"You'll become just like them, Nojiko."
Amid the echoing cries and chaos behind them, Sora pulled a stunned Nojiko into his arms and whispered by her ear with a calm smile.
"Really...?"
Nojiko turned her face toward him, her eyes reflecting a glimmer of hope.
If she could become as strong as Reiju, then maybe… maybe she could finally protect Nami instead of always being the one protected.
For so long, she'd hated her own helplessness—the fact that she could never do anything for her sister, that her peaceful life came at Nami's cost. She never wanted to feel that powerless again.
"Of course. Anna and the others were just like you once."
With that, Sora gently cupped Nojiko's face and kissed her.
She tensed at first, but soon wrapped her arms around him and returned the kiss with growing passion.
When they finally parted, Nojiko's face was flushed, her lips parted in breathless daze.
"Let's go," Sora said. "Reiju should have caught that rat by now."
"I'll take you to get your revenge."
"Okay." Nojiko nodded, still dazed from the kiss that had made her legs feel weak.
Hand in hand, Sora led Nojiko through the wreckage of the Marine base. The bearded Marine sergeant and his few loyal subordinates watched silently as the pair passed by.
Inside the Marine base headquarters—
"Who the hell dares attack a Marine base?!"
"Useless! How could they not even stop three women?!"
"I should've never let them get lazy with training…"
Lieutenant Nezumi cursed under his breath as he scrambled to pack the cash from his office safe into a backpack. The moment the slaughter had started, he realized something was wrong—but rather than organize a defense, he ran here to save what mattered most to him: money.
The lives of his subordinates? Worthless.
He had paid them off precisely for moments like this—to buy himself time to escape.
He shoved the last bundle in and rushed toward the door—
BANG!
A heavy kick blasted the door open and sent him flying across the room, his stolen wealth scattering everywhere.
Reiju stepped in without expression, her eyes sweeping over Nezumi's rat-like features with visible disgust. She scraped her boot against the carpet as if trying to wipe off the stain of having kicked him.
To her, even the floor was more dignified than this man.
"Ahh! It hurts!"
Nezumi groaned on the floor, writhing in pain. Despite his rank, he had no strength—he'd bribed his way up. Even a single kick from Reiju was too much for him.
Annoyed by his screaming, Reiju waved her hand. A burst of violet poison mist engulfed him, paralyzing his body and silencing his cries completely.
Moments later, Sora arrived with Nojiko, followed by blood-streaked Anna and Shalria.
The 16th Branch had been completely wiped out. Only the few Marines led by the bearded sergeant had been spared. Everyone else was dead by Anna and Shalria's hands.
"Nojiko. It's your turn."
Sora handed her a pistol and nodded toward the motionless Nezumi.
Reiju, Anna, and Shalria turned their eyes toward her.
Nezumi, seeing Sora's face, trembled violently. He recognized the Godslayer—the man with a 1.5 billion bounty who dared to kill even Celestial Dragons. Falling into his hands meant death was certain.
But why had such a monster come all the way from the North Blue… just for him?
He regretted not running sooner, wasting time on money instead of his own life.
Nojiko's hands trembled as she took the gun. Her face was pale, but her eyes shone with purpose.
Belmer… I can finally avenge you.
Tears welled up and streamed down her cheeks as she remembered everything—Belmer's death, the 100 million Berries stolen from Nami, the suffering of Cocoyashi's people.
She wiped her tears away. Her gaze hardened.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
The gun roared in her hands. Nezumi's head burst open, spraying blood and bone across the office.
The gun clattered to the floor as Nojiko dropped it and collapsed to her knees, shaking.
Sora stepped forward and gently lifted her into his arms.
"Find his stash," he ordered the others. "Bring everything back to the ship."
With that, he carried Nojiko out.
At the window, Anna looked at the bearded Marine sergeant and the surviving soldiers outside, licking her lips.
"What about them? Should we kill them too?"
"Master said not to touch them," Shalria answered, already searching the room for hidden treasure.
"Tch, fine. I don't want Master to hate me," Anna muttered, kneeling beside Nezumi's corpse to salvage any money from the bag that hadn't been soaked in blood.
Reiju leaned against the window frame, yawning lazily.
She was a combatant—not a janitor. Let someone else clean up.
Ten minutes later, Reiju, Anna, and Shalria left the base, each carrying a massive backpack full of loot.
The bearded sergeant watched them leave, then turned to his men.
"Clean the place up."
He entered the office, picked up the Den Den Mushi, and made a report to headquarters:
The Godslayer Sora had attacked the East Blue 16th Marine Branch.
Lieutenant Nezumi had been killed.
His corruption and crimes were finally exposed.
—
Aboard the Divine Slave—
After tucking Nojiko into bed, Sora stepped onto the deck where the girls had just returned.
Piles of gold and Berries were stacked before them.
Sora raised an eyebrow. He hadn't expected a mere base lieutenant to have amassed such wealth—five hundred million Berries.
Then his eyes fell on Reiju, Anna, and Shalria—still stained with blood.
The sight was strangely intoxicating.
Their blood-splattered maid uniforms and flushed faces exuded a lethal, seductive charm.
Without a word, several ship ropes dropped down and coiled around the trio.
"W-What are you doing?!" Reiju stammered, her face instantly crimson.
Anna and Shalria blushed as well, shocked at how bold their master was being.
They had been taught everything their bodies could offer—but always in private, in a room.
Now, as Sora steered the Divine Slave back out to sea, he slowly walked toward them.
"I'm going to teach you swordsmanship…"
—
Marine Headquarters – Marineford
In the Fleet Admiral's office, Sengoku sipped his tea while flipping through the newspaper.
"That damned 'Big News' idiot," he muttered.
"He still insists on calling him the Godslayer. Does he want to piss off the Celestial Dragons completely?"
He knew how much that title enraged them.
They called themselves descendants of the creators—living gods. And now someone dared brand themselves a "Godslayer."
The CP0 had gone absolutely mad in recent weeks trying to locate Sora.
Turning the page, Sengoku's eyes caught news from Alabasta.
His expression darkened. He turned to Garp, who was half-dozing with a senbei snack.
"Garp. If you don't bring your grandson back soon…"
"I'll go myself."
Pop!
Garp's nose bubble burst. He blinked blearily. "Huh? You want to be my grandson?"
He munched another senbei and promptly went back to sleep.
Sengoku snapped. "You damn geezer, don't push your luck!"
Whack!
He rained punches down on Garp, who opened one eye, yawned, and dozed off again.
Sengoku, fuming, almost activated his golden Buddha form.
BANG!
The door burst open.
Brannew rushed in. "Fleet Admiral! We've found the fugitive—Sora!"
Sengoku froze. "Where is he?!"
"East Blue!" Brannew answered.
"East Blue?!" both Sengoku and Garp exclaimed in unison.
They had suspected he might've left the North Blue, but East Blue? That made no sense. Everyone fled to the Grand Line, not the weakest sea.
Why was he defying logic?
Brannew continued, "According to reports from the 16th Division in East Blue, the fugitive attacked the base. Only a few Marines survived."
Smash!
"He attacked a Marine base?!" Sengoku roared, slamming the desk.
Even Garp looked serious now. The 16th Branch wasn't far from Foosha Village—his hometown.
"What was the reason?" Sengoku asked.
Brannew hesitated. "The survivors claim Lieutenant Nezumi had been colluding with Arlong for years. Many civilians died because of it."
"Sora had a woman with him—one of the victims."
"This was likely... revenge."
Sengoku and Garp both fell silent.
They didn't need to be told—if Nezumi had hidden his crimes this long, it was only possible with the complicity or apathy of the base's Marines.
Those who died… probably deserved it.
Sengoku clenched his fists.
"I'm going to East Blue," Garp said quietly. Sora being there made him uneasy.
Sengoku nodded slowly. "Go. And bring that bastard back with you."
—
East Blue – Foosha Village
As Garp prepared to return home, Sora had already arrived outside Makino's bar.
He pushed open the door.
Behind the counter stood a gentle-looking woman with emerald green hair.
Makino.
She blinked at the unfamiliar face, then quickly smiled warmly.
"Welcome."
"One house beer and a plate of fried rice," Sora said as he took a seat at the bar, scanning the menu behind her.
He'd heard about her brewing skills and wanted to try them—and see how she fared in the kitchen.
After all, she was going to be his future cook.
"Please wait a moment."
Makino set down the glass she'd been polishing, poured him a beer, and slid it over.
Then she disappeared into the kitchen to prepare his meal.
Sora took a sip and looked around the bar. No sign of Dadan or her gang—just some local villagers.
He sighed, a little disappointed.
He had planned to use Dadan's crew as leverage to force Makino onto his ship.
He didn't care how close they were to Luffy. As far as Sora was concerned, bandits weren't exactly innocent.
Killing them wouldn't trouble him.
Then his eyes caught two wanted posters pinned to the wall behind the bar.
One of them was Monkey D. Luffy—with a bounty of 100 million Berries.
_____
[You give me a power stone, and I will give you a mass release deal? And if you like this story, add it to your library and give me a review, and I will reward you with mass release.]