"It's your turn to step in, Dark King Rayleigh!"
Kizaru adjusted his sleeve casually, looking at the old man walking toward him with an unhurried expression.
"I can't let you strangle these young ones in the cradle. Their era has only just begun!"
Rayleigh smiled as he stepped in front of Jiang Lin. Originally, the only ones he wanted to protect were the Straw Hat Pirates—but now, there was one more: Jiang Lin.
"Uncle!"
Luffy shouted in excitement, rushing up to Rayleigh. Meeting Rayleigh again clearly filled him with joy.
"I'd already heard rumors about you being on this island, but I didn't expect them to be true!"
"I didn't think you would side with these brats. Even if you've fallen, you're still a pirate, aren't you, Rayleigh-san?"
Hands in his pockets, Kizaru gazed at Rayleigh with an air of nonchalance.
"Looks like you're not willing to let them off, then?"
Rayleigh's voice was low, but the threat within his words was unmistakable.
"Let them off?"
Kizaru gave a light chuckle without answering directly, but his demeanor made his intent clear. Luffy had struck a Celestial Dragon—there was no way he'd let Luffy go.
"Is that so? Looks like…"
"Uncle, leave this man to me!"
Just as Rayleigh was preparing to take on the admiral himself, Jiang Lin stepped forward with a smile, blocking Rayleigh's path.
"You…"
Rayleigh hesitated, words caught in his throat. He had watched the previous battles carefully. He knew that Kizaru hadn't been fighting seriously. But he couldn't tell Jiang Lin that—not when it might shatter the young man's confidence.
"I know he's been holding back. I'm not planning to throw my life away. I'm doing this because I must."
Jiang Lin's voice was firm. He knew Kizaru's strength—strong enough that he currently stood no chance against him.
But so what? Should he back down because of fear? Hide behind others to cling to survival because of the threat of death? No. Jiang Lin couldn't do that.
"…Very well. Go fight with all your heart. I'll hold the rear."
Rayleigh, moved by Jiang Lin's resolve, did not stop him. Instead, he looked at him with admiration and stepped back.
"Choosing to fight me yourself… that's a grave mistake."
Kizaru spoke as though annoyed, but his eyes kept flicking toward Rayleigh. It was Rayleigh whom he considered the true threat.
"Is that so?"
Jiang Lin only gave a small laugh. He knew he wasn't Kizaru's equal—but strength alone didn't decide everything. Couldn't the weaker side still strike back? Couldn't he still make Kizaru pay a price?
"Kizaru, what is your justice?"
Raising his hands slowly, Jiang Lin began gathering two streams of golden light between his palms.
"Justice? Brat, you've no right to know!"
At the same moment, Kizaru crossed his arms, summoning his Ama no Murakumo sword of light, assuming a battle stance.
"My justice is… protection and pursuit! Protecting all those I want to protect, and pursuing all that I wish to pursue!"
"That is my justice!"
With a shout, Jiang Lin's beams of light did not immediately fire. Instead, they spun rapidly in his palms, condensing into a small, swirling orb of light.
Light can be compressed—when energy is compressed to its limit, it becomes a black hole.
The sphere in Jiang Lin's hand wasn't a black hole, but its power surpassed any simple laser beam.
"Light may be the same in form—but its energy is not always the same!"
With a cold cry, Jiang Lin released the attack. Two invisible rays shot forth, piercing straight toward Kizaru.
Pshh! Pshh!
Two faint piercing sounds echoed as the beams shot through Kizaru's body.
In that instant, Kizaru's face twisted in shock and disbelief. As the wielder of the Glint-Glint Fruit, he had never imagined using his power in such a way.
"This… is the power of science!"
Jiang Lin gave a weak smile, his body already drained. He knew he had reached his limit. At most, he had managed to wound Kizaru and give him a lesson. To defeat him outright—or even kill him—was still far beyond his current reach.
"You… brat! You've made me angry now!"
Kizaru's body reformed, his wounds vanishing as he reconstituted himself. Lifting his Ama no Murakumo, he flashed forward in a blur, rushing straight at Jiang Lin.
"That's enough. The rest is mine."
Rayleigh could see clearly that Jiang Lin had hit his limit. The moment Kizaru charged, Rayleigh unleashed his Haki without hesitation, intercepting him head-on.
"This body is still too weak."
Jiang Lin let out a bitter laugh, collapsing heavily to the ground. He knew he couldn't keep fighting. After battles against PX-4, Sentomaru, and now Kizaru, his stamina was completely spent. Even if he still had the Glint-Glint Fruit, his body no longer had the energy to wield it.
Just as Jiang Lin was forcing himself up, ready to regroup with Luffy and the others, a familiar figure suddenly appeared before Nami.
The towering man removed his glove, raised his hand, and with a single slap, Nami vanished from the Sabaody Archipelago.
"Bartholomew Kuma!"
Jiang Lin's expression turned complicated as he stared at the giant figure before him, book in hand, face expressionless.
"Nami! Where did you send Nami?"
Luffy roared furiously, rushing forward. His face was twisted in anger.
"Those struck by his ability will fly through the air for three days and nights. Where exactly they land… only he knows."
Jiang Lin explained slowly, never taking his eyes off Kuma.
"We're no match for him! He'll kill us all!"
Usopp's lips trembled as he looked at Kuma, terror written across his face. He knew exactly how strong Bartholomew Kuma was. The moment Kuma appeared, his will to fight shattered completely.
"I won't let this happen—!"
Jiang Lin tried to stand, forcing his battered body to move. But among everyone present, he was in the worst condition. After so many battles, his strength was utterly gone.
"Where would you like to travel?"
Kuma's gentle voice drifted out. The moment his palm touched Jiang Lin, his body was flung away by the power, vanishing from Sabaody.
"Jiang Lin!!!"
The Straw Hats' cries echoed, but Jiang Lin's body had already been launched beyond their reach.
"Farewell."
Kuma's deep, gentle voice lingered in the empty sky. In those words, Jiang Lin felt boundless emotion.
"Farewell, Bartholomew Kuma! You are a gentle… and truly mighty man!"
Jiang Lin's voice was tinged with sorrow. He knew the truth hidden from Luffy and the others. And so, his grief was not just for himself—but for the man before him, who, after this day, might never be the same again.