Chapter 28: Forcing the Flamingo Back
North Blue, Mignon Island, Snowy Night
The wind and snow are biting and the night is as dark as ink.
The fire in the distance illuminated half of the sky. The burning houses, the dead bodies of pirates, and the villagers fleeing in panic formed a purgatory-like picture.
The bloody transaction on Mignon Island finally came to the end it deserved.
Behind a dilapidated stone house in the port, a swaying figure was staggering forward, dragging his blood-covered body.
Rosinante, formerly a Marine lieutenant colonel and now a secret agent under the World government, "Corazon", looks like an ordinary person struggling before death.
In his arms, Luo was curled up in a closed wooden box, having already taken the "Op-Op Fruit".
"Luo...listen carefully..."
He gasped and coughed up blood.
"Don't... cry... don't make any sound."
He covered the wound on his abdomen caused by Virgo's kick with one hand, and used his other hand to completely block out the sound inside the box with his ability.
"You must... survive."
"Even if it's through lies..."
He glanced back at the footsteps approaching behind him.
That is - Doflamingo.
The sky was so low that it seemed as if the whole world was waiting for him to shoot.
"Do you really think you can fool me?"
Doflamingo walked over slowly, his eyes as cold as hellfire.
"Corazon, how dare you lie to me for ten years... and even attempt to take my 'engine'?"
"Do you think this little fire can burn down my world?"
He slowly raised the gun and pointed it at Rosinante's heart.
"As a brother... I will let you die in peace."
Rosinante didn't flinch, but simply slowly spread a bright smile.
"But at least... I saved a child."
"I'm not a failed Marine. I'm someone who smiles... and stands in front of justice."
"so--"
He closed his eyes, "Come on."
Bang--!
There was no gunshot in the air, but instead a "buzzing" sound that tore through the air and exploded!
The next moment, a vacuum wave as sharp as thunder roared from a distance and blew Doflamingo away!
"What?!"
Doflamingo suddenly rolled over and landed on the ground, his toes tightening the silk thread to stabilize his body. A corner of his gold-rimmed sunglasses was broken, and murderous intent surged in his eyes!
In the distance, the snow and fog suddenly broke apart!
A figure in a white cloak slashed into the battlefield like a sword, the soles of his boots crushed the snow, and the ice chips splashed by the iron boots flew like iron nails!
[Naval Headquarters·Commodore·Rogge]
He walked slowly towards me, his eyes like a cold abyss, his face expressionless.
He withdrew his palm, but the air was still surging behind him, as if the entire world had solidified again because of his arrival.
"Rogge..." Dover muttered through gritted teeth.
"Why are you here?"
Rogge's tone was calm, with a sharpness that cut through the night snow:
"Received a piece of information."
"I thought it was just a fruit transaction."
"But now it seems that you, this 'old snake', are about to devour the lifeblood of North Blue."
He raised his head, his eyes like blades falling on Doflamingo:
"I'm here to take the knife for you."
"To take the place of the 'Justice' who has fallen laughing, and continue the unfinished work."
Rosinante leaned against the broken wall, a slight curve at the corner of his lips.
"Rye..."
His voice was hoarse, and his eyes had a tired and relieved light.
"You really did...fall from the sky."
"I owe you my life."
Rogge didn't look at him, his eyes remained fixed on Dover.
"Corazon, take Luo and move back."
Doflamingo grinned, spread out his five fingers, and the sound of countless tangled threads echoed in the air:
"Do you think you can stop me by yourself?"
"Don't be ridiculous, kid—"
"I am the 'abandoned child of Celestial Dragons', the 'joker of the underworld', the—"
"King of North Blue!"
Before he finished speaking!
Rogge swung his right hand violently!
[Vacuum and closed-zone earthquake]
boom--!!
It was as if a layer of heaven and earth was forcibly peeled off, the air suddenly collapsed, and a circle of invisible shock waves swept across like a gas hammer!
Doflamingo's face changed drastically, he retreated quickly, crossed his hands and used a wire shield to block!
"!!"
The air was like thunder, shaking the snow at the edge of the ruins so that pillars of fire exploded and corpses flew everywhere!
"I don't care what you are." Rogge said in a steady tone.
"I only know—"
"In my eyes, you are just a walking flamingo."
Luo's perspective: Inside the box
In a closed wooden box, young Luo watched the battle outside with tears in his eyes.
He saw the man who had only appeared in Marine files, standing silently before the fire.
The wind blew up the silver-winged military emblem on his dark military uniform, and a lightning-like aura spread from his body.
"Who... is that man?"
He murmured, "Why, he also smiled so coldly, yet so reassuringly..."
Rosinante leaned against the wall and whispered with his last breath:
"That's—a reliable demon in the Marines."
"He will save you."
"He understands 'justice' better than anyone else."
North Blue, Mignon Island, Snowy Night, Battle Core Area
The storm howled and the ice and snow rolled across.
Amidst the ruins, Rogge and Doflamingo faced each other in the air, the pressure of the air and the lines intertwined like two roaring beasts about to bite each other.
Rogge took a slow step forward, and the ground beneath his feet collapsed. The air was compressed to the point where dense ripples visible to the naked eye vibrated around him.
Doflamingo grinned, his eyes cold under his golden sunglasses: "The air fruit... a little fresh, but-"
He opened his hands like a harpist!
"Line Line Super Giant Line Network!"
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh——!!
Thousands of transparent and sharp high-strength steel wires burst out from between the fingers, suddenly spreading out like a spider web, instantly covering Rogge for dozens of meters from the sky to the ground!
"You can't move." Dover sneered, "This is my world!"
"I don't need to move."
Rogge stretched out his hand and clenched it, and the air suddenly collapsed!
Reverse Compression
boom!!!!!
As soon as Doflamingo's wire net got close, it was twisted and shredded as if it had hit a vacuum bomb!
A deafening sonic boom exploded in space, and the compressed air turned into an impact ring that pushed the ground into a deep pit!
Dover's eyes narrowed slightly: "It's ridiculously strong..."
Before he could come to his senses, Rogge had already leaped into the air and pushed forward with one palm!
"Shake the Sky"
A ball of air, nearly distorting space, slammed down! The surrounding temperature plummeted, even snowflakes were deflected by the pressure!
Doflamingo's pupils contracted, and he immediately crossed his arms to defend himself:
"Line Line·Feather White Line Shield!!"
Countless threads wrapped around his arms and turned into thick shields to block the front!
Bang!!!!!!!!!
The impact penetrated the wire shield, and the entire street was instantly blown to pieces!
Buildings collapsed, ice and snow flew, and Doflamingo was forcibly blasted dozens of meters in the dust and sand, heavily smashing the remaining building walls behind him!
In the dust and fog, he slowly stood up, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, his face gloomy:
"You...are not a recruit at all."
"Who taught you to be such a monster?"
Rogge stood in mid-air, his hands interlaced and stretched forward, and the air between his palms formed two high-speed rotating "vacuum wheels":
"Killing you is no different than cleaning out a rotten tumor."
Doflamingo tensed his arms in anger, and a low-frequency "buzzing" sound suddenly vibrated in the air.
——Fruit awakening!
[String-String Fruit·Field Control]
Within a radius of 100 meters, the ground, ruined buildings, and streets all turned into linear fluctuations!
They danced like snakes and drilled through the air like insects, rushing towards Rogge madly!
"Rogge!! In my Kingdom of Threads, you can hardly even breathe!!"
"Then you should learn to shut up."
Rogge spun his hands and slammed the "Air Vacuum Wheel" into the ground!
[Extreme Pressure Explosion·Swallowing the Abyss!!]
In an instant, a vacuum black hole with a diameter of 20 meters collapsed on the ground, and the surrounding lines, terrain, and building debris were all crushed into dust under the invisible pressure!
This is not simple destruction, it is the "gas itself" that extracts and extinguishes all life!
Doflamingo's face turned pale as he retreated rapidly through the air. "This kid... is basically a living compressed bomb!!"
Rogge did not pursue the victory, but instead looked at him coldly and whispered:
"I haven't tried to kill you yet."
"I just came to take the fruit away."
He turned around, his back to the battlefield.
"If you insist on blocking my way—the next time I come, it will be your head."
Doflamingo stared at Rogge's departing back, his fists clenched until they made a creaking sound. For the first time, true fear appeared in his eyes.
"...The 'Purifiers' of this era...are they crazy?"
The snow continues to fall.
But the wind direction on Mignon Island has changed completely since then.
And the horror of the Air Fruit has officially become famous in North Blue starting tonight!
The flames finally died down.
Rogge carried Rosinante and the unconscious Luo on his back and walked into the warship. In the snowy night, the flag of the Suzheng army fluttered in the wind.
Before Corazon fell into a coma, he spoke with difficulty:
"This time... I finally don't have to take the bullet."
Rogge didn't look back, but said calmly:
"I am coming."
"That's why."
"The world shouldn't always be a tragedy."