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

So…” Aaron raised the gun in his hand, the cold muzzle pointed at Bellemere’s forehead.

"Die for a pointless love!!"

"Is that so?" Bellemere was not afraid of Arlong at all, and instead threw Nami and Noki into the house.

Nami and Noji cried out in heart-wrenching sobs, "Bellmere!! No!!"

"Nami, Nojiko."

"I love you all!"

Seeing this, all the villagers closed their eyes, unable to bear to watch any longer.

Just when everyone thought a shot had been fired, a sound shattered everything...

"Hey, long-nosed sawtooth shark."

A calm male voice, devoid of any discernible emotion, suddenly rang out in the room.

"Bullying women and children... is this the 'pride' you brought from Fishman Island?"

Upon hearing the sound, the villagers instinctively opened their eyes and looked in that direction.

A tall figure draped in a pure white "Justice" cloak stood there quietly, seemingly out of nowhere.

Sunlight filtered through the orange tree branches, casting dappled shadows on him, highlighting the word "justice" behind him.

In the blood-soaked air, it appeared so glaring, yet so... reassuring.

Gern has arrived.

.......

When that calm voice reached his ears, Ah Long's expression changed, and his body trembled slightly.

The finger on the trigger froze instantly, unable to move, and cold sweat broke out on his forehead.

"Impossible! How could that man... that monster possibly appear in the East China Sea?! In a place like this?!"

"A hallucination! It must be a hallucination!! He should be at Marine Headquarters, in the New World! He absolutely cannot be here!!!"

Ah Long dared not turn back, and could only frantically comfort himself in his heart, trying to dispel the fear that came from the depths of his soul.

Bellemere, lying on the ground, looked up at the tall figure standing behind Aaron, backlit and completely shrouding Aaron in shadow.

His lips trembled slightly, almost unable to believe his eyes, and he murmured subconsciously, "Gern... Major General..."

Gern's gaze shifted slightly forward, landing on Bellemere. Seeing her disheveled state, a gentle smile appeared on his face.

“The 'roses' of Cocoyasia won’t wither so easily in a place like this, Bellemere.”

At the same time, when Aaron clearly heard the word "Gern" from Bellemere's mouth, his last shred of hope was completely shattered.

Extreme fear instantly transformed into a desperate, frantic madness!

"Ughhhhh!!!" Ah Long's face contorted as he let out a roar and abruptly turned around, ready to attack.

Unfortunately, Gern didn't give him any chance at all!

The instant Arlong's body turned even slightly, his left hand shot out, instantly covering him with jet-black Armament Haki.

It grabbed Ah Long's signature serrated nose like a pair of iron clamps!

"Ah!" A sharp pain shot through Ah Long, abruptly interrupting his movements.

“You bastard…” Gern’s tone was icy, his gaze fixed on Aaron’s face contorted in pain, devoid of any pity.

"This is... a complete and utter insult to Fisher Tiger!"

Before he finished speaking, Gern clenched his right hand, his arm muscles bulging, without using any Devil Fruit power.

It was simply a combination of pure physical strength and Armament Haki, which was fiercely blasted towards Arlong's face!

"Bang!!!!"

A dull, explosive sound!

Ah Long's proudly hard teeth, capable of biting through steel, shattered instantly like glass in the face of this absolute power, flying away!

His entire face was visibly dented from the point where the fist landed!

Before he could even let out a complete scream, his body flew backward off the ground like a tattered sack thrown with all his might.

It traced an arc in the air, then crashed heavily onto the ground in the distance with a loud "boom".

"Ahhh!" After landing, Ah Long convulsed, covering his face and screaming repeatedly.

Quiet.

A deathly silence.

Everyone was stunned by what happened in the blink of an eye, by the absolutely overwhelming power.

In their minds, strength meant monsters; they couldn't even withstand a single punch from that man!

And Gern slowly withdrew his fist, flicked his wrist, as if he had only done a trivial thing.

Chapter 377 The Dying Mad Dog Actually Has Some Brains Than I Expected

Ah Long, who had fallen to the ground, did not try to resist, nor did he even have the thought of struggling.

Because he knew better than anyone that any resistance against this man was futile and would only hasten and uglier his death...

So Ah Long, as if resigned to his fate, just lay down in the shallow crater he had created.

Gazing at the azure sky over the East China Sea, he let out a laugh filled with despair and madness.

"Hehehe... Hahahaha!!"

Meanwhile, none of the fish-men from the Arlong Pirates, who were originally fierce and menacing, dared to move an inch, or even breathe loudly.

Because the person in front of you is "Skyquake" Gern!

It is the absolute being that no one on the entire Fishman Island dares to offend simply by virtue of its name and flag!

Ignoring the stares of others, Gern strode over to the collapsed Aaron, his eyes lowered, coldly looking down at him.

"You've wanted to kill me all along, haven't you?" Aaron stopped laughing, his bloodshot eyes fixed on Gern from bottom to top, his tone mocking.

"On Fishman Island, at Tiger's tombstone"

Your eyes... they already told me back then!

“Yes.” Gern said expressionlessly, his tone flat: “So what?”

"How about it? Haha!" Ah Long's voice suddenly turned shrill, as if he had heard something amusing.

"It seems I, Arlong, will ultimately die at the hands of you lowly humans, just like Brother Tiger! Hahahaha!!"

Aaron now sees himself as a "martyr" like his older brother Tiger, facing death with a twisted sense of "pride".

However, faced with Aaron's self-righteous and tragic "sacrifice," Gern merely let out a cold sneer.

"hehe."

"You are not worthy to mention Fisher Tiger's name."

“I told you, you insulted him.”

"Why don't I deserve it?!" Hearing this, Ah Long roared excitedly like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, aggravating the wound on his face and causing it to bleed even more.

"Brother Tiger hated humans until his death!"

He died with endless hatred for you! All because of you lowly creatures…”

“I won’t judge your experiences; you have the right to hate humanity.” Gern interrupted him, his voice low.

"Because Tiger was indeed severely injured due to the betrayal of humans, and eventually died."

That's something I can't refute.

His words startled Ah Long.

"But he!! Fisher Tiger, even with all the hatred and pain in his heart..."

His knife, his defiant fist, will only ever be swung against the strong, against the oppressors, against the very rules of this twisted world!

Gern's gaze swept over the trembling villagers around him, and over Bellemere's bloodstained hands.

His gaze swept over Nami and Nojiko's still-terrified faces, finally settling back on Arlong, filled with undisguised contempt.

"Instead of doing what you do, wantonly venting your so-called hatred and cruelty on innocent civilians who are weaker than you!"

You satisfy your pathetic vanity and so-called revenge by bullying the weak!

“You are not inheriting Tiger’s will, you are defiling his soul!”

You, Ah Long, are not worthy to be compared to him at all!

"I'm not worthy, then you..." Ah Long opened his mouth, his broken teeth, covered in blood and foam, grinding together with a cracking sound.

He wanted to refute, to curse the man before him who had completely rejected him with the most vicious language.

But Gern didn't give him a chance to speak at all!

"Then let's go climb it!!"

From his vantage point, Gern said, “Like Fisher Tiger, use your flesh and blood to climb that ten-thousand-meter-high red earth continent with your bare hands!”

Launch an attack on the supreme ruler of the world, who sits atop the clouds and proclaims himself a god!

"And you?! What are you doing here?!"

How dare you swagger around and collect your ridiculous 'head tax' from these unarmed villagers of the East China Sea who don't even know what 'dominance' is!

Do you really believe that you are inheriting Tiger's will?!

"Did Fisher Tiger really teach you to do this?!"

During the Sun Pirates' voyage, did he, like you, wield his sword against any innocent village, bullying any weak civilian?!

Fisher Tiger, who hated humanity to the core, yet suppressed that hatred and pain deep within his heart, directing his anger only at the strong and injustice.

Aside from the outburst of betrayal at the very last moment of his life...

Has he ever done even one thing... as despicable and vile as what you're doing now?!

"Hahahaha!!!" Faced with Gern's barrage of questions that tore apart all his pretense and self-deception,

Ah Long let out a hysterical laugh, a laugh filled with a kind of paranoid madness.

"My most respected older brother... died right in front of me!!"

Before his death, he abandoned the goal he had upheld and fought for throughout his life, refusing to accept human blood!

"How am I supposed to think?! How can I accept this?!" Ah Long roared, "I believe I did nothing wrong!!"

Since Tiger's path of 'coexistence' is not viable, then let's use fear and bloodshed to make humanity realize its true worth!

This is the path we fishmen should take!

As he spoke, Aaron's pupils contracted sharply. With his last ounce of strength, he gripped the corner of Gern's cloak of justice tightly, and with a forced effort, lifted his bloodied head, bringing it close to Gern.

In a voice only the two of them could hear, filled with utter resentment and a chilling, knowing laugh, he hissed...

"And also, I... will never agree with your nonsense!"

"I just did what Brother Tiger wanted to do... but didn't dare to!"

"Stop pretending! Right now...aren't you just putting on a show for my men?"

Let them watch how you 'fairly' try me, how you 'reasonably and justifiably' execute me... Those idiots probably already believe you!

When they return to Fishman Island, they'll be spreading tales of your 'brilliance,' General Gern, and my 'damn it!'"

As he spoke, Ah Long coughed up blood, his eyes hardening with resolve: "So... do it! Give me a quick death! Let your 'justice' performance be complete!"

Upon hearing this, Gern's eyes narrowed slightly.

"The dying mad dog is actually a bit smarter than I thought."

So Gern casually flicked his left hand, shaking off Arlong's fingers that were gripping the cloak.

He then looked down at Ah Long, his face showing no sign of anger, only a cold indifference.

"As you wish," Gern said calmly.