"He's an absolute monster!!"
Gion gripped the railing of the warship with both hands, eyes wide in disbelief as she watched Daren shoot across the sea like a white arrow toward the Saint Germain. Her expression looked as if she'd just seen a ghost.
Boom!
At that moment, the warship's stern, which had been tilted high in the air, came crashing back down under its own weight, splashing into the sea and sending a huge wave cascading over the deck, soaking the Marines completely.
But Tokikake didn't even notice—his eyes were fixed on Daren's figure, jaw slack in stunned awe.
That kind of raw power... That lunatic was actually trying to cross nearly a hundred meters using nothing but brute strength and break straight into the Germa Kingdom!
"Hey!! Has that bastard always been this insane!?"
He turned to look at Momonga nearby, his mouth twitching uncontrollably.
Momonga gave a helpless, bitter smile.
"That's just how Daren fights... In the past year alone, he's wrecked over five warships in all sorts of ways."
...If it weren't for the North Blue Marines being "loaded," the measly budget allocated by Marine Headquarters wouldn't have kept the fleet afloat.
Momonga couldn't help but grumble inwardly.
...
While the warship stabilized once more, Daren was already crashing into Germa territory like a sideways-fired cannonball.
Boom!!
A deafening blast echoed out, dust billowed into the air, and the ground gave a faint tremor.
The next moment—
Daren, still chewing on his cigar, slowly rose from a five-meter-wide crater, a wild grin tugging at the corner of his mouth.
"Smooth landing."
He chuckled as the cloak behind him whipped through the swirling dust and wind.
"Kill him!!"
"Take him out!!"
Vinsmoke Judge's pupils contracted at the sight of the savage Marine Captain. His face twisted with fury as he gave the order.
With that command—
From the ruins of turrets and fortresses around them, countless clone soldiers surged out.
They wore identical uniforms and sunglasses, moved in perfect unison, and radiated a cold, mechanical aura devoid of any human emotion.
Swish!
They raised their rifles in unison, hundreds of barrels locking onto the Marine Captain.
Fire!
Bang bang bang bang!!
Muzzles flared with fire as a torrent of bullets screamed through the air, leaving streaks in their wake.
"You still haven't learned?"
Daren grinned, a flicker of madness flashing in his eyes.
Without even using his Jiki Jiki no Mi powers, he calmly walked forward through the dense hail of bullets.
Vinsmoke Judge's eyes widened in shock, as if witnessing the impossible.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Bullets rained down on Daren, shredding his suit and uniform, but each one ricocheted off with the sharp sound of metal striking metal.
Sparks flew as bullets bounced off his body like rain hitting steel, punching tiny craters into the surrounding ground, fortresses, and walls.
From a distance, the Marine Captain looked like a lone traveler pushing forward through a storm of bullets.
Ferocious beyond belief.
"This can't be!! How can a human body be this strong!?"
Vinsmoke Judge roared, eyes bulging with disbelief.
When the gunfire failed to make a dent, one of the clone soldiers pulled out a compact rocket launcher from the ruins of a military outpost. He hoisted it onto his shoulder, aimed carefully, and pulled the trigger.
Biu!
The palm-sized rocket screeched through the air, trailing a long streak of red flame as it hurtled toward Daren—
But he simply raised a hand and caught it mid-air!
"Cutting-edge tech... This is way more refined than Marine artillery."
Daren studied the trembling rocket launcher in his hand with interest, then casually hurled it.
Biu...
The launcher flew back along its original path and exploded right in front of the replicant soldier still holding the barrel. Flames instantly engulfed everything within a five-meter radius.
"Power on par with a light howitzer—but far more portable."
Daren narrowed his eyes, watching the blast with focus as he gave a quick assessment.
He already had a solid idea forming in his mind.
There was a clear reason why he'd gone to such lengths to siphon wealth from the mafia and invest a military budget into the North Blue Navy that far surpassed what Marine Headquarters received.
He intended to turn the North Blue Navy into his personal domain.
The entire North Blue Fleet—his own private military force.
As a transmigrator, he knew full well the biggest constraint faced by the Marines: no matter how much they preached "justice," that ideal would always be overshadowed by the World Government's iron grip on "power."
It was a harsh reality that couldn't be ignored.
The Marines, the largest law enforcement force in the world, operated under the World Government—they were its enforcers, and its public face.
And at the center of that control... was money.
The World Government collected "Heavenly Tributes" from member nations across the world and used those funds—through military budget allocations—to directly or indirectly control the financial lifeline of the Marines.
Without independent financial authority or alternate funding sources, the Marines were shackled—forced to compromise again and again under the weight of bureaucracy.
That's why Daren had been hoarding wealth: to build and command an independent military force, answerable to no one but himself.
At least for now, after years of careful planning and effort, the North Blue Navy had achieved full financial self-sufficiency—and its budget far exceeded the standard set by Marine Headquarters at the same level.
But even that wasn't enough.
Daren understood all too well how weak the Four Seas Marines were. They didn't hold a candle to the elite units of Headquarters—and compared to the "Haki-armed" forces of the New World, the gap was massive.
Sure, through rigorous training and the application of more scientific methods, he had already improved the overall strength of the North Blue Navy significantly.
But it still wasn't enough.
After all, military power doesn't grow overnight.
Still, Germa 66 had just opened a brand new path.
Germa 66 possessed some of the most advanced military tech in the world—from cutting-edge weaponry and cybernetic enhancements to those powerful Raid Suits. With this technology, he could rapidly bolster the North Blue Navy's combat power.
If he could acquire Germa 66's tech and use it to arm his forces...
Daren was certain—he'd have an unstoppable North Blue Fleet in no time.
With that thought—A sharp grin crept across his face as he suddenly sped up.
His target: the supreme commander of Germa 66—Vinsmoke Judge!
(40 Chapters Ahead)
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