In the bleak night, the main harbor of Whisky Peak.
Whisky Peak had two docking ports.
One faced Reverse Mountain along the Red Line. Almost everyone who came down from Reverse Mountain would enter through that harbor.
The other faced the Grand Line, receiving ships returning from the Grand Line. The two ports were connected by waterways, allowing ships to pass directly through Whisky Peak without having to circle around, enabling smooth exchange between both sides.
After some time, the unrest at Whisky Peak gradually spread here as well. Some pirates, having finished replenishing their supplies and unwilling to be dragged into the chaos, headed to the harbor facing the Grand Line and boarded their ships.
"Let those idiots fight it out. We'll loot the treasure from their ships and conquer the Grand Line!"
"Exactly. As expected of our Captain—so smart."
"Set sail!"
Under the thick veil of night, several pirate ships departed from the harbor. But before they could sail far, through the hazy darkness, two enormous warships appeared ahead.
"What is that?!"
"They're warships! Marine warships! The Marines are really here!"
Warships of that size could only belong to officers at the Vice Admiral level or above. A Rear Admiral's ship would never reach the scale of those two vessels.
"Quick! Turn around!"
"The Marines are here! The Marines are here!"
On one of the Marine warships, a massive cannon was already locking onto a fleeing pirate ship.
Boom! Boom! Boom…
In terms of naval firepower, Marine warships were undoubtedly among the finest. Large ships meant massive cannons. After only a few rounds of bombardment, one pirate ship was torn to pieces.
One ship wasn't enough—then came the second. The bombardment continued relentlessly.
From beginning to end, only one warship was firing. The other made no move at all, charging straight toward the harbor instead.
"Admiral Zephyr, aren't we going to fire? The Vice Admiral over there is having quite the battle."
The leader aboard the other Marine warship was one of the current two Admirals of the Marines—Black Arm Zephyr.
"Those ships are enough for him to handle. Our target is elsewhere."
Black Arm Zephyr was a deeply tragic figure within the Marines.
In his early years, he was known as the "Non-Killing Admiral." When capturing pirates, he would always take them alive if possible, firmly believing they should be handed over to the law for judgment.
The result of that approach was simple: too many of his enemies remained alive. Eventually, they sought revenge—brutally murdering his wife and child.
Now, Zephyr had begun to waver in his former convictions. In the past, he would certainly have stopped the Vice Admiral sailing alongside him. Now, the fact that he could restrain himself from killing was already commendable.
"According to intelligence, the Nation-Slayer's crew is very likely at Whisky Peak. Strawberry is waiting for us to rescue him. Cleaning up these minor pirates is merely incidental."
Zephyr hadn't come here to wipe out a few small-time pirates.
For a place like Whisky Peak, sending a capable Vice Admiral would already be more than enough. Zephyr had come personally for one reason—Nation-Slayer Vane. And also to rescue his disappointing student, Strawberry.
Zephyr's warship plunged straight into the harbor. Marines of all ranks aboard immediately began arresting the rioting pirates, using the harbor as their center of operations.
Unlike the others, Zephyr ignored the ordinary pirates. He took out a Den Den Mushi with a discreet design.
It was the contact Den Den Mushi for a government spy operating in the Whisky Peak region. To find the target, the best approach was to contact someone familiar with the area.
In any place where pirate activity was rampant, spies were likely to exist. As the first stop for most pirates entering the New World, Whisky Peak was no exception.
Such infiltration had likely existed long before the Shichibukai, the "Desert King," established Baroque Works here.
"This is Admiral Zephyr. Intelligence reports that you've discovered traces of the pirate with an 80 million Belly bounty, Nation-Slayer."
The moment the Den Den Mushi connected, Zephyr immediately identified himself. The reputation of an Admiral was more than enough to command the attention of an ordinary World Government spy.
"Admiral Zephyr, I have indeed found traces of Nation-Slayer. He's currently dealing with the Cactus Gang alongside Marine Rear Admiral Strawberry… Admiral Zephyr, your Rear Admiral hasn't really joined Nation-Slayer's crew, has he?"
Zephyr: "Do not make reckless assumptions about a Marine Rear Admiral… Tell me their location."
Zephyr was certain Strawberry possessed a strong sense of justice. This time, he had been set up by pirates and offended the World Government. Zephyr knew much of the inside story—Strawberry supported cracking down on the slave trade… it was the World Government that did not.
From that perspective, perhaps this so-called Nation-Slayer was not truly some heinous criminal.
Another Marine might never consider whether Nation-Slayer Vane acted with justice. But this was Admiral Zephyr, once known as the Non-Killing Admiral.
Zephyr's heart truly twisted only after his arm was severed by pirates. And the pirate who cut off his arm—Whitebeard Jr., Weevil—was later invited by the World Government to become a Shichibukai.
His arm cut off. Nearly all his students slaughtered, leaving only two survivors. And then the World Government invited the culprit to become a Shichibukai.
After enduring such betrayal and devastation, Zephyr concluded that neither the Marines nor the World Government could be saved. Clinging to his final conviction, he embarked on a mad campaign to destroy the New World.
At present, he had lost his family. For some utterly vile pirates, he could now strike them down. Yet he still could not help but question whether a pirate deserved to be executed on the spot.
As for Vane's actions, Zephyr believed it would be best to capture him alive. Killing him outright was not an easy decision.
...
On the other side of Whisky Peak, the constantly spinning "sea urchin" finally began to slow as its strength waned. Meanwhile, Vane's relentless attacks continued, snapping off the spikes covering his opponent's body one after another.
"You've been spinning nonstop. A move like that drains stamina far too quickly. If you can't finish your opponent in a short time, you're just waiting to die."
This man possessed the Spike-Spike Fruit, not some Spin-Spin Fruit. The Spin-Spin Fruit's rotation would be a Devil Fruit ability. His rotation relied purely on physical stamina, consuming an enormous amount of energy.
And he still had to clash head-on with Vane in between. For someone whose bounty hadn't even surpassed 100 million Belly, lasting this long was already impressive.
"Whirlwind Cutting Fist!"
Vane leapt high once more, completing a vertical three-hundred-sixty-degree rotation, and unleashed a shockwave kick downward onto Doushi.
This time, Doushi failed to complete his defensive spin. The shockwave exploded across his body. Fierce cutting winds, sharp enough to slice through stone, shredded him violently.
The protruding spikes across his body were all severed. His eyes rolled back as he collapsed to the ground, life or death unknown.
At the same time, he provided Vane with a feather imbued with Articuno's energy.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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