He stood up, kicking aside four empty boxes, irritation rising in his chest.
According to intelligence, God Valley's treasure vault contained countless rare treasures and at least six Devil Fruits.
After all his busy work, he'd just watched helplessly as the Fish-Fish Fruit and Paw-Paw Fruit were taken away, leaving him with absolutely nothing.
Damn! Where were the other four Devil Fruits?
Four empty boxes mocking me? ㄟ(▔皿▔ㄟ) This whole deal was a complete loss!
Just as he was considering checking other locations, an indescribable tremor transmitted from deep within the earth.
BOOM—!!!
Not an earthquake, but surpassing one—the entire God Valley island seemed to let out a pained groan.
The ground beneath Kyle's feet shook violently. He quickly steadied himself, his golden pupils contracting sharply as he looked toward the distant sky.
There lay the eye of the storm.
The previously clear weather had turned apocalyptically dark, with pitch-black and crimson lightning weaving into a fierce web that savagely struck the earth.
This wasn't natural thunder, but pure collisions of will—the physical manifestation of Conqueror's Haki!
Three completely different yet equally terrifying auras clashed, tore, and crushed each other at the island's center, turning day to night and stirring wind and clouds.
Even from several kilometers away, Kyle could feel that soul-trembling pressure.
"Holy crap, this is bad... they've literally torn a hole in the sky." Kyle clicked his tongue, but instead of fear, his face showed excited anticipation.
Only a few people on today's seas could create such a commotion.
Rocks D. Xebec.
Gol D. Roger.
Monkey D. Garp.
Hey, guess what? The D Clan's throwing a party!
"Well, the main event's finally starting." Kyle shouldered his black-gold naginata and strode from the cave. "Divine-level fighting of this caliber—not charging admission would be downright charitable. I've got to check out this action."
With that, he sent out a shockwave from his feet, his entire form becoming a black shadow racing toward that lightning-filled, apocalyptic battlefield.
...
The closer he got to the battlefield's center, the more horrifying the scene became.
The once lush forest had vanished entirely, replaced by barren, scorched earth and ruins.
The ground was torn open with bottomless canyons, massive boulders ripped from deep underground by some tremendous force, only to be smashed to pieces.
Kyle found a relatively intact clifftop, carefully concealing his presence as he peered down.
The moment he saw the scene below, he couldn't help but gasp.
Within a radius of several thousand meters, it had become a living hell.
At the battlefield's very center, a tall man with flamboyantly flame-like hair stood proudly.
He wielded an ancient-style long sword, yet radiated an aura more terrifying than a demon god. Just standing there, the surrounding space seemed to warp slightly.
This was the overlord of these seas—Rocks D. Xebec, captain of the Rocks Pirates.
Facing him were two equally formidable figures.
His own captain, Roger, was laughing heartily, his long blade "Ace" wrapped in jet-black Armament Haki, each swing carrying the royal bearing of one who could sever fate itself.
That supreme straw hat remained completely undamaged!
The other familiar face, Garp, was bare-chested, his bronze muscles like forged steel, covered in crisscrossing scars.
He carried no weapons—his iron fists were the strongest weapons. Each punch made the air cry out in anguish, forming visible shockwaves.
"Holy shit..." Kyle watched the battle below, unable to help, cursing.
This was no longer fighting—this was a natural disaster.
Rocks laughed heartily as he punched toward the ground.
"Abyssal Tide!"
Dark energy spread like a tide from beneath his fist, turning rocks and earth alike into nothingness wherever it passed.
"Don't get carried away, Rocks!"
Garp roared, neither dodging nor evading as he met it with his own punch.
"Fist Bone: Meteor!"
RUMBLE—!!!
Two fists—one devouring all things, one pulverizing stars—collided head-on.
After an instant of deathly silence, a destructive shockwave exploded outward from their position!
The cliff beneath Kyle's feet instantly crumbled by half under this aftershock, forcing him to quickly retreat several hundred more meters.
"Hey! Garp! Don't just worry about looking cool!" Roger's voice remained clearly audible amid the deafening roar. "That guy's haki can suck people in!"
Before finishing his words, he had already leaped high, his blade Ace descending from above in a massive black-red slash that cut across heaven and earth.
"Divine Departure!"
The black-red sword energy tore through Rocks's dark domain, carrying invincible royal authority as it aimed for his head!
Facing this slash capable of splitting an island in two, Rocks merely grinned, advancing rather than retreating as he raised his hand in a black slash to meet it.
"Tyrant Sea!"
Black Conqueror's lightning and black-red sword energy clashed fiercely in mid-air, annihilating each other while producing an energy storm that churned the sky's clouds into a massive whirlpool.
Kyle hid in the distance, watching with rapt fascination and yearning.
A real man should be like this!
This was the true pinnacle of these seas.
I could take their place!
Every movement contained world-destroying power. They didn't even need to deliberately destroy the environment—merely the aftershocks of their battle were enough to reshape terrain and transform landscapes.
His own "Quake Mountain: Earth Roar Wave" compared to Garp's mountain-splitting fists was like a child playing with mud, while his "Light Blade: Sky Rainbow Severing" sword energy was like comparing fireflies to the bright moon before Roger's "Divine Departure."
"Tsk tsk, so this is top-level Armament and Conqueror's coating?" Kyle stroked his chin, watching intently. "Conqueror's coating directly attacks the soul and interior... learned something new!"
He had absolutely no intention of joining the fight now.
Are you kidding? With his current strength, charging in would probably get him knocked out instantly by the three's haki aftershocks.
He even patted his pockets, looking for peanuts or popcorn, but found nothing except hard ship rations.
Kyle watched the three exchanging blows, his eyes burning with intensity.
Once upon a time, he'd thought that obtaining the Wave-Wave Fruit and training in the three types of haki for several years made him a powerhouse on these seas.
But today, first encountering an unreasonable monster like the Five Elders, then witnessing this legendary three-way battle—not to mention that centuries-old schemer Imu lurking in the shadows...
But so what?
It was precisely because the mountain peak was high enough that the climb would be interesting enough!
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~ Push the story forward with your Power Stones