No one knew exactly when it began—but from the far edge of the sky, the silhouette of a dragon's head slowly emerged.
It loomed overhead, motionless, as if silently watching the chaos below.
On the battlefield—
BZZZZT!
Black-and-red lightning crackled wildly around Bullet's right fist.
To any onlooker, it was like he was clutching a ball of thunder capable of destroying the world itself.
Drip.
Cold sweat from Aramaki's forehead hit the ground, his heart pounding so loudly it echoed in his chest.
He frantically urged the Carnation Lily to keep pumping out more poison.
His Observation Haki stayed locked on the charging Bullet, even as panic swirled through his thoughts.
Damn it! Why?! Why won't he go down?! Even giant Sea Kings would've been knocked out by now!
"This punch will finish you off!!!"
Bullet's cold voice rang out like a death sentence.
BOOM!
In the blink of an eye, he vanished. The sonic boom of his high-speed movement scattered the toxic gas cloud across the battlefield.
The crack of the ground splitting beneath him sounded like a hammer slamming into Aramaki's chest. He could hardly breathe.
"I can't see him at all!!!"
Aramaki was trembling, eyes wide with terror. Bullet's speed was beyond anything he could track!
And in the next instant—
A massive fist, easily larger than a normal person's torso, appeared right in front of him.
"No...! Stay back!!!"
"Coward."
Bullet's tone turned even colder. With all his strength packed into one devastating blow, he brought his fist crashing down on Aramaki's skull.
CRACK!
A sickening sound rang out.
Aramaki's head—and the Lily Carnation that had bloomed atop his shoulder—were both smashed straight into his chest.
Only then did the full force of the punch hit, driving his entire body into the cloud-island below like a nail driven into wood.
Nearby, the vines imprisoning Enel, Tesoro, Caesar, Judge, and Trebol snapped and fell away.
All of them were unconscious.
"AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!"
A blood-curdling scream erupted from Aramaki's ruined form.
His head reemerged from the crater—barely half its original size. The top portion was caved in, his skull shattered, revealing what looked like brain matter wriggling inside like tofu.
The mush and the broken skull squirmed, trying to repair themselves.
But an invisible force kept interfering. Every time they started to heal, the process broke down again.
Aramaki was gripped by a terror he had never felt before.
There was no Armament Haki in that punch. He still had energy left. So why couldn't he recover?
Why couldn't he even reshape his body to escape?
Tap. Tap. Tap...
Bullet dismissed his Armament Haki and began walking toward the looming dragon's head.
His very presence was enough to suppress Logia regeneration? This guy... had grown again.
Standing above, Vergo watched Bullet approach with heavy eyes.
"Bullet... what do you want?"
Bullet didn't answer the question. He just tilted his head up and called out:
"Hey! Kid! When's Doflamingo coming back?!"
His eyes burned with anticipation—he was itching for another fight with Doflamingo.
"Doffy answers to no one. My name is Vergo."
Vergo shifted into his dragon-human hybrid form, stepping onto the clouds with his smoky breath curling around him.
"If it's a fight you want... then I'll be your opponent!"
CLANK. CLANK.
"You're too weak."
Hearing that Doflamingo wasn't coming back, Bullet turned away in disappointment.
CLANK. CLANK.
He picked up the Seastone chains he'd tossed aside earlier.
That familiar weakness washed over him immediately.
Yes—this was the feeling.
This fragile, powerless state...!
It was the only way he could keep getting stronger!!!
...
Somewhere over the ocean—
The Numancia Flamingo soared high above the sea.
"That's how it went down, Doffy."
"I figured."
Having heard about the events on Skypiea from Vergo, Doflamingo's expression showed a mix of surprise, calculation, and satisfaction.
"Thought Fujitora would crack first. Didn't expect you, Bullet."
Fujitora and Bullet's captivity? The shackles weren't the real problem.
With the malleable clouds of the sky island and basic crafting tools, it was easy enough to make a key.
He'd planned their escape routes from the beginning.
What truly imprisoned Fujitora... was the peaceful, tranquil life on Skypiea.
And what held Bullet back... were the crushing defeats he'd been handed again and again.
Someone as proud as him couldn't accept the idea of slinking away with his tail between his legs.
Of course... this only worked on people with some shred of pride.
"Doffy, is the sky island alright?"
Smoothing out her long, shapely legs, Smoothie strolled over with today's newspaper in hand, concern in her eyes.
Skypiea wasn't just Doflamingo's home. It was hers too.
"It's fine. It's all over. Let's enjoy our vacation."
Doflamingo pulled her into his arms, his hand resting lightly on the towering swell of her chest.
With the other hand, he took the thickened, extra-heavy edition of the newspaper.
He raised an eyebrow and smirked.
"Let's see what Morgans has cooked up today."
The young Smoothie flushed slightly from the contact, her cheeks pink.
Doflamingo scanned the bold, dramatic headlines:
"Massive Shock! The World's Strongest Man, Whitebeard VS The World's Strongest Creature, Kaido! Who Will Claim the Throne?!"
"Whitebeard Pirates Clash with Beasts Pirates! Big Mom Navy Enters the Fray—Multi-Faction Brawl—Exclusive First Look!"
"Admiral Zephyr Bout Ends—Victory Goes to Heavenly Yaksha, Doflamingo!!!"
...
North Blue.
Sister Islands, located near the flourishing Norodes region.
But they weren't on any standard sea route, and supplies had always been scarce.
Now that Norodes had become prosperous, pirate traffic had surged—but visits to the island had all but stopped.
This year was especially cruel.
The bark had been stripped off the trees by starving villagers.
Today, two Donquixote relief ships slowly approached the shore.
On one of them, a group of kids had their heads pressed together, eagerly reading a newspaper.
"Whoa! Father held his own against the world's strongest man! So cool!"
Yamato wagged her head excitedly.
Having escaped her brainwashing and fled from her real father, she still clung to a childlike admiration for the fantasy version of her dad.
Doflamingo called it spiritual father syndrome—something he'd observed in people like Usopp and others.
As long as the real dad wasn't around, he was always a "good dad."
"Ribbit! Godfather crushed an Admiral into dust! He's the best!!"
The dopey-looking Weevil didn't care at all about his biological father. He was busy worshipping the godfather figure in the newspaper photo.
His booming voice made Senior Pink rub his aching ears.
"Man... what a ship full of monsters."
He was the officer in charge of this escort—and the pressure of wrangling this wild bunch was intense.
Good thing it wasn't a combat mission.
Meanwhile, the other half of the kids were locked in a heated argument.
"Godfather's the strongest, period!!!"
"Nuh-uh! Father is way stronger!!!"
"I think Doflamingo-sama's the most powerful of all!"
-----------
Fanfic is finished 527 chapters in total on p@treon/tambeerg