World Destroyer

At the same time.

On the blood-red cliffs, the towering Red Line rose so high it seemed to pierce the heavens.

Mary Geoise, the Holy Land.

Buildings with blue roofs and white walls stood in neat rows, and the streets were spotless.

Lush vegetation, rock gardens, fountains, and artificial gardens surrounded magnificent, ancient buildings perched on small hills amid birdsong and flowers, like something out of a fairy tale.

This was the Land of the Gods in the Holy Land of Mary Geoise—the home of the noble, sacred, and mighty gods.

Suddenly, a cry of utter horror shattered the peace and quiet of the Land of the Gods.

"This... How is this possible?!"

Inside one of the magnificent buildings in the Land of the Gods, an official in charge of managing the Celestial Dragons' daily lives turned deathly pale and dropped to the floor, his entire body trembling uncontrollably.

His voice quickly drew the attention of the other officials.

The moment they rushed into the building's main hall, they saw a Vivre Card slowly burning to ash. They nearly forgot how to breathe, their minds going blank.

"Saint Childers..."

"That's Saint Childers's Vivre Card..."

"According to the latest intelligence, he was in the North Blue and had only just boarded the government ship back, hadn't he?"

"This... How is this possible..."

The officials exchanged fearful glances. Their throats bobbed as they swallowed, their mouths so dry they felt as if they were on fire.

Saint Childers, a Celestial Dragon... was dead.

"Quick! Report this to the Five Elders!"

The official at the head of the group jolted, forced himself up on unsteady legs, and got to his feet with gritted teeth, shouting an order.

The news spread quickly.

Mary Geoise was suddenly gripped by fear. CP Agents in suits darted through the streets like ghosts, while the Holy Land's guards galloped along the spotless roads, leaving the residents trembling in terror.

The officials looked toward the Stairway to Heaven, fear in their eyes and a storm raging in their hearts.

A sacred, noble Celestial Dragon was dead.

It was the first time since the "God Valley" incident eight years ago that a "god" had fallen on these seas.

North Blue, a stretch of sea.

The sky was dark, and roiling black clouds churned like a massive wall about to collapse.

Torrential rain enveloped the world. The warship pitched beneath the raging waves, as if an invisible giant were tossing it into the air again and again.

Rumble!!

Dense volleys of cannon fire burst from the warship's guns. Muzzle flashes flared one after another, and the black barrels glowed red from the heat.

The roar of cannon fire and explosions lit the distant sea with violent flashes, while towering columns of water surged into the sky.

"Byrnndi World! You won't get away!"

On the warship, Sengoku—wearing black-rimmed glasses, with his black beard tied into a braid—planted one foot on the bow and glared at the pirate ship in the middle of the bombardment, roaring.

The mighty downpour crashed from the sky and splashed off the deck, shrouding the warship in a layer of mist.

The Marines on deck worked quickly to load ammunition into the heavy cannons despite the downpour. Each shot made the warship shudder.

"Gyahahahaha! Sengoku, you're still a long way off from capturing me!"

On the pirate ship, a burly figure stood at the bow with his arms crossed, sneering.

He wore a bright red captain's coat and a horned helmet. His gray-green beard quivered as he laughed, and a deep, powerful aura radiated from him.

The "World Destroyer," Byrnndi World!

Captain of the World Pirates, with a bounty of 200 million Beli!

A legendary pirate, a man who stood on equal footing with Whitebeard and Roger!

Shells exploded around the pirate ship, sending seawater spraying through the air as thick smoke billowed.

But Byrnndi World paid it no mind. He simply glared at the warship with a savage look, then suddenly curled his lips into a cruel smile.

"When it comes to firepower, I've never lost to anyone."

His figure vanished from where he stood, as if he were a phantom.

A shadow seemed to dart through the dense curtain of rain, moving so fast that it briefly left a long, empty gap in the downpour.

The next second,

Byrnndi World had appeared on the other side of the deck, both hands braced against a cannon.

"Men! Change course! Let those lackeys of the World Government see what the World Pirates can do!"

He shouted.

"Roar!!!"

The World Pirates' crew raised their arms and cheered, their eyes alight with fervor.

Amid the raging waves, one pirate gripped the wheel and turned it with all his might.

"Attention! Hard to starboard!"

As soon as the words left his mouth,

The pirate ship groaned as its hull tilted sharply amid the storm and the bombardment.

The deck slanted. The pirates clung tightly to the slick railings to keep from falling into the sea.

Rain splashed across the deck.

Byrnndi World gripped the cannon like a pair of iron clamps. As the ship tilted, the fixed barrel gradually swung around to aim at the massive warship.

"We just sank a government ship carrying a Celestial Dragon pig... Was it really worth chasing me for a whole day and night?"

He clicked his tongue in disdain, then laughed wildly into the downpour.

"Come on, Sengoku! Let me show you... the power to destroy the world!"

He yanked the cannon's lanyard.

Boom!!

A pitch-black cannonball blasted from the barrel, tearing through the curtain of rain.

"More-More 50x Cannon!"

With Byrnndi World's cold shout, an invisible force seemed to spread outward.

White shockwaves expanded from the cannonball as it roared through the air.

Then an unbelievable sight unfolded—

The cannonball racing through the sky suddenly began to swell and multiply. In the blink of an eye, its size had increased dozens of times!

The black cannonball, now more than twenty meters in diameter, sped up as well. After reaching the peak of its arc, it plunged toward the warship where Sengoku stood!

It fell so fast and with such force, its sheer size so immense, that friction with the air produced waves of scarlet heat. From afar, it looked like a meteor bursting through the clouds and plunging from the heavens!

This was... Byrnndi World's power!

The More-More Fruit allowed him to increase an object's speed and size.

And because its speed and size both multiplied, the cannonball's destructive power increased exponentially as well.

It was no exaggeration to say that if this cannonball struck and exploded, its blast could easily wipe a town off the map!

Scarlet light spread across the sky above them, while a vast shadow abruptly engulfed everyone aboard the warship.

A fierce blast of wind pressed down from above. The entire warship sank under its force, and cracks snapped across the deck.

"Damn it!"

Sengoku roared, his eyes bloodshot.

If that cannonball hit the warship, the Marines aboard—including him—would be swallowed by the wrath of the sea.

His boots slammed against the bow, and Sengoku shot into the sky like a cannonball.

A brilliant, magnificent golden light blazed overhead.

The Marines watched in shock as their Admiral transformed in an instant into a gigantic golden Buddha. He struck the enormous cannonball plunging from the sky with a palm from afar.

"Great Buddha Impact!"

Boom!!

A vast golden shockwave slammed into the cannonball.

The world fell silent for a brief second before a deafening explosion erupted in the sky.

A fireball more than a hundred meters across rose into the air. Countless fragments of the cannonball rained down on the warship like a hail of fire.

Sengoku returned to his human form in midair. His expression shifted, and he shouted:

"Borsalino!!"

"I know..."

A languid voice rang out through the storm, and a streak of golden light shot into the sky.

"Yasakani no Magatama."

Light bullets rained down from the sky, sweeping through the falling cannonball fragments. Roiling flames lit up the darkened heavens.

Through the thick smoke, Sengoku landed steadily.

The wind scattered the smoke. He stared at the pirate ship fleeing into the distant storm, gritted his teeth, and was just about to order pursuit.

A hoarse voice suddenly sounded behind him.

"Call off the pursuit. Something's happened."

Sengoku frowned.

A CP0 agent wearing a mask with strange patterns hurried out of the cabin.

The CP department and the Marines had jointly led this operation against Byrnndi World. The intelligence had come primarily from Cipher Pol.

"Retreat? We've driven Byrnndi World into a corner, and the notorious waters of the North Blue lie ahead. In weather like this, he can't escape!" Sengoku argued.

But the CP0 agent shook his head.

"Byrnndi World no longer matters."

He took out a Military Den Den Mushi and handed it to Sengoku.

An old, sinister voice slowly emerged from the Military Den Den Mushi.

"Sengoku, withdraw immediately."

Sengoku froze, then instinctively replied:

"Five Elders, the operation is about to succeed. The great pirate Byrnndi World has entered the ambush zone exactly as planned. If you give me a little more time—"

He didn't get to finish. The person on the other end cut him off without ceremony.

"We order you to withdraw immediately!"

Sengoku was furious and asked, unable to understand:

"May I ask why? The Government and the Marines have spent enormous resources and effort on this operation..."

"Saint Childers died in the North Blue."

The Five Elders' voice from the other end of the Den Den Mushi left Sengoku rooted to the spot.

A Celestial Dragon... was dead?

How... could this be...

"Sengoku, as the only serving Marine Admiral at Marine Headquarters, your urgent task is to investigate the cause of Saint Childers's death. Understood?"

"Everything else is unimportant."

The Five Elders' voice brooked no argument.

On deck, drenched by the downpour, Sengoku took a deep breath. The rain had doused the fire in his heart.

"I understand."

He gritted out the words.

The CP0 agent put away the Den Den Mushi and turned to walk back into the cabin.

At that moment, countless golden particles gathered beside Sengoku, quickly reconstructing into a human figure.

He was unusually tall, dressed in a yellow-and-white striped suit, wearing oversized frog sunglasses, and sporting a full beard.

A Rear Admiral, one of the new generation of Marine "monsters"... Borsalino.

"Should I keep after them, Admiral Sengoku?"

Borsalino glanced at Sengoku's grim expression and drawled.

Sengoku glared at the World Pirates, now vanishing into the distant storm. Then he suddenly slammed his fist into the railing, smashing it to pieces.

"No need. Turn back."

He gritted his teeth, the words forced through them, his expression unbearably grim.

Borsalino was his adjutant, and quite powerful—far stronger than an ordinary Vice Admiral.

But compared with a great pirate like Byrnndi World, who could stand on equal footing with Whitebeard and Roger, he still had some ground to make up.

If Sengoku sent him after World alone and he failed, falling into Byrnndi World's hands, it would be a loss Marine Headquarters couldn't afford.

A future Marine Admiral—a man with monstrous talent—couldn't be allowed to come to harm.

What Sengoku hadn't expected was that, after using so many resources and so much effort, they'd come within a hair's breadth of capturing Byrnndi World, only to end up with such a crushing defeat.

He wasn't willing to accept it.

But Sengoku also understood that he couldn't refuse the World Government's orders.

A Celestial Dragon had died in these same waters.

With Marine Headquarters now having only one Admiral, he had no choice, whether by duty or reason, but to set aside all other tasks and investigate.

But...

"Who in the North Blue would dare attack a Celestial Dragon?"

Sengoku stood in the downpour as the rain beat against his slightly pale face.

His expression darkened and brightened by turns as he fell into thought.