novelnext Chapter 154 The Generals Are Deployed
Chapter 154 The Generals Are Deployed
Chapter 154 The Generals Are Deployed
As soon as the words fell, the ground on the stage slowly cracked open, and a huge crystal cage slowly rose up. Inside the cage, a mermaid girl with long pink hair and a fishtail that shimmered with pearly luster huddled in a corner. She trembled all over, her eyes filled with fear and despair, and her delicate face was still covered with wet tear stains. She looked like a delicate flower ravaged by a storm, pitiful to behold.
Mermaids are the darlings of the sea, rare treasures on land, and the most beloved playthings of the Celestial Dragons.
The moment Charles Saint saw the mermaid, his eyes lit up. He jumped to his feet, a greedy, lewd smile spreading across his fat face, drool practically dripping from his mouth. Pointing at the mermaid girl in the cage, he shrieked, "This woman, I want her! No matter the price, she's mine!"
The two Celestial Dragons who followed also started to make a fuss, staring lewdly at the mermaid girl, looking her up and down and commenting on her. Their words were full of insults and contempt for mermaids, as if she were not a living person, but just a plaything that could be bought and sold at will.
The people in the hall dared not speak out in anger. Some lowered their heads, and some had a look of sympathy in their eyes, but no one dared to stand up and resist.
The mermaid girl closed her eyes in despair, tears streaming down her face again. She knew she was about to fall into the hands of these demons and face endless torment.
Seeing that no one dared to bid, Charles Saint became even more smug. He waved for his servants to step forward, intending to take the mermaid girl away immediately. As he walked, he lewdly chuckled, "Take her back to my manor and serve her well. If she resists, break her fishtail!"
Seeing the mermaid girl's despair in the crystal cage and hearing the Celestial Dragon's filthy words, Artoria could no longer suppress her anger. Her regal authority and hatred for oppression erupted instantly. She stood up abruptly, her icy voice echoing throughout the auction house: "Stop!"
This angry shout, like a thunderclap, shattered the deathly silence of the meeting hall.
Everyone was stunned, their eyes all turning to Artoria, filled with disbelief that someone would dare to speak up and stop a Celestial Dragon.
Saint Charlos paused, turned his head, and stared intently at Artoria with his murky eyes, his tone filled with rage and disbelief: "You lowly wretch, how dare you interrupt me? Do you know who I am? A commoner!"
Then Charlos Saint's eyes lit up: "Oh, a rather good-looking commoner. If you're willing to become my slave, I might consider letting you go."
Bai Yu slowly stood up, standing beside Artoria and shielding Kanna behind him. A cold smile curled at the corner of his lips as he glanced at the arrogant Celestial Dragons on the stage. His voice was calm yet carried a devastating pressure: "Celestial Dragons? They're nothing but a bunch of parasites hiding behind the World Government."
"This farce, which treats freedom as a commodity and takes pleasure in enslavement, should come to an end."
As soon as she finished speaking, an invisible force erupted, shattering the crystal cage that had imprisoned the mermaid girl. Unohana Retsu flashed to the mermaid girl's side and gently shielded her behind her, her healing power quietly smoothing away her wounds.
Charlos Saint was utterly enraged. Pointing at Bai Yu and the others, he screamed at the Marines around him, "Quickly! Kill all these lowly wretch! Anyone who dares to defy the Celestial Dragons, execute them all!"
The marines standing guard looked grim, but dared not disobey the Celestial Dragons' orders. They drew their weapons and charged towards Bai Yu and the others.
"In that case, let's get started—"
Uchiha Hakuha drew his sword in front of everyone—
"Pfft—"
Unbeknownst to them, Uchiha Hakuha's sword had already pierced Charlos Saint.
"How weak, such a weak creature that calls itself a god."
"Ugh—damn it—ugh—ugh—"
"The Celestial Dragons are dead!!!"
The marines and bodyguards protecting the Celestial Dragons were instantly stunned. The guy who killed the Celestial Dragon had appeared beside them at some point and killed him right under their noses.
But they knew that with the Celestial Dragons dead, they were in big trouble.
"Hey, Marine Headquarters? A Celestial Dragon has been killed!! The culprit is Uchiha Shiraha!!!"
As marines, they were able to recognize Uchiha Hakuha when he wasn't disguised.
Naval Headquarters, Marineford, Admiral's Office.
Warm sunlight streamed in through the carved glass windows, falling on the command desk covered with dark green velvet. The desk was piled high with urgent documents, maritime intelligence, and reports on the movements of pirates in the New World, almost obscuring the handsome, solemn-faced old man behind the desk, wearing a seagull hat—Marine Admiral Sengoku the Buddha.
Sengoku frowned, his fingers gripping a newly arrived intelligence report about the new world, his face as dark as the sea before a storm.
His already serious face was now even more weary. In the huge marshal's office, apart from the rustling sound of him turning over documents, there was only an unusually leisurely, even lazy, voice.
"Ugh, this is so troublesome! There are endless documents to process every day. The Navy's work must be so demanding!"
Kizaru Borsalino, one of the Navy Headquarters' top combatants and a powerful admiral, was currently lounging on a leather sofa in the corner of his office, legs crossed, showing absolutely no trace of the dignity expected of an admiral.
He had his hands in his pockets, his yellow striped suit draped loosely over his body, and his sunglasses had slipped down to the tip of his nose, revealing a pair of half-closed, perpetually sleepy eyes. His gaze was listlessly fixed on the seabirds flying past the window, and his toes were tapping lightly with an arrhythmia.
On the coffee table beside him was a cup of brewed black tea, several exquisite Navy Headquarters-exclusive desserts, and even an entertainment tabloid that he had somehow found, which he casually spread out on his lap.
He was summoned by the Warring States period to assist in handling urgent military affairs, but from the moment he entered until now, he hasn't even touched a pen, and has been in a state of complete procrastination the entire time.
Sengoku caught a glimpse of Kizaru's nonchalant demeanor out of the corner of his eye, and the veins on his temples throbbed. Suppressing his anger, he lowered his voice and snapped, "Bosarino! Can't you be serious for once? The New World is in turmoil right now, new supernovas are constantly pouring into the Sabaody Archipelago, and the Revolutionary Army is operating in the shadows. As a Marine Admiral, all you do is slack off all day long! What kind of behavior is this?!"
Kizaru slowly withdrew his gaze, looked at Sengoku, a nonchalant smile playing on his lips. His tone was light and airy, without a trace of guilt: "Well, well~ Fleet Admiral Sengoku, don't be so fierce~ Work is never-ending. Taking a break now and then is the secret to longevity. Besides, with Aokiji keeping an eye on things in the Sabaody Archipelago, what big trouble could possibly happen? Those small-time pirates aren't even a match for him to handle."
"You!" Sengoku was speechless with anger, pointing at Kizaru with his finger, but he was helpless.
Kizaru's personality is just like that: lazy, afraid of trouble, never takes action if he can avoid it, and never takes things seriously if he can slack off. Yet, he possesses top-notch strength and is an indispensable combat force for the Navy.
If you scold him too harshly, he'll just let it go in one ear and out the other, completely ignoring it. If you leave him alone, he can sleep in the office until dark.
Over the years, the Warring States period had long been helpless against this lazy general, and could only sigh inwardly time and time again, accepting his bad luck.
"The Sabaody Archipelago is a melting pot of all sorts of people. The Celestial Dragons of the World Government have been frequently visiting there recently, engaging in human auctions..."
Underground transactions are rampant, and what I fear most is that someone will dare to attack the Celestial Dragons.
Zhan Guo rubbed his throbbing forehead, his tone grave.
"If anything happens to a Celestial Dragon, a Marine Admiral must be dispatched immediately. This is an ironclad rule. You must be on high alert and ready to be deployed at any time!"
"To attack a Celestial Dragon?" Kizaru's tone was full of nonchalance.
"Who would be so foolish? Those World Nobles are under the protection of the Navy. Even if they're arrogant, no one would dare to court death. After all, angering the Celestial Dragons would attract the attention of an Admiral. No one would do something so stupid, right?"
As he spoke, he reached for a dessert on the coffee table, slowly popped it into his mouth, and acted as if it were none of his business.
Sengoku was about to say something more when the emergency Den Den Mushi in the office suddenly started ringing frantically. The piercing alarm instantly shattered the atmosphere in the office, making Sengoku's heart sink.
This special line can only be accessed by the naval commander stationed in the Sabaody Archipelago, and if it rings, it must be an extremely urgent matter!
Sengoku pounced on the Den Den Mushi almost instantly, grabbed the receiver, and said in a tense voice, "This is Sengoku!"
What happened in the Sabaody Archipelago?!
On the other end of the Den Den Mushi came the trembling voice of a garrisoned Marine, choked with sobs and filled with utter terror—it was almost a shout. Even through the receiver, the despair and panic were palpable: "Fleet Admiral! Something terrible has happened!! Auction House No. 3 in the Sabaody Archipelago! A Celestial Dragon—a Celestial Dragon has been killed!!"
"What?!"
Sengoku's pupils constricted, and he nearly dropped the receiver. His face contorted, not because the Celestial Dragons held a high place in his heart, but because he genuinely hated such troublesome matters. His usually composed voice was now filled with incredulous shock: "What did you say?! A Celestial Dragon was killed?! Who did it?! How are Saint Charlos and the others?!"
"It's...it's Uchiha Hakuha!!" the Marine cried out. "Lord Charlos, and the other two Celestial Dragons who were with him, they were all—all of them were killed by him! Blood flowed like a river, he destroyed the auction house, and freed all the slaves! We couldn't stop him at all! We request reinforcements! We request immediate reinforcements from the Admiral!!"
"Uchiha Hakuha————"
As Zhan Guo gritted his teeth and uttered the name, his aura suddenly exploded, causing the desk to tremble slightly.
"It's that guy again!! Damn it, there's really nothing we can do about these big pirates who roam the high seas like this!"
He suddenly turned his head and looked at Kizaru, who was still sprawled on the sofa. At this moment, Kizaru finally put away his lazy and slacking-off appearance. His half-closed eyes opened slightly, and the nonchalance on his face disappeared, replaced by a hint of seriousness.
"Borsalino!"
Zhan Guo gave the order in a stern voice, which made the whole office buzz.
"Head to Auction House No. 3 in Sabaody Archipelago immediately! Arrest the criminal Uchiha Shiraha. Anyone who dares to resist, kill them without mercy. At the same time, send an order to Kuzan to immediately seal off the area around the auction house and prevent anyone from escaping. You must capture Uchiha Shiraha. If we don't capture them in Sabaody Archipelago, they will be free to do whatever they want once we go to the New World."
Kizaru slowly stood up, stretched lazily, and his tone returned to its usual languid manner, but a subtle sharpness appeared deep in his eyes: "Oh dear~ Just what I feared most has come to pass. Someone actually dared to kill a Celestial Dragon, and it's that Uchiha Shiraha no less—this is too troublesome~"
"Enough talk! Move out immediately!"
The Warring States period roared in anger.
"Okay, okay~" Kizaru waved his hand, and his body instantly began to transform into tiny, shimmering golden light.
When the power of the "Glint-Glint Fruit" is fully activated, the speed reaches the speed of light.
"I'll go and see just how fearless this little rascal is, daring to cause such a commotion in the Sabaody Archipelago!"
Before he could finish speaking, Kizaru's figure had already transformed into a dazzling golden light, breaking through the glass window of the Fleet Admiral's office. Like a meteor, he streaked across the sky of Marineford, flying rapidly towards the Sabaody Archipelago, leaving only a long golden streak and documents flying everywhere in the office due to the airflow.
Sengoku looked at the papers fluttering in the air, then at the disappearing golden light outside the window, clutching his chest and stroking his chin: "Two generals, if we let them get away even with this, these people are no different from those monsters."
At this moment, the No. 3 auction house in the Sabaody Archipelago has long been reduced to a chaotic ruin.
The gilded and intricately carved gate shattered on the ground, the giant bubble protective layer was torn apart by a powerful force, the luxurious chairs were overturned, and the scarlet carpet was stained with glaring bloodstains. The air was filled with the mingled smells of gunpowder, blood, and fear.
The three Celestial Dragons, who were just moments ago so arrogant and domineering, now lay lifeless on the cold ground.
Their breathing apparatuses, symbols of the world's elite, were soaked in blood, and their once arrogant faces were now deathly pale.
"Bai Yu, have these bad guys stopped moving?"
Bai Yu gently patted Kanna's head and said in a gentle tone, "Yes, they slept comfortably."
Artoria gripped the holy sword at her waist, the anger in her eyes gradually subsiding. She glanced at the trembling marines around her: "According to Bai Yu, killing a Celestial Dragon will surely bring the Admirals of Marine Headquarters here very quickly. We must be prepared."
As soon as she finished speaking, an incredibly dazzling golden light, like a god descending from the heavens, suddenly fell from the sky and precisely enveloped the entire Auction House No. 3!
It was dazzling with golden light, moved at incredible speed, and carried a chilling aura of a general, instantly sweeping across the entire field!
Everyone instinctively looked up and saw a yellow figure slowly descending from the sky, its feet gently landing on the broken walls of the ruins.
The newcomer was dressed in his signature yellow striped suit, wearing black sunglasses, and sporting a lazy smile. He was none other than Admiral Kizaru Borsalino of the Marine Headquarters.
His gaze slowly swept over the Celestial Dragon's corpse on the ground, then landed on Shiroha. He narrowed his eyes, his tone light and playful: "Oh my~ You really have some nerve, killing a Celestial Dragon in the Sabaody Archipelago and making such a mess of the auction house—you must be Uchiha Shiroha?"