"What kind of ability... is that?"
"Just one glance, and his head exploded..."
"Unbelievable..."
"That's the highest authority in the Government—the Gorosei!"
"..."
The Marines reeled, shaken to their core by a power they had never imagined this world could hold.
Middle- and high-ranking officers stared at the elderly man in the black flat-topped hat, awe and dread washing over them in equal measure. Cold sweat ran down their backs; their scalps prickled.
If Saint Saturn's cold, stern eyes were to fall on me without warning... would I even survive?
They dared not linger on the thought. A proverb surfaced unbidden from old religious tales:
One must never gaze directly upon a god.
The ranks trembled—faces tight with fear, yet tinged with reverence.
"Is this the World Government's ultimate power? Truly terrifying..." Borsalino murmured, astonishment flickering across his face. He tilted his head toward Sakazuki. "Wouldn't you say so, Sakazuki?"
Sakazuki stood beside him, granite-faced, eyes fixed on the towering figure of the Vice Admiral at the bow of the government ship. Saint Saturn's crushing presence might as well have been the wind; Sakazuki did not blink.
Borsalino paused, then gave a rueful little chuckle and glanced aside.
Kuzan stood rooted to the deck, eyes bloodshot, staring blankly after the retreating back of the Vice Admiral. The usual fire was gone from his gaze, as if the world had been blanched of color.
"I'm really not used to this..." Borsalino muttered, scratching at his temple.
As the Government's official ship slipped through the blockade, three more appeared on the horizon, each crowded with young Celestial Dragons. Escorted by Marine battleships, the procession eased into the military exclusion zone around Felsek Island.
Unlike the hushed first ship, the elite Celestial Dragons aboard the other three were in high spirits, brimming with arrogance and anticipation for the coming "hunt." They laughed and chatted as if arriving at a festival.
When the ships, each flying the World Government's flag, passed into the Marine cordon and began to shrink toward the horizon, the sailors exhaled as one, taut nerves slackening at last. Men who had kept their chins lowered exchanged quick glances, finding the same fear still lodged in each other's eyes.
For eight centuries, the World Government had ruled the seas with terrible authority, its power stamped deep into the collective mind. Under that pressure, reverence accrued across generations does not simply fade.
This held truest within the Marines, a violent law-enforcement arm built on absolute obedience. Independent will was thinner here than among ordinary citizens. For many, that ingrained deference never loosened its grip.
Some would have preferred another clash with the Beasts Pirates or Big Mom's crew to facing a handful of Celestial Dragons.
"What exactly is our mission this time?"
"Who knows? The only order we got was to blockade Felsek Island."
"Even Admiral Sengoku and those monsters are here... Could a Great Pirate be hiding on that island?"
"Don't be absurd! If a Great Pirate like that were holed up there, the Celestial Dragons wouldn't have set foot anywhere near it."
Bewildered murmurs rippled through the battleships.
"Look at them… they're dressed like they're going hunting."
"Hunting? On Felsek? It's snowbound year-round! What game is there to hunt?"
"Even Saint Saturn of the Gorosei came in person..."
"And why is Vice Admiral Darren on a Government ship? Wasn't he just in the New World intercepting the Whitebeard Pirates?"
"He's probably getting promoted, right? Sharing a ship with the Gorosei, Your Excellency."
"Escorting the Celestial Dragons—the World Nobles—that's a duty only an Admiral can handle."
"So... could it be...?"
A collective hiss cut the air.
"It's almost certain! Vice Admiral Darren's going straight up to Marine Admiral!"
"I'm so jealous... He's only twenty-three, isn't he? I thought Zephyr was the youngest ever, and he didn't reach Admiral until thirty-eight!"
"Given Vice Admiral Darren's record, it tracks. He's beaten Great Pirates—Byrnndi World, the 'World Destroyer,' and even the Golden Lion."
"But that puts him ahead of his senior, Vice Admiral Sakazuki... makes him his superior overnight."
"Do you think Sakazuki will be furious?"
"Shh! Keep it down. He's got a vicious temper. If he hears you—"
"..."
The deck buzzed with speculation—puzzlement over the blockade order, envy over Darren's likely ascension.
"Silence, all of you!"
Sengoku's voice cracked across the sea like a cold snap.
"I know you're curious about this mission," he said, expression hard as iron. "I have no information to share."
"You don't need to know what's happening on that island. Your only task is to maintain the blockade. No one enters, no one leaves. Anyone who attempts to breach it... is to be executed on sight. No questions asked."
His words cut colder than the wind.
"For the next twenty-four hours, ignore any sounds you hear. Hold your posts and stay sharp."
"No one moves without my explicit order!"
A tremor ran through the fleet; tens of thousands straightened as one and snapped their hands to their brows.
"All for Justice!!"
Borsalino watched the display, a slow, mocking curve tugging at the corner of his mouth.
"For Justice... is it?"
Sengoku shot him a brief, sharp look, then turned away. He strode to Kuzan, who still stood pale and glassy-eyed, and lowered his voice to a growl.
"Especially you, Kuzan..."
"You are forbidden to leave this battleship without my say-so."
"This is... an order!"
To be continued...