บท 39: Bounty Surge, 2,439,000,000 Berries
"Why hasn't he resurfaced yet?"
"Did he fall into the sea? Admiral Aokiji is a Devil Fruit user, he can't swim!"
"What does Sanders mean by waving at us?"
"Is he mocking us?"
"Or does he want us to fish the admiral out?"
With no sign of movement from Aokiji under the frozen surface, the Marines watching from afar grew increasingly alarmed.
The rear admiral aboard the battleship hesitated, his eyes flickering with indecision. He wasn't sure whether to go and rescue the admiral.
Sanders, using his powers, shattered the ice surface with lightning and sailed away.
Seeing Sanders leave, the Marines finally scrambled toward Aokiji's location in a panic. The battleships couldn't move through the frozen sea, so they had to go on foot.
Before they could reach him, a pair of hands emerged from the icy water.
Aokiji crawled out of the icy hole, looking utterly disheveled. His entire body was charred, and his tattered clothes were riddled with burnt holes, barely covering his vital areas. Spitting out a mouthful of blood, Aokiji looked at the receding ship with a complicated expression.
The news of a Celestial Dragon being killed and Admiral Aokiji being defeated spread quickly across the sea. At the same time, Sanders' bounty surged.
2,439,000,000 berries!
His bounty skyrocketed by nearly a billion!
Newspapers fluttered across the ocean like snowflakes, sending the entire world into a frenzy.
"2,439,000,000 Berries! The Great Pirate Sanders!"
"World Noble Celestial Dragon Slaughtered!"
"The Massacre on the Luxury Yacht: Exploring the Grudge Between the Marine Traitor and the Celestial Dragons!"
"Marine Admiral Aokiji Defeated! A New Top-Level Power Emerges!"
Everyone who read the shocking headlines was left in disbelief, stunned by the explosive news.
"Wait, wait, are you serious? Sanders actually dared to kill a Celestial Dragon?!! How is he not afraid of being hunted by the admirals? Oh, right, he beat Admiral Aokiji, so I guess he's fine."
"No way! That's one of the highest-ranking powers in the Marines! How could Sanders have defeated him? Isn't he under 20 years old?"
"This is unbelievable! His bounty shot up by nearly a billion berries in one go!"
"Hah! No wonder that Marine prodigy Sanders betrayed the Marines. Turns out the Celestial Dragons killed his adoptive father. The Marines and the World Government are such idiots!"
"If I were him, I'd betray the Marines too. With talent and strength like that, why wouldn't he seek revenge?"
Nobody could believe it.
The man who had just escaped from Impel Down and refused to join Kaido's Beast Pirates had immediately turned around and killed a Celestial Dragon.
A Celestial Dragon—one of the World Nobles who had ruled for centuries.
And Sanders didn't hesitate at all in killing one.
Not only that, he had fought Marine Admiral Aokiji in an all-out battle on the sea.
And he won.
Only now did people understand why the Marine prodigy Sanders had betrayed the World Government.
Many pirates took delight in the situation.
The Marines and the World Government had nurtured a powerful enemy with their own hands.
At Marine Headquarters, Fleet Admiral Sengoku angrily slammed the newspaper onto his desk.
"These people will report anything these days. It's outrageous!"
The newspaper featured a detailed account of why Sanders had betrayed the Marines.
It came from the World Economy News, led by Morgans, one of the emperors of the underworld. After learning about Sanders' reasons for leaving the Marines, Morgans had been looking for an opportunity to publish the story.
Now, with Sanders killing a Celestial Dragon and defeating an admiral, Morgans had seized the chance to release the news.
Sengoku could already foresee how this information would shake the Marines' faith in their sense of justice.
"This was inevitable, Sengoku," said Vice Admiral Tsuru calmly. "Since Sanders escaped, it was only a matter of time before this became public knowledge."
"How is Aokiji doing?" Sengoku asked.
"He'll need at least two months of recovery."
"Sanders' strength has exceeded our expectations. Even if two admirals had tried to arrest him at Sabaody Archipelago back then, they might not have succeeded," Tsuru remarked.
"Who could have imagined that in just three years at Impel Down, his strength would grow to this level?" Sengoku sighed, massaging his temples in frustration.
"Sanders has already made a name for himself. Unless the World Government is willing to take drastic measures, it will be very difficult to apprehend him," Tsuru said calmly.
Sengoku shook his head. "Are you suggesting we set a trap using that Celestial Dragon? Impossible. The World Government and the Five Elders would never agree to that."
"For now, let's focus on how to quell this storm…"
At Amazon Lily, Pirate Empress Boa Hancock sat in her palace.
Her sister, Sonia, came running in with a newspaper in hand.
"Sister, Sanders really killed a Celestial Dragon! He even hung their head on a ship's mast!"
Hancock's expression changed as she took the newspaper from her sister.
"Someone… someone actually dares to defy those World Nobles."
Her hands trembled as she clutched the newspaper, her knuckles turning white from the pressure.
At Dressrosa, Donquixote Doflamingo grinned maniacally, his face alight with amusement.
"Fufufufu! Kill them all! Slaughter those bastards, Sanders! Overthrow the entire world!"
While others were shocked by Sanders' audacity to kill a Celestial Dragon, Doflamingo, who had long suspected it, was only excited.
He wasn't the only one.
People who had been persecuted by the Celestial Dragons were also quietly celebrating.
For the first time, they saw that someone actually dared to strike down a Celestial Dragon.
Many prayed that Sanders would kill even more of them.
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T/N:
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