"Sean Campbell!"
"Why are you here?"
Belo Betty was completely stunned.
Just a day ago, her moles within the 16th Branch had reported that Sean and the other Marines were still at the base and had not departed. Yet here he was, stepping out of the ship's cabin. Moreover, judging by the setup, it looked as though he had brought his entire main force.
"Do you really think I'll tell you?" Sean retorted. "I'll say it again: surrender within one minute, or be slaughtered without mercy!"
"Right... forty seconds left!"
Betty's expression soured, but she wasn't yet driven to despair. In terms of sheer numbers, the Revolutionary Army still doubled the Marines. As for high-end combat power, Sean might be a problem, but she didn't give those field-grade officers a second thought. Hadn't they just spent their time wiping out a few weak pirate crews in the East Blue?
She was unaware of the true identity of Lucci and the others as CP9 agents. Therefore, she believed the advantage still lay with her.
Gritting her teeth, she snapped her large flag open with a flourish. As she did, the power of the Encouragement Fruit activated, and an indefinable energy began to spread across the entire area. Under Betty's precise control, this power did not envelop the Marines.
In the next instant, a feeling known as "courage" began to take root and flourish in the hearts of every Revolutionary Army soldier. The warriors, who had been unsettled by this unexpected turn of events, felt their expressions grow grim and determined.
"Tsk tsk... what a convenient ability," Sean mused, watching Betty deliver her passionate speech while waving her flag.
Truthfully, Belo Betty's personal combat strength wasn't particularly high, but the Encouragement Fruit was, in a sense, a "bug-level" ability. It could make people fight with a reckless disregard for their own lives. Even when facing the Celestial Dragons... if used correctly, it posed a significant threat to the World Government.
'But... I wonder if the courage you've planted in these soldiers can withstand my pressure on their souls?'
Sean's eyes narrowed.
A massive wave of Reiatsu erupted, enveloping a vast area—though he carefully spared the Marines.
What was Reiatsu? Was it gravity?
Clearly not. To explain the term simply, Reiatsu was pressure exerted on the level of the soul, instilling a primal fear that stripped away any will to resist. The reason it appeared as though gravity were pinning people to the ground was not due to physical weight, but rather the body's involuntary reaction to the soul being crushed. It simply manifested as if they were under heavy gravitational pressure.
The courage that had just been ignited was doused like a bucket of ice water, extinguished instantly. What followed was trembling—a deep, visceral shudder originating from the soul.
Legs began to buckle involuntarily, unable to support the body's weight, as if the entire space were pressing down on them. First, they fell to their knees, and then... they collapsed flat on the ground.
Except for Belo Betty and a small handful of East Army cadres who could barely remain standing, the vast majority were now kneeling or pinned to the earth, unable to move.
"What... what did you do?"
"Nothing much. Just a bit of soul pressure."
"Soul pressure... That's impossible! I've never heard of a Devil Fruit with such an ability!"
Using her flagpole to prop herself up, a flicker of terror appeared on Betty's face. While her bounty was high, it didn't mean her raw strength was equally impressive. The reason her bounty exceeded 400 million Belly was primarily because her ability was far too dangerous. In terms of hard combat power, Betty was likely no stronger than a Marine Commodore—perhaps even less.
"Lucci, take them all!"
"Yes, sir!"
With over a hundred men possessing Doriki of at least 300+, combined with powerhouses like Lucci—who, despite being field-grade officers, possessed the strength of Headquarters general-grade officers—capturing three hundred suppressed revolutionaries was child's play.
Within two minutes, every member of the Revolutionary Army below Belo Betty had been neutralized.
Betty and a few cadres were brought aboard the warship and imprisoned. The remaining ordinary soldiers were kept on the four Revolutionary Army ships, which were now piloted by Marines; both the men and the ships were seized in one fell swoop.
This was a bountiful harvest.
'''
In the lower decks of the warship, Belo Betty and eight East Army cadres were held in custody. Sean had also released the gag from Ashiru's mouth.
"Betty, you've all been—"
Ashiru stopped mid-sentence. Had it only been a few minutes? Looking at the nine prisoners being marched in, she felt a wave of despair.
The East Army of the Revolutionary Army was completely finished.
'Leader... just what kind of monster have you provoked?'
'Purupurupuru...'
Just then, a Den Den Mushi rang on Betty's person. However, since her hands and feet were shackled, she was unable to answer it.
Standing nearby, Sean scanned Belo Betty from top to bottom, resting his chin on his hand in deep thought.
This woman... she wore long boots and a long-tailed skirt, and on top, just a small, open jacket. There wasn't a single pocket in sight.
So, where was the Den Den Mushi? It couldn't be... 'there', could it?
"Kalifa!"
"Yes, Rear Admiral?"
"Go and take the Den Den Mushi from her. It should be in an inner pocket of her jacket."
"Understood, Rear Admiral!"
Taking one look at Betty's attire, Kalifa immediately understood why Sean had asked her to do it. This woman's clothing was... simply too indecent!
As Kalifa looked at Belo Betty, she felt almost the same way Barry had once looked at her.
Meanwhile, Sean was pondering a different question. How did this woman ensure that the small jacket remained securely in place, covering that area regardless of her movements? From a scientific perspective, it seemed impossible. Was there some special internal structure to keep it fixed?
In the next moment, Kalifa lifted the jacket slightly and reached inside, feeling around here and there.
Good grief. Even though they were both women, the imagery was still a bit...
After a few seconds, a blushing Kalifa finally found the Den Den Mushi and handed it to Sean. Who would have thought this woman kept her Den Den Mushi in such a location? Truly indecent.
However, when she looked up and saw Sean holding the Den Den Mushi, and noticed him twitching his nose a few times, Kalifa instantly flared up!
"Rear Admiral Sean, this is an act of severe sexual harassment!"
'What?' Sean wondered. 'How did I become a sexual harasser again?'
"I just thought the scent on this Den Den Mushi was quite pleasant, so I decided to take a few good whiffs. Is that such a crime?"
Kalifa shot back, though Sean gave her a sharp, warning glare.
Sean then picked up the call.
"What happened on your end that required you to mobilize so many forces?"
'Good grief,' Sean thought. 'Based on that tone, it's that man, isn't it?'
"The person you're looking for might not be able to take your call for the time being!"
"Hmm? And who are you?"
"Me? I'm Sean Campbell!"
"Sean... what did you do to my people?"
"Nothing much. I simply arrested them."
...
"Sean... you and the World Government aren't exactly on the same page. Why move against my people?" Dragon asked in a heavy tone after a moment of silence.
Although he had never met Sean in person, Dragon was well aware of him. Many described Sean as cruel, but Dragon knew that his brand of cruelty differed from Akainu's.
Sean would never involve civilians just to capture pirates, nor would he recklessly sacrifice his own subordinates—not even a common Marine. His attitude toward the common people made it clear: Sean and the World Government were absolutely not kindred spirits.
That was why Dragon couldn't understand why Sean had suddenly attacked the Revolutionary Army. Logically, there shouldn't have been any conflict between them.
Sean, on the other hand, was almost laughing with anger.
'Why did I move against your people?'
"Dragon, let me tell you a story," Sean said. "I spent three whole years stranded on a deserted island before I happened to be rescued by old man Garp. I've always been deeply grateful to him for that."
"A while back, some brat from the East Blue set out to sea as a pirate. Normally, with my temper, I would have killed him on the spot. But who could I say no to? He's Garp's grandson."
"So, I had my men deliver him to Garp as a way of returning the favor. But guess what happened?"
"Someone beat my important subordinates to the point of critical injury. If I hadn't possessed certain special means, they would have all died from their wounds."
"Tell me, Dragon... what do you think I should do about that?"
Dragon fell silent.
This... was indeed his fault.
Originally, he hadn't intended to strike so heavily; he had simply wanted to take Luffy with him. However, the combat strength displayed by Kaku and the other Marines had forced his hand. He had been left with no choice but to strike with full force.
What left Dragon even more speechless was the realization that he had acted on a misunderstanding. He had assumed Sean was planning to send Luffy to Enies Lobby or Impel Down, which is why he had intervened. In reality, Sean had already contacted his father and was sending Luffy directly to him.
It had been a massive misunderstanding.
After a full minute of silence, Dragon spoke. "My apologies. It was my mistake. The Revolutionary Army is willing to offer compensation."
"Compensation? You make it sound so simple," Sean countered. "How about I inflict the same level of injury on all your East Army cadres in the East Blue, and then we'll call it even?"
Dragon hadn't forgotten the state he had left Kaku and the others in. Those injuries... they would have likely died within a few hours; they were barely clinging to life. The Marines had been too reckless, charging in to fight to the death even while gravely wounded, leaving Dragon with no choice but to be ruthless.
While he didn't know how Sean had saved them, the same injuries inflicted on the Revolutionary Army's side would have resulted in actual deaths.
"Sean..."
"If you want your people back, fine. I'll give you two choices," Sean interrupted.
"The first choice: two Devil Fruits for Belo Betty, one for Ashiru, one for the cadres as a group, and one for the remaining three hundred soldiers as a group. That's five Devil Fruits in total. And don't try to give me any garbage fruits."
"The second choice: we go to war. I'll be waiting for you at the 16th Branch."
With that, he abruptly hung up the Den Den Mushi.
Sean hadn't hidden the conversation from Belo Betty and the other East Army cadres; they had heard everything clearly. Except for Ashiru, who had heard it earlier, the rest of them were faces of pure shock.
So, they were all in this predicament simply because their leader wanted to save his pirate son?
Meanwhile, Sean wondered if Dragon would agree to the terms. Of course, if he didn't, Sean would stick to his original thought.
He didn't particularly like the Revolutionary Army anyway. Even when it came to high-level combatants, Sean wasn't afraid. After all, Sean was a Marine.
If necessary, he could have Blueno use his ability to go directly to Marine Headquarters and request reinforcements. In an instant, Admirals, Vice Admirals, and countless elite forces would arrive at the 16th Branch.
Or, he could simply bring old man Garp over and let the world witness a "father beating his son" performance. After all, the old man still owed him a favor, didn't he?