"You're all insane!" Saint Feipuluosi stared at Doflamingo's manic grin, then at the Marine Vice Admiral lounging outside with amused detachment. His heart hammered. "Attacking a Celestial Dragon…"
"Stop them!" he shrieked, scrambling into the palace on hands and knees. "You're all dead!" His breath came ragged; his face flushed scarlet.
Inside, a Military Den Den Mushi waited—a direct line to the Holy Land Mary Geoise. One call, and help would come.
Just wait until the Celestial Dragons' strongest shield arrives, he thought. I'll have these fools torn apart, piece by piece.
The moment Feipuluosi moved, the last CP0 agent attacked. In a single fluid draw, he flashed a razor-bright katana and sent a silver-white arc screaming across the ground toward Doflamingo.
"Heh… a swordsman of some caliber," Doflamingo purred, licking his lips. He crossed his forearms, then flung them wide—threads braided and plated in Armament Haki surged into a vast black net before him.
Clang!!
The net caught the flying slash like a beast swallowing prey, the impact detonating a thunderous shockwave. Dust geysered up; behind his mask, the CP0 agent's eyes narrowed.
Doflamingo burst through the smoke with savage laughter, pink feathers whipping behind him. "Heh heh heh! It's been a while since I met someone worth my time!"
Silk lines twined in his hands, coiling tighter, dense with Armament. He cracked them down with brutal force.
An orange-red whip, over a hundred meters long, scythed through the jungle and smashed into the CP0 agent.
"Overheat Whip!"
Boom!
The blow hurled the agent back, carving a trench through the trees. Smoke billowed as ancient trunks toppled like dominos.
"Fascinating… absolutely fascinating!" Doflamingo chased him into the green gloom, laughing, his whole frame trembling with delight. "Heh heh heh!"
Blade-light and threads collided again and again in the jungle, each impact shearing shockwaves through the undergrowth. Where they passed, giant trees split and fell with groaning cracks, the forest shuddering as if two monsters were locked in a death match.
Outside, Darren watched through Observation Haki and nodded, satisfied. As a born villain, Doflamingo's growth rate was startling. He couldn't touch monsters like Kuzan, but he'd long outstripped men like Yamakaji. Under Darren's training, his close-quarters weaknesses had been patched; he was rounding out nicely. Keep this up, Darren mused, and his "adopted son" might one day scrape into Gold Tier—no longer shaking at the mere mention of Kaido.
As for the Celestial Dragon…
Cigar in his teeth, Darren turned toward the palace and exhaled a lazy plume of smoke.
Saint Feipuluosi staggered to the Den Den Mushi and snatched it up, panting. "Hahahaha!"
He spun toward the window, eyes locking on the Marine outside. His features twisted with savage triumph. "Rogers Darren! You reckless Marine whelp! You'll pay for this—your stupidity, your arrogance!"
"If I recall, you were behind the North Blue incident… You killed that fool Saint Shaldes, didn't you?"
"You killed a Celestial Dragon! There's nowhere you can hide on this sea!"
"One press of this Den Den Mushi, and Pangaea Castle will know everything!"
"Your status, your fame, your power—vanished in an instant! Hahahaha!"
Clutching the snail like a lifeline, he swelled with renewed arrogance. "Come now, if you don't want to lose everything, make a deal."
"Get on your knees and bark for me. If you're entertaining, I might spare your life."
His eyes flashed with killing intent. That brat ruined everything. I'll make him grovel.
"My apologies, Saint Feipuluosi, but my Marine code name isn't 'Dog,'" Darren said, scratching his head as if embarrassed. "If you plan to make the call, I'd hurry. Doflamingo will be back soon."
"Once he finishes with CP0, I won't be able to stop him from slaughtering you."
He lifted his hands in a mock surrender. "I'm just an ordinary Marine. How could I interfere with a Celestial Dragon's decision?"
"You're dead!!"
Veins jumped along Feipuluosi's temple. "Just you wait!!"
He slammed the Den Den Mushi's red emergency button.
One second…
Two…
Three…
Nothing.
Then—
Purupuru… purupuru…
The Den Den Mushi stirred and began to ring.
Feipuluosi's eyes lit up. "Hahaha! Connected! You're finished—"
He turned—and the smile froze on his face. The Marine Vice Admiral sat there wearing a lazy, mocking smirk, drawing a Military Den Den Mushi from his coat. The snail in Darren's hand was ringing with the same purupuru.
Under the Celestial Dragon's horrified stare, Darren answered.
"Gocha."
Both Den Den Mushi fell silent in the same heartbeat.
"Moshi moshi?" Darren said mildly into his device. His voice passed through the line and—
Feipuluosi jerked his head down, gawking at the Den Den Mushi in his own hand.
"Moshi moshi?" came the same playful, taunting voice from his snail. "This is Rogers Darren speaking, Saint Feipuluosi. How do you do?"
The twin voices, almost overlapping, drifted through the vast, empty palace.
Saint Feipuluosi looked as if lightning had struck him.
To be continued...