Buster Call

This time, Kuzan's attitude was especially firm. Even when Yaen repeatedly weakly claimed that he was unwell and unable to get out of bed, Kuzan refused to give up.

"Yaen, this is Admiral Sengoku's order. Please don't make things difficult for me," Kuzan said coldly, his attitude worlds apart from before.

Yaen frowned slightly. He sensed that Kuzan seemed... to be in a bad mood. His stance even made it seem as though, if Yaen refused again, he would resort to force.

Having long understood the principle that if he could not refuse, then he could only accept, Yaen slowly climbed out of bed and said, "Then... then I'll do it myself."

"Mm. Let's go."

Kuzan nodded. He did not seem particularly anxious, instead slowly leading Yaen toward the deck.

"Vice Admiral Kuzan, you seem to have something on your mind," Yaen asked.

After a brief silence, Kuzan said, "I just learned that a friend of mine has deserted the Marines, betraying the justice we had always protected."

Vaguely, Yaen guessed who the friend Kuzan was referring to might be.

Jaguar D. Saul!

A Marine vice admiral from the same generation as Kuzan, he was quite well-known in the Marines for his strong sense of justice and cheerful, optimistic personality.

At the same time, he was also an important figure in the impending Ohara Incident—a giant who had voluntarily left the Marines out of pure empathy, attempting to save Ohara.

In every sense, whether physically or spiritually, he was a giant.

Willing to abandon everything he had once upheld in order to save others, even readily offering up his own life—Jaguar D. Saul was that kind of giant!

"Is that so?"

Yaen's tone also sank somewhat. After a moment of silence, he continued, "Although I don't know exactly whom Vice Admiral Kuzan is referring to, if he can be called your friend, then he must be a man with a personality similar to yours. Perhaps he hasn't betrayed justice at all, but has instead been following his own justice all along?"

Kuzan stopped in his tracks. His eyes narrowed behind his sunglasses as he abruptly turned to look at Yaen.

Yet Yaen still looked pale and weak, as though those deeply meaningful words had merely slipped out by accident.

Under Kuzan's gaze, Yaen struggled to force a broad smile. "Vice Admiral Kuzan, am I wrong?"

"Perhaps."

Kuzan answered in a low, calm voice.

Then Kuzan fell silent, leading Yaen all the way onto the deck.

Having stayed indoors for who knew how many years, Yaen instinctively squinted in discomfort as the long-unseen sunlight shone into his eyes.

Just then, alarms erupted across the warship. It seemed an important order had been received, and the many Marine Soldiers, as though they had expected it all along, took up their positions.

"The Buster Call has begun," Kuzan said calmly.

The next moment, the roar of cannon fire rang out without end.

"Bang! Bang! Bang..."

As Yaen gradually adjusted to the sunlight and his vision returned, countless cannonballs filled the sky like dense raindrops before falling upon the beautiful, tranquil island before them, where the five-thousand-year-old Tree of Knowledge stood at its center.

"Boom! Boom..."

Countless shells exploded across Ohara Island. In the blink of an eye, the beautiful island was swallowed by smoke and flames.

"Yaen, do you know what a Buster Call is?" Kuzan asked.

The flames spreading across Ohara Island reflected in Yaen's eyes. Expressionless, he answered, "I do."

Perhaps to explain it to Yaen, or perhaps to convince something else, Kuzan said calmly, "This island is Ohara, known as the 'Holy Land of Archaeology' and renowned throughout the world. It was originally a respected island, but unfortunately, the scholars on it violated the World Government's taboo by secretly researching Ancient Weapons capable of destroying the world."

"Because of this grave crime, and in order to prevent this evil ideology from spreading and plunging the entire Great Sea into chaos, the World Government had no choice but to use a Buster Call to completely snuff out this evil ideology here."

Yaen nodded expressionlessly without saying anything.

In truth, based on memories from his previous life, Yaen knew perfectly well that Ohara's scholars had merely wanted to investigate the Void Century.

As for the accusation of researching Ancient Weapons, when the World Government charged Ohara with that crime, Ohara had better truly possess Ancient Weapons. Otherwise, this would be the only outcome.

What an all-too-familiar sense of déjà vu...

Heavy-hearted, Yaen sighed inwardly.

But that is the World Government's hegemony. It is clearly just an alliance formed by fewer than two hundred nations, yet the very fact that it calls itself the "World Government" is enough to demonstrate its dominance.

Unfortunately, Ohara's scholars had devoted themselves wholly to academic research and failed to understand the World Government's true nature. They thought that even if they were discovered by the World Government, at worst, only the leaders would die.

But the World Government would never allow ideas or actions that might shake its hegemony and rule to exist. To make an example of them, it would allow the entire Ohara Island to meet destruction beneath the Buster Call's cannon fire.

Just as Yaen stared at the flames blazing across Ohara, lost in thought, a massive figure burst out from the raging inferno.

"Saul?! What is he doing here?" Kuzan said in disbelief.

Although Saul looked vastly different from his imposing days as a Marine vice admiral—his clothes tattered, his hair disheveled, and his appearance utterly miserable—Kuzan still recognized him at a glance.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

As Sauron's massive body appeared, the Marine Soldiers aboard the Warships instinctively swung their Cannon Platforms around and aimed at him. A barrage of shells rained down on Sauron.

Facing the overwhelming Cannon Fire, Sauron did not slow in the slightest. He clasped his hands together as though shielding something and forced his way forward through the violent explosions.

Yet even with Sauron's unparalleled giant physique, he still found it difficult to endure the Cannon Fire from so many Marine Warships.

"Damn it... then don't blame me for getting rough."

Sauron spun around, placed the little girl Nico Robin, whom he had been protecting in his palms, onto the ground, then shielded his vital areas with one hand. In an instant, he forcibly charged before a Marine Warship docked near the shore.

The next moment, amid the Marine Soldiers' collective cries of alarm, Sauron directly lifted that Marine Warship—weighing who knew how many tons—into the air!