On Nostora Island, Vegapunk, a team of scientists, and dozens of Tontatta dwarves had all relocated into the living fortress that was Capone Bege's body.
The group was fascinated by Bege's Castle-Castle Fruit, endlessly exploring the labyrinth within him. Vegapunk, always calculating, immediately listed this Paramecia ability as one of the top candidate powers for future Seraphim units. It was simply too useful to ignore.
Meanwhile, Souta Kiryuu had been making his presence felt across the mafia-run island, seizing vast sums of money by force. Vegapunk, for his part, had carefully selected valuable resources and rare materials from the spoils.
"Boss, are we heading to the Grand Line next?" Capone Bege asked respectfully, lighting his cigar. His outward deference concealed his inner ambitions. For the next two years, he intended to grow stronger under Souta Kiryuu and Bartholomew Kuma, biding his time until he could seize control for himself.
It wasn't the first time Bege had played the role of infiltrator. Before he had united the West Blue's mafia, he'd once acted as an undercover assassin, striking down another family boss from within. Serving under Souta Kiryuu was, to him, just another infiltration mission. If he could one day control Vegapunk, the greatest scientific mind in the world, and secure Bonney, the wielder of the Healing Fruit, perhaps he could rise to command a power rivaling even the Four Emperors.
"What kind of pirates or figures are famous in the West Blue?" Souta Kiryuu asked casually, tearing into roasted meat. His appetite rivaled that of a giant, another reflection of his enhanced body's monstrous power.
"The most notorious assassin is Daz Bones, user of the Supa Supa no Mi—the Dice-Dice Fruit. But he hasn't been heard from in over a month, perhaps already gone to the Grand Line. There's also the so-called Demon Sheriff, Lafitte, a brutal lawman who ate a Bird-Bird Fruit and gained the power of flight. He was banished from his kingdom recently, and now prowls the seas hunting pirates and Marines alike," Bege explained. Both men carried bounties exceeding thirty million berries—devil fruit users with the strength to challenge the Grand Line.
Bege himself had planned to set sail for the Grand Line in another year or two. The Four Seas, after all, were nothing more than playgrounds for the weak, incapable of sating his vast ambition.
"Then let's start by finding a Marine branch to make a name for ourselves," Souta Kiryuu said with a dangerous grin. Nothing announced one's presence faster than striking at the Marines. But in truth, his plan ran deeper—he intended to show the world just how far his courage and rage could reach.
"I like that idea," Bege sneered. He'd dreamed of doing the same more than once, but caution and the need to preserve his mafia empire had always restrained him. Now, with Souta Kiryuu attracting all the fire, he could indulge his hunger for chaos and slaughter without hesitation.
"Don't lose your nerve now," Souta teased with a smirk. Did Bege really believe his goal was only to destroy a Marine branch for notoriety?
"With you leading, what's there to fear?" Bege replied, eyes gleaming with madness. He wanted to see how far this experimental monster would go.
Once Souta had eaten his fill, Bege brought forth his prized ship—the Fire Tank Pirates' flagship, the Castro, a warship shaped like a flame-belching tank. Souta Kiryuu and the Tyrant, Bartholomew Kuma, boarded alongside him, and they set a course straight for the West Blue's Marine Branch W-88.
The branch's number was ironic—it matched Souta Kiryuu's own designation: Subject 88.
"Kuma, today you'll see what sets me apart from Dragon," Souta declared aboard the Castro. As the ship sailed, he planted his blood-red banner, the emblem of the Crimson Dragon, making his defiance clear to the world.
"I will stain this flag with the blood of the Celestial Dragons!" Souta roared. The killing intent radiating from him made Bege's eyelids twitch. Did his boss truly harbor such hatred for the Celestial Dragons? Could it be that Souta planned to strike even at the so-called World Nobles?
"When Bonney recovers, I'll join you against the Celestial Dragons," Kuma said quietly, though his voice carried steel. His parents, Ginny… he would avenge them. To Bonney alone he could show tenderness, but against his enemies, he would embody the title of Tyrant.
"Then prepare yourself for a path of madness and revenge," Souta laughed darkly. Others lacked the courage to challenge the world, but he would act where they hesitated. He would show the scarred and downtrodden what true vengeance looked like.
One day later, the West Blue's W-88 Marine Base was obliterated by a single blast of dragonfire. A colossal crimson dragon descended upon the base, its mere presence shattering the Marines' will to fight. When Souta Kiryuu returned to human form amidst the smoldering ruins, he clutched a Marine branch colonel in one hand and a Den Den Mushi in the other.
"Sengoku, tell Saturn this is only the beginning!" Souta snarled into the receiver. "Here and now, I officially declare war on the Celestial Dragon Jaygarcia Saturn! From this moment forward, whenever I see a Celestial Dragon, I will slaughter them. They had better hide themselves in Mary Geoise like the cowards they are!"
He shoved the communicator into the hands of a Marine operator and ordered him to capture the moment. Before the lenses of a video Den Den Mushi, Souta Kiryuu set fire to both the World Government's flag and the Celestial Dragons' heavenly standard.
Reporters happened to be present, capturing the shocking scene in still images that raced across the seas, stirring disbelief and terror. Someone had declared open war on the Celestial Dragons, burned their banners, and vowed to kill them all. What kind of madman would do such a thing?
Capone Bege stared at Souta in horror. He had expected ruthlessness, but not this. Souta Kiryuu had driven a stake directly into the heart of the World Government's power. Was it too late for him to cut ties and flee? Even his hardened heart faltered under the weight of Souta's audacity.
Bartholomew Kuma clenched his fists tightly, eyes fixed on Souta and the burning flags. Not even the Revolutionary Army, which claimed to oppose the Celestial Dragons, had ever dared such madness. But Souta had done it. He was the first man to openly declare war on the World Nobles.
Did this man truly fear nothing?
"Souta Kiryuu, you'll regret this! The authority of the World Government and the Celestial Dragons cannot be defied! You will face the most relentless hunt in history—the Marines will never let you run free!" roared Sengoku through the Den Den Mushi. An escaped experiment, openly mocking the World Government and declaring war—it was an affront too great to ignore.
Without waiting for the Five Elders' orders, Sengoku immediately recalled the three Marine Admirals to Marineford, preparing to launch a full-scale hunt for Souta Kiryuu—the most dangerous fugitive now roaming the seas.