You've Crossed the Line

North Blue.

Rubeck Island.

The sky hung heavy and mournful.

Bang, bang, bang...

Rumble...

Gunfire and cannon blasts thundered without pause through the town as hundreds upon hundreds of figures fought furiously in the streets.

Civilians screamed in terror, fleeing with their hands over their heads as cries and sobs filled the air.

One building after another went up in roaring flames beneath the bombardment, then collapsed with a crash.

The searing flames spread like enormous crimson wings, licking at the belly of the sky.

"Damn the Donquixote Family!! Rubeck Island belongs to the Fils Family!!"

"You've crossed the line!!"

A man in a newsboy cap, black overcoat, and suit slashed the throat of a pirate charging at him, then roared in fury.

The pirate's blood splattered across his face, staining his white shirt crimson. His bloodshot eyes fixed on the blond brat in the distance.

The boy looked around eleven or twelve, stood barely four and a half feet tall, and wore sunglasses, a white shirt, and cropped trousers. His short hair was blond.

Though he was still a mere brat, his face wore a smile so vicious and cruel that even the head of a mafia family like Fils feared him.

Donquixote Doflamingo!

A brat who had appeared out of nowhere, ruthless and cold-blooded.

Relying on his formidable strength, he had led the Donquixote Family in causing trouble ever since arriving in North Blue. They had already ruthlessly wiped out several well-known mafia families on nearby islands, seized all their territory, and recruited more men. Their power was expanding at an astonishing rate.

"Fuffuffuffuffu..."

Hearing Fils's words, Doflamingo laughed as if he'd heard the most ridiculous joke imaginable, clutching his belly and doubling over.

The Donquixote Family officers beside him couldn't help laughing, either.

Trebol, sticky all over and gripping a cane, with two strings of snot dangling from his nostrils;

Pica, standing there like an iron tower, his body packed with bulging muscles;

Diamante, dressed like an indigenous tribesman, his face painted in a riot of colors;

And Vergo, with a piece of steak still stuck to his face and a blank expression.

"Crossed the line?"

Doflamingo grinned viciously, looking utterly unconcerned as he said with exaggerated emphasis,

"No, no. I haven't crossed the line."

Seeing his family's men fall around him, groaning, Fils grew more and more anxious.

After recruiting more men over the past few months, the Donquixote Family far outmatched the Fils Family in both the strength of its members and its supply of weapons.

At this rate, the Donquixote Family would wipe them all out in less than ten minutes!

He tightened his grip on his bloodied longsword and gritted his teeth.

"The boundaries between mafia territories are clearly defined, and everyone keeps the peace. No one is allowed to cross into another's territory... That's the rule in North Blue!"

Doflamingo grinned viciously.

"No. You still don't understand what I mean."

"Rules are shackles imposed by the strong on the weak. They're cages meant to imprison the incompetent, the mediocre, the useless, and the trash!"

"I haven't crossed the line..."

He licked his chapped lips, spread his arms, threw back his head, and laughed cruelly.

"Because the whole of North Blue belongs to me!!"

"The rules of this world mean nothing to me, Doflamingo!!"

As he laughed, hundreds of Donquixote Family members grinned viciously too. Armed with rifles, cannons, battle-axes, and longswords, they surged into the Fils Family ranks like a pack of hungry beasts.

In an instant, blades clashed and blood flew.

A deep, glaring crimson slowly bloomed across the streets, once bustling with life and voices.

"You're asking for death!!" Seeing this, Fils's eyes blazed with rage as he roared.

He stamped on the ground. As the floor shattered beneath his foot, he shot forward at incredible speed, covering more than fifty feet in the blink of an eye and appearing before the arrogant blond brat.

He gripped his bloodied longsword in both hands and brought it crashing down toward Doflamingo's face with tremendous force!

The blow was so powerful that the blade left a white wake in the air as it swept through.

A flash of killing intent crossed Fils's eyes.

He could already picture it: the head of that reckless blond brat before him would be split open by his strike!

But just as the longsword was about to fall, Fils's pupils suddenly shrank.

He saw a sneer.

On Doflamingo's face—and on the faces of his men—was the mocking smile of a cat toying with a mouse.

Clang!!

A brilliant spark suddenly burst into view. Fils's bloodshot eyes trembled violently, disbelief spreading across his face.

His blade... had stopped dead three centimeters from Doflamingo's forehead. It wouldn't come down any farther!

As if something invisible in the air had blocked his longsword with all its might.

At the point of impact came a sharp, grating sound, like blades locked in a struggle.

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

Fils swallowed, his throat dry as he spoke.

Looking at the blond brat's faintly amused expression, his heart suddenly began pounding.

It felt as if an invisible hand had clamped around it.

"Fuffuffuffuffu... This is so boring..."

Doflamingo gave a sinister cackle and suddenly curled one finger like a claw.

Fils's pupils shrank to pinpricks.

The sound of a blade slicing through the air erupted without warning.

The instant it rang out, Fils's chest seemed to be sliced open by an invisible sword. A vast spray of blood burst from it.

Sshk!!

Hot blood gushed from the wound in his chest, deep enough to expose bone, and splattered across Doflamingo's face. It made his young, arrogant features look twisted and demonic.

Fils's face gradually turned deathly pale, and he slowly fell to the ground.

The blood pouring from his body spread beneath him, forming a horrifying pool.

"You... crossed... the line... Darren... the Navy... won't... let you... get away..."

The dim sunlight was blotted out by a savage, twisted face. All Fils could see was shadow.

Cold, dark, bloody, twisted shadow.

"The Navy?"

Looking down at the mafia family leader of Rubeck Island, Doflamingo sneered.

"I'm actually looking forward to it..."

As he spoke, Doflamingo slowly raised his foot.

His pointed shoe... came crashing down on Fils's head!

Thud!

A muffled sound rang out. Fils's head burst like a watermelon, red and white mixing together in a pulp.