As yet another Celestial Dragon was crushed and killed right in front of everyone's eyes, the Navy officers and CP agents grew even more furious and terrified. This time, things were really about to change—the Hell Pirates had gone completely berserk!
In that moment, it wasn't Admiral Aokiba trying to stop Brook from slaughtering the Celestial Dragons anymore. Instead, Brook alone was holding back Admiral Aokiba and Braille from rescuing them!
The tides of offense and defense had flipped in an instant!
"Yohohoho! Come on, give me everything you've got—120% effort!"
Brook laughed as he single-handedly battled Navy Admiral Aokiba and Admiral Candidate Braille. He could already sense the shift in Kaido's aura—it was close, so close. Just a few more Celestial Dragons to kill!
Kaido and Kozuki Oden were both 11 years old now, and in the original story, both had successfully awakened Conqueror's Haki. That meant they had the potential for it!
Katakuri, Doflamingo, and Ace had all awakened theirs around age 10—earlier than the protagonist Straw Hat Luffy, who didn't awaken until after setting sail at 17!
Katakuri had awakened in a rage when his sister Brûlée was scarred and attacked by pirates in revenge. Doflamingo was captured by civilians and nearly burned alive, awakening in a fit of hatred and fury that drove him to complete madness and darkness.
Ace awakened his when Luffy was captured by pirates and about to be executed, saving the protagonist in his anger. And coincidentally, Straw Hat Luffy awakened his own incredibly powerful Conqueror's Haki during Ace's public execution!
His first outburst during the Summit War had intimidated plenty of elite Navy soldiers and New World pirates, with a massive range that knocked out the executioners on the platform from hundreds of meters away!
With Kaido's fearless personality, honed under Brook's training to be countless times stronger than his original counterpart at the same age, the foundation for awakening Conqueror's Haki was already there!
And in the Hell Pirates' intense atmosphere, where everyone vied to awaken Conqueror's Haki and took pride in it, with no fear of the Celestial Dragons whatsoever—all the conditions were met!
Now it was up to these three rookies' own convictions. Whether they awakened today depended on them!
That line about "killing Celestial Dragons can awaken Conqueror's Haki" was something Brook had originally thrown out as a "well-meaning" white lie, just to motivate his crew. Even he thought it sounded unscientific!
But somehow, his crew had taken it as gospel, treating it like divine truth!
Brook hadn't bothered to correct them. What if it actually "tricked" someone into awakening? That would be a win-win!
The Celestial Dragons' screams of agony and their dying curses aimed at the Navy and CP agents for failing to protect them made the officers' and agents' hearts tremble. It was over—today, even if they survived, they'd face accountability from the Holy Land Mary Geoise later. Their fates were uncertain!
"Yohohoho~, Admiral Aokiba, listen to that. These Celestial Dragons are cursing you all as worthless dogs for failing to protect them, even on their deathbeds. But under my blade, they're shaking in their boots, pissing themselves!"
"Come on! Aokiba, join us. Let's take down these idiots who dare insult the strong. Afterward, you can live free and exciting in the New World!"
Brook taunted with a grin. The Celestial Dragons really had a screw loose, constantly berating the very Navy and CP agents desperately trying to save them. Their IQs were off the charts—in the wrong direction!
Still, getting in a few last verbal jabs before dying wasn't bad. And it was true—the Navy couldn't break through the Hell Pirates' defenses, forced to watch the Celestial Dragons die one by one!
"Brook!! You won't get away with this either!"
Admiral Aokiba's face flushed with rage. After this battle, his position was done for—he might even get demoted. His future looked bleak!
The root of all this evil was the lawless pirate right in front of him!
"I don't know if I'll meet a bad end, but right now, you'd better focus on surviving against me!"
Brook sneered, gripping his quasi-artifact Seven Star Sword and vanishing from sight. In the next instant, its indestructible edge appeared before Admiral Aokiba, slashing down with an unstoppable Conqueror's Haki Coiling for a fatal blow!
That double-winged, single-horned holy horse will be mine too!
Brook's eyes gleamed with greed—he loved such Devil Fruits!
The battle escalated once more, the entire area echoing with the sounds of slaughter. God Valley Island trembled nonstop!
The Roger Pirates' trio teamed up with Garp to fiercely battle the injured New World overlord, Rocks. The intensity of their fight was no less than the Hell Pirates clashing with the main Navy forces!
Whitebeard Newgate's Tremor-Tremor Fruit powers clashed repeatedly with Golden Buddha Sengoku's Buddha shockwaves, cracking the earth and toppling luxurious palaces!
Golden Lion Shiki and Admiral Candidate Jung traded blows in a blur of afterimages, sparks flying with every clash of sword and blade. Waves of flying slashes tore through the air, bringing down more palaces—they seemed evenly matched!
The usually cool and elegant Redfield was now in a full rage. The Celestial Dragons were right there, but Black Arm Zephyr and two elite Vice Admirals were holding him back, preventing him from exacting revenge on his enemies!
"Get the hell out of my way!"
Redfield's body crackled with lightning as he transformed into a 10-meter-tall thunder god form, wielding a massive lightning spear. Bolts rained down from the sky, pitting the pristine stone pavement!
Charlotte Linlin and the other officers were holding off the swarming Navy, leaving the Hell Pirates to face the converging Navy units alone. They were indeed outnumbered!
These greedy Rocks Pirates officers were still looting amid the chaos, with no intention of intervening in the Hell Pirates' war against the Navy—or even helping their own captain!
Skal had his bones reattached in a battlefield surgery by the ship's doctor, but his combat strength hadn't fully recovered. He could tell these officers had gone loot-crazy and weren't listening to him anymore!
Especially Captain John and Miss Buckin, who were ordering their direct subordinates to haul treasures onto their personal pirate ships!
Grimm Vane had lost his monkey partner, taken an ES vicious drug, and gotten injured—he was recuperating now, but the side effects had left him looking drained!
Only Ochoku was heading toward Rocks' battlefield. Even Silver Axe was joining the pillaging, mimicking Captain John by transporting treasures back to his own division's ship!
Many affiliated pirate crew captains were doing the same. With gold and treasures everywhere, who'd be dumb enough to fight instead of grabbing the loot? Only someone with a hole in their head!
Skal and Grimm Vane cursed these greedy officers, intercepting some treasures and hauling them back to the main ship. They were so focused on looting that they'd forgotten about their own Captain Rocks!
But slowly, they realized the gravity of the situation. They'd only managed to snag one or two ordinary Devil Fruits—they hadn't found the top-tier ones Captain Rocks had mentioned!
And they'd just captured and interrogated some Celestial Dragons. All the clues and evidence pointed to one thing: someone had beaten them to it!
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Fanfic is finished 955 chapters in total on p@treon/tambeerg