Inside an office cabin aboard a certain heavily guarded Marine Warship.
Akainu sat in a chair, a cigar nearing its end clamped between his fingers, the crimson spark flickering erratically.
His gaze was not fixed on the mountain of documents piled on the desk, but rather on a brand new wanted poster.
One month... a whole month!
This span of time surfaced in Akainu's mind. The brat named Ryoma hadn't made a move for such a long time, he didn't know what trick he was playing.
He had cast a net across the seas surrounding Alabasta, yet came up empty-handed.
"Purururu!"
The Den Den Mushi on the desk suddenly let out a rapid sound, interrupting his thoughts.
Akainu picked up and Sengoku's voice, laced with anger, came through.
"Akainu! The Alabasta Royal Family has filed complaints several times! You melted down their nation's outer sea reef zone! Stop your operation immediately and return to Marine Headquarters to report!"
The Den Den Mushi mimicked Sengoku's furious, glaring expression, looking comical and ridiculous.
Akainu listened in silence, offering neither rebuttal nor explanation. He merely slowly placed the receiver back in its cradle. The suppressed rage surged within him, finally concentrating on his right fist.
Akainu's heart was churning with brutal fury at this moment, and he let out a low growl, "Must be... eliminated!"
Boom!
His fist slammed heavily onto the thick desk surface. Where his fist connected, instead of a loud bang, an ominous dark-red light glowed. The steel plate desk softened and melted through at a visible rate. Drops of scorching molten iron dripped onto the floor, burning out black craters.
— — —
It was noon on the seventh day after leaving Little Garden.
Galmoro Island, an island shaped like a crescent moon, was famous for its abundant geothermal resources and hot spring inns scattered across the whole island.
At this moment, the port located inside the bay was bustling with activity. Merchant ships and fishing boats crowded the docks, but the most eye-catching sights were the few Marine Warships painted with the seagull emblem.
Ryoma wore a wide-brimmed straw hat characteristic of the locale, having swapped his conspicuous attire for a short shirt commonly worn by the locals, blending seamlessly into the crowd.
After purchasing enough fresh water and food, he was about to find a place to rest his feet. He then walked into a hot spring tavern facing the street, where the smells of alcohol, steam, and food mingled.
Finding a corner seat, Ryoma ordered a mug of ale and listened to the surrounding chatter without drawing attention.
"Did you guys hear? That fire-red cloud last month, did you see it?"
A drunken merchant, face flushed, slurred his words while gesturing to his companion, "The whole sky was completely red. It was... it was magnificent! Rumor has it... that it was Marine Admiral Akainu's Warship passing through our waters."
His words immediately caught the attention of several sailors at the neighboring table.
An older sailor leaned over, lowering his voice and speaking mysteriously, "It wasn't just passing through. I'm telling you, I personally overheard those Marine clerks chatting about this while I was working on the docks."
When he reached the crucial point, he deliberately paused, cleared his throat, and savored the feeling of everyone focusing on him.
"That Admiral was specifically staking out the area near Alabasta for a whole month, trying to catch someone called 'Frost Fairy'."
"And the result? Did he catch him?" A young crewman asked curiously.
"Bullshit!"
Another old sailor spat disdainfully. "Found nothing. I heard that Admiral was so furious he just melted a huge section of the reefs off the coast of Alabasta. The King was terrified and went straight to Marine Headquarters to complain."
"I heard that Admiral was even reprimanded because of it, and he's heading back now with a dark look on his face."
"Are you few tired of having tongues that are too long?" A cool female voice interrupted.
It was Martha, the tavern owner, a middle-aged woman who still retained her charm, methodically polishing a wine glass in her hand.
"Be careful that the wind doesn't carry your words onto the Warship, or tomorrow your tongues might be scalded off by magma."
Hearing this, the sailors immediately drew in their necks, then laughed sheepishly and buried their heads in their drinks, daring not to say more.
Ryoma raised his mug and took a calm sip, concealing the turmoil in his heart.
Akainu is looking for him and specifically staked out Alabasta for a month?
A flash of speechlessness crossed his mind.
Are the Marines really that idle now?
An Admiral spending a month in one place just to catch a small fry like him?
Also, the fire-red cloud...
That probably wasn't just a simple passing through. That irritable old man must have grown impatient and unleashed a Meteor Volcano to vent his frustration.
This really is... flattering.
Ryoma secretly grumbled internally, while also raising his vigilance to the maximum. After all, being targeted by a mad dog of this caliber was definitely not a good thing.
...
At sunset, the horizon was dyed a magnificent crimson by the evening glow.
At a secluded gravel beach in East Bay, far from the hustle of the main port, Ryoma was walking toward the small boat he had hidden behind the reefs.
An indescribably scorching, heavy aura, carrying a strong smell of sulfur, pressed in from a hundred meters behind him.
The feeling was as if an active volcano about to erupt had appeared right behind him.
Ryoma's steps suddenly halted. His body's instinctual reaction was faster than his conscious thought, and he subconsciously turned his head.
At the edge of his vision, Akainu, accompanied by two Field Officers, was descending the gangplank of a Warship.
The three men formed a standard triangular attack formation, silently walking toward the inner harbor.
The man leading them wore a dark red suit, with a Marine Admiral's Cloak of Justice draped over his shoulders. Even from a hundred meters away, that magma-like, violent presence was clearly discernible.
The gazes of the two men violently collided across a hundred meters of air.
"Brat..."
Akainu stopped, his voice terrifyingly deep, every word like a bubble of molten magma rolling out from the depths of his throat.
"After hiding for a month, you finally show yourself."
Before his voice faded, his left foot stepped forward.
Crack!
The stone pavement beneath his foot instantly turned scorching red, centered on where he landed, and then began to smoke.
Ryoma inwardly cursed his bad luck.
I run into him even here? Galmoro Island is huge, yet he chose this exact time and place?
Is my luck simply too poor, or does this guy have an incredibly sharp nose?
Although he was furiously complaining internally, he maintained his composure on the surface.
He slowly straightened up, dusting off his hands.
"Oh..."
Ryoma's tone was slightly elevated, carrying a hint of appropriate surprise and playfulness.
"Marine Admiral Akainu, what a rare guest. To specifically travel all the way to this remote little island just to find an unknown small fry like me?"
Akainu ignored his verbal provocation. In those deep eyes, there was only pure, absolute killing intent.
To him, Ryoma's very existence was a defilement of "Justice."
"You must be eliminated."
The moment the word 'eliminated' left his mouth, a terrifying heat wave burst forth centered on him, instantly heating the surrounding air, causing it to twist and rise!
"Aaaah! That person!"
"Run!"
"It's a monster!"
On the docks, which had just regained some order, the civilians noticed the anomaly, especially when they clearly saw Akainu's cold face.
People were terrified, dropping the goods in their hands, shoving and trampling each other as they frantically scattered away from the port.
In an instant, within a radius of several hundred meters centered on Ryoma and Akainu, there was not a single bystander left, only a few cold Marine Warships and scattered cargo crates, forming a silent battlefield.