The Marine warship lurched violently as the sea roared beneath it.
The ocean had become a microphone—
Amplifying the Tremor-Tremor Fruit's fury.
Waves slammed into the hull one after another.
Akainu's face was livid.
He had calculated everything—
Except this.
The Tremor-Tremor Fruit had truly fallen into Leno's hands.
And he had actually given it to Domino.
Judging from her control, she hadn't just eaten it yesterday.
That was the fruit of the world's strongest man!
On deck—
The bound female Marines were shaken to their cores.
They stared at Domino on the shore.
Confident.
Commanding.
Summoning tidal waves with a single punch.
And themselves?
Tied up like bargaining chips.
The contrast gnawed at them.
"The Tremor-Tremor Fruit… she actually ate it…"
Tina's cigarette had long since fallen.
Her voice trembled with envy—
And deep regret.
She wasn't jealous of the fruit.
She was jealous of Leno's trust.
"If… if we had stood by him back then…"
Ain clenched her fists until her knuckles turned white.
"Would one of us have gotten that fruit instead?"
Tashigi's glasses had slipped crooked.
"He gave something that powerful to Domino… they barely knew each other…"
Kujaku grit her teeth.
"Why her? Why not me?"
She had been the closest to Leno.
Childhood companions.
Or so she believed.
Sadi, meanwhile, remained expressionless.
Why am I even here? she thought irritably.
I don't even like the guy.
Disaster out of nowhere.
The rest couldn't accept it.
How could Leno give such a treasure to an "outsider"—
Instead of former "friends"?
If Leno knew their thoughts, he would've scoffed.
Pathetic.
Too late for regret.
The ship rocked harder.
Bound tight, they tumbled across the deck, unable to stabilize themselves.
Even using their powers was difficult.
Hibari tried her best to shield them—
But she was only one person.
Domino's attack showed no mercy.
If Leno hadn't approved it—
They wouldn't believe it.
"He's really attacking us…"
Kujaku's face paled.
"Not even a shred of old feelings…"
But this wasn't the first time.
When Garp led them to corner Leno—
They should've understood.
He had already given up on them.
Yet they still refused to accept it.
Akainu knew he couldn't delay.
On open sea—
The Tremor-Tremor Fruit was nearly unstoppable.
Especially against ships.
If this continued—
His fleet would be annihilated.
"Great Eruption!"
He roared.
His arm transformed into a massive magma fist.
It smashed into the oncoming tidal wave.
HISSS—!!!
Scalding magma collided with seawater.
Steam exploded into the sky.
The scene looked almost heavenly.
But Akainu was Akainu.
He forcibly evaporated the towering wave.
And he didn't stop there.
"Ryūsei Kazan!"
His fists punched skyward repeatedly.
Enormous magma fists shot into the air—
Then rained down like meteors toward the coastline.
The sky burned crimson.
The battle had begun—
Before either side had even met.
Hancock and Gloriosa arrived at the shore.
Gloriosa turned deathly pale.
"It's over… we're finished…"
She trembled.
"Amazon Lily will be surrounded!"
Leno glanced at her disdainfully.
"With courage like that, how did you survive in the Rocks Pirates?"
No wonder she had aged into this state.
Ambition gone.
Kingly bearing gone.
How could beauty remain?
Hancock, however, showed no fear.
Only anger.
"They dare disturb Leno-sama's peace… and attack my island?"
Unforgivable.
She formed a heart with her hands.
"Perfume Femur!"
A pink beam swept across the fleet.
The result was immediate.
Not everyone could withstand the Pirate Empress's beauty.
"Hancock-sama… so beautiful…"
"I'd do anything…"
Marines struck by the beam froze—
Turning into stone statues mid-expression.
In moments—
Most of the fleet's manpower was gone.
Only Akainu and a handful of elites remained unaffected.
"Useless trash," Akainu growled.
They were liabilities.
His gaze shifted to the bound women.
Ah.
Right.
Bait.
Leno's earlier attack had targeted the ships—
Not the women.
He must still care.
Akainu's reasoning felt airtight.
(It wasn't.)
Leno was involved with Hancock now.
Seeing these former "close friends"—
Would surely disrupt him.
Akainu's eyes scanned the captives—
And stopped on Kujaku.
"If I remember correctly… she was closest to him."
Garp's disciple.
Tsuru's granddaughter.
Childhood sweethearts.
Perfect.
Without hesitation—
He seized Kujaku by the collar.
Lifting her like a chicken.
Tina and the others gasped in horror.
Akainu raised her high and shouted toward the shore.
"LENO—! STOP!"
He held the struggling Kujaku up like a trophy.
"Recognize her? Your childhood sweetheart—Kujaku!"
His voice boomed across the sea.
"You wouldn't want anything to happen to her… would you?"
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