HUM!
The air seemed to freeze.
Tangible black-red lightning crackled wildly at the intersection of the two bursts of Haki. Invisible waves of air swept in all directions like a tsunami!
This Conqueror's Haki clash was far more terrifying than when Luffy had released it alone earlier.
"'Dark King'—it's not surprising that such a big shot has this kind of power."
Law held onto his hat. "But Straw Hat-san is a bit exaggerated."
The clash of Conqueror's Haki was evenly matched!
At this distance, the Supernovas could see it even more clearly.
The three Celestial Dragons, stacked together, took the brunt of it. Without even a groan, they were completely knocked unconscious in the torrent of Haki. Their faces beneath their bubble headgear were twisted and pale.
The Marine vanguard forces, which had just barely approached in an attempt to form an encirclement, were cut down like wheat by an invisible scythe. They fell in droves, eyes rolled back, foaming at the mouth. Their weapons clattered to the ground.
The previously dense footsteps and shouts fell silent!
In the distance, the Supernovas who had been waiting or struggling to evacuate felt their backs drenched in cold sweat.
They felt a sense of oppression completely different from before.
"Two monsters."
Killer, supporting the unconscious Kid, could barely keep his teeth from chattering.
...
Almost simultaneously, explosive news spread through the Sabaody Archipelago like a plague, faster than the Navy's encirclement:
"Hey! Did you hear?! Straw Hat Luffy punched a Celestial Dragon! Over by the biggest auction house in Grove 1!"
"Not just one! Several Celestial Dragons! And he kidnapped them!"
"All the Supernovas have been defeated! The Marine vanguard has been wiped out!"
"Insane! This world has gone insane!"
"Run! An Admiral is coming! The Sabaody Archipelago is doomed!"
Panic spread like a tsunami.
Whether pirates who were already on the island, merchants who had come for coating, or even local residents—all began flocking to the ports, trying to flee this island about to become a hell.
To put it bluntly, people here feared the Celestial Dragons far more than they feared the Four Emperors.
The Emperors were far away in the New World. The Celestial Dragons were right next door, ready to kill.
The remaining subordinates of the Supernovas were even more frantic, urging their captains to leave.
"Captain, we can't stay here any longer!"
"Let's go, Captain Bege! This place is about to become an Admiral's battlefield!"
Capone Bege glanced darkly in the direction of Luffy and Rayleigh, then turned without hesitation. "Retreat!"
His small fort form took heavy steps, pushing aside debris in its way, and quickly disappeared into the complex root tunnel.
Elsewhere, the severely injured Apoo was being carried away by his few remaining subordinates, fleeing in panic.
Drake also reverted to human form. He took a deep look at the two figures emitting the horror Haki, then barked, "Let's go!"
He quickly departed with his men.
Not all Supernovas chose to leave immediately.
People like Law and Urouge, though they also felt the mortal threat, were driven by strong intellectual curiosity and curiosity about what Straw Hat and "Dark King" would do next. They chose to take the risk.
"Is he going to turn the Sabaody Archipelago upside down?" Urouge maintained his strange smile.
Law corrected him, "No. He already has."
The question was—how far would it go?
Would it become a historic event, like the execution of the Pirate King Roger?
Upon reflection, Law felt like he was going crazy.
He had just compared Straw Hat to Roger.
Had he already started regarding him as a great figure in his own heart?
...
Not long earlier—
On the outskirts of the Sabaody Archipelago, inside a temporary command post set up by the Navy, the atmosphere was equally tense.
The Sabaody Archipelago had originally had a considerable Marine garrison.
But some of them had been transferred for other reasons.
The empty force was supposed to last only a few days. Who knew that such a bad event would occur?
Over a dozen Supernovas in a massive brawl.
All with bounties over 100 million. They could literally sink the Sabaody Archipelago.
Large numbers of Marine soldiers were rapidly deploying military fortifications on the outermost peninsula areas, pushing rows of heavy cannons into dense formations.
"Report! Grove 44 residents have been evacuated!"
"Report, Commodore! Grove 45 artillery deployed!"
"Report! Grove 46..."
After listening to the urgent report from his subordinates, a grim-faced Marine Commodore quickly walked back to the central tent of the camp.
The Commodore saluted with a smack. "Report, Vice Admiral Strawberry. Civilian evacuation is complete. Soldiers and surrounding fire deployments are in place."
"Vice Admiral, please give the order. We can begin the attack on Straw Hat's crew and the Supernovas."
Seated before him was none other than Marine Headquarters Vice Admiral, Strawberry.
He had a very long beard. His expression was impassive.
"No. According to the latest orders from headquarters, we are to encircle but not attack. Confirm that all civilians have been evacuated."
Strawberry spoke calmly, rejecting the subordinate's request to attack.
Hearing this, the Commodore was visibly surprised, his face full of confusion.
They already had a fire circle formed around the pirates. If they attacked now, with fire superiority, the advantage would definitely be on the Navy's side!
So what if those pirates were Supernovas?
The Navy had numerical and weapon superiority.
No matter how great the casualties, it would be worth it to eliminate vicious pirates.
The Commodore wanted to argue further.
"Vice Admiral Strawberry! We have deployed so many troops, and the civilians have already been evacuated. Headquarters is right behind us! Are we just going to watch those lawless pirates—"
"Silence!"
Vice Admiral Strawberry cut him off sternly. He stood up and walked to the tent entrance, looking toward the direction from which the terrifying aura was faintly emanating. "Headquarters cannot spare many troops to support us right now. But since those pirates have attacked the Celestial Dragons, an Admiral will be dispatched shortly. We must wait for the Admiral to act. That is a direct order from headquarters!"
The Navy Headquarters rated the Straw Hat crew very highly—almost on par with an Emperor's crew.
In any case, without a Vice Admiral or higher ranking officer present who could ensure they had the advantage, when encountering the Straw Hat crew, their orders were to monitor and evacuate, avoiding unnecessary casualties.
Vice Admiral Strawberry said, "Moreover, besides them, there are also many remnants of the Supernova crews inside the encirclement!"
He turned and swept his gaze across all the officers in the command tent.
"Don't forget, the Navy's true duty is to protect civilians! Until civilians are safe and the Admiral arrives, ignore those pirates. Just keep them tightly encircled in the central area of the Sabaody Archipelago!"
"Sir!"
Though the Commodore was reluctant, the military order was like a mountain. He saluted again and turned to relay the order.
BOOM!
Just then, a roar far louder than any previous explosion came from the central area of the island. Even the ground shook slightly!
"What's happening?!"
"Oops! The fighting inside has escalated!"
A soldier stumbled into the command tent, his face completely bloodless. "Straw Hat attacked 'Roar of the Sea' Apoo! Apoo is severely injured!"
"Report!"
Another soldier rushed in, his tone urgent. "Straw Hat has attacked the Kid Pirates! Kid and Killer are both defeated!"
"So a conflict finally broke out?"
Vice Admiral Strawberry's face was grave.
But this was good news.
The Straw Hat crew had actually started fighting the Supernovas.
The Navy was very skilled at letting pirates fight among themselves and then cleaning up afterward.
Vice Admiral Strawberry was tempted to mock the Straw Hat crew—starting a conflict with the Supernovas at a time like this was absolutely irrational.
"Report! REPORT!!"
A third soldier practically scrambled into the tent, his voice distorted due to extreme terror. He even stumbled and fell flat on his face in front of Strawberry!
Vice Admiral Strawberry barked, "What's the rush?"
The advantage was on their side.
The soldier's face was filled with panic, as if he had seen the end of the world.
"Almost all the Supernovas have been defeated! The Marine vanguard has been wiped out!"
The soldier gasped for breath and shouted with all his remaining strength, "Straw Hat has kidnapped three Celestial Dragons! 'Dark King' Rayleigh is with him!"
The news froze the entire Marine command tent.
Vice Admiral Strawberry's hand trembled.
Meanwhile, in the Holy Land Mary Geise, inside the Fleet Admiral's office—
CRASH!
A delicate ceramic teacup fell from the desk and shattered on the floor.
Fleet Admiral Sengoku covered his face and let out a helpless yet angry sigh. "That man again—Garp! What is wrong with your family's bloodline?!"
The Marine officer reporting beside him broke out in a cold sweat. He stiffened his neck and continued, "According to the latest intelligence from the front line, besides the Straw Hat crew, multiple Supernovas were also present. Additionally, a figure suspected to be the legendary pirate 'Dark King' Silvers Rayleigh was spotted!
The one who kidnapped the three Celestial Dragons is Straw Hat Luffy.
All communication with our advance troops and the CP0 guards has been lost. They are likely wiped out."
He took a deep breath and delivered the final conclusion. "Taking three World Nobles hostage—this is the most heinous incident in the 800-year history of the World Government!"
Sengoku's face was dark. He forcibly suppressed the urge to smash the desk and asked in a low voice, "Has Straw Hat made any demands?"
The reporting officer shook his head. "No word yet."
Perhaps no one sufficiently important had appeared yet.
"How terrifying~"
In the corner of the office, a man in a yellow-and-white striped suit, sitting with his legs crossed and slowly drinking tea, looked up. A somewhat wretched smile was on his face. In his unique, slow drawl, he spoke:
"Be that as it may, since they have attacked the World Government's nobles, we cannot simply do nothing, can we, Sengoku-san?"
He put down his teacup, stood up, and straightened his suit.
"Let this old man go. I'll be back before you know it. Please rest assured."
Sengoku looked at this Marine Headquarters' top combatant and quietly gravely. "It's in your hands, Borsalino."
***
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