When Kid and Law witnessed Luffy's group killing the Celestial Dragons as if they were swatting flies, they could only sigh in resignation.
'You're something else... now we have to face the Marine encirclement alongside you.'
'Truly worthy of someone with a 900 Million Berry bounty... you really don't follow conventional paths.'
Law surmised that Luffy's ability to take such reckless actions likely stemmed from confidence in his own strength.
Surely a pirate worth nearly a billion berries couldn't be a fool.
There was another reason Law remained unruffled.
'Since the Celestial Dragons had died inside the venue and all their attendants were knocked unconscious by Straw Hat's peculiar aura, this meant Marine Headquarters wouldn't learn of the incident anytime soon.'
They had ample time to leave the island before the chaos spread.
Having reached this conclusion, Law bid farewell to Kid and Luffy.
"Straw Hat-ya, Eustass-ya... I'll take my leave now. Perhaps we'll meet again in the New World."
Kid snorted coldly and had Killer wake their unconscious crew members before heading toward the auction house exit.
Though arrogant, he had no desire to wade into such troubled waters unnecessarily.
Luffy merely gave a casual response to both, maintaining basic courtesy since they'd addressed him.
"See ya."
Just then.
BZZZT.
A loudspeaker announcement echoed through the area outside.
"MONKEY D. LUFFY! EUSTASS 'CAPTAIN' KID! AND TRAFALGAR LAW!"
"YOUR ASSAULT ON CELESTIAL DRAGONS AND ATTACK ON THE AUCTION HOUSE CONSTITUTE SEVERE VIOLATIONS OF WORLD GOVERNMENT LAW!"
"THE ENTIRE AUCTION HOUSE IS NOW SURROUNDED BY MARINES. SURRENDER IMMEDIATELY OR WE WILL RESORT TO FORCED MEASURES!"
Law froze, utterly bewildered.
'What the hell... the Celestial Dragons inside were killed just one minute ago... and the Marines are ALREADY here?!'
'No one could have reported this so fast. What's going on?'
Unless... these Marines had been lurking nearby and only now chose to intervene.
But that made no sense either.
Why would they deploy thousands of troops to encircle the building before anything happened?
Even with the Straw Hat Pirates' notorious reputation, the Marines shouldn't operate with such foresight.
The usually brilliant Law felt his brain short-circuiting.
For a moment, his entire understanding of the world seemed flawed.
He couldn't possibly know that before Luffy's group even entered the auction house, Zoro and Ray had already killed two other Celestial Dragons in broad daylight on the streets.
The Marines were already here for them.
But with circumstances being what they were, breaking through was their only option.
Kid and Law charged out with their crews, only to be utterly speechless at the sight of Marines encircling the auction house in multiple dense layers.
"Hmph... Trafalgar, don't hold me back later."
"Eustass-ya... I return the sentiment."
As the two prepared to unleash their abilities and begin fighting...
CLOMP. CLOMP.
Luffy, Sanji, Nami, Robin, Usopp, Chopper, and Brook emerged from the venue with Hachi and Camie.
The other Flying fish Riders hovered behind them on their flying fish mounts.
Sanji lit a cigarette, glancing sideways at Luffy.
"Let's wrap this up quickly. Camie's safety comes first."
Luffy nodded in understanding.
Adjusting his straw hat, he ignored Kid and Law completely, striding directly past them to the front line.
Seeing Luffy's audacious demeanor, Kid nearly erupted in anger.
"HEY! YOU IGNO—"
BOOM!
But before he could open his mouth, a dark red aura suddenly erupted from Luffy's body, spreading outward like a shockwave.
A Conqueror's Haki shook the entire kilometer-radius area!
THUD. THUD. THUD.
Instantly, among the thousands of Marines, only a few Captains and one Rear Admiral remained conscious.
The rest collapsed, foaming at the mouth.
"Conqueror's... Haki..."
The Rear Admiral fell to one knee, trembling.
He recognized the aura Luffy had released.
They'd been careless.
Originally planning to stall the Straw Hat Pirates until Pacifista reinforcements arrived, they'd instead been wiped out by a mere glare.
The Straw Hat crew paid no attention to the stunned Rear Admiral, all boarding the Flying Fish to head toward the Sunny at Grove 13.
Regarding Marine Admirals, both Luffy and Sanji agreed their best course was to avoid them whenever possible to protect Camie.
ZOOM!
Ten seconds later, the Straw Hat Pirates had vanished into the sky, leaving only a twitching Kid and Law behind.
The feeling of being ignored left them deeply frustrated, yet there was nothing they could do.
"Conqueror's .... Haki?" Kid muttered, sweating.
Law remained silent, gripping his sword, Kikoku.
It was certainly impressive.
Then, the two exchanged a glance and began their escape with their respective crews.
Since the Marines had surrounded the area, it meant an Admiral was either already on the island or en route.
Just as the two defeated several remaining Captains and that Rear Admiral and prepared to leave Grove 1...
BOOM!
A massive figure suddenly descended from above, blocking their path.
Taking a closer look, cold sweat dripped from their foreheads.
"Shichibukai... Bartholomew Kuma!"
(Note: This is a Pacifista, but they don't know that yet.)
...
Some time later.
Luffy and the others were nearly back to Grove 13 on the flying fish.
But suddenly.
PEW! PEW!
Two yellow laser beams shot toward the flying fish carrying Luffy and Sanji.
BOOM!
Instantly, the lasers pierced through the flying fish and erupted into a massive thirty-meter diameter explosion against the mangrove trees behind them.
The Straw Hats landed one after another, their expressions tense as they stared at the two Kuma Pacifistas blocking their path.
And at the tall figure standing lazily behind the Pacifistas.
"Arara... Long time no see, Straw Hat Luffy."
The newcomer stood three meters tall, surrounded by a raging chill that froze the ground beneath his feet.
"Aokiji!"
Luffy's face showed shock.
Sanji, Nami, Robin, and the others wore equally worried expressions.
The Marine Admiral had arrived far too quickly.
...
Grove 30.
"Three Sword Style: PURGATORY ONI GIRI!"
CLANG!
Zoro leaped forward, his three Haki-coated blades clashing violently against Kizaru's light sword, Ama no Murakumo.
The tremendous force generated powerful shockwaves, sending debris flying wildly around them.
The three swords danced freely in Zoro's hands, each cutting in different directions and employing distinct sword styles.
Kizaru could only keep up by relying on his incredible speed.
Moreover, Zoro's Haki was genuinely formidable—even though Kizaru could handle each strike, he avoided using his Logia intangibility to passively tank hits.
Even if he was capable of it, a Haki-infused blade would still hurt.
"Ooh~ Scary~"
Kizaru had already gauged Zoro's strength and swordsmanship.
With a forceful swing of his light sword, he pushed Zoro back using the momentum from his extreme speed.
SHING!
"It seems the 450 Million Berry bounty is too low for you."
Kizaru was inwardly shocked.
In just these few minutes of combat, he clearly felt the gap between Zoro's strength and the other Supernovas he had just crushed.
His Haki usage was remarkably proficient, his physical power immense, and his sword style bizarre to the extreme.
He wielded three different sword styles with seamless fluidity, making it difficult to predict his movements with Observation Haki alone.
If not for Kizaru's extensive combat experience, he might have even had his clothes grazed.
He estimated Zoro had already reached the level of a typical Yonko Commander—not quite on par with Katakuri or King yet, but not far off either.
He had arrived at Sabaody Archipelago ahead of Aokiji and Zephyr, intending to test the Straw Hat crew's strength while slacking off a bit.
'But seeing this... it'd be better to eliminate them sooner rather than later.'
The Straw Hat crew, having been at sea for less than a year, had already reached such a level.
"Roronoa... I'm getting serious now~"
Kizaru grinned, lasers flickering in his hands.
"I was never a pure swordsman to begin with. Have you ever seen a laser attack before?"
ZOOM!
With that, Kizaru flashed backward to a high altitude.
"Yasakani no Magatama!"
Countless lasers poured down toward Zoro like blinding golden raindrops.
Zoro's expression was extremely grave; he knew he couldn't block all of it.
But he had to try.
After this move, he wouldn't be able to hold off Kizaru any longer.
He hoped Mikita had run far enough away.
"Three Sword Style Secret Technique: THREE THOUSAND WORLDS!"
WHOOSH!
Sword flashes shimmered, dispersing the first wave of golden magatama with spinning sword energy.
But Kizaru's Yasakani no Magatama seemed endless, and the subsequent raindrops were about to strike the exhausted Zoro down.
Suddenly.
SNAP!
A massive Light Whip appeared, spinning rapidly like a shield and completely dispersing the following magatama barrage.
Ray had arrived!