The sheer weight of Bullet's Conqueror's Haki swept across the deck like a hurricane. Marines staggered and stumbled, clutching at railings to stay upright.
A sharp crack split the air—
The glass on the coffee table exploded into shards, watermelon juice splattering in every direction.
"Hey, hey, hey," Borsalino drawled, rubbing his temples in mock irritation. "Watch where you're throwing your Haki around… you spilled my juice."
Bullet's crimson gaze snapped toward him, his expression darkening. "You're one of those 'Monsters' from Marine Headquarters, aren't you?" he growled, flexing his newly regenerated arm, knuckles cracking like thunder. "Wanna throw down? Let's see if you're really worthy of standing beside Darren!"
Behind his absurdly large sunglasses, a faint glint of amusement flickered in Borsalino's eyes. He raised his hands lazily. "Ah, I yield."
Bullet blinked. "…What?"
"I surrender," Borsalino said with exaggerated calm. "There's no way I can beat a monster like you."
For a full three seconds, Bullet just stared.
Then—pop!—a vein pulsed on his forehead.
This guy.
This smug, drawling bastard with his stupid sunglasses and that lazy grin—something about him just begged to be punched.
Bullet didn't even know why. He'd never met the man before today. But every word Borsalino said, every gesture, every syllable oozed a kind of shamelessness that made Bullet's blood boil.
Even the Marines nearby were exchanging uneasy glances.
You just declared yourself weaker in front of everyone? Aren't you embarrassed?!
Bullet clenched his jaw, grinding his teeth. "You don't get to decide that."
BOOM!
He lunged, the coffee table disintegrating in his wake.
A sinister purple-black aura erupted from his body, engulfing him in his Demon Form once more. In the blink of an eye, he charged forward like a cannonball, aiming straight for Borsalino's chest.
The air shattered.
BOOM!
The collision blasted a hole clean through the ship's cabin. Black and gold streaks of light spiraled through the sky as the two monsters clashed mid-air, vanishing toward a nearby island.
Seconds later—
BOOOOOOM!
A deafening explosion ripped across the horizon. The island trembled as columns of flame and smoke surged skyward.
The Marines on deck were thrown into chaos.
"Vice Admiral Darren!" one officer shouted, panic lacing his voice. "What should we do now?!"
"That bastard Bullet actually attacked Vice Admiral Borsalino!"
"He broke the Shichibukai agreement!"
"Should we intervene?!" another yelled. "We can launch a Buster Call right now!"
The three Headquarters Vice Admirals stood frozen, their faces pale as they stared at the rising plumes of smoke in the distance.
But Darren didn't so much as twitch.
Lounging in his beach chair, he waved a hand lazily. "Relax," he said. "Bullet's still injured. He won't cause too much trouble."
The Vice Admirals exchanged horrified looks.
He calls that 'not too much trouble'?!
Before they could reply, a beam of golden light streaked back from the distant island, blindingly fast.
The light condensed on the deck, forming the tall, lanky figure of Borsalino—completely unscathed, uniform pristine, sunglasses still perfectly in place.
He casually dropped a charred, twitching, smoke-covered Bullet onto the floor like discarded luggage.
"How terrifying," he said with an easy grin. "I almost got taken out."
The three Vice Admirals gawked.
Almost got taken out?! You're spotless!
Bullet coughed violently, spitting blood as he glared up at Borsalino, his face a mix of fury and disbelief. "D-Damn it… your strength…"
Darren chuckled from his chair, lighting another cigar. "Didn't you say you wouldn't lose again until you defeated me?"
Bullet's face turned crimson. "F-From… from now on!!" he bellowed, voice cracking with equal parts rage and embarrassment.
---
Three days later, the world itself seemed to tremble.
Across every ocean, in every tavern, newsroom, and government hall, the same headline blazed in bold black ink:
---
[ THE SHICHIBUKAI SYSTEM ESTABLISHED! ]
[ LEGITIMATE PIRATES — CRIMES ERASED BY GOVERNMENT DECREE! ]
[ UNPRECEDENTED ALLIANCE: PIRATES TO FIGHT FOR JUSTICE?! ]
[ SHICHIBUKAI — GOVERNMENT'S DOGS OR THE SEA'S NEW KINGS? ]
---
The seas erupted into chaos.
Pirate crews, underworld brokers, bounty hunters, and royal governments alike debated this new policy—the World Government's unprecedented gamble to use pirates as weapons.
Some laughed.
Some sneered.
Some saw opportunity.
And others… sharpened their blades.
But the headlines that truly shook the world were the names beneath that announcement:
---
[ 'SAND CROCODILE' CROCODILE — FORMER BOUNTY: 281,000,000 BERRIES! ]
[ 'DEMON HEIR' DOUGLAS BULLET — FORMER BOUNTY: 2,174,000,000 BERRIES! ]
---
Only two had been officially confirmed. Yet their combined infamy alone was enough to send shivers through the Grand Line.
How had the Marines—those paragons of order—managed to tame such monsters?
No one knew.
But everyone wanted to find out.
---
North Blue — Rubeck Island.
Inside the grand marble council hall of the Donquixote Family, the atmosphere was electric.
Trebol, Pica, Diamante, and the other executives knelt on one knee, heads bowed in reverence.
"Heh heh heh…"
A chilling laugh echoed through the hall.
Doflamingo stood before them, a newspaper in one hand, his other hand lazily tracing his jawline. His grin stretched wide, teeth gleaming behind the shadow of his pink-tinted sunglasses.
"The Shichibukai… finally born." His voice dripped with amusement and anticipation. "The world government's little 'experiment' in chaos. Heh heh heh…"
He snapped the paper shut and grinned wider. "Then it's time for us to move."
Invisible strings shimmered faintly around his fingers, slicing the newspaper to confetti.
The pink feathers of his coat rippled as he turned and strode toward the towering doors of the council chamber, each confident step echoing like a countdown to upheaval.
"Let's go," he said, his tone smooth and dangerous. "We wouldn't want the Godfather to grow impatient."
As his silhouette disappeared into the sunlight, his laughter echoed behind him—dark, wild, and full of promise.
That day, Donquixote Doflamingo—the young underworld prince of North Blue—set sail for the Grand Line.
He tore through rivals and crushed kingdoms, his name spreading like wildfire.
By the time he reached the New World, his bounty had already soared to 340 million berries, and the world had given him a new name—
"The Flamingo."
And the sea… trembled with anticipation.
To be continued...