"You really dared."
Lightning flickered all over Ren's body. With a breath, he swallowed the thunder.
—Thunder Breathing Technique: Activation!
The Haki coiled around the lightning poured into his flesh, and under his meticulous control, it activated his body to a state beyond its peak.
Although it was not as terrifying an enhancement as Meteor Burst, it still raised his three-dimensional attributes to nearly S- rank!
When the sonic-speed cannonball came flying toward him, he tightened his grip on his sword hilt—and turned into a blinding streak of lightning!
First Form: Modified—
—Godspeed: Double Strike!
There was no sound wave.
Because the lightning-colored blade flashed faster than sound. The cannonball, traveling at several times the speed of sound, was split in two in the very next instant.
Then, with unstoppable momentum, the blade shattered Killer's twin scythe blades and swept across his chest, taking his life and leaving only despair behind.
In that instant, Killer realized they seemed to have provoked the wrong person...
Then, as though the lightning had been driven to the brink, the radiance lifted upward. The rising lightning blade followed through and carved open Kid's chest, the tip nearly grazing past his heart.
"How...?"
Kid's pupils faintly began to lose focus. Only barely did he register what had happened.
But in the previous instant, they had launched their attack. In the next, they had already been cut down...
Where had the process in between gone?
He had not even blinked!
There was no answer.
Two pieces of rubble replaced Kid and Killer's positions, but it was already too late.
The two who had been swapped away collapsed to the ground, unable to rise. The light in their pupils scattered, and they were almost on the verge of dying on the spot.
Two in one strike!
What the hell was that speed? They had clearly predicted it in advance—
Bzzzt—!
There was no time to think. Law's pupils widened, and reflected in his eyes was the third streak of lightning—thrusting straight toward him!
White ripples bloomed. Shambles was about to be released, yet it could not keep up with the speed of the incoming blade.
Boom—!
A piercing explosion burst out. The tip of Sandai Kitetsu pressed against the sole of a shoe, and the violent force released into the surroundings, whipping up fierce winds that tore apart the terrain around them.
The next second, Law activated Shambles and transferred himself and Rayleigh away.
"How troublesome. Magneto, spatial transfers... You pirate Supernovas really are more monstrous than the last."
Ren smoothly sheathed his blade and shook his head with a slightly troubled expression.
"..."
Law said nothing. Cold sweat had already drenched his back.
If he was a monster, then what exactly was the person who had just taken two of them down in a single charge?
Even with advance prediction, he had still been half a second too late to react to that speed!
One had to know, he had prepared in advance to coordinate with Kid and Killer!
But... he could not react. He could not react at all!
What exactly was that?
Light?!
"Kaido's Thunder Bagua?"
Rayleigh's expression took on a rare gravity.
Law did not understand, and in the spirit of asking when one did not know, he said, "What's that?"
"It's the signature ability of the current Yonko, Kaido of the Beasts. He uses lightning to activate his flesh and enhance his physical abilities. But this version here doesn't seem to be complete."
Rayleigh did not dare turn his head aside. His Observation Haki and gaze were both locked firmly on Ren.
Too fast!
If he were still in his prime, he would have confidence in handling it. But now, he was seventy-six years old, and both his hair and beard had gone white.
One careless moment, and he might actually capsize against this fellow!
"As expected of a legend who once roamed the seas."
Ren nodded in admiration, making no attempt to hide the method he had just used. "After all, since I got beaten up by Kaido, I'd feel like I lost out if I didn't learn something."
Thunder Bagua was Kaido's signature ability. Its operating logic was to activate the body with lightning.
Back on Onigashima, one swing of Thunder Bagua had pierced through both Zoro and Law.
At the time, the former had the ability to defeat King fighting at full strength, while the latter could swap his own position with a thought.
In the end, even they still could not react.
The enhanced version of Thunder Bagua was even more terrifying. Its strength was so great and its speed so fast that even Luffy, who possessed Future Sight, could not react to it.
Having personally experienced it, Ren naturally wanted it too.
After all, he also possessed lightning.
Kaido had lightning, and Ren also had lightning. Why should he be unable to do it?
Of course, after actually trying it himself, Ren admitted that he could not achieve that kind of exquisitely precise control.
Kaido had likely trained for many years before he could almost instinctively use lightning to activate his body.
Moreover, Kaido's body was no ordinary thing. He belonged to the rare oni race.
The upper limit of his physique was not on the same level as an ordinary human's.
Unfortunately for him, Ren was a pay-to-win player!
No, this should count as talent!
Unless a whale's talent was countered by cheats, or forcibly nerfed by the developers, standing at the absolute peak was only natural.
In terms of race, Ren possessed the lifespan of a Little Celestial, exceeding a thousand years.
And he was still in his juvenile stage. His upper limit for activation would only be higher than Kaido's.
On top of that, he had twice poured vast sums into improving his Haki aptitude, raising his talent in Haki to Luffy's level.
At the same time, he also had the fused properties of Qi, making mastery and manipulation even more convenient.
Furthermore, the idea of wrapping Haki around lightning had existed before. In fact, Conqueror's Haki Infusion and Armament Haki coating were both part of the same development direction.
With Teacher Kaido's inspiration, he had integrated Thunder Breathing Technique, Blood Demon Art techniques, Haki-coated lightning, Thunder and Flame Mastery, and other abilities and techniques into one.
Then, not long ago, during his one-man battle against the entire nation of Kuja, he had successfully mastered lightning activation.
Its enhancement was terrifyingly powerful. To a certain degree, among combat techniques, it was second only to Meteor Burst!
Had it not been for the sake of tempering this technique,
Ren would not have seriously challenged an entire nation by himself.
Of course, he did want to beat those people into submission, but more than that, he had done it to temper his own skills.
In the end, this lightning activation technique had taken shape atop the suffering of the Kuja warriors that night!
"..."
The corner of Rayleigh's mouth twitched. He had also been beaten up by Kaido before.
Although that had been when he was young, why had he not learned someone else's signature ability?
After thinking for a moment, he chose to say, "So, you came to deal with this old man, then?"
"You jest. One Red-Hair is already enough to give me a headache.
"Although I really would like to cross blades with a legend and test my own measure, your sword isn't with you, is it?
"Taking advantage of someone's weakness doesn't fit my principles.
"If you do not intend to avenge Buggy here, perhaps we can reach a relatively peaceful agreement.
"I believe the contents of that agreement will be something you are willing to hear. After all, it concerns your late captain—the Pirate King, Roger."
"..."
Rayleigh narrowed his eyes and fell silent without answering.
Buggy had been an apprentice aboard Roger's ship, so he was naturally also his companion.
To say Rayleigh did not want to avenge Buggy was impossible.
Pirates were creatures like that. They repaid kindness and hatred as they pleased, lived freely and unrestrained, and as for whether things were fair or not—at the very least, he would not think about such matters.
But the current occasion and situation were not quite right.
His sword was not in hand. The aura of that man called Kuma also made him wary. Inside, there were unconscious Celestial Dragons. Outside, a Marine Admiral was on the way.
And he very much wanted to meet that man wearing the straw hat...
'This is bad...'
Rayleigh's hesitation was very clear to Law. With a spread of his hand, he prepared to silently flee.
However—
"Don't you want to know Doflamingo's ending?"
Ren smiled faintly. "The murderer who killed someone important to you. Isn't the meaning of your survival in this life to kill him?
"If you behave, I'll tell you about his situation. Even if you go to Dressrosa, you won't find anything useful—there!"
In that instant, Ren charged forward again, and Conqueror's Haki pressure was released at the same time, forcefully controlling Law.
Thunder Breathing Technique: Activation!
Fourth Form: Distant Thunder!
"!"
Law's pupils widened, yet he still could not react.
The short distance was crossed in an instant. A hand wrapped in Haki-infused lightning clamped around Law's neck. The brutal lightning strike immediately stripped Law of the ability to move his limbs.
At the same time, powerful Haki lightning was released wildly, causing Law's pupils to begin losing focus.
"If you don't make that hand gesture, you can't deploy Shambles, right?"
Ren restrained Law with one hand and electrocuted him unconscious, then turned to look at Rayleigh, who was close at hand and on full alert.
Rayleigh's pupils contracted. That momentary distraction had prevented him from intervening in time.
While realizing that he had lost his last helper, his attention also shifted to Kikoku.
However, Ren simply and cleanly threw Kikoku over, embedding it into the platform between the two of them.
Rayleigh, who had already prepared for battle, was stunned.
"Don't be nervous. I just don't want him to hear the conversation that follows."
Ren casually tossed Law aside, then took out two Den Den Mushi and took turns photographing the miserable state of the Celestial Dragon family.
Mm.
Hancock's leg-massaging job was basically guaranteed now.
"You... want to turn this world upside down?"
Rayleigh seemed to have realized something. He gripped Kikoku's hilt, his expression grave. "Although I don't know the exact process, part of the incident here was orchestrated by you, wasn't it?
"As one of the Warlords of the Sea, you attacked the Celestial Dragons and even created a scene like this.
"Demon Ren, what exactly are you planning?"
"It's a secret."
Ren put away the Den Den Mushi and grinned, baring his teeth. "That's why I need to reach an agreement with you. I'll have to trouble you to keep everything that happened here today confidential.
"Whether it is me, Kuma, or whatever happens afterward, please forget it all."
"You're that certain? There is still a debt between us."
With Kikoku in hand, Rayleigh's confidence visibly returned.
But Ren's next words froze his eager expression in place.
"Don't you want to know where Roger's son is?"
"...It's not good to joke about the dead."
"You didn't get angry, nor did you show any unusual change in expression. Looks like you truly know nothing.
"As the Pirate King's right hand, you can't even compare to Garp, a Marine?"
Ren shook his head. "But that makes sense. If I put myself in his shoes, I think I can understand Roger's mindset.
"Compared to having his son become the destined one, he probably hoped the child could live a happy life and decide the direction of his own future after reaching adulthood.
"If the child stayed beside you old subordinates, he would only become a miniature version of Roger."
"I said, this joke isn't funny."
Rayleigh drew Kikoku, his expression turning icy. Black-red lightning surged around him. "Either give me something concrete, or... I'll make you understand the price of making reckless jokes!"
Because this concerned his captain, this old man who wanted to retire revealed a completely different edge!
"Don't be so anxious, Rayleigh. When old people get too worked up, they end up in the grave early, you know?
"I'm very busy, and I still have a lot of things to do. I really don't feel like digging a grave and burying you in it."
(End of Chapter)