Indiscriminate Bombing

After Lynn developed the Hero Fruit, his combat style had already settled into a fixed pattern—one that pursued extreme ferocity and violence.

But that didn't mean Lynn was a muscle-headed brute.

To escape the arena smoothly, Lynn had spent nearly four years planning today's riot.

His plan encompassed the gladiators, the guards, and even the Celestial Dragons.

In Lynn's plan, breaking through the arena's blockade was already a certainty.

But after that, an insurmountable mountain stood in Lynn's way.

That was the most powerful official armed force on this sea—

The Marines.

Among the gladiators were plenty of wanted criminals of the World Government. Once news of the rebellion inside the arena spread, the World Government would inevitably dispatch Marines to suppress it, for the safety of the Celestial Dragons and nobles.

And because this was a Great Incident concerning the Celestial Dragons' safety, the Marines would likely deploy Admiral-level combat power.

A Marine Admiral—that was the strongest frontline force on this sea!

Lynn knew well that he was not yet strong enough to face a Marine Admiral.

His only choice was to throw Sabaody Archipelago into chaos before the Marines' main force arrived, then seize a ship and set sail!

So for the rebels now, every second was precious.

Lynn slapped Tiger's shoulder. "Boss of Fish-Man District, break out with us, then go home!"

Tiger froze for a moment, then clenched his fists, veins bulging as he growled, "Yeah. Home."

One man, one fish-man, followed the gladiators as they charged through the shattered wall.

Outside, Sabaody Archipelago was in chaos from the arena rebellion.

This was the situation Lynn and the gladiators had planned long ago.

Without harming civilians, they would cause as much disruption along the way as possible—ideally throwing the entire Sabaody Archipelago into turmoil—then scatter and break out!

Though the gladiators wanted to stick with Lynn, doing so would make them too big a target, easily surrounded and wiped out.

Lynn headed due south with Tiger, aiming for the port directly south of Sabaody Island Three.

Two Marine soldiers stood in the road ahead, raising their guns.

"Stop! Don't move!"

Bang! Bang!

Lynn and Tiger each sent the two Marines blocking their path flying, then kept sprinting forward.

A rumbling echoed from afar.

That Giant Tribe gladiator had grabbed a crate of cannon shells, aimed at the nobles fleeing in the distance, and hurled it with all his might!

With a few thunderous booms, neighboring Island Four fell into chaos as well.

Meanwhile, sounds of commotion erupted all over Island Three, where the arena stood.

Marine soldiers were ordered to protect the nobles while hunting down the escaped gladiators—they simply couldn't be in two places at once!

Everything was unfolding according to Lynn's plan.

Once the gladiators blended into the crowd, without their Explosion Collars, they were no different from ordinary people. The Marines couldn't possibly track them all.

As for the most conspicuous Giant Tribe gladiator, he had already seized a large ship and, taking advantage of the Marines' distraction, was the first to make it out to sea.

"Don't panic! Evacuate the civilians in an orderly fashion!"

A Marine Major General was directing the soldiers via Den Den Mushi. Until an Admiral arrived, he was the highest temporary commander on Sabaody Archipelago.

"Forget nobles or civilians for now—get the people off Island Three as fast as possible!"

Just as the Major General was doing his best to command, a clatter of chains sounded.

An elderly Celestial Dragon wearing a bubble helmet rode his slave, accompanied by guards, up to the Major General.

He looked down, towering over the Marine Major General.

"The criminals?"

"Not caught yet." The Marine Major General frowned. "We don't have enough stationed troops, and the rebels are mixed in with the crowd. For the people's safety, we have to hold off on arrests until the Admiral arrives. But we will definitely—"

Bang!

Before the Major General could finish, the elderly Celestial Dragon struck him across the face with his cane.

"I asked you—where is the criminal who attacked my nephew, Saint Almace?!"

The Marine Major General gritted his teeth and answered, "They're scattered across Island Three. Capturing them will take time."

"Blow them up." The elderly Celestial Dragon spat out a single sentence.

"What?" The Major General froze.

"Blow them up!" the elderly Celestial Dragon roared. "Aren't they still on this island? Then use the fleet's cannons to blow them up!"

The Marine Major General lowered his head, clenching his jaw. "But there are still many civilians on this island who haven't evacuated..."

Bam!

Another cane strike slammed into the Marine Major General's head.

"The lives of those scum—how could they compare to my nephew, how could they compare to the honor of the Celestial Dragons! I'll make them pay with their lives!"

The elderly Celestial Dragon roared, "Use the cannons to blow them to pieces for me!"

The Marine Major General stood there, pressing down on the brim of his cap, refusing to utter another word.

"Do I have to do everything myself? What are you all fed for?"

The elderly Celestial Dragon gestured, and a guard suddenly snatched the Den Den Mushi from the Marine Major General's hand, presenting it with both hands to the old Celestial Dragon.

He opened the Den Den Mushi and issued orders to all Marines stationed on Island Three.

"I am Saint Cainmas. As a Celestial Dragon, I command you to bombard every port on Island Three. Let those great sinners who dared to harm my nephew know their mistake!"

"I want them to regret being born into this world!"

At the same time, the Marines stationed on Island Three and the naval vessels surrounding it all heard this order.

They were Marines; obeying orders was their duty, and this order came from the command Den Den Mushi, issued by a Celestial Dragon.

Thus, even though many had doubts about the command, they began loading ammunition and turning their cannons toward the ports of Island Three.

Saint Cainmas gripped the Den Den Mushi and bellowed, "Fire!"

Boom! Boom! Boom...

In an instant, over a dozen ports large and small around Island Three were simultaneously pounded by fierce Marine artillery fire!

Explosions, flames, and smoke instantly engulfed the ports of Island Three, along with the crowds fleeing for safety.

The panicked screams of civilians rang out across every corner of Island Three.

Boom!

A cannonball landed, and the smoke from the explosion filled the streets.

Lynn and Fisher Tiger burst through the smoke, sprinting south toward the port.

Tiger growled, "Have the Marines gone mad? There are civilians all around here—how dare they launch indiscriminate bombardment!"

Lynn frowned deeply.

The Marines would never issue such an order on their own. The only ones with the authority and qualification to command an indiscriminate naval bombardment were the Celestial Dragons.

Lynn had thought that beating Saint Almace unconscious would leave Island Three temporarily without a Celestial Dragon to command the Marines, but he had clearly miscalculated.

After all, who could have guessed that Saint Cainmas would happen to visit the Colosseum to see his nephew today?

But it was too late for regrets now.

Several cannonballs exploded on both sides of the street.

The shockwave from the blast destroyed a building, sending a five- or six-year-old child tumbling to the ground. Intense pain and terror left the kid unable to get up, lying there wailing loudly.

At that moment, another cannonball landed toward that spot!

Seeing this, Lynn's legs exploded with force as he shot forward like an arrow from a bow.

Boom!

The cannonball exploded!

Through the smoke, Lynn grabbed the crying child and carried him to safety.

"Go now, stay away from the port!"

The Marines' bombardment was concentrated on the ports, so the farther from the port, the safer it was.

Once the child had run off, Lynn and Tiger continued their desperate sprint forward.

"Almost there!" Tiger looked ahead, where the port was now visible.

At the port, a Marine battleship was even docked.

Tiger clenched his fists. With his and Lynn's combat strength, they could easily seize a Marine battleship and set sail.

But Lynn suddenly reached out and stopped Tiger.

This battleship was too quiet.

There was no sound of cannon fire from it, not even any Marines.

When something was out of the ordinary, there had to be a catch.

Just as Lynn and Tiger were on high alert, a figure leaped from the battleship's deck and crashed down onto the ground.

Boom!

The ground cracked, and smoke billowed.

The burly figure slowly rose from the smoke.

Short purple hair, a Justice Cape draped over his shoulders.

He lit a cigarette, took a light drag, and blew out a smoke ring.

"I was supposed to be leading a training ship on patrol exercises around the area, but then I suddenly got word that a Celestial Dragon had been attacked."

"What a hassle. Even though I'm an instructor now, I still hold the rank of Admiral, so I've got to do what needs to be done."

"Hey, you over there—the kid and the Fish-Man. You wouldn't happen to be the culprits, would you?"

A Marine Admiral had descended upon Sabaody Archipelago.