"Mr. Rowan."
After commanding their subordinates to surround the area, Momonga and Ethan stood on either side of Rowan, their expressions grave.
"Mmh."
Rowan nodded, feeling a bit surprised by their speed. He had originally thought they would only arrive after he had already finished these four off. He hadn't expected them to get here before he even started.
"Diamante, Top Officer of the Donquixote Family, former bounty of 99 million. Lao G, Officer of the Donquixote Family, former bounty of 61 million Berries. Who are that child and that woman? To think the ones kidnapping Caesar would be Shichibukai Doflamingo's people."
As a Vice Admiral of the Headquarters, Momonga naturally recognized Diamante and Lao G, but the other two without bounties were unfamiliar to him. However, being here with Diamante and Lao G proved these two were not as simple as they looked.
"Why is a Shichibukai interfering in Caesar's business?"
Momonga furrowed his brows, confusion in his eyes. Even though Caesar had impressive scientific talent, it shouldn't be enough to make Doflamingo, a Shichibukai, openly break ties with the Navy. Despite his doubts, Momonga reached for his long blade, his face solemn. Even though the Shichibukai were technically on the same side as the Navy under the World Government, Momonga never viewed them as allies. To him, they were still pirates. And since they dared to snatch Caesar, they were now absolute enemies!
"You're just in time. Take this fellow and watch him for a moment."
Rowan didn't bother explaining why the Donquixote Family was rescuing Caesar. He simply kicked the half-dead Caesar toward Momonga and spoke calmly.
"As for those four, leave them to me."
"But, Mr. Rowan..." Momonga started to protest, but when he saw Rowan's expression, he stopped himself and nodded. "Very well. Please be careful, Mr. Rowan."
Momonga grabbed Caesar and retreated with Vice Admiral Ethan.
"Vice Admiral Rowan... will he be alright? There are four Donquixote Officers, after all," Ethan whispered, looking worriedly at Rowan's back.
"Don't worry. Mr. Rowan's strength is... formidable." Momonga patted Ethan's shoulder. Recalling the scene at the Headquarters training grounds, he had full confidence.
"For now, let's just enjoy Mr. Rowan's performance." Momonga looked on with anticipation. He was about to see that dominant combat power again!
"Performance?" Ethan looked puzzled. He couldn't understand why Momonga would call a fight against a Shichibukai's Top Officer a "performance."
On the other side, Diamante was surprised to see Rowan walking toward them alone. He laughed. "Is this the legendary Marine Godfather's courage? How arrogant..."
Diamante had thought being surrounded by Marines would be trouble, but this Rowan seemingly looked down on the four of them so much that he wanted to fight them all alone!
Fine then! Don't blame us for not playing fair. We'll take you out first! Once this Rowan is gone, only Momonga is a threat. The rest are nothing!
"Go!" Diamante barked.
He lunged toward Rowan, followed immediately by Lao G and the Snow Woman, Monet. A master swordsman, a Taijutsu specialist, and a Logia Snow-Snow Fruit user—all attacking simultaneously!
Faced with the three-way assault, Rowan's expression didn't flicker. He remained entirely at ease.
"Mr. Rowan, look out!" Ethan shouted.
Momonga's eyes narrowed; he spotted the child, Dellinger, launching a sneak attack from Rowan's flank! Though he looked like a twelve-year-old and had no bounty, being a Donquixote Officer meant Dellinger was dangerous. In Ethan's eyes, Rowan had no time to react!
A high-heeled foot kicked ruthlessly toward Rowan's face. Dellinger's mouth was stretched wide, revealing his needle-sharp teeth. He was certain that even if this old man could beat Kong in a spar, he couldn't dodge a sneak attack from this close.
But Rowan was no "ordinary" person. No one even saw him move; his silhouette simply flickered, and in the next heartbeat, he was at Dellinger's side.
"Sneaking up on people isn't very honorable, is it?"
Offering Dellinger a light smile, Rowan threw a straightforward punch into the boy's ribs. Dellinger, caught in his momentum, couldn't react. A wave of unbearable agony radiated from his midsection.
BOOM!
With a massive sound, Dellinger's slender frame was slammed into the dirt. The sheer force of the blow plowed a long trench into the ground.
This time, Rowan had used Armament Haki. Dellinger, whose own Haki was far too weak to resist, saw his eyes roll back as he instantly lost consciousness!
Dellinger—one-shot.
"That's one," Rowan noted, turning his calm gaze toward the other three. He raised his tobacco pipe and smiled. "Three more to go."
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