Boom!
Once again, a towering mushroom cloud of magma rose into the sky.
Before the intense aftershock could settle—
A surge of sword energy burst forth from the lava, shooting straight into the heavens.
Shredding everything in its path, spreading outward.
The rising mushroom cloud was instantly shredded by the sword energy.
Centered around the two figures, a kilometer-wide void was cleared.
At this moment, Sakazuki was slightly panting, the large cracks across his body becoming more visible, with threads of blood seeping out.
Meanwhile, Roger's coat had been torn to shreds, revealing his severely burned upper body.
Roger reached up, tore off the captain's coat, and tossed it aside.
He looked at Sakazuki with some confusion:
"Marine kid, do we really have such a deep grudge?"
Sakazuki activated his arm abilities, forming magma armguards, and looked at Roger with an indifferent expression as he said:
"Not at all."
"It's just that the justice I carry doesn't allow you to continue living in this world."
Hearing Sakazuki's words, Roger began to laugh.
As if he'd heard a joke, he spoke with layered meaning:
"Justice?"
"Marine kid, the darkness in this world is far greater than you imagine."
Sakazuki was unfazed by Roger's insinuation and calmly replied:
"You're not wrong."
"But I don't believe that a criminal who just slaughtered thousands has any credibility."
Roger's smile slowly faded. His expression turned solemn as he stared at Sakazuki and nodded:
"I see."
Buzz—!
Conqueror's Haki surged around his long blade. With both hands gripping the hilt, terrifying sword aura danced across the edge, making the air tingle with tension...
Roger's gaze at Sakazuki was frighteningly calm:
"Don't go dying so easily, Marine brat."
Shing—!
A chilling, scalp-numbing hum echoed from the blade.
A dazzling sword light slashed out, as if ripping through space.
It appeared directly in front of Sakazuki.
The ends of Sakazuki's dual magma armguards simmered like they were harboring supervolcanoes.
The searing red glow radiating from within was dizzying.
As he looked at the sword light flashing before him:
"A mere pirate... don't speak so boldly."
"What the Marines carry is..."
The tails of his armguards erupted with a surging force.
"The justice of the world!!!!"
Sakazuki's unique Conqueror's Haki erupted with a roar.
That burst of willpower surged forth with the magma, driving the armguards to collide with the dazzling blade light.
Boom!!!
An endless white light burst forth...
...
Onboard the Oro Jackson.
The members of the Roger Pirates watched the clash of sword light and magma erupting on the island.
Roger was always like this—though he acted carefree on the surface, he cared deeply for his crew.
He always led the charge himself. A captain like that filled everyone with confidence...
At this moment, Sunbell walked up beside Rayleigh, wearing an apologetic expression as he said:
"I'm sorry... it's all my fault for dragging everyone into this..."
Rayleigh chuckled and patted Sunbell on the shoulder:
"Don't worry about it. If Roger had been there at the time, I'm sure he would've done exactly what Seagull did."
Sunbell still looked embarrassed, but Rayleigh comforted him:
"Don't think too much about it. To Roger, crewmates are the most important thing."
Rayleigh's lips curled slightly after he spoke, as if he recalled something.
He looked toward the island where the fierce battle was still raging. This was the real Roger...
...
The other side of Kegesi Island.
Sakazuki's warship had just arrived not far from the island.
From the deck, the battle unfolding on the island was clearly visible.
Karol held Sakazuki's "Justice" cloak and frowned slightly as he looked toward the island.
His Observation Haki clearly sensed the condition of the two combatants.
Sakazuki's aura was noticeably weaker than Roger's.
Enel, having eaten the Rumble-Rumble Fruit, now relied on electromagnetic waves and his natural talent—
The range of his Observation Haki was even greater than Karol's.
Sensing Sakazuki's desperate resolve, Enel was both shocked and confused...
He looked toward Karol:
"Karol-san... why is Sakazuki-san..."
At a loss for how to express himself, Karol finished the thought for him:
"Fighting so desperately, you mean?"
Enel nodded.
Karol handed Sakazuki's "Justice" cloak to Enel.
Enel took the cloak in confusion.
Karol looked toward Kegesi Island and said:
"Because someone has to carry out justice."
Enel looked down at the cloak.
The two characters for "Justice" printed on it carried such solemn dignity...
Something seemed to sprout from his young heart.
"Justice, huh..."
A brilliant white light illuminated the island...
(T/N: I would like to remind you that the events there are described truthfully, do not imagine Roger as a saint or anything else. It's from the wiki: Roger was very quick to anger, and he would retaliate for something as simple as an insult to his crew, regardless of how small it might be. Garp stated that an angry Roger could be a violent, selfish, and short-tempered man, but his actions had been pure and straight, just like a child's, and that he was lucky to survive and become the Pirate King despite his extremely reckless nature.)
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