The very thought of that treacherous Marine almost killing Shanks and—more importantly—him sent Buggy's teeth grinding, sweat slicking his brow.
"Why are all the other Marines obsessed with our captain?" he fumed. "What does the Roger Pirates' business have to do with me, Buggy?!"
Look at Garp. He'd chased Roger for years and never bothered anyone else. The crew should just sit back and watch the show.
But that sneaky Marine couldn't beat their captain, so he'd gone after the apprentices instead.
What kind of rotten Marine does that? Even pirates have a code.
Now, at last, the chance had come—to erase that Marine.
Fish-Man Island lay sealed away, ten thousand meters down in the Deep Sea. So what if the Marine could fly? He was still a Devil Fruit user—a landlubber to the core. No matter what he did, he couldn't escape the island's bounds.
If the entire Roger Pirates swarmed him, they could finish him before Marine reinforcements ever arrived.
The rest of the crew stared through Buggy's rant with flat expressions that said, If you're going, go alone.
Buggy: …
Rayleigh gave him a rueful pat on the shoulder and held his tongue.
Roger had gone beyond reason, swallowed by battle lust. No one could rein him in now. The weaker crew would be shredded if they stepped into that clash, and even the stronger ones hesitated. They knew their idiot captain too well—once his blood was up, nothing could restrain him.
Even if they dashed in, Roger would refuse their help. Trading a look with Gaban, Rayleigh knew this wouldn't end quickly.
By rights, Roger's peak-of-the-sea power should have overwhelmed that Marine brat. But Darren's body was absurd. With an Indestructible Body, he shrugged off most damage, even Armament Haki with Internal Destruction. His Demon Form stacked even more durability.
Together, his raw toughness might rival Big Mom's "steel balloon" or even Kaido's.
Perhaps only in recovery did Beast Kaido truly surpass him. Kaido's Zoan fruit pumped his physique and regeneration to monstrous levels. Darren's was Paramecia.
Even so, Roger wouldn't finish him fast.
Wait.
Rayleigh's eyes narrowed. Why was Darren on Fish-Man Island at all? With his history of cunning, decisiveness, and caution, why would he dare strike at the Roger Pirates alone?
A darker thought took hold.
Fish-Man Island guarded the New World's throat, ten thousand meters under the Red Line.
For Fish-Men, a haven. For humans, a deathtrap.
Buggy's babbling suddenly rang true.
Fish-Man Island could be used to trap an enemy.
That enemy might be Darren—
—or it might be the Roger Pirates.
Rayleigh's pulse kicked. The island sat on a strategic choke point, near enough to the Marine G1 Branch and Headquarters that reinforcements could arrive within hours.
And with that wily Marine brat's tricks, who knew how many assets he'd seeded in these waters?
What if, instead of finishing Darren, they were the ones being stalled?
A Marine fleet could close a ring around the island and box them in like rats.
Rayleigh watched the Vice Admiral—smashed back again and again by Roger, bloodied and gashed—charge in laughing like a madman. The unease clawing at his gut only deepened.
That had to be it.
The kid was exploiting Roger's hunger for battle, dragging him into a one-on-one and eating injury after injury to buy time.
He was waiting for Headquarters reinforcements.
Why else would his grin grow wilder the more he bled?
If he just craved a fight, he could have gone after Whitebeard, Kaido, or Big Mom. All worthy prey.
Why target the Roger Pirates?
"That's it. It has to be," Rayleigh thought, palms damp. "Damn. I almost fell for it."
The more he considered it, the worse it looked.
"Everyone, prepare to withdraw," he said, grim.
Gaban's face tightened—understanding at once. "I'll ready the ship." He sprinted toward the inner harbor and vanished into the press of bodies.
They'd secured the information they came for. No reason to linger. As Rayleigh and Gaban moved, the rest caught on and began packing without delay.
Only Buggy gaped at Rayleigh, fear twisting his face. "Retreat? But we've got the advantage!"
Shanks grabbed him by the red nose and hissed through his teeth, "Wake up! Why do you think that bastard Darren rushed us? The fleet from Headquarters might already be on its way!"
Buggy froze, then bolted after Gaban, legs pinwheeling. "Mr. Gaban! Wait for me!"
The others watched in tight-lipped silence.
Then, as the Roger Pirates reeled from the sudden turn, a boundless aura erupted in the distance, rolling over them.
"What is that…?"
Rayleigh and the others blanched, staring at the shattered waste.
There, in the ruin, the blood-drenched Vice Admiral climbed out of a crater so deep it swallowed the light. Blood ran down his arms; the smear across his handsome, sinister face only sharpened its edge.
An irresistible force surged off him. Fine, dark-red arcs of lightning crackled around his frame.
Crackle.
Crackle.
Under the horrified eyes of the Ryugu Palace soldiers, hairline fractures webbed outward across stone, walls, even nearby coral. The ground groaned, as if his mere presence would make it collapse.
"His Conqueror's Haki… it's warping reality," Shanks whispered, swallowing hard.
Conqueror's Haki: 80,715 (Affecting Reality)!!
To be continued...