"Straw Hat, have you ever been kicked at the speed of light?"
In Red Tree Area 11, the Straw Hat crew was locked in fierce combat with the Marines.
Kizaru appeared directly in front of Luffy, his right foot glowing with blinding golden light like a miniature sun. Behind his cracked sunglasses, his usual lazy and lecherous gaze looked down at Luffy with unmistakable pressure.
Luffy's expression changed instantly. The speed of this opponent was far beyond anything he had faced before.
"Speed is power."
As Kizaru spoke, he prepared to strike. Suddenly, a sharp pain throbbed through his head, causing his movements to stall for a fraction of a second.
"Luffy, now!"
Emma's voice rang out from the distance. Her beautiful face was tense, her brows tightly knit as if she were forcefully suppressing something.
At that moment, she was launching a mental assault on Kizaru. Even so, facing an Admiral, she could only interfere briefly. Total control was impossible.
"Gum Gum King Cobra."
Luffy reacted instantly, their coordination almost instinctive.
His right arm compressed deeply into his body, muscles coiling like a loaded spring. With a shrill whistle tearing through the air, the punch shot forward toward Kizaru's face.
"Damn it."
Kizaru forced himself awake and immediately attempted to shift into his elemental form. However, the punch struck before he could fully disperse.
A golden beam of light burst forth, tearing across the battlefield. Wherever it passed, explosions followed in rapid succession, carving a long, ruined gully through the ground.
Kizaru crashed into the rubble at the end of the trench. Blood streamed down his face as his shattered sunglasses embedded themselves into his skin, leaving his face visibly disfigured.
"Old man."
Sentomaru and Momousagi, who were locked in combat with Zoro, Brook, and the others, reacted with alarm.
Their own situation was already dire. Large numbers of Marines were under Emma's influence, turning on their allies. Even Rear Admirals were unable to resist her ability. Only Vice Admirals could barely hold out, and even then, their combat effectiveness was severely reduced.
If not for the Pacifista units still functioning, the Marines would have been in complete disarray.
"What kind of ability is this?"
Sentomaru swung his massive axe, forcing Franky and several Rear Admirals back. His gaze locked onto Emma standing behind the Straw Hat crew.
"Emma, I knew you could do it."
At first, Nami and the others had been panicking as they were surrounded on all sides. But the moment Emma acted, the Marines fell into chaos, even assisting Luffy against Kizaru.
Victory no longer seemed impossible.
Emma remained silent. Her face was noticeably pale as she struggled to maintain control over so many minds while simultaneously supporting Luffy. The strain was enormous.
Whoosh.
A golden laser suddenly shot out from the dust cloud, streaking straight toward Nami and the others.
"Gum Gum Great Serpent."
Luffy appeared in front of them in an instant, punching the laser aside.
Rumble.
A massive explosion erupted in the distance. As debris scattered, golden light particles gathered in front of Emma.
Kizaru emerged, his face smeared with blood, his expression dark as he swung his right leg downward.
Emma did not panic. Her entire body diamondized instantly, reinforced with Armament Haki. She crossed her arms to block.
The impact felt like a meteor strike.
The ground beneath her feet shattered into spiderweb cracks as she was blasted backward, crashing through one red tree after another.
Nami and the others were thrown away by the shockwave, hitting the ground hard with painful groans.
"Gum Gum Jet Great Serpent Cannon."
Luffy roared in fury, appearing in front of Kizaru and launching another punch.
"You know nothing about speed."
Kizaru sneered. His body broke apart into countless particles of light as he reassembled above Luffy.
Luffy could not retract his attack in time.
A blur crossed his vision, followed by a devastating impact. His body bent into a C-shape as blood sprayed from his mouth, and he was sent crashing into the ground like a cannonball, carving another ruined trench.
Kizaru did not pursue him.
Instead, his gaze shifted back to Emma.
As long as she remained standing, the situation would never stabilize.
"Eight Shaku Jewel."
Without hesitation, Kizaru transformed into photons and rose into the sky. A cross-shaped flash formed, and countless light bullets rained down toward Emma in a dense barrage.
There was no room to dodge.
Emma's lips were stained with blood, her reddish purple curls disheveled, giving her a striking yet fragile beauty.
Her body diamondized once more. She pressed her hands against the ground, causing everything within a hundred meters to transform into diamond. A solid barrier rose around her, enduring the bombardment without a single crack.
"Snake Man."
Luffy landed heavily, his body shrinking and refining as he entered Gear Fourth Snake Man. He aimed his left arm at Kizaru while his right arm compressed repeatedly.
"Gum Gum Great Serpent."
With explosive force, his punch shot forward like a venomous snake, tearing through the air and forcing its way through the storm of light bullets.
Kizaru halted his attack and reformed ten meters away. The Great Serpent missed, but twisted sharply in midair and lunged at him again.
Kizaru dispersed once more, reappearing elsewhere, but the punch pursued relentlessly.
Even so, no matter how persistent the attack was, it could not surpass Kizaru's speed.
Kizaru condensed again, directly in front of Luffy.
Luffy tensed instinctively.
"Light Speed Kick."
Kizaru swept his leg horizontally at unmatchable speed. Luffy's body folded again as blood sprayed, and he was launched away in another violent explosion.
At that moment, a diamond spike coated in Armament Haki shot toward Kizaru.
He shifted twenty meters instantly, turning his gaze toward Emma standing atop the diamondized terrain. With a flick of his finger, a laser fired.
Emma raised a diamond shield from the ground, blocking the blast completely.
"What exactly is your ability? You can even assimilate the environment. Has your Devil Fruit awakened?"
Kizaru appeared behind her, drawing his hand across his other palm as a sword of light formed. He slashed downward.
Emma turned just in time, forming a shield with her right arm as diamond spikes erupted upward.
Kizaru dispersed again and reappeared in the air. The Ama no Murakumo in his hand expanded rapidly, growing until it stretched into the clouds, forming a thousand meter blade of golden light that swung down with world splitting force.
Emma's expression hardened.
The diamondized ground surged upward, massive spikes intertwining into a towering pillar that reached for the sky.
The blade collided with the pillar.
A circular shockwave exploded outward, the air roaring like a tsunami as it flattened everything in its path.
Kizaru's face darkened. He tightened his grip on the blade while compressing golden light at the tip of his left index finger.
"Gum Gum Black Mamba."
The wind howled.
Kizaru's body tensed as Luffy appeared beside him as if teleporting. The compressed light vanished as Kizaru straightened, his body beginning to elementalize once more.
Crack.
A sickening sound echoed.
Due to the recoil, Kizaru's left hand slammed into his own face, interrupting his transformation. A golden beam shot diagonally downward, causing the ground within a thousand meters to buckle and shatter. Stones flew like bullets as explosions consumed the area in dust and fire.
Luffy bounced through the air, blood dripping from his mouth, breathing ragged.
Below him, Emma stood at the center of the diamondized field, her face pale but resolute.
"Very good. Truly very good."
Kizaru's enraged laughter echoed from within the dust.
Heavy footsteps followed.
His tall figure emerged slowly.
At this moment, Kizaru's once lecherous face was twisted with rage, blood and grime covering his features.
He was completely furious.
___
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