"Borsalino, it really has been a long time, hasn't it?"
Michael smiled pleasantly at his old colleague.
"Speaking of which, the last time they came to hunt me down, why didn't you join in? Were you scared?"
"Ahhh, of course I was scared," Borsalino replied casually, nodding with apparent ease.
"Back then, you gave Sakazuki and Kuzan quite a headache… Thanks to you, after you injured the both of them, their conflict actually eased quite a bit."
Michael listened, a faint smile curling on his lips.
It seemed Sakazuki still had a good head for politics.
By comparison, the seemingly calmer Kuzan was actually at a disadvantage in that regard.
If Michael had to choose between those two to succeed Sengoku as Fleet Admiral, he too would've chosen Sakazuki.
However…
That was only because, in his eyes, the one most suited for the position of Fleet Admiral had never once shown the slightest desire for promotion.
Yes—he was standing right in front of him now.
Borsalino.
In terms of ability, intellect, and attitude, Borsalino was actually the most suitable candidate among the three Admirals to become Fleet Admiral.
But this man had absolutely no interest in power… a true example of one who blends with the dust of the world.
Even stationed at the Sabaody Archipelago as Admiral, he had no problem entrusting full command to Nico Robin, who was still just a Rear Admiral at the time.
That fact alone said everything.
"Michael, that's enough. What exactly do you want?"
Yamakaji's voice cut into the conversation between Michael and Borsalino.
"Don't tell me you plan to lead the Revolutionary Army against the Sabaody Archipelago—"
"No, no, no. I'm only here to take someone."
Michael shook his head and smiled.
"So please, Yamakaji-san, don't get too worked up. I'm not looking to do anything to the Sabaody Archipelago… not yet."
Standing to the side, Gion looked at Michael with visible worry.
Ever since she had more or less figured out what Michael intended to do, her longing for him had only grown day by day—
As had her anxiety, month after month.
It wasn't until Michael appeared again on Egghead that she finally breathed a sigh of relief.
But she hadn't expected that they would meet again so soon.
"Say no more, Michael. You want someone? Then you'll have to step over the three of our corpses first."
Gion sighed softly and slowly drew her supreme-grade sword—Konpira.
Her stance clearly declared she was ready to fight to the death.
Even though she knew Michael didn't truly wish to stand against the Marines…
This was her duty—her resolve as a Marine.
"Ah, there's no need to get so worked up. Fighting and killing—it's so boring, isn't it?"
Michael smiled as he unsheathed Oto and Kogarashi.
"But… sparring with you for a bit sounds fine. After all, we were comrades once, fighting in the same trenches… Consider this a free warm-up."
As he spoke, the wings on Michael's back unfurled sharply, lifting him into the air.
The twin short broadswords gleamed faintly under the sunlight, their edges cold and keen.
Borsalino sighed.
So in the end… they still had to fight.
"Everyone! Fall back! As far back as you can!"
Though he rarely involved himself in commanding, when an Admiral gave an order, no one dared disobey.
The surrounding Marines—soldiers and officers alike—quickly withdrew, opening up a large area around them.
They all knew what that meant.
At this level of combat, they stood no chance of surviving.
No need to waste their lives here.
"Tsk tsk… If it were Sakazuki, he'd have told everyone to charge straight at me."
Michael looked at Borsalino with a grin.
"If only your temperament could be transplanted into Sakazuki—it'd be perfect."
"Do you always talk this much, Michael?"
Borsalino pressed his right hand onto his left palm, then pulled it away like drawing a sword.
A brilliant golden light formed into a blade.
"Seems you've changed quite a bit."
"Or maybe," Michael tilted his head, the corners of his mouth twisting into a manic grin that eerily resembled…
The Golden Lion.
"Thousand Slice Valley!"
Michael raised his arm and unleashed the Golden Lion's signature technique with crisp precision.
In his final battle against the Golden Lion, he had already mastered all of the man's techniques.
After all, real combat was the best teacher.
And using Oto and Kogarashi to perform "Thousand Slice Valley" somehow felt perfectly natural.
Probably because short broadswords allowed for a faster slashing rhythm.
Regardless, the result was no different from the Golden Lion's own—and perhaps even more ferocious.
Countless slicing waves tore forward toward Borsalino, Yamakaji, and Gion.
Within moments, the open ground before them erupted in clouds of dust and debris.
But as the saying goes—
Where there's smoke, there's no hit.
From within that rising haze, a blinding beam of light flashed out.
Michael suddenly tilted his head, the laser beam grazing past his ear and shooting into the sky.
"Whoa, that was close—almost got hurt there."
Michael laughed.
Then, two figures burst out of the dust.
Yamakaji and Gion—charging straight at him from both sides.
Yamakaji's fists were coated in flowing Armament Haki, while Gion's Konpira had already turned completely into a sleek black blade.
"Michael, I've been waiting for this day."
Yamakaji's voice was calm.
"I told you—I would bring you back to the right path."
"Why can't you understand… What if my side is the 'right path'?"
Michael raised Oto, blocking Yamakaji's powerful blows.
"Give it a little more time. I really will surprise you all soon enough."
"That's irrelevant… During battle, it's best not to talk too much."
Gion's Konpira slashed upward toward Michael, but he deflected it effortlessly with Kogarashi.
"Gion…"
Michael's lips moved slightly as he called her name—but said nothing more.
At that moment, Borsalino's voice rang out.
Harnessing the speed of his Glint-Glint Fruit, he appeared in front of Michael in an instant, swinging his radiant blade.
The fruit's incredible velocity gave his strike an impact far beyond normal comprehension.
Michael instantly crossed Oto and Kogarashi, blocking Borsalino's attack in the blink of an eye.
"Hmm? You still talk big, but it seems after Instructor Zephyr scolded you, you've been training your swordsmanship properly!"
"You really do talk too much, Michael."
As soon as Borsalino finished speaking, the two vanished from ordinary sight—exchanging blows at speeds beyond human perception.
But no matter how fast, Michael still held—
Two blades.
In a barely perceptible opening, he twisted Oto sideways and struck Borsalino sharply across the waist.
And at that moment, a voice rose from below—
Nico Robin's voice.
"Enough!"
"Vice Admiral Michael, let's talk."