You can read ahead up to 30 chapters on my Patreon: https://www.p*treon.com/darkshadow6395
"Let's fight our way out, Captain Aion!"
"If this keeps up, we're done for. Every escape route has been sealed off by the Marines!"
"The longer we drag this out, the more Marine reinforcements will arrive."
From within the building, whose doors and windows were tightly shut, low roars echoed.
Some twenty to thirty people were packed tightly into what had once been a spacious hall. They were all members of the Ironbone Pirates. After repeatedly losing ground in clashes with the Marines, they had pulled back repeatedly, finally taking refuge here.
Now, facing the Marines' encirclement, the atmosphere was heavy and tense.
"What if an Admiral shows up?" A trembling voice rang out, making everyone freeze as fear surfaced in their eyes.
The Sabaody Archipelago was close to Marine Headquarters. Causing trouble there was the worst possible scenario as there was a real chance of facing an Admiral level powerhouse here.
At that moment, a man in his thirties with a ferocious scar running across his cheek and wearing a captain's hat turned back and suddenly laughed.
"What are you all afraid of? We didn't provoke the Celestial Dragons so why would an Admiral be that bored to come here."
"Besides, if you really think about it, this whole mess was caused by the Johns Pirates, that bunch of lunatics. The Marines' main forces are concentrated in Area 32."
After taking a deep breath, a cruel grin appeared on Aion's face.
"We stayed here on purpose, just to gather all these Marines together... And then wipe them out in one clean sweep."
Everyone froze for a moment, then collectively let out a sigh of relief.
"So many crew members have died. This grudge can't go unanswered!" Aion's cold voice echoed.
He glanced at the pile of civilian corpses stacked like a small hill behind him, licking his lips.
Killing civilians was meaningless—only slaughtering Marines could vent the rage in his heart.
"It should be about time. Get ready to move!"
Aion peered through the window at the Marine units only about fifty meters away. He bared his teeth in a grin and stood up.
"Kill every last one of these Marines! Cut off their heads and pile them into a mountain of skulls!"
That single sentence caused the pirates behind him to become excited and bloodshot-eyed.
However, the instant his words fell...
Boom!
...the ceiling above their heads shattered violently and split clean in two. Countless splinters of wood and chunks of stone rained down on them.
Screams instantly filled the air.
On the spot, more than a dozen pirates were injured or killed outright. Aion froze for a split second, then flew into a rage.
At the same time, the Colonel in charge of the encirclement outside was equally stunned.
"Who did that?! I haven't given the order to attack yet!"
The Colonel stared in disbelief at the Marine suspended in midair, his right leg chopping downward and his mind went blank.
His eyes were filled with shock.
After all, the building that the pirates were hiding in was six stories tall, yet that figure's single kick had almost split the entire structure in half.
"Such a terrifying Rankyaku... I've never seen anything like it!"
The figure vanished once more the very next second.
When Kōjin reappeared, he was standing in the middle of the Ironbone Pirates.
Dust billowed everywhere, obscuring everyone's vision.
"It's the Marines!" A shout rang out, followed immediately by a barrage of gunfire.
"Tekkai!"
Kōjin's muscles tensed all over his body. When bullets struck his body, they sounded like metal clashing with metal; causing the bulletheads to twist and deform.
"Is this guy a monster?!"
Seeing that the bullets couldn't pierce his body, the pirates' eyes widened in disbelief.
But Kōjin gave them no time to react as his figure flashed.
When he reappeared, he was already standing in front of one of the pirates. He clamped a hand around the man's head and slammed it straight into the ground.
Bang!
A thunderous impact echoed as dust exploded upward. The entire building trembled, and the others staggered, unable to keep their footing.
Aion's pupils shrank, and fear flashed in his eyes.
He watched the man in the Justice coat crush the skull of a formidable companion with that single motion.
"You've got to be kidding me!"
Barence was a major pirate with a bounty of 180 million!"
In the next instant, however, Aion witnessed a scene he would never forget.
The young Marine, whose name he didn't know was moving so fast that Aion couldn't see him clearly.
With just a single kick, the vice-captain with a 200-million-Belly bounty was sent flying out of the building. He smashed through more than a dozen structures before crashing heavily onto the ground.
The rest were even less able to resist.
In the blink of an eye, they were all dead.
Some had their kidneys pierced, while others had their foreheads penetrated; each death was swift and clean.
From start to finish, it took no more than fifteen or sixteen seconds to finish the fight .
The entire Ironbone Pirate Crew was wiped out, leaving only Aion alive.
"D-demonic monster…!"Aion trembled as he spoke.
"Oh?"
Kōjin smiled faintly as he turned to look at the lone captain remaining.
"I like your compliment."
Aion took a deep breath, forcing himself to overcome his fear. He then stared at Kōjin with manic eyes.
"I'm different from them! I'm an Ironbone Devil Fruit user, my bones and body are as hard as steel!"
Kōjin raised an eyebrow and chuckled softly upon hearing that and in the next second, he vanished.
Soru!
When he reappeared, he was already right in front of Aion, he was close enough to clearly see the blank, stunned expression on his face.
"Grip."
The Seastone gloves clenched tightly and let out a faint sound.
At present, he could only faintly sense the Busoshoku Haki and had not yet fully mastered it. Therefore, these gloves were his strongest weapon against Devil Fruit users.
"Fist of Bone!"
"Shock!"
Kōjin's justice coat fluttered behind him as he threw a punch.
There were no flashy moves... just a simple, decisive strike.
In the next instant, the Seastone glove struck Aion's cheek.
The body, said to be as hard as steel, caved in like water, deforming instantly before collapsing straight down. When it hit the ground, it produced another thunderous bang.
The entire six-story building trembled violently, and dust rained down everywhere.
Kōjin slowly straightened his bent waist, looked at Aion, who was now barely recognizable as human and shook his head.
"I overestimated you."
Then, he kicked through the wall in front of him and passed straight through the ranks of stunned Marines.
"Salute!"
"Thank you, Senior Officer!"
The leading Colonel's eyes burned with excitement as he spoke.
Kojin waved his hand and left with Rosinante and T. Penn.
Comparing the list in his hand with the constantly updated positions reported by Rosinante, Kojin moved toward the remaining Supernova.
Over the next half hour, he effortlessly wiped out two more pirate crews.
Then, he received word through the Den Den Mushi that the Johns Pirates had been captured by Vice Admiral Nardel.
"In that case, only one group remains."
He looked at the only pirate crew on the list that hadn't been crossed out in red.
"They're in Area 45."
"Not far from here," Rosinante said.
Kōjin raised his head and let out a soft sigh.
"Dealing with a pirate crew that can actually be considered kindhearted really puts me in a complicated mood."
T. Penn looked at his superior and hesitated. "Then, Senior Officer, you...?"
"Our ship is still short a few trainee Marines to do chores, isn't it?"
Kōjin replied with a question of his own.
T. Penn: "???"
Rosinante, however, burst out laughing before saying. "So I won't have to do miscellaneous work anymore!"
Kōjin snorted.
"A trainee Marine does trainee Marine work."
"Rosinante, don't think too much."
(End of Chapter)