But trying to escape now… it seemed far too late!
El had already locked onto this poor creature.
True, the meteorite was enormous, but it was also moving at terrifying speed. And this massive Sea King was no small thing itself—getting away quickly was no easy feat.
Splash!
A colossal tsunami erupted in an instant. There was no time to prepare at all.
The great meteor came crashing down. Even with this giant Sea King acting as a "buffer," it slammed hard into the beast, then plunged straight into the ocean!
You didn't even need something this huge…
Even an ordinary Sea King shifting its body in the deep could stir up a massive tidal wave. And this meteor was far larger than any Sea King, slamming straight into the sea all at once…
"Hold steady! Hold it steady!!"
Doflamingo wrapped the entire pirate ship tight with the power of his Devil Fruit—the String-String Fruit. Yet even so, it was almost impossible to keep the vessel stable amid such violent surges.
"Sandstorm…"
Crocodile stepped in too.
This wasn't the desert, his ideal battlefield, but his Sand-Sand Fruit was still a Logia-type power. When it mattered most, it could still turn the tide.
Countless grains of sand swarmed around the ship, growing denser by the second. Under his control, they were gradually lifting and supporting the hull.
He was using all his strength to hold the ship up above the waves.
And the great tsunami didn't come just once.
The meteor El had summoned was simply too massive. The waves it stirred up were endless, rolling out in endless rings from the impact point.
Any ordinary ship would have been smashed to splinters long ago.
But on this ship, there were two powerful men standing guard.
Crocodile took charge of protecting the vessel.
Doflamingo's power wasn't suited for holding the ship in place, but it was perfect for slicing through each towering wave that crashed toward them.
"Five-Colored Strings!"
Doflamingo never imagined he'd end up fighting not some giant Sea King… but his own captain!
No wonder El had told them earlier: "Make sure the ship stays safe."
So that was what he meant…
Doflamingo's mind raced back to those words. At the time, he'd thought their captain found these giant Sea Kings a little too much to handle.
He'd never guessed the truth:
The Sea Kings weren't the problem. The real question was whether they could survive the shockwaves from El's attacks.
Yes—everything battering their ship right now was just the aftershock.
He didn't know how that giant Sea King fared after being crushed by the meteor. But it couldn't possibly be anything good, Doflamingo thought.
His strings were thick and strong—cutting through waves was easy. But even for him, blocking the shockwaves from El's strike was no simple task.
Slicing waves apart and keeping the whole ship safe were two very different things.
And the captain had clearly said: "Don't let the ship get damaged."
A shiver ran through Doflamingo. He wove his strings faster, never letting up.
He had no desire to explain any damage to the hull. If that happened, what came next would be far worse than just enduring these aftershocks.
It wasn't only Doflamingo struggling.
Crocodile was also having a terrible time.
He had to hold the ship steady, stop it from being swept away, and constantly patch up gaps—making sure none of the waves Doflamingo missed crashed against the hull.
Even for a Logia user, this was pushing his power to the limit.
"Savages are just savages… is that all you've got?"
By now, El could see no more giant Sea Kings daring to show themselves.
Just two moves:
One punch sent a massive beast flying. One technique—Skyfall Meteor—nearly crushed every other Sea King within range, leaving them all grievously wounded.
From now on, even if he crossed the Calm Belt alone… no creature would be foolish enough to attack him again.
Humans didn't know much about these giant beasts. We weren't even sure if they had true intelligence.
But one thing was certain: they weren't stupid.
Hurt them badly enough, and they learned to stay away.
El turned smoothly in the air, then landed lightly back on his ship. He glanced around.
"Not bad. Looks like everything's intact, at least on the surface."
By now, the endless waves and towering swells from the meteor were finally beginning to fade.
Crocodile and Doflamingo both let out long breaths.
"Right, Captain… but you really went overboard this time…"
Doflamingo didn't say much. He just gave a thumbs-up—complete, sincere respect.
Everyone knew no Sea King could stop their captain. But to solve it all so effortlessly… that was true, overwhelming power.
Truly—no one else in the entire Grand Line could do what El had just done.
Even looking back through all history, there had never been anyone so mighty.
Whoosh… whoosh…
Though the worst of the tsunami had passed, huge swells and powerful currents still churned everywhere. It would be a long time before the seas calmed.
The disturbance stretched far beyond this area. Even parts of the Calm Belt were affected.
"What on earth is this?"
"Where did these giant waves come from?!"
Deep in the Calm Belt, the Kuja Pirates were sailing toward El's direction, pulled forward by two massive sea serpents.
They had promised to welcome their future master—the new, first-ever ruler of Amazon Lily.
But they never expected such violent waves in these always still waters!
In fact, what Boa Hancock and her crew were facing now was only the very last, weakest edge of the disturbance.
The true center—where El and his ship were—was where the waves had been tallest and most dangerous. One mistake there, and the whole ship would have been lost.
"Empress… judging by the direction… it must be…"
The lookout had tracked the waves carefully. He knew exactly where this chaos had started.
"Mm…"
Hancock's face grew serious.
She could see it clearly too. The waves were coming straight from the direction they were heading—where El was.
"I hope nothing has happened to Lord El…"
She was anxious, but she showed nothing. She had ruled as empress for many years; she knew how to keep her composure.
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