Chapter 160: Endless Abilities And Props! (For Automatic Subscription!)
Vergo, his bamboo-fiber body armor shattered and embedded with sakura-petal slashes, was dragged unconscious through the air by Senbonzakura—Carl's mysterious weapon that shimmered like cherry blossoms caught in a hurricane.
Above the clouds, the massive form of the artificial Azure Dragon known as 'Gluttony' tore through the sky, unleashing sonic booms with each flap of its cloned wings. The sound barrier broke like thunder around them.
Carl and Yamato sat steadily atop a saddle fused directly into the dragon's scales. The ferocious gales that came with supersonic speed were silently repelled by Carl's invisible Conqueror's Haki laced with sword intent. Not a hair on either of them moved.
Down below, island after island stared skyward in confusion and awe.
"What is that?!" gasped a villager on a coastal island.
Those familiar with Wano's legacy went pale. "It's Kaido—Kaido's back?!"
Panic spread like wildfire. Some pirates dropped everything and scrambled for their ships, others simply froze, their instincts screaming retreat.
Such was the terror of the Four Emperors. Even just a silhouette of a dragon could spark mass hysteria.
"It's so fast…" Yamato muttered, gripping the reins in amazement. "It's just a replica of Father's Devil Fruit… but it feels even faster than him."
"Well, Gluttony's got bonus features," Carl smirked casually, glancing at the interface-like HUD projected by his Log Pose. "It's enhanced with the ability: [Sonic Flight]. That turns it into a true war-mount."
Gluttony, the artificial Azure Dragon, was not just a Beast Pirate clone. Modified by Carl's own brand of alchemy and tech, it was a masterpiece—something Vegapunk might've envied.
New Marineford – Former G1 Base
On the training field of the newly built Marineford, recruits were mid-drill. Most had been drafted during the World Conscription that followed the Paramount War. Their talent was promising, but they lacked polish.
An instructor barked from a high platform, "Alright, now line up for the boarding simulation—"
BOOM!
A skyquake cracked overhead like a whip. The instructor's voice cut off instantly.
"What the hell was that?!"
The Marine's instincts kicked in. He looked skyward—and paled.
"ENEMY ATTACK!!!"
"IT'S KAIDO!!! HE'S BACK!!!"
Whoosh!
Three silhouettes appeared in a flash on the central platform.
Fleet Admiral Akainu, clad in his white Justice coat, stood front and center, cigar clenched in his mouth and brow furrowed. Beside him, Admiral Kizaru yawned, his sunglasses gleaming. Opposite them stood Fujitora, the blind Admiral, calm as ever, hand resting on the hilt of his shikomizue.
"That drunken bastard again?" Akainu growled, smoke curling upward from his lava-scorched shoulder. "How many times is that this year?!"
Kaido had a pattern. Reckless attacks on rival Emperor territories, Marine strongholds—even Impel Down once. And yet, despite repeated defeats and captures, he survived every time.
"Yo~ it's been two years, hasn't it~?" Kizaru said with a lazy drawl.
Two years ago, Carl and Fujitora shook the world at Wano. Orochi beheaded, Jack the Drought slain, and Kaido's own hide scarred.
The gash that ran from Kaido's shoulder to his abdomen—left by Carl's Senbonzakura—had never fully healed.
Even now, the charred hole in his chest, blasted by Yamato's prototype Vulcan Cannon, remained a grim reminder of that war.
The Beasts Pirates never recovered.
Since then, Kaido had vanished. Some thought he was licking his wounds. Others whispered Carl had sent him underground.
Fujitora tilted his head. His brows knitted slightly. "That aura… It's similar, but not Kaido's. It's large and draconic, but not alive in the same way."
His senses—unburdened by sight—reached far beyond what Akainu or Kizaru could perceive.
"…Not Kaido?" Akainu's voice lowered.
A copy? A clone?
But how many beings on this sea could manifest that kind of presence?
Kizaru squinted. "Oh~ I see two figures up there… riding the dragon~"
Fujitora's blank eyes opened slightly. "One of them is… Your Excellency Carl."
"???" Akainu blinked. "Carl?!"
"Yes. It's unmistakable. His aura is unique. It blends Conqueror's Haki with something artificial… something that even my senses can't fully interpret," Fujitora said, voice calm but intrigued.
Akainu exhaled slowly, arms folding across his chest.
That made more sense. Carl always had strange tricks.
Weapons from nowhere. Techniques never documented. He was like a walking contradiction of science and mysticism.
"Speaking of which…" Kizaru added thoughtfully, "Didn't he help me retrieve my Marine Seal with that weird fishing rod last year~?"
"That's right," Akainu grunted, recalling Garp's half-laughing tale from his so-called retirement cruise. "Said Carl was fishing for Sea Kings with some kinda 'Momotaro-brand Taming Ball.'"
An odd tool, maybe even a joke—but its implications ran deep.
The power to command Sea Kings… was the domain of Poseidon, one of the Ancient Weapons.
So how many secrets was Carl hiding?
And what else was he bringing into this world?
One could easily imagine the expression on Fleet Admiral Akainu's face at that moment.
Just this one move from Carl was enough to spark global tremors—perhaps even ignite a world war.
After all, Sea Kings are the true rulers of the deep, terrifying even to the likes of Emperors. Few dared to control them… but Carl, thanks to prior sign-ins and experience at Fish-Man Island and beyond, had learned much.
For nearly two years, Carl had drifted alone, traversing uncharted waters on a small boat, occasionally using Observation Haki to scout his path. He landed on countless minor islands, completing sign-ins that frequently rewarded him with bizarre but effective tools—many originating from the strange "Blue Fatty World."
Huuu—
A strong gust of wind swept the square as the gigantic shadow of the sky dragon 'Gluttony' slowly descended.
Boom!
The plaza rumbled like an earthquake, the square buried in smoke as the dragon's massive form hit the ground.
The Marines gaped at the monstrous mount, which completely occupied the open plaza.
"It's Vice Admiral Carl!"
"Thank goodness… for a second I thought that was Kaido himself making a landing!"
Voices echoed in relief and confusion.
"QUIET DOWN!!!"
The deafening roar instantly silenced the plaza. Every soldier stood stiffly at attention.
Akainu's stern eyes swept over the square. "Is this what the dignity of the Marines looks like to you?!"
His presence was overwhelming, a living furnace. "Hmph! One month of additional training for all of you slackers!"
"Hiss—!"
The mass inhalation was nearly comical. Faces turned ashen.
Their standard training was already brutal!
"What are you looking at?! MOVE! Or I'll triple it!" Akainu thundered again.
"Yes, sir…"
A weak yet unified voice followed, and the exhausted Marines resumed their drills.
"Fleet Admiral Sakazuki," Carl dismounted from Gluttony's back, Yamato following beside him with a calm expression.
"Mm. Carl, you've returned," Akainu said, his tone heavy but reserved. He didn't ask about the massive dragon, nor question the chaos Carl had likely left in the New World.
Instead, he cut straight to the point.
"Did Trafalgar Law accept the offer?"
In the two years since becoming Fleet Admiral, Sakazuki had adopted more restraint, but his sense of justice was as absolute as ever.
"He did," Carl nodded, then suddenly raised a hand with a curious expression. "Oh, right—almost forgot."
Zzzt!
In the distance, a whirling noise split the air.
A peculiar sphere of fluttering pink petals zipped toward the square at high speed.
"Huh?" Akainu raised an eyebrow. Even Kizaru and Fujitora paused mid-conversation and turned to observe.
The petal orb exploded open, and a mangled figure was tossed unceremoniously to the ground.
"…Vergo?" Akainu muttered, furrowing his brow.
The former G-5 Branch Vice Admiral, one of their own, lay twisted in a grotesque pose. A deep fracture around his waist stood out sharply. His shattered sunglasses revealed blank, unconscious eyes.
"Well, it's a bit awkward," Carl said, scratching his head. "To put it bluntly, he's been working for the Donquixote Family all along."
He casually exhaled smoke and added, "In other words—he's Doflamingo's spy inside the Marines."
Akainu's pupils contracted like pinpricks.
"No wonder… That damn Doflamingo always knew too much."
For years, the Marines had tried to corner the arms-dealing underground broker known as 'JOKER', the real face of Doflamingo. But time after time, he slipped through their fingers—always a step ahead.
Now it made sense.
A Vice Admiral, planted deep in their structure, had likely fed him intel the whole time.
"Do—Fla—Min—GO!!" Sakazuki's body trembled with fury, magma licking at the edges of his fist.
"That trash of the sea… Shichibukai or not, don't think I won't burn you alive!"
A man of radical justice, Akainu had always despised pirates, but knowing they had infiltrated this deeply—it was humiliation beyond words.
The fact that Vergo had risen to such rank without being exposed was a bitter pill to swallow.
The Marine's honor had been trampled on.
After a long, burning silence, Akainu finally exhaled the heat of his rage.
"Carl… for exposing this traitor, you have my thanks," he said gravely.
Carl merely shrugged, flicking away ash. "Just doing my job."
Akainu nodded, then gestured grimly at a waiting Marine squad.
"Take him to medical. Keep him alive… I want him interrogated thoroughly."
Several officers rushed forward with stretchers.
The war may not have started yet, but the shadows behind it were stirring restlessly. And with Vergo's fall, one more domino had been tipped in a much larger storm to come.
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