"These rookies sure are bold these days."
Having arrived at the Sabaody Archipelago, Kizaru glanced around at his surroundings.
"They even dared to attack the Celestial Dragons…"
"How scary~"
The Straw Hat Pirates' actions had truly far exceeded his expectations.
To kill Celestial Dragons without the slightest hesitation… how long had it been since something like that had happened?
"K-Kizaru?!"
The pirates in the distance turned pale with terror the moment they saw Kizaru appear in the street.
Why had this terrifying monster arrived so quickly?
Even if Marine Headquarters was nearby, there was no way he should have made it here in less than half an hour!!
Unless… this monster had been nearby from the very beginning?
"Run!!"
The pirates screamed and fled in all directions like madmen.
But Kizaru did not care about them in the slightest. In fact, he did not even glance at them once.
Lifting his arm and opening the cover, Kizaru looked at the black Den Den Mushi on his wrist and said,
"Moshi moshi~"
"Sentomaru, I'm in position. Where are you?"
"And where's the Straw Hat crew?"
"Moshi moshi?"
"Sentomaru?"
"Hmm?"
"How strange~"
When the Den Den Mushi still gave no answer, a trace of confusion appeared in Kizaru's eyes.
"What a pain~"
If no one told him where the Straw Hat Pirates were, finding them himself would not be easy at all.
Not far away, behind a huge boulder, two men were crouched there, staring fixedly at Kizaru.
"Hey, that guy is the legendary Marine Admiral Kizaru, right?" the bearded man said excitedly.
As he spoke, he raised his sniper rifle and aimed it at Kizaru's head, his eyes gradually turning crazed.
"What are you trying to do?" the bald man cried in horror. "That's a Marine Admiral!"
"Haha, so what?"
"If I can kill him, I'll be famous!"
If he killed a monster on the level of a Marine Admiral, then his bounty would jump straight past a billion, wouldn't it?!
The more he thought about it, the more excited the bearded man became.
"Idiot, don't—"
Bang!
Before the bald man could finish, the bearded man fired without hesitation.
The bullet flashed through the air and punched straight through Kizaru's head.
"Hm?"
"I hit him?"
"No… I didn't?"
The bearded man frowned.
He felt certain his bullet had connected, but why did Kizaru look completely unaffected?
Was he imagining things, or was the man some kind of special Devil Fruit user?
Thinking that, the bearded man lifted his rifle again, preparing to fire a second shot.
But at that moment, he realized the man who had been standing in the open was gone!
"Oh~"
"Were you looking for me?"
Hearing the voice from behind them, both men stiffened, then turned around in disbelief.
"K-Kizaru!!"
"Oh~"
"So you do know who I am." Kizaru nodded. "Then may I ask—"
"Run!!"
The two men did not give Kizaru any chance to finish speaking. They turned and bolted as fast as they could, their faces filled with unmistakable terror.
"Honestly, I only wanted to ask you for a bit of information. Is there really any need to be so afraid of me?" Kizaru said helplessly.
As his words fell, he slowly raised one leg and fired a laser attack straight ahead.
Boom!!
That terrifying blast cleanly severed one of the giant numbered mangrove trees!!
"Huh?!"
"T-that was Admiral Kizaru's attack?"
The Marines in town who saw it were completely dumbfounded.
Why had their own Admiral just blown apart one of the giant mangrove trees?!
"Ahahaha, I may have overdone it a little." Kizaru scratched his head.
He had accidentally caused destruction on this scale. Would Sengoku-san blame him for it…? Well, he could worry about that later.
"M-monster…"
The bearded man stared at Kizaru in absolute terror. He had been scared so badly he had wet himself.
He had actually attacked a being that terrifying just now?
"Now, can you answer my question?"
"W-what question?"
"I'm looking for a man named Sentomaru." Kizaru said. "Of course, if you have information on the Straw Hat Pirates, that would work too."
If he could locate the Straw Hats, there would be no need to meet up with Sentomaru first. He could simply execute everyone in the crew except Blood-Eyed Ninja Jin and be done with it.
"Sorry, we don't know."
"Ah… is that so."
"Well, that's rather troublesome~"
Kizaru rubbed his head, then added, "In that case, I suppose I'll have to look myself."
"Then please just—"
Before the bearded man could finish, he felt some sort of force strike him. The world went black, and he lost consciousness.
The same happened to his companion.
Then Kizaru vanished from where he stood and shot toward the town.
Meanwhile, near another entrance to the town, a water dragon was floating in midair, and Jin's shadow clone stood atop its head.
"That kind of destructive power…" Jin frowned. "So this is a Marine Admiral?"
To shatter a tree that massive with a single attack… just how strong was that guy?
After a moment's thought, Jin released the technique and dropped down to the ground.
At the same time, the other shadow clones disguised as his companions disappeared as well.
Enough people had already seen him come this way. There was no need to keep up the fake group anymore.
That would also reduce the risk of anyone discovering that he could use the Transformation Technique.
As he thought that, Jin walked into the town.
"Let's see which Admiral showed up this time."
After all, this was only a shadow clone. Even if it got blown apart, it didn't matter.
"Found you, Blood-Eyed Ninja Jin!!"
"Oh?"
"So you found me that quickly?" Jin said with a smile as he looked at the Marines blocking his way. "The Marines really are efficient."
Seeing the relaxed smile on Jin's face, the Marine shouted angrily,
"Are you mocking us?!"
What was with that tone? The man clearly hadn't even been trying to hide at all!
A lot of people had seen the water dragon on its way here!
And now he was using words like that to mock them?
"Tch."
"I never said that."
"Blood-Eyed Ninja, why aren't you with the rest of the Straw Hat Pirates?" the Marine captain stepped forward and demanded. "Where are they?"
As he spoke, he looked around, but there was no sign of anyone else.
"Take a guess~"
"Damn it, move! Capture him!"
"Yeah!!"
At the order, the Marines roared and rushed toward Jin, utterly unaware of the gap in strength between them.
"If only I had Conqueror's Haki." Jin muttered as he rubbed his head. "Then I wouldn't need to waste time on trash like you."
"What did you say?!"
Hearing themselves called trash, the Marines were immediately enraged and raised their flintlocks to fire.
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
Several bullets flew toward Jin, but he avoided them all with ease.
The next instant, he plunged straight into the middle of the crowd, like a wolf among sheep, and effortlessly beat every last one of them into the ground.
To conserve chakra, Jin chose to use his fists rather than ninjutsu.
"Y-you…"
The Marine captain's cold sweat immediately poured down when he saw Jin step right up to him.
Hadn't it only been a moment ago? And yet the dozens of men he had brought were all down already?
"Tch."
Looking at the man's terrified expression, Jin shook his head. Somehow, this guy seemed even more cowardly than the ordinary Marines.
"Tell me. Which Admiral came here this time?"
The moment the Marine captain heard the words "Marine Admiral," he seemed to get a new burst of courage.
"That's right, we have an Admiral!" he shouted, drawing the sword at his waist. "Admiral Kizaru is in the city. Just wait until he—"
Boom!!
Jin had gotten the only useful piece of information he wanted, so he did not let the man keep babbling. One punch slammed into the Marine captain's abdomen and sent him flying.
Whoosh~
Boom!!
The Marine captain crashed through a building, rolled once, and lost consciousness on the spot.
"So it's Admiral Kizaru…" Jin murmured, rubbing his chin.
Pappag had said there were three Admirals: Akainu, Aokiji, and Kizaru.
And this time, Kizaru was the one who had come.
The only question was… what kind of Devil Fruit power did he have?
From the look of that attack just now, it seemed to be some kind of explosive-type ability.
And not only was the power outrageous, it could also be used from long range.
Glancing at the shattered giant tree in the distance, Jin narrowed his eyes.
"Let's go take a look."
At the very least… he needed to know what Kizaru's ability actually was.
With that thought, Jin vanished from where he stood.
After he disappeared, the Marine hiding in the shadows finally let out a breath of relief. Then he pulled out a Den Den Mushi and contacted his superior.
"Brigadier! We found Blood-Eyed Ninja's location! He's at Grove 29!"
"Grove 29?"
The brigadier froze for a moment, then said in delight,
"I understand! I'll notify Admiral Kizaru immediately!"
As long as they knew where the target was, things became simple. All they had to do next was inform the Admiral.
After hanging up, the brigadier immediately dialed Kizaru's Den Den Mushi to report that Blood-Eyed Ninja had been spotted there.
"Bero bero bero~"
"Bero bero bero~"
"Bero bero bero~"
Click.
"Report, Admiral Kizaru! We've located Blood-Eyed Ninja!"
"Admiral Kizaru is unavailable."
The Marine brigadier: ???
Wait, what did "Admiral Kizaru is unavailable" even mean?!
The aide said helplessly, "When Admiral Kizaru was called to the Holy Land by the Five Elders, he handed me the Den Den Mushi in case someone tried to contact him. After getting the new orders, he came straight to Sabaody… and forgot to take it back."
That was the truth. Kizaru had left it behind.
The brigadier: ...
He had finally found Blood-Eyed Ninja's location, and now he couldn't contact the Admiral?!
Not one, but two Admirals had shown up, and neither of them could be reached?
What kind of joke was this?!
"Then what about Admiral Akainu?" the brigadier demanded. "Where is Admiral Akainu now?"
"You can't reach Admiral Akainu either. Someone already tried calling here just now," the aide replied.
"Why not?!"
The brigadier nearly lost his mind.
Why did these Admirals all hate carrying Den Den Mushi so much?!
"Admiral Akainu is different from Admiral Kizaru." the aide explained. "When he fights, his body turns into magma. A Den Den Mushi can't survive that, so the Den Den Mushi is usually kept by his aide instead."
"Then where's the aide?"
"The aide is currently chasing pirates."
The brigadier: ???
What kind of absurd situation was this?!
Just when they had finally located Blood-Eyed Ninja, neither Admiral could be contacted?
Seriously? Was this some kind of performance?!
"Just tell me where Blood-Eyed Ninja is," the aide said.
"He was spotted at Grove 29."
"Then it's fine." the aide said with a smile. "Admiral Kizaru is already there."
The moment he heard that, the brigadier finally relaxed.
As long as the Admiral was there, it was fine.
"Go catch your pirates."
"Yes, sir!"
…
"What a mess…"
Hawkins's subordinate, Kachi, said, "Captain Hawkins, shouldn't we run?"
The Straw Hat Pirates had killed Celestial Dragons. It was only a matter of time before an Admiral appeared. If they didn't run now, then when would they?
"There's no need to rush." Hawkins said calmly. "I haven't drawn the sign of death for today."
Hawkins had absolute confidence in his own ability.
If the cards said he wouldn't die, then he absolutely would not die.
"This…"
Kachi looked helplessly at his captain.
Sure, his powers were frighteningly accurate, but they might be facing a Marine Admiral now!
Still, since the captain had spoken, all he could do was stay and wait.
"Oh~"
"Well hello there~"
Kizaru suddenly appeared before them with a smile.
"I'd like to ask you for a bit of information."
"K-Kizaru?!"
Kachi's face turned pale with terror.
Why had an Admiral appeared in front of them of all people?!
Wasn't he supposed to be chasing the Straw Hat Pirates?!
"Damn it…"
"Captain Hawkins, we'll hold him off! You run!"
"I already said it. I haven't drawn the sign of death for today." Hawkins said calmly.
Even in the face of a Marine Admiral, he remained composed.
"I'm looking for a man named Sentomaru." Kizaru said. "Or information on the Straw Hat Pirates, if you have any."
Hawkins ignored him completely. He took out a deck of cards from his clothes and began calculating his chances of survival and escape.
"Hey~"
"Could you answer my question?"
"I haven't seen them." Hawkins said flatly. "Why don't you ask someone else?"
"Ah~"
"That won't do. If I can't find them, it'll be a real headache~" Kizaru scratched his head and glanced around.
Then he lowered his gaze again and looked at Hawkins.
"In that case, I'll just arrest you first."
"Basil Hawkins, bounty 249 million berries~"
"Speed is weight… have you ever been kicked at the speed of light?"
Whoosh~
Boom!!
In the blink of an eye, Hawkins was sent flying like a cannonball and smashed straight through a building!!
"Captain?!"
Kachi was dumbstruck.
Their captain… couldn't even block one move from him?
"Oh?"
"You're not dead?"
Kizaru looked toward the hole in the building with surprise, then raised his hand and launched another laser.
Boom!!
The blast was so powerful it blew the entire building down!
But even then, Hawkins did not die.
"How strange~"
Kizaru tilted his head slightly.
His Observation Haki had clearly picked up Hawkins's condition.
That man hadn't suffered any real injury at all?
Wait…
What were those things coming out of his arm?
"As expected of a Marine Admiral." Hawkins stepped out of the rubble, two destroyed straw dolls protruding from his arm.
After tossing the dolls onto the ground, he looked at Kizaru and said,
"You wiped out two of my substitutes right away."
Before landing on the island, he had already used his Devil Fruit ability to turn ten pirates into his substitute dolls.
He had thought that would be enough.
But… facing a Marine Admiral really was troublesome.
Still, today showed no sign of death. Escaping should not be a problem.
At that moment, a huge figure came flying in from the distance and slammed heavily onto the ground.
Boom!!
"Damn it…" Urouge wiped the blood from his face. "Why is this Shichibukai so strong?!"
Grinding his teeth, Urouge pushed himself back to his feet, only to notice Hawkins walking over.
"Hm?"
"You're… Hawkins?"
"And there's a Marine Admiral too."
Urouge: ...
When he looked back and saw Kizaru standing not far away, Urouge nearly went numb.
Having one Shichibukai chase him down was bad enough.
Now he had run into an Admiral too?
Was his luck seriously this awful today?!
"So this is where it ends…"
"Relax. You don't have the sign of death today." Hawkins said flatly.
"Ahahaha, then I'll take that as a blessing."
After saying that, Urouge's expression sharpened.
"But no matter what, I'm not going to just sit here and wait to die!"
"Karma!"
Wumm~
The next second, Urouge's body began trembling violently, then started swelling at a visible speed.
In just a few breaths, he had grown to several meters in height!
"Die!!"
Now swollen to gigantic size, Urouge roared and slammed his fist into the pursuing Pacifista, actually forcing it back!
"Ahahaha! Finally, that had some effect!"
"What's going on with that guy?" Drake, who had happened to pass through the area, frowned. "I'm pretty sure he wasn't that big before…"
What kind of Devil Fruit user was he?
"Oh~"
"Lieutenant Commander Drake~"
"K-Kizaru?!"
Seeing Kizaru looking at him with that deceptively gentle expression, Drake's face went green.
He had only passed by. Why did he have to run into a Marine Admiral?!
Whoosh~
Suddenly, a laser shot in from the distance and punched straight through Urouge's arm, blasting a bloody hole through it!
"AHH!"
Urouge screamed and dropped to one knee, clutching his arm as cold sweat poured down his face.
"So hot!"
Glancing at the Pacifista approaching again, Urouge's face turned grim.
He had already used this much power and still couldn't beat the thing?
Gritting his teeth, Urouge stood up again.
"The two of you, if you want to live, then fight with everything you've got!"
As he spoke, he activated his Devil Fruit power again, causing his body to expand even further.
After exchanging a glance, Drake and Hawkins both activated their Devil Fruit abilities as well.
At a time like this, staying out of it was impossible.
Whoever tried to run first would only become the Admiral's first target.
As for whether they could survive…
that would depend on their own abilities.
Looking at the three enormous monsters in front of him, Kizaru said,
"You people with bounties over a hundred million… every single one of you is like a monster…"
"How scary~"
The next moment, Kizaru appeared beside Urouge and casually kicked him in the abdomen, instantly sending him flying.
Whoosh!
Boom!!
That single kick nearly knocked Urouge unconscious.
"ROAR!!"
"Kizaru!!"
"Hm?"
Kizaru looked at the roaring Drake and Hawkins and gave a light laugh.
"How scary~"
Bang!
Bang!
Two more kicks.
The two giant figures were sent flying as well, smashing through several more buildings.
At that moment, Kizaru displayed overwhelming power!
"So this is what it amounts to…" Jin said from a rooftop as he looked down at Kizaru. "He keeps saying how scary it is, then sends each Supernova flying with one kick?"
The man's words and actions were completely out of sync.
So this was…
Admiral Kizaru?
"Oh~"
"Isn't this Blood-Eyed Ninja Jin~"
Hearing the sound, Kizaru raised his head toward the rooftop and smiled.
"What a coincidence~"
He really had not expected Blood-Eyed Ninja to come looking for him after killing Celestial Dragons.
How scary~
Looking at Kizaru smiling up at him, Jin grinned as well.
"Yeah, what a coincidence~"
"Marine Admiral Kizaru!"
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