Amid the chaos that erupted across the Don Krieg Pirates' fleet as the sky suddenly changed—
The Pipi Shrimp had already drawn near.
Ren stood at the bow, facing the raging wind. His triple-enchanted trident and the Pseudo–Gáe Bolg were planted in the deck at his feet.
Lightning flashed across his face, illuminating a sharp, cold expression filled with killing intent—
And in the next instant, he pressed down the Soul-Shattering Horn.
BLA—AARRP!
The thunderous noise ripped through the sea, startling nearby pirates. Those sharp enough to sense danger fired in panic—
But before their cannonballs could even reach the enemy, Zoro leapt high and drew his three blades.
Three-Sword Style: Crow—Demon Hunt!
A torrent of fiery swordlight tore through the storm, cleaving every incoming cannonball apart.
Zoro landed upon the sea. Frost Walker froze solid beneath his feet, forming icy stepping stones, and he sprinted across them toward the enemy ship.
"Kill him, now!"
The pirates ignored Ren's ship and turned every cannon toward Zoro, muskets flaring in unison.
Meanwhile—
Ren had already donned the Potara Earrings, merging into his dual form. A Mana Crystal shattered between his fingers.
Armor of Glory!
At the bow, space itself seemed to bend. Within a ten-meter radius, light twisted and flowed toward Ren.
An "angel" clad in radiance re-emerged upon the mortal world. The armor, forged from sunlight itself, gleamed with flowing runes of golden light. His body swelled to a towering three meters, and faintly glowing wings of pale gold unfurled behind him.
In the pounding rain, both golden gauntlets gripped their weapons. Riptide Surge triggered, channeling rainwater as the angel shot skyward.
Nojiko steered the Pipi Shrimp through the pirate formation while Nami, clutching her Magical Clima-Tact, unleashed black spheres one after another—
Her very last stock.
Whizz—!
Razor-edged swordlight sliced the curtain of rain, splattering blood across the deck.
In a mere ten seconds, Zoro had slain over twenty men aboard one ship. The remaining pirates cowered in corners, trembling—
Then saw a blazing light streak across the heavens.
"Get out of the way!"
Zoro vaulted upward, using the pirate ship itself as a springboard to rush deeper into the fleet.
Ren had only one goal—decapitation.Zoro's task—distraction and chaos.
Boom—!
A thunderclap erupted as one of the ships was struck. A bolt shot from Nami's black sphere, frying a dozen pirates mid-dance as their bodies convulsed under the current. The golden glare carved beauty out of agony.
Similar scenes unfolded across the fleet.
Not bad.
Ren's gaze swept over the carnage. Riptide Surge lifted him higher, carrying him above the Sabre Ship.
"What is that?"
"Can't see clearly—it's wrapped in light!"
"Is that… a Thunder God?"
The pirates aboard the Sabre Ship pointed upward, fear dawning on every face.
"Judgment of Thunder!"
Ren's cold eyes dropped.
His radiant gauntlet tightened around the Gáe Bolg and aimed at the panicking crew below.
Fate Lock — Target: Pirates!
Scarlet light streaked downward—lightning followed.
The very air sizzled, arcs of electricity converging on the spear, transforming it into a living bolt of thunder.
"AAAAHH!"
"Lightning! Lightning!"
"The Thunder God's wrath is upon us!"
Thunder and brilliance danced wildly across the Sabre Ship, arcs leaping from body to body as if alive, laughing.
Every second, more pirates fell—bodies pierced and charred where the thunder-lance passed.
Hundreds were reduced to ashes in moments; the deck became a blazing inferno.
Only the roar of thunder remained.
"What's happening?!"
Inside the cabin, Don Krieg's eyes widened. His men spasmed and burned one by one, leaving behind nothing but the stench of death.
What… what kind of weather was this?!
He had no answer—
Until the ceiling above him shattered.
A gale and torrential rain tore through the cabin as a radiant figure descended—an angel clad in luminous armor, pale-gold wings spreading wide enough to blot out the storm.
"Krieg?"
Ren's voice was ice. His gaze fell upon the man in gilded armor, purple-haired, holding a massive golden spear.
Yes. Target confirmed.
"Who are you?!"
Even as he spoke, Krieg lifted his arm and fired a missile. "Gas bomb!"
The shell burst midair, scattering a dozen razor-tipped darts.
Pointless.
Ren swatted them aside with a single sweep of his glowing gauntlet—like brushing away flies.
Then he lunged.
Savage Charge!
BOOM—!
The cabin wall exploded, splinters flying. Krieg was hurled backward, slamming into the mainmast.
The Leaping Thunder Spear halted midair, zig-zagged like a living serpent, and curved neatly into Ren's waiting hand.
"How shall we proceed with this… delightful torment?"
Ren dragged the scarlet lance across the deck, the tip screeching as it carved a burning line—just like Krieg's shortening lifespan.
"B-bastard!"
Krieg staggered up, gripping his spear.
At that moment, another pirate ship slammed alongside, disgorging hundreds of men.
"Boss! Don't be afraid, we're here!"
"Who is that?!"
"I think he's the one who summoned the lightning!"
As realization spread, silence fell.
That figure—wings of light, thunder under command, a field of charred corpses—was no mere man.
He was a god of thunder.
Some pirates instinctively stepped back.
The captain leading the reinforcements looked from Krieg's battered form to the "god" upon the deck.
His feral grin melted into a sheepish smile.
"Uh… Captain Krieg, we'll, uh, grab tea another time."
Before he even finished, the entire group turned tail, hauling their ship away at full speed—never looking back.
Krieg stood frozen, jaw slack. Even a ruthless schemer like him—who'd sell his own men for a shield—was dumbfounded.
He hadn't even betrayed them yet… and they'd already sold him out!
Still, plenty of loyal fools remained. Another ship soon drew near—
Ren's eyes flashed. He hurled the Gáe Bolg.
Lightning danced like serpents, leaping from hull to hull, annihilating every ship foolish enough to close in.
And then—
Krieg roared, surging forward. His one-ton golden spear swept out in a massive arc, the air howling from the pressure.
Ren didn't dodge. He raised one hand to meet it.
BOOM—!
A massive explosion engulfed him, flames swallowing the angel whole.
"HAHAHA! You fell for it! That spear's rigged to explode!"
Krieg yanked back the weapon to strike again—only to find it wouldn't budge.
The smoke cleared.
Ren still stood there, hand gripping the golden spear. His armor was dimmer—but unbroken.
He wasn't attacking. He was testing his strength.
Terror gripped Krieg. He triggered another mechanism; flames spewed from a gunport on his wrist, racing up the spear toward Ren.
The heat drove the rain itself away.
But in the next instant—
The flames were torn apart by radiant gold. The massive spear shattered in Ren's grasp.
He charged, shoulder lowered like a raging bull.
"Spiked Cloak!"
Krieg's face twisted as his steel cloak unfolded into rows of spikes—
But all he saw next was a golden fist filling his vision.
Weak! Weak! Weak! Weak!
Ren's eyes were glacial, his punches mechanical and merciless. Each blow hammered the spikes flat, the shockwaves blasting through Krieg's armor into flesh.
Blood sprayed across the deck with every strike, until the final punch drove Krieg's head halfway through the planks below.
"—Hah!"
Ren exhaled, stretching slightly. "Good workout."
Nearby, the other pirate ships had already been annihilated by the coursing thunder-spear.
Zoro, landing on the deck, glanced at the crimson weapon stuck beside Ren's feet. He stepped aboard.
"Done?"
"Half-dead," Ren replied. "Let's see if we can pry Krieg's treasure map out of him."
His glowing body began to shrink, returning to normal size, though the Armor of Glory still shimmered faintly.
"What about Nami and the others?" he asked.
"They bailed after the lightning barrage," Zoro said, looking toward the surrounding fleet—
Where chaos was already spreading.
Krieg's defeat had shattered morale. Some thought of rushing in to rescue him—But against that thunder-wreathed giant who'd felled their captain?
What was there to gain?
Nothing.
So instead—
The Don Krieg Pirates began turning on one another.
"Heh. Pirates. Decapitation really is the cleanest method," Ren muttered, shaking his head.
Then his gaze caught movement at the far horizon—
A black, hexagonal skiff, single-masted, shaped like a throne.
Ren turned toward it instinctively—
And a burst of violent green light filled his vision.
Heaven and earth were swallowed in emerald fury.
The beam split sea and sky, as though a dragon had breathed its rage upon the world. It cut straight through the Sabre Ship's center.
A hurricane howled from both sides, shredding every vessel too close.
Even the sea itself split apart, revealing a bottomless trench.
Flying Slash!
Someone this powerful—in the East Blue?!
Ren shielded Zoro as the blast hurled them hundreds of meters away onto another ship.
When the endless sword aura finally faded, the sea closed again—Leaving behind a perfectly straight path through the waves.
(End of Chapter)