BOSS Lynn versus Black Arm Zephyr.
The battle lasted less than three minutes.
The final result:
Lynn was gravely wounded and near death, while Zephyr suffered minor injuries.
Yet the victor had not been decided.
The duel was ultimately interrupted by explosions from the bombardment.
By order of the Celestial Dragon Saint Cainmas, the Marines were indiscriminately shelling every port on Sabaody Island Three!
The Sabaody Archipelago was not merely a haven for pirates; it was also a famed tourist destination.
Although Islands One through Twenty-Nine were all lawless zones, Island Three was somewhat special.
Thanks to the Sabaody Arena, Island Three had developed a thriving tourism industry, and the surrounding ports were packed with visitors from all over the world.
But now, under the indiscriminate bombardment ordered by the Celestial Dragons, these once-prosperous commercial ports had become a sea of fire!
Ruined walls and shattered buildings lay everywhere, destroyed by shells.
The explosions ignited blazing fires, and beneath the raging flames, screams rang out without end.
"Destroy every port! Do not allow a single rebel to put to sea! I will punish them severely and send them all to the gallows!"
At the thought of his nephew Saint Almace's miserable state, Saint Cainmas's face twisted with fury.
He struck the slave beneath him with his cane and roared angrily:
"Bombard them! Keep bombarding them!"
At the same time—
The southern main port where Lynn, Fisher Tiger, and Zephyr stood was likewise subjected to fierce bombardment.
Many residents had no time to evacuate and could only hide in the corners of their homes, praying that the shells would not hit their houses.
But faced with such intense carpet bombing, it was only a matter of time before the entire port was flattened!
Zephyr had only just arrived at the Sabaody Archipelago earlier and had been distracted by Lynn. Now that he came to his senses, he was utterly enraged by the Marines' actions.
Indiscriminately shelling civilians? What did those bastards think the uniform they wore meant?!
"Brat, the duel is over. I have more important matters to attend to!"
With a grim expression, Zephyr took out his Den Den Mushi.
"By my authority as former Marine Admiral Zephyr, I order you to stop the bombardment immediately!"
Zephyr's anger had reached its limit as he roared, "You are bringing shame upon the Marines!"
"Teacher Zephyr!"
The Marine Major General on the other end of the Den Den Mushi finally saw hope. He could no longer bear to watch shells fall upon the civilians he had sworn to protect, and hurriedly waved to signal the artillerymen.
"Cease fire!"
"Do not stop!"
Another voice rang out. It was none other than the Celestial Dragon Saint Cainmas!
"You dare defy the orders of a Celestial Dragon?"
Saint Cainmas picked up the Den Den Mushi and said coldly to Zephyr on the other end, "You are a former Marine Admiral? Then why are you not capturing the rebel who injured my nephew?!"
"The Marines will handle the capture operation, so some nobody like you should stop insulting the Marines!" Zephyr looked toward the bombarded port and ordered, "All Marines, your first priority is to rescue civilians!"
"Your first priority is to uphold the dignity of the Celestial Dragons!"
Saint Cainmas roared into the Den Den Mushi, "Marine Admirals serve directly under the Celestial Dragons and must obey the orders of the Celestial Dragons!"
Zephyr was so furious that veins bulged on his forehead. In the end, his rage turned into laughter.
"Haha, no wonder Garp refused to be promoted to Admiral."
Zephyr felt a profound sense of helplessness.
Indeed, Marine Admirals were directly subordinate to the Celestial Dragons. Therefore, even Zephyr could not disobey a Celestial Dragon's orders.
The Marine soldiers on the island could only grit their teeth and continue the utterly absurd bombardment.
Their hearts were bleeding.
Whoosh!
Boom! Boom!
Shells landed not far from the three of them, blasting most of a nearby house apart.
In the corner of that house, a mother and daughter crouched against the wall, trembling.
They had been fortunate that the previous shell had not struck them, but so-called indiscriminate carpet bombing allowed no room for luck.
Whoosh!
Another shell came flying in. With only a slight adjustment in its trajectory, it was about to land where the mother and daughter were.
In that instant, all three of them reacted.
However, Lynn was severely wounded and could not move at all;
Zephyr was half a beat too slow due to his position and could not reach them in time;
Only Fisher Tiger was closest to the mother and daughter!
Without the slightest hesitation, the towering crimson Fish-Man charged forward, then leaped into the air and placed himself before the mother and daughter.
A heavy punch, dozens of times stronger than a human's, slammed into the shell!
Boom!
The shell exploded, leaving Fisher Tiger with minor injuries.
He turned around and looked at the mother and daughter.
"It's all right now."
However, when the mother saw that the one who had saved them was a Fish-Man with sharp fangs—especially the Hoof of the Celestial Dragon on his chest—her expression changed instantly.
Fisher Tiger reached out to help them up, but the mother instinctively screamed, "No! Please don't hurt us!"
"Mm."
Fisher Tiger's outstretched hand froze halfway.
Just as Fisher Tiger was dejectedly preparing to turn and leave, the little girl in the mother's arms suddenly grabbed one of his fingers.
"Th... thank you, Mister."
Fisher Tiger looked at the little girl, who was only four or five years old, and asked in confusion, "Aren't you afraid of me?"
The little girl shook her head. "Mister saved Mommy and me. Mister is a good person!"
The mother came back to her senses as well. Looking at Fisher Tiger, she stammered, "I'm sorry, sorry, um... thank you!"
"Heh, don't mention it." Fisher Tiger grinned and rubbed the little girl's head. "It's dangerous here. Run toward the interior of the island and stay as far away from the port as possible."
"Thank you!"
The mother rose while holding her daughter, then bowed to Fisher Tiger.
Fisher Tiger watched the mother and daughter run out of the shelled area before returning to Lynn's side and supporting him once more.
"I don't understand." Fisher Tiger was puzzled. "Why do you kill each other? Aren't you all humans?"
"Life has always been like this. There are the strong and the weak, the good and the evil."
Clutching his chest, Lynn said, "Humans are like this, Fish-Men are like this, everything in this world is like this."
Zephyr also laughed a few times, though he was clearly in a terrible mood. "Well done, Fish-Man. Now I need to teach that bastard who keeps insulting the Marines a lesson."
With that, Zephyr prepared to leave, but Lynn reached out and stopped him.
"Teacher Zephyr, are you going to stop the Celestial Dragon?"
Zephyr nodded.
"If I am not captured, he will not stop the bombardment," Lynn said calmly.
Zephyr clenched his fists and grinned. "Then we will just make him temporarily unable to give orders."
What Zephyr meant was physically "unable to give orders."
"Attacking a Celestial Dragon is a grave crime," Lynn said.
"To me, insulting this Marine uniform is the real grave crime!" Zephyr replied.
Lynn thought for a moment, then suddenly said, "Teacher Zephyr, let me borrow your Den Den Mushi."
"Hm?" Zephyr was somewhat puzzled, but he still took out the Den Den Mushi and handed it to Lynn.
Lynn activated the Den Den Mushi and cleared his throat.
"Hello? Hello? Can you hear me?"
A moment later, Saint Cainmas answered from the other end, "Is that the former Admiral? That voice is wrong. Who are you?"
"Me?" Lynn smiled. "I am the one who injured Saint Almace. I just seized this Den Den Mushi."
"It's you!"
Saint Cainmas was instantly enraged. "I will lock you in the deepest prison beneath the sea and make you regret ever being born into this world."
Lynn grinned. "Is that so? Then come and try!"
Saint Cainmas's voice turned cold. "Do you know what those words mean?"
"I know very well."
Lynn drew a deep breath. Ignoring the internal injuries wracking his body, he roared into the Den Den Mushi:
"I am BOSS Lynn Barik!"
Lynn's voice echoed across all of Sabaody Island Three through the Den Den Mushi!
"I hereby declare war on the Celestial Dragons!"
Before you continue