The emotional tide turned faster than a storm at sea.
A moment ago, the escaped prisoners had been shouting like heroes reborn — now their excitement deflated all at once.
And the Navy, beaten down and discouraged just seconds earlier, erupted into cheers.
Arthur's face darkened. What the hell, man… one problem after another. Can't I catch a break?
Honestly, of all the Marines, there were only two he really didn't want to face — and now, of course, both had shown up together.
He wasn't interested in wasting more time here. He'd already escaped Impel Down — there was an entire vibrant world waiting outside. The last thing he wanted was to get bogged down fighting Marine Admirals back-to-back.
If he delayed too long, who knew who'd show up next? Another Admiral? Sengoku? The Five Elders?
Impel Down was far too close to Marine Headquarters — reinforcements could arrive in minutes. When that happened, the one taking the loss would definitely be him.
He made up his mind and snapped his fingers.
"Retreat!"
With that, he took the lead and darted off with his three companions.
But Admiral Kizaru — Borsalino — wasn't about to just let the "instigator" stroll away unchallenged. Even if he didn't care much, appearances had to be kept.
"Yata no Kagami!"
A mirror of light bloomed in the air. In a flash, Kizaru's body broke into photons and reappeared ahead of them.
Ame-no-Torifune in hand — his golden sword of light shimmered into existence, slashing straight down at Arthur.
"Perfect timing!" Arthur roared with a grin.
Lightning flared as his entire body was wrapped in blue arcs of power. His Armament Haki surged to full strength, and he met the Admiral's descending blade head-on.
CLANG!
The collision burst in a dazzling explosion of light and thunder.
The onlookers squinted, nearly blinded.
"He's… he's holding even with an Admiral?!"
"Monstrous! A freak of nature! How's that even possible?!"
Two supreme forces clashed midair, their duel radiating a shockwave that swept the battlefield. Prisoners and Marines alike stopped fighting, drawn helplessly to watch the spectacle.
They traded blows in a blur of speed — dozens of exchanges in mere seconds.
Kizaru's lazy grin faltered slightly. This kid's tough. Not bad at all.
Meanwhile, Arthur, trading fists and lightning strikes with Kizaru's light-speed sword, couldn't help glancing at the weapon with mild envy.
"Guess I'll need to forge myself a proper weapon soon," he muttered mid-fight. "Still, I've got to admit — Admirals really are on another level."
Around him, jaws dropped.
Admirals are "on another level"… but he's calling them 'worthy opponents'?
Somewhere, a Marine muttered weakly, "You're not wrong, but… damn, that's cocky."
But it wasn't arrogance — he had the strength to back it up.
Even with his Logia powers, Kizaru found himself hard-pressed. Arthur's raw strength, paired with overwhelming Armament and Conqueror's Haki, forced him on the defensive.
Still, Arthur wasn't planning to keep this up forever.
He caught sight of the incoming Marine warship — and standing on its deck, tall and broad-shouldered, hair flecked with gray, radiating that indomitable aura of "justice"…
Vice Admiral Garp — the Hero of the Marines.
Arthur's brows knit slightly. Now that's trouble.
Even if he could handle two Admirals, a third powerhouse joining would only drag this out — and time was the one thing he couldn't afford.
He parried another of Kizaru's strikes, then gritted his teeth. Enough was enough.
"Strongest Spear — Four-Finger Pierce!"
A thunderclap followed as Arthur's lightning-wreathed arm shot forward, smashing into Kizaru's light blade and sending the Admiral skidding backward through the air.
No hesitation — Arthur turned and dashed straight toward a nearby warship.
WHAM!
He chopped through the ship's mast in a single strike, severing it cleanly at the base.
"On!"
Redfield and the others reacted instantly, leaping up onto the collapsing mast before it could fall.
Arthur kicked the broken spar with full force, and it shot into the distance like a colossal javelin.
"See you around, Admiral Kizaru!"
With that, he bent his knees, lightning gathering underfoot, and launched himself skyward — catching up to the soaring mast and landing atop it in a single fluid motion.
Kizaru blinked, momentarily dumbfounded. Wait… did he just… leave?
"Yasakani no Magatama!"
Of course, he wasn't about to let them go that easily — at least, not without putting on a show.
Golden beads of light rained down from the sky like a meteor shower, streaking toward Arthur and his companions.
But before they could connect—
"Waldo!" Arthur shouted.
"Got it! Twentyfold Acceleration!"
Waldo slammed his palm onto the mast. In an instant, the massive beam rocketed forward twenty times faster — vanishing from sight with a sonic boom.
The golden rain passed harmlessly through empty air.
"They… they escaped."
"He actually escaped Impel Down… and the Admirals!"
"New World's about to get wild again!"
"Thunder God! Thunder God!" the prisoners below shouted, voices hoarse with awe and exhilaration.
On the battlefield, Kizaru sighed.
"Yare yare… he's fast. Guess I can't catch him now."
He descended lazily, landing on Garp's ship.
"Yo~ Grandpa Garp. Took you long enough."
Garp's face twitched violently.
"Borsalino, the Fleet Admiral said you were the first to be notified! Why the hell did you show up last?! Because of you, four Vice Admirals are injured!"
Kizaru scratched his chin, eyes half-lidded.
"Ohhh~ Did I hear wrong? I thought he told me to head to Enies Lobby."
Garp nearly fell overboard.
"Even if you went to the wrong place, with your speed, you should've been here ages ago!"
Kizaru's tone was mild, almost bored.
"Well~ I waited there for a while, but nothing seemed off. The Den Den Mushi kept ringing, though. I picked up a few times, but no one answered."
Garp's vein bulged.
"Don't tell me you were yelling into the black Den Den Mushi again!"
Kizaru nodded solemnly.
For a long moment, Garp just stared — speechless.
Then, veins throbbing, he roared, "You absolute idiot! Everyone knows you're faking it! Don't play dumb with me, you lazy bastard!"
His fists clenched, crackling with Haki. His cloak flared in the wind, the embodiment of wrath.
He glared in the direction Arthur had escaped. His fury boiled over.
"DAMN IT! Pirate brat! I'll catch you myself and drag you back to prison! Just you wait!"
Of course, threats were all he could offer now — the fugitives were long gone.
But there was someone still within reach.
Garp turned his burning gaze toward the remaining escaped prisoners huddled near the gate.
Their faces went pale.
"Uh… hey guys," one stammered. "I think we've had enough fresh air. Maybe we should… go back? You know, self-reflect, good behavior, early release? Haha…"
He tried to sneak away.
"Go back, my ass! HIT THEM! If they die, I'll take the blame!" Garp roared, launching himself forward with his Fist of Love—a literal building-sized punch crashing down.
The Marines followed his lead, their bottled-up rage finally exploding.
Moments later, the entire entrance of Impel Down was chaos again — howls, crashes, and terrified screams echoing through every level.
From the first floor to the fifth, prisoners fled like mice, clutching their heads and wailing.
"Why us?! We didn't even do anything!"
"Mama! I don't wanna be an extra anymore!"
And thus ended the great Impel Down jailbreak…
with the "extras" paying for the stars' escape.
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