Reinforcements

"It's you?" Akainu asked, surprise flickering in his eyes.

Issho's expression did not change. Even before a Marine Admiral, he showed no fear. "What an honor to be remembered by a Marine Admiral."

He descended slowly, and the cone-shaped stone beneath his feet crumbled to dust.

It had clearly been assembled through his control of gravity, not carved into shape. That detail alone showed how terrifyingly precise his command of his Devil Fruit ability was.

Issho tapped the ground with his sword sheath. Purple rings of gravity began to affect the area around him.

Rocks and magma were still raining down from Akainu's Great Eruption. Then they stopped abruptly in midair, turned by an invisible force, and flew back the way they had come before falling into the sea.

"You are far too violent. You've injured many of my men."

Akainu gave a cold snort. "They'd deserve it even if I killed every last one of them! The crimes these scum have committed couldn't be atoned for even in hell."

Magma bubbled from his crimson left hand, and the heat sent the air rippling.

Hot wind blew across Issho's face. He gripped his Gravity Blade firmly with both hands. "Under my watch, I haven't heard of them killing any civilians. On the contrary, they've treated the people of their own lands well."

Issho liked to call the region spanning Hachinosu, Wano Country, and Gran Tesoro a nation. Its residents included the pirates' families and children, as well as the people who had lived there before.

Ever since Swain had pushed through sweeping reforms and issued new policies,

the pirates had not dared take so much as a needle or thread from a civilian. They were also required to help anyone in need, free of charge.

At first, the pirates had