With the landing of the marine warships, the entire Sabaody Archipelago plunged into chaos.
"The Marine is here, everyone run!"
"It's Bartholomew Kuma, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, and Marine Staff Vice Admiral Tsuru leading the team. Are they here to catch us?!"
"Everyone run quickly, if you're late, you'll all be thrown into prison!"
"Damn it, bringing so many people, are they planning to round up all the pirates?!"
"Damn it, I'll let Reno off the hook this time, I'll come back to catch him next time!"
"..."
News of the Marine's arrival spread wildly across all areas of Sabaody Archipelago.
Countless pirates, while running to tell each other, quickly fled for their lives.
"Ignore them, immediately proceed to the Supernovas' areas and apprehend all Supernovas!"
Vice Admiral Tsuru crossed her arms, ignoring the many pirates fleeing in disarray.
These guys in front of her were just small fry, not worth her attention.
"Yes, Vice Admiral Tsuru!"
"Understood!"
"..."
Five elite Vice Admirals and Sentomaru took out their den den mushis, confirmed their respective target locations with their informants, and quickly set off.
The battle soon began.
"You are Capone Bege, the 'Gang Godfather' with a bounty of 138 million Berries, right?!"
Doberman, one of the Marine's hawkish Vice Admirals, lowered his eyes, staring at the man in front of him, smoking a cigar and wearing a black overcoat.
"Capone Bege, surrender immediately, don't make futile resistance!"
"You vicious pirates should be locked up in prison!"
A dozen well-trained elite Marine Soldiers, armed with flintlock pistols, aimed collectively at Capone Bege.
Bege's face was grim; he took a deep drag on his cigar, his muscles tensing.
If he only faced Doberman, he wouldn't be afraid at all.
But beside Doberman, there was also Bartholomew Kuma, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea.
What he didn't know was that this was just a Pacifista resembling Bartholomew Kuma.
"Capone Bege, Fortress-Fortress Devil Fruit Ability user, aren't you going to release your subordinates?!" Doberman sneered, exposing all of Bege's trump cards.
"I'll fight you all!"
Capone Bege let out a roar, and as his voice fell, a row of small doors mysteriously opened on his upper body.
Black projectiles flew out, enlarging as they did so, revealed to be cannonballs the size of human heads!
"I was expecting that!"
Doberman snorted coldly, drew his sword, and lunged forward!
The same scene unfolded in different areas of Sabaody Archipelago.
Area 23.
Beside a fountain, a dozen subordinates surrounded the unhurried Hawkins, urging, "Captain Hawkins, the Marine has arrived, let's run quickly!"
"Yes, I heard even Marine Staff Vice Admiral Tsuru came in person!"
"Her Wash-Wash Devil Fruit Ability is really powerful!"
Hawkins glanced at them, saying calmly, "Don't panic, we won't die today!"
With that, Hawkins continued to shuffle the tarot cards in front of him, beginning to divine.
"Hehehehe... Are the Supernovas so brave now?!"
"You know the Marine is here to catch you, yet you're not running?!"
A mocking voice came, and Marine Vice Admiral Yamakaji walked over unhurriedly from the side.
Accompanying him were a Pacifista and a dozen Marine Soldiers.
"Captain Hawkins, the Marine is here, stop divining!"
"Captain, hurry and leave, we'll hold him off!"
Many crew members, who had previously been saved by Hawkins, willingly stayed behind.
However, Hawkins remained unmoved, calmly stating the divination results: "Battle, 100% chance of defeat; escape, 1% chance of success."
Yamakaji glanced at him, a playful smirk on his face: "Hawkins, it seems you're destined to return to Naval Headquarters with me today!"
Meanwhile, in three other areas of Sabaody Archipelago.
The Supernovas, Urouge the Mad Monk, Apoo, and Drake the Red Flag, had already begun their standoff with three Naval Headquarters elite Vice Admirals and their Pacifistas, with a major battle on the verge of erupting.
Sabaody Archipelago, Area Four.
This was the location of the Kid Pirates and the Heart Pirates, with three Supernovas gathered between the two Pirate Crews.
Although Kid and Law were at odds, facing a powerful enemy, they could only temporarily choose to unite.
The two Pirate Crews had already begun to tangle with a group of Marines and two Pacifistas.
"Hehehehe, you little ruffians, why don't you surrender quickly!"
Sentomaru sneered, swinging his large axe, and rapidly charged into the battlefield.
Law frowned, and as he dodged, his left hand released a blue domain.
"ROOM: Slaughterhouse!!!"
The next second, he swapped positions with his crew member, Jean Bart!
The large axe came down hard, Jean Bart's face changed drastically, and he desperately clutched the axe handle, seizing the opportunity to complain: "Captain, you're being too reckless!"
He didn't even give a warning; this was practically sending him to his death!
It was only because it was him; if it had been anyone else, they would have been chopped to death by Sentomaru long ago.
"Hahahahaha... Jean Bart, you hold him off for now. After I deal with these two robots, I'll come help you!"
Law laughed carelessly.
If Jean Bart didn't even have that much strength, he wouldn't have recruited him.
"Law, stop talking nonsense, hurry up, I'm about to collapse!"
From the side, Kid's angry roar was heard.
Facing two Pacifistas simultaneously, he and Killer were already showing signs of defeat.
"Get out of my way, all of you!"
Kid activated his Devil Fruit Ability, his arms absorbing countless metals, forming a giant arm, and fiercely swatting away one of the Pacifistas.
"Kid, these guys are too tough, it's going to take some time!"
Killer moved like lightning, seizing the opportunity, his scythe leaving afterimages as he delivered a follow-up attack immediately.
Unfortunately, his attacks only caused sparks when they hit the Pacifistas.
Just as both sides were fighting fiercely, Vice Admiral Tsuru slowly walked over from the side, looking somewhat pained at the Pacifista that Kid had sent flying.
It was well known that a single Pacifista was extremely expensive, comparable to a marine warships.
If it were damaged, the Marine's losses would be significant.
"what??!"
Law and Kid, who were fiercely battling the Pacifistas, cast a cold sidelong glance.
When they clearly saw who had arrived, their pupils instantly constricted, and fear began to spread.
On the other side, Sabaody Archipelago, Area One.
The last Supernova location, and also the battlefield of the Straw Hat Pirates.
According to the Marine's previous deployment, their enemies should have been Bartholomew Kuma, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, and a Pacifista.
But for some unknown reason, only the Pacifista appeared here.
After a bitter struggle, with a bang, the Pacifista crashed to the ground.
His red eyes flickered twice, then completely shut down.
All members of the Straw Hat Pirates let out heavy, exhausted breaths.
"What the hell is this guy?! He doesn't feel like Bartholomew Kuma!" Zoro lay spread-eagled on the ground, gasping for air.
Although the opponent was troublesome, his strength was clearly far inferior to Bartholomew Kuma.
"Hahahahaha... who cares, we won anyway!"
Franky, also panting from exhaustion, leaned against a large rock, laughing heartily.
Sanji lit another cigarette for himself, and said gravely: "This is no place to linger, we should leave here quickly!"
Hearing this, the timid Usopp looked around and nodded in agreement: "Sanji is right, let's find a place to hide first, and then after the Marine leaves... Ah ah ah ah!"
Suddenly, Usopp covered his face, his voice becoming incredibly sharp.
"what??!" The others were startled and turned to look.
They saw a tall man walking towards them.
Seeing the newcomer, Zoro immediately stood up, gritting his teeth: "Reno!"
It was that bastard who stole his Wado Ichimonji!
"It's that guy!" Luffy stared at Reno, his anger rising.
There were still two intersecting scars on his chest to this day.
Usopp's face was pale, and he trembled all over.
He still clearly remembered the scene where Reno almost killed Luffy and Zoro.
A few days ago, they had already seen Reno's latest bounty, 4 billion Berries!
If calculated using Chopper, it could cover an entire island.
The Straw Hat, who had just relaxed, were once again on full alert!
Reno walked over with a playful expression.
He had actually arrived much earlier, but he wanted to see Luffy's current strength, and the result was as in the original story, pitifully weak.
They only managed to destroy one Pacifista when all members were almost exhausted.
However, he didn't notice any signs of Luffy having a power-up, perhaps because the pressure wasn't enough?!
And just as Reno appeared, on the other side of the field.
Bartholomew Kuma, holding a Bible, followed close behind.
Is the acting that obvious?!
Reno muttered to himself.
He didn't appear when the Straw Hat were fighting the Pacifista, but as soon as he showed up, Bartholomew Kuma followed.
Looking at Bartholomew Kuma, Reno felt a headache.
If his identity was merely that of a Shichibukai, there would be no need to hesitate; he would just kill him casually.
The problem was, Bartholomew Kuma was also Bonney's father.
Just like Gekko Moria's love for Perona, Bartholomew Kuma's love for Bonney was no less, perhaps even greater.
In order to cure Bonney's jade scale disease, Bartholomew Kuma willingly made a deal with Vegapunk, becoming his experimental subject.
The current Bartholomew Kuma only had a trace of sanity left.
Bartholomew Kuma's appearance cast another shadow over the despairing Straw Hat Pirates.
Facing Bartholomew Kuma and Reno at the same time, it was a dead end!
"If you were to go on a trip, where would you want to go?!"
Bartholomew Kuma suddenly stopped, took off his black gloves, and asked the Straw Hat Pirates in a deep, booming voice.
All the straw hat were on high alert, their spirits instantly tensed.
Boom boom boom!!!
Boom boom boom!!!
Just then, thunder exploded in the sky, and silver-white lightning suddenly struck down, isolating all members of the Straw Hat Pirates and Bartholomew Kuma.
Reno, covered in electric arcs, stood in front of Bartholomew Kuma and sneered: "Bartholomew Kuma, you can't protect them today."
0... seeking flowers--- With him here, he still wanted to use the Paw-Paw Fruit to send the entire straw hat flying, and then have them power up individually?!
He could spare the others, but Luffy!
He would die today!
Bartholomew Kuma looked at Reno, his face expressionless: "Where there's a will, there's a way. I won't let you harm them."
No emotional fluctuations could be heard in his voice.
After today, he would undergo Vegapunk's final modification.
At that time, his consciousness would be completely erased, and he would become a robot without emotions.
But before that, he had to protect the leader's son.
Reno understood Bartholomew Kuma's stubbornness, but he was also helpless.
If he were to say now that he could cure Bonney's illness, would Bartholomew Kuma believe him?!
If that's the case...
"Then I can only defeat you first!"
Rumble!!!
Rumble!!!
In an instant, silver-white lightning surged and raged, turning the area within several hundred meters into a lightning domain, a forbidden zone of death!
Anyway, he had the Healing Power, so even if he crippled Bartholomew Kuma, he could just heal him afterwards!
Watching the two suddenly become hostile, all the straw hat were bewildered and anxious.
Neither Bartholomew Kuma nor Reno were people they could afford to offend; let alone getting involved, even being affected by the aftermath of their battle would put everyone's lives at risk.
"Run!!!"
Luffy made a decisive decision and shouted to everyone.
Even he, reckless as he was, knew this was no time to show off.
However, before anyone could make a move, Bartholomew Kuma flashed, appearing directly in front of Luffy, and gently extended his palm—
Bang!!!!
A black foot wrapped in Armament Haki directly kicked him away... "Bartholomew Kuma, stop getting in the way here!"
"Wide Area: Divine Punishment!!!"
Reno coldly stared at Bartholomew Kuma, who was like a kite with a broken string, and suddenly clenched his fist!!
Boom boom boom!!!
Boom boom boom!!!
Under the capture of Observation Haki, lightning accurately struck all Straw Hat Pirates members, except Luffy, who were fleeing from various directions.
Within the space, sounds of falling to the ground continuously echoed.
Everyone's eyes rolled back, and they immediately fell into a coma.
"You bastard, what exactly do you want to do?!" Luffy's eyes were bloodshot, and he glared at Reno, gritting his teeth in anger.
He had originally wanted to seek revenge on Reno, but the other party's strength was like a rocket, so fast that he couldn't even see the exhaust fumes.
The disparity in their strength made Luffy feel a deep sense of powerlessness.
"Luffy, Garp wants to kill me. Do you think I'd let you live?!" Reno's lips curled into a cold sneer as he slowly approached, holding the Seven Star Sword.
"Garp?! Grandpa?!" Luffy was stunned, then suddenly understood.
He hadn't expected his grandpa to have a grudge against Reno.
"Bastard, my grandpa caught you, what do you want with me?!" Luffy roared hysterically.
Why should he suffer this undeserved calamity?!
"Hehehehe... because you're still the sun god everyone praises!"
"I'd like to see how many times you can power up today!"
"Fox-Fire Slash!!!"
Reno suddenly swung the Seven Star Sword!
A green spiral storm howled, carrying endless sword energy towards Luffy.
"I'll send you flying, you bastard!! Gear Second!!"
Luffy's body glowed red, steam rising from him as he instantly activated Gear Second mode.
"Reno, stop it!!!"
In the nick of time, Bartholomew Kuma attacked again, flashing in front of Luffy and raising his large hand.
"Bartholomew Kuma, that's enough!"
Reno's eyes gleamed with cold light as he kicked Bartholomew Kuma's chest with even greater force.
Bartholomew Kuma was sent flying like a cannonball, crashing heavily into a distant mountain with a rumble, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Before Bartholomew Kuma could get up, Reno instantly teleported back.
He didn't want Bartholomew Kuma to interrupt him again and again.
Reno showed no mercy, piercing Bartholomew Kuma's chest with a single slash!
Violent lightning and Flowing Cherry Blossom Power raged wildly inside Bartholomew Kuma's body, destroying various precision components.
Crackling.
Crackling.
Under the dual destruction of Ryou and lightning, Bartholomew Kuma was severely wounded and directly deprived of his ability to move.
His massive body lay motionless on the ground, with the continuous sound of electric arcs coming from within him.
Although Reno wouldn't kill Bartholomew Kuma, the latter had repeatedly ruined his plans, so he had to make him suffer a bit.
Luffy seized the opportunity, used the Rubber-Rubber Fruit's power to stretch his arms, grabbed all his crewmates, and quickly fled.
However...
The next second, Reno's devilish smile reappeared before him.
Luffy gritted his teeth, put all his crewmates down, and angrily declared, "I'll definitely send you flying!"
A threat with no deterrent.
Reno's lips parted in a chilling smile, and he said playfully, "Luffy, I have all the time in the world to play with you!"
Bartholomew Kuma had already lost his fighting capability.
Luffy was isolated and helpless, with no escape route.
He wanted to see what was so strange about this guy chosen by Shanks and the Nika Fruit!
"Demonic Serpent Assault Fire Slash!"
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