“You’ve fought Newgate?” Golden Lion’s voice suddenly deepened, and his expression froze, clearly not having processed it.
After all, one was a junior Marine he’d never heard of, and the other was Whitebeard, who was stronger than himself.
Honestly, Golden Lion couldn’t connect the two at all.
“Yes, three years ago in West Blue.” David swallowed, then continued, “It’s said… he even directly blocked one of Whitebeard’s attacks.”
The air instantly solidified.
Golden Lion’s fingers slowly tightened, the wooden armrest silently crumbling beneath his palm.
At the same time, a savage arc pulled at the corner of his mouth, his voice hoarse: “Oh? Directly blocked Newgate?”
Cold sweat beaded on David’s forehead, but he still braced himself and added, “His ability is similar to Whitebeard’s; both can cause vibrations, just in different forms.”
“And…”
“And what?” Golden Lion’s voice was as cold as ice.
“He seems to have had his name remembered by Whitebeard after that encounter.
He even earned the name ‘Air Quake’.”
“—Ha!!” Golden Lion suddenly burst into maniacal laughter, and Conqueror’s Haki erupted with a roar.
The entire ship trembled violently, and the pirates on deck all fell to their knees, their faces pale.
“Interesting! Too interesting!” Golden Lion’s laughter abruptly ceased, “You mean the Marine is hiding a junior Whitebeard?
Not just Zephyr’s disciple? And he even met that bastard Newgate?!”
As he spoke, he stomped his foot, shattering the deck, his golden hair wildly flailing like a lion’s mane: “So, the Marine thinks… finding a fake can scare me?!”
David lowered his head, not daring to reply.
“Heh heh.” Golden Lion turned and walked towards the bow, his golden hair wildly dancing in the wind, like a lion’s mane.
“I can’t touch Newgate for now, but a fake…”
He bared his teeth, revealing his stark white fangs: “I’ll personally chop him to pieces and feed him to the Sea Kings!”
“Fleet Admiral, what should we do next…?” A cadre asked tentatively at this moment.
Golden Lion didn’t look back, only coldly said, “Where did that brat’s warship go?”
“G-3 Base,” David replied, “The place where Sakazuki is stationed.”
Hearing that name, a savage arc appeared at the corner of Golden Lion’s mouth: “That magma brat?”
As he spoke, he suddenly raised his hand, and the seawater in the entire sea violently churned under his ability’s control, several pirate ships slowly rising into the sky, suspended above the clouds.
“Give the order,” Golden Lion’s voice echoed through the sky, “All forces turn, target Marine G-3 Base!”
David was startled: “Fleet Admiral, are you going to act personally? That’s the Marine’s G-3 Base.”
Golden Lion sneered: “Since the Marine dares to capture my people and hide an ability user like Whitebeard…
Then I’ll let them know the price of provoking me!”
As he spoke, Golden Lion drew the twin swords “sakura ten” and “Withered Wood” from his waist, their blades gleaming with a cold light in the sunlight.
“Moreover, whether it’s Air Quake or magma, they… are not qualified enough to stop me, Golden Lion!!”
........
Three days later, in Sakazuki’s office at Marine G-3 Base, sunlight cast sharp stripes on the floor through the blinds.
Gern was originally there to transfer a prisoner, but Headquarters’ intention was to temporarily confine Doge here, and then Headquarters would send someone to escort him to the underwater grand prison, Impel Down.
And Gern’s warship would return to Marineford with the escort warship at that time.
That was the meaning, but was it really okay to face Sakazuki alone, who was completely different from his impression and surprisingly enthusiastic, here?!
“So you mean, the G-3 Base’s annual combat report needs three more data modules?” Gern propped his chin with one hand, his fingertips impatiently tapping the desk.
The “G-3 Base Five-Year Development Plan” spread open on the desk had already been flipped to Chapter 73.
Sakazuki sat behind the desk, the shadow of his Marine cap covering the upper half of his face, only his tightly pressed lips showing that he was in a good mood.
He even felt that his G-3 Base would soon keep Gern.
“Gern, it’s not just data modules. The standardization process for the logistics support system also needs…”
Just as Sakazuki continued to tell Gern how great his G-3 Base was…
Suddenly, Gern’s bored pupils sharply constricted.
His Observation Haki detected an anomaly within a thousandth of a second.
It came from high above the base, a tremor caused by some massive object tearing through the air.
That wasn’t the sound of wind, nor a thunderstorm, but…
“Sakazuki!” Gern suddenly stood up, his chair scraping an ear-splitting sound across the floor.
“What?” Sakazuki, whose Observation Haki was not as strong as Gern’s, frowned and looked up, but only saw Gern’s figure had already turned into an afterimage, rushing towards the window.
“Boom!” The glass shattered into diamond-like crystals under Gern’s impact.
Immediately after, he pushed off the window frame with his foot, and his entire body shot towards the tallest lookout tower of G-3 Base like an arrow released from a bowstring.
A sixty-meter-high steel structure, Gern reached the top in just three air-steps.
For a moment, the sea wind tore at his cloak of justice, Gern’s black hair wildly danced in the wind, and his right hand was already on the hilt of black blade eight desolations.
“Release.” A low voice fell, and the bandages wrapped around the blade snapped inch by inch; the jet-black blade did not reflect any light in the sun.
The blade was wrapped in fine white vibrating particles, and the air was distorted by the high-frequency vibrations.
“No mistake…” Gern looked up, his gaze piercing through the clouds, locking onto the calm sky, the moment his right hand gripped the raised blade—
A force field formed by extremely compressed vibrating particles, and the steel observation deck beneath his feet suddenly caved in, forming a perfect circle.
“Bang!” Amidst the explosive roar of air, Gern’s figure instantly broke the sound barrier.
At the same time, his body gradually elementalized as he shot upwards, turning into countless leaping white particles.
Only the Black Blade remained solid, tracing a dark black trajectory in the stream of particles.
........
Seven hundred meters high, above the clouds!
Gern’s pupils reflected three colossal warships that blotted out the sky and countless shattered rocks.
The ship bodies were disintegrating, and thousands of rocks, cannons, and architectural debris were plummeting towards G-3 Base like meteorites.
“Indeed, lifting things into the sky, then disintegrating them as weapons…
What a grand gesture… Golden Lion!!”