The Akatsuki ship carved through the New World's waters.
Kisame stood at the bow, arms crossed, Samehada wasn't attached to his back.
Nagato didn't even look back when he spoke:"You sent something after the Marines."
Kisame grinned. "Heh. Just a little clone."
Miles behind them — aboard the Marine warship
"FASTER! ROW FASTER!"
Panic devoured the ship as Marines scrambled, desperate to get away from the monstrous vessel they'd accidentally encountered.
Then the sea behind them bulged.
A vortex spiraled upward, water forming into a towering humanoid silhouette.Kisame's water clone emerged, Samehada already in its grasp.
"What is That weapon?!—and.. Is that Fishman Karate?!"
One Marine fired instinctively .BANG!
The clone lifted Samehada casually—shrrrk—the living blade absorbed stamina from each marine it injured.
"Fishman Karate? Not quite" the clone said with a grin.
Samehada twitched violently—and Kisame swung.
The blade tore through the first row of Marines, shredding them with its serrated scale-teeth.Bodies split, uniforms ripped, the deck painted red in an instant.
"OPEN FIRE!"
Dozens of rifles blasted at once.
Samehada's scales expanded like a shield—ch-ch-ch-chk! Bullets clattered off harmlessly against its scales.
The Marines' eyes widened in horror.
"That's not Fishman Karate at all!"
"It's— it's a Devil Fruit power!"
"No… that blade… it's—"
They never finished.
The water clone dashed forward with impossible speed, Samehada carving arcs of destruction. Each swing sliced through the deck with ease and continued to tear the remaining Marines apart.
A group tried to escape by leaping overboard—only for the clone to slam its palm onto the sea.
Water Release: Exploding Water Shockwave. A wall of water surged upward, swallowing them whole before dragging them beneath the waves.
The last few Marines huddled together, trembling.
"W-We need to report—We have to—"
The clone appeared behind them, Samehada resting lazily on its shoulder.
"No you don't."
One final horizontal sweep—shhhhkt and silence reclaimed the ocean.
The ruined ship began sinking.
Back on the Akatsuki ship--
Kisame exhaled as the chakra link faded, stretching with satisfaction, a few minutes later Samehada swam back to the ship and hopped back onto Kisames back, also satisfied.
"That should keep them quiet."
Enel raised a brow. "You really went all-out. Overkill, much?"
Kisame shrugged. "I don't like loose ends."
Deidara laughed. "Hah! You and that oversized chewing-knife of yours… un."
Nagato finally spoke, eyes forward.
"We move on."
The Akatsuki's black warship continued through the New World—leaving no survivors behind.
--------------
A few days passed, and everyone had already started to get used to sailing.
Pirate crews who tried their luck never stood a chance. Marine ships that attempted pursuit were erased just as quickly. Each Akatsuki member had now tasted real battle in this new world—different rules, different powers, but the same thrill.
Kisame reveled in the endless ocean, his water release jutsu more powerful than ever, with such a large source constantly present.Konan found herself impressed by how quickly word of their presence spread. Hidan complained that no one here worshipped Jashin, but he enjoyed the chaos anyway. Enel, though still awkward around the others, grew more comfortable after realizing everyone here fought like gods compared to the skypian people he once ruled. Nagato observed everything with quiet calculation, already mapping out the world's factions, power structures, and threats. And Kakuzu… well, Kakuzu had finally found paradise.
Every pirate flag they sank.Every criminal group they destroyed.
Every. Single. One.Had a bounty.
Even the marine ships they sunk had captives with bounties.
And Kakuzu cashed every one of those numbers into memory like scripture.
Even now, as they cruised along a new sea route, Kakuzu stood over a pile of wanted posters, counting them like a dragon perched on gold.
"Look at these… these totals… this world might be the greatest thing that's ever happened to me," Kakuzu muttered, voice shaking slightly. "If I collected bounties for a decade I still wouldn't make this much. But here, prices like this aren't all that rare."
The others didn't comment—he'd been like this for hours.
Finally, Kakuzu turned to Nagato, eyes gleaming.
"Stop the ship. I want to go to a Marine base."
Nagato raised a brow.
Kakuzu held up a stack of posters—at least a dozen fresh kills.
"I'll use Transformation Jutsu to look like different bounty hunters. These bounties are just sitting here.I refuse to sail around with money I haven't collected."
Kisame snorted. "So basically, you want to turn in the bodies you helped mutilate, to the exact people we've been slaughtering for days?"
"Yes," Kakuzu replied without hesitation. "Money is money."
Konan let out a tired sigh."He's serious."
Nagato eventually nodded.
"Very well. I'm planning to go back to the first half of the grand line. We'll pass through fishman island, and afterwards we'll go to Sabaody. You can collect the bounties there."His Rinnegan narrowed. "But don't push too far. We've made enough noise already."
Kakuzu tucked the bounty posters inside his cloak with the care of a priest storing holy scripture.
"Oh, trust me…" he said, hands forming the first seal for Transformation Jutsu.
"I am extremely motivated to behave."
-------------------------------
A Few Days Later — Marine Headquarters
Stacks of freshly-printed bounty posters were slammed onto Sengoku's desk.
Sengoku addressed the people in the room.
"These are the new bounties of the akatsuki. These were based off of survivors of their attacks, as well as information delivered from newscoo that happened to watch them."
Sengoku then told Brannew nearby "Read them."
Brannew flipped the first poster.
Nagato — 1,600,000,000 Berries
"Due to his sudden recruiting of so many powerful individuals out of seemingly nowhere, and his own overwhelming strength his bounty has risen by 100 million. This man is on the same threat level as the Yonko."
Thunder God Enel — 1,020,000,000 Berries
"Increased by fifty million after repeated large-scale lightning strikes on pirate fleets. His powers allow devastation on the same level as natural disasters. Recent reports show he's also grasped basic armament haki, making him more dangerous than he was previously."
Sea King Kisame — 500,000,000 Berries
Brannew paused."His bounty rose the fastest. Marine survivors reported—incorrectly—that he used high-grade Fishman Karate. Later survivors suspect him to have a water logia, as he turned into water upon being hit. "He flipped the page. "He's a monster, and it wouldn't be wrong to call him the bane of all devil fruit users."
Deidara The Terrorist — 380,000,000 Berries
"His fighting method has been officially classified as 'extreme terrorism.' Dozens of ships have been bombed into the sea. Civilians included."
Kakuzu — 330,000,000 Berries
"Multiple elemental abilities—fire, wind, water, lightning, and earth—were witnessed by a News Coo. Analysts believe he may possess a Mythical Zoan with multi-element abilities."
Angel Konan — 210,000,000 Berries
"Her paper-based attacks and flight abilities were seen once. The destruction was precise and efficient.
Poison Master Sasori — 205,000,000 Berries
"Survivors described their allies collapsing without wounds… or with strange punctures. Theories range from poison to unknown parasitic techniques."
Fanatic Hidan — 140,000,000 Berries
"Barely any witnesses lived long enough to describe him. The ones who did reported the 'scythe-wielding maniac' carving up pirates for fun."
Red Eyes Itachi — 92,000,000 Berries
"Minimal sightings. Only noted for exceptional stealth and red-eyed abilities. True danger level unknown."
Sengoku exhaled slowly.
"The world now has nine new nightmares… and no consistent intel on their origins."
Brannew nodded grimly.
"We've classified them collectively as Akatsuki. Every bounty poster now carries their emblem."
"Aside from that, scouts have determined that the Akatsuki seems to be heading back to paradise, very likely going via the fishman island route."
A murmur rippled across the room.
Akainu clicked his tongue."They're heading straight for the Red Line. If we strike now, we can intercept them before they disappear again."
A Vice Admiral shook his head immediately."With respect, sir—intercepting them underwater is suicide. If that shark creature really is a water-based Devil Fruit user, then—"
Another officer cut in."He could wipe out entire Marine fleets beneath the surface. Even a Buster Call wouldn't guarantee success."
Tsuru folded her arms.
"Right now the worst thing we could do… is underestimate them again. We know Nagato defeated Kizaru. We know their numbers are growing. And we know too little about their abilities."
Sengoku finally spoke, voice low but firm.
"For now… we watch. We track. And we gather information. Until we better understand their full capabilities, engaging them directly would be reckless."
Akainu's jaw tightened, and he slammed his fist.
"You're just giving them time to grow even stronger! I won't sit back any longer and watch these scum run free just because you all are too cowardly to take action!"
Several Vice Admirals tensed.
Aokiji sighed quietly.Kizaru—still bandaged in the corner—didn't even lift his head.
Tsuru narrowed her eyes. "Sakazuki, this isn't about cowardice. It's about not sending men to die pointlessly—"
"Pointlessly?!" he snapped. "The point is justice. And justice doesn't wait for monsters to get comfortable."
He turned sharply, cape snapping behind him as he stormed toward the doors.
"No matter what you decide… I'll do what must be done."
The doors slammed shut.
Silence settled over the room—heavy and exhausted.
Sengoku exhaled through his teeth, pressing two fingers to his temple.
"That man…" he muttered. "If he keeps acting on his own, he'll spark a war before we're ready."
Tsuru nodded. "And if he confronts them alone, he'll die. Even he must know that."
Aokiji shoved his hands lazily into his pockets. "Knowing doesn't mean he'll care. I'll go with him."
Sengoku's head snapped up.
"You will not encourage him," he warned sharply. "If you go, it's to restrain him—NOT to fight Nagato."
Aokiji gave a half-shrug. "That's the plan. If Sakazuki finds them first, he'll start attacking without hesitation. Someone has to cool his head before he does something stupid."
Tsuru frowned. "You're strong, Kuzan… but if Akainu forces a confrontation, you may not be able to stop him."
Aokiji didn't deny it.He simply sighed, breath misting the air as a faint cold drifted off him.
"Maybe not. But I can slow him down. And if worst comes to worst, I'll retreat with him if he ends up losing.'"
Sengoku stared at him for a moment—torn, exhausted, but knowing there was no better option.
"…Fine," he said at last. "Go. Keep an eye on him. Keep him from doing anything reckless."
Aokiji gave a lazy salute and turned to leave.
After Aokiji left to chase after Akainu, Sengoku slumped back into his chair—frustration etched into every line of his face.
Tsuru folded her arms, voice low.
"This is turning into a bigger issue than any of us expected."
Sengoku closed his eyes.
"And the worst part," he whispered, "is that we're already too late to stop it without incurring many losses."