Chapter 238: Kneel.
On Grove 1, the world's most prestigious human auction house was in full swing. "Next up," the auctioneer's voice boomed, "we have a rare and beautiful mermaid! Bidding starts at seventy million Belly!"
Just then, the emergency bell began to ring, and the auction was thrown into chaos.
"Emergency! An Emperor of the Sea has appeared on Sabaody! Repeat! An Emperor of the Sea is here!"
"What?!" The guests, all wealthy nobles and pirates, stared in shock.
"It's Shane! 'Curtain Call' Shane! He's at the amusement park, and he's just attacked a Celestial Dragon!"
The auction house erupted in a panic. "He's insane!" "We have to get out of here!" "The island is going to be destroyed!"
"Stay calm!" the auctioneer yelled, trying to restore order. "This is Sabaody! Marine HQ is just across the water! An Admiral will be here any minute!"
But his words were drowned out by the screams.
...
Back at the amusement park, Kizaru rubbed his temples, a pained look on his face. "An Emperor of the Sea, appearing unannounced in Paradise... I really don't want to fight a monster like you, especially not when you've brought your friends..." He looked past Shane at the three figures standing behind him. Kuma and Jack, two mountains of men, and the terrifyingly skilled young swordswoman... even with an Admiral on the scene, the odds were not in his favor. "May I ask... how did you get here?"
"You think I'm going to tell you?" Shane said with a smirk. His eyes drifted to the unconscious figures of the other Supernovas lying on the ground. Ace, Zoro, Sanji, Law, Bartolomeo... Interesting. So they all ended up here.
"So you are interested in these little ones," Kizaru said with a lazy smile. "Then how about a deal? Any of them that you have a connection with, you can take. In exchange, please, don't cause any more trouble. Just do what you came to do and leave peacefully."
"A Marine Admiral, making a deal with a pirate? That's not like you, Borsalino."
"Arara~ what can I say? I'd rather not fight a battle I can't win," Kizaru said with a shrug.
"Old man! What are you saying?!" Sentomaru yelled. "They're pirates! We're the Marines! We don't make deals with—"
"Shh," Kizaru said, putting a finger to his lips. "You're a grown man now, Sentomaru-kun. It's time you learned that the world is a complicated place. Not everything can be solved by fighting."
"Hey! Borsalino!" a shrill voice cut through the air. Saint Rosward, still perched on the back of his slave, rode forward. "What are you dawdling for?! I want that woman! Get her for me now!" He pointed his whip at Kuina.
"And those two big ones," Saint Shalria added, her eyes glinting with greed. "They must have giant's blood! Get them for me, too!" She looked at Shane with disgust. "As for this black-haired brat... I don't like the look in his eyes. Just kill him."
"?" Kizaru's face went blank, then darkened, a vein throbbing on his temple. Why... why are these people so unbelievably stupid? Can't they read the atmosphere at all?!
"Your majesties..." he began, bowing low. "Perhaps you are mistaken. This man is..."
"I don't care who he is!" Rosward snapped, pointing at Shane. "And I'm not happy! When a god is present, all commoners should be on their knees! But you... and you..." He cracked his whip. "What are you all still standing for?! Kneel! Now! And I might be merciful enough to spare your lives!"
CRACK!
The whip shot forward, but before it could reach Shane, Kuma stepped in front of him and caught it in his hand.
"Commoner!" Rosward shrieked. "How dare you?!"
Kuma's eyes were fixed on the two slaves the Celestial Dragons were riding, their faces bruised and bloody, their bodies covered in scars. A memory of his own past, of his father, of the hell of Mary Geoise, flashed before his eyes.
"Don't hold back, Kuma," Shane's calm voice came from behind him. "Do what you want to do. If the sky falls, I'll be here to hold it up."
Kuma nodded. He yanked the whip, pulling Rosward from his slave's back. The Celestial Dragon landed on the ground with a yelp and scrambled backward, his face a mask of terror. "Wh-What are you doing?! I am a..."
Kuma ignored him. He walked to the two Buccaneer slaves and gently touched their scarred necks. "Don't be afraid," he said, his voice soft. "I've come to take you home."
CLICK!
The explosive collars on their necks fell to the ground. They looked up, their dull eyes widening in disbelief. A fellow Buccaneer... there are still others alive?
Shalria, who had fallen to the ground when her "mount" stood up, shrieked, "This is treason! Treason! Borsalino! What are you waiting for?! Kill these filthy commoners!"
SLAP!
A black shadow flashed past, and a sharp crack echoed through the air. Shalria was sent spinning through the air, a spray of blood and teeth flying from her mouth. She crashed into a nearby tree, her bubble helmet shattering.
"So noisy," Shane said, wiping his hand with a handkerchief Kuina had given him.
The entire area fell silent. Everyone, the crowd, the Marines, stared in stunned disbelief. Did... did he just... hit a Celestial Dragon?
Even Kizaru was frozen, his hand still raised in a half-hearted gesture of protest.
"Commoner... you filthy, low-blood commoner!" Shalria shrieked, her face a swollen, bloody mess. "You dared to touch me with your filthy hands?! Borsalino! All of you! You're all useless!"
"Damn you!" Rosward screamed, pulling out a golden, jewel-encrusted pistol. "Die! Go to hell!"
BANG! BANG! BANG!
The bullets stopped in mid-air, a few feet from Shane, deflected by an invisible barrier of Haki.
"It seems you still don't understand," Shane sighed, walking toward the cowering Celestial Dragon. "This 'god' and 'superior bloodline' stuff... it's just a title you gave yourselves. If no one believes in it, then it means nothing!" He stomped on Rosward's wrist, and the golden pistol clattered to the ground.
"But... too many people still believe. Someone has to correct them. So, you two..." His eyes narrowed, and a flash of crimson light glinted within them.
BOOM!!!
A terrifying wave of Conqueror's Haki exploded outwards, so powerful that the giant mangrove trees trembled and all the bubbles in the sky popped at once.
"KNEEL."
The word was not a request. It was a command, backed by the will of a king. The Haki coalesced, a crushing, physical pressure that slammed down on the two Celestial Dragons.
"A mere commoner..." they gasped, their legs trembling, their very souls screaming in protest. Their pride, their arrogance, their entire worldview was being shattered. But their bodies... their bodies betrayed them.
"Aaargh!!!"
With a sickening crack of bone, their knees gave way, and they slammed into the ground, forced into a posture of reverent prostration before the man they had just called a "commoner."
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