Finn's mocking tone made Craster's expression twist with fury.
"Hah!" Craster roared, launching several needle-thin blood projectiles from his palm.
They didn't even reach Finn. The attack stopped dead three meters away, as though striking an invisible barrier.
"The most brutal newcomer since the Great Pirate Era began," Finn mused, withdrawing his hand to rest on the sword at his waist. "A bounty of five hundred sixty million berries. You've breached three Marine bases and established yourself in the New World with remarkable speed. Even the World Government recognized you as capable enough to serve as a Warlord." He paused. "I had fairly high expectations, to be honest."
Even as Finn's hand left the compressed blood sphere, it remained suspended in the air, still locked by his gravitational control. Craster couldn't pull it free no matter how hard he tried.
"Is this really the best you can do?" Finn asked, his tone dripping with disappointment.
The moment he finished speaking, the demon blade at his waist, Shindokutō, slid from its sheath with a strange, cold whisper of steel.
Doflamingo, who'd been watching from a safe distance, felt the air around him grow heavy and dark, as though something malevolent was clawing its way into reality.
His eyes widened behind his sunglasses, genuine shock breaking through his usual composure.
What was he seeing?
The so-called righteous Admiral was surrounded by an evil aura so thick it was visible to the naked eye. Cold, ominous energy coiled around Finn like restless spirits, writhing and hungry.
Combined with the blood sphere hovering before him, Finn looked less like a defender of justice and more like a messenger from hell itself.
"So it's true," Doflamingo breathed.
"You didn't know?" Finn asked, glancing over with an amused smile.
"No, it's precisely because I know and I'm familiar with it that I'm surprised," Doflamingo replied, his voice carrying genuine emotion.
Before Finn could respond, Doflamingo continued in a deeper tone, "The legendary demon blade, Shindokutō."
He looked up, meeting Finn's eyes. They were clear, completely unclouded by the malevolent energy radiating from the weapon. Understanding dawned on his face. "It seems you've truly conquered that sword."
"Oh? You're well-informed," Finn said pleasantly.
Most people in the East Blue knew of Shindokutō, so its existence wasn't exactly secret. That Doflamingo recognized it wasn't surprising. But far fewer people knew about the blade's insidious ability to dominate and corrupt the mind of its wielder.
Doflamingo clearly understood that particular danger.
"After all, this was once one of the blades possessed by my ancestors," Doflamingo explained quietly. "The Donquixote family keeps records of it. Anyone without sufficient mental fortitude who holds that sword will inevitably die."
"So that means Saint Donquixote Claudius was real?" Finn asked with interest.
"Of course," Doflamingo replied without hesitation, his tone absolutely certain.
"As expected, your family background is nothing to scoff at. Hehe." Finn smiled.
He didn't continue the small talk. Instead, he turned his attention back to Craster, who stood at a distance in a defensive stance.
"If you don't have any other tricks, then this farce ends here, Craster." Finn's voice went cold. "I'll tell you plainly: with your level of strength, you're not worthy of becoming a Warlord."
Before Craster could respond, Finn leveled the tip of Shindokutō at him and whispered, "Gravity Domain: Universal Pull."
Craster's eyes widened. In the next instant, an overwhelming attractive force erupted from the blade's point.
He tried to resist, digging his heels into the ground, but it was useless. The pull was irresistible. He was yanked forward at tremendous speed, hurtling directly toward the demon blade.
Doflamingo stared in disbelief. What the hell? Most people swing swords to cut their enemies. You're forcing enemies to impale themselves on your blade?
Isn't that a bit shameless?
In a single breath, Craster was pierced clean through by Shindokutō. Finn lifted the blade, hoisting the impaled pirate into the air.
The sword had completely penetrated Craster's chest. Blood poured from the wound, but oddly, his expression showed no pain whatsoever.
"If you think a blade can kill me, you're ten thousand years too early!" Craster laughed viciously. "I'm immortal!"
He thrust his hand into the compressed blood sphere hovering nearby, roaring, "It doesn't hurt to tell you! The closer I am to blood, the stronger my control becomes!"
The sphere exploded instantly, transforming into a crimson curtain that enveloped both Finn and Craster.
"Immortal? Even Kaido isn't as arrogant as you," Finn said with a chuckle.
He swung Shindokutō violently. The razor-sharp blade cut through Craster's body completely, flinging him to the ground in pieces.
But within moments, Craster's wounds began healing rapidly. Blood from the surrounding curtain flowed into his body, knitting flesh and bone back together. After just a few breaths, he stood before Finn completely unharmed.
"Even if you defeat me a hundred times, a thousand times, even if you use that extraordinary demon blade to cut off my head or split open my body, I will not die!" Craster laughed wildly. "As long as there's a single drop of blood remaining, I cannot die!"
"Well, I suppose you really can call that immortality," Doflamingo said dryly.
"Exactly! I'm the inevitable winner!" Craster crowed.
"Ah... I see now," Finn said with sudden understanding. "You're exactly what Instructor Zephyr warned me about. You obtained a powerful Devil Fruit, and from that moment on, you thought you were invincible." His tone grew mocking. "Who do you think you are? Whitebeard?"
Years ago, after Finn had acquired the Press-Press Fruit, Zephyr had warned him not to rely entirely on his Devil Fruit ability the way Borsalino supposedly did.
Later, through repeated interactions, Finn had confirmed that was just Zephyr's personal prejudice against Borsalino. While the Admiral did lean heavily on the Glint-Glint Fruit, he wasn't completely one-dimensional.
But this Craster before him genuinely seemed to believe his Blood-Blood Fruit made him invincible. Perhaps since his debut, he'd never encountered anyone who could counter his ability, so he'd grown unforgivably arrogant.
He was someone who'd placed absolutely all his strength in his Devil Fruit.
Such a person, when unchallenged, could seem incredibly powerful, practically unstoppable.
But the moment they met an opponent who could effectively neutralize their fruit ability, they'd crumble completely.
Like Enel in the original timeline. Before meeting Luffy, the rubber man, he'd proclaimed himself a god. Arrogant beyond measure.
But once his lightning proved useless, he'd been beaten down like a common thug.
"I am the Blood Torrent!" Craster roared, charging at Finn with a blood-forged blade wrapped in Armament Haki. It actually looked fairly competent.
"I thought you might be hiding your true abilities," Finn said, shaking his head. "But it seems not. I've completely lost interest in you."
Craster's blood blade slashed toward Finn's neck.
But Finn's Armament Haki flowed like cloud cover across his skin. The attack couldn't even penetrate his defensive aura.
"You were lucky to gain a foothold in the New World," Finn said, catching Craster by the throat and lifting him off his feet. "In the final moments before you lose your freedom, experience what it means to face a Marine Admiral."
"You can't kill me!" Craster shouted, still defiant.
With a sickening crunch, blood sprayed. Finn didn't waste words. He simply crushed Craster's neck with one hand.
But even with his throat destroyed, wild triumph remained in Craster's eyes, as though mocking Finn's inability to end him.
Then black-purple energy began radiating from Finn's palm.
Craster's expression changed instantly, panic replacing arrogance.
"Gravity Domain: Absolute Restraint ," Finn whispered.
Massive gravitational pressure compressed from all directions. In an instant, Craster was crushed into a mass of blood and pulverized flesh. But the gravity prevented anything from escaping. Instead, the gore twisted and compacted together, forming a grotesque sphere of compressed organic matter.
Then the black-purple energy halo from Finn's palm slowly wrapped around the sphere, sealing it completely.
Inside, Craster was screaming and struggling, but he couldn't break free.
Holding the sealed sphere in one hand, Finn gestured to Vergo. "Give me the box."
Without a word, Vergo produced a small container from his pack, roughly the size of a Devil Fruit. The box was made entirely of Seastone.
"I was planning to use this for capturing Logia users," Finn said with a smile. "But it'll work just fine for you."
Ignoring Craster's muffled cursing from within the compressed sphere, Finn dropped it into the Seastone box.
Vergo quickly snapped the container shut and returned it to his pack.
Finn released his gravitational hold and turned to Doflamingo with a satisfied smile. "See? I told you he wasn't worthy of being a Warlord, didn't I?"
Doflamingo was still processing what he'd just witnessed.
Craster, whose strength had been roughly equal to his own, perhaps even slightly superior, had been treated like a complete joke in Finn's hands. With a casual flip of his wrist, the pirate had been rolled into a ball and stuffed in a box.
Doflamingo quickly recovered his composure, forcing his trademark smile back into place. "You're absolutely right. He clearly wasn't worthy of the Warlord title. After all, you're one of the World Government's strongest combat assets. Your power only continues to grow."
"Perhaps," Finn said, his tone turning reflective as he recalled the overwhelming force Whitebeard had displayed during their confrontation. "But it's still not enough."
That was the real strongest in the world.
"My mission here is complete, Doflamingo." Finn clapped the broker on the shoulder. "You'd better take care of yourself. Don't provoke the Marines. Otherwise, I'll say it again: while I can't kill you arbitrarily, no one's going to stop me from roughing you up a bit."
Doflamingo's smile became slightly strained. "I'll definitely remember your kindness, Admiral. Actually, I have no intention of opposing the Marines anymore. On the contrary, after your reminder today, I hope to demonstrate my sincerity and convince the Marines to accept me as one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea."
He paused, then added, "From today forward, the Marine will receive a thirty percent discount on all arms purchased from me."
Finn's smile widened genuinely. "Much appreciated."