"Stop the ship!!!"
"Prepare for landing operations!!!"
"Those damn bastards! I'll make sure they die without a grave!!!"
Above the surging White Sea, CP0's masked commander watched as Marine Admiral Kizaru · Borsalino was entangled in midair by three mysterious cloaked men. Beneath the mask, his expression instantly darkened.
The moment the Marine battleships approached the vicinity of God Island, he issued his orders.
With a thunderous crash, the heavy anchor plunged into the floating White Sea.
In the blink of an eye, countless Marines and agents kicked off the air, producing continuous puff-puff sounds as they sprinted through the sky toward the very center of God Island!
"Move, move, move!!!"
"Don't let them escape!!!"
At this moment, even Vice Admiral Momonga, who had previously harbored misgivings about CP0, raised his long blade and charged at the very front of the formation.
Regardless of how one felt about the Celestial Dragons, exterminating pirates was the Marines' sworn duty.
…
…
"They're here!"
At the same time.
Already fully prepared, the Straw Hat crew snapped to attention as dense clusters of white figures suddenly appeared across the sky.
Red spoke calmly:
"Luffy, see the guy wearing the mask with the white teardrop mark?"
"He's your opponent."
"Be careful. His strength is no less than Ace's—this isn't someone you can take lightly."
"No worries!"
"Shishishi~!" Wearing an Akatsuki cloak, Monkey D. Luffy swung his arms excitedly, his eyes gleaming with anticipation.
After all…
In all their previous training sessions, he had never once defeated Fire Fist Ace.
But that was because those were just training matches—they'd never gone all out with their true trump cards.
And now, this was the perfect chance to test his absolute limits!
Step!!!
Flame-like Haki patterns burst across Luffy's body.
Like a baseball smashed clean out of the park, his figure shot upward, flying straight toward the Hyperspace Hole Red had opened in the sky.
"Gum-Gum—Jet Serpent Cannon!!!"
BOOM!!!
The strike arrived before the sound.
Sensing the sudden gale roaring beside his ears, CP0's strongest agent froze for a split second—
And then, two jet-black heavy fists appeared as if by teleportation, slamming into his side.
"What!?"
"Tekkai!!!"
A pitch-black coating of Armament Haki instantly enveloped his body, hardening it to an extreme degree.
BOOM!!!
The devastating blow sent him flying like a meteor, smashing straight into the White Sea beyond God Island's perimeter.
"Captain!!!"
The other two CP0 agents cried out in alarm.
But at that very moment, a scorching presence surged like a vortex, swallowing them both whole.
A massive fireball formed, trapping them inside a blazing inferno.
"Where do you think you're going, gentlemen?"
"Your opponent… is me."
The flames rapidly condensed, forming the figure of a bare-chested man.
Freckles dotted his smiling face as light danced in his eyes.
"Fire Fist Ace!!!"
The two CP0 agents halted midair at once.
Compared to worrying about their superior, the man who had executed a Celestial Dragon—Fire Fist Ace—was far more tempting a target.
At the same time Luffy and Ace made their moves, Red and Nico Robin manifested enormous wings behind them and soared into the sky.
On the ground, Tony Tony Chopper instantly shifted into his reindeer form, hooves leaving afterimages as he charged toward a Marine vice admiral.
Though his level wasn't particularly high and his base stats hadn't yet reached the level of a rear admiral, with the enhancement of Rumble Balls and the seed-based items Usopp had given him, his actual combat strength was by no means inferior to that of an average vice admiral.
Red pointed toward three unfamiliar vice admirals in the distance and said to Robin:
"Robin, those three… I'll leave them to you."
Robin hesitated. "But Red… six vice admirals—can you really handle them?"
"Handle them?" Red grinned. "Why would I need to?"
"With me as your Trainer… my job is simply to create a fair training environment for all of you, isn't it?"
The instant his words fell, brilliant lightning wrapped around Red's body.
He stepped forward—
And vanished straight into a pitch-black, mysterious Hyperspace Hole.
CRACK!!!
From Red's hand—now transformed into a half-beast form—terrifying lightning erupted, spearing through the Hyperspace Hole like a lance and piercing the last vice admiral in the formation.
Overwhelming electrical energy poured into him without restraint.
"AAAAAAH!!!"
"Stainless!!!"
The vice admirals charging ahead halted abruptly, turning back with alarm.
SWISH!!!
A sharp blade flash cut through the air, forcing Red to retreat backward into another Hyperspace Hole.
The one who had struck was none other than the lightning-scorched vice admiral—
Vice Admiral Stainless.
"Still fighting after being pierced by lightning…"
Red reappeared before the vice admirals, his masked face exuding an eerie presence.
"As expected of the Marines' backbone."
"But I regret to inform you all~"
"Beyond this point is a restricted zone. Unauthorized personnel must stop~"
"Who are you people?!"
"Why are you siding with Fire Fist Ace?!"
Vice Admiral Momonga demanded sharply, blade gleaming with cold light.
"Us?" Red smiled faintly.
"You can call us Akatsuki."
"The dawn that pierces the darkness and brings light~"
"And yet, as Marines, you're trying to stop us from eliminating the embodiment of evil that is the Celestial Dragons…"
"Vice Admiral, the justice you carry on your backs—can't you hear it crying?"
"Enough talk!"
Momonga barked fiercely.
"The Marines' duty is to maintain peace and stability on the seas!"
"And eliminating you is fulfilling that duty!!!"
"Moonwalk · Charge!"
Momonga kicked the air, launching himself forward like a cannonball.
But Red merely stepped back—
And disappeared once more into a Hyperspace Hole.
At the same time, a clear shout rang out from afar.
"Glitzy Glow!!!"
Robin, flapping her Cien Fleur: Phantom Wings, timed it perfectly.
Just as all the vice admirals focused on Red's disappearance, a terrifying psychic shock slammed into each of their minds.
In an instant!
Their heads felt as if struck by sledgehammers—dazed, disoriented, their Moonwalk collapsing as their bodies fell helplessly downward.
Without the qualifications for Conqueror's Haki, even vice admirals possessed only marginally better mental resistance than ordinary officers.
"I'll take these three."
"Cien Fleur: Big Net!!!"
Robin smiled lightly as she bound three of the weaker vice admirals with her Devil Fruit ability—
Then vanished in a blink, carrying them away from the battlefield.
Though Robin herself hadn't reached vice admiral level, the sheer power and unpredictability of Psychic-type techniques made stalling and control more than feasible.
Elsewhere, a nimble figure burst out from God Island's dense forest.
"Jump Boost!"
Chopper, now in humanoid form, rocketed upward like a missile.
Cloaked and slender-bodied, his legs were thick and powerfully trained.
Midair, his form shifted again—
His body shrank, but his antlers extended enormously, larger than his entire frame.
"Antler Boost · Tri Attack!!!"
Strange violet-pink energy pulsed at the center of his massive antlers.
And by sheer coincidence—
His target was the already-injured Vice Admiral Stainless.
"AAAGH!"
The unfortunate vice admiral was struck again.
The tri-colored energy wrapped around him like ropes, binding him tightly.
Fire, lightning, and ice—
The three energies of Tri Attack slammed into him once more, combined with Chopper's antler charge.
But Chopper had no time to think.
He immediately extended his wrist.
"Green Demon · Vampiric Vines!!!"
A thorn-covered vine shot forth from the latest Green Demon device on his arm, wrapping around Stainless as if alive.
Green light flashed in Chopper's eyes.
"Bursting Bloom!!!"
BOOM!
The vine swelled violently before detonating against Stainless.
Though the explosion wasn't as devastating as Red's lightning strike, its secondary effect—
Leech Seed—
took root in his body.
Unless he defeated Chopper quickly or escaped its range…
Defeat was inevitable.
Blasted backward, Stainless crashed into the forest below.
"Red, help me!"
As Chopper began free-falling, Red opened a Hyperspace Hole beneath him, sending him straight toward his opponent.
With his strength already severely reduced, Stainless was the perfect sparring partner for Chopper.
"Now then…"
Red turned his gaze to the remaining six vice admirals.
"These ones are mine."
Momonga frowned deeply.
"Be careful. These people are dangerous!"
Vice Admiral Doberman gripped his sword tightly.
"Daring to take on six vice admirals alone…"
"Boy, you're far too arrogant!"
"Haha~"
"Lapdogs of the Celestial Dragons don't deserve my respect."
Red sneered, deliberately provoking them.
As expected—
Six blades locked onto him, their combined pressure crashing down like a mountain.
A decisive battle was about to begin.
Then—
Red vanished.
"Hyperspace Hole!!!"
Black spatial wormholes opened before the charging vice admirals.
Four of them were swallowed instantly.
Momonga and Doberman barely escaped with Moonwalk.
"Where did you send them!?"
Red pointed casually at the ground.
"Back where they came from~"
(End of Chapter)