Roger grinned widely and greeted Sakazuki without a care in the world.
But the vice admiral didn't respond. The energy in his hands only grew more intense, heat radiating outward in waves.
Seeing this, Roger's smile faded slightly. His fingers tightened around the hilt of his sword.
Buzz—!
A blinding white light erupted.
Boom!
A deafening explosion tore through the battlefield, shaking the ground and vaporizing everything in its radius. When the light finally faded, a barren stretch of scorched earth was all that remained.
The two men now stood a hundred meters apart, locked in a silent standoff. Sakazuki activated his Devil Fruit. His skin burned red-hot, with veins of magma pulsing beneath the surface. Golden light flared in his eyes as heat rippled from his body like a living furnace.
Crimson Lotus Mode: Activated.
He swung the magma-forged long sword in his hand once before gripping it tightly with both hands. With a stomp, an immense force burst from his back, launching him straight toward Roger like a missile.
In an instant, he closed the distance.
His blade came crashing down. At the same time, vents near his shoulders and elbows opened. Jets of scorching energy exploded out, adding even more force to the strike.
Clang!
Clang!
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The ringing of metal filled the air in rapid succession. Their swords moved with blinding speed, leaving behind afterimages. Every clash unleashed shockwaves that scattered wildly, tearing through the air.
The battlefield below them was left scarred with endless, crisscrossing trenches—evidence of the sheer violence of their exchange.
Unlike Sakazuki's cold and silent expression, Roger kept his usual cheerful grin.
Clang!
As their weapons locked again, he chuckled and said in a teasing tone, "Try not to die, marine. Divine Departure!"
Gripping his sword with both hands, the muscles in Roger's arms swelled, stretching his sleeves tight. The Supreme Grade blade in his hands shimmered, and streams of Conqueror's Haki spiraled along the blade like a dark vortex.
He brought the blade down.
Sakazuki didn't flinch. He raised his magma sword to block the incoming blow.
Clang!
The impact released a devastating burst of energy. The Armament Haki coating Sakazuki's blade began to crack, splitting apart at the edges.
In the next moment—
Crack!
A sharp, violent sound echoed across the battlefield. A black wave of sword energy shattered the magma blade and surged forward, cutting through the air like a divine judgment.
Sakazuki's pupils shrank.
Boom!
The dark slash cut through everything in its path and struck a distant mountain, slicing it clean in half. Debris rained from the skies.
Roger rested his sword on his shoulder, holding it in his right hand. He scanned the horizon casually. "Guess you dodged it."
Then he shrugged it off with a wide grin. His gaze shifted toward the outskirts of the town, where a fresh wave of forces from the Kingdom of Darrons had just arrived.
Lifting a foot, Roger started to walk toward them, but the moment he stepped forward, his foot sank into the soil.
Then, centered around him, the ground within a hundred meters began to twist and shift rapidly. Molten lava surged from beneath the earth, boiling furiously.
Boom!
Like a volcanic eruption, a colossal column of magma—over a hundred meters wide—burst from underground, wrapped in thick black smoke, and shot into the sky. The earth trembled violently, unable to withstand the force. Fissures split the land apart as the magma column exploded high above, piercing the smoke-filled clouds.
Molten rock began to rain down in a fiery storm, crashing toward the town. For a brief second, everyone on the island caught a glimpse of a flash of light, so fast it seemed like an illusion.
But Sakazuki, submerged in the magma, knew it was no illusion. A slash of blinding light sliced through the sky, cutting the lava column clean in half.
At the base, Roger stood unharmed, save for slight damage to his clothes. He gripped his sword with both hands and stabbed downward into the molten ground.
Rumble...!
The land split in two, a titanic fissure opening beneath him—so deep it was impossible to see the bottom. It stretched all the way to the horizon. The magma's flow was thrown into chaos, disrupted so completely it could no longer erupt.
Underground, Sakazuki stirred. Still fused with the lava, he summoned its full power. By now, the entire town had been engulfed in magma. It looked like a hellscape of molten fire.
Guided by his will, the magma spun rapidly, surging toward Roger. Tornadoes of molten rock formed one after another, layer upon layer, circling him with the intent to tear him apart.
Roger, however, didn't seem troubled. Each time he swung his blade, the whirlpools were scattered effortlessly. The problem was, they kept forming again and again. It was getting annoying.
After cutting through several waves of lava cyclones, Roger began to lose patience. A flash of savagery lit up in his eyes. He turned his gaze toward the Darrons Kingdom's guard division stationed outside the town.
His voice roared with wild fury: "Divine Departure!!"
A giant crescent-shaped slash of black energy, over three hundred meters wide, ripped through the air toward the enemy forces.
But the magma rippled again. Sakazuki's form solidified, appearing right in the path of the sword strike. He pressed both hands to the ground and spoke calmly.
"Precipice Blade."
From beneath the ground, a colossal molten sword erupted skyward, equal in size and power to Roger's attack. Coated in Armament Haki, the magma blade rushed forward and clashed against the incoming attack.
Boom!
An immense explosion of energy burst out where the sword and slash collided, sending shockwaves in all directions. Everything around was reduced to rubble.
Sakazuki remained where he stood. He didn't try to dodge the violent explosion that tore into his body. The damage he sustained was immediately repaired by the regenerating magma.
It wasn't that he couldn't move; it was because Roger had already appeared in front of him.
The pirate's Conqueror's Haki pressed down on him like a mountain. The blade in his hand crackled with that same powerful aura, ready to strike at any moment.
His eyes were filled with bloodlust. His face, like that of a demon, twisted into a terrifying grin.
He stared at Sakazuki.
"So you've finally stopped running, little marine brat."
The vice admiral sneered, glaring back without fear.
"All you know is how to swing your sword at the weak… you pirate trash."
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