Chapter 227: The Application of Seawater
The smell of gunpowder drifted through the air.
Several gunners loaded and fired the cannons again and again. Their orders were strange. They were to fire randomly into open ground, then shift their aim slightly closer to the town every two hours.
It was an odd command, but the one who gave it was someone who left them no room for defiance.
As they continued firing, they witnessed something they would never forget.
The high speed cannonballs shot from the barrels, only to travel a few dozen meters before stopping in midair.
Before the gunners could recover from their shock, the cannonballs reversed along their original paths and flew back toward the ship.
However, before they could strike the hull, thin threads appeared in the air at some unknown moment and sliced the cannonballs apart.
Clap, clap, clap!
A round of applause sounded.
Doflamingo, wearing his pink feather coat, walked out from behind the ship. As he stepped forward, the subordinates standing before him immediately retreated, as if they were making way for a king.
"Fufufufu... I truly didn't expect you to have the guts to come."
As his voice fell, Axel slowly descended from the sky and landed on the ship's mast.
He casually sat on the horizontal beam and said, "Why wouldn't I come?"
"Yes, you can come," Doflamingo said with a grin. "But whether you can keep your life is another matter."
Swish!
A sharp sound tore through the air as Doflamingo snapped his fingers.
An invisible blade cut forward, slicing straight toward Axel.
Axel only gave a slight wave of the wooden blade in his hand, deflecting the hidden thread from its course and sending it toward a nearby beam.
The sharp thread cut through the beam smoothly, then continued flying into the sky with undiminished force.
Doflamingo was not surprised in the slightest.
"As expected of someone who could take down my capable subordinate."
His smile deepened.
"But what I'm more curious about is how you obtained that information."
Axel smiled slightly.
"What if I said I got it from a painting? Would you believe me?"
"Fufufufu... Interesting. It seems you don't plan to tell me."
"I already told you the truth," Axel said with a shrug. "Even if I said it, you wouldn't believe me anyway, would you?"
Then his tone shifted.
"Enough nonsense, Doflamingo. Stop your pointless actions. Do you really think attacking civilians will affect me?"
His voice was indifferent, without a trace of warmth.
"I think it can," Doflamingo said with a laugh. "After all, you're here, aren't you?"
"True," Axel said. "But I never said I came for those ordinary people."
He looked down at the ship beneath him.
"You're causing trouble here, and since this is my territory, it makes me look bad. I don't want people gossiping."
Axel said this to distance himself from the civilians.
In this kind of situation, reducing the enemy's leverage by even a little was important.
"So you care about gossip, but you aren't afraid of me?"
Doflamingo laughed.
"I was so angry about what you did that I could only laugh hysterically."
"Then keep laughing," Axel said. "As the saying goes, laughter makes people younger. Laugh a few more times, and maybe you'll even reach my age."
As Axel spoke, several threads shot toward him from the air.
With his sensitivity to energy, even invisible threads could not escape his perception.
He easily dodged them, then jumped down from the mast.
Watching the kid avoid his attacks so effortlessly, a trace of gravity appeared on Doflamingo's face.
His subordinates, however, were already stunned.
They had never imagined that someone would dare speak to Doflamingo like this.
"I remember you're someone who prioritizes profit," Axel said. "Why act recklessly out of anger?"
His voice remained calm.
"If you kill me, then for the Marines, who do not truly acknowledge the Seven Warlords system, it would undoubtedly become a trigger. It would be equivalent to declaring war on the Marines."
"No matter what, the Marines wouldn't stand by and do nothing."
"And clearly, the World Government wouldn't antagonize the Marines for your sake."
Axel looked at him.
"To them, both the Marines and the Seven Warlords are just useful tools."
"Fufufufu... Kid, your words suit my taste."
Doflamingo spread his arms slightly.
"There is no absolute justice, and there is no absolute darkness. Only those standing at the peak can define good and evil."
His grin grew wider.
"That place is neutrality."
"Everything else is just a tool for those in power to weigh benefits."
His gaze pressed down on Axel.
"When you die and lose your value, while my interests cannot be sacrificed, the one abandoned will obviously be you."
"And in the end, the Marines will be suppressed."
"Everything will return to nothing."
Axel's expression grew more solemn.
This was indeed possible.
Doflamingo was involved in most of the underground transactions in the world, and many of those connected to him were nobles.
The interests involved were enormous.
Perhaps enormous enough to make the World Government hesitate.
"Kid, you're interesting," Doflamingo said. "Why not join my Donquixote Family? Then we can pretend none of the past ever happened."
He extended a hand in invitation.
"I'm sorry," Axel replied. "Before coming here, I promised someone something. I'm afraid I can't accept your proposal."
"What a pity."
Doflamingo's smile did not fade.
"For the family's rule, and for my own principles, I must kill you."
Axel mirrored Doflamingo's gesture, showing a regretful expression as well.
"That's also a pity."
He looked at the vast sea around them.
"Because on this sea, you really can't do it."
"What do you mean by that?" Doflamingo asked.
At that moment, Axel did something that shocked everyone.
He lightly tapped the deck, then swiftly retreated backward.
Directly toward the boundless sea.
Doflamingo was stunned.
For a moment, he even forgot to stop him.
According to the reports he had received, Axel was also a Devil Fruit user.
He should have been unable to defy the rule that Devil Fruit users feared seawater.
Yet he had actually jumped toward the sea.
Was he trying to kill himself?
Doflamingo stepped forward and looked down.
The child stood lightly on the surface of the sea.
The surrounding waves did not affect him in the slightest. It was as if his body had become one with the ocean.
Doflamingo was somewhat surprised, but he quickly regained his composure.
"Do you think I can't touch you just because you're standing on the sea?" he said. "My attacks aren't limited to close range."
"Of course not."
Axel looked up at him.
"But who said you're the one who can't touch me?"
He raised one hand.
"What if I'm the one who can't touch you?"
Doflamingo's eyes narrowed.
"I'm not just standing on the sea."
Axel smiled.
"Look."
With a casual wave of his hand, the entire sea shifted as if a page had been turned.
A vast mass of seawater surged upward, forming a massive wave that climbed into the sky and loomed over the ship.
Then it stopped.
The shadow of the suspended sea swallowed the deck.
"The application of seawater also includes this."
By changing the direction of gravity, Axel could easily manipulate it.
Seawater, the thing that gave Devil Fruit users the greatest headache, was also within his control.
.....
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