Bullets infused with Armament Haki possess far greater power than ordinary gunfire.
From the moment Ace was shot, the scales of victory had already tipped in Maude's favor.
However,
Rather than pressing his advantage, Maude halted his assault, opting instead to swap places with his shadow on the ground, returning to solid footing.
The swarm of black butterflies dancing in the air swiftly coalesced into a flowing mass of darkness, surging toward Maude before reverting to the form of his shadow.
The purpose of this battle was never to kill Ace.
Holding back was always the intended outcome.
If Ace were seriously injured, it might even hinder his pursuit of Blackbeard.
Speaking of which…
Did Ace come to Alabasta specifically to see Luffy, or was Blackbeard here as well?
Maude calmly observed Ace, who was wreathed in flames, a trace of doubt flickering through his mind.
He couldn't possibly remember every minute detail from the original story.
With Maude withdrawing, the intense clash came to an abrupt standstill.
Ace, now back in his human form, landed on the sandy ground, furrowing his brows in silence.
A gaping bullet wound marred his right elbow, fresh blood oozing from the injury.
"Why did you stop?"
Ace stared at Maude, unfazed by the wound on his arm.
"I've already seen the 'outcome' I wanted. There's no reason to continue."
Maude's arms hung loosely at his sides.
Bailey, having reverted from its twin-pistol form, leapt onto Maude's shoulder, looking drowsy under the merciless desert sun.
"The outcome you wanted to see?"
Ace's expression clouded with confusion, unable to comprehend Maude's reasoning.
Maude smiled faintly and said earnestly, "Simply put… I wanted to see how much better my odds of winning were against you."
"Hm?"
Ace raised an eyebrow and said flatly, "You're awfully confident, Maude."
As he spoke, flames flickered back to life around his body.
It was the signal that the battle was about to resume.
Yet Ace never sought to make excuses for the gunshot wound on his elbow.
Even though Luffy had played a part in it.
But in truth, Ace had already been pushed to the brink of his defensive capabilities before the shot landed.
Luffy's scream had only accelerated the inevitable.
Ace had to admit—since the battle began, he had been at a constant disadvantage, completely suppressed by Maude's relentless offense, right up until the moment he was shot.
But a single bullet wound didn't mean he had lost.
As Ace readied himself for another round, Maude made no move to respond. Instead, he simply raised a finger and pointed toward Luffy, who had also taken a hit.
To be honest,
Maude hadn't expected one of the stray bullets from Daylight Fireworks to hit Luffy—especially one imbued with Armament Haki…
Otherwise, it wouldn't have been able to pierce through Luffy's rubber body.
Luffy was just unlucky.
Ace turned his head, his gaze landing on Luffy's abdomen, where blood continued to flow freely.
At that moment, fighting Maude no longer mattered. He rushed over to Luffy as fast as he could.
"Luffy, are you okay?"
"I'm fine! It doesn't hurt at all!"
Hearing Ace's concern, Luffy forced himself to sit up, keeping a straight face as if he were completely unharmed.
He claimed it didn't hurt, but the sweat dripping from his forehead betrayed him.
"You look like you're in a lot of pain!!!"
Nami and the others shouted at Luffy.
"Do I?"
Luffy tried to maintain his composure.
"YES!!!"
Everyone yelled again in unison.
Watching Luffy's antics, Ace scratched his cheek before turning his gaze back to Maude in the distance.
"…Forget it."
Ace exhaled, glancing at his still-bleeding elbow.
A bullet imbued with Armament Haki…
Even in the New World, there weren't many sharpshooters capable of such a feat.
Bacardi Maude…
Today, he had truly witnessed this man's strength firsthand.
Seeing both Maude and Ace withdraw so decisively, Nami and the others couldn't help but sigh in relief.
They had expected these two monstrous fighters to battle until the sky collapsed.
But given how things turned out, this was the best possible outcome.
"Chopper, wake up!"
"Urgh…"
"Luffy's injured! We need you to treat him!"
"Eh?"
Chopper's eyes snapped open, and he tried to get up, only to find himself too weak from thirst to move.
At that moment, a water flask came flying through the air.
Zoro, standing closest, instinctively caught it and turned in the direction it had come from.
The one who had thrown it… was Maude.
In a desert, water was the most precious resource.
Which was why Maude had brought plenty before coming to Alabasta.
At this moment, handing them a water pouch was hardly a big deal.
The crew watched as Maude casually tossed over the water pouch, their expressions slightly conflicted.
Just moments ago, he had acted like he was going to escort Luffy to Marine Headquarters. Not to mention, he had fought Ace in a battle that had nearly crushed their spirits.
And now, he was acting as if nothing had happened.
What exactly was this man thinking?
"What are you standing around for? Hurry up and get some water into Chopper."
Maude approached and used his shadow to construct a reclining chair. Sitting down, he looked at the Straw Hats with an indifferent expression.
Perona floated over to Maude, took one of the water pouches she carried, and handed it to Bailey.
Bailey took the pouch, uncorked it, and gulped down several mouthfuls. Only then did his exhausted state improve slightly.
Zoro silently glanced at Maude, who was lounging on his shadow-formed chair, then uncapped the water pouch and carefully gave Chopper a few sips.
After a moment, the replenished hydration restored Chopper's energy. Regaining his strength, he immediately began tending to Luffy and Ace's wounds, fulfilling his duty as the crew's doctor.
Usopp stepped forward, hesitating as he stood before Maude.
"What's wrong? Did I scare you?"
Maude looked at Usopp, who had become noticeably more robust, and flicked his finger. His shadow responded, forming a chair right in front of Usopp.
"Sit."
"Uh… Master, you…"
Usopp instinctively sat down, his expression uneasy as he looked at Maude.
Something was starting to click in his mind.
Maude chuckled. "Sending Luffy to Marine Headquarters? That was just something I said offhandedly. Didn't expect you all to take it so seriously."
"..."
Everyone, including Ace, fell silent.
You literally threw hands—how were we not supposed to take it seriously?!
That was what they were thinking, but no one dared to say it out loud in front of Maude.
As long as Maude didn't make a move against Luffy, that was good news—better than they could have hoped for.
"As expected of my idol! Even a casual joke from him can shake everyone to their core!"
Bartolomeo gazed at Maude with utter devotion.
"???"
Everyone turned to Bartolomeo with speechless expressions.
If there were such a thing as an ultimate fanboy in this world, he would undoubtedly be it.
Maude paid no mind to Bartolomeo's antics and instead focused on Luffy's wound.
It looked pretty serious. Would it affect the upcoming battle against Crocodile?
There was no way a simple gunshot wound could alter the course of Luffy's eventual victory over Crocodile… right?
If that were the case—
The mere thought was too bizarre for Maude to entertain.
"Should I interfere…?"
Maude pondered.
Speaking of which, Crocodile's subordinates did include quite a few Devil Fruit users.
But since they were both Warlords of the Sea, he couldn't just openly start a fight with Crocodile.
Backhanded tactics were possible—but they couldn't be too obvious.
After thinking it over, Maude decided to observe the Straw Hats' movements for now.
"Where are you all headed?"
"To Yuba."
It was Vivi who answered.
She hadn't thought too much before responding—just felt, on some level, that she should.
"Oh? Then let me give you a lift."
Maude responded casually.
"Eh?!"
Everyone was taken aback.
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