Chapter Summaries

Lorne and the Fearless withstood the Cross Guild fleet’s bombardment, then unleashed the ship’s main cannons and destroyed nearly half the fleet. Crocodile survived the blast and, consumed by humiliation and fury, rose amid the wreckage.

• Crocodile ordered the Cross Guild’s fifty warships to bombard the Fearless, but its Seastone armor repelled every shot.
• Lorne ordered Olsen to fire the Fearless’s Seraphim Destruction-class Main Cannons as the Soul of Pluton powered the weapon.
• Crocodile tried to make the fleet scatter, but the weapon’s gravitational force jammed the ships’ helms.
• Lorne fired, and the beam vaporized nearly thirty warships and their crews while carving a vast trench through the sea.
• Crocodile survived near the flagship’s wreckage, then surged skyward in a mass of yellow sand as the surviving pirates panicked.

Lorne defeated Crocodile’s fleet and secured the supplies and ships at No. 7 Resource Island. Dragon then warned him that the Holy Knights’ core commanders were mobilizing with an ancient extermination directive for Wano Country.

• Crocodile attacked the Fearless, but Lorne shattered his sand blades and defeated him with a physical punch, forcing the Cross Guild fleet to retreat.
• Lorne let the fleeing pirates carry news of the Fearless to Hawk-Eye and Buggy, while Olsen reported that the battleship was undamaged and ready to charge its main cannon again.
• Lorne ordered Wano’s garrison to seize the thirty abandoned transport ships and their cargo, treat the wounded, and provide lifelong support to families of those killed.
• Ryan received an encrypted call from Monkey D. Dragon, who reported that the Holy Knights’ core legion commanders had assembled and located Wano Country.
• Dragon warned Lorne that the Holy Knights were heading toward Wano with a centuries-old World Government extermination directive.

Lorne prepared the Fearless Empire for a possible Holy Knights attack after his warship destroyed Cross Guild’s fleet near Wano. Crocodile’s defeat prompted Hawkeye Dracule Mihawk to sail alone to Wano and challenge Lorne.

• Lorne ordered repairs on No. 7 Island to be accelerated while Ryan asked whether the Empire should retreat if the Holy Knights attacked.
• News spread that Lorne had annihilated Cross Guild’s fifty warships and severely injured Crocodile with a single punch.
• Sengoku, Tsuru, Sakazuki, and Borsalino discussed the Ancient Weapon’s power, and Sengoku forbade Marine warships from approaching Wano without orders from the Five Elders.
• Buggy lamented Cross Guild’s losses as Crocodile described Lorne’s strength and the Fearless’s Seastone armor to Hawkeye Dracule Mihawk.
• Hawkeye Dracule Mihawk sailed alone from Buggy Island toward Wano Country to test whether Lorne’s fists could withstand his slash.

Dracule Mihawk sailed alone to Wano Country to challenge Lorne, drawing worldwide attention to their impending duel. The two faced off aboard the Fearless, unleashed their immense Haki, and prepared to fight.

• A News Coo spotted Mihawk sailing toward Wano Country, and Morgans ordered a live broadcast of his expected clash with Lorne.
• Shanks and his crew learned of Mihawk’s challenge, but Shanks refused to interfere in their duel.
• Mihawk arrived alone near No. 7 Resource Island, where his clash of intent with Lorne split the sea and cleared the fog.
• Mihawk challenged Lorne to test his body against Black Blade Yoru, while Lorne accepted and dared him to leave a mark.
• Mihawk’s sword energy and Lorne’s golden grit collided above the sea as the two prepared to fight.

Lorne accepted Dracule Mihawk’s challenge to a swordsmanship duel, declaring he would face the World’s Greatest Swordsman with his bare hands. To protect Wano’s port and its workers, the two agreed to move the fight to the uninhabited Beheading Reef, while the world’s news crews and the Red Hair Pirates converged to watch.

• Lorne announced that he would test Mihawk’s swordsmanship bare-handed, shocking viewers around the world and drawing reactions from Sengoku, Akainu, Kizaru, and Tsuru.
• Mihawk warned Lorne that he would not hold back, and Lorne insisted he needed no mercy.
• Ryan and Kuina warned that the duel could devastate Wano’s port, and Carrot spotted an uninhabited island nearby.
• Lorne and Mihawk agreed to fight at Beheading Reef, and Lorne ordered the Fearless to sail there.
• Morgans prepared the special broadcast as the Red Hair Pirates approached the waters around the island.

Lorne and Hawk-Eye began their duel at Beheading Reef, where Hawk-Eye unleashed a devastating sword strike. Lorne met the attack head-on with his bare chest, and the chapter ended as the collision engulfed the island in destruction.

• Lorne ordered his crew to remain aboard and told Kuina to watch the duel for insight into swordsmanship.
• Lorne and Hawk-Eye landed on Beheading Reef as the Marines and viewers around the world watched.
• Hawk-Eye drew Black Blade Yoru and cleaved the island and sea with his opening attack, Black Blade: Flash.
• Lorne strode into the enormous sword wave with his arms spread and his chest undefended.
• Hawk-Eye's strike hit Lorne, and green sword energy and golden Grit swallowed the island in a storm of destruction.

Lorne fought Hawk-Eye on Beheading Reef, healing rapidly from his sword wounds and growing stronger with each injury. As Lorne’s Grit reached its peak, Hawk-Eye prepared a strike with Black Blade Yoru that revealed the true power of his Peak Swordsmanship.

• Hawk-Eye’s Black Blade: Flash cut deep into Lorne’s arms, but Lorne healed the wounds within seconds and grew stronger.
• Lorne attacked with Crushing Blow and a barrage of punches, while Hawk-Eye countered with Black Blade: Wild Blades and other slashes that failed to slow Lorne.
• Pirates and Marines watched the fight on broadcast as Lorne’s regeneration and growing power stunned them.
• Lorne continued pressing Hawk-Eye, whose swordsmanship forced him to block and retreat while Lorne’s wounds healed.
• Kuina recognized that Hawk-Eye was gathering the Peak Swordsmanship needed to sever an island, and Olsen reported that Lorne’s Grit Energy had reached eighty percent.
• Hawk-Eye fused his Armament Haki with his swordsmanship and prepared a supreme strike as Lorne raised his Grit Shield to meet it.

Lorne and Mihawk fought across Beheading Reef and into the sky, with Lorne enduring Mihawk’s sword strikes while adapting through battle. As Mihawk prepared a massive new attack, Kuina watched his swordsmanship and reconsidered how she should train her own will.

• Lorne met Mihawk’s Black Blade with his fists, took wounds, and used his abilities to pull Mihawk into close combat.
• Mihawk escaped Lorne’s crushing embrace and cut his chin with Black Blade: New Moon, while Lorne’s healing ability stopped the bleeding.
• Lorne and Mihawk’s aerial battle battered Beheading Reef, and Ryan told Carrot that Lorne was using Mihawk’s sword intent to grow stronger.
• Kuina studied Mihawk’s precise fusion of Haki and sword intent and realized she had focused too narrowly on cutting physical matter.
• Mihawk accused Lorne of breaking the rules of swordsmanship with his monstrous body, and Lorne replied that the strongest move was whatever crushed the enemy.
• Mihawk launched himself forward with a nearly thousand-meter sword arc and challenged Lorne to withstand his next strike.

Lorne endured Mihawk’s Sky Severance with his bare arms, filling his Grit and rapidly healing as Kuina gained insight into swordsmanship by watching the duel. Mihawk and Lorne then unleashed their strongest attacks against each other, leaving their final clash unresolved.

• Mihawk split Beheading Reef with Black Blade: Sky Severance, and Lorne charged into the slash instead of dodging.
• Lorne took the strike on his arms, suffered severe wounds, and healed as his Grit reached one hundred percent.
• Kuina studied Mihawk’s slash, grasped a new understanding of swordsmanship, and thanked Ryan for letting her witness the duel.
• Mihawk praised Lorne’s toughness and prepared his strongest attack, Apocalypse: God-Slaying Slash.
• Lorne gathered his full Grit into a golden Haymaker as Mihawk brought down his black sword light, and both attacks met in a head-on clash.

Lorne defeated Mihawk’s ultimate sword slash with a golden fist, destroying Beheading Reef in the clash. Mihawk accepted his loss and promised the Cross Guild would stay out of Wano Country and the Fearless Fortress as he sailed away.

• Lorne shattered Mihawk’s God-Slaying Slash, and the clash’s aftershocks caused Beheading Reef to sink beneath the sea.
• Carrot, Ryan, and Kuina watched from the Fearless as the island collapsed, while people in Sabaody and Marineford reacted to Lorne’s overwhelming power.
• Mihawk retreated onto a floating rock, injured and bleeding, while Lorne’s wounds healed completely.
• Mihawk admitted defeat, and Lorne acknowledged Mihawk’s peak swordsmanship.
• Mihawk promised the Cross Guild would no longer interfere in Wano Country or the Fearless Fortress, then sailed away as Lorne spoke of bringing a new order to the seas.

After Mihawk withdrew, Lorne helped Kuina transform her sword intent and reach the threshold of a Great Swordsman before ordering the Pluton · Fearless back to Fearless Fortress. News of Mihawk’s defeat spread worldwide, prompting the Five Elders to launch a secret plan to eliminate Lorne and the Fearless Empire.

• Lorne explained that Kuina should let her sword follow the flow of heaven and earth and strike at a weakness instead of trying to cut through everything.
• Kuina merged her will with Wado Ichimonji, refined her Ryuo Haki, and declared that her sword would protect others and cut through obstacles.
• Lorne ordered Ryan to steer the Pluton · Fearless toward Fearless Fortress.
• Morgans ordered an extra edition proclaiming Lorne’s victory over Mihawk, and the news spread throughout the world.
• The Five Elders judged Lorne a threat and ordered the Holy Knights, Seraphim, and CP0 to begin the top-secret “Heavenly Punishment” elimination plan.

The Five Elders assessed Lorne as an existential threat after learning of his Haki, Pluton, and growing power base, then authorized a massive assault led by the supreme commander of the Holy Knights. As they prepared to root out internal dangers before the expedition, the Bald Five Elder turned the meeting to Lorne’s movements over the past six months.

• The Blond Five Elder reported that Mihawk’s Haki had failed to injure Lorne and that Pluton’s energy pathways and main cannon were active.
• The Scarred Five Elder warned that Lorne was building a government beyond the World Government’s control by uniting Wano, converting Titan Fortress into a military base, and taking over the underground black market’s funding network.
• The Curly-Haired Five Elder ordered Black Crow sleepers in the Marines to activate fortresses and ocean-current controls and prepare to seal sea routes.
• The Five Elders decided to summon the supreme commander of the Holy Knights and secretly transfer perfected Seraphim to the Knights’ headquarters.
• The Curly-Haired Five Elder ordered the Holy Knights, three awakened Seraphim, and the supreme commander to carry out Heavenly Punishment and kill Lorne.
• The Bald Five Elder presented a map of Lorne’s movements and called for the hidden dangers to be rooted out before the expedition.

The Five Elders suspected Monkey D. Garp of leaking World Government secrets to Lorne and ordered a blockade of Marine Headquarters as they began the Heavenly Punishment Plan. Aboard the Fearless, Lorne learned that a powerful presence was awakening near Mary Geoise and prepared for the coming threat.

• The Five Elders connected Lorne’s knowledge of Titan Island and the Judgment Fortress’s attack to a suspected leak within Marine Headquarters, then singled out Garp as the source.
• The Elders cited Garp’s ties to Lorne and his movements near a secret communications Den Den Mushi as evidence of possible collusion.
• The blond Elder ordered the Hall of Sacred Judgment and the Eye of God Agents to blockade Marine Headquarters and strip Garp of his posts if he tried to contact Wano Country or Fearless Fortress.
• Aboard the Pluton · Fearless, Olsen told Lorne that detection crystals beneath Kuri had sensed a powerful presence awakening near Mary Geoise.
• Ryan warned that the World Government could deploy an elite force and a secret weapon against Fearless Fortress, while Kuina vowed to defend the Fearless Empire.

Lorne prepared Fearless Fortress for war as the World Government moved against him and Garp. After declaring his support for Lorne, Garp was branded a traitor, and Marines and CP0 agents confronted him at Marineford.

• Lorne ordered Denjiro and Wano Country's samurai to prepare for combat and sent Pluton · Fearless into the New World storm.
• Sengoku told Garp that the Hall of Sacred Judgment had opened, and Garp vowed not to let Mary Geoise destroy Lorne.
• Figarland Grand Commander emerged from the Hall of Sacred Judgment and set out to kill Lorne.
• The Five Elders stripped Garp of his ranks and Hero of the Marines title, charged him with treason, and ordered Sakazuki, Borsalino, and CP0 to intercept him.
• Bogard warned Garp that Marineford's waters were sealed, and Kizaru, Akainu, and CP0 surrounded him at Military Pier 3.
• The CP0 Commander formally announced Garp's treason charge, revoked his title, and ordered him taken into custody.

Garp fought off Akainu, Kizaru, and CP0 but surrendered to protect his Marine guards and was taken to Impel Down’s Level Six. As Garp awaited the World Government’s judgment, a covert Den Den Mushi began spreading news of his transfer through Marineford.

• Akainu attacked Garp, but Garp shattered his Great Eruption with a Haki-infused punch.
• Kizaru and CP0 joined the assault, but Garp repelled their attacks and injured the CP0 Commander.
• Garp stopped Bogard and the guards from fighting, then surrendered so Marineford’s Marines would not be sacrificed.
• CP0 shackled Garp with Seastone and secretly transported him to a solitary cell in Impel Down’s Infinite Hell.
• Garp said the sea’s future depended on Lorne, while a covert Den Den Mushi in Sengoku’s office began spreading news of Garp’s transfer.

Sengoku learned that Garp had been stripped of his rank and sent to Impel Down, then failed to persuade the Five Elders to reverse the decision. His confrontation with Akainu exposed a split in Marineford, while a hidden observer recorded the clash.

• Bogard reported to Sengoku that Akainu, Kizaru, and the CP0 Commander had arrested Garp and sent him to Impel Down.
• Sengoku and Vice Admiral Tsuru confronted the Five Elders, who refused to reconsider Garp’s imprisonment and threatened to send the Holy Knights if the Marines revolted.
• Akainu defended Garp’s arrest and blamed Sengoku and Garp for allowing Lorne to grow powerful, prompting Sengoku to challenge him.
• Sengoku and Akainu clashed until Vice Admiral Tsuru separated them, and Akainu declared he would suppress anyone protesting Garp’s conviction.
• A mechanical bird recorded the confrontation in a Memory Crystal, while a hooded observer watched the footage from a concealed submersible.

A Revolutionary Army agent reported that the World Government had branded Garp a traitor and imprisoned him in Impel Down, prompting Dragon to warn Lorne that the Five Elders were using Garp as bait. Lorne erupted in fury at the news, unleashing Conqueror’s Haki that shook Wano and split open the sky.

• A Revolutionary Army submarine agent transmitted a secret report to Baltigo before destroying the vessel and escaping.
• Dragon and Sabo learned that Garp had been stripped of his ranks and secretly sent to Infinite Hell, while Sengoku and Akainu had clashed.
• Dragon contacted Lorne and warned him that the World Government intended to lure him into a trap with Garp.
• Lorne crushed the Den Den Mushi and unleashed a terrifying burst of Conqueror’s Haki across Wano.
• Lorne’s Haki split the sky above Wano as he turned his fury toward the World Government and the Five Elders.

After learning that the World Government had imprisoned Monkey D. Garp in Impel Down, Lorne mobilized Wano Country and the Fearless Legion to rescue him. The fleet set sail for Impel Down, with Lorne declaring that Mary Geoise would be their next target.

• Lorne told Kuina, Ryan, and Carrot that Sakazuki and Borsalino had taken Garp to Infinite Hell, and ordered Wano Country to mobilize for war.
• Ryan, Denjiro, and the regional forces halted civilian work, sealed trade routes, and assembled samurai, Mink warriors, and the Fearless Legion at Hakumai Subport.
• Lorne addressed the assembled troops, explained why Garp had been arrested, and rallied them to attack Impel Down and then Mary Geoise.
• The Fearless Legion, Wano samurai, and Mink warriors boarded the Pluton · Fearless and prepared the fleet to depart.
• Lorne ordered the fleet to destroy any patrols in its path, and the Pluton · Fearless set course at full speed for Impel Down.

Lorne and the Fearless Legion broke through a World Government minefield and faced a Marine fleet blocking their route toward Impel Down. When the Marines fired poison-gas shells at the fleet, Lorne launched himself into the sky to confront the barrage.

• Lorne ordered Pluton · Fearless to crush the seastone minefield with its Vibrating Ram while Wano Country's escort ships fell back.
• The Fearless Legion encountered twenty Marine battleships led by Vice Admirals Dalmatian and Strawberry, who demanded their surrender and mocked Garp.
• Strawberry ordered the fleet to fire banned poison-gas shells at Lorne's ships under orders from the Five Elders.
• As the shells descended, Lorne leaped high into the sky and prepared to punch through the barrage with his Conqueror's Haki.

Lorne transformed into a colossal dragon and destroyed the Marine blockade with a lightning breath that detonated its Seastone mines, clearing the fleet’s route toward Impel Down. As Lorne ordered the advance, Magellan prepared the prison’s defenses and Garp sensed the approaching battle from Level Six.

• Lorne became a ten-thousand-meter Divine Dragon and destroyed the poison gas shells with his lightning breath, preventing the toxin from reaching the fleets behind him.
• Lorne’s lightning triggered the Marine Seastone mine network, and the resulting explosions and waves wrecked all twenty battleships and broke the blockade.
• Lorne returned to the Pluton · Fearless, and Ryan, Bakel, and Kuina reported that the route to Impel Down was clear as Lorne ordered the fleet to advance at full speed.
• Magellan learned from Hannyabal that Lorne had wiped out the First Heavy Guard Fleet and ordered the prison sealed, the Jailer Beasts deployed, and Venom Demon prepared on Level Four.
• Domino warned Magellan that Garp was being held in Level Six, while Garp raised his head in his cell and sensed tremors from above.