"Is this even humanly possible?!" Gecko Moria's scream tore through the chaos. His bloodshot eyes were stretched so wide they looked ready to burst from his skull.
The earth itself groaned under Darren's feet.
High above, Momonga's figure flickered into lightning as he shot skyward, retreating from the sheer pressure that rippled outward. From above, he could see the entire Marine Branch quake and splinter—massive pillars of earth erupting skyward like volcanic spouts. The ground heaved as if trying to escape the Vice Admiral's wrath.
Momonga's mouth twitched violently. "...Is he trying to demolish the entire base?!"
Crack, crack, crack. Darren tilted his head and rolled his neck, the sound of popping joints echoing like the cocking of a cannon. A predatory grin split his face, shadowed by the rising storm of his aura.
"Come on, Gecko Moria."
A shockwave burst from Darren's body. His cloak snapped open, the word Justice rippling like a battle flag.
The crimson tempest of his Conqueror's Haki surged outward, devouring the island in its storm. The earth trembled. The very air shrieked. Stone shattered into dust beneath his feet.
Compared to Moria's earlier display, this wasn't just power—it was domination. A tangible, crushing weight pressed down on the hearts of every living being present.
The Marines who had been cowering in the shadows clutched their heads and screamed, collapsing as blood trickled from their noses and ears.
[ Conqueror's Haki: 75,822! ]
Gecko Moria, caught in the center of that storm, raised his arms to shield himself. The force hurled him backward, dragging deep furrows in the cracked ground.
"Damn it… how can a Marine possess such monstrous Conqueror's Haki?!"
His mind reeled. On his journey through the Blues and Paradise, he had never encountered such pressure, such unrelenting force. His pride buckled beneath it.
"Conqueror's Haki?" Darren smirked, his eyes glinting with quiet amusement. "In the New World, that's nothing special. Kings are as common as fish in the sea."
The words hit Moria harder than the Haki itself.
He stood frozen, hollow-eyed. The ability he'd once worshipped as proof of destiny—the mark of kings—was… common?
"Damn it!! Even so, I won't lose to you!!" he roared, fury overtaking humiliation.
Leaping from the fortress ruins, he raised his grotesque, serrated sword high. Armament Haki coated its edge in black, while purple lightning crackled along its surface. Swarms of Shadow Bats erupted around him, shrieking in sync with his rage.
The instant Moria lunged, Darren moved.
The earth collapsed.
With a single stomp, Darren's body blurred and vanished—reappearing in front of Moria like a phantom. The ground behind him cratered from the explosive force of his takeoff.
Moria's pupils shrank. "So fast—!"
He swung his blade with a roar, the black-and-purple energy slicing the air.
Darren's right hand was already shrouded in jet-black Armament Haki, three fingers curled inward into a claw-like shape.
"Dragon Claw Fist."
The claw descended.
Their blows collided—steel meeting steel, Haki against Haki—and the world detonated around them.
BOOOOOOM!
The air cracked open, a circular shockwave flattening everything within hundreds of meters. The land itself rippled like water, throwing up walls of dirt and smoke.
And then—the impossible.
Moria's blade began to fracture.
A sharp, brittle tink-tink-tink filled the air as spiderweb cracks split across its surface. The black coating of Haki around it shattered like glass under pressure.
Moria's eyes widened in horror. "My… Haki—?!"
Darren's smirk deepened. "You wanted to know how I took down the Golden Lion, didn't you?"
Moria froze. His instincts screamed at him to run.
Too late.
"Dragon's Breath."
BOOM!
A deafening roar—like a dragon exhaling flame—erupted from Darren's fist. The impact unleashed a burst of concentrated force that ripped through everything in front of him.
Moria's sword exploded into fragments. His arm followed, bone and flesh disintegrating in a red mist.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
Chunks of meat and shattered steel flew in all directions.
The air itself trembled from the blast.
"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!"
Moria's scream tore through the thunderous air. Blood poured from his shoulder like a fountain as he stumbled backward, clutching the mangled stump where his right arm had been.
Momonga covered his face with one hand, shaking his head slowly. "And there goes his arm. I knew it."
"You forced my hand, Darren!!" Moria howled through his agony, his face twisting into something barely human. "I'll tear every last one of you apart!!"
He slammed his palms to the ground. "Shadows—gather!!"
At once, the remnants of darkness on the island surged toward him. From broken walls, fissures, and every hiding place, shadows spilled forth like a flood of ink, converging into his massive frame.
His remaining hand stretched wide, his mouth opening to absorb them all.
This was his ultimate technique—his last resort. By devouring the shadows of others, he could enlarge his body and multiply his power severalfold. If his body held, even an island could crumble under his blows.
But just as his maniacal laughter began—
"Kishishishi! You're fini—!!"
A massive hand appeared out of nowhere, clamping brutally over his mouth.
The rushing shadows froze midair.
"Your windup took too long," Darren's voice murmured.
He was right there. Standing beside him.
Moria's pupils dilated in terror. He hadn't even seen him move.
Darren sighed, almost disappointed. "You had potential. Shame you're all talk."
Then he seized Moria's skull.
And slammed it into the earth.
BOOOOM!
The ground detonated like a cannon blast. The shockwave rippled outward in all directions, flattening what little remained of the base.
The sky darkened with dust. From afar, it looked as though a colossal dragon had struck the island with its claw, leaving a crater that swallowed everything.
When the tremors finally stilled, silence blanketed the ruins.
Darren emerged from the crater, dragging the limp, unconscious Moria by his collar like a rag doll. He tossed him onto the fractured ground with casual indifference, lighting another cigar.
"Patch him up," he ordered. "Don't let him die."
The Marines scrambled to obey, their shadows now restored.
Momonga descended beside him, eyeing the devastation. His mouth twitched. "You went way overboard… He destroyed a few cannons, and you destroyed half the island."
He's a walking natural disaster…
Darren exhaled smoke, a faint smile tugging at his lips. "What can I say? I was just getting warmed up."
He glanced at Moria's crumpled body, disappointment in his tone. "What a glass cannon."
Momonga: …
To him, everyone under Kaido's level is cannon fodder.
Then—
A low, distant voice rolled across the sea, deep and commanding.
"How about I be your next opponent?"
The breeze shifted. The Marines stiffened.
Darren's smirk returned, slow and sharp. "They're coming to me now, huh?"
He tilted his head, cigar ember glowing in the wind. "Looks like the North Blue's getting lively again."
To be continued...