"What a total monster!!"
Seeing the white flash soaring like an arrow straight toward the Germa flagship, the St. Germain, Gion clutched the railing tightly, her expression looking like she'd just seen a ghost.
Boom!
At that moment, the raised tail of the warship came crashing down under its own weight, sending a cascade of waves that drenched all the Marines onboard.
But Tokikake didn't even notice. He stared, slack-jawed, as Darren's figure tore through the air, eyes bulging in disbelief.
"That ridiculous burst of power... That bastard really intends to cross a hundred meters just by raw strength and launch himself into Germa Kingdom?!"
"Oi! Is that lunatic always this insane!?"
Tokikake's mouth twitched as he looked at Momonga, who could only offer a helpless smile.
"That's just how Darren fights... In the past year alone, he's already scrapped more than five ships by pulling stunts like this."
...If not for the North Blue Marines' "deep pockets", their fleet would have gone bankrupt long ago with the pittance allotted from headquarters.
As their ship finally stabilized on the waves, Darren slammed into Germa Kingdom's shores like a horizontal cannonball.
Boom!
A thunderous impact shook the land as dust erupted into the air. The ground itself seemed to tremble.
A moment later, Darren rose slowly from a crater five meters wide, a cigar clenched between his teeth, and a crooked, wild grin tugging at his lips.
"Smooth landing," he muttered, the justice cloak behind him billowing in the wind and dust.
"Kill him!! Take him down now!!"
Vinsmoke Judge narrowed his eyes as he gave the command with a furious snarl.
From the ruins of turrets and bunkers all around, swarms of cloned soldiers emerged.
Clad in uniform, each wearing mirrored sunglasses, they moved in perfect synchrony, radiating a chilling, emotionless aura.
Shing!
They raised their rifles in unison. Hundreds of barrels locked onto the Marine captain.
Triggers pulled.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Muzzle flashes erupted like wildfire. Countless bullets screamed through the air, streaking toward Darren.
"Still haven't learned your lesson?"
Darren smirked, a manic gleam in his eye.
He didn't even activate his Jiki Jiki no Mi.
He simply walked forward at a calm, deliberate pace—straight into the storm of bullets.
Judge's pupils dilated in disbelief.
Ting! Ting! Tink!
The bullets slammed against Darren's body, shredding his suit and uniform—yet they rebounded like they'd struck solid steel.
Sparks flew. The bullets ricocheted off his skin, crashing into the ground, fortifications, and walls around him, leaving behind dense craters.
From afar, he looked like a lone traveler marching forward through a torrential storm.
Utterly fearless.
"Impossible! How can a human body be this strong?!"
Judge screamed in rage.
Seeing their bullets fail, the cloned soldiers switched tactics. One of them raised a compact rocket launcher, aimed, and fired.
Biuuuuu!
A blazing rocket hissed through the air, trailing red flames—
Only for Darren to reach out and catch it.
"New tech, huh? Gotta say, this is a lot sleeker than our Marine models..."
He examined the trembling warhead with casual interest—then hurled it back.
Biuuuu...BOOM!
It detonated in the face of the clone who'd fired it, consuming a five-meter radius in roaring fire.
"Roughly equal to a small artillery blast, but way more portable..."
Darren narrowed his eyes, assessing the damage with expert detachment.
His mind was already moving several steps ahead.
All this time looting the underworld, funneling massive funds into his North Blue Marines, spending beyond what HQ allowed—it all had a purpose.
He wasn't just fattening a branch.
He was building his own private army.
The entire North Blue fleet would become his personal military force.
As a transmigrator, Darren understood the core weakness of the Marines:
No matter how righteous their ideals, they were still shackled under the weight of the World Government.
It was the sad reality—
The Marines were the world's greatest enforcement body, yes.
But they were also the Government's puppet.
The leash? Military funds.
The Government collects the Heavenly Tribute, then rations funds to the Marines—ensuring they hold the financial leash.
Without fiscal autonomy or alternative revenue, Marines are always at the mercy of bureaucrats.
Darren's ultimate goal was to break that chain.
To raise a force that answered to him alone.
And after years of groundwork, North Blue Marines had reached self-sufficiency—their budget rivaling HQ levels.
But it still wasn't enough.
He knew all too well how weak the Blues' branches were. Compared to HQ's elite, to the New World where Haki was the norm, they were far behind.
Even with his reforms and modern training methods, North Blue was still underpowered.
But today...
Germa 66 opened a new door.
They held some of the world's most advanced military tech: weapons, cybernetics, battle suits...
If Darren could seize it all—and use it to outfit his Marines?
Then in short order, he would command a fleet unlike any in the Blues.
With that thought, Darren's smile widened. He surged forward.
Target: Vinsmoke Judge—supreme commander of Germa 66.
---
To be continued...