Chapter 35: Did a Celestial Dragon Just Get Hit with a Buster Call?

In the waters near Cornillo Island in the New World, a massive Marine fleet was gathered. Sengoku, the Marine Admiral, stood on the deck of a colossal warship, his expression unreadable as he seemed to be waiting for news.

Behind him stood Borsalino, the future "biggest slacker" in the Marines, though now a Marine Vice Admiral. Since Dragon left, Borsalino had become a top candidate for the position of Admiral. Despite his incredible potential, his lazy and indifferent attitude was a major flaw. The only person capable of keeping him in line was Sengoku.

"Admiral Sengoku," Borsalino said casually, "the longer we wait, the more likely it is the remnants of the John Pirates will realize something's up. And not just them… Shiki's Flying Pirates are scouring the seas too. It won't be long before Golden Lion Shiki himself shows up. That could complicate things."

Sengoku kept his gaze on the horizon and replied, "We wait."

Borsalino raised an eyebrow. "What exactly are we waiting for?"

"Waiting for peace of mind," Sengoku muttered, clearly conflicted.

Though Sengoku had proposed the Buster Call to the Five Elders, it wasn't a decision he had taken lightly. It was the rational choice, but it weighed heavily on his conscience. Part of him hoped the Five Elders would reject the proposal. But if they approved it… well, he wouldn't hesitate to carry it out.

What Sengoku didn't know was that on this very island, not only was Claudius a Celestial Dragon present, but so was Dragon, the son of his good friend, Garp. If Sengoku had known that, he certainly would've thought twice before pulling the trigger on the Buster Call.

Just as these thoughts swirled in his mind, Sengoku's transponder snail began to ring. After a brief conversation, Sengoku's face turned cold, his decision made. He ended the call and spoke without turning to Polusalino.

"Return to your warship. Prepare for battle," Sengoku ordered.

Borsalino sighed, his eyes briefly narrowing. Without another word, he transformed into golden light and zipped toward his warship.

At the same time, Sengoku pulled out a golden transponder snail from his pocket. With a single press, the snail emitted a high-pitched screech.

In response, the ten massive warships of the Marine fleet began to spread out, encircling Cornillo Island. The Buster Call had officially begun.

Unaware of the chaos that was about to unfold, Claudius and Dragon were relaxing on the island.

Initially, Claudius had planned to leave after chatting with Dragon, but Dragon had convinced him to stay a bit longer, saying it would be hard to meet again after this. Dragon wanted Claudius's advice on how best to grow the Revolutionary Army.

Claudius, having nothing urgent on his plate, agreed. He decided to spend a few more days on the island, resting while discussing Dragon's plans.

In hindsight, maybe leaving earlier would have been better, as they were now about to be caught in the middle of a full-blown Buster Call.

Elsewhere on the island, Stussy was out shopping near the port with Nia. The streets were oddly quiet.

"Nia, don't you think the island has been emptier these past two days?" Stussy asked, glancing around. "It's much quieter than when we first arrived."

Nia looked around at the sparsely populated port. "You're right. There are far fewer ships arriving. I wonder what's going on."

"This island relies almost entirely on tourism to keep the local economy alive. If fewer ships are coming… maybe the weather's bad out at sea, affecting the routes?" Stussy mused, but something felt off.

In the unpredictable seas of the New World, odd weather patterns could halt travel for days. But this situation was starting to feel unusual, even for the New World.

As they talked, Nia suddenly pointed toward the water, her eyes wide. "Isn't that a Marine ship?"

Stussy turned to look. "Yes, those are Marine ships. Three of them… and that huge one in the middle is an Admiral-class ship. Only an Admiral can command one of those."

Before she could finish her thought, the three Marine warships suddenly unleashed a barrage of cannon fire. The sky filled with black dots, as shells arced toward the island.

As a seasoned CP-0 agent, Stussy's eyes widened in horror. "Nia, run! Get back to His Highness! The Marines are attacking!"

The port, which had been relatively calm moments ago, was obliterated by the first volley of cannon fire. The anchored ships were completely destroyed in the blink of an eye.

"They've destroyed the port," Stussy muttered, fear creeping into her voice. "They're cutting off our escape routes!"

Without wasting another moment, Stussy grabbed Nia's hand, and the two of them ran back toward the hot spring hotel where Claudius and Dragon were staying.

Back at the hotel, Claudius and Dragon had been startled by the thunderous booms of the bombardment. They rushed to the window to see what was happening. The hotel, built on the side of a mountain, gave them a clear view of the Marine warships shelling the port.

"Is that… the Marines?" Dragon said in disbelief. He had expected pirates or some other threat, but the sight of Marine ships bombarding the port shocked him.

"What the hell are they doing? Why are they attacking the port?" Claudius asked, just as confused.

The bombardment continued, with the warships gradually expanding their range, blasting away at the coastline.

Suddenly, Dragon's eyes widened in realization. "It's a Buster Call! That's Marine's Buster Call!"

As a former Vice Admiral of the Marines, and nearly an Admiral candidate, Dragon recognized the pattern of attack immediately. The indiscriminate, devastating bombardment was unmistakable.

"A Buster Call?" Claudius echoed, stunned.

Dragon quickly explained, "A Buster Call is an extreme measure authorized only by the highest-ranking Marine officers. It involves an Admiral leading five Vice Admirals and ten warships, all loaded with elite troops. Once it's triggered, the island and everyone on it will be annihilated. Nothing survives a Buster Call everyone and everything deemed a threat to the World Government gets wiped out."

Of course, Claudius knew what a Buster Call was. He was just shocked that he, a Celestial Dragon, had gotten caught in one. In his memories, Buster Calls had only been launched a few times: once against Douglas Bullet, again at Ohara, another time at Enies Lobby, and then later again for Bullet after his escape.

But here he was, a Celestial Dragon, randomly hit with one? This was beyond absurd.

"Are you kidding me? I'm a Celestial Dragon! Am I going to be the first Celestial Dragon to get wiped out by a Buster Call?" Claudius cursed under his breath.

Dragon, deep in thought, added, "There must be some dangerous criminals hiding on this island. The World Government wouldn't issue a Buster Call without a serious reason. Whoever it is must have been deemed a grave threat."

Claudius shot him a glance and said sarcastically, "Could it be that some traitor from your Revolutionary Army got found out? Aren't you the grave threat here?"

Dragon rolled his eyes. "As long as you haven't sold me out, I'm still clean. I'm the former Vice Admiral of the Marines. No way they'd hit me with a Buster Call."

"If I had sold you out, do you think I'd still be standing here, waiting for the Buster Call with you?" Claudius snapped back.

Despite the looming danger, the two didn't seem overly concerned. They bantered back and forth as if a Buster Call wasn't about to flatten the entire island.

The truth was, Buster Calls didn't have a perfect track record. Despite their destructive power, they hadn't always lived up to their reputation. Except for Ohara and the battle with Bullet, most Buster Calls hadn't delivered the crushing results the Marines had hoped for. That lackluster history made Claudius feel a little less worried. After all, as long as he wasn't blown to bits right away, he was still a Celestial Dragon. Once the Marines landed and realized who he was, he'd be fine.

As for Dragon, he was in a similar mindset. As long as his revolutionary ties weren't exposed, the Marines would have no reason to go after him. He still had enough credibility within the Marine ranks to avoid becoming a target.

While Claudius and Dragon strategized how to deal with the situation, elsewhere on the island, in a hidden cave, a group of ragged pirates gathered around their leader Captain John's remnants.

They had known they were exposed the moment the Marine fleet arrived. Now, gathered around their wounded captain, they were scrambling to find a way off the island.

If Claudius had been there, he would have been surprised to see a familiar face among John's crew none other than a young Crocodile. The future Warlord of the Sea was still in his teens, a mere rookie pirate.

Claudius had always thought Crocodile began his career after Roger's execution, but that wasn't the case. Crocodile had been in the game for years, even joining Captain John's crew after the disbandment of the Rocks Pirates.

Crocodile had been part of John's crew ever since, gaining valuable experience in the harsh world of piracy. After Captain John met his end, Crocodile would eventually strike out on his own, famously challenging Whitebeard and later joining the Seven Warlords of the Sea. He was one of the oldest and most experienced pirates among the Warlords, having been in the game long before some of the other notorious names made their mark.