When Shiki finally made out the figure tumbling across the sky, he froze.
It was Big Mom.
Blood streamed from multiple wounds—nothing fatal, but such a sight was rare. In the New World, everyone knew Big Mom's hide was iron—an "iron balloon." Even without Armament Haki, ordinary great-swordsmen could barely raise a welt on her, let alone draw blood.
Yet today, even armored in Haki, she'd been battered all over.
Just how far had Creed's swordsmanship climbed?
Had his blade surpassed even Mihawk's?
One thing was certain: even if Dracule "Hawk Eyes" Mihawk himself had come, he'd struggle to leave Big Mom in this state.
"See it now, Shiki? My captain's strength is beyond the level of a mere Yonko."
A glare of red flashed before Shiki's eyes—Redfield dropped between them, sword crosswise, voice cool.
"Out of my way."
Four swords howled at once as Shiki lashed out, four sweeping arcs forcing Redfield back. Then Shiki become swordlight, surging toward the point where Big Mom had fallen. They had just formed an alliance—he couldn't watch his ally fall. He'd rebuilt plenty of power since his escape from Impel Down, but to stride into the New World he still needed Big Mom's might.
"Creed!"
Big Mom wrestled her balance back. Her pupils burned scarlet as she roared.
She hadn't imagined it: even her full-power Musō Ikoku (Peerless Sovereignty) had been pressed down by Creed. The result was hard to swallow.
On her head, Prometheus flared with her fury, roaring up as a pillar of fire that speared the heavens.
"Big Mom—you've already lost."
A flash stepped down in front of her; Creed walked from it, voice steady. Their strongest blows had collided. His blood churned a touch, breath a shade unsteady, arm aching—but he had won that exchange.
He had imagined this day—defeating a Yonko—but when it truly came, his feelings were complicated.
More than anything, though, his spirit surged.
Beating Big Mom was only the beginning. Next came ruling the New World—and claiming the title of Pirate King.
"I—Big Mom—do not lose! I bow to no one, save Captain Rocks!"
Veins knotted across her brow; her face grew feral. Beneath her, Zeus quavered, "Mama!"
"Zeus! Do not waver!"
Above, Prometheus snapped coldly.
"Ahhhh!"
Big Mom's body swelled in an instant. The already-massive eight-meter matron ballooned into a true giant—her "standard form," twelve meters tall. Her presence climbed another step, shaking the eight directions.
The Red Line had shattered and thundered into the sea, a din that had stunned a thousand li. Yet before the dazzle of Big Mom's rampaging aura, that noise seemed to shrink, no longer center stage. It was as if heaven and earth's light dimmed, leaving only Big Mom blazing, blindingly bright.
Even Shiki and Redfield felt their hearts clench.
"Hah! Your captain is fierce, but Big Mom isn't some soft persimmon. If she were, the New World wouldn't have held only four Emperors for decades."
Shiki laughed—and his eyes turned cruel. "Redfield, lie down."
He kicked with his two blade-feet and shot into the air like a loosed arrow.
"Shishi: Ōji Shochi (Lion's Imperial Dominion)!"
Redfield readied to meet him—when the sea below boomed. A mountain of water heaved upward, and from it burst chains woven of seawater, lashing around to lock the space all about him.
Once, such a trick would have been laughable to Redfield; now, as a Devil Fruit user, he had to respect any technique that commanded the sea.
"Damn it—the Fuwa Fuwa no Mi (Float-Float Fruit) is nasty on open water."
With a ringing cry, he became a colossal blood-red bat and clawed for the sky. Surely Shiki couldn't make the ocean climb after him.
"Hahaha! You underestimate my Fuwa Fuwa no Mi! I lifted Fish-Man Island into the sky—what's a few tens of thousands of tons of seawater? Up!"
Shiki's laugh rolled. The tidal mountain and its chain-locks raced after Redfield, hemming him in from all sides.
This wasn't mere seawater. Sword intent coiled within it—troublesome in the extreme.
"Is that so?"
Redfield opened his jaws in a soundless shriek.
Shiki blinked—then clutched his head, as if struck by lightning. Soundless waves rattled his skull; pain knifed through and thoughts scattered.
"What technique is this?!"
He groaned between his teeth.
"Chora!"
Redfield, of course, offered no answer. It was the Koumori Koumori no Mi's (Bat-Bat Fruit) ultrasonic killing art. He burst through the water-prison and climbed, but even in the fray he'd been splashed by the sea; a creeping weakness ran through his limbs. He drew off, seeking to recover.
"Despicable Shiki…"
He spat the words, eyes cold.
Across the battlefield, Creed's expression tightened. Big Mom's surging aura told the tale: her "giant's might" had spiked again under rage—up to SSSS-—and the raw Strength it granted hit SSSS outright.
So—this was her true strongest strike.
"Shame. The giant's might I extracted can't properly upgrade or surge mid-battle without giant blood."
A brief regret flickered through Creed's mind—then a bright edge flashed in his gaze. "But beating you… is still well within reach."
Zzla—crackle—crash!
Raijin Mōdo (Thunder God Mode)!
Jūoku Boruto (Ten Billion Volts)!
In an instant, Creed became thunder—the charioteer of ten thousand bolts.
The very next heartbeat—
"Musō Ikoku (Peerless Sovereignty)!"
"Raijin Mōdo: Mujō Rinne (Supreme Samsara)!"
Two vast, world-rending arcs crossed again—each bearing sword intent enough to scour hundreds of li.
BOOOOOOM!
For a hundred li beneath them the sea blew clear, exposing the seabed hundreds of meters down. The bedrock itself couldn't withstand the twin intents—it powdered, then sagged, collapsing deeper still.
BOOM—BOOM—BOOM!
The evacuated water vaulted back up, reversed into the sky for dozens—hundreds—of li, a breathtaking spectacle like a new, thick firmament of water hung over the world.
Even far-off Fish-Man Island was drenched by the backlash. Half the island vanished in cascading sheets; the crowds who'd rushed to the shore to watch stood soaked to the bone, stunned to silence.
(End of Chapter)
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