BOOM...
Through the lens of his spyglass, Momonga watched as building after building collapsed in the heart of the ruined town, smoke rising like rampaging dragons across the battlefield. The ground trembled violently beneath the destruction.
His eye twitched.
Even as Darren's adjutant, Momonga still had no clear idea just how powerful the man truly was.
But from the inhuman training Darren subjected himself to every single day, one thing was certain: in all of North Blue, aside from a few infamous pirates who'd drifted in for various reasons, there was no one who could stand against him.
The powers of the Magnet-Magnet Fruit gave him wide-range offensive and control capabilities on par with Logia users.
And in close combat?
Aside from Sakazuki back when he was still stationed in North Blue, who else could ever trade fists with a monster like Darren?
Against his enemies, Darren was merciless. Once he locked onto a target, he never looked back until the fight was over.
Against himself, he was even worse.
As for Donquixote Doflamingo—that prideful, obsessive, deranged little punk?
He could only pray for mercy now. His fate was already sealed.
The civilians had been evacuated. The town was sealed off. No news would escape this island.
A former Celestial Dragon?
So what?
If he dies here in North Blue, he wouldn't be the first.
That thought flashed through Momonga's mind—and then he froze.
Had he just thought of a Celestial Dragon... with such disrespect?
A cold sweat broke out on his back.
He took a long breath and chuckled bitterly.
"Darren... you were right."
"Between zero and one... there really is a world of difference."
---
Rubeck Island. Town center.
BOOM...
More buildings crumbled into heaps, drowning the sky in dust.
The earth groaned beneath the weight of destruction.
Click...
A lighter sparked.
Darren stood on a ravaged battlefield, surrounded by cracked stone and ruin. He pulled out a cigar and lit it with a calm hand.
His uniform was in tatters from the fight. He clenched the cigar in his teeth and yanked open the buckle on his Marine cloak. With one smooth motion, he tore off his black tie and ripped open his uniform shirt.
Rip!
The shredded cloth fell away, revealing a muscular upper body hardened like tempered steel.
His body was covered in scars, each one earned in battle. With his wild eyes and animalistic presence, he looked like a beast barely wearing the skin of a man.
"Ah... that's better."
He grinned.
Suddenly, a drawling, furious voice rang out:
"How... HOW DARE YOU!?"
Trebol stumbled into view, blood dripping from the corner of his mouth. He lifted his staff, mucus trailing from it like ropes. With a roar, he lashed out, pulling a four-meter slab of rubble with his sticky powers.
"Sticky Meteor!!"
The chunk of ruined housing spun through the air with a whistling hum.
Wind screamed as it approached. Darren's cigar glowed red in the breeze.
He narrowed his eyes—and with a flick of his wrist, sent a pulse of magnetic force sideways.
CRACK!
Steel rods tore out from within the rubble, shredding it in half. The debris crashed down on either side of him, carving furrows into the ground.
Darren raised his hand again.
Without any command, dozens of metal rods and beams burst up from the ground like living spears. They twisted and bent, suspended in the air like hungry serpents.
Trebol's eyes widened.
Darren smiled and gestured.
Fwoosh!
The spears launched forward with a scream, faster than sound.
BOOM!!
Dust exploded.
Mucus flew in all directions.
Darren stepped forward—but staggered slightly as the earth beneath his feet began to ripple.
The ground was... fluttering?
His gaze snapped toward the source.
There, crouching low with one palm to the earth, was Diamante, dressed in his flamboyant war paint.
"Army Flag!"
The power of the Flutter-Flutter Fruit.
The ground itself became like cloth, swaying in waves and throwing Darren's balance off. A trap to knock opponents off their feet.
At that precise moment, a shadow leapt into the air behind him.
Vergo. Stoic-faced, beefy, sunglasses reflecting the light. A smear of half-eaten steak clung to his cheek. In both hands, he clutched a thick green bamboo staff.
"Ghost Bamboo!"
He swung.
CRACK!
The steel-like bamboo shattered on Darren's skull, splinters flying everywhere.
Virgo's pupils shrank.
This guy's... body...
Is he even human?
Before he could react, Darren vanished from view.
WHOOOM!
A military boot exploded into his field of vision.
BOOM!!
Virgo flew like a cannonball, crashing through a building and bringing it down in a cascade of stone.
Through the smoke and debris, Darren emerged, cigar clamped in his mouth.
A spear forged of warped metal shot forward with impossible speed—
THUD!
Diamante took the hit straight to the gut. The impact lifted him off his feet and pinned him to a wall.
Blood burst from his mouth.
His eyes filled with horror.
BOOM...!!
A nearby building exploded.
From within, a twenty-meter-tall stone golem surged forth, its body pulsing with energy.
It raised a three-meter-wide fist and brought it crashing down from above.
"You're DEAD!!"
The voice screeched.
Pica.
---
To be continued...