The natural system started off strong, but the navy finally reached its peak!

Vice Admiral Sakazuki single-handedly destroys the pirate fleet of Captain John, a former member of the Rocks Pirates.

Captain John himself escaped severely wounded but was killed by his men for the treasure.

......

The twilight in Marineford always seems exceptionally long.

As Gern walked back to his residence, the Black Blade Eight Desolations swayed gently at his waist with each step.

As he passed the training ground, he saw Zephyr giving extra training to his students.

"Hey, Professor Zephyr," Gern called from leaning against the railing, "You can go home now! Let them go eat! The cafeteria's almost out of food!"

Hearing Gern's voice, Zephyr stopped what he was doing and turned around. "You brat! How could the Navy mess hall possibly be short of food!"

"Hahaha!"

"What are you laughing at? You should have received your mission by now, right?"

"Bondy Wald".

"Is it him..." A hint of surprise flashed in Zephyr's eyes. "When do we leave?"

"Tomorrow at dawn." Gern turned and left, Zepha's voice drifting on the wind behind him.

"You brat, watch your step. The power of the Momo-Momo Fruit is not easy to deal with..."

"My strength is not bad at all, Teacher Zephyr."

"No matter how strong you are, in my heart you'll always be that guy who complains about how tough and tiring it is during training!"

……

As night fell, Gern stood on his balcony, gazing towards the direction of the new world.

He laid the Black Blade Eight Desolations flat on his lap, the grayish-white bandages gleaming coldly in the moonlight.

“Wald…” he murmured the name, his fingers unconsciously tracing the blade.

The bandage suddenly trembled slightly, as if responding to his thoughts.

Behind him, Libo was enthusiastically stuffing carrot cookies into her backpack, her bunny ears standing up high with excitement.

"Gern! Does the New World have carrots that glow and are edible?"

“No,” Gern replied without turning his head, “but there is a guy who can make carrots a hundred times bigger.”

"Huh?! One, a hundred times?!" Ribo's eyes lit up instantly.

"Then you can make a giant carrot cake!"

Gern finally turned around, looked at Libo's innocent smiling face, and couldn't help but laugh: "Yes, a giant cake..."

His gaze passed over Lippo and fell on the New World chart hanging on the wall, the red markings as glaring as bloodstains in the moonlight.

"Enough to feed the whole of Marineford."

Chapter 168 The Long-Awaited 'Mission' Sets Sail

At dawn the following day, Marineford was shrouded in a thin mist, and the sea shimmered like a giant mirror.

Gern's private warship was docked at the pier, its hull black, its masts towering, and the banner of justice fluttering in the morning breeze.

Libo stood on the deck early, her bunny ears swaying gently in the sea breeze, her pink eyes filled with excitement.

She carried a bulging little backpack covered in carrot patterns, and for the first time, she had two carrot-shaped daggers clipped to her waist.

"Gern! Hurry up!" Lippo shouted into the cabin, "If you dawdle any longer, the sun will be out in the sun!"

"Coming, coming," Gern's lazy voice came from inside the cabin.

He wore a cloak of justice, with the Black Blade Eight Desolations casually hanging at his waist, looking as if he hadn't woken up yet.

Tesoro followed behind him, holding a stack of documents, his brow furrowed, clearly already pondering the details of the mission.

"Hmm?" Gern frowned, noticing the two carrot daggers on Libo's waist. "Libo, are you planning to use dual swords?"

"What dual-wielding?! I'd rather bite one in my mouth and call it triple-wielding!"

I'm doing this just in case, so I have a spare dagger if I lose it!

"Hmph ╯^╰," Gern doesn't understand at all!

Seeing Libo pouting angrily, Gern scratched his head and laughed, "Haha, I forgot that this seems to be the first time you two have participated in such a big mission!"

"Major General Guern, is it only now that you've realized it?" Tesoro sighed.

"Haha, oh dear! No need to be so nervous! Let's set off!" Gern laughed and waved his hand, and the warship slowly sailed away from the port.

The outline of Marineford gradually blurred in the morning mist, eventually disappearing below the horizon.

……

During the voyage, on the deck of the warship

A sea breeze caressed my face, and sunlight streamed onto the deck, casting a golden halo.

Libo lay on the gunwale, holding a fishing rod in her hand, the fishing line dangling into the sea, swaying gently with the waves.

"Gern, do you think we can catch a fish that glows?" Libo asked, tilting her head, her rabbit ears perked up and trembling slightly with anticipation.

"Only deep-sea fish can glow; we are still in shallow waters."

Gern leaned against the railing, a fishing rod in his hand, and said lazily, "But what if there are some lost deep-sea fish?"

"Then I'll keep it!" Lipo's eyes lit up. "I'll put it in my room so I won't need to turn on the lights at night!"

Guern couldn't help but laugh: "Your room is already bright enough. If you keep glowing fish, I'm afraid you'll be woken up in the middle of the night by the light."

The two chatted casually, not at all like they were about to embark on a dangerous mission.

Tezzolo stood not far away, flipping through Bondi Wald's intelligence, his brows furrowing deeper and deeper.

"Sergeant," Tesoro suddenly spoke, "Wald's pirate ship 'Gua' is more than the ships of ordinary pirate crews."

It was equipped with many more naval cannons, presumably to amplify its power a hundredfold, in conjunction with its Devil Fruit ability.

Can our warships withstand the attack?

Upon hearing Tesoro's words, the sergeant paused for a moment, then straightened his back: "Reporting to Warrant Officer Tesoro!"

Our warships are the latest models from headquarters, and their armor has been specially reinforced.

But if it were a bombardment with a hundred times the power... there would probably still be damage.

Tesoro nodded, pondered for a moment, and then said, "Then try to avoid direct artillery fire."

We need to use our maneuverability to flank them, and after Rear Admiral Guern draws the attention of his captain, our priority is to destroy their gun emplacements.

"Us?" The sergeant's eyes lit up, and he immediately took out a nautical chart and spread it on the deck.

“Lieutenant Tezzolo, you see, if we cut in from this area and use the ocean currents to accelerate, we can quickly approach their starboard side…”

Tezzolo listened attentively, offering suggestions from time to time.

The sergeant became more and more excited as he spoke, even getting a little teary-eyed. Finally, someone was taking the mission deployment seriously!

And this long-lost sense of engagement in the mission is really, really great!

In the afternoon, at the warship's dining hall

At lunchtime, Lippo happily sat down opposite Guern, carrying a full plate of carrot dishes.

"Gern, look! The carrot stew smells amazing today!" She picked up a piece of carrot with her fork and offered it to Gern. "Try it!"

Gern reluctantly opened his mouth to catch it, chewed it a couple of times, and nodded: "Hmm, not bad."

Tesoro sat to the side, with documents spread out in front of him, and bread dipped in milk in his hand, studying the information on the members of World's pirate crew as he ate.

“Wald’s core leadership consists of four people,” he said, pointing to the document.

"Besides his most important brother Binjak, there's also the fishman Sebastian, the swordsman Najenda, and the sniper Guyram."

Each of them is a force to be reckoned with. With Major General Gern holding Wald back, we should be the ones to deal with the other officers!

"Fishmen?" Ribo's ears perked up. "Like the fishmen on Fishman Island?"

"More or less." Tesoro nodded, recalling the punch he took from Tiger on Fishman Island.

"Sebastian is a pure combatant, skilled in fishman karate, and is said to be able to tear through the armor of a warship with his bare hands."

In short, we can't let him go into the water. We're both Devil Fruit users; if we let a fish-man like him go into the sea, we'll be the ones in trouble. So we need to deal with him first.

"Wow!" Lipo's eyes lit up. "Is his fist harder than Gern's?"

Gern raised an eyebrow: "Want to give it a try?"

"No!" Lippo immediately shrank back, muttering, "Your fists hurt so much..."

“Those two didn’t listen at all…” Tesoro sighed, but couldn’t help laughing as he looked at Gern.

Perhaps it is because of his presence that we have the greatest confidence.

Thinking of this, Tesoro's expression quickly returned to seriousness: "In short, we cannot be careless in this mission."

Wald's abilities are too dangerous; we must devise a meticulous plan.

Gern put down his fork, wiped his mouth, and said, "The plan is simple—find him, beat him up, and bring him back."

Tesoro: "..."

Sergeant: "..."

Libo raised her hand: "Can I help beat him up?"

Gern rubbed her head: "Of course, but you have to make sure you don't get sent flying by his hundred-times-faster punch."

"No problem!" Libo confidently waved her little fist. "I'm a champion of justice!"

As evening fell, the setting sun dyed the sea golden.

Gern stood alone at the bow of the ship, his black sword, Eight Desolations, trembling slightly at his waist.

He glanced down at the blade; the grayish-white bandages gleamed strangely in the setting sun.

"What are you hiding..." he muttered to himself, his fingers gently tracing the hilt of the knife.

Footsteps sounded behind him, and Tezzolo walked over, carrying two cups of hot tea.

"Major General Gern, have some tea." He handed one of the cups to Gern.

Gern took it, sipped it, and said, "Thanks."

Tesoro hesitated for a moment before speaking, "Major General, this mission..."

“You’ve arranged everything perfectly, Tesoro.” Gern looked into the distance, a slight smile playing on his lips.

"With you around, I'm having a really comfortable time being a hands-off boss!"

Tesoro was silent for a moment, then suddenly laughed: "That's because you give me the biggest guarantee of confidence!"

After all, you're the kind of person who dared to go head-to-head with even the Knights of God.

“Hahaha!” Gern laughed. “That’s right, a mere ‘World Destroyer’ is nothing to worry about.”

Amid laughter, the warship cut through the waves and sailed toward the new world.

Seagulls circled above the mast, their cries blending with the sound of the waves, as if playing the prelude to this adventure.

Libo suddenly appeared, holding up a giant carrot: "Gern! Look! The kitchen uncle made me a giant carrot!"

Gern raised an eyebrow: "Are you planning to kill Wald with a carrot?"

"No, that's not it!" Libo huffed, taking a bite. "This is spare rations!"

Tesoro shook his head helplessly, but there was a hint of a smile in his eyes.

The sergeant stood not far away, watching this scene, and felt inexplicably at ease.

"Major General Gern, this is a 'long-awaited' mission!"

Chapter 169 Fight

One week later, in the New World, in the waters off Hatchinos Island...