Chapter 86: Bombardment

Nami could distinctly sense that, upon entering the Calm Belt, the atmosphere aboard the warship had changed. The sailors who once joked and played in the East Sea were now alert and ready, prepared to face danger at any moment.

According to Pengeles, even the Navy couldn't guarantee absolute safety in the Calm Belt without a vice admiral leading the way. Those colossal sea kings were terrifying to the vast majority of people.

Influenced by this tense mood, Nami became nervous herself, unwilling to relax her guard.

As for Roland...

He remained as lethargic as ever. Since leaving Loguetown, they hadn’t encountered any pirates or unexpected incidents, making the journey dull for him. After finishing his daily training, Roland would simply drag a lounge chair under a parasol and bask in the sun.

Seeing Roland’s lazy attitude, Nami sighed, unsure from whom he had picked up such habits. She walked over, grabbed Roland’s ear, and said earnestly, “Roland, even if you’re bored, you don’t need to be so relaxed, do you? The sailors below are all watching you!”

“Hey, Nami, let go first. I have my reasons for doing this,” Roland explained, rubbing his ear. “You know, since we entered the Calm Belt, the sailors have been on edge. If this keeps up, they might be exhausted before we even reach Impel Down.”

“I’m doing this to reassure them. With a colonel like me here, they don’t need to worry about anything, unless I die.”

“Don’t say such things,” Nami rolled her eyes at him, reluctantly accepting the explanation.

Although she didn’t know the extent of Roland’s strength, from what Zoro had said—that Roland could easily defeat Smoker, the Loguetown colonel—it was clear Roland was stronger than a colonel, and perhaps could even contend with a vice admiral.

Pengeles had said that without a vice admiral leading, absolute safety couldn’t be guaranteed. Since Roland’s strength was close to that level, why should they be so tense? Wasn’t it just a waste of energy?

With these thoughts, Nami sought out Pengeles and relayed Roland’s reasoning to him. Pengeles agreed—it wasn’t beneficial for sailors to remain constantly tense.

Though they had managed so far, everyone preferred a bit of ease where possible.

After Pengeles conveyed Roland’s intentions to the sailors, their gazes toward Roland became noticeably more respectful. Who wouldn’t appreciate a commander who cared for his subordinates and was always willing to stand at the forefront?

With lighter spirits, the sailors worked more efficiently, and the warship’s speed increased noticeably.

“Colonel Roland, at our current pace, we should reach Impel Down by tomorrow evening. After passing through the Gate of Justice and riding the Triangle Current, it will only take thirty minutes to reach Marineford.”

Pengeles approached Roland to report.

“So fast? I recall it took you half a month to get from Marineford to the East Sea,” Roland said, puzzled.

“That’s because the Triangle Current is one-way. From Impel Down to Marineford, then Marineford to Judicial Island, and Judicial Island back to Impel Down—it’s downstream, so the speed is very quick. But going the other way, you have to detour,” Pengeles explained.

Roland nodded. So the establishment of the three major institutions had considered all of this. The founders of the World Government were certainly not fools.

Judicial Island served as the judicial center; if danger arose, the Navy Headquarters could quickly send reinforcements, and prisoners could be sent directly to Impel Down via the Triangle Current.

Impel Down was built within the Calm Belt; if prisoners escaped, they’d either have to cross the Calm Belt or use the Triangle Current to reach Navy Headquarters. But choosing the latter would be walking straight into a trap.

“Colonel Roland, Major Pengeles, there’s another warship in the waters ahead. It bears no insignia; we don’t yet know whose ship it is.”

A sailor rushed over to report.

“A warship—not a pirate ship—so there’s no need to make a fuss. No insignia means a major general or colonel is on a mission; we don’t need to pay much attention,” Pengeles said with a helpless smile, shaking his head.

“But the lookout observed their cannons are aimed at us!” the sailor explained.

“What did you say?” Pengeles’s expression changed dramatically. He strode toward the lookout, speaking in a stern voice, “You know what it means to falsely accuse a fellow officer, don’t you?”

“No need to check, Pengeles. They’ve already opened fire. It seems the Navy isn’t as harmonious as it appears—their warship is clearly targeting us,” Roland said, somehow already at the edge of the deck, holding his short sword.

As several black dots appeared in the sky, Roland unleashed his observation haki, tracking the trajectory of the shells. With a single dark crimson flying slash, he struck them down one by one.

“A flying slash?” Pengeles was astonished. As a swordsman himself, he understood better than anyone what a flying slash implied.

But after his surprise, Pengeles’s expression turned grim. He clenched his teeth, glaring at the distant warship, and said in a low voice, “What’s wrong with these people? They dare attack us directly here?”

“Isn’t this the best place to do it?” Roland actually smiled, sending another flying slash to intercept incoming shells.

Pengeles fell silent, understanding what Roland meant.

Just as he’d said before, any warship passing through the Calm Belt without a vice admiral at the helm couldn’t guarantee absolute safety. So if something happened here and no one survived, Headquarters would simply chalk it up to an accident, not an internal conflict.

In fact, even Pengeles himself wouldn’t have believed another Navy warship would attack their own unless he saw it with his own eyes.

“Pengeles, order the entire ship to prepare for battle. Non-combat personnel should retreat to the safety chamber.”

“Whether you like it or not, this fight must happen, because I am responsible for my sailors.”

“If they hadn’t started it, I’d have no reason to fight them. Do you understand?”

Roland fixed his gaze on Pengeles, his eyes resolute, his tone brooking no refusal.

“Yes, Colonel Roland.” Pengeles immediately took Roland’s orders and relayed them to all ranks.

The enemy had come prepared; this battle was unavoidable, regardless of his wishes.

Just as Colonel Roland said, it wasn’t for himself, but for the sailors below.

Their act of firing first had already made their intentions clear.

“Colonel Roland, there’s someone on the sea!” a sailor suddenly shouted.

“Someone?” Roland frowned and looked out, spotting a figure that immediately unsettled him—a man in a Navy uniform, with a Justice cloak draped across his shoulders.

“That—that’s Vice Admiral Tucci!”