Chapter 258: Getting in Each Other's Way
In an instant, the spear, wreathed in black and red arcs of electricity and radiating a strange light, tore through the atmosphere, thrusting toward Somazu's chest.
Before the blow even landed, the terrifying power and a slash-like wind pressure had already washed over him, causing him to break out in a cold sweat, his eyes filled with terror. He did his utmost to control the thorns beneath his feet, trying his best to dodge this blow.
As someone who had directly faced this ability, Somazu was very clear that under such a great power, any existence that had not reached the level of a top-tier fighter who tried to block it would only meet a dead end. This was no exception, even for him, a member of the God's Knights.
He saw that the blow, which contained a destructive power, flew past him at lightning speed. It grazed his shoulder, and the dissipating Conqueror's Haki directly shattered his arm. The intense pain instantly made Somazu's face twist, and he bit down hard. Then, he opened his bloodshot eyes, drew his weapon, and, wreathed in Haki lightning, rushed in Garling's direction.
When he saw the Archangel materialize and swing a terrifying sword at Garling, Somazu, without a second thought, held his sword with one hand and chopped at his back.
Just as his blade was about to touch Louis's gold and red armor, the Seven Star Sword, which contained a destructive power, and Garling's rapier coincided. In that instant, the two blades, wreathed in Conqueror's Haki, clashed from a distance. The resulting power and impact instantly sent the attacking Somazu flying.
The clash of Conqueror's Haki and the black and red lightning directly tore through the sky of seawater that was falling from the portal. The earth cracked, and countless plate-like debris were sent flying, soaring to the horizon.
Somazu, at this moment, had his famous sword deeply embedded in the gradually-torn-up rock layer. He braced himself against the terrifyingly strong power and wind pressure and watched this scene.
The Archangel's expression was incomparably detached. Even in the clash of Conqueror's Haki with the Commander of the God's Knights, Garling, there was not the slightest sign of strain. On the contrary, Garling, whom Somazu knew, had his expression gradually become twisted under the collision, and the sunglasses he always wore had shattered at some unknown point.
"This last remnant—is he not struggling in the slightest even when fighting Garling?" At this moment, Somazu's gaze became more and more worried, his hand gripping his famous sword so tightly it creaked.
As a member of the God's Knights, Somazu knew better than most people just how terrifying Garling was. Even compared to Roger, Whitebeard, and the others, he was not in the least inferior. Yet at this moment, Somazu saw him fall into a disadvantage in the first exchange. This situation undoubtedly dealt a violent blow to his worldview.
Then, under Somazu's watchful eyes, the clash between the two briefly ended, and then, the next moment, they clashed again.
BOOM!
As the two fought, a roar as if the sky were collapsing pierced the entire Fish-Man Island. One after another, cracks spread across the island. Rock and soil continuously collapsed, falling into the canyon-wide fissures.
Sword and sword intertwined, and Conqueror's Haki clashed at every moment. Wherever the two of them passed, everything was completely destroyed.
Somazu leaped across one after another of the gradually crumbling rock and soil, and landed on the giant-python-like thorns, heading straight for the battlefield. He raised his hand and swung his weapon, cutting apart the one after another giant rocks and building debris that were thrown at him, making the scene of the two's battle clearer in his vision.
Just as Somazu was rapidly approaching, a whistling sound of a heavy object cutting through the sky was heard from above his head. Looking up, he saw a middle-aged man in a red suit and a military cap, with a cigar in his mouth, pass over his head, heading straight for the battlefield. The hurricane generated by his high-speed advance made the Justice cape on his back whip and snap.
"Is that..." Somazu was taken aback and subconsciously called out the person's name. "Akainu? Has he already completed his mission?"
Somazu turned his head to look, and only then did he notice a giant, thousand-meter-wide portal hanging at the edge of the Fish-Man Island bubble, connecting to the deep sea. Every second, tens of thousands of tons of seawater were pouring in along the channel.
"Not only is there a portal like this in the sky, but there's also one on the ground. Have the people of Fish-Man Island all escaped through the channel?"
Under his watchful eyes, Akainu descended from the sky. His right arm turned into crimson magma and, shaping itself into a ferocious dog's head, blasted straight at Louis.
"MEIGO!"
A distance of several hundred meters was crossed in a flash. The ferocious dog's head, radiating a terrifying high temperature and rolling smoke, instantly blasted out with the force of a volcanic eruption.
A red light flashed in Louis's eyes. Everything that was to happen in the future was displayed before him. Then, he exhaled, and met the blade that was coming at him head-on. He extended the hand that was covered by the crystal gauntlet and activated his space transfer ability.
The next moment, Louis's figure disappeared.
Akainu's and Garling's figures were reflected in each other's eyes. The blade, wreathed in Conqueror's Haki, and the dog's head, which had been blasted out with the force of a volcanic eruption, instantly smashed into each other.
In that instant, the two, who could not dodge in time, were unable to retract their attacks. Although they held back a little, it still landed on the other's body. The blade cut across Akainu's chest, sending crimson magma splashing. The blow, which was like a volcanic eruption, directly shattered half of Garling's body and, with undiminished force, blasted a bottomless, searing abyss in the ground.
"..."
This scene made the still-approaching Somazu's eyes widen, and his entire being was utterly astonished.
Garling's body burned with black flames, and it repaired itself at a visible rate. In just a moment, it had returned to its original state. He turned with a dark face to look at the equally grim-faced Akainu, and said nothing. And Akainu also said nothing, but silently looked up at the sky, at the thousand-meter-class portal from which seawater was continuously pouring in, and at the tall figure hovering at its edge.
Louis spread his snow-white wings and hovered at the edge of the portal. He first glanced at Fish-Man Island, which was rapidly being submerged by seawater, and then looked down at Akainu and Garling, who were now standing side-by-side.
Just then, a small portal opened at his side. A slender hand with sharp claws reached out, holding a controller. After lightly pressing a switch, the slender hand casually tossed the controller aside and retracted.
Just as the small portal disappeared, a series of terrifying explosions were heard from above, from the direction of the Fish-Man Island entrance.
Under the explosions, Fish-Man Island trembled violently. Everyone's attention was drawn to this scene. Looking up, one after another, flashes of fire lit up the royal palace, which was situated above the island. The giant bubble that had enveloped it disappeared. An immeasurable amount of seawater poured into the palace, sweeping everything away. The rolling tidal wave fell along the channel, surging toward Fish-Man Island.
Tidal waves from four different locations rushed into the island. Anyone could see that the time until Fish-Man Island was submerged was getting shorter and shorter.
Somazu turned his head and looked at the channel at the entrance of Fish-Man Island, which was continuously spouting seawater. His face was as black as the bottom of a pot. "Are CP0 all a bunch of trash?! It's one thing that they didn't have a chance to dismantle the bombs in the palace, but they didn't even discover the bombs in the direction of the entrance!"
As the speed of the inrushing seawater rapidly increased, the Marines who had been in an illusion suddenly woke up, looking in terror at the scene unfolding before them.
"What are you standing around for?!"
"Quick! Get on the surviving warships! Get the coating ready!"
A Vice Admiral who had survived the siege came back and urged the soldiers, who had just woken up from who knows what. The soldiers heard him as if they had just woken from a dream, and all rushed toward the warships. In the face of such a disaster, everyone just wished their mothers had given them two more legs.
And just at this moment, Louis once again merged into the void, disappearing from everyone's sight. This situation made Akainu, Garling, Somazu, and the others, who had been paying close attention to him, raise their vigilance to the highest level. Their Observation Haki was extended without reservation.
The next moment, Garling and Akainu abruptly turned their heads, looked at Somazu's location, and quickly moved in his direction. Their actions also made Somazu understand that the Archangel's target was surely him.
Then, he took a deep breath, gripped his sharp blade tightly, and he also understood what he should be doing now. Then, his Armament Haki and his Thorn-Thorn Fruit ability were wreathed around his body without reservation, and he stood in a conservative defensive posture.
Quilinguame's recent encounter had made Somazu understand that against Archangel Louis, without Kizaru's speed, running was useless. Therefore, he was putting everything he had on the line, just so as not to waste the second chance that that lord had given him.
The next moment, Somazu felt it: that despairing Conqueror's Haki, and that familiar, chilling sense of crisis. He spun around, raised his weapon, and slashed behind him. However, the scene that met his eyes made him freeze on the spot.
A figure with pure white wings was moving at high speed, accompanied by a fiery tail. A spear crackling with lightning had broken through the ground and was hovering in mid-air.
Archangel Louis's gaze was locked on the two who were attacking. He extended a hand, grabbed the hovering spear, wreathed it in the ultimate Conqueror's Haki and a strange ability, and headed for Akainu and Garling. The next second, as if he had noticed Somazu, who was in his way, wreathed in Armament Haki and thorns, the brow under his golden hair furrowed slightly. Then, Louis raised his blade and, as he flew past the person blocking his way, he swung the sword, which was crackling with black and red arcs of electricity and flashing with a golden light.
The advanced Armament Haki and the thorns, which had the ability to reflect damage, were at this moment shattered like rotten wood under Louis's blade. The blade cut a perfect arc, wiping across Somazu's neck and severing it, sending his aged head, along with a spray of crimson blood, flying.
Just as he had expected, the person who had given the God's Knights their immortal bodies had not given him a third chance. This time, his headless body did not burn with black flames, but lost its life and quickly shriveled.
And Louis, as if he had done something insignificant, had an incomparably calm expression. He instantly entered a short-distance teleport, disappearing from the two's eyes.
Just as the two were searching for any trace of him, he appeared in front of them again. He vibrated the spear in one arm, which was wreathed in black and red lightning and a searing sun, and thrust it toward Garling's chest.
"BLAZING SUN!"
Akainu's gaze, combined with his Observation Haki, perceived the essence of the blazing sun on the spear, and his gaze flickered. "Flames?"
Realizing this, Akainu, who was immune to high temperatures, stepped forward, his arm turning into searing magma, and he smashed it forward without showing any weakness.
The next instant, the spear blade, wreathed in the blazing sun, and the fist of searing magma collided, releasing a terrifyingly high temperature and melting the ground under the three of them from a distance. A rolling wave of air washed over them, and even the air itself became distorted due to the high temperature.
Seeing this, Garling slightly lowered his head, held his rapier horizontally in front of his chest, and with his legs, he leaped high, taking in the full view of the two's situation. While Louis and Akainu were in a stalemate, he raised his hand and slashed out a crescent-shaped slash wreathed in black and red arcs of electricity, which flew toward Louis's neck.
To this, Louis, unfazed, raised the Seven Star Sword in his other hand. After also wreathing it in Conqueror's Haki, he struck it down at his side, carving a canyon several thousand meters long.
Seeing this, Akainu's gaze hardened. He seized the opportunity of Louis dealing with Garling's attack, turned his other hand into searing magma, and once again smashed it toward Louis's chest.
Louis slightly lowered his eyes, coolly watching all this. The flawless white wings on his back quickly turned black and began to crackle with black and red arcs. They turned into two giant blades, extended forward, and slashed at the two.
The wings, which radiated a terrifying fluctuation, made Garling and Akainu's brows furrow. They couldn't help but give up on their continuous attacks and, on their weapons or arms, wreathed them in Armament Haki to block this blow.
CLANG!
With the shriek of colliding metal, sparks flew, carried by the shockwave as they scattered into the distance. Under Louis's monstrous strength, which was immeasurably greater than a giant's, the stalemate between the three only lasted for a brief moment before it was over.
BOOM!
After a loud crash, the surrounding airflow was disturbed. Akainu's and Garling's figures were sent flying backward, only stopping after several dozen meters.
Louis hovered with his wings spread, vibrated the flame-wreathed spear in one arm, and with a raise of his hand, sent out a searing jet of fire. "BLAST BURN!"
In that instant, a jet of fire of immeasurable temperature shot out like a fire dragon. Along the way, it ignited the atmosphere and vaporized the seawater as it flew toward the two in the dust cloud.
Facing the oncoming high temperature, Garling pierced through the dust cloud, raised his blade wreathed in black and red arcs of electricity, split the fire jet, and let it land on the spreading seawater behind him, creating a semicircular blaze. On the other side of the rolling dust cloud, Akainu's figure was nowhere to be seen, leaving only the disturbed dust in his original spot.
Garling charged at high speed, and as he advanced, he sent out one after another of sharp slashes, powerful enough to level mountains, at Louis. He then leaped high, raised his rapier, which was wreathed in his ultimate, powerful Haki, and once again chopped down at him.
The sharp slashes fell like a canopy, completely enveloping Louis, making them impenetrable and impossible to dodge.
Seeing this, the halo above Louis's head spun rapidly. Searing flames wreathed the sword and spear, which were held in his two arms. His gaze was firmly locked on Garling, who was falling with his sword in both hands. Since he couldn't dodge, he couldn't be bothered to, nor would he use a move to block these slashes. In any case, these attacks couldn't break his defense. The reason he had dodged or blocked them multiple times before was only to prevent his reaction speed from declining.
In that instant, countless slashes landed squarely on his body. They made a series of sounds of metal on metal, and then shattered with a roar, turning into a strange-colored rain of light that scattered.
Louis's eyes pierced through the countless beams of light and met the old man's. Both of them saw the cold killing intent in the other's eyes.
Just as the "tsunami" from all four directions was about to crash down on them, the spear, radiating a destructive power, swept out from the rain of light, tearing a visible track in the atmosphere, and met the blade, which was wreathed in Garling's maximum-level Haki, from a distance.
BOOM—
A terrifyingly strong shockwave, mixed with a hurricane, swept across the entire Fish-Man Island, causing the tsunami that was crashing down on the three to be blown back several thousand meters, forming a huge, waterless cavity. One after another, black and red lightning bolts, like a giant black and red web, covered the entire island, raining down and creating a series of splashes on the churning seawater.
At the very center of the collision, while Louis and Garling were in a stalemate, a searing heatwave came rolling from behind. Searing magma, accompanied by a red light and black Haki lightning, arrived. Akainu's half-body had turned into searing magma that was emitting rolling smoke. He leaped high, pulled back his fist, and swung it down at the back of Louis's head.
However, Louis didn't even turn his head. He raised the Seven Star Sword, which he held in his other hand. After wreathing it in Conqueror's Haki and the power of the Life-Life Fruit, he slashed at the tearing atmosphere, cutting a perfect arc and then slashing straight at Garling's neck.
The movements and plans of Akainu and Garling had not been able to deceive Louis's powerful Observation Haki. They both knew they had no ability to break his unreasonable defense. Therefore, they had chosen to change their strategy, from killing to, in a moment of surprise, knocking him into the seawater.
Therefore, they had Garling launch a frontal attack to attract his attention, while Akainu, during their stalemate, would, with the power of a volcanic eruption, blast him into the countless canyons that were already flooded with seawater. Thus, before Akainu's blow landed, Garling would not give up his stalemate. And this was also the best opportunity for Louis to counter-attack.
Facing the Seven Star Sword that was slashing at him, Garling's aged face frowned tightly. But when his peripheral vision saw Akainu swinging his fist violently at Louis, his expression relaxed again. He released one hand and wreathed it in Armament Haki, holding it in front of his vitals.
The next moment, the sword, radiating a destructive power, swept directly across Garling's arm, breaking through his thick Haki and directly severing it. The intense pain made him narrow his eyes. However, the next scene made him open them wide again.
His gaze passed through the splashing blood and his severed arm and saw the pair of pure white wings on Louis's back extending at a speed difficult for the naked eye to perceive. They were wreathed in black and red arcs of electricity and a pale golden holy light. From bottom to top, they slashed straight at Akainu's chest.
Akainu, the target of this blow, had naturally also realized this. But this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity made him unable to refuse. However, the speed at which the double-bladed wings swung was beyond his and Garling's expectations. Before Akainu's fist could fall, Louis's wings had already cut open his chest, leaving two deep, bone-exposing bloody wounds.
The intense pain made Akainu's eyes become even more ferocious. His magma-transformed arm once again surged with a terrifying heatwave as he smashed it at Louis. However, the next moment, Louis's figure, which was far larger than the two of them, rapidly shrank, and in their shocked eyes, he shrunk to 1.8 meters. Immediately after, he sidestepped, and the punch that had been thrown with the force of a volcanic eruption grazed past him.
BOOM!
Akainu's full-force punch was thrown. Rolling magma shot out, directly melting the ground under the three of them and blasting open a dark abyss over a hundred meters wide and of immeasurable depth. The rock layers around the canyon collapsed, and along with the flowing magma, they fell to the bottom.
Just as Akainu realized that his one blow had missed, causing their previous efforts to be in vain, his expression became as black as the bottom of a pot. Akainu ignored the still-bleeding wound on his chest, took to the air with Geppo, and once again clenched his fist, smashing it at Louis, who had his back to him. His left arm once again turned into crimson magma, arriving with a cloud of rolling smoke.
However, a bizarre scene happened again. Akainu's punch, as it was approaching Louis's back, seemed to sink into the air and disappear.
BOOM!
Nevertheless, the sensation that came back from the magma told him that his punch had not missed.
"This... this feeling." Akainu's tiger-like eyes narrowed slightly, and he realized something was wrong. Louis had not been hit, but his magma gave feedback of a hit. Then Akainu realized the situation was not good and couldn't help but look up at Garling's location.
With just one glance, he froze on the spot. Not far away, behind Garling, an arm forged of magma had extended out of thin air, landed on his back, and had pierced straight through his body. In the black flame of rebirth that covered his entire upper body, Garling's expression was particularly aggrieved. What made him even more uncomfortable was that he didn't even have time to reprimand Akainu.
A Louis holding a sword and a spear in each hand had already arrived. The spear was wreathed in Conqueror's Haki, and it crackled with azure lightning, shrouded in a golden light. The combination of the three formed a strange and terrifying color, and it thrust toward his burning, recovering body.
Seeing this, Akainu's pupils trembled violently. He had already sensed how terrifying the power on the spear was. Then, he decisively pulled his magma-transformed arm from Garling's body and quickly withdrew it. However, although he had withdrawn his arm, the interference it had caused Garling, and the speed of his repair, still made him unable to dodge this blow in time.
The spear, radiating a strange light and containing a destructive power, directly pierced through his chest.
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