Chapter 11: Gathering Storm on Sabaody
Chaos reigned across the Sabaody Archipelago. Though the attacked Celestial Dragon had been retrieved from the auction house, the three Supernova crews—Straw Hat, Kid, and Law—had broken through the initial Marine cordon and scattered into the lawless groves.
The Celestial Dragon, Saint Shalulia, was incandescent with rage. "You useless trash! All of you, worthless! Where is the Admiral?! Why hasn't an Admiral arrived yet?!" she screamed, spittle flying at a trembling Marine Commodore.
The Commodore kept his head bowed. "The headquarters warship is already en route, Your Holiness!"
"Who is coming?!" Shalulia demanded, her face twisted. The humiliation of the day, the sight of her brother being beaten… it was unforgivable.
"It… it is…" The Commodore hesitated, terrified. It was the new Admiral, not one of the established three. He feared Shalulia would see it as an insult, a sign the Marines weren't taking the incident seriously. A complaint to the Five Elders with that angle could cause even Fleet Admiral Sengoku immense trouble.
"It is Admiral Black Crow, Your Holiness!"
"That newly promoted nobody? What is the meaning of this?! Do you believe I won't take this to the Elders?!" Her suspicion was immediate.
"Admiral Black Crow is… is reportedly extremely powerful," the Commodore stammered, having no real evidence but needing to say something.
The news that a Marine Admiral was inbound sent a wave of panic through the archipelago. Pirates of all stripes fled for their ships or hid deeper in the mangroves. Even merchants and bounty hunters cleared out, knowing the arrival of the Marines' ultimate combat power meant an explosion of violence was imminent. For the rookies gathered here, it was a potential death sentence.
"Damn those Straw Hats!" Jewelry Bonney growled around a mouthful of meat, her expression furious. "Starting a fight with a Celestial Dragon now? They're all insane!" Their actions had drawn the eye of a monster onto all of them.
The green-haired, three-sword-wielding pirate nearby shared her sentiment. Do they have any idea what an Admiral means? he thought grimly. Who's coming? If it's Akainu… we're not getting out of this easily. A sense of foreboding gnawed at him, mingled with confusion over the actions of Bartholomew Kuma.
"An Admiral, huh? Now that's interesting. I'd like to see that," Scratchmen Apoo said, his piano-key teeth flashing in a wide grin.
"Captain Apoo, this is no joke! That's a Marine Admiral! We need to leave!" his crewmates pleaded.
"Maybe it's the new one. Could be a good chance to test his tune," Apoo mused, his bravery bordering on foolishness.
"Captain, we really should go!"
"Today is not a day marked for death. No need for concern," Basil Hawkins stated calmly, consulting his tarot cards.
"Hmph. Now is not the time for a direct confrontation with an Admiral," Capone "Gang" Bege grunted, making his way toward the coast with his crew.
Unbeknownst to them, someone had arrived on the island even before the Admiral's warship was spotted.
And that someone had already clashed with Luffy, Kid, Law, X Drake, and Urouge…
"Oh? Kizaru isn't coming this time?" mused Sentomaru, the large, ax-wielding, barefoot commander of the Marine science unit. He found it strange. With several Admirals available, only the "old man" (Kizaru) was usually stationed at HQ. Fleet Admiral Sengoku had instead dispatched their lab, which was located near Sabaody, to move in first. Their mission: to field-test the new human weapons, the Pacifistas. Each one was said to be worth a battleship.
"No. It seems the new Admiral at headquarters might be the one to come. Whatever. Let's just capture the Straw Hats and the others first!" Sentomaru decided, confident. He figured the Admiral was mainly coming to placate the Celestial Dragons. With the Pacifistas here, rounding up these rookies shouldn't be a problem.
The battle erupted swiftly.
"Damn it! Who is this guy? A twin of Kuma?!" Luffy yelled as his crew faced off against a Pacifista. The entire Straw Hat crew combined struggled to bring down a single unit in a short time. A flying, steel-bodied machine that shot devastating lasers from its mouth and palms was a nightmare. It had immense durability, shrugging off powerful slashes from Zoro and a barrage of blows from Luffy without fatal damage.
In the waters near Sabaody, three Marine warships cut through the sea.
"Oh, so we've got backup already? Not bad. Though it seems a bit unnecessary," Levi commented idly as he received the latest updates from headquarters via Den Den Mushi.
Whoosh!
Before the lead warship had fully docked, Gion leaped from the deck, executed a graceful mid-air flip, and landed flawlessly on the shore.
"Nice legs," Levi remarked.
You bastard crow! Gion thought, her Observation Haki letting her hear the comment perfectly clearly. Well… it's just looking. Not a big deal. She shot a look back at Levi that clearly said, Get over here. Don't wait for the gangplank.
Sentomaru had already located Luffy and the others and relayed the coordinates. They needed to move quickly to prevent an escape.
Levi's expression soured. He couldn't make a leap like Gion's without using Reiatsu for propulsion, which felt like overkill for a simple dock-to-shore jump. "No need to rush. None of them are getting away. Let's treat it like a working vacation… enjoy the scenery of Sabaody!" he called out.
BOOM!
A cannonball exploded not fifty meters from the dock, shredding the picturesque floating bubbles and sending up a plume of black smoke.
"Are you getting off the ship or not?!" Gion's voice was flat, her patience visibly thinning. Her respect for protocol was fraying under his nonchalance.
"The ship isn't fully docked yet…"
Gion could only wait, exasperated. Is he really not taking this seriously at all? This is his first official mission! She watched, almost feeling physical pain, as he finished arranging his snack tray.
Finally, the ship was secured. Levi stepped onto the soil of the Sabaody Archipelago.
[Sign-in completed: Sabaody Archipelago. Reward: 1,500 Attribute Points.]
A small, private smile touched his lips. Now, let's see what other points this place has to offer.
✨✨I will release an extra chapter for every 5 reviews !!! ✨✨
Or
For every 50 power stones 🥳🥳