What Kind of Pirate Crew Is the Seven Deadly Sins?

Seeing this, Mammon put on an act. His face changed drastically, and he slammed a fist into the storyboard boundary, but failed to budge it in the slightest.

"Damn it! It's a space-type ability! You two, run!"

His shout could not travel outside the storyboard. The two Marines could only see Mammon moving his mouth; they could not hear a thing.

"What are you saying, Captain Mammon?" one of the Marines shouted.

The other quickly took the rifle off his back, trained its muzzle on Dimon, and whispered anxiously to his companion:

"Idiot, it's the Storyboard Fruit from the auction. That man ate it!"

With that, he pulled the trigger.

Bang! The bullet shot straight toward Dimon's head.

Dimon would not gamble on whether the bullet was Seastone or not. He treated it as a specially made Seastone Bullet.

He moved his feet, striking the ground dozens of times in an instant and moving at high speed with dynamic vision far beyond that of an ordinary person.

"Soru!?" The armed Marine's face changed drastically.

They could barely make out a few afterimages. Each time one appeared, the distance between them and Dimon closed by dozens of meters.

After just three flashes, he appeared ten meters in front of them.

"Who the hell are you? How do you know the Six Powers?"

"That man called Mammon is strong. It would take some effort to deal with him, and I'm not interested in wasting time here."

"But you're weak," Dimon continued to himself. "You're perfect for testing my newly acquired ability!"

With that, he extended his right hand from beneath his cloak and lightly snapped his fingers.

Snap.

Awakening Technique: Pale World!

The two Marines looked down sharply. In the night, a pale thread had appeared on the ground around them. It snaked across the earth and, in the blink of an eye, drew a square frame that enclosed them both.

Though he did not know what would happen next, the armed Marine instinctively sensed danger.

"Run in different directions!"

He shouted and broke toward the right, while the other belatedly reacted and sprinted to the left.

Both men had been chosen by Vice Admiral Hyuga for this mission, so neither was an ordinary Marine. They even outranked Mammon, both holding the rank of lieutenant colonel.

At the Marine Base in the Sabaody Archipelago, they were among the finest Marines.

But now, it would all vanish like smoke.

The pale frame shifted from two dimensions into three, forming a cube that sealed them both inside.

The next instant, everything inside the pale cube began to fade. Their existence was erased, leaving it like a fresh sheet of white paper.

Without the slightest pain, they were suddenly erased.

Only pallor remained in the world within the cube. Nothing else existed there anymore.

Dimon, who had caused it all, stood silently in place for a while before letting out a long breath.

"The Awakening Technique takes a considerable amount of stamina. With my current stamina, I'll be exhausted after using it twice."

It consumed a great deal, but its power was great as well.

As he pondered, Dimon turned and walked toward Mammon. The instant he turned, the pale cube behind him collapsed and disappeared, leaving only emptiness and pale earth.

Returning to Mammon's side, Dimon instructed him:

"Stay here. This storyboard will last twelve hours. If the Marines find you, report the truth."

"Yes, master." Mammon nodded. "If they ask who you are..."

"Answer truthfully: Seven Deadly Sins, Big Eye!"

Chapter 36: What Kind of Pirate Crew Is the Seven Deadly Sins?

Seven Deadly Sins, Big Eye?

Mammon was speechless for a moment. How was that answering truthfully?

Come to think of it, what was his master's real name?

Whether Zoro or Sabo, they were both false names casually made up on the spot. His master had never mentioned his real name.

But he did not dare ask.

After giving his instructions, Dimon left alone and vanished into the darkness.

Mammon looked away and down at the unconscious Ed. Mammon had knocked him out, and now the man was enjoying sleep as sound as a baby's.

Without trying to wake him, Mammon simply sat cross-legged and rehearsed the various situations he might encounter later.

The absolute worst outcome was that his identity would be exposed.

If that really happened, he would have to retreat early, but before withdrawing, he had to find a way to obtain intelligence on Punk Hazard.

Time flew by, and before he knew it, the next morning had arrived.

Mammon had not closed his eyes all night, keeping constant watch on the situation outside the storyboard space.

He was waiting for the Marines to find him.

More precisely, he was waiting for Vice Admiral Shuga. Yet even after the sun rose above the horizon, Shuga was nowhere to be seen.

"Looks like the Evil Child really killed him..."

As he thought this, Mammon saw a squad of Marines approaching from the distance. They seemed to have spotted him, for the soldiers picked up speed and soon arrived outside the storyboard space.

"Captain Mammon! Colonel Ed!"

The squad leader touched the storyboard boundary and slapped it in shock. "What is this? Where's Vice Admiral Hyuga? Did the mission fail?"

Mammon said nothing. They would not be able to hear him outside even if he spoke, so he used his finger to write on the ground.

[The fruit at the auction was called the Storyboard Fruit. A wealthy man bought it for 800 million Beli...]

He described what had happened the previous night as briefly as possible.

The squad leader outside immediately realized something was wrong. This bizarre space separated the inside from the outside, and neither sound nor images could pass into it.

"Vice Admiral Hyuga is in danger!"

His face pale, the squad leader quickly took out a Den Den Mushi and contacted Headquarters, while remembering to write on the ground with his gun barrel.

[Captain Ed, I'll notify Headquarters right away! Reinforcements will be here soon!]

Marine Headquarters, Marineford.

On the top floor of the fortress was the Fleet Admiral's Office.

As the current Fleet Admiral, Sengoku had risen early and come to work, beginning another busy day.

He had only just sat down when a soldier with an anxious expression appeared outside his office door.

"Bad news, Fleet Admiral! Something terrible has happened!"

"Why are you in such a panic? This is Marine Headquarters. If even you Headquarters Marine elites act like this, how are we supposed to maintain peace on the seas?"

Sengoku frowned and scolded him, then picked up his freshly brewed green tea and calmly took a sip.

"What is it? Take your time."

"Yes, Fleet Admiral."

The Marine took a deep breath and related the news from the communications room.

When he heard that Vice Admiral Hyuga's whereabouts were unknown, Sengoku nearly spat out his tea. He coughed twice in succession before speaking in surprise:

"What did you say!? Shuga's fate is unknown, and that new Mythical Zoan user was defeated?"

Vice Admiral Hyuga was one thing. Among the many Vice Admirals at Headquarters, his combat ability was not outstanding.

But a Mythical Zoan user had been defeated?

Mammon had been recommended by another Headquarters Vice Admiral, Pierce Field. Sengoku had personally met Mammon and assessed his combat strength at the time.

In terms of combat ability, Mammon was far stronger than the average Vice Admiral. Aside from the shortcoming of not yet having mastered Haki, he could be said to possess all the advantages of a Mythical Zoan.

Someone that strong had actually been defeated in the Sabaody Archipelago?

"Putting the failed mission aside for now, who defeated him?" Sengoku's expression turned grave.

"An organization called the Seven Deadly Sins. The person who defeated Captain Mammon claimed to be a member of the organization, with the codename 'Big Eye'!" the Marine answered quickly.

The Seven Deadly Sins?

Sengoku thought for a moment, but came up empty. He had no intelligence whatsoever on the organization.

Since one of its members was strong enough to defeat Mammon, the organization could not possibly be unknown.

Had it appeared out of nowhere?

Sengoku pressed a hand to his forehead, his head aching.

Failing to obtain a Paramecia fruit was one thing, but this mysterious organization that had suddenly appeared gave him something of a headache.

The Sabaody Archipelago was no more than half an hour's voyage from Headquarters. It could be said to be right under Marine Headquarters' nose.

That something like this had happened right under his nose left him somewhat dissatisfied. What was the intelligence system doing?

Just then, footsteps sounded.

"Hahaha, you're already pulling a long face first thing in the morning, Sengoku. Want a rice cracker?"

Seeing who had arrived, the Marine at the door hurriedly saluted respectfully. "Vice Admiral Garp!"

"What happened? Did one of the Four Emperors come to the first half and start causing trouble?" Holding a bag of rice crackers, Garp casually sat down on the sofa.

"Garp!" Sengoku's face darkened. "Don't you have your own office? I'm the Fleet Admiral!"

The bastard came to his office and made himself at home whenever he had nothing to do.

"What's the problem? Come on, tell me. Don't tell me that brat Red-Haired came here? I've got a score to settle with him!"

Red-Haired Shanks, one of the Four Emperors, was the youngest of them. A year ago, he had done something that shook the seas and had since been hailed by the world as the "fourth emperor of the sea."

Unlike the other three, the bastard liked to run all over the world. He had once gone to the East Blue and led Garp's grandson astray, causing the boy to spend all day shouting about becoming the Pirate King. Garp still held a grudge over it and wanted nothing more than to beat Red-Haired up.

"No, Vice Admiral Garp."

The Marine who had come to report looked at the Fleet Admiral. Seeing Sengoku nod helplessly, he quickly recounted what had happened in the Sabaody Archipelago.

"I've even heard about that newcomer who ate the Mythical Zoan Vampire Fruit. The kid failed his very first mission after joining the Marines?"

Garp listened in stunned silence, his jaw nearly dropping to the floor.

Should he call the kid unlucky, or just plain ill-fated?

With the strength of a Mythical Zoan, he should have had almost no opponents in the first half of the Grand Line, yet he had still run into trouble.

"The problem is that mysterious organization, the Seven Deadly Sins, that suddenly appeared!" Sengoku took a deep breath. "Garp, go rescue our people first, and while you're there, investigate the organization."

"What a hassle..."

Garp put on an expression of exasperation. If he had known, he would not have dropped by that morning. He had landed himself in trouble for no reason.

He had just stood up when the Den Den Mushi on the Fleet Admiral's desk suddenly rang.

A series of purururu sounds broke the silence.

Sengoku frowned and picked up the receiver. A panicked report came from the communications room:

"Bad news, Fleet Admiral! Something terrible has happened!"

He seemed to have just heard those words...

Again?!

Sengoku's eyes widened, and he shouted, "What is it? Take your time and tell me!"

"Charlotte Cracker, one of the Sweet Commanders under the Four Emperors' Big Mom—his pirate ship has appeared in the waters near the Sabaody Archipelago!"