Huh?
Nobody could believe what they were seeing!
Even Luffy, who had a freaking mountain of faith in Ignis, figured that sword-wind would send him flying!
Luffy's jaw dropped so far, it practically scraped the ground! But hey, he was a rubber man, his jaw wasn't gonna dislocate!
Zoro was freaking stunned! If he'd tried to tank that hit, he'd be dead a million times over!
Usopp? He couldn't even watch! He squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for the carnage. He only peeked when the wind died down, and saw Ignis standing there, solid as a rock!
Nobody doubted Hawkeye had gone all-out! That tidal wave of power? You could feel it clear as day, even hundreds of meters away!
Wait... what?!
"No freaking way!"
"Hawkeye, the most badass swordsman in the world... There's something he can't cut?"
"That shield... It actually blocked Hawkeye's attack?!"
"That kid... He did it?"
"He tanked the world's strongest slash!"
"I don't believe it! Pinch me!"
"Ow! Dammit! You didn't have to pinch so hard!"
"You told me to pinch ya!"
The crowd realized they weren't dreaming! This was real!
Hawkeye's world-shattering slash... Blocked by Ignis!
Hawkeye himself was scratching his head. That slash? He hadn't gone full-throttle, but it was still a monster! It could've sliced two ships in half! Easy!
"So, you're not just a reckless fool," Hawkeye's eyes narrowed. This time, he was getting serious.
"Told ya! Bring it on, with everything you've got!" Ignis was freaking buzzing!
When that slash was barreling down on him, Ignis had a split-second of doubt. Could this shield really hold?
The second the slash hit, he knew. Randuin's Omen was the real freaking deal!
It blocked the hit like it was nothing! He didn't even feel a push!
The power just... vanished when it slammed into the shield!
"Hahahahahahaha! Then brace yourself!"
Hawkeye was laughing like a maniac! How long had it been since he'd unleashed his full power?
He couldn't even remember!
Ever since he'd become the world's greatest swordsman and a Shichibukai, the world had felt... boring!
Everyone was too freaked out by his rep to challenge him! The few who did were just reckless punks! He didn't even need to draw his big sword for those guys!
He'd been bored outta his skull!
That's why he'd started looking for trouble! Krieg's fleet was just his latest amusement.
He'd come to the East Blue hoping to pick a fight with Shanks to kill the boredom!
"How freaking fascinating, the East Blue!"
"The former Pirate King's stomping grounds!"
"A swordsman yearning to be the world's greatest is here!"
"That man, Shanks, is here!"
"And a punk who dares to challenge me is here!"
Hawkeye raised his massive blade, pointing it at Ignis.
"Hey, kid!"
"These next four slashes... I won't hold back! They'll be my strongest!"
Hawkeye's eyes blazed! Everyone there felt a shiver down their spines!
Like a rabbit cowering in the grass, trying to hide from a hawk circling overhead!
"Kid... I hope you survive!"
Black Blade Barrage!
Hawkeye stepped forward, unleashing the second slash! The sword-intent was even more savage than before, roaring towards Ignis!
He didn't stop!
He kept moving closer to Ignis, unleashing the third slash! This one was even faster, catching up to the first two!
The two slashes merged!
And then, the fourth slash came, silent as the grave! Nobody could even feel it!
It blended seamlessly with the first three!
If each of his earlier slashes could cleave an island in two...
This four-in-one freaking monster of a slash... It held the power to destroy everything!
Just looking at it could make you faint!
Was this guy trying to split the freaking ocean in half?!
Nobody saw Hawkeye move his sword! All they knew was that Hawkeye's gaze alone was enough to make you crap your pants!
The East Blue was the newbie zone for pirates, a freaking kiddie pool!
Sword-intent? Most folks here had never even heard of it! But they were seeing it now!
Hawkeye's insane sword-intent made the air around him thick and twisty!
The wave of annihilation surged towards Ignis!
It was a freaking cataclysm!
The sea was boiling!
The wind was screaming!
The fish in the ocean were thrashing like crazy!
The birds in the sky were beating their wings like mad, trying to get the hell outta Dodge!
The all-consuming tidal wave of sword-energy crashed down on Ignis!
Ignis looked tiny in the face of such power! His shield, though? It just shone with that same, simple, solid light!
The attack landed! The ocean went still!
And Ignis? He was still standing there, behind that massive shield, not budging an inch!
Hawkeye's barrage wasn't over! While that sword-energy was flying, he'd closed the distance!
Watching his three slashes fail to break Ignis' defense, he let out another wild laugh!
Solid! Unbelievably solid!
Despair-inducing solid!
But he wasn't done yet! He was the world's greatest swordsman!
His final slash... No sword-energy this time! Just a straight-up, full-force swing at Ignis' shield!
And then... silence!
The wind died!
The waves died!
The shouts of the crowd died!
People watched each other's mouths moving, but they couldn't hear a freaking thing!
This simple, brutal swing... It was his last shot! His strongest shot!
It slammed into Randuin's Omen!
Ignis felt something, like a giant hand pushing him back through the shield!
But he didn't move! The force wasn't enough to budge him!
The grin on Hawkeye's face vanished the instant his Black Sword touched Randuin's Omen.
For the first time in his life, this master swordsman felt... helpless!
What was he fighting?!
A giant rock?
He'd shattered countless rocks!
A warship?
He could slice through a warship like butter!
An island?
No island could take a hit like that!
His opponent... was an entire freaking continent!
It was like he was trying to cleave the whole freaking world in two!
Of course he couldn't cut it!
Who could?!
Slowly, Hawkeye pulled back his blade.
The sounds of the world rushed back!
The crowd stared at Hawkeye, mouths agape!
They saw something on that man's face... Something like... resignation!
Hawkeye's breathing was a little ragged. Those slashes weren't something you just threw around!
"Kid... What's your name?"
"Ignis."
"You forged that shield?"
"Yeah."
"That's some freaking masterpiece of smithing!"
"Thanks for the compliment."
Hawkeye straightened his hat, which had been knocked a little crooked by the wind, and turned to leave.
"You won. I lost."
"The world's strongest slash... Can't break the world's strongest shield!"
The crowd was silent. Only the System's voice echoed in Ignis' head.
"Ding! Level up! Current Host Level: 3!"
"Ding! Received Hawkeye's shock! System has deposited 2600 Gold!"
"Woohoo! Cash money!"