Hearing this, Mio frowned slightly and shouted directly, "Hei'e!!"
As soon as his voice fell, Araki and the others looked puzzled. They had no idea who Mio was calling. There was no one nad Hei'e on the Black Crow Pirates' bounty list. Could it be a newcor? But soon enough, they realized who Hei'e really was.
At that mont, a piercing and grating shriek echoed through the air.
The sound was unbearably unpleasant—sharp enough to make one's skin crawl—yet it carried a strange resonance that stirred the soul.
From the distant coast, a shadowy figure shot into the sky and soared into view.
"Is that... a crow?" Araki's eyes widened in astonishnt.
"Could that be the guy Lord Black Crow just called for?" Katsumata Takeru was equally stunned.
The creature flying through the air didn't resemble any ordinary crow. Its form was darker, more nacing. Deep eyes glead as it locked onto Boken, who was fleeing toward the coast.
"Get out of my way!" Boken roared. He threw a punch, releasing a powerful shockwave that hurtled toward Hei'e, splitting the air with a sonic boom. Even a casual strike from Boken carried terrifying destructive force.
But Hei'e twisted his body midair and easily dodged the attack.
Then, as if enraged, Hei'e opened his beak and let out another scream.
Unlike before, this ti the sound carried an invisible force, radiating from Hei'e's beak in a terrifying wave. As it passed through the air, Boken and the pirates behind him froze.
Their eyes widened in disbelief.
"Ahhh!!"
Screams erupted as Boken's n clutched their ears in agony. Blood poured from their eyes and noses. They collapsed to the ground one after another, writhing in pain before going completely still—lifeless.
Dozens of pirates died instantly.
They were just Boken's subordinates, not particularly strong, but the sight was horrifying. The sheer lethality of a single scream sent chills down everyone's spines.
Even Mio narrowed his eyes. The ability was eerie. It resembled Conqueror's Haki—but that power rely caused fainting. It didn't kill.
"Move!"
Boken's expression darkened. He shouted without hesitation. The scream had affected even him, making his body uncomfortable, though he had managed to resist it. Still, if Hei'e let out another few screams like that, he wasn't sure how long he could hold out.
At Boken's command, his remaining n bolted for the ship.
He himself threw another punch at Hei'e.
"Die, you damned beast!" he roared, his fist tearing through the air.
A crimson flash lit up Hei'e's eyes. In response, demonic energy erupted from within him. With a powerful flap of his wings, that energy surged forward, condensing into a massive, scarlet crow that shot out to intercept the attack.
The crow collided with Boken's punch—
BOOM!
A violent shockwave exploded outward, blowing away clouds in the sky.
"Huh?" Boken's pupils shrank. He was stunned. "This power... it's the sa as that Black Crow guy!"
He was certain—there was no mistake. The energy was exactly the sa as what the skeletal giant earlier had used. But that should be impossible. There couldn't be two identical Devil Fruit powers in the world.
Then how?
"Is it... a superior and inferior type fruit?" Boken murmured. That would make so sense—like the relationship between the Sand-Sand Fruit and the Lava-Lava Fruit—but even among those, this similarity felt too extre.
Still, whatever the case—
That crow was dangerous. Too dangerous.
It wasn't even human, yet it had fought him evenly.
Just as Boken was processing this, Hei'e opened his beak and scread again.
The horrific shriek pierced into Boken's soul, montarily disrupting his consciousness. Though only a second passed, it was more than enough for a highly intelligent Hei'e to take advantage.
Demonic energy surged again.
Another scarlet crow condensed and shot forward.
Pfft!
A hole was torn through Boken's chest, and blood gushed out like a fountain.
The wound was deep enough to expose both flesh and bone.
"Damn it!" Boken's face went pale as intense pain flared through his chest. Fear now flooded his gaze as he looked at Hei'e.
Just a brief mont of lost awareness—only seconds—and the beast had nearly killed him.
The danger this creature posed was far beyond his expectations.
"Limit Burst!!"
Boken roared, and instantly, the hole in his chest began to regenerate at a shocking pace. Flesh and muscle reford in seconds.
But as the wound healed—
Boken's complexion turned even paler.
Then, with a loud bang, Boken burst forth with everything he had. He punched once more toward Hei'e, not caring if it hit, and turned to flee toward the coast without a backward glance.
Before, he had been hesitant to retreat. But now—
He was desperate to escape.
Even the "beast" under the Black Crow Pirates was this powerful?
Unbelievable. Terrifying.
This crew was no ordinary group of rookies. They were more fearso than many New World veteran crews.
"Return, Hei'e," Mio said calmly, watching Boken's fleeing figure. He didn't bother chasing.
He could have caught up—but killing Boken was another matter entirely.
That man's Devil Fruit...
To be honest, Mio was envious of it.
He had a strong suspicion about Boken's ability—
The Limit Fruit.
A power that allowed one to explode physical attributes—strength, speed, regeneration—to or even beyond their natural limits.
Such a fruit was incredibly powerful and absurdly hard to counter.
That was why Mio knew that even if he pursued Boken, he likely couldn't finish him off.
Unless, of course, he called in Bullett.
But he wasn't going to waste Bullett's trump card here.
So, he let Boken escape.
"But it doesn't matter," Mio murmured, his eyes flashing with cold light. "I've already accomplished what I needed to do."
anwhile, Hei'e circled in the sky before finally landing on Mio's shoulder. He tilted his head, scanning the surrounding pirates with sharp, intelligent eyes.
The mont his gaze swept over them—
Many pirates felt a chill down their spines. Fear twisted their expressions, and they instinctively backed away.
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