Grove 1, Human Auction House.
The scene was chaotic, with the nobles and wealthy patrons who had attended the auction fleeing in panic.
They had personally seen Straw Hat Luffy punch a Celestial Dragon, Saint Charloss.
When a Celestial Dragon is attacked, a Marine Admiral is guaranteed to be dispatched.
This place would definitely be turned into a sea of fire.
Inside the auction house, the expressions of the Straw Hat crew were extremely grim.
Having experienced the war at Marineford, they knew exactly how terrifying a Marine Admiral was.
It was absolutely not an existence they could defeat at their current level.
"Let's grab Camie and run," Carina said worriedly.
They had stormed this place and punched a Celestial Dragon precisely to rescue their friend, the mermaid Camie, who was being auctioned by Saint Charloss.
Now, with the hall in chaos, it was the perfect time to flee.
Zoro swung his sword, sending several Celestial Dragon guards flying, and frowned.
"We can't get away until these guards are dealt with."
Sanji, Franky, and Usopp were all fighting.
The Celestial Dragon's guards weren't strong, but they were numerous, and seemed to have been stationed around the auction house.
For a moment, they were tied down.
In the corner, Eustass Kid and Trafalgar Law sat calmly in their chairs with their respective crews, watching the fight.
They were also Supernovas of the year.
Naturally, they wouldn't panic and flee like the common folk.
A Marine Admiral was certainly strong, but they just needed to leave before he arrived.
They heard that after Marineford sank, the Marine Headquarters had moved to the G-1 branch in the New World, opposite the Red Line.
It would take some time to get here from there.
So, they weren't in a hurry.
Just as Luffy and the others were tied down, an old, white-haired figure walked out from the backstage of the auction.
The old man wore glasses, had a full head of silver hair, and was dressed simply like a fisherman, carrying a liquor bottle.
He raised his eyes, scanned the hall, and his gaze landed on Luffy, who had just sent a guard flying.
The old man smiled slightly, then his eyes suddenly turned sharp.
A monstrous wave of Haki erupted from his body, sweeping through the auction house like a great wind.
In the next moment, the guards who were still fighting collapsed one after another like weeds, their eyes rolling back, clearly unconscious.
Saint Charloss's father, Rosward, and his sister, Shalria, also rolled their eyes and fainted.
The auction house fell silent instantly.
Eustass Kid's crew and Trafalgar Law's crew shot to their feet as if stung by insects, staring intently at the silver-haired old man.
His appearance, and the Conqueror's Haki he had just used...
Made them think of one person.
The Pirate King Roger's vice-captain, the "Dark King," Rayleigh!
The Straw Hat crew also looked over in astonishment.
Rayleigh met Luffy's gaze and smiled. "That straw hat looks good on a strong man."
"I've wanted to meet you for a long time, Monkey D. Luffy."
His words stunned Luffy and the others.
'He knows Luffy?'
'Who is this old man?'
'And that power he just used, was that Conqueror's Haki?'
After experiencing many battles with Luo Chen, the Straw Hat crew's knowledge had grown.
A person who could use Conqueror's Haki was one in several million.
They were amazed that this old man also possessed it.
Rayleigh's eyes flickered, his Observation Haki spread out, and his expression changed slightly.
He said gravely, "A Marine Admiral is here."
Luffy, Kid, Law, and the others all felt their hearts jump.
'A Marine Admiral is here?'
Usopp asked suspiciously, "Old man, who are you? How do you know a Marine Admiral is here?"
From the back of the auction house, Law turned to walk out, saying:
"Just trust him. If I'm not mistaken, this is the first mate of the Pirate King, Gol D. Roger, the 'Dark King,' Rayleigh."
Kid also turned to leave.
A Marine Admiral was not something they could handle right now.
And Rayleigh wouldn't lie to them at a time like this.
Trafalgar Law's answer made Usopp's eyes widen in shock.
'The Pirate King's first mate?!'
'This unassuming old man?!'
Carina said urgently, "Let's go, now! If the Admiral gets here, we're all done for."
She quickly urged everyone to grab Camie and leave.
Rayleigh followed the Straw Hat crew, walking out of the auction house.
...
Outside the auction house, Luffy's, Kid's, and Law's crews had just stepped out the main door...
...when they saw hundreds of Marines surrounding the auction house.
Rows of long rifles and several cannons were aimed at them.
The three captains scanned the area, and, seeing no sign of an Admiral, let out a simultaneous sigh of relief.
They all attacked, taking out the Marines in front of them.
Kid used his Magnet-Magnet Fruit powers, beckoning with his hand to forcibly rip dozens of rifles from the Marines' hands.
The long swords and sabers at the Marines' waists were also snatched away.
These weapons wrapped around his right arm, forming a giant steel arm.
He threw a punch, and a dozen Marines screamed, vomited blood, and were sent flying.
Trafalgar Law is a user of the Op-Op Fruit.
He activated his "Room," and the Marines within the area were sliced apart, but no blood spilled.
He wiggled his fingers like a conductor, randomly reassembling the Marines' body parts.
Another dozen Marines lost their ability to fight.
Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji also attacked.
In the blink of an eye, half of the hundred Marines were down.
Just as everyone was preparing to flee, the air in front of them suddenly became scorching.
From behind the Marines, a burly figure walked forward, his body bubbling with magma, his aura terrifying.
That cold, fierce face, the "Justice" coat, the magma ability—it was unmistakably the Marine Admiral, Akainu.
He was carrying two charred corpses in his hand.
Trafalgar Law glanced at them, his eyes twitching. He said in shocked suspicion:
"Urouge, with a bounty of 108 million, and Scratchmen Apoo, with 198 million."
Kid's crew, the Straw Hat crew, and the others paled.
They had heard of those two names.
Both were Supernovas of this year.
Now, they were already corpses.
In front of Akainu, two other pirate crews were fleeing in panic.
It seemed Akainu had been herding them here.
Carina's voice was heavy as she looked at the two pirate captains.
"The pink-haired one is 'Big Eater' Jewelry Bonney."
"The blonde one, dressed like an aristocrat, is the 'Magician,' Basil Hawkins."
"They are also Supernovas from this year."
Akainu walked over from the distance and said coldly, "All Marines, pull back."
Hearing this, the Marines surrounding Luffy and the others retreated to the sides as if granted amnesty.
These Supernovas, with bounties over 100 million, were not people they could handle.
Admiral Akainu's arrival, carrying the corpses of two Supernovas, gave the Marines a backbone, and their morale soared.
Luffy, Kid, Law, and the others saw the situation was bad and tried to flee to the sides.
But they stopped immediately, their faces turning ugly.
A dozen Bartholomew Kumas were mechanically surrounding them from all sides.
They had completely cut off their escape routes.
Having watched the broadcast of Marineford, they knew clearly that these Kumas were all clone robots of the Warlord.
Their strength was not to be underestimated, and they could fire the laser beams of Admiral Kizaru.
"We're dead this time..." Usopp's legs trembled, and his teeth chattered.
During the Summit War, he had seen Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji fight one of these robots.
The three of them together had barely managed to take down one, and they were exhausted afterward.
Now, a dozen Kuma clones were surrounding them, with Admiral Akainu watching menacingly.
They were definitely dead.
Rayleigh walked up from behind the group, looking at Akainu with a headache.
"An old man just comes out to auction himself off for some drinking money, how did I run into this guy?"
'Sakazuki.'
He knew of this man's extremist style.
Today, it seemed a bitter fight was unavoidable.
If he didn't step in, Luffy and the others would never be able to escape.
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