"One minute has passed. The Copy-Copy Fruit has been successfully replicated."
"One minute has passed. The Wax-Wax Fruit has been successfully replicated."
"One minute has passed. The Dice-Dice Fruit has been successfully replicated."
"One minute has passed. The Suna-Suna Fruit has been successfully replicated."
The continuous stream of system notifications made Mizuchi's brow lift slightly in satisfaction. The reason he had abandoned using the Ice Path earlier and opted to sit on the doorboard was precisely to replicate the Devil Fruits of everyone present.
Now, with the Devil Fruits in hand, Mizuchi no longer held back and began intercepting the falling cannonballs.
Around Mizuchi and the others, the explosions of Navy cannon fire rang out like a relentless barrage of firecrackers.
A massive number of dark cannonballs shot straight from the cannon mouths toward Mizuchi and his group.
If not for Jinbei's incredible speed, agility, and Luffy and the others' relentless attacks, merely relying on a doorboard would not have been enough to survive this dense hail of cannon fire.
"We're going up!"
Jinbei shouted as he carried the doorboard to the center of the Navy ship. He tossed it aside and dove straight downward.
"Fish-Man Karate… Water Heart… Underwater Suplex!"
A towering column of water erupted from the sea floor, propelling the doorboard upward like a rocket, preventing it from being buried under the cannon barrage.
"Ha! This free rollercoaster ride is… exhilarating!"
High above, Mizuchi stood atop the waves, looking down at the ever-growing Navy warship and shouted with excitement.
Beneath Mizuchi's feet, the raging sea crashed against the Navy ship like a tsunami, sending a monstrous wave surging over its deck.
The sturdy doorboard smashed heavily onto the deck, splintering into countless wooden fragments.
The briny seawater pushed Luffy and the others onto the deck.
"Swish! Swish!"
With two sharp whistling sounds, Mr. 1 and Crocodile safely landed first.
Then Mizuchi stepped down casually from the shattered doorboard, walking atop a chunk of frozen seawater as if nothing had happened.
Around them, the Devil Fruit users, soaked in seawater, were now weak and limp, collapsing onto the deck.
"M-Mizuchi… my body… it's so soft…"
Luffy lay in the water, weakly speaking to Mizuchi.
Next to him, Buggy lay face-down, unconscious on the deck.
"B-Bad news! Pirates… pirates have boarded the ship!"
"They're here to seize the ship. We absolutely cannot let them take it. If we just push the Devil Fruit users overboard, it's victory for us!"
The Navy soldiers, upon seeing Mizuchi and his group, felt a mix of fear and resolute determination.
As the seawater receded, Luffy and the others stood on the splintered board, glaring fiercely at the opposing side.
"Charge!"
Shouting, Luffy dashed forward first, followed closely by Gal Dino and the others.
"Fish-Man Karate… Spear Wave!"
Just as Luffy and the others prepared to seize the ship with full force, a massive whirlpool appeared on the sea surface. A solid column of water shot upward, smashing the ship's deck and creating a huge breach in the ship's superstructure.
"Hey! Hey! Hey! Can we even rob in peace anymore?!"
Mizuchi stepped forward from behind, unamused. If he didn't act now, Jinbei might end up dismantling the ship completely.
"Attack! Don't let them take the warship!"
Navy soldiers roared as they surged forward, bullets flying from their rifles toward Mizuchi and his allies.
Amidst the gunfire, more soldiers brandished long blades, charging toward Mizuchi with fierce determination.
For a moment, the morale of the Navy soldiers reached its peak.
"Wax-Wax Fruit (enhanced by Venom-Venom Fruit) loaded successfully. Duration: 10 minutes. Cooldown: 30 seconds."
After equipping the Devil Fruit cards, Mizuchi immediately erected a wall made entirely of sticky venomous wax, blocking all incoming bullets.
"Hah! That's… Magellan's poison!"
When Navy soldiers attempted to fire at Mizuchi from behind, the front-line soldiers who approached him were splashed by the venom activated from the wax wall, collapsing onto the deck in agony.
"Suna!"
As the Navy soldiers hesitated under Mizuchi's venomous assault, a small sandstorm suddenly erupted on the ship, sweeping up countless soldiers.
"Do you want to jump overboard yourselves, or shall I push you?"
Mizuchi maneuvered the fully wax-formed wall forward, plowing into the Navy soldiers.
"R-Run!"
Covered in venom, the soldiers who had just charged forward now scrambled back in terror.
Plop! Plop!
Some soldiers standing near the railings wisely jumped into the sea as their comrades fled toward them.
"No… bad news! A large number of Navy soldiers are abandoning ship and jumping into the sea. That warship is lost!"
Navy personnel on nearby ships, seeing the soldiers from Mizuchi's ship plunging into the sea like falling dumplings, immediately trained their cannons on Mizuchi's vessel.
"Boom!"
Just as the cannons were aimed, thick water columns erupted from the sea, crashing into the attacking ships. The dense streams of water instantly neutralized all the cannons.
"Wow… that was easy!"
Mizuchi lazily controlled the wax wall, clearing the deck, while Luffy and the others smashed down the Navy soldiers by any means necessary. Soon, the warship, once brimming with soldiers, was completely under Mizuchi's control.
"Wahaha… you guys did an amazing job!"
Once the chaos settled, Buggy, who had been playing dead the whole time, suddenly leapt onto the high platform, spreading his limbs and laughing exaggeratedly.
"Truly an expert at faking it!"
Mizuchi glanced at Buggy with a blank expression before turning his attention to the sea. Jinbei, having secured the cannons on the Navy ship, also climbed aboard.
"What now? I don't know how to sail, and them… will they come to take the ship back?"
Mizuchi pointed toward the noisy shore, where Ivankov and the remaining prisoners were anxiously awaiting their arrival.
"No need!"
Just as Jinbei spoke, numerous unknown creatures swam up from beneath the sea toward the shore.
"Everyone, jump down!"
Seeing the commotion in the water, Jinbei instructed everyone via Den Den Mushi to prepare to jump into the sea.
"Whoa… amazing! It's a school of whale sharks!"
Luffy, standing on the board, stared at the sea in awe. From the once-calm, windless zone emerged a massive school of black-and-white whale sharks. They surfaced and, carrying Ivankov and the others, headed straight toward the ship.
"Finally… leaving this place, huh?"
Mizuchi gazed at the bustling whale sharks before him, a hint of emotion crossing his face. This Impel Down expedition had been extremely rewarding—not only had he collected numerous Devil Fruit cards, but he had also gained a deeper understanding of Akainu's strength.
With his current power, defeating Akainu would still be difficult. He was still missing a crucial Devil Fruit—the key to determining his future battle strength against Akainu.
"Gura-Gura no Mi!"
Mizuchi turned his gaze toward the distant horizon. A new war awaited, not far off, ready for his arrival.