SHOO—!
A piercing whistle cut through the air as a thumb-sized lead ball transformed into a small-caliber cannonball, shrieking toward the merchant ship carrying Luffy and the others.
"Look out!"
"What—?! Since when do pistols fire cannonballs?"
"He's an Ability User!"
The crew cried out in alarm, caught off guard by the sheer scale of the projectile.
"One-Sword Style: 36,000 Pound Phoenix!!!"
Zoro lunged into the air, his blade clearing its scabbard in a blur. He swung with the force of a gale, unleashing a blue-and-white spiraling wave of compressed air that sliced forward.
BOOM!
The explosion rocked the sky, sending plumes of fire and black smoke billowing upward as a powerful backdraft swept over the harbor.
Clack.
Zoro landed back on the deck, his grip tight on his katana. "That shot was infused with heavy Armament Haki," he warned, his voice low. "Watch out for that guy!"
"That's Myles Dimitri, the 'Gunslinger'!" Law said, his expression grim. He moved to the railing in three quick strides, keeping his eyes fixed on Dimitri. "He's the Commander of the Third Division of the Chris Pirates and the Minister of War for the Clifford Kingdom. The man is a master strategist. He's commanded several major battles that shook the world... they call him 'The Commander.'"
Dimitri's reputation in the New World was formidable, not just for his raw combat power, but for a strategic genius that rivaled the "Great Staff" tactics of former Fleet Admiral Sengoku.
"Wh-what kind of fruit does he have?" Usopp asked, his voice trembling. "I saw him fire a pistol! How did it turn into a cannonball?"
"It's the power of the More-More Fruit," Law replied, his tone chilling. "Two years ago, when Straw Hat-ya caused that massive breakout at Impel Down, several monsters from Level 6 escaped. One of them was the legendary pirate Byrnndi World, the man known thirty years ago as 'The World Destroyer.' The More-More Fruit was originally his."
Everyone gasped, the rumors of the Chris Pirates' ability to "pluck" Devil Fruits from others flashing through their minds.
"Exactly. Golden Ring Aeridar defeated Byrnndi World, and Dimitri inherited that power." Law ignored the fact that Dimitri was staring directly at him. "The More-More Fruit allows the user to increase the size and speed of anything they touch by up to a hundredfold. They can even boost their own movement speed. Simply put, he can fire a pistol with the destructive force of a heavy battery. He is a walking fortress."
Luffy and the others tensed. Dimitri was clearly going to be a problem.
"Trafalgar Law! You betrayed us, stole Caesar, and caused the destruction of Punk Hazard," Dimitri shouted from the pier, his voice carrying a cold threat. "You think escaping is going to be that easy?"
Without another word, Dimitri raised his flintlock again. His finger blurred against the trigger—BANG! BANG! BANG!—unloading the remaining five rounds in the cylinder.
"More-More: 30x Gun!!!"
The five lead balls expanded instantly, bloating into massive, obsidian-black cannonballs.
"ROOM: Takt!!!"
Law's hand shot out. A translucent, spherical dome expanded in a heartbeat, spanning hundreds of meters. Within his domain, Law exerted his will. A half-sunken pirate ship nearby was jerked from the water by an invisible force, hovering in mid-air to act as a massive shield.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Five consecutive detonations tore the wreckage to splinters. Wood and debris rained down as fire and thick smoke choked the air. Below, the waters of the harbor surged violently from the pressure.
On the merchant ship, Chopper hauled up the anchor while Kin'emon and the red-haired Kanjuro worked together to drop the sails. Caught by the gale-force winds from the explosions, the ship was shoved out of its berth and into the open water.
"Tch! Dammit!"
Dimitri spat, realizing his attack had inadvertently provided the propulsion the enemy needed. Even a man of his legendary composure found himself seething.
"Perfect!" Law cried out. "Go! Get us clear of the port and steer for the clear skies!"
If they could make it out of the trade port and find a region with no clouds, they could finally shake Doflamingo, whose "Sky Path" depended on cloud cover to attach his strings.
WHOOSH—!
A sudden gust of wind signaled a flash of pink as a figure blurred past the pier.
"Don't you dare run!"
Doflamingo roared, pursuing the ship with predatory intent. He thrust his hand forward, firing a searing Overheat string whip. It pierced through the air like a thermal lance, aimed straight for the merchant ship's hull.
Suddenly, a shockwave of raw punching force erupted from a distance. It traveled through the air with terrifying speed, slamming into the unsuspecting Doflamingo with a resonant CRACK.
"Gah—!"
Doflamingo was sent spiraling sideways, coughing up blood. His Overheat whip lashed out wildly, missing the merchant ship by a hair's breadth.
On deck, Luffy and Law wiped cold sweat from their brows, looking back in gratitude at a burly, barrel-chested man standing on the shore.
Doflamingo stabilized himself in mid-air using his strings and glared toward the source of the strike.
"I wondered who had such a powerful punch... Fuffuffuffu! If it isn't King Elizabello II, the Fighting King of the Prodence Kingdom!" Doflamingo wiped a smear of blood from his lip, his laughter cold and hollow.
On the pier, Elizabello II was gasping for air. He stared at Doflamingo with pure venom. "Damn... if only that had been a full-power King Punch, it would have put that bastard in the ground for good!"
The Donquixote officers weren't about to let their "Young Master" be attacked without consequence.
"You bastard! Who gave you permission to lay a finger on Doffy?!" Diamante screamed, charging forward with his sword raised.
"Half-Moon Glaive!!!"
A massive crescent of sword aura tore across the ground, carving deep trenches into the stone. Elizabello II, his stamina largely depleted from his previous strike, couldn't move in time to dodge.
SPLURT—!
Blood sprayed as the wave of sword pressure sent the King tumbling back, leaving him gravely wounded on the ground.
"Your Majesty!" Dagama, the Prodence strategist, cried out in horror.
"An opening! Arms-morphosis: Gatling Leg!!!"
Opposite Dagama, Baby 5 saw her chance. She gave a sharp cry, raising her right leg as it liquefied and reshaped into a multi-barreled machine gun.
RAT-TAT-TAT-TAT...
Muzzle flashes strobed as a hail of lead tore into Dagama. Over a dozen bullets found their mark, nearly turning the man into a sieve.
Thanks to Elizabello II's intervention, the merchant ship had already gained hundreds of meters of distance.
"Running away? You'll have to ask my cannons first!"
Dimitri righted an overturned 18-pounder cannon on the pier. He shoved in a canister of "grapeshot" composed of over a dozen individual slugs and aimed at the distant target.
"More-More: 10x Grapeshot!!!"
KABOOM—!
Fire belched from the barrel. The grapeshot erupted from the muzzle, each slug instantly swelling to ten times its size, forming a literal wall of iron shot that blanketed the sea.