"The rumors were actually true!"
"So it wasn't just a rumor after all!"
"That's brutal..."
"One, two, three, four... Out of the six Shichibukai, four of them had their arms cut off by Vice Admiral Daren!"
"No wonder they all look so miserable..."
"..."
The reporters began whispering among themselves, but their voices were loud enough for everyone in the room to hear clearly.
Among the "armless faction," Crocodile, Moria, and Bullet all had faces like thunder. Only the younger Mihawk remained calm, seemingly unfazed.
"Vice Admiral Daren, in your opinion, how would you rank the strength of these six Shichibukai?"
At that moment, a red-haired female reporter in a black skirt suit raised her hand.
Daren glanced at her.
She flashed a professional smile and added, "I'm Scarlett, staff reporter from the Field News Agency."
As soon as she asked the question, all six Shichibukai straightened up from their relaxed postures, suddenly alert, their eyes fixed on Daren.
"A strength ranking, huh?"
Seeing their intense gazes, Daren chuckled.
"Each of them has a unique set of abilities—deceptive, powerful, and difficult to compare. Trying to rank them by strength alone isn't exactly simple."
"The outcome of any battle depends on more than just raw power. The environment, weather, mental state, and willpower—all of these can influence the result."
He waved a hand and winked at Scarlett.
"From this point on, reporters, please direct your questions to the Shichibukai themselves."
"After all, they're the stars today, not me."
Scarlett nodded with a smile, then turned toward the long table. Her eyes finally landed on Moria.
"Moria-san, as the current Shichibukai with the lowest former bounty, what are your thoughts on that?"
With that, everyone turned to look at Gecko Moria, clearly expecting some drama.
Under those watchful, gossip-hungry eyes, Moria's sickly pale face slowly flushed red.
"That's just a misjudgment by the Marines!" he snapped, shooting to his feet as the shadow behind him began to writhe and twist.
"And besides, a bounty doesn't reflect strength!"
"Is that so?"
Five voices spoke in unison, each laced with doubt. The other Shichibukai looked up, all wearing the same cold, mocking expression as they stared at Moria.
His face froze mid-rant.
Then Daren's voice followed, faintly amused.
"So, Moria, are you questioning the judgment of the Marines?"
Moria's expression flickered between red and white. He opened his mouth—
"Tch! I'm not going to waste my breath on you lot!"
He gritted his teeth and sat back down.
Another reporter raised his hand.
"Mihawk-san, may I ask you a question?"
Mihawk turned toward him and gave a calm nod. "Go ahead."
The reporter let out a breath of relief, then asked seriously,
"You're the youngest among the Shichibukai, yet your bounty ranks second at 369 million Belly... With strength like yours, why did you choose to become a Shichibukai?"
"From what we know, you don't seem particularly interested in fame or authority."
"To pursue greater swordsmanship."
Mihawk's eyes gleamed as he answered without hesitation.
"From Vice Admiral Daren, I witnessed a revolutionary sword style—something that could define a new era. In fact..."
He gently brushed his fingers across his severed arm, a bold smile appearing on his face.
"I wagered this arm on the future of swordsmanship."
Revolutionary swordsmanship?
The reporters all froze, their faces blank with confusion.
Vice Admiral Daren... A hidden swordmaster?
The moment that thought hit them, they sprang into action—furiously typing on their keyboards, scribbling in their notebooks, muttering, "Big news, big news..."
Meanwhile, Gion, Tokikake, Yamakaji, and the other Marine officers who actually knew the truth could only twitch at the corners of their mouths, beads of cold sweat forming as they stared blankly ahead.
"Ahem, let's move on to the next question."
Even Daren looked a little embarrassed at this point and stepped in to steer things along.
"I have a question for Fisher Tiger!"
A reporter turned to the red-skinned fish-man, expression serious.
"Tiger-san, as a member of the Fish-Man race, is there a particular reason you chose to join the Shichibukai?"
Fisher Tiger paused in thought, then spoke with a solemn tone.
"I hope to use the authority of the Shichibukai to protect my fellow Fish-Men from illegal attacks by poachers."
"In fact, Fish-Man Island is preparing to launch a variety of cooperative efforts with the human world. I truly hope that Fish-Men and humans can one day forge a deep and lasting friendship."
"Thank you for your answer, Tiger-san," the reporter said with a smile.
Another hand shot up right after.
"Doflamingo-san, I have a question for you."
"According to our records, you're originally from the North Blue and once waged an intense war against Vice Admiral Daren when he was stationed there as admiral…"
"So now, do you still hold any resentment toward Vice Admiral Daren?"
"Resentment?"
Doflamingo gave Daren a sidelong glance and let out a cold, low laugh.
"Just holding myself back from killing him already takes everything I've got... What do you think? Fufufufu!!"
A chilling wave of killing intent spilled from his body, and the reporter visibly froze, sweat forming at his temples.
"I-I see…" he stammered.
Daren smiled.
"All right, let's take one last question."
He casually pointed to an unfamiliar reporter.
The chosen reporter lit up with excitement.
"Thank you, Vice Admiral Daren, for this opportunity. For my final question, I'd like to ask Douglas Bullet."
"Bullet-san, among all the Shichibukai, your former bounty was the highest. In fact, your bounty alone surpasses the combined total of the other five members."
"How do you feel about that?"
The powerfully built Bullet grinned.
"Isn't that just how it should be?"
"My bounty's the highest because I'm the strongest."
"Unlike a few losers who couldn't even crack a billion—people like that don't deserve to sit at the same table as me."
"What did you just say!?" Moria shouted, his face turning crimson with rage.
The others didn't look too happy either.
"No, I'm not talking about you specifically."
Bullet sneered at Moria, and a suffocating wave of murderous intent radiated from him. Black-red lightning crackled faintly in the air around him.
He glanced at Daren on the platform, then turned back to the other Shichibukai.
His long golden hair whipped wildly as he grinned like a madman, bloodshot eyes gleaming.
"I mean every single one of you here... is trash!"
...
(100 Chapters Ahead)
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