But Ibadonbo had underestimated Navy Admiral Kong. The admiral plunged into the sea right after him, moving even faster!
There was no way Kong would let the main culprit slip away. The waves churned wildly, and in just a few minutes, he caught up to the fleeing Ibadonbo. With one simple punch, he dealt a devastating blow!
Before long, Kong dragged the gravely wounded Ibadonbo back to shore.
...
Over at the port, Vice Admiral Pepon had already rounded up several members from the shipyard. After interrogating them about what had happened, he learned that Saint Chalm had been tossed from the sky straight into the pirate ship.
He sent a marine to report back to Kong, then immediately set sail to chase down that pirate vessel. If the Celestial Dragon ended up dead, his days as a branch vice admiral were over.
He might even have to follow in Vice Admiral Dolodo's footsteps—lead his crew in a defection and turn pirate himself!
So, he had to go personally to rescue Saint Chalm, or at least confirm what had really happened to him. If the guy was truly gone, then yeah, he might just have to take a page out of Dolodo's book!
"The pirates have abducted Saint Chalm!"
Kong's expression was grave, his face radiating an intimidating authority without even trying. He stared down at the barely conscious Ibadonbo.
"Contact your crew right now! Or I'll make sure you suffer worse than death!"
Kong hoisted Ibadonbo up, his overwhelming presence making even the cocky young supernova feel like he was suffocating.
"They betrayed me and took off on their own. You really think I can reach them now?"
Ibadonbo rasped weakly, his face twisting with resentment and a bitter grin. He never thought betrayal would hit him like this, but hearing that those idiots had snatched a Celestial Dragon? That was a surprise!
Did Rocks have some other backup plan in play?
Damn it!
Rocks, you used me as a disposable pawn. I, Ibadonbo, swear I'll make you pay!
"Hmph! Throw him in Impel Down and give him the special treatment!"
Kong could tell Ibadonbo wasn't lying, so he decided to head out immediately and hunt down those pirates. As long as they were still on the Grand Line, they wouldn't get far!
Kong's admiral warship set sail, racing after the direction the pirate ship had fled. He was worried these low-level thugs might actually kill the Celestial Dragon—and that Vice Admiral Pepon, scared of getting dragged down with them, might pull a Dolodo and defect from the Navy.
He couldn't let that happen!
...
On Ibadonbo's pirate ship.
The crew was in total chaos, freaking out and clueless about what to do next. They'd turned on their own captain, and now they had a Celestial Dragon's corpse on board. No safe haven left for them—not in the criminal world, not anywhere!
Their only option was to run and go into hiding, find some backwater spot where nobody knew their faces and scrape by.
"First things first—strip the Celestial Dragon's clothes off and burn 'em. Dump his body overboard. Then we'll hit an island and split up!"
A guy who looked like a squad leader was shaking too, his voice unsteady. He'd figured hitching his wagon to the Rocks Pirates would mean easy living, but here they were, in this mess!
The rest of the crew were lost, so they just went along with it. They yanked off the Celestial Dragon's fancy getup and tossed his body into the sea, letting it become chum for the fish.
A few of the pirates eyed the ornate medals on the clothes and got ideas. No more steady gigs ahead, just a life on the run—they'd need some cash to survive!
And then it hit them: all the gold and loot stashed in Ibadonbo's captain's quarters. Just like that, the vibe on the ship turned ugly.
These were pirates, after all—guys who lived by the blade. In a moment like this, with the crew breaking up and spoils to divide, everyone's inner greed came roaring out. Fewer survivors meant bigger shares!
The squad leader didn't hesitate; he was brutal and quick. In a flash, he drew his sword and cut down a couple of his "buddies," then used his strength to snatch up all the Celestial Dragon's medals.
The deck erupted into a standoff, weapons drawn, and the fighting started. Guys banded together in twos and threes, forming little cliques. In under ten minutes, the pirate crew had taken massive losses!
"That's enough! We'll split the captain's haul, and then it's every man for himself. We never cross paths again!"
The squad leader called it off when he saw more than half the crew was down. Keep going, and there'd be nobody left to even steer the damn ship!
Each little group eyed the others warily, but the squad leader, confident in his skills, hauled out Ibadonbo's treasures right there under everyone's noses and divvied it up on the spot!
"I'll bail at the next island. Whoever wants the ship after that can have her!"
The squad leader chuckled, secretly hoping some hothead would keep sailing her and draw the Navy's fire, buying him extra time to vanish!
But these were New World veterans, fresh off a bloody internal brawl—none of them were idiots. Nobody wanted to paint a target on their back!
"Fine, then. Dump these bodies first, lower the jolly roger and toss it. We hit port, and let her drift away!"
The squad leader figured maybe some other pirates or a greedy fisherman would snag this cursed ship where a Celestial Dragon had met his end.
The remaining pirates heaved their freshly killed "comrades" overboard, and as soon as they docked at the next island, they abandoned ship and scattered to the winds.
The squad leader wasted no time—he shelled out big bucks for a small fishing boat and hightailed it out of there. He knew the slow ones would be the first the Navy scooped up!
What these pirates didn't realize was that, by sheer dumb luck, they'd managed to tie up Navy Admiral Kong for a good chunk of time, pulling off Rocks and Brook's real plan without even knowing it!
Vice Admiral Pepon had been tracking them the whole way when Kong's top-tier warship caught up and linked up with him. Together, they chased after the pirate ship that had supposedly kidnapped the Celestial Dragon.
...
On the other side, Shakky had already filled Brook in on everything she knew.
The moment the Celestial Dragon showed up in the Sabaody Archipelago, Rocks and Brook's forces were already positioned in the front half of the New World.
As soon as Ibadonbo made his move against the Celestial Dragon, Rocks' ship and Brook's aerial fleet both charged toward the Valley of Gods in unison.
It was only then that Admiral Aokiba and Devo, still stationed in the New World, figured out Rocks and Brook's true target!
The Celestial Dragons' biggest stronghold: the Valley of Gods!
Reports kept pouring into Navy Headquarters at Marineford.
Navy Fleet Admiral Kurotaka and Chief of Staff Darian were stunned by just how bold Rocks and Brook were being. How the hell did they have the guts to go after Celestial Dragons?
Kong had been tricked by some no-name pirate into heading all the way to the mid-rear section of the Grand Line. Getting back to Marineford would take a full day, and pushing on to the Valley of Gods? That'd be at least two more days.
"Then I'll have to handle this myself! Darian, you hold down the fort at Marineford. Once Kong gets back, assess the situation and deploy him accordingly!"
Navy Fleet Admiral Kurotaka slammed his fist on the desk, his voice fierce. This time, the Holy Land Mary Geoise had even dispatched three Knights of God—and luckily, there were already two more on the Valley of Gods, which should buy them some time.
Getting half the Knights of God involved was the most the Holy Land Mary Geoise was willing to commit.
After all, securing the Holy Land Mary Geoise came before anything else—even the Valley of Gods!
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Fanfic is finished 955 chapters in total on p@treon/tambeerg