G-5 Base Commander: "Kichiku" Vergo

In the connecting passage between A and B-Block, Brownbeard lumbers forward with the Straw Hats and their allies riding on his back. He pants, "HAA HAA," while someone behind them says, "THEY SACRIFICED THE LAB TO LET THE GAS IN!!" The escape has not slowed. Nami urges, "WE CAN'T REST YET! LET'S HURRY IT UP, BROWNBEARD!!" but Brownbeard roars back, "WHEN DID YOU ALL SNEAK ABOARD!!" He complains, "YOU'RE AS HEAVY AS I THOUGHT!!" and the riders answer with little sympathy. "YEAH, SORRY. YOU'LL JUST HAVE TO BEAR IT...!!" someone says, while another admits, "BUT WE DON'T HAVE A CHOICE HERE!!" Brownbeard keeps dragging them anyway, furious that he has become transport: "WHAT A TERRIBLE EXCUSE!! GET THE HELL OFF ME!!!" The scene continues directly from the previous chapter: G-5's sacrifice bought the group passage into B-Block, but Shinokuni and Caesar's trap are still pressing from behind.

Brownbeard's endurance is nearly gone. He snaps, "GET OFF ME, YOU IDIOTS!!" then pants, "BUT AFTER RUNNING SO MUCH, I'VE BECOME QUITE SICK OF IT, THAT I HAVE!!" Kin'emon, still desperate to find his son, calls him formally: "BROWNBEARD-DONO, WAS IT?" and apologizes, "I REGRET THE INCONVENIENCE, BUT WITHOUT A MOMENT'S DELAY I MUST RESCUE MY SON MOMONOSUKE, THAT I MUST!" Around them the group catches its breath in the passage. Zoro decides, "NOW THAT WE'RE IN THE LAB, THIS COAT IS A BIT HOT," while someone worries, "BUT WHAT IF IT WERE TO GET COLD AGAIN?" Another answers, "YOU CAN HANG IT UP HERE." Sanji, exhausted and seated, says, "I'M PRETTY HUNGRY." Kin'emon insists with pride, "I AM A SAMURAI, SO I DO NOT HUNGER." Brownbeard tries to direct everyone forward: "IN ANY CASE, WE'VE GOT DIFFERENT GOALS HERE!! WHEN WE GET TO THE BARRACKS--" only to be interrupted by the people still riding him asking, "BROWNBEARD-SAN, DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING TO EAT?" He explodes, "SHUT THE HELL UP!!" and "I'M GONNA SHAKE YOU ALL OFF!!"

A map shows the same connecting passage between A and B-Block of the third laboratory: Brownbeard and the Straw Hat Crew are farther ahead, while Tashigi and G-5 remain behind near the closing gate. The G-5 Marines urge, "WE HAVE TO GO, CAPTAIN-CHAN!" but Tashigi cannot stop thinking about the danger Caesar has revealed. She says, "TO THINK THAT SUCH A WEAPON WAS DEVELOPED ON THE BLOCKADED PUNK HAZARD..." and understands the stakes: "IF WE IGNORE IT, THE THREAT COULD SPREAD TO THE REST OF THE WORLD...!!" The Marines agree that survival is not enough. "WE HAVE TO GET OFF THIS ISLAND AND REPORT TO HQ!!!" they shout, and one adds, "IF OUR UNIT DOESN'T MAKE IT BACK, THERE'LL BE NO ONE ELSE TO TELL THE STORY, CAPTAIN-CHAN!!" G-5, usually framed as reckless and crude, now sees itself carrying evidence of Shinokuni to the outside world.

Tashigi accepts the Marines' urgency: "I'M SORRY... I UNDERSTAND ALL THAT QUITE WELL... LET'S GO!!" But before they can move on, something appears above them. A Marine looks up and cries, "HOLD ON!! WHAT'S THAT UP BY THE CEILING!!?" Another shouts, "EH," and the next moment the creature drops through the air with a violent crash: "GYAH HHHHHH HHH!!!" The Marines stare at it in disbelief. "WHAT THE HELL!? WHAT IS THAT THING!!!" one yells. Another recognizes it from the Straw Hats' group: "THAT...!! ISN'T THAT THE THING THAT CAME IN WITH THE STRAWHAT CREW!!?" Someone asks, "WHEN DID IT COME THIS FAR...!?" and someone else guesses, "IT LOOKS LIKE A LIZARD OR SOMETHING!" Tashigi remembers the rumors: "I'VE HEARD ABOUT THIS. THERE ARE DRAGONS ON PUNK HAZARD!!!" The sedated creature that had been treated like baggage is now awake enough to become a new crisis in the passage.

The Marines panic at the word "DRAGONS!!?" and someone recalls Vegapunk's experiments: "THAT'S RIGHT. DR. VEGAPUNK DEVELOPED THE MYTHICAL BEASTS ARTIFICIALLY IN ORDER TO GUARD THIS ISLAND!!!" Another, remembering the smaller version they saw earlier, says, "BUT WHEN WE SAW IT BEFORE... IT WASN'T MAKING SUCH AN INTIMIDATING FACE, WAS IT!?" The dragon lunges, snapping its jaws as the soldiers shout, "THIS IS BAD, RUN AWAY!!!" and fire at it: "BANG!! BANG!!" Bullets and blows fail to stop it as the beast twists through the air. A Marine screams, "IT DODGED!!?" while the dragon whips back toward them. The soldiers' fear is practical: "RUN AWAY, TO B-BLOCK!!!" one shouts, while another cries that if they are bitten by that jaw, it is over. The awakened Momonosuke, still taken for a dangerous dragon, becomes both obstacle and omen as the escape route grows more chaotic.

The dragon barrels through the Marines as they scatter. One screams, "UOAH HHHHH HH!!!" and another warns, "RUN AWAY, TO B-BLOCK!!!" The soldiers try to explain their terror in a rush: "CRAP CRAP CRAP THAT'S STEEL!! IF ONE WERE TO GET BITTEN BY THAT JAW..." and "AND IT CAN BITE THROUGH STEEL!! WHAT'S WITH THIS MONSTER!!!" They add that it is not merely strong: "IT FLIES, IT'S SUPER-FAST, IT BREATHES FIRE." The page shows the dragon's body twisting overhead, jaws open, claws and tail tearing through the passage while the Marines fire and stumble below it. Their earlier confidence in numbers disappears. Now the group is trapped between Caesar's gas, the closing route, and a creature they believe is one of Vegapunk's artificial guardians.

The dragon surges over the Marines and then suddenly begins to retreat down the passage. Soldiers shout, "UWAHH HH!!!" and "EH?" as it leaves them behind. One asks, "IT PASSED US BY!!? IS IT RUNNING AWAY?" Another wonders, "DID SOMETHING SCARE IT?" Tashigi, watching the unexpected turn, is quietly puzzled: "...?" Then the G-5 Marines erupt in celebration for the wrong reason. "CAPTAIN TASHIGI!! REJOICE!!" they shout. "A STRONG REINFORCEMENT COME TO PUNK HAZARD!!" Another claims, "AH!! EH!? SERIOUSLY? I CAN'T BELIEVE IT!!" Tashigi, however, answers with guarded relief: "THANK GOD!! EVERYTHING'LL BE ALRIGHT NOW!!" The page shifts the threat from the dragon to the arrival the Marines believe will save them, setting up their mistaken faith in Vergo.

Vergo appears before G-5 like a commander returning to his men, and the Marines cheer wildly. One shouts, "CAPTAIN-CHAN, TAKE A LOOK!! VICE ADMIRAL VERGO HAS COME TO SAVE US!!!" Another remembers the missing communications: "BEFORE OUR DENDEN MUSHI WAS STOLEN, WE WERE ABLE TO CONNECT WITH SOMEONE!!" A third asks, "SO DOES HQ ALREADY KNOW ABOUT EVERYTHING, VICE ADMIRAL...!?" and another wonders, "WHAT SORT OF REINFORCEMENTS ARE WE GOING TO GET!!?" Their faith swells: "VICE ADMIRAL SMO-YAN AND VICE ADMIRAL VERGO!! WE'VE GOT G-5'S TWO BEST GUYS ASSEMBLED!! WE'LL BE UNBEATABLE!!" Tashigi recognizes him with alarm, "VERGO...!!" and the page closes on a darker truth. Vergo stands expressionless while someone off to the side warns, "NO...!! RUN AWAY, EVERYONE..." The man G-5 worships as a savior is the enemy already inside their ranks.

Vergo does not answer the cheering with protection. He moves through the G-5 Marines with brutal speed, striking them down as their caps, weapons, and bodies fly. The soldiers shout, "!!?" and "!?" as the attack lands. Someone asks, "EH...?" then cries, "GYAHH!!" Another says, "IT HURTS!!" The page is almost wordless because the betrayal is obvious in the action: Vergo stands calm in the center while his own supposed subordinates collapse around him, blood and debris marking each impact. The Marines who had just called him one of G-5's two best men are left unable to understand why their superior would suddenly turn on them. Tashigi's warning was correct, but it came too late for the soldiers closest to him.

The stunned Marines try to make sense of Vergo's betrayal. One says, "V-V-VICE ADMIRAL VERGO, I KNOW THEY SCREWED UP, BUT...!?" while another pleads that if they are hit by his Shigan, "WE'LL..." A Marine warns, "EVEN IF YOU'RE GOING TO DISH OUT CORPORAL PUNISHMENT," but Vergo's strikes continue and someone cries, "GYAH HHHH." The scene folds into memory. In the G-5 base, Vergo once welcomed Smoker with measured politeness: "WELCOME, I'VE HEARD ABOUT YOU COMMODORE SMOKER. I LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU." He described the unit with false warmth: "THE MEN OF G-5 ARE A ROUGH BUNCH OF FOOLS. BUT IF YOU GET TO KNOW THEM, YOU'LL SEE THAT THEY'RE NOT AS BAD AS PEOPLE SAY." He added, "I SUSPECT YOU'LL COME TO SEE THEM AS YOUR DEAR LITTLE UNDERLINGS. IN TIME." Another Marine recalls him kindly: "SOMETIMES HE JUST PICKS UP AND HEADS BACK TO HIS HOMETOWN!! HE GOES TO CARE FOR HIS SICK LITTLE SISTER..." Against those memories, the present is grotesque: Vergo is beating those same men without hesitation.

The memory continues with Vergo covering up Caesar's crimes. Smoker confronts him: "VICE ADMIRAL VERGO, CONCERNING THE REPORT ABOUT KIDNAPPED CHILDREN FROM THE OTHER DAY..." Vergo replies smoothly, "AH... WE LOOKED INTO IT EXTENSIVELY AND IT SEEMS TO HAVE BEEN ANOTHER FALSE REPORT." In the present, Vergo looks at the wounded Marines and says, "CAN YOU REALLY CALL YOURSELVES MARINES!?" then claims responsibility for the disaster: "THERE'S NO EXCUSE. I TAKE FULL RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE BLUNDER OF MY MEN!! WE WILL HELP YOU HOWEVER WE CAN...!!" The hypocrisy is sharpened by another memory, where Vergo explains the logic behind hiding kidnappings: "THE DEATH OF A CHILD IS FAR TOO HARD FOR ANY PARENT TO BEAR. CLINGING TO THE HOPE THAT IT MAY SIMPLY BE A KIDNAPPING ALLOWS THEM TO LIVE ON." Tashigi, now certain, answers the Marines' shock: "...IS THAT SO. YOU'LL UNDERSTAND TOO, IF YOU EVER BECOME A PARENT." In the present she draws her blade and yells, "EVERYONE GET AWAY!" because "THAT MAN IS NO LONGER THE ONE YOU ONCE KNEW!!!"

Tashigi moves to stop Vergo herself. She tells the others that he has been this way "FOR A LONG TIME NOW..." and one of the Marines shouts, "CAPTAIN-CHAN!!!" Her sword flashes, but Vergo's counterattack is overwhelming. He knocks her down with a heavy blow, the impact sending her body crashing through the passage as she screams, "AHH!!!" The G-5 soldiers cry out, "CAPTAIN-CHAN!!" and try to reject what they have seen. "THIS GUY'S AN IMPOSTOR!!!" one shouts. Another insists, "THERE'S NO WAY VERGO-SAN WOULD DO SOMETHING LIKE THIS!!!" A third tries to explain it away: "IS IT A DISGUISE!? IS HE AN ABILITY USER!? IT'S GOTTA BE AN IMITATION!!" But Tashigi's words and Vergo's violence leave no real doubt: the beloved Vice Admiral himself has been the traitor all along.

The G-5 Marines still refuse to abandon their image of Vergo. One says, "HE'S A GUY WHO ALWAYS STICKS UP EVEN FOR A BUNCH OF GOOD-FOR-NOTHING SOLDIERS LIKE US..." Another cries, "HE'S HUMANE AND JUST!!! SO DROP THE ACT, PHONY!!" Their denial breaks as Vergo keeps striking and Tashigi is unable to move. She gasps, "I CAN'T SPEAK..." and pleads weakly, "PLEASE STOP..." The Marines finally call beyond him for the one man they now trust to oppose Vergo: "HELP US, SMOKER-SAN!!!" Then a sudden kick crashes into Vergo. He turns with "WHO'S THIS," while the newcomer hangs in the air and says, "A LADY IS..." The next page reveals the answer, but here the important beat is rescue: someone from the Straw Hat side has heard Tashigi's tears and intervened before Vergo can continue crushing her.

Sanji lands between Vergo and Tashigi, completing the line he began as he arrives: "CALLING OUT FOR ME!!!" The Marines stare in shock: "S-S-STRAWHAT CREW!!" and "WHY IS A PIRATE...!?" Sanji's face is hard and angry as he says, "I HEARD THE FALL OF A WOMAN'S TEARS." Nearby, Luffy and others are shown reacting from elsewhere in the passage, while Vergo watches this unexpected interference. Sanji has not come because of strategy or alliance formalities; he moved because Tashigi was hurt and crying. The page reframes the fight: G-5 called for Smoker, but the first person to answer Tashigi's distress is Sanji, stepping directly into Vergo's path.

In B-Block, the "patrons of the Brownbeard Bus" keep moving. Someone notices, "SANJI SUDDENLY GOT A LOOK ON HIS FACE AND JUMPED AWAY." Another explains, "IT'S BECAUSE AN UNFAMILIAR PRESENCE APPEARED BEHIND US." Even as they move on, the dragon returns to attention. One person says, "THAT...!! IT'S THE DRAGON FROM BEFORE!!" Another adds, "BUT IT LOOKS BIT A DIFFERENT." Nami recognizes the creature's changed expression: "THOSE EYES...!!!" Brownbeard realizes why it is active again: "OF COURSE! THE SEDATIVE MUST HAVE WORN OFF." He explains the difference between this dragon and the earlier one: "HAA... HAA... THE SMALLER ONES ARE EVOLVED MODELS THAT WERE DEVELOPED LATER. IT'S QUICKER AND ITS BODY IS HARDER!! IT'S MOVING IN TO ATTACK!!!" The drugged creature they dragged along has awakened into a fast, dangerous dragon, and the group is still stuck riding Brownbeard through the lab.

A route map shows two simultaneous movements. Brownbeard's group is "MAKING A MAD DASH AND GOING AHEAD OF EVERYONE - LUFFY AND SMOKER," while another path is labeled "TAKING THE SHORTEST PATH THROUGH B-BLOCK AND HEADING TO ATTACK CAESAR'S RESEARCH ROOM." At Caesar's research room, Caesar watches the screens in fury and asks, "WHAT HAS THAT BASTARD VERGO GONE AND DONE!!!" He complains, "THE MEN OF G-5 WERE A NECESSARY PART OF MY EXPERIMENT!! THAT IDIOT! THERE'S NO POINT IF THEY'RE NOT KILLED BY SHINOKUNI!!" Monet notes, "WITH VERGO IN THERE TOO?" Caesar snaps, "YOU THINK I CARE ABOUT THAT MORON'S LIFE?! DO IT!!!" He orders the next stage of the trap: "HURRY UP AND SEAL THEM IN THE PASSAGE, AND THEN OPEN THE OTHER GATE TO LET IN THE GAS!!!" Caesar is now ready to sacrifice Vergo, G-5, and anyone else in the passage if it makes his experiment look correct for the watching brokers.

Two scenes converge. On the right, Law and Smoker prepare themselves. Smoker is winded, coughing, and Law asks, "YOU ALRIGHT?" Smoker answers, "NO I'M NOT!! JUST HOLD UP THERE, YOU... HAA... HAA...!! I... I RAN SO FAST THAT THE GROUND CAUGHT ON FIRE!! HAA... HAA..." Law presses the timing: "RIGHT. YOU READY?" Smoker tells him, "HAA... JUST WAIT UNTIL I SAY 'GO.'" Law says, "I SAID HOLD ON!" Smoker notices something and yells, "HEY!! I DIDN'T SAY 'GO' YET!!" Law answers while pushing forward, "IT'S FINE. VERGO IS MY OPPONENT...!! HAA... YEAH I GOT IT... AND I'LL BE TAKING CAESAR. SO DON'T GET IN MY WAY!! HAA." Luffy, however, has already rushed ahead, saying, "HAA... OKAY, I'M GETTING THERE." He notices Law and Smoker behind him and mutters, "AH. IT'S MY GUY." Then the entire left side erupts as Luffy crashes into Caesar's room riding the dragon, screaming, "YOU WON'T GET AWAY AGAIN!!" Caesar panics at the impossible arrival: "URGG HHHHHHH HHHHH!! CAAAAAEEEEE EESAR!!!" The page ends with Luffy physically bringing the chase straight to Caesar.

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