Early the next morning, Ortoren boarded a warship and prepared to set sail for Dressrosa.
He had no intention of heading toward Mary Geoise. Instead, after rendezvousing with Doflamingo, he planned to pass straight through the North Calm Belt and enter the North Blue.
The warship slowly departed from G-5's naval harbor.
On the pier, Gion glanced at Rouge, who had also come to see him off. Her brows knit slightly in displeasure as she spoke.
"So you got what you wanted?"
Rouge looked a little weak at the moment. Hearing that, she turned to Gion and said softly,
"I finally understand why you didn't stop me back then..."
"Hmph."
Gion let out a cold laugh. "Your body still needs more training. Otherwise, one day you really won't be able to get out of bed."
After saying that, Gion turned to leave.
But Rouge suddenly called out.
"Gion... if you don't have anything planned today, can we talk properly?"
Gion's steps paused. She hesitated for a moment before answering,
"I really don't have anything today. Let's go."
Hearing that, a delighted smile appeared on Rouge's face. Soon, the two of them left the harbor together.
...
Nearby, Tesoro watched the scene and sighed with genuine admiration.
"As expected of Ortoren-sama..."
The moment the words left his mouth, someone grabbed his ear. Stella, wearing a deceptively gentle smile, spoke in a chilling tone.
"What? You want to learn from him now? I've heard you've been getting pretty close to your assistant, Bakara, lately. Tesoro, are you trying to get kicked out of the house?"
Tesoro immediately raised both hands in surrender, completely subdued.
"How could that be? I swear on heaven and earth, Bakara and I have a purely professional superior–subordinate relationship. It's nothing like what you're thinking. I only love you!"
"Is that so?"
Stella carefully examined Tesoro's expression and eyes before finally letting go of his ear.
"Will you be back for lunch? And speaking of which, are we moving along with the Admiral as well?"
"Of course we are," Tesoro replied. "I'm following the Admiral. I won't be stationed at G-5 anymore. That said, the new place isn't finished yet. We'll move once the infrastructure is ready."
...
Meanwhile, in a certain sea area of the New World, within the territory of the Shichibukai known as Smash Strike Slekemind.
The Red-Haired Pirates' ship, the Redfoss, was fleeing at full speed, while a three-masted sailing ship flying the flag of the Crush Pirates chased closely behind.
On the deck, Slekemind held a pair of binoculars, his expression filled with doubt.
"I don't see that Red-Haired guy. I only see a few members of the Red-Haired Pirates moving around on deck. Could it be that they hid him and split up to escape?"
The thought had barely formed before he dismissed it himself.
Impossible. He had followed the direction indicated by the Vivre Card. That Red-Haired guy had to be on the ship.
Maybe his injuries were too severe, and he hadn't fully recovered yet.
As these thoughts crossed his mind, Slekemind casually tossed the binoculars aside, landing them in the arms of a nearby subordinate. He then leapt forward in two steps onto the railing at the front of the deck. His feet spread outward as he dropped into a perfect horse stance atop the railing.
Immediately after, an inexplicable surge of energy gathered beneath his feet, rushing upward along his legs. In just a moment, it converged in the fist of his left arm.
If one looked closely, that strange energy could be seen swirling around his clenched fist. Wherever it passed, space itself seemed to faintly crack and fracture.
Slekemind was a Paramecia-type Masu Masu no Mi user. Though he had once been beaten back by Katakuri and his group, that didn't mean his strength was lacking.
Back then, he had only been arrogant in the New World for a short time. In a sense, he was still a newcomer.
But he learned from that humiliation. After becoming one of the Shichibukai, he pushed himself relentlessly, honing his strength. The fact that he had repeatedly challenged the Whitebeard Pirates and survived without being killed was proof enough of just how formidable he had become.
The crushing power gathered around his fist for a brief moment before Slekemind roared,
"Shatter Strike!!!"
The instant the shout rang out, he hurled a fierce punch toward the Red Force ahead.
The terrifying crushing force erupted into a shockwave that skimmed across the sea, surging forward at breakneck speed.
Wherever it passed, the seawater looked as if it had evaporated, leaving behind a trailing plume of white mist.
But it wasn't evaporation. It was true pulverization. The energy of that blow shattered the seawater itself on a physical level, reducing it into fine spray.
At the stern of the Red Force, Lucky Roux gritted his teeth when he saw the incoming shockwave.
"This guy's like a mad dog, he just won't let go!"
As he spoke, dense Haki surged over his fist. Before the shockwave could close in, he threw a punch straight at it.
The powerful fist wind, wrapped in Haki, rushed forward in an attempt to stop it. But the result was obvious. Lucky Roux's strength simply couldn't compare to Slekemind's.
The crushing force tore through his fist wind and Haki alike, grinding them into fragments. In the blink of an eye, the shockwave slammed into the stern of the Red Force.
"Together!" Yasopp shouted.
Strictly speaking, although there were still other members of the Red-Haired Pirates on board, they no longer had the same lineup as their peak in the original timeline. Those old core officers were nowhere to be seen, and likely never would be.
After Shanks fell, the only ones truly capable of fighting were Yasopp and Lucky Roux. If the two of them couldn't stop Slekemind, it was over.
At Yasopp's call, he and Lucky Roux moved in perfect sync. Both slammed their palms down onto the deck, unleashing powerful Armament Haki that surged outward from their hands. In an instant, the Haki spread across the entire rear section of the Red Force, wrapping it completely.
The next moment, the crushing shockwave struck.
The Red Force was blasted clean off the surface of the sea. Even with Haki reinforcement, a massive hole was torn open in the stern, though fortunately it didn't affect the ship's ability to sail.
Far behind them, Slekemind watched the scene with clear surprise.
"Not bad at all."
He genuinely hadn't expected them to respond like that.
In truth, this method came from experience Shanks had once shared about the Roger Pirates. Back during the Battle of Edd War, when the Roger Pirates fled through the storm, Rayleigh, Gaban, and Roger had joined forces to completely envelop the Oro Jackson in Haki, forcing their way through Shiki's bombardment and the raging storm to carve out a path to survival.
Still, despite his surprise at their countermeasure, Slekemind had already gotten his answer from that exchange.
These two Red-Haired Pirates officers were strong, but they weren't his match.
With that settled, Slekemind no longer held back. He kicked off hard, pulverizing the railing of his own ship into dust, and launched himself straight toward the Red Force.
Seeing this, Yasopp didn't hesitate. He raised his gun and fired.
Even with the sea heaving violently beneath them, the bullet flew with pinpoint accuracy toward Slekemind.
"Cheap tricks."
Slekemind didn't even bother to dodge. He casually flicked his hand, and the bullet was crushed into dust the instant it touched his fingertip.
Yasopp's attack failed to have any effect. At the same time, Lucky Roux's body began to tremble, the thick layers of fat rippling across him like waves.
When that motion reached its peak, he let out a low roar.
"Burn, my power!!!"
A scorching wave of heat erupted from Lucky Roux's body. In an instant, the round, heavyset man transformed into a hardened figure with a firm build, resolute features, and muscles packed tightly across his frame.
Pitch-black Armament Haki wrapped around his entire body. If Ortoren were here, he might have mistaken Lucky Roux for Vice Admiral Vergo from the original timeline.
The fat-burning punch tore through the air, heat surging outward as shockwaves rippled ahead.
Midair, Slekemind's eyes flashed with surprise as he prepared to land on the Red Force. He didn't dare underestimate the attack. Crushing power surged along his arm as he threw a punch to meet it head-on.
The two forces collided in midair, exploding with a deafening impact. The surrounding seawater was forced downward, and towering waves surged skyward.
...
At the far end of the sea where the pursuit unfolded, a Marine warship cruised along.
Momonga lowered his binoculars and commented calmly,
"This is getting pretty intense."
"Vice Admiral Momonga, should we move in?" a Marine asked.
Momonga shook his head.
"Not yet. Let's see if Slekemind can finish them off."
"But if he takes Red-Haired's head, the Admiral will owe him a favor," the Marine officer said, puzzled.
Momonga chuckled.
"What's there to worry about? Favors only matter when they go both ways. If Slekemind secures that favor, the Admiral might even be pleased."
As he spoke, Momonga scanned the surrounding sea. After a moment, he clicked his tongue.
"Why hasn't Borsalino arrived yet?"
After all, this time Momonga had left G-12 Base to handle some personal business on Punk Hazard. Since Punk Hazard was a non-magnetic island, he couldn't navigate there on his own. He had contacted Borsalino, who happened to be free, and the two had agreed to meet so Borsalino could personally take him there.
...
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