"Laser."
A golden light shot from Kizaru's fingertip!
The beam was so fast it was impossible to track with the naked eye, reaching the two in the blink of an eye.
Shanks didn't even have time to draw his sword.
Clang—!!!
Yet a sword stood firmly before them.
The golden light struck the blade, exploding into countless sparkles.
Shanks froze.
The next moment, a familiar figure landed in front of them.
Silver hair, a lean build, and that ever-present mocking smile at the corner of his mouth.
"Mr. Rayleigh!!!"
Shanks and Buggy shouted in unison, overjoyed.
Rayleigh slowly sheathed his sword, glancing back with a slight smile:
"Run along, boys. I'll handle this."
"Yeah!"
Shanks nodded firmly, grabbing Buggy who was still sitting on the ground.
"Buggy! Let's go!"
"Waaah, Mr. Rayleigh—!"
Buggy tried to say more, but Shanks dragged him away as they ran.
Stumbling, the two disappeared into the depths of the ruins.
Kizaru didn't pursue.
He merely narrowed his eyes, watching the silver-haired man before him.
"Yo, scary~"
He tilted his head, his face still wearing that lecherous expression:
"Dark King Rayleigh, the Pirate King's right hand... This is truly troublesome."
Rayleigh grinned, flexing his wrist.
"You're Kizaru, right?"
He assumed a fighting stance, his sword angled toward the ground:
"Let's have a match."
As he spoke, he moved!
So fast that the ground beneath his feet shattered.
He became like a silver lightning bolt, crossing dozens of meters in an instant, swinging his sword in a horizontal slash.
The blade was wrapped in Advanced Armament Haki, tracing a trajectory through the air.
Kizaru didn't move.
He remained standing, that infuriating smile still on his face.
The moment the sword's Edge touched his body—
He dissolved into photons, scattering.
The next moment, he reappeared ten meters away in mid-air.
"Scary—"
Before he could finish.
Rayleigh was already behind him!
Observation Haki—predicting the endpoint of lightspeed movement!
Rayleigh thrust his sword!
Kizaru's pupils contracted slightly, hastily extending his right hand—
Golden light condensed, forming a Light Sword!
Sword of Gathering Clouds!
Clang—!!!
A metallic clang erupted!
Both exerted force simultaneously, their blades grinding together and emitting blinding sparks.
Rayleigh's sword and Kizaru's Light Sword were locked in a stalemate, neither able to advance an inch.
"Still fighting so hard at your age, old man." Kizaru tilted his head, his tone still that annoying drawl.
"I can still block the way for the young ones." Rayleigh smiled, then suddenly exerted force!
Boom!
He pushed Kizaru back!
Kizaru flipped and hovered in mid-air, raising his right hand, his index finger lightly tapping the void.
"Laser."
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Three thick laser beams shot out in a triangular formation, sealing off all of Rayleigh's escape angles.
Rayleigh's eyes narrowed, his Observation Haki fully activated!
He saw it clearly—the flight path of the lasers, every millisecond of change, vividly presented in his mind.
Swing his sword!
The first laser was sliced apart!
Dodge sideways!
The second laser grazed past his chest!
Block!
The third laser struck his sword, exploding into countless sparkles!
Amid the explosive light, Rayleigh charged out!
His clothes bore some scorch marks, but there wasn't a single scratch on his body.
"How scary~"
Even as Kizaru spoke, his body transformed into golden light and vanished.
Yata Mirror!
A beam of golden light reflected between the surrounding buildings, zigzagging through the air—
The next instant, Kizaru appeared behind Rayleigh!
Light Speed Kick!
His right leg, wrapped in golden light, shot straight toward Rayleigh's back!
If it landed squarely, it could shatter a small mountain!
But Rayleigh seemed to have eyes on his back.
He swiftly turned and swung his sword horizontally!
The blade collided head-on with the Light Speed Kick!
BOOM!!!
A shockwave erupted!
The ground beneath their feet instantly collapsed, cracking with countless fissures.
Neither of them retreated!
They stood face to face, locked in a stalemate!
Rayleigh smiled faintly:
"It seems the Marines have worthy successors."
Kizaru maintained his usual sly expression, but a hint of seriousness entered his eyes:
"Oii~ Thanks for the compliment."
As soon as he finished speaking, both of them exerted force simultaneously and separated once more!
Kizaru straightened up, the laziness on his face fading for the first time.
He reached up and touched his cheek.
There, a thin, elongated bloodstain marked where the sword had grazed him.
"Dark King Rayleigh…"
He murmured softly, his tone finally carrying a trace of seriousness:
"Truly worthy of being the Pirate King's right-hand man."
He crossed his arms over his chest, and his body began to glow.
The light grew brighter and more dazzling.
Yasakani no Magatama!
Countless light bullets erupted from his body!
Each one was the size of a fist, radiating scorching golden light, capable of destroying an entire building.
A torrent of light bullets poured down like a storm, blanketing the entire battlefield.
Nowhere to hide!
Rayleigh narrowed his eyes, unleashing his full Observation Haki!
His pupils reflected the trajectory of every single light bullet.
One slash, two, three, ten, a hundred!
His sword danced through the air, so fast it left afterimages!
Every swing precisely cleaved through a light bullet!
Before him, he formed an impenetrable net of sword strikes!
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM—!!!
The light bullets exploded one after another, flames soaring into the sky!
The shockwaves from the explosions overturned the surrounding ruins, leaving countless craters in the ground.
But Rayleigh stood at the center of the blasts, his silver hair dancing in the flames, without a single scratch on his body.
The last light bullet shattered!
Rayleigh burst through the smoke and dust, thrusting his sword straight at Kizaru's throat!
Fast as lightning!
Kizaru sidestepped, the blade grazing past his neck!
He could even feel the chilling killing intent!
But at the same time, he lifted his leg—
Light Speed Kick, aimed straight at Rayleigh's abdomen!
Rayleigh retracted his sword, blocking the kick with the flat of his blade!
BOOM!!!
...
"Ice Spears."
With a wave of his right hand, Aokiji formed four ice spears in the air, which shot toward the fleeing Mihawk with a piercing whistle.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
In the blink of an eye, the four ice spears were upon him!
Mihawk halted, his right hand moving to the hilt of the sword on his back. He turned and drew the blade.
A dark green arc of light flashed through the air!
All four ice spears shattered mid-flight, fragments scattering like a rain of ice crystals.
Mihawk's gaze fixed on the distant, languid figure, his expression unreadable.
"Ara ara ara…" Aokiji strode forward step by step, ice spreading beneath his feet, leaving frozen footprints with every step:
"Impressive swordsmanship. But I still can't let you escape."
"Then try and stop me," Mihawk replied coldly.
A battle was about to erupt.
Aokiji made the first move.
He clasped his hands together, palms aimed at Mihawk—
"Frozen Time Capsule!"
A sphere of freezing air shot out!
Wherever it passed, the air condensed into fine ice crystals, and the ground was covered with a layer of white frost.
Mihawk swung his sword horizontally!
The dark green Sword Qi split the cold air sphere, and he burst out from the exploding ice mist!
The Black Blade "Night" stabbed straight at Aokiji's throat!
Fast as lightning!
Aokiji swayed, dodging backward as the blade grazed past his throat by a hair's breadth.
The next second, Aokiji's right hand was already gripping an Ice Blade, sweeping toward the back of Mihawk's neck.
"Ice Blade!"
The blade carried a bone-chilling cold, heading straight for the vital spot!
Mihawk didn't even turn his head.
He reversed the Black Blade, using the back of the sword to precisely block the Ice Blade!
Clang!!!
The clash of ice and metal sparked blinding flashes and scattered ice shards!