Chapter 24: Encounter with Akainu
Sakazuki's fierce, hawk-like eyes stared at the distant small ship, his expression utterly unmoved. A minor pirate like that wasn't even worth his notice.
"Once you become a pirate, you must be ready to pay the price," Sakazuki said coolly.
Buzz!
His right fist suddenly turned into molten magma, the terrifying heat distorting the air around it.
The surrounding elite Marines immediately backed away, not daring to get close.
"Great Eruption!"
As the words left his mouth, Sakazuki's enormous magma fist shot forward.
BOOM!!
A torrent of magma burst forth like a volcanic eruption—an immense dragon of molten rock roared toward the sky and dove straight toward the small ship. Black and red fumes spread across the heavens, twisting the air in its wake.
After unleashing that strike, Sakazuki calmly withdrew his fist without even glancing at the result.
In his mind, it was already an honor for such a small-time pirate to die by his hand.
If he weren't in a hurry to continue his mission, he wouldn't have bothered attacking at all.
…
Far off in the distance, Ze's pupils constricted as he saw the fiery spectacle.
"Akainu!"
He hadn't expected to run into Akainu here—much less to be attacked on sight.
"Raaahhh!"
Sensing danger, the hunting raptorex to its full height, its massive body shaking the ship beneath it.
"Canglong, get us out of here—now!"
A cold gleam flashed through Ze's eyes. He wasn't foolish—he knew he stood no chance against Akainu. There was no way he could withstand that attack.
"Marines… I'll make you regret this."
"ROAR!"
From beneath the waves, the Mosasaur bellowed and slapped its colossal tail against the sea. The entire ship lurched upward as it landed on the beast's back.
BOOM!!
In the next instant, the Mosasaur surged forward, slicing through the ocean like a white streak of light.
Within seconds, they had put over a thousand meters between themselves and the impact zone.
Moments later, the volcanic blast struck.
BOOM!!
A deafening explosion tore through the sky.
The scorching heat boiled the sea—water frothed violently as massive bubbles rose to the surface, and thick gray smoke blanketed the waves.
Ze gazed at the seething water, his eyes cold.
If not for the Mosasaur, he would've been buried at the bottom of the ocean.
…
Meanwhile, aboard the ten Marine warships, the other four Vice Admirals were startled to see Sakazuki's attack miss its target.
"Looks like that Summoner Ze might be a Devil Fruit user," said Vice Admiral Burning Mountain, a cigar dangling from his lips as a smirk tugged at his mouth.
"I wonder what Sakazuki's face looks like right now," another Vice Admiral mused—a man in a light purple pinstripe suit, deep blue shirt, and tie, sporting a mohawk and a handlebar mustache. "But judging from that escape route, that kid's probably trying to enter the Grand Line through the Calm Belt."
On another ship, a tall man in a white vest suit and dark blue shirt, a green visor across his forehead, watched silently with a composed expression.
He was Vice Admiral Kuzan—the user of the Ice-Ice Fruit.
"He actually escaped…"
A flash of fury burned in Sakazuki's eyes. A newly wanted rookie pirate had managed to evade his strike—an insult to Marine justice itself.
"Summoner Ze…"
He repeated the name under his breath, engraving it in his memory.
Once his current mission was over, he would personally hunt the boy down.
…
Marine Headquarters.
"He actually escaped from Sakazuki's hands? Not bad."
Kong glanced over the new report, his tiger-like eyes gleaming as he doubled Ze's bounty without hesitation.
A clear sign of how seriously he now regarded Ze.
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