I'd be happy about a vote!
---
Along with the crimson smoke, the massive spiritual web enveloped all the marines, pressing them firmly to the ground, rendering them immobile.
"A Devil Fruit user!!!"
A marine cried out in shock.
But the very next second, he was forced down by an invisible pressure, grinding his face against the ground.
"Sorry about this, soldiers."
Standing behind the spiritual net, Kyle smiled as he stepped on a soldier's head with one foot and said:
"For the sake of your lives, you'd better just stay quiet and wait for a while."
As his words fell, he continued stepping over the marines' bodies and walked toward the base building.
To avoid killing the soldiers, Kyle had no choice but to have Tashigi use Bakudō (Binding Spell) to temporarily restrain them.
The real battle was about to begin.
Kyle and Tashigi entered the base building and encountered several scattered, sluggish marines.
But without exception, all of them were knocked unconscious by Kyle and Tashigi's sword strikes.
The two advanced unhindered, making their way directly to the top floor of the base.
Creak…
An old, grinding noise echoed as Kyle pushed open the rooftop door of the base building.
At that moment, the highest commander of G153 Branch Base, Morgan, was standing on the rooftop, glaring fiercely at Kyle.
"You're the ones causing trouble on my turf?!"
"Oi~ Oi~"
Looking at Morgan standing on the rooftop's edge, Kyle's expression turned oddly amused.
"Don't tell me you've just been standing here the whole time, watching us take down your men?"
"Men? Hmph!"
Morgan, who wore an artificial metal jaw due to an injury from a pirate, raised his head, eyes cold and disdainful.
"Those useless trash who can't even stop pirates don't deserve to be called my subordinates!"
"I don't need incompetent underlings!!!"
"What did you just say?!"
Seeing Morgan's arrogant and domineering attitude, the loyal-to-her-troops Tashigi's expression instantly turned frosty.
But before she could draw her Zanpakutō, a hand suddenly blocked her path.
"You really do act more like a pirate than I do."
Kyle looked at Morgan and chuckled:
"Hey, big guy, you've got two options…"
"Either surrender and join my pirate crew, or I'll publicize the truth about you faking Kuro's capture!"
"Pick one!"
"What did you say?!"
Morgan's eyes suddenly burned with rage. He raised his prosthetic arm, which was replaced with a massive axe, and strode toward Kyle, threatening:
"Fake Kuro? You'd better watch your mouth, or I'll show you what it means to lose your head!"
"Oh?"
Kyle tilted his head and smiled.
"Still dreaming, big guy? Haven't woken up yet?"
"Do you really think you captured the pirate Kuro? Don't you have the slightest clue deep down?"
"You—!"
Morgan paused, about to retort.
But for some unknown reason, as he looked into Kyle's eyes—those eyes filled with disdain—his mind suddenly flashed an image.
A pair of equally disdainful eyes…
The only difference: those eyes looked down at him from above.
In that instant—
A strange, alien feeling overtook his heart, as if… he didn't belong in his own body anymore!
"What's happening?!"
Morgan furrowed his brows and slapped the side of his head with his only real hand, trying to shake off the dissonance in his mind.
But in his eyes, a trace of fear flickered involuntarily as he looked at Kyle.
"You… what did you do to me?!"
"Do to you?"
"Pfft!"
Kyle snorted at Morgan's accusation and shook his head with a helpless smile.
To be honest, Morgan was a bit of a tragic character.
Just two years ago, he had been a passionate young man.
Like many marine soldiers, he had justice running in his blood.
But…
Two years ago, on a routine mission at sea, he encountered a notorious pirate from the East Blue—
The Black Cat Kuro, with a bounty of 16 million Berries!
Tired of the constant pursuit from marines and bounty hunters, Kuro used his subordinate Jango's hypnosis to hypnotize Morgan and faked his own death to escape.
Morgan, whether lucky or unlucky, became a pawn in Kuro's scheme.
Hypnotized, he mistook the corpse of a comrade as Kuro's, reported it, and was promoted to captain.
Two years passed in a flash.
Under Jango's hypnosis, Morgan's personality drastically changed.
From a man of justice, he became a tyrant obsessed with power.
But…
Was Jango's hypnosis really that powerful—enough to completely change someone's personality?
Kyle doubted it.
Regardless of whether Morgan was framed or corrupted by power, that wasn't Kyle's concern.
What mattered to Kyle—
Was that Morgan could be useful to him!
Just moments ago, he had tested Morgan using Gecko's character card.
The result—
Compatibility: 90%!!!
Even higher than Tashigi and Rukia by 10%!
Perhaps this was fate—two fallen men recognizing each other.
Both Gecko and Morgan were mentally twisted after suffering at the hands of evil.
"Captain Morgan, do you still believe that you killed the pirate Kuro back then?"
"If you had half a brain, you'd notice how different you are from your past self."
"Brat, what nonsense are you spouting?!"
Morgan's eyes trembled slightly, but he still glared fiercely at Kyle.
At that moment, Kyle took a step forward—then another.
"Nonsense? You think this is nonsense?"
"Well… maybe it is."
"After all, you can't wake someone who's pretending to be asleep."
Kyle lifted his head, his gaze calm and authoritative—forming a stark contrast with the raging Morgan.
For some unknown reason, Morgan's heart trembled.
Kyle, in his eyes, began to resemble a man who shouldn't exist, a man who once trampled him underfoot.
As if…
Kyle had crushed him once before!
A sharp scent of blood filled the air.
"You… who the hell are you?!"
The once-arrogant Morgan was now shaken and disoriented by Kyle's words.
He swung his giant axe wildly, trying to keep Kyle away.
But Kyle simply turned to Tashigi and said:
"Restrain him."
"Yes!"
Tashigi responded swiftly.
Without even chanting, she raised two fingers to her chest and recited:
"Bakudō #10: Restraining Wheel!"
Whoosh!
A yellow energy beam shot out from her fingertips, dancing around Morgan before forming a glowing circle around him.
Next moment—
The soft energy beam hardened and expanded, becoming a massive circular disk that firmly bound Morgan's arms and body!
"What is this?!"
Morgan's voice now tinged with panic.
He tensed all his muscles, struggling with all his might.
But—
That yellow disk was as immovable as the rings of time. No matter how hard he fought, he couldn't escape.
"Damn it!"
Morgan cursed.
His eyes once again turned a furious crimson.
But just then, Kyle suddenly stepped forward and, taking advantage of Morgan's unstable stance, swept him off his feet with a spinning kick.
Bang!
Before Morgan could react, a Martin boot stomped down hard on his metal jaw.