Perfect. I’ll test the results of my training." Luffy cracked his knuckles, preparing to fight.

"Luffy, don’t..." Rayleigh was puzzled when he saw Nagasawa. Then, seeing Luffy preparing to attack, he hurriedly spoke.

However, it was already too late. Luffy charged at Nagasawa, only to be sent flying back at an even greater speed and slammed heavily into the ground.

"He’s so strong!" Luffy sprang back to his feet with a kip-up and looked at Nagasawa cautiously.

Nagasawa gave Rayleigh a look, telling him not to interfere or say anything.

Nagasawa understood protagonists like Luffy all too well. Ordinary teaching alone couldn’t bring out their tremendous potential. They had to be beaten up thoroughly to awaken their true potential.

Otherwise, just look at Katakuri—he helped Luffy rapidly master future-sight Observation Haki. Hyogoro helped him rapidly master the advanced Armament Haki technique, Ryuo. Then Kaido taught Luffy Conqueror’s Haki Infusion with just a few swings of his club.

That made Rayleigh look especially awkward. Two years of teaching had only enabled Luffy to master the most basic Observation Haki and Armament Haki.

Understanding Nagasawa’s intentions, Rayleigh quietly stepped back a few paces without saying a word, silently watching the battle between the two.

During the battle that followed, Luffy was being beaten almost constantly.

Luffy discovered many problems. His opponent seemed capable of seeing the future, causing Luffy to repeatedly crash into Nagasawa’s fists as though he were deliberately throwing himself at them. Moreover, the opponent’s Armament Haki far surpassed his own.

While mercilessly beating Luffy, Nagasawa didn’t stop talking either. He continuously applied psychological pressure through his words, making it easier for Luffy to unleash his hidden potential.

"So this is all the strength Dragon’s son has? If Dragon were this easy to deal with, that would be wonderful."

"If I capture you, I should be able to lure the rest of the Straw Hat Pirates here and wipe them all out."

Hearing that this Marine intended to target his companions, Luffy became completely enraged and unleashed the newest result of his training—Gear Fourth, which could inflate his body.

Luffy bit into his arm and blew air into it. In an instant, his entire body swelled up.

Raising his massive Gear Fourth arm, Luffy coated it in jet-black Armament Haki before launching himself at Nagasawa at incredible speed using the elasticity of his inflated body.

However, this seemingly powerful strike was stopped by Nagasawa with just two fingers.

Boom! Boom! Boom!!!

Luffy was blasted away once more, crashing heavily into the ground and creating a huge crater. He looked utterly battered.

"You really aren’t holding back at all," Rayleigh remarked from the side.

However, he didn’t intervene. Luffy would eventually enter the New World, where powerful opponents were everywhere. Letting him experience the pressure of a top-tier powerhouse in advance would be beneficial.

Nagasawa drew Ryujin Jakka from his waist and then infused the blade with powerful Conqueror’s Haki. Black and crimson energy flowed across the sword.

A tremendous aura erupted from Nagasawa, causing even Rayleigh to lose his composure. Nagasawa actually knew Conqueror’s Haki Infusion, and he was planning to use it against Luffy? Was he trying to kill him?

"Watch carefully. This is true power!" Nagasawa declared before erupting with power and swinging his sword.