The boy sat quietly in the center of a tiny cage. He wrapped himself with the oversized white coat like a protective shell. The iron bars surrounded him, yet he didn't feel trapped. His leafy green eyes drifted across the ship's interior beyond his cage, watching the pirates move about with raucous energy. Their laughter echoed through the wooden hull of the ship, filling the confined space with an odd vibrancy.
The pirates were strange to him. Their loud voices carried a mixture of cheer and harshness, and the way they moved was both chaotic and deliberate. One pirate stumbled drunkenly past his cage, carrying a dented tankard that sloshed with liquid, while another hefted a small chest filled with something shiny and golden. The boy tilted his head as he observed them, his curiosity kept him in a constant state of wonder. The wordless whispers of questions swirled in his mind: Who were these people? Where were they taking him?
His gaze shifted toward the porthole to his right. Through the glass, the boy could see the dark ocean stretching endlessly, its surface a living, rippling thing. The faint silhouette of the MADS ship still lingered in the distance, now far enough away to seem almost unreal. He stared at it for a long time, a strange tug pulling at the edges of his mind. The colossal structure felt significant in a way he couldn't describe, as though it had been part of him somehow.
The MADS ship loomed in the distance, a metal giant against the endless dark ocean. Its jagged frame trembled, faint groans of strained steel carrying through the water. The boy's gaze trebmbled, "W-What is this... feeling" he felt the pull weakening like a thread about to snap.
Suddenly, the connection broke, something within him that was always there was no more. A metallic screech echoed, sharp and final. Through the porthole, the boy watched as the ship began to shudder violently. Large plates of metal tore away, as they descended into the deep. The ship's faint lights flickered in uneven bursts, casting an eerie shadow that danced across its collapsing surface.
A surge of bubbles exploded from its core, churning the water around it. The vessel tilted, sinking lower, its edges clawing at the ocean as if resisting its fate. Bit by bit, it was swallowed by the dark, dragged into the abyss until only silence and emptiness remained.
The boy lingered at the porthole, his hand pressed to the cold glass, staring at the void where the ship had been. It was gone, yet its absence hung in the water like a ghost that refused to leave.
"Move it along, you lot! Quit gawking at your loot and stow it away," Captain Hoodie barked, his sharp voice cut through the raucous noise on the ship. "We're not out of the woods yet, so get to it before I start tossing the slow ones overboard!"
The pirates, jolted by their captain's warning, hurried back to work. The scattered piles of loot were quickly gathered, with chests slammed shut and trinkets packed away into makeshift storage units. Tankards clattered against the deck as the more careless among them shoved their celebratory drinks aside to haul the supplies below. The ship's atmosphere shifted as focus replaced revelry, though the grins of success and muffled chuckles still lingered in the corners of the bustling deck.
Above, in the crow's nest, the lookout scanned the horizon, his battered telescope glinting faintly in the dim light of the cloudy sky. He yawned loudly, his earlier excitement giving way to a familiar laziness. But just as he adjusted the scope to peer further ahead, his body went stiff. His eyes widened, and his hand gripped the edge of the crow's nest tightly.
"C-Captain Hoodie!" the lookout yelled, his voice trembling as he lowered the telescope. "There's trouble, off the port side! It's the Navy!"
The entire deck fell silent as heads turned toward the lookout. Captain Hoodie's sharp grin twisted into a grimace as he stormed toward the rail, raising his hand to shade his eyes from the waning light. "What do you mean, the Navy?" he growled. His voice dropped lower, colder. "You'd better not be wasting my time with a load of nonsense."
"It's no nonsense, Captain!" the lookout cried, pointing toward the horizon with a trembling finger. "It's… it's Akainu! red suit and all!"
A wave of dread rippled through the crew. Whispers of "Akainu" and "the mad dog" spread quickly among them as panic set in. The deck erupted into chaos once again, but this time it was driven by fear rather than celebration.
Captain Hoodie narrowed his eyes, scanning the horizon until he saw it, the unmistakable white flag of the Navy flagship cutting through the waves, its sleek, menacing form a deadly omen. His jaw tightened at the sight of the figure standing tall at the helm. Even from a distance, the presence of an Admiral was unmistakable. The man stood like a statue carved from molten stone, his coat billowing slightly as the spray of the sea hissed against the residual heat emanating from his body.
Aboard the Navy flagship, the air was thick with tension. Admiral Akainu stood at the helm, his gaze sharpened as he watched the pirate ship cutting through the waves in the distance. The faint hiss of steam rose from his magma-laced fists, the searing heat a constant reminder of his overwhelming power. Around him, his crew worked with precision, their movements brisk and disciplined as they navigated the waters of the New World.
A junior officer approached Sakazuki with a crisp salute, standing rigidly before the Admiral. His voice was steady but carried an undertone of urgency as he made his report. "Admiral, we've identified the pirates, they are the Robber Pirates, led by Captain Hoodie. His bounty is set at 180 million berri. Their ship appears to be coated with bubble resin, and they appear to be preparing to dive into deeper waters."
Akainu's stoic gaze fixed itself on the fleeing pirate ship, a faint shimmer of heat warped the air around him. His coat shifted lightly in the breeze, as if to remind him that he carried the weigh of justice on his back.
After a measured pause, his deep voice cut through the tension,"Stay on course," he ordered. "I'll deal with this myself."
The officer saluted sharply, standing at attention. "Understood, Admiral," he said firmly. "I'll ensure the crew maintains course as ordered." Without hesitation, he turned on his heel and rushed ou to relay the command.
The Marines moved with disciplined precision, as they held their formation and maintained their steady course. The marine flagship cut through the waves, unwavering in its path, leaving the task of bringing justice upon the pirates entirely in Sakazuki's capable hands.
The Robber Pirates' ship veered sharply to the side, its sails straining as the crew scrambled to change direction. The vessel angled away from the pursuing Marines, the bubble-coated hull glinting faintly as it prepared for a dive into the depths. It was a desperate maneuver, but one that spoke of their determination to avoid a confrontation with the fearsome Marine.
Sakazuki's eyes followed the movement, his stoic expression betraying nothing as he observed their attempted escape. The subtle crackle of heat accompanied the faint shimmer in the air around him, as though the very atmosphere recoiled in response to his presence. The pirates' frantic retreat drew no hint of urgency from him, just a quiet inevitability.
"They always try to run," he muttered to himself, his voice more an observation than an emotion. "But the sea doesn't favor cowards." The heat radiating from his body intensified, distorting the air around him like the shimmer of distant flames. He raised a his fist behind his back, bubbles churned from his fist as magma swirled through it with a controlled fury as it gathered into a massive molten fist.
"Ryusei Kazan!" Akainu bellowed, his voice a commanding roar that echoed across the battlefield. With a powerful thrust of his molten arm, he unleashed a barrage of blazing magma fists that erupted from his body like a volcanic storm. The molten projectiles streaked through the sky in fiery arcs, flames and ash trailled behind them as they illuminated the darkening horizon.
The blazing meteors rained down toward the fleeing pirates, their relentless onslaught blanketing the air with waves of oppressive heat. The sea hissed as it ruptured violently wherever the magma struck. The sheer ferocity of the attack left no question, it was destruction incarnate, an unyielding force bearing down on its target.
The air aboard the Robber Pirates' ship grew heavy with heat as the fiery rain descended, blazing meteors struck the ocean with explosive force. Columns of steam rose into the sky, obscuring the horizon and casting eerie darkeness across the chaotic deck. The sea water around them boiled, rocking the ship violently under the relentless assault, the wood of the hull creaking ominously as if it might give way at any moment.
Captain Hoodie gritted his teeth, his expression darkening into a scowl as he wrestled with the ropes, his hands working furiously to secure the sails against the howling wind. "What's taking so long with that coating?!" he barked, his voice cutting through the shouts and chaos around him. "If you don't get it up soon, we're all gonna fry!"
On deck, the pirates scrambled in disarray, their hands fumbling with ropes, valves, and machinery as they struggled to activate the bubble-coating mechanism. The resin expanded sluggishly, shimmering faintly as it began to form a protective barrier around the ship. The delay felt like an eternity, the promise of safety tantalizingly out of reach.
The helmsman, a wiry man whose hands were slick with sweat, gripped the wheel beside Hoodie, his knuckles white from the strain. He yanked the ship hard to starboard, narrowly avoiding a magma projectile that exploded into the water just off their stern. "I can't keep this up for long, Captain!" he shouted, his voice strained as another violent lurch of the ship nearly threw him off balance. "This rain of hell is too damn persistent, I'm barely holding us together!"
Hoodie's scowl deepened, his gaze flicking between the sluggishly expanding bubble and the boiling, magma-laden sea around them. The ship bucked wildly beneath his feet as another explosion shook the waters nearby, sending a fresh wave of searing heat over the deck. "Work faster, you dogs!" he growled, his voice carrying a desperate edge. "I don't plan on dying out here!"
The resin coating finally began to take shape, the shimmering bubble expanded outward with agonizing slowness. The pirates worked furiously, sweat pouring down their faces as they fought to complete the barrier. But even as the bubble grew, the relentless assault from above showed no sign of stopping, each fiery impact hammering their resolve as the Robber Pirates clung to the hope of survival.
The molten meteors persisted in their relentless assault, their impacts upon the sea erupted into a cacophony of deafening roars. The helmsman's hands trembled as he tightly gripped the wheel, his knuckles slowly turned pale as he struggled to guide the ship through the chaos. Another explosion rocked the vessel, sending pirates sprawling across the deck as the bubble-coating expanded mere moments away from being completed.
"Dive! Take us down already!" Captain Hoodie barked, his voice cut through the din as his eyes locked on to a meteor that could spell their doom.
"I'm trying, Captain!" the helmsman shot back, his voice strained as he yanked the wheel to avoid yet another magma strike. The ship swerved wildly, narrowly missing a fiery projectile that detonated just off the bow, sending searing waves of heat and steam cascading over the deck. "I can't hold this much longer! It's too much!"
Hoodie growled in frustration, as he stormed toward the helm, he shoved the helmsman aside. "You know what they say," he snarled, gripping the wheel with practiced precision. "If you want something done, you gotta take the wheel, litterally Hahaha!"
With a sharp motion, Hoodie forced the wheel hard to starboard, his teeth clenched as he fought against the ship's resistance. The vessel groaned under the strain but tilted forward, plunging into the ocean with a hiss and roar. Water surged around them, muffling the chaos above as the bubble-coating finally sealed into place, enclosing the ship in its shimmering protection.
Moments later, a fiery meteor crashed into the ocean's surface right where the ship had been mere seconds before. The detonation was cataclysmic, sent a colossal plume of steam, molten debris, and water skyward. The shockwave rippled violently through the sea, the churning currents slammed into the ship, propelling it downward as it descended further into the oceans depths.
Inside the ship, pirates clung to railings and posts, bracing themselves as the vessel was buffeted by the force of the aftershocks. In his cage, the boy gripped the bars tightly, his emerald eyes reflecting the fiery glow that filtered down through the glass of his prison's porthole. The world outside the barrier was a tumultuous blend of light and shadow, the explosions above casting fleeting patterns that flickered ominously across the depths. The chaos felt distant yet ever-present, a haunting reminder of the wrath they had narrowly escaped.
Back on the Navy flagship, Akainu stood in silence, his molten hand crackled as he lowered it to his side. His gaze lingered on the restless sea, the surface had stilled, the Robber pirates had vanished beneath the waves.
"Justice, is not bound by the depths..." he muttered, his voice low but resolute. The bubbling remnants of his attack hissed as they fell into the all encompassing blue, leaving only a faint haze rising into the air. "They can run, but the sea itself will give them no sanctuary."
He turned sharply, his white coat billowed in the breeze as he addressed an officer to his right. "marine..." he commanded, his tone, as cold as ice "Find out what the they stole and where it came from."
The officer stood rigid, raising his arm in a sharp, reverent salute. "Understood, Admiral," he said, his voice steady despite the tension tightening his jaw. As soon as the words left his lips, he turned and hurried off, his steps quick and uneven.
Being in Sakazuki's presence was enough to unnerve even the bravest of men, his sheer intensity could crush resolve like a vice. The air around him seemed to radiate a simmering heat, a constant reminder of the devastation he could unleash at a moment's notice. After witnessing the Admiral's merciless display of power, the officer's heart pounded in his chest, his mind racing with the image of molten destruction etched into his memory. Who could blame him for fleeing as though his life depended on it? Sakazuki was not someone to stand near for too long if you valued your sanity, or your survival.
Akainu's gaze lingered on the faintly glowing sea. "Justice doesn't rest," he muttered, his molten presence radiating quiet intensity as the flagship surged forward, cutting through the fading chaos.