Two black, X-shaped sword arcs tore through the air, streaked with crackling black lightning as they slammed into the paw pads on Bartholomew Kuma's palms.
Kuma's heart lurched.
His Paw-Paw Fruit could repel anything—yet this time, it failed. The cross-shaped slash wasn't sent flying back. It pierced straight through.
"This is a slash infused with Conqueror's Haki. A Devil Fruit ability can't solve everything."
"On this sea, only Haki reigns supreme."
Luo Xing's calm voice dispelled Kuma's confusion—only to deepen his shock.
This man's Haki… had reached such a terrifying level.
Even the Yonko would be hard-pressed to surpass it.
Clang!
The black blade wave sliced into Kuma's palms, splitting them open as he was blasted away.
Monkey D. Luffy refused to sit still and await death. Expanding into Gear Third, he hoisted a massive boulder as a shield.
But before the sword wave, the rock was nothing more than paper. It shattered instantly.
Under countless horrified gazes, the Purgatory Cross Slash struck Luffy square in the chest.
"AAAH!!"
Luffy's scream ripped through the air.
His body flew like a kite with its strings cut, hurled far into the distance.
Though his rubber body could nullify bullets and blunt force, it was particularly vulnerable to slashing attacks.
Clear as day, a massive X-shaped wound split across his chest.
Blood gushed out, splattering across the ground.
His eyes rolled white. His face drained of all color.
Luffy crashed down over a thousand meters away—and did not rise again.
"LUFFY!!!"
The Straw Hat Pirates stared in horror, despair flooding their faces.
"Is Luffy dead? No—no way! He's the man who's going to become the Pirate King! He can't die!"
Usopp's voice trembled in disbelief.
But Luffy's unmoving body shattered his hope piece by piece.
"He won't die! Luffy won't die!"
Sanji, who had earlier been blown away by Luo Xing, staggered out from the ruins and forced himself toward Luffy.
In the distance, Admiral Kizaru, still clashing with Enel, cast his gaze over.
"The Straw Hat boy Monkey D. Luffy, who caused such a stir at Enies Lobby… seems this is where his journey ends."
"But how strange. Why would a New World powerhouse like the Fifth Emperor Luo Xing go this far to kill a rookie pirate?"
Though Luffy's bounty had soared to 300 million Berries, in the eyes of top-tier monsters like Kizaru and Luo Xing, he was still just a rookie.
The same applied to Kid, Hawkins, Drake, and the other Supernovas—they were nothing but fledglings.
Elsewhere—
Silvers Rayleigh, unable to stop Luo Xing in time, saw red.
His eyes bloodshot, fury surging in his chest. Since Roger's death, Rayleigh had never been this enraged.
"You bastard!"
He roared, discarding all restraint.
For the first time in years, he pushed himself to the brink—drawing out power equal to his prime.
Like a hunting leopard, he appeared above Luo Xing in the blink of an eye.
His blade, infused with Conqueror's Haki and advanced Armament Haki—Ryuo—came crashing down.
Luo Xing glanced up and sneered.
"I was merely testing the fate of the so-called Sun God you all place your hopes in. Why are you acting like madmen?"
As he spoke, Enma in his hand rose without hesitation.
Then—
A shocking sight unfolded.
The two blades never touched.
They hovered apart, separated by an invisible gap.
Conqueror's Haki infusion vs Conqueror's Haki infusion!
Just like Roger versus Whitebeard in years past!
Terrifying black currents swept across heaven and earth.
The entire Sabaody Archipelago trembled violently, as though on the verge of collapse.
The sky howled. Dark clouds churned and split apart, torn open by a colossal rift stretching across the heavens.
Kid, Killer, Apoo, Hawkins, Urouge, and Drake—the six Supernovas present—were struck speechless with shock.
Before such domineering Haki, they were ants.
They would be annihilated instantly.
Apoo swallowed hard, his resolve to join the Beasts Pirates growing firmer.
Roronoa Zoro stood frozen, equally shaken.
"So this is the pinnacle of the world's greatest swordsmen… destroying heaven and earth without even touching blades!"
"Does Dracule Mihawk, the world's strongest swordsman, wield power like this too?"
In Zoro's eyes burned endless ambition and hunger.
He had to master Conqueror's Haki infusion.
Otherwise, he would never become the strongest swordsman.
Fortunately—
Luo Xing had once told him that he possessed the qualities of a king. His Conqueror's Haki had already begun to awaken.
…
Great Staff Officer Tsuru, Admiral Kizaru, and the leader of CP0 were all shaken to the core.
They had heard reports that Luo Xing might have mastered Conqueror's Haki infusion.
But none of them imagined it had reached this extent—able to stand evenly against Dark King Rayleigh in a full-power outburst.
"So young, yet possessing such heaven-defying inventions… and now Haki rivaling the Yonko?"
"This man… is truly terrifying."
For once, Kizaru's words carried no trace of mockery.
Luo Xing's displayed strength posed a genuine threat—even to him.
Crack—!
The very space between Enma and Rayleigh's blade seemed on the verge of tearing apart under the immense pressure.
Cold sweat beaded on Rayleigh's brow.
He had expected the Fifth Emperor to be strong.
But not this strong.
That strike had drawn out the full might of his prime—yet it was blocked.
Unbelievable.
Involuntarily, he thought of Roger.
Perhaps only Roger in his youth could be compared to the man before him.
But this was no time for awe.
If anything, Rayleigh had to push harder.
He needed to stall—buy time for the Straw Hats to escape with Luffy.
Under normal circumstances, that slash from Luo Xing would have killed anyone below the level of a top-tier powerhouse.
However—
Before it struck, Kuma's Paw-Paw ability had weakened it slightly.
And Luffy's vitality was monstrous.
After all, he had eaten the Human-Human Fruit, Mythical Zoan, Model: Nika.
The fruit granted him resilience and recovery surpassing even Kaido of the Beasts.
Moreover—
This fruit, nicknamed the Sun God, seemed to possess a will of its own.
It chose its bearer.
And when its host neared death, it awakened.
The moment the Nika Fruit awakened—
Joy Boy would return.
Luo Xing's intent to kill Luffy wasn't solely due to opposing stances.
More than anything, he wanted to see whether the Nika Fruit would awaken.
When his blade struck Luffy earlier, he had faintly glimpsed a wisp of white flame.
That must have been the omen of awakening.
His eyes flickered.
Things were becoming far more interesting.
In the distance—
Rubble shifted.
A severed hand pushed aside the broken stones, revealing a blood-soaked, battered body.
Bartholomew Kuma.
He had borne part of the Purgatory Cross Slash's force.
It had nearly killed him.
Fortunately, his Paw-Paw Fruit had long since awakened.
He could repel not only others' pain and fatigue—
But his own injuries as well.
That was how he survived.
"Dragon… even if it costs my life, I'll make sure your son leaves this place."
Kuma staggered upright.
Drawing a deep breath, ignoring whether his broken body could endure it, he forced his ability into motion.
In the next instant—
He vanished.
Reappearing beside the motionless, breathless Luffy.
"I hope you survive. Dragon should have a way to save you. Farewell, Straw Hat."
Smack.
With what remained of his palm, Kuma gently patted Luffy.
Luffy's body vanished instantly.
Not to Amazon Lily, as in the original timeline—
This time, Kuma sent him to the Revolutionary Army's headquarters: Baltigo, the White Soil Island.
The reason was simple.
The Pirate Empress was now closely associated with Luo Xing.
Sending Luffy to Amazon Lily would only guarantee his death.
Kuma was no fool.
One after another, he forced himself to send the remaining Straw Hats flying to distant lands.
When it was done—
He collapsed.
His body felt no pain. Vegapunk's modifications were nearly complete.
Soon, even his emotions would disappear.
"Farewell… world."
Having completed his final mission, Kuma closed his eyes.
When they opened again—
There would be no emotion.
No self.
Only a slave-like weapon.
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