Above the floating island cluster.
"Jyahahahaha—!"
A golden-haired man, a ship's rudder impossibly embedded in his skull, clad in a flamboyant kimono and puffing on a cigar, enthusiastically organized his crew.
"Dance! All of you, dance for me!"
It was Golden Lion Shiki, the legendary pirate, swaying his body in drunken exhilaration.
He stood atop his two famed swords, Oto and Kogarashi, rocking to the rhythm like a peacock in full, glorious display.
"Men! Let me see your best moves!"
"BOOOOM—!"
Suddenly, an ear-splitting explosion, a sound of pure, unadulterated destruction, brutally interrupted Shiki's revelry.
He looked up, his eyes widening in disbelief, to see a massive meteorite, wreathed in roaring flames, descending like a vengeful fireball from the heavens.
It hurtled straight toward the main island of his floating cluster.
"CRASH—!"
The meteorite slammed into the island with devastating, apocalyptic force, unleashing a deafening explosion that dwarfed any of Shiki's previous party poppers.
The sturdy, ancient island, a foundation he'd spent years shaping, shattered like brittle biscuit under the impact, fracturing into countless fragments that scattered in all directions.
"WHO?!"
Thanks to the power of his Float-Float Fruit, Shiki effortlessly hovered in mid-air, evading the initial strike.
But the remnants of his Flying Pirates, his loyal crew, weren't so lucky.
They were caught directly in the sudden, hellish meteorite shower, suffering heavy, instant casualties.
Shiki watched, horrified, as years of painstaking effort, of building his fortress in the sky, were obliterated in an instant by this unexpected, overwhelming attack.
Fury, cold and primal, burned through him, and he bit clean through his cigar.
"Which bastard dares to destroy my—" His roar was cut short by a series of consecutive, earth-shattering explosions.
"BOOM—BOOM—BOOM—!"
Dozens of smaller meteorites, like precision-guided missiles from an angry god, rained down upon the other islands of the cluster.
Each one carried apocalyptic force, smashing the islands into rubble, reducing them to smoking ruins.
"..."
Shiki stared blankly at the now-empty sky and the debris raining down around him, utterly dumbfounded.
'Gone?! Everything… everything is gone?!'
All the wealth, all the power, all the careful planning he'd painstakingly accumulated over the years—just vanished like that?!
"DAMN YOUUUUU—!" Shiki howled at the heavens, his voice a lion's roar of pure, untamed rage that shook the very clouds.
His golden mane billowed without wind, standing on end like the bristling fur of an enraged beast.
"Lion's Roar Shakes the Seas!" Shiki stood atop his twin blades, Oto and Kogarashi, darting through the air like a phantom, a blur of golden fury.
He would find the one who dared destroy everything he had, and he would tear them limb from limb!
"WHO IS IT?! SHOW YOURSELF!"
"Shiki." A calm, impossibly deep voice suddenly echoed from all directions at once, impossible to pinpoint.
"Come down."
As the words fell, an invisible force of gravity instantly pressed down on Shiki like a crushing mountain, immobilizing him.
His body lurched violently, as if seized by an unseen, titanic hand, dragging him downward.
"A Devil Fruit user?!" Shiki's heart skipped a beat, but his face remained a mask of confident, arrogant malice.
He allowed the gravity to drag him downward, a hint of mockery flashing in his eyes.
'Perfect. Saves me the trouble of searching! How dare you provoke me… Today… you will pay the price!'
Soon, he spotted a massive warship on the horizon, its new, aggressive flag fluttering.
On its deck, two figures stood side by side.
"Marines?!" Shiki snorted coldly. He activated the power of his Float-Float Fruit, effortlessly breaking free from the gravity Issho had imposed on him, shrugging it off like a minor annoyance.
He stepped lightly onto the surface of the sea, as if it were solid ground.
"Hmph, just you two fuckers?" Shiki looked at Issho and Mihawk with undisguised disdain and contempt.
"Where are those old bastards, Garp and Sengoku? They too scared to show their faces?"
"..."
No one answered his question.
"Heh—" Shiki sneered, a predatory grin. "Seems I've been gone from these seas for too long! No one remembers the name of Golden Lion anymore! Fine then! I'll remind you myself!"
"LION DANCE—!"
With a furious roar, Shiki used the power of his Float-Float Fruit to manipulate the very seawater beneath him.
Under his control, the water surged violently, as if given life, forming towering, churning columns.
Guided by the arcs of his twin swords, the water columns swiftly converged, shaping themselves into a pride of ferocious, roaring water lions.
"Reign Over the Seas!" Shiki leaped high into the air, using the buoyant force to slash his swords at blinding speed.
"ROAR—!" The water lions howled, their forms solid and lifelike, down to the finest details of their manes, as they charged toward the warship.
"Jyahahaha—!" Shiki grinned viciously, already picturing the two young Marines flailing helplessly.
"Since you're Devil Fruit users… sink to the bottom and reflect on your mistakes!"
Nothing pleased him more than watching Devil Fruit users drown—it always lifted his spirits.
"..."
Facing the oncoming water lions, Issho slightly turned his body, yielding the offensive position to Mihawk beside him.
Their roles had been decided before the mission: Mihawk would lead the attack while Issho provided support.
After all, the bounty on Golden Lion's head was a staggering three billion Belly… for Issho, devoted to upholding Justice for the people, money was merely a triviality
As long as he had enough for drinks and gambling, it sufficed.
Mihawk, however, had been muttering about grand estates, premium grapes, and vintage wines.
"Hmph—" Mihawk stared at the snarling, charging water lions, a faint smirk curling his lips.
"This swordsmanship… interesting!"
Before the words fully left his mouth, the world's greatest swordsman was already in motion.
Slowly, deliberately, he raised his right hand, gripping the hilt of the massive black blade strapped to his back.
One of the twelve Supreme Grade swords, the Black Blade—Yoru—was unsheathed with a profound, almost reverent grace.
"Golden Lion," Mihawk's voice was calm, utterly without fear. "Let me see how much strength an old relic like you still has left!"
"HUM—!"
With a single, effortless swing of Yoru, a colossal green slash, shimmering with destructive Haki, tore through the air.
The sheer force of the slash split the very atmosphere, emitting a piercing shriek.
The seemingly ferocious water lions were effortlessly bisected, dissolving into showers of spray, vaporized before they could even touch the warship.
But this was only the beginning.
Mihawk at full power was far from limited to a single slash.
"SWISH SWISH SWISH SWISH SWISH—!"
Mihawk's wrist flicked rapidly, and Yoru in his hand transformed into a black streak of lightning.
Countless sword slashes, dense as a storm, poured forth like a tempest, blanketing the sky as they surged toward Golden Lion Shiki.
Each slash was imbued with terrifyingly powerful Armament Haki.
"!!!"
Shiki watched as his "Lion's Might: Sea Domination" was effortlessly dismantled, his face twisting in a mask of shock and dawning horror.
Hawk-Eyes… Mihawk?!
Even after years of seclusion, he still recognized the name of the world's greatest swordsman, now standing before him.
No wonder… no wonder his water lions had been so casually cleaved.
"Young brat, you're arrogant!" Shiki roared, quickly regaining his composure, his pride stung.
"Fine then! I'll play with you properly! Let me show you what real swordsmanship looks like!"
"Lion's Might: Heroic Dance!!!" With a furious roar, Shiki swung his legs sharply, and his two famed swords, detached from his feet, coming alive, dancing through the air on their own, controlled by his Float-Float Fruit.
"Whoosh whoosh whoosh—"
Massive golden sword slashes, like roaring dragons, surged toward Mihawk.
"Yoru—!" Mihawk uttered a low command.
The black blade in his hand emitted a crisp, resonant hum, a mournful, hungry sound.
"Long Howl!"
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