"The—The slash cut it open! It even cut through the entire outlaw zone!"
"Not just the outlaw zone and the warships—it even split the sea apart!"
"So this is the power of the Dragon King? Looks like the rumors about him rivaling Admiral Sengoku weren't exaggerated after all."
"Dragon King Rosinante… even the Reaper of the Dark World couldn't withstand a single strike from him! That's the legendary assassin of the mercenary world!"
"Looks like tomorrow's headlines just wrote themselves."
As the terrifying slash tore through the earth, the warships, and even the ocean itself, the reporters and civilians across the Sabaody Archipelago all stood frozen in shock, unable to believe what they had witnessed.
"Gosh, that kind of slash… it's almost at the level of a Great Swordsman, isn't it?" said Borsalino with a slow drawl.
"The power is close," Tsuru replied calmly, "but he still lacks the intent of a true Great Swordsman."
"This so-called Reaper isn't much to look at—one sword, and he's gone. Rosinante didn't even need to show his full strength," Akainu said dismissively.
"That's not entirely true," Borsalino mused. "That strike was terrifying, even by our standards."
"Hmph, just another variation of that 'Collapse Fist Burst.' In the end, it's still that same fist technique doing the work. The Reaper's defeat doesn't change that. Maybe we'll see his true form later," Garp added, scratching his nose with a grin.
"The Collapse Fist Burst isn't as visually dramatic as this so-called Heaven-Crushing Slash," Akainu explained coldly. "The fist drives power directly into the opponent's body—you can't see it. This slash, though, merges that same piercing and explosive force with the sharpness of a blade. It looks impressive, but to me, the Collapse Fist Burst is even deadlier. That inner, bursting power is almost impossible to defend against. Rosinante focusing on swordsmanship is just a distraction—he's wasting his time."
"I wouldn't say that," Borsalino chuckled. "Sometimes, a sword is just… more convenient. And hey, it's a lot flashier. You could scare a whole army with one swing like that."
"What surprises me most," Tsuru said, eyes narrowing, "is that in just a few days, Rosinante has gone from a third-rate swordsman to unleashing a slash of this magnitude. Is it that Rayleigh is too skilled a teacher—or that Rosinante himself is simply terrifying?"
At her words, the entire room fell silent.
No one had expected the sword's might to be so overwhelming.
Yet, at the center of that devastating blow, the Reaper was still standing.
Everyone could see his body trembling—his muscles shredded, his organs pulverized by sword energy—but still, he refused to fall.
And then, impossibly, the deathly aura around him grew even thicker, his eyes glowing blood-red.
"In that moment… you interfered with my control over the Death Puppet?" the Reaper rasped. "I see now. The puppet truly isn't qualified to face you. After this is over, I'll come for you again—with my true body."
When he finished, the crimson glow in his eyes faded, and his form turned to ash, scattering into the wind.
The body was only a corpse to begin with—animated by the power of death itself. Now that that power had dissipated, it was only natural that it vanished entirely.
Hearing those words, The Oni Warrior finally understood—the Reaper they faced was nothing but a puppet. Yet as they watched the ashes drift away, their expressions were mixed and heavy.
The legend of the Reaper—the mercenary who never failed a single mission—had come to an end. And for mercenaries like them, who had looked up to him, that was a bitter truth to swallow.
"So it really was just a puppet," the Killer Ghost muttered, as though he had expected it all along.
"Looks like everyone's finally gathered," Rosinante said, turning toward The oni warrior and the others with calm, steady eyes.
The moment he looked at them, every one of them stiffened in tension.
After witnessing that last strike, fear ran deep through their bones—especially The oni warrior, whose entire body trembled uncontrollably. No one could tell if it was out of terror… or excitement.
"The last two were too impatient," Rosinante said coolly. "I hadn't even finished speaking before they started fighting. I hope you'll be a bit more patient—and let me finish this time."
The group exchanged nervous glances, but none of them dared to speak. They simply waited.
"Alright then," Rosinante said finally, "let's wrap up the ending first. Enel—begin."
"Can I start?" Enel's eyes glinted as he lifted his head.
"Then I'll be right back," he said, transforming into lightning and vanishing into the sky above Bika's palace.
"Wrap up the ending…?" Dark Thorn and the others echoed in confusion. "What does he mean by that?"
"Hey, look—what's that?" a swordsman under The oni warrior's command suddenly shouted, pointing toward the sky.
Everyone looked up.
The thunderclouds above were shifting—slowly swirling into a vast, spherical shape.
And atop that massive thunder sphere stood Enel, continuously channeling lightning into it, feeding it, agitating the energy within. The air currents around it surged violently, crackling with raw, electric fury.
That monstrous thundercloud was slowly descending from the heavens.
"Damn it! What is Rosinante planning? Is he trying to destroy the entire Sabaody Archipelago?!" Garp yelled, eyes wide with disbelief.
"Whoa, whoa, that's not good at all," Borsalino muttered, his usual lazy tone giving way to unease.
"I didn't expect the Rumble-Rumble Fruit to be used to this extent," Tsuru said gravely. "If that thunderball hits the ground, the entire archipelago could be obliterated in an instant."
"Truly reckless," Doflamingo murmured, heart pounding as he stared at the descending sphere. "Rosinante… you madman."
"What is that thing?"
"It's full of lightning—so much that just looking at it hurts my eyes!"
"Run! If that thing falls, the whole Sabaody Archipelago will be wiped out!" the reporters screamed, scrambling in panic.
"We have to stop him!" Akainu shouted coldly, stepping forward as molten magma burst from his fists.
"Wait a second!" Garp suddenly said, his eyes narrowing. "That thing… it's not falling toward Sabaody!"
Everyone froze, following his gaze.
Sure enough, the massive thunder sphere was descending—but its trajectory was aimed at the sea, not the islands.
"Its target… is the fleet on the ocean!" Borsalino exclaimed.
"If that thing lands, every ship out there will be vaporized," Akainu growled.
"Rosinante's ending this war," Tsuru said solemnly. "He's going to wipe out every dark-world warship… and every soul aboard them."