Chapter 157: [157] : [BONUS] – Rowen, the World’s Strongest Man? The Ignited Seas! Prelude to War!

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The World Economic News Agency’s News Coos delivered an explosive report to every corner of the sea.

The Fifth Emperor, Sky Sovereign Rowen, Attacked Enies Lobby!

The seat of the World Government’s highest court, a symbol of Absolute Justice where no criminal had ever been judged innocent—a fortress unbreached for 800 years!

And facing this Emperor’s assault, the island’s garrison was so utterly helpless they activated a Buster Call.

The term ’Buster Call’ was unfamiliar to many on the seas—even many within the Navy and World Government were unaware of its true meaning.

After all, once activated, a Buster Call completely annihilated its target location—all life, structures, and vegetation mercilessly destroyed. Naturally, few who witnessed it lived to tell the tale.

Though the World Economic News Agency didn’t detail the Buster Call’s origins, it did describe the deployed military force:

Led by Marine HQ Admiral Akainu.

With five Marine HQ Vice Admirals as its core strength.

Over 200 Elite officers of Captain rank or higher

Ten thousand Elite Marine soldiers!

And ten advanced warships, built in Water 7, capable of traversing the Calm Belt and battling giant Sea Kings!

The moment this deployment was detailed, the seas erupted in an uproar.

For most pirates, Marine HQ Vice Admirals were insurmountable mountains—opponents who typically faced Emperor crew commanders.

Even pirates with bounties over 100 million, considered ’Great Pirates’ by commonfolk, wouldn’t casually challenge a Vice Admiral!

And this force against Rowen included five Vice Admirals. Ten thousand elite Marines—Plus, Marine HQ Admiral Akainu, one of the World Government’s Strongest Combatants!

Such a military deployment could easily destroy an entire country!

An unbelievably terrifying military power…

Against Sky Sovereign Rowen and the Straw Hat Pirates—this was a horrifying, all-out war.

Everyone who read the report anxiously scanned down for the results.

And when they saw the outcome of this war—countless people across the seas were left utterly stunned…

Marine HQ Admiral, Akainu—DEFEATED!

Escaped with his life only through a desperate, pathetic retreat!

Of the five deployed Marine HQ Vice Admirals—Doberman and Strawberry were KILLED IN ACTION, by the hand of Sky Sovereign Rowen!

Vice Admiral Onigumo was defeated by Pirate Hunter Roronoa Zoro, aided by the former princess of Alabasta, Desert Princess Vivi—who now wielded the Sand-Sand Fruit ability of the former Warlord, Crocodile, thanks to the power of the man who can steal everything, Sky Sovereign Rowen!

Vice Admiral Yamakaji—defeated by Black Leg Sanji!

Only one Vice Admiral, Momonga, managed to retreat from the battlefield—and even Momonga was completely outmatched by Straw Hat Monkey D. Luffy; if not for the support of several Rear Admirals, Momonga too would have been defeated by Straw Hat.

The remaining Marine forces, against the rest of the Straw Hat crew, gained no advantage whatsoever.

After Admiral Akainu’s defeat, the entire Buster Call force was completely routed!

This terrifying military force… was almost completely annihilated!

This epic, all-out war—resulted in a complete and utter victory for the Fifth Emperor Sky Sovereign Rowen—and the Straw Hat Pirates!

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The moment the news broke, the seas were in an uproar.

Though Rowen had previously defeated an Admiral, that only spoke to his personal strength. The general perception of the Straw Hat Pirates was that they were a lucky rookie crew, sheltered under Rowen’s protection. Their high bounties were seen as a reflection of Rowen’s power, not their own.

But this time—WAS COMPLETELY DIFFERENT!

This was a battle against a frightening military force of over ten thousand elite Marines, one Admiral, and five Vice Admirals—A true all-out war!

Countless people across the seas stared at the reports, their hands trembling.

Why could the Emperors reign over the seas like true emperors? Besides their own overwhelming might, it was because they commanded terrifying forces.

Each Emperor’s crew controlled vast territories, essentially their own pirate kingdoms. A complete Emperor’s crew consisted not just of the Emperor, but also their second-in-command, their elite commanders—all renowned figures on the seas.

They were powerful combatants, no less than Admiral Candidates or Marine HQ Vice Admirals. And countless other pirate crews and nations pledged allegiance to their flags!

To declare war on a full Emperor’s crew wasn’t just fighting a single pirate—it was fighting a horrifying empire.

Previously, calling Rowen the Fifth Emperor was in recognition of his personal might. His standing wasn’t considered on par with the Four Emperors, who had reigned for years and commanded vast forces.

But now—it was completely different!

Though Rowen played the decisive role in this war, the Straw Hat Pirates defeating a military force composed of three Marine HQ Vice Admirals and thousands of elite soldiers—was an undeniable fact.

Such a battle record, combined with Rowen himself—this was a pirate crew on the level of an Emperor’s!

A true, Emperor-like, dreadful force had appeared on the seas again!

More terrifying still—Rowen and the Straw Hat Pirates had been formed for less than a year.

They hadn’t even finished traversing the first half of the Grand Line, hadn’t reached Sabaody Archipelago—yet they had become an Emperor-level pirate crew!

No wonder a man like Rowen chose this crew.

WHAT A SCARY POTENTIAL!!

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The news of Admiral Akainu’s defeat at Rowen’s hands, his pathetic retreat only possible through the desperate rescue by Vice Admiral Momonga, sent even greater shockwaves across the seas.

Marine HQ Admirals—there were only three!

They symbolized the absolute military might of Marine HQ, of the World Government itself—

Why were the Celestial Dragons so feared??? Besides their status as World Nobles, it was because harming them meant incurring the pursuit of a Marine Admiral!

For countless pirates, Marine Admirals were untouchable mountains, beings against whom they had no hope of resistance!

Yet two of the three Marine Admirals had now been defeated by Sky Sovereign Rowen!

Even with the prior news of Rowen defeating Aokiji, this latest development was still utterly shocking—

Countless Marines felt as if their sense of Justice had been shattered!

Within the Navy, the two main factions, the Doves and the Hawks—Aokiji was the leader of the Doves; Akainu, the leader of the Hawks.

Aokiji’s defeat already shook the confidence of the Dove faction.

Now, Akainu’s defeat—was a devastating blow to all Marines…

The leaders of both factions—defeated. This was, without exaggeration, a complete defeat for the entire Navy!

Sky Sovereign Rowen was just the Fifth Emperor; there were still the other Four, and the rising new generation of pirates!

Could their Navy still uphold Justice on these seas?

Following the successive defeats of Aokiji and Akainu, the morale of the entire Navy plummeted to its lowest point…

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And the select few on these seas who truly understood Akainu’s terrifying strength—were even more incredulous.

Though both were Marine Admirals, Aokiji, limited by his Ice-Ice Fruit’s lack of offensive power, was not on the same level as Akainu, who wielded the Magma-Magma Fruit, the Devil Fruit with the strongest offensive power!

Akainu—was a terrifying powerhouse capable of fighting head-on with a peak Emperor.

Even Kaido, hailed as the ’Strongest Creature’, couldn’t guarantee victory in a one-on-one death match against Akainu. The result of a battle at that level was always unpredictable. Yet Akainu—had been defeated by Sky Sovereign Rowen!

Sky Sovereign Rowen’s battle record was too scary, its significance too immense!

From his battle record alone, Rowen had already surpassed the Four Emperors!

Even Whitebeard, a legend from Roger’s era, hailed as the World’s Strongest Man, had no record of defeating two Marine Admirals one-on-one—

—After all, the Navy always held a numerical advantage against any single Emperor’s crew; when targeting an Emperor-level figure, they would deploy multiple Admirals!

But Rowen was special…

Because his Rumble-Rumble Fruit amplified his Observation Haki range, the Navy could only dispatch one Admiral at a time to hunt him!

This gave a pirate of Rowen’s caliber the environment for a one-on-one battle with an Admiral. Within the entire Navy, who else could defeat Rowen in a one-on-one fight??

Even the legendary Marine Hero, Garp, probably couldn’t achieve such a feat!

To defeat Akainu one-on-one, head-on—Sky Sovereign Rowen could now fully contend with Kaido for his other title ’Strongest One-on-One’!

On these seas, no one would say they could definitively win against Sky Sovereign Rowen in a one-on-one battle!

Not even a peak Emperor!

Sky Sovereign Rowen—was now not only the World’s Most Dangerous Man.

In many people’s eyes, Rowen could now also contend for the title of—the World’s Strongest Man!

After all, Whitebeard was a relic of a past era. At 72, though still revered, he was clearly past his prime. Otherwise, people wouldn’t speculate that Kaido might be the strongest one-on-one—

With such a brilliant battle record, Rowen certainly had the qualifications to contend for the title of World’s Strongest Man! Many ambitious figures even began to spread this slogan, hoping to incite conflict between Rowen and Whitebeard.

For them, the more chaotic the seas, the better—

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Red Hair Pirates’ territory.

“Unbelievable… Even Akainu was defeated by that man,” Benn Beckman exhaled a thick cloud of smoke, looking at the news report.

Even someone as composed as Beckman had shock in his eyes.

He knew Akainu’s strength all too well…

Even Shanks, in a one-on-one death match against Akainu, couldn’t guarantee victory. A battle at that level was decided by inches—

“Yes. That young man is astonishing. Hawk-Eyes’s judgment was truly sharp,” Shanks commented, equally impressed.

Back then, when Rowen had just made his name, Mihawk, after encountering the still-developing Rowen in the East Blue and clashing Haki, had said Rowen’s future Haki might surpass his own.

How much time had passed??

Rowen was now truly standing at the same height as them. Shanks acknowledged this fact. Sky Sovereign Rowen was a pirate on the same level as them—the Four Emperors!

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“But Luffy and the others’ growth… is also remarkably fast. Rowen must have had a hand in it,” Beckman added, smiling as he looked at the reports. He was very fond of Luffy and knew his potential.

But for Luffy, and the rest of the Straw Hats, to grow this quickly—was completely illogical. And that man, Sky Sovereign Rowen—was undoubtedly the one man on these seas most capable of breaking logic.

Whether in Devil Fruits or strength progression—Rowen had repeatedly shattered the history of the seas!

“Ah. Looks like we’ll be meeting soon, Luffy,” Shanks smiled.

“But right now, what worries me most—is Ace and Teach. I have a very bad feeling,” Shanks’s smile faded, his expression turning grim.

He hadn’t told Whitebeard about Teach’s true nature earlier because he knew Whitebeard’s character—he viewed his crew as his family above all else. Before Teach fully revealed his ambitions, Whitebeard still saw him as an important son.

Telling Whitebeard prematurely wouldn’t have been a warning; it would have been declaring war on the Whitebeard Pirates.

Shanks wouldn’t do something foolish. After Teach revealed his ambitions, Shanks personally went to the Whitebeard Pirates to try and stop Ace from pursuing him.

Unfortunately, he failed…

“We can only wait now. The situation is beyond our control. These seas… are about to erupt,” Beckman sighed, looking out at the ominous sky.

“Ah. We too… must prepare for war,” Shanks stated gravely.

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And on the Moby Dick, the Whitebeard Pirates were completely thrown into an uproar!

“TEACH!!!” Whitebeard roared, his eyes filled with fury.

In Marco’s hand, the Vivre Card representing Ace’s life force was wavering violently.

This meant—Ace was in trouble!

“Pops! Ace isn’t in life-threatening danger yet… but based on the Vivre Card’s condition… he’s likely been captured by Teach,” Marco reported, his face grim.

Red-Hair was right!

Ace, pursuing Blackbeard—had really gotten into trouble.

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