Chapter 364: The End of the Straw Hat Crew

"Ahem, what are you all standing there for? Watching a play?"

Fujitora was the first to react. He drew his cane sword and shouted in a deep voice: "Gravity Blade: Hell Journey!"

Purple light flashed across the blade, and the Straw Hat crew ahead suddenly felt immense pressure, as if an invisible mountain was pressing down on their heads.

Because it happened so suddenly, the Straw Hat crew was almost completely unprepared. A huge deep pit suddenly appeared on the island—a dark and deep abyss that looked Move Move Like a gateway to hell.

"Everyone, attack! If they dare to resist, don't hold back!"

Karl waved his hand, setting the tone for this operation. Before, he had wanted to use the Straw Hat crew to stir up trouble, and being a bit biased didn't matter much. But this time was no joke. Even though he knew many of them, Karl stood firmly on the side of the Marines.

As long as they surrendered, everything would be fine; the Marines would never make things difficult for them. But if they wanted to risk their lives, the Marines would accompany them to the end.

*Zing*~

A golden halo bloomed behind Karl, and holy wings unfolded from his back. Karl shouted loudly: "Holy Light: Apocalypse!!!"

Every Marine present was strengthened, including Garp, who was fighting Luffy.

Kizaru reached out his hand, felt the surging power in his body, and said leisurely: "My, my, I have to be serious now! Otherwise, it would be a waste of the power the Marine hero gave me!"

*Shoo*~

Kizaru disappeared from the spot instantly to find his opponent.

Sakazuki twisted his neck hard, his arms already turned into magma, the temperature around him rising sharply, accompanied by the scorched smell of sulfur.

"Nine Mountains, Eight Seas, one world, a thousand worlds form a 'Small Thousand World'. Multiply this by three, and there is nothing I cannot cut. Three-Sword Style Secret Technique... Ichi Dai San Zen Daisen Sekai!"

A low chant came from the deep pit. Zoro, carrying monstrous sword intent, headed straight for Karl. Unfortunately, Fujitora had already stepped in front of Karl.

*Clang*~

Facing Zoro's monstrous move, Fujitora used only a simple block. The key was that he actually blocked it. Although the holy protection shield granted by Holy Light: Apocalypse shattered, he still blocked it.

"What amazing sword intent! In swordsmanship, I am not as good as you, but if you want to pass me to challenge Mr. Karl, defeat me first!"

"Gravity Blade: Fierce Tiger!"

Zoro gritted his teeth and blocked Fujitora's attack, having to give up the idea of challenging Karl.

On the other side, Sanji was already trading kicks with Kizaru. Light-speed kicks versus Diable Jambe—it had to be said, it was quite interesting.

You have to know that two years ago, Kizaru could take out a kid with one kick, but now he could only focus on dealing with Sanji alone.

"Mooooo!!!!"

A huge figure stood up from the deep pit. It was Chopper after transforming. At this moment, he had a physique comparable to a giant, but he was too clumsy. Standing out now would only make him a target, just Move Move Like Little Oars back in the day.

Karl shook his head, raised his index finger, and fired a Holy Healing Bullet at the monster Chopper.

And so, Chopper, who had just transformed into monster form, was knocked back to his original form. Ultimately, monsterization was an abnormal state for Chopper, and Karl happened to be able to heal it.

"Catch that raccoon—no, reindeer!"

Gion flashed over, grabbed Chopper in mid-air, and came to Karl's side: "Here, the raccoon you wanted."

"Thank you, Sister Gion. Go ahead and get busy! Hmm, leave that orange-haired girl to you. Bring her over too! Watch out for her weapon; that thing is a bit strange."

Actually, it wasn't that strange now. After all, Big Mom was already dead. Without Zeus's blessing, Nami's combat power was almost negligible, unless she was bullying the weak.

Chopper looked at Karl, trembling: "Mr. Karl, why?"

Karl squatted down and scratched Chopper's chin: "Because we are the Marines! But don't worry, there shouldn't be any casualties this time. Here."

Karl took a cotton candy out of his system space and said to Chopper with a smile: "This is for you. Just wait on the Thousand Sunny!"

"Peng En!"

T. Peng En floated over and saluted: "Here, Admiral Karl. What are your orders?"

Karl pointed at Chopper and said: "Take him back to their ship."

"Yes!"

After watching Chopper leave, the smile on Karl's face gradually disappeared, and he shifted his attention to the battlefield.

Robin, Brook, Usopp, and the others all had their own opponents, sometimes more than one. In general, they weren't much trouble. The truly difficult ones were the Straw Hat trio—oh, and Jinbe, whom Sakazuki was currently trading blows with.

Seeing Robin, Karl rubbed his chin.

"Leave this one to me! Vice Admiral Momonga, go deal with the others!"

Momonga nodded and left without hesitation.

Robin was panting slightly. The pressure Momonga put on her was too great. Although she was much stronger than she was two years ago, her physical fitness still limited her strength.

And Momonga, as a veteran Vice Admiral, was proficient in both physical techniques and swordsmanship. Plus, with Karl's strengthening, let alone Robin, even Zoro would have a hard time.

"Karl..."

Karl teleported in front of Robin without a word and put Seastone handcuffs on her. The Seastone content wasn't high enough to make Robin completely paralyzed.

After taking Robin to a quiet place, Karl looked at her calmly: "Originally, I thought that after you found Laugh Tale and helped Luffy realize his dream of becoming Pirate King, you would all go your separate ways. I didn't expect you to still be together. It seems the bond between you is far deeper than I imagined."

Robin was silent for a long moment, then looked into Karl's eyes and said: "We are partners."

"But you are also pirates. It is impossible for the Marines to sit idly by while the Pirate King and his crew travel the seas leisurely, spreading his fame."

"Then why didn't you do this sooner? You had many opportunities to end Luffy's pirate path. Why wait until after he became Pirate King to do it?"

Karl grinned: "Heh, the Marines have already taken down four Emperors of the Sea; is one more Luffy really a problem? Only after he becomes Pirate King can the strength of the Marines be highlighted, don't you think?"

A thunderbolt flashed through Robin's mind. She understood; she understood everything.

"Roger became Pirate King and started the Great Pirate Era. Luffy became Pirate King and ended the Great Pirate Era, starting the Adventurer's Era. Is that your goal?"

*Clap-clap-clap*~

"That's right. You've guessed it pretty much correctly. At least, that's what Admiral Admiral Admiral Admiral Admiral Kuzan thinks."

Robin's eyes suddenly became sorrowful, and she muttered to herself: "So, all of this was arranged by you? Are we just political pawns?"