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CLANG!
If one were to ask the difference between an attack coated in Conqueror's Haki and one that is not, the answer was made plainly evident by Rayleigh and Atlas in the clearing.
Before their blades even met, their two powerful Armament Haki auras were already clashing.
The surrounding trees and wild grass were uprooted by the immense wind pressure, and shattered rocks and dust filled the air!
The black and red lightning unique to Conqueror's Coating flickered around them, surging toward Atlas like a ferocious beast.
At the same time, two waves of Armament Haki, both carrying the property of internal destruction, travelled along their blades and into each other's bodies.
"Hmph!" came two grunts in unison.
A trickle of blood seeped from the corner of Rayleigh's mouth, and Atlas's figure swayed slightly.
Blank!
For a split second, their minds went blank!
POW!
Rayleigh's eyes were sharp. In that flash of an instant, he landed a fierce kick on Atlas's body. A giant sandal print appeared on Atlas's tattered white suit.
"You old fogey!!"
Atlas's gaze hardened. He steadied his mind and was about to raise his sword to counterattack.
SWISH!
Seizing the advantage, Rayleigh, his sandal held tight between his toes, vanished from before Atlas like a wisp of smoke.
Sea Calendar 1511, Sabaody Archipelago.
A small squad of Marines patrolled the various groves of Sabaody in an orderly fashion.
The leader was a Marine Ensign, and all of them wore expressions of seriousness and pride.
"Hey, speaking of which, how come it's so quiet over in Grove 13 today?" a Marine with a slightly babyish face asked the Ensign in front of him, eager for gossip.
For the past month or two, terrifying sounds had emanated from Grove 13 almost daily, echoing throughout the other areas.
The rumour was that their commander was sparring with the right hand of the Pirate King, Silvers Rayleigh.
"I don't know, but I heard that the Vice Admiral will be transferred from Sabaody very soon," the Ensign, a square-faced and powerfully built man who was only about 1.6 meters tall, said, deliberately lowering his voice to the baby-faced Marine.
"Huh? The Vice Admiral is being transferred?" The baby-faced Marine looked disappointed.
During the young Admiral Candidate's time guarding Sabaody, they, the Marines, had been thriving, turning the archipelago into a veritable iron fortress.
Before, the lawless zone alone was an area the Marines couldn't easily set foot in, and the island's residents didn't dare to go out at night.
Almost all the original Sabaody-stationed Marines were reluctant to see this new era of peace and tranquillity end.
"There's no helping it. A fighter like the Vice Admiral is needed more in the New World. As for Sabaody..." The short, stout Marine shook his head and sighed.
As the gateway to the New World, Sabaody was undoubtedly important to the Marines. However, Vice Admiral-level combatants were already scarce at Headquarters.
Moreover, he had heard that several new Marine bases had been established in the New World.
Having a powerhouse like Atlas guard Sabaody for a few months was already the limit.
However, after the Vice Admiral leaves, it won't be long before crime starts to fester here again...
In the Base Commander's Office.
Atlas's eyes were slightly narrowed as he sat quietly behind his desk. For once, he hadn't gone to Shakky's Rip-Off Bar to test his skills against Rayleigh.
He was calmly organising his thoughts. For the past several months, Atlas had frequently sought out Rayleigh for spars and had become extremely proficient in the use of Armament Haki's internal destruction.
That old fogey had been trying to leave Sabaody, but Atlas had been using his Observation Haki to lock onto Grove 13 almost constantly.
The moment he detected Rayleigh's life force disappearing from his sensory range, he would immediately expand his perception, quickly pinpoint Rayleigh's location, and intercept him.
After this happened a few times, Rayleigh resigned himself to his fate. Whenever his stamina was about to give out, he would just run amok into the other groves.
The old geezer was banking on the fact that Atlas, as a Marine, wouldn't act recklessly for fear of harming civilians.
However, Atlas was also well aware that it was extremely difficult to truly kill a powerhouse like Rayleigh, who had no weaknesses.
As long as he was determined to escape, even Atlas would be powerless to stop him, unless he was willing to pay any price to wear him down.
Purupurupuru~ Puru~
Suddenly, the Den Den Mushi on his desk rang.
Click!
Atlas casually picked up the receiver. The Den Den Mushi's face instantly changed, a braided beard and frog-like glasses appearing out of thin air as its expression grew stern.
"Atlas, Headquarters has decided that you will be stationed at the G-5 base next. Prepare yourself. The official documents should be issued in three days."
The distribution of Marine bases in the Grand Line was interesting. There were ten bases in total, all starting with "G," signifying that they were under the direct jurisdiction of Marine Headquarters.
The even-numbered bases were in Paradise; the G-8 base where Atlas had previously served was one of them.
The bases in Paradise were the earliest established and the ones where the Marines had the strongest control, representing Headquarters' absolute authority over the first half of the Grand Line.
The odd-numbered bases were in the New World. Among them, G-5 was the oldest and the closest to Marine Headquarters, located near Fish-Man Island.
Others, such as G-3, G-7, and G-9, were more recently established, representing the Marines' strategic layout for the New World.
As for G-1, that was Marineford itself, though it wasn't called G-1 yet. It would only be renamed after Akainu became Fleet Admiral and relocated the headquarters to the New World.
As far as Atlas knew, Akainu and Aokiji were stationed at the G-7 and G-9 bases, respectively.
Atlas was puzzled. "The G-5 base? Wasn't old man Garp stationed there before?"
During the recent war in the New World, the Marines had used G-5 as a bridgehead to assemble a large force and reshuffle the power balance. Garp had been the base commander at the time.
Sengoku explained coolly, "Garp is now guarding the G-3 base. It's deeper in the New World and is a more strategically important location."
Atlas understood. The G-5 base near Fish-Man Island was essentially the last line of defence in the New World. The pressure it faced wasn't as great as the other bases. Stationing a powerhouse like Garp there was a waste.
"Alright, then. I'll prepare for a few days. Once the official documents are issued, I'll head to the New World."
Atlas understood that G-5's position in the New World was similar to Sabaody's in Paradise.
The pirates who arrived there weren't typically very strong, but it was a place where one could relatively easily earn merit.
Currently, Atlas and the other three candidates are competing. There were only three Admiral positions, and his seniority and the level of trust placed in him were still far behind Akainu and the others.
Click!
The call ended.
Kanos Atlas thought a lot. He definitely had to go to the New World. Aside from the increase in his own strength, it was also crucial for his future promotion to admiral.
As a Marine admiral candidate, he was no longer suited to staying in Paradise.
Thump, thump, thump...
Suddenly, a rhythmic knock on the office door interrupted Atlas's train of thought.
"Come in!" Atlas snapped out of his trance and said in a clear voice.
Creak!
The office door opened, and a tall figure slowly entered. The epaulettes on his Marine justice coat clearly showed he was a Marine lieutenant commander.
His rugged face was covered with some food scraps. Most noticeable was a French fry dipped in ketchup.
He wore a cool pair of sunglasses on his nose, but a patch of hair and scalp was conspicuously missing from the top of his otherwise short-haired head.
Vergo!
The already capable Vergo had made significant contributions during Atlas's cleansing of the Sabaody Archipelago.
He was quickly promoted from his original rank of lieutenant to his current rank of lieutenant commander, just one rank below the promoted Smoker.
Smoker had also awakened both types of Haki by this time, though his Armament Haki was unreliable.
His Observation Haki was passable, and when combined with his well-developed Logia Devil Fruit ability, his strength was much greater than at the original point in time.
"Is there something you need, Vergo?"
Atlas wasn't sure what Vergo's purpose was. Although he had known all along that Vergo was an infiltrator sent by Donquixote Doflamingo, Vergo rarely used a Transponder Snail to pass on information to him.
While Vergo's current position wouldn't give him any valuable information, it was enough to show how cautious he was.
"Sir, I'd like to request some time off!" Vergo was direct, with no unnecessary chatter.
"Oh? Why do you suddenly want a leave of absence?"
Atlas raised an eyebrow slightly. Based on the documents faxed from Marine Headquarters, if he remembered correctly, Vergo's family information was listed as an orphan whose parents and family were slaughtered by pirates.
The Marine investigation had confirmed everything, but Atlas was sure that most of the information was fake.
It would have been incredibly easy for Doflamingo, as the king of the North Blue's underworld, to create a fake identity for a Heart Pirates officer who had never been seen in public.
Vergo stood at attention, completely unaware that Atlas was already guessing his true motive.
"I've located the pirates who killed my parents, and I want to go get my revenge myself."
The reason was sound, and the timing was impeccable. As a filial son, Vergo's desire for revenge was urgent, something Atlas couldn't refuse.
Moreover, it was a critical time since Atlas was preparing to head to the New World. Vergo was certain Atlas wouldn't pay any attention to a lowly lieutenant commander like him.
Everything seemed perfect, but there was one crucial flaw: Atlas knew that Vergo's so-called identity was a fake, which made his request for leave highly suspicious.
Suddenly, an idea sparked in Atlas's mind, but he kept a straight face. "Oh? Where are those pirates now?"
"North Blue."
"Then you'll need a long leave?"
"Yes, I hope you can approve it, Vice Admiral."
Vergo wasn't like Atlas or Garp. He couldn't get a special ship to send him on a private leave. The round trip alone would take nearly a month or two.
"Alright, I'll approve two months for you. We'll head to the New World first, and there should be a Marine ship sailing there. You can hitch a ride to the G-5 base."
Atlas didn't make things difficult and agreed readily.
"Yes! Thank you, Vice Admiral!"
"Then go back and get ready. Plan your return route well."
Atlas wasn't worried. Countless merchant ships were going from Paradise to the four seas.
At worst, Doflamingo would likely secretly send a ship disguised as a merchant vessel to pick up Vergo.
Click!
The office door closed again, and Vergo disappeared from Atlas's sight.
Thump... thump thump... thump thump thump!
Atlas unconsciously tapped the shiny desk, his mind replaying information about Rosinante.
The year was 1511 of the Sea Calendar, which meant it was about the time the Ope Ope no Mi would appear. In that case, Rosinante would die by Doflamingo's gun in about a month.
But why would Doflamingo summon Vergo to the North Blue? Was it because he felt threatened by Vice Admiral Tsuru?
To ensure the Ope Ope no Mi fell into his hands, would he be willing to expose Vergo's identity as an infiltrator?
"Hmph, I really can't figure out the thought process of these pirates," Atlas said, a little annoyed.
The only thing he could confirm was that Rosinante would die soon. So, Atlas had to go to the North Blue!
Right, there's that guy too...
With that thought, Atlas called a communications officer.
"Hello, please bring me the rookie, Gild Tesoro."
"Yes, Vice Admiral!"
A moment later, Tesoro, wearing a Marine uniform, appeared in Atlas's office.
"Sir, you wanted to see me?"
Tesoro's tone was respectful, almost fanatical. This was not only because Atlas had saved him at Mariejois with his Conqueror's Haki, but also because this man had given him a new life.
After Atlas returned from his leave, he used the power of the Horse Talisman to remove the Celestial Dragon hoof mark from Tesoro's back!
Once a person was branded with the hoof mark, it was thought to be permanent. This meant they were forever subordinate to the Celestial Dragons.
This was unbearable for anyone with an independent personality and was one of the most painful memories for Tesoro.
Tesoro had thought that what Atlas said earlier about finding a way to remove the brand was to comfort him, but he never expected Atlas actually to take it to heart.
"Yes... You'll stay with me for a while. When the warship sets sail for the New World, you'll go with me to the North Blue."
Atlas's goal this time was clear: to destroy the Donquixote Family, or at the very least, cripple the so-called king of the underworld.
Doflamingo wasn't a Warlord of the Sea yet, and Atlas could pretend not to know his former Celestial Dragon identity and just kill him!
(T/N: Please give me some power stone, I hope it can at least reach the top 100)
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