Sengoku retreated from the area where heaven and earth had lost their color, and Rosinante made no move to pursue. Even after hearing Sengoku's words, he didn't seem to care much.
For Rosinante, the greatest gain from this battle was awakening his Devil Fruit. That alone was worth everything.
At this moment, his mind was focused entirely on understanding the new power brought by the awakening of the Silent-Silent Fruit.
"This world... it's still too small. The awakening of the Silent Fruit... it's a power of will. And if it's will, then..." Rosinante murmured thoughtfully.
As he spoke, an overwhelming aura of dominance surged from his body and spread rapidly outward. Those caught in this domineering wave collapsed instantly, unconscious before they even hit the ground.
"Conqueror's Haki!" Akainu muttered, frowning.
"What an intense Conqueror's Haki!" Sengoku said, visibly surprised.
Rosinante had been awakening his life force continuously ever since his Observation Haki allowed him to perceive the presence of life itself. And as his vitality rose, his Conqueror's Haki grew stronger along with it. Now, in terms of raw presence and domination, he had become a first-rate user.
Sengoku couldn't understand what Rosinante was trying to do—within this sealed-off domain, almost everyone left was from the Gray Kingdom. Rosinante's Haki, while terrifying, couldn't impact someone of Sengoku's level.
"Fuse!" Rosinante shouted.
As his voice echoed through the silent void, an impossible phenomenon began to unfold—his Conqueror's Haki started to merge with the eternal silent will of his awakened Devil Fruit.
"No way… He's fusing Conqueror's Haki with the awakened power of a Devil Fruit?" Sengoku gasped, stunned.
Akainu, Kong, and the others around him were equally shocked.
Before their disbelieving eyes, the fusion completed. Conqueror's Haki slowly merged into the eternal silent will, making that will even stronger than before.
The space of colorless, soundless silence, which had originally extended about two hundred meters, suddenly began expanding outward like an uncontrollable tide.
Three hundred meters… four hundred meters… it didn't stop until it reached five hundred meters in diameter, with Rosinante at its center.
With the expansion of the domain, the pressure from heaven and earth's backlash intensified drastically. The extended radius soon swallowed Sengoku again.
Immediately, Sengoku felt the air around him solidify even further—every movement now felt as if he were pushing through glue. His limbs struggled to respond, and all around him, an oppressive wave of dominating will pounded against his spirit.
He didn't hesitate. Sengoku once again began to retreat from the stifling area.
Meanwhile, the battle involving Doberman, Onigumo, and Raelmann was suddenly caught within the new boundary of silence. All three immediately sensed it—the invisible force now weighing on them was terrifying. It was as if the space around them had turned to stone, the resistance from all directions suddenly becoming massive. Their movements were sluggish, every action facing heavy resistance.
So this… was the power of a Devil Fruit awakening? It felt like the entire world had turned against them.
It was as if they'd been plunged into the deep sea, with pressure crushing them from all sides. Even lifting a finger felt laborious.
Then came the invasion of will—a tyrannical, eternal silent intent that overwhelmed them.
Under the influence of this will, Onigumo and the others felt a deep fatigue creeping into their bodies. It was as though part of their power had fallen asleep—sealed away, unreachable.
Raelmann especially felt the effects—his Devil Fruit abilities were suppressed heavily.
But then, something changed.
The healing-seal mark on Raelmann's body began to stir. From it, a faint silent force emerged—one that resonated with the eternal silent will surrounding them.
As if recognizing him as an ally, the tyrannical will ceased suppressing him. The overwhelming fatigue faded, and his fruit powers returned.
Raelmann's eyes lit up.
Though he still suffered under the general suppression of the environment, the silent will—the very heart of the domain—no longer affected him. That alone gave him a tremendous advantage.
While Onigumo and Doberman found their powers reduced by thirty percent due to the suppression, Raelmann remained unaffected. Which meant, in effect, his strength had increased by that same amount.
Realizing this, Raelmann turned his icy gaze toward the two Vice Admirals. With a sudden burst of speed, he lunged straight for Onigumo.
Boom!
A soundless explosion erupted as Onigumo was sent flying through the air from a heavy punch.
Impossible! Was Raelmann's strength increasing? No… It wasn't that. It was his own power being suppressed. But why wasn't Raelmann suppressed too?
"Watch out!" Onigumo tried to shout a warning to Doberman, but in this silenced realm, his voice vanished before it could carry.
Doberman, seeing Onigumo flung away like a rag doll, was stunned. In that moment of distraction, Raelmann closed in again.
Exploding Fist! Divine Blast of Three Thousand!
Raelmann struck with a mighty blow.
Doberman recognized the technique immediately—he knew full well how destructive it was. It couldn't be blocked, only avoided. If he tried to resist it head-on, the chained explosions would tear him apart.
He tried to dodge, but he had underestimated the pressure of this domain. The eternal silence weighed down his body and slowed him, while Raelmann moved unhindered.
The fist landed before Doberman could react.
He hastily raised his long sword to defend himself, but it was futile. The mighty blow burst through the blade's defense, the explosive energy spreading along the weapon and engulfing his body in a cascade of detonations.
When the smoke cleared, Doberman's breath was shallow and his aura barely flickered.
Shave! With a flash, Onigumo reappeared in front of Doberman, guarding him warily as he glared at Raelmann.
But Raelmann wasn't about to let the chance slip. He lunged forward once more, clashing with Onigumo head-on.
Under the effects of the silenced world, Onigumo could only use about seventy percent of his full strength. Raelmann, unaffected, began to drive him back with a relentless assault.
Just then, a flaming red figure burst into the scene. A blazing punch roared in from the side—Great Eruption!
It was Akainu. Though wounded, he had dragged himself back to the battlefield to support his comrades.
His giant magma fist collided with Raelmann, sending him flying back from the overwhelming heat and force.
However, Akainu didn't continue the attack. Instead, he picked up the battered Doberman and retreated, following Sengoku's path and exiting the colorless, soundless domain.
Raelmann didn't dare chase.
He knew that outside this realm, he had no advantage. Out there, he was no match for monsters like Akainu.
Even though Akainu was badly injured, defeating him would not be easy. After all… the man was a monster.
And so, for now, Raelmann and the others found themselves at a tense standoff with the enemy, both sides unwilling to make the next move too soon...