Half an hour after Liam Ross had slipped away, Akainu stirred from his unconscious state. His vision swam for a moment, then sharpened, and instantly his instincts flared. In an explosive burst of heat, his upper body transformed into molten magma, dark red and pulsing, as his eyes darted across the dimly lit room.
Shock and fury tangled inside him.
Shock because someone had dared infiltrate Marine Headquarters to attack him.
Fury because that someone had actually succeeded, right under his own roof.
If word of this ever got out…
Akainu's expression darkened to coal. The very thought made his blood boil hotter than his magma. Thankfully, it was still night; no witnesses, no immediate embarrassment. But if anyone had seen he would never live it down.
He scanned the room again, muscles taut, refusing to relax. His mind raced with ruthless precision. Even if I must destroy everything in sight, I'll find whoever did this.
But Liam was long gone.
Then, as if the world wanted to mock him, a cold sea breeze slipped through the open window. The salty air stung his skin or rather, what was left of it that wasn't magma. His lower body, still human, began to shiver uncontrollably.
He frowned. Why was it suddenly so… chilly?
Akainu looked down and froze.
There he was, the fearsome Marine Vice Admiral, wrapped only in a stark white pair of briefs.
"What the—?!"
A thunderous explosion of magma erupted from his shoulders, flames licking the ceiling as his mind blanked with humiliation. His pants were gone. His dignity gone with them.
He lunged toward his villa in a blaze of molten fury, the walls trembling from his speed. A moment later, his enraged bellow echoed across the base.
"Whoever did this I'll hunt you down and burn you alive!"
By morning, the sun rose bright over the sea, and the gentle salt wind drifted through the Marine compound.
Liam Ross stretched lazily as he entered the logistics division, whistling under his breath. He felt refreshed, like he'd just completed a long, satisfying workout. Time for his daily "sign-in."
"Congratulations, Host! You have received one Eye-Pleasing Magazine!"
He blinked. "Wait… what?"
Opening his system storage, he pulled out a glossy magazine and nearly dropped it.
On the cover was… a lot of skin. Far too much skin.
Liam's blood pressure spiked. "What kind of system reward is this?!"
Still, curiosity won out. He flipped to the first page then immediately slammed it shut as a sudden nosebleed betrayed him.
Clutching his nose, he hurriedly shoved the magazine back into his system inventory. "Okay… this one's for private viewing only."
"Liam, you okay?"
His fellow worker, Jennings, approached, eyes narrowing with concern.
"Yeah, yeah," Liam said quickly, keeping his face perfectly neutral. "Just bumped my nose earlier."
Jennings shrugged, then leaned closer, voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "Got some juicy news for you, mate. Just came down the rumor mill."
"Oh?" Liam's curiosity perked up. "What kind of news?"
Jennings grinned. "You know Vice Admiral Akainu, right?"
Liam froze for a moment. Oh, this ought to be good.
"Well," Jennings continued, "turns out the guy's secretly an exhibitionist."
Liam almost burst out laughing on the spot. He barely managed to keep his composure. No way. That surveillance snail actually caught it?
He feigned surprise. "An… exhibitionist? You serious?"
Jennings nodded enthusiastically. "Dead serious. Word is, someone snuck footage from the security snails last night. They caught him running around in nothing but his underwear!"
The mental image was too much. Liam nearly choked trying to suppress his laughter.
As Jennings went on, the story grew more and more ridiculous apparently, the footage had spread through the entire Marine Headquarters overnight. No one knew exactly how, but the rumor had snowballed into countless versions: Akainu the sleepwalker, Akainu the pervert, Akainu the secret daredevil.
But the most popular one? Akainu the "underwear exhibitionist."
By the time Jennings finished, Liam's grin stretched from ear to ear. "That's… incredible. Truly a living legend."
Meanwhile, inside the main Marine building…
A deafening crash shattered the silence as Akainu's fist obliterated his desk into splinters. His face was a storm of rage, eyes blazing like twin volcanoes.
"Who leaked this?! Who?!"
His molten fists clenched. "And that bastard who attacked me… when I find you, I'll make you wish you were never born."
Just then, a nervous subordinate entered. "R-report, sir! The Fleet Admiral requests your presence!"
The poor man barely kept from laughing as he saluted. Akainu glared, smoke curling from his shoulders, before storming out.
Within minutes, he arrived at the top floor. Inside the Fleet Admiral's office sat Sengoku, Garp, and Tsuru.
"Ah, our celebrity has arrived!" Garp boomed, laughing around a mouthful of donuts.
Sengoku and Tsuru both struggled to hide their smirks.
Akainu's jaw tightened. His humiliation burned hotter than his magma.
"Enough, Garp," Sengoku scolded, though even he looked amused. Then he turned to Akainu, his tone shifting to firm authority. "We've reviewed the surveillance footage. Care to explain what happened last night?"
Akainu gritted his teeth. "The attacker… must be a Devil Fruit user. I suspect someone with invisibility powers."
Sengoku nodded thoughtfully. "Agreed. Judging by the evidence, it's likely the work of a Paramecia-type something like the Transparent Fruit. No wonder no one saw him."
Fleet Admiral Kong, who had been silent until now, leaned back in his chair. His deep voice carried weight. "To sneak into Marine Headquarters and humiliate one of our vice admirals so openly this is a provocation against the entire Navy."
He paused, his eyes narrowing at Akainu. "I've ordered the information sealed. But this matter is now your responsibility, Sakazuki. You will investigate and bring the perpetrator to justice."
"Yes, sir." Akainu's voice was tight, barely contained fury beneath the surface.
Tsuru tapped her chin. "What about a bounty? If he's that capable, we should alert the world."
Kong nodded after a brief moment of thought. "One billion berries."
The room went quiet. It wasn't a small number but not overly generous either.
No one objected. Anyone who could slip past Marine Headquarters' defenses and prank a vice admiral clearly wasn't ordinary.
As Akainu turned to leave, Kong added, almost casually, "Oh, and Sakazuki your Observation Haki needs improvement."
That final jab stung worse than the attack itself.
By nightfall, the bounty posters had already spread across the seas. The mysterious "Invisible Man" became the world's newest sensation.
In a quiet corner of the base, Liam Ross leaned against a wall, smirking as he read the latest updates.
"One billion, huh? For me?" he murmured. "How flattering."
His eyes gleamed with amusement.
"My invisibility's beyond any fruit power. They could search every island on the Grand Line and still never find me."
He chuckled softly. "Unless I want to be found."
And with that, the man behind the chaos the silent trickster of the Marines vanished once again into the night.