Chapter 35: The Wrath of the Vermillion Bird! A God Bleeds!
The moment the Celestial Dragon's vile offer to enslave Rem and Albedo left his lips, the atmosphere on the deck shifted fundamentally.
It wasn't just a drop in temperature. It was a sudden, crushing heaviness—as if the gravity on the Saint Noros had increased tenfold. The air became thick, smelling of ozone and impending death.
Suzaku's playful smile, which he had worn like a mask since boarding, vanished. In its place was a visage of chilling indifference. His golden eyes burned not with anger, but with a murderous intent so dense it felt like a physical weight pressing down on every soul present.
"Enslave... my family?"
The whisper was soft, but it echoed like a thunderclap in the ears of the Marines.
BOOM!
The gold-plated deck beneath Suzaku's feet didn't just crack; it pulverized. He didn't run; he vanished. Propelling himself forward with explosive speed that left a sonic boom in his wake, he became a blur of vengeance.
"Damn it! Protect Saint Jalmack!"
Vice Admiral Ferguson's pupils constricted to pinpoints. His Observation Haki screamed a warning of imminent death, a siren wailing in his mind.
"Tekkai! Armament Haki!"
Ferguson's arms turned black as he hardened his muscles to the density of iron. He moved to intercept the blurred figure of Suzaku, prioritizing his duty over his life.
But he never got the chance.
"Where do you think you are looking?"
A cold, sweet voice whispered in his ear, carrying the scent of lavender and blood.
A blur of blue and white filled his vision.
Whirrrr—CRASH!
A spiked iron ball, heavy as a cannonball and coated in Haki, smashed into Ferguson's guard. The impact was like a meteor strike.
"Guh!"
Ferguson gritted his teeth as the force sent him skidding backward. His boots carved deep grooves into the expensive wood, splinters flying.
Rem stood before him, her morningstar spinning lazily at her side. Her single visible blue eye glowed with a demonic loyalty that sent shivers down the veteran's spine.
"You absolutely cannot interfere with Master Suzaku," Rem stated, her voice flat and devoid of mercy. "If you take another step, I will crush every bone in your body."
Before Ferguson could retort, Rem launched her next attack, turning the deck into a chaotic battlefield of chain and iron.
Simultaneously, Suzaku had closed the distance to the Celestial Dragon.
"Protect the Saint! Cipher Pol Aegis Zero!"
Four members of CP0—the elite shield of the World Nobles, monsters trained since birth to be living weapons—emerged from the shadows like ghosts. They moved in perfect synchronization, their bodies honed to absolute lethality.
"Shigan: Yellow Lotus!"
"Rankyaku: Gaichou!"
Fingers harder than steel bullets thrust toward Suzaku's throat and heart. Compressed air blades, sharp enough to slice through a battleship, flew at his legs.
It was a perfect kill zone. No pirate should have been able to survive it.
"Heh."
Suzaku didn't slow down. He didn't even blink.
His body moved like smoke in a hurricane. He swayed his head a millimeter to the left, letting a lethal finger thrust graze his cheek. He twisted his torso mid-stride, allowing an air blade to pass harmlessly under his armpit, shredding his coat but missing his flesh.
Then, he struck.
His movements were casual, almost lazy, like a man swatting annoying flies. But his hands were coated in invisible, high-density Haki.
Crack. Snap. Thud.
The sounds were wet and sickening.
One CP0 agent's arm was twisted into a spiral as Suzaku caught his punch and kept turning. Another's chest caved in with the sound of shattering ribs as Suzaku delivered a palm strike. The third was sent flying backward, his neck bent at an unnatural angle from a simple backhand.
In less than a second, the elite guard of the World Government lay broken on the deck, spewing blood mixed with organ fragments. They died without understanding how they had been defeated.
Suzaku stepped over their twitching bodies, his boots crunching on the gold leaf.
"I can't pretend I didn't hear what you just said."
His voice was low, resonating with the chill of the abyss.
He stopped directly in front of Saint Jalmack. The Celestial Dragon, encased in his bubble helmet, stared up at the demon in human skin. His mouth hung open, a string of drool connecting his lip to his chin.
Suzaku looked down at him with pure, unadulterated disgust.
"So it was you," Suzaku whispered. "This fat pig... clamoring to enslave my family?"
How could Saint Jalmack have ever been treated this way? He was a god among men. The world existed to serve him. The Marines died for him. The air was filtered for him.
Extreme shock temporarily overrode his fear. He pointed a trembling, white-gloved finger at Suzaku, screaming with a false bravado born of lifelong entitlement.
"You... you dare to call me a fat pig?!"
Spittle flew against the inside of his helmet.
"You lowly ant! Why aren't you kneeling?! I am a descendant of the Creators! I am a God! If... if you kneel now and offer those two women to me, I might let you die a quick death! I might even let you watch as I break th—"
"Huh?"
Suzaku tilted his head, genuinely amused by the sheer stupidity of the creature before him.
"At this point, you still don't understand the situation? Indeed, inbreeding really does rot the brain."
Suzaku raised his hand.
"Too lazy to listen to your squealing."
SLAP!
Suzaku's hand moved faster than the eye could follow.
CRACK!
The sound was deafening, like a gunshot ringing across the ocean.
Suzaku's palm connected with the reinforced glass of the bubble helmet. The glass, designed to withstand sniper fire, shattered instantly into a million glittering shards.
But the hand didn't stop there. It continued, connecting solidly with Saint Jalmack's face.
The Celestial Dragon's head snapped to the side. The force of the slap lifted his entire obese body off the ground. He spun a full 360 degrees in the air like a ragdoll before crashing heavily onto the deck.
THUD.
"Guh... agh...!"
Jalmack lay on the ground, clutching his face. His cheek was swollen to the size of a melon, embedded with glass shards. Blood and snot streamed down his face, mixing with tears.
"Waaahhh—It hurts! It hurts! Mama!"
The god was gone. Only a crying man-child remained.
"I want to go home! These lowly commoners are hitting me! Help! Admiral! Cipher Pol! Anyone!"
A wet stain spread rapidly across the crotch of his white trousers. The stench of urine filled the air.
Just at this critical moment, a figure burst out of the hole in the cabin wall.
It was Vice Admiral Momonga.
He was bloodied, disheveled, and clearly suffering from internal injuries, but his sense of duty drove him forward. He ignored his broken ribs.
"Saint Jalmack!"
Momonga roared. He channeled every ounce of his remaining strength into his legs.
Soru!
He vanished, reappearing mid-air, aiming a desperate sword strike at Suzaku's back to save the Noble.
"Insects should know their place."
A cold, regal voice rang in his ears like a funeral bell.
"Wouldn't it be better to stay quiet and die?"
Albedo materialized in his path. She moved faster than Soru. She was a black lightning bolt against the blue sky.
Momonga's eyes were bloodshot. He knew this was the end. He poured his Haki into his blade.
"DIE!"
He unleashed a full-power slash, aimed directly at Albedo's beautiful face.
Albedo didn't dodge. She didn't summon a weapon.
She simply raised her left arm, coated in pitch-black Armament Haki.
CLANG—!
Sparks flew. The sound of metal hitting impenetrable armor echoed across the sea.
Momonga's katana, a blade capable of cutting steel, stopped dead against Albedo's forearm. It didn't even leave a scratch on her skin.
"How... is that possible?!" Momonga gasped, his world shattering.
"Is that all?" Albedo sneered.
Her right hand moved. A massive, double-headed battle-axe—"3F"—materialized from the void into her grip. It radiated a green aura of pure destruction.
She swung.
Momonga, relying on decades of combat experience, desperately twisted his body mid-air to avoid bisection.
SHING!
A fountain of blood sprayed into the air.
A severed arm, still clutching a sword, spun away and landed on the deck with a wet thud.
"AAAAHHH!"
Momonga screamed, kicking off the air to retreat. He crashed onto the deck, clutching the stump of his right arm. His face was as pale as paper.
He looked around at the terrified Marines, his voice cracking with desperation.
"Quick! Contact Marineford! Emergency Signal!"
Momonga roared, blood spraying from his mouth.
"The World Noble is under attack! The enemy's strength is catastrophic! We cannot hold them! Request urgent support from an Admiral! Repeat! REQUEST AN ADMIRAL!"
But Albedo wasn't done. She shook the blood off her axe and took a step forward, her golden eyes glowing with sadistic pleasure. She looked like a nightmare walking.
Marineford, Fleet Admiral's Office.
The peaceful afternoon at the Marine Headquarters was shattered.
The Golden Den Den Mushi on Fleet Admiral Sengoku's desk didn't just ring. It screamed. It was the frantic, high-pitched alarm reserved for a Buster Call or a direct attack on the World Government.
Sengoku's heart skipped a beat. He snatched the receiver.
"Report!"
The voice on the other end was distorted by static and sheer terror.
"Fleet Admiral! Urgent Intelligence! This is the communications officer of Vice Admiral Ferguson's fleet!"
"What is happening?" Sengoku demanded, standing up, his knuckles white.
"We... we are under attack! Saint Jalmack's fleet has been intercepted at the entrance of the Grand Line! The enemy is... is the 'Vermillion Bird' Suzaku!"
Sengoku's grip tightened, cracking the desk.
"The World Noble... Saint Jalmack has been assaulted! His helmet is shattered! Vice Admiral Momonga has lost an arm! The CP0 team is wiped out! We are being slaughtered! The enemy's strength far exceeds estimates! Send help! Send an Admiral! PLEASE!"
The line went dead with a static hiss.
Sengoku froze. The blood drained from his face.
"Suzaku... attacked a Celestial Dragon?!"
His worst nightmare had manifested. The rookie who defeated Shiki wasn't just strong; he was insane. Attacking a World Noble was a declaration of war against the entire world. It was an incident that would shake the foundations of the Great Pirate Era.
"If they defeated Shiki... a Vice Admiral stands no chance."
Sengoku moved instantly. He grabbed the golden Den Den Mushi connected to the Admirals.
Puru-puru-puru... Click.
"Aokiji!" Sengoku shouted, abandoning all protocol. "Change course immediately! Suzaku is attacking a World Noble ship near the Twin Capes! I don't care what you are doing—get there now! Save the Saint and stop Suzaku!"
"Arara..." Aokiji's lazy voice came through, but it was edged with rare seriousness. "That's... really a big problem. Understood. I'm turning the ship around. I'll be there as fast as I can."
Sengoku hung up, but the dread in his stomach didn't fade. Aokiji was close, but was he close enough? And against a crew that took down the Golden Lion?
"One Admiral might not be enough to secure the capture. Not against someone who beat Shiki."
Sengoku dialed another number.
Puru-puru-puru... Click.
"Moshi moshi This is Borsalino"
"Kizaru!" Sengoku barked. "Where are you?!"
"Oh, scary, Mr. Sengoku... so loud. I just finished my inspection of Water 7. I'm on my way back to base~"
"Water 7? Good!" Sengoku slammed his hand on the desk. "Change course! Head to the Twin Capes immediately at light speed! Aokiji is also en route!"
"The target is 'Vermillion Bird' Suzaku. He is currently butchering a Celestial Dragon's escort fleet. I need you to get there and ensure the Noble survives. Capture or kill Suzaku! This is a Buster Call level priority!"
"Ooh... attacking a World Noble?" Kizaru's voice drawled, but the amusement was gone. "These young people nowadays really have no fear of death. Understood... I'll be there in a flash~"
Sengoku slammed the receiver down. He collapsed into his chair, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead.
He looked out the window at the massive Justice Gate.
"Two Admirals..." Sengoku whispered into the empty room. "I've sent two Admirals for one rookie pirate crew. God help us if they don't make it in time."
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