Watching Roger's Execution at the Start

The pirates in the tavern dropped like dumplings into a pot.

"What...?"

The onlookers left standing had no idea what had happened. A gust of wind had brushed their faces, and the pirates who had been shouting moments ago were foaming at the mouth, unconscious. Some were bleeding from every orifice, their lives already gone.

"Hey! Are you blind? Can't you see the person right there?"

In the Lawless Zone of Area 2, a sharp-faced, shifty-looking man barked orders at the black-suited thugs behind him. Before them stood a terrified girl of seventeen or eighteen.

"What a shame. Of all people, he had to set his sights on her..."

"Who is he?"

"Keep your voice down! He's the man behind Sabaody's largest human auction house. They say he has Celestial Dragons backing him."

"Tch. Looks like that girl isn't getting away today..."

Hearing the whispers around her, the already terrified girl burst into tears. She seemed to see the life of slavery awaiting her.

"But isn't she a tourist?"

A burly man behind the sharp-faced man sounded reluctant.

"Kehahaha! Hutton, where did this sudden compassion come from? Think of your wife and daughter lying sick in bed!"

The words struck a nerve. Hutton clenched his fists so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

"What a prize... The Celestial Dragons will love her. Mary Geoise happens to be short on slaves lately, too. Hehehehe!"

"Urgh..."

Before the sharp-faced man could step forward, something seemed to strike the back of his head. Warm liquid began flowing from his ears, nose, and throat.

Thud.

The same scene played out across the Sabaody Archipelago. It was as though an eye in the heavens watched over every island, passing judgment on evildoers all at once!

Don't Waste Food on Them, Either

Grand Line, Area 51 of the Sabaody Archipelago.

"Hm? That presence..."

A disheveled young man with gray-green hair prowled the area, trying not to draw attention.

His name was Gild Tesoro. He was in Sabaody, fresh out of Mary Geoise.

To Tesoro, the so-called holy land was a nightmare he never wanted to remember. But the presence that had just swept over Sabaody seemed to belong to the person who had saved him in Mary Geoise.

"Forget it. I can ask around later. Right now, I need to find a ship and get away from this awful place."

Beautiful as the Sabaody Archipelago was, Tesoro could not feel at ease in the Celestial Dragons' backyard. It brought back too many memories of his life as a slave.

He did not know exactly what he would do next, but he knew his goal: make money!

If he had been rich, he would not have let the Celestial Dragons buy Stella.

If he were rich, even the Celestial Dragons would have to curry favor with him!

If he had been rich, his life would never have been so miserable!

Money was the most wonderful, most useful thing in the world!

Tesoro's hunger for money had grown nearly obsessive. In his eyes, every misfortune he had suffered came down to one thing: poverty.

"Vice Admiral, what was that...?"

As the Sabaody coast drew closer, Majors still could not make sense of what Atlas had done.

"My Conqueror's Haki knocked out most of the criminals. Take the soldiers and bring that trash here," Atlas said lazily. "If any of them are still alive."

"Conqueror's Haki... can do that?"

Majors's throat went dry. He swallowed.

Wasn't Conqueror's Haki only good for clearing out small fry?

It was hardly Majors's fault for thinking so. As a Marine Colonel, he had little chance of entering the circles of those who possessed Conqueror's Haki, and his understanding of it was limited. Besides, some of its wielders saw it as no more than a sign of their potential and knew little of its power themselves.

"Well, combine it with Observation Haki and you can strike precisely. It's easy."

After taking two slashes coated in Conqueror's Haki from Rayleigh, Atlas had learned to use his own power with greater flexibility. Otherwise, attacks this precise over such a wide area would have carried a serious risk of hitting bystanders.

"Yes, Vice Admiral!"

Majors accepted the order, ignored Atlas's boasting, and led the soldiers ashore in orderly fashion.

The soldiers were eager. They had heard the exchange between Vice Admiral Atlas and Captain Majors, and they knew they were about to collect the credit for a job already done. They could hardly wait to get started.

"Never expected old Rayleigh to be away from Sabaody. Did he go to Amazon Lily?"

Atlas watched the Marines leave and muttered to herself. She had wanted a fight with Rayleigh, but even after searching everywhere with Observation Haki, she had found no trace of him.

Her guess was that Rayleigh had discovered the Hancock sisters were from Amazon Lily and had taken them home with Shakky.

What a shame...

The Lawless Zone, Areas 1 through 29.

Pirates lay everywhere. Almost all had rolled-back eyes and foam at their mouths; a few bled from every orifice, as though they had taken a heavy blow to the head.

This was the sight that greeted the Marines when they reached the Sabaody Archipelago.

"That's 'Demon' Nick. Seventy million bounty. Unconscious, but alive!"

"Whew. 'Butcher' August. Ninety million. This guy killed so many people that most of his bounty came from massacring civilians."

"Hey, it's Carpani, 'the Weeping Hunter.' I heard he's a lunatic. Something's wrong with his head."

As the Marines checked each face, they recognized one infamous pirate after another. Everyone who had lost consciousness was either a pirate or a human trafficker. The precision of the attack left the Marines with even greater respect for their young commanding officer.

"This is... unbelievable!"

Majors nearly lost his composure. Could a mere Headquarters Vice Admiral truly deliver a blow on this scale? He had heard that this monster of a Vice Admiral did not even have an epithet yet.

Akainu and the other two had wide-area attacks thanks to their Logia powers, but striking targets precisely across an entire archipelago? Majors did not actually know whether they could do it. That did nothing to lessen the impact of the scene before his eyes.

Atlas was indeed still a little weaker than the three monster Vice Admirals. Even so, she could fight any of them for ten days and nights, and the winner would remain uncertain. Earning an epithet, however, was no simple matter.

There were generally two kinds of Vice Admirals with epithets: elite Marine Headquarters veterans with enough achievements to their names, and Admiral Candidates.

Admiral Candidates were all but assured of becoming Admirals once they had the strength and military record. An Admiral was known as one of the Marines' strongest fighters; in the end, strength was what mattered.

More than a decade later, Gion and Tokikake would have the seniority to become Marine Admirals, yet the vacancies would be filled through the World Military Draft instead. Either they lacked the strength, or the Five Elders wanted to keep the Marines in check by choosing two people from outside their ranks.

Atlas suspected the former was more likely. In this world, the strong held sway. Only enough power could secure one's place.

"Hurry! There's a live one over here!"

"What? We're out of handcuffs? Get a rope, then!"

"No rope either? Forget it. Cut off their hands and feet and bring them back!"

"...Yes, sir!"

No one had expected their commanding officer to do something so staggering. The warship did not carry nearly enough handcuffs for all these prisoners.

Majors made a quick decision and ordered the remaining prisoners' hands and feet cut off. That would keep them from fleeing when they woke.

The Marines worked efficiently. Before long, they had dragged the bound pirates to the shore where the warship was anchored and awaited Atlas's orders.

"What a bother. More of them survived than I expected."

Atlas eyed the pirates the Marines had hauled in and curled her lip, plainly dissatisfied with the results of her Conqueror's Haki.

She was being too hard on herself. Pirates with enormous bounties were hardly likely to die on the spot from a long-range burst of Conqueror's Haki.

"Vice Admiral, what should we do with them?"

"Check their identities. Then... kill them. No need to send them to Impel Down to waste food."

Purge

"It really is a lot quieter now..."

As usual, Atlas sent her Observation Haki across the Sabaody Archipelago to keep watch.

"Here it comes again..."

In the Lawless Zone, a thin man with close-set features felt the familiar presence. His whole body tensed, his muscles locking up. He did not dare make a single move that might be misunderstood.

His name was Lauren Frost, the newly appointed head of Sabaody's largest auction house. It was his third day in the job.

Despite rising from second-in-command to the top position, Lauren Frost could not bring himself to celebrate. Ever since that devil of a Marine had arrived, the criminals of the Sabaody Archipelago had lived in fear. Forget selling slaves; the pirates barely dared breathe, terrified of drawing the attention of that killer.

The World Government explicitly banned the slave trade. But the Celestial Dragons were the world's biggest slave owners, making the law little more than a scrap of paper.

Lauren Frost had bribed World Government officials to complain and ask them to put a stop to the Marines' actions—or at least transfer Atlas away from Sabaody. All he had received was a lukewarm reply from the Marines. It had changed nothing.

"Damn it. The Celestial Dragons have sent someone to press me again..."

Lauren Frost was even considering packing up and running. Fisher Tiger had recently freed so many slaves in Mary Geoise that the Celestial Dragons, accustomed to owning them, were sending subordinates everywhere to buy replacements.

Sabaody's auction house was one of their largest sources of slaves, so naturally it was on their list.

The auction house existed, and had grown so large, largely because of the Celestial Dragons' support. If it ceased to be useful to them, Lauren Frost knew what would happen to him.

"When's the next slave ship arriving? It should be soon..."

Things had been far too dangerous these past few days, but Lauren Frost had run out of options. He could only take a chance and smuggle slaves into the auction house. That devil of a Marine could not be watching Sabaody every moment.

Maybe he would get lucky... right?

"What a troublesome kid. I really shouldn't make promises I can't keep!"

Seated in his Marineford office, Sengoku set down the phone with a click.

He rubbed his brow. That was the third call from a senior World Government official. Only someone with the standing of a Celestial Dragon could freely order around officials important enough to call Sengoku directly.

All three callers had wanted the same thing: Atlas transferred away from Sabaody.

But stationing Atlas on the Sabaody Archipelago was a crucial part of Sengoku's plan. He was not about to abandon it over a few Celestial Dragons, so he had refused without hesitation.

"That kid certainly knows how to make trouble for me. Still... well done!"

Sengoku's frown eased, and a satisfied smile appeared on his face. The Marines had long resented the warped institution of slavery. To them, it was a stain on justice.

But under the World Government's authority, the Marines could only make small strikes against the slave trade. They neither dared nor were permitted to crack down on a major trafficking hub like Sabaody. Only someone as fearless as Atlas would do it.

Just what I'd expect from someone with Conqueror's Haki...

Sengoku drifted into memory. He saw the passionate young woman who, years ago in this very office, had declared her belief in "the strongest justice."

Area 66 of the Sabaody Archipelago, the Marine base.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Rapid, heavy impacts echoed through the metal-lined training room. Bare from the waist up, Atlas drove her fists forward again and again. She was clearly holding back; at her full strength, she could have wrecked the entire room.

Ordinary training like this did little to improve her now. Its main purpose was to keep her body ready for explosive exertion and reinforce muscle memory. To progress, she needed to keep fighting powerful opponents. Experience and the application of technique were what mattered most to her.

"Vice Admiral! We've spotted a slave ship sneaking toward the Sabaody Archipelago!"

Majors's voice came from the training-room doorway while Atlas was still working up a sweat.

"Hm?"

Atlas could not understand why anyone would still risk crossing her. It seemed time for a thorough sweep, one that would teach those hoping to slip through an unforgettable lesson. No—their final lesson.

With that thought, Atlas picked up her clothes and headed straight for the door.