"Shirogai told me you're a lightning user who ate the Thunder-Thunder Fruit, right? Well, lightning doesn't work on me!"
Luffy didn't give Enel a chance to respond. He lunged forward, stretching his arm back before slamming it toward the self-proclaimed God.
"Gum-Gum Pistol!"
"Even if lightning can't hurt you, you still can't hit me!" Enel mocked, dodging easily with a smirk. "As long as I have Mantra, this God will never lose to someone like you who lacks it!"
"Observation Haki, huh?" Luffy muttered, frowning. He'd fought Shirogai before — and knew just how annoying Observation Haki could be. His opponent could predict every move before it landed.
"You may not fear lightning," Enel said, raising his golden staff, "but let's see if you can handle the heat!"
He grinned cruelly. "Lightning-Forged Gold: Trident!"
The staff in his hand melted and reshaped itself under the current flowing through him. In seconds, it had become a brilliant golden trident crackling with energy.
"Lightning can even shape metal!?" Luffy shouted in disbelief.
Enel leveled the trident at him. "Come on, Straw Hat Boy. Let's see if that rubber body of yours can survive being roasted!"
"Ah! He turned his staff into a trident! That's cheating!" Luffy grimaced.
"Hm?" Enel noticed Luffy's reaction and smiled faintly. "It seems you're afraid of sharp weapons."
"No, I'm not!" Luffy said quickly, trying to hide the truth.
Enel sighed. "You really can't lie, can you? Foolish mortal, exposing your own weakness!"
He flashed forward, body bursting into lightning. "Die!"
"Hah!"
Luffy leapt aside just in time and caught the trident's shaft with both hands.
"Hot! Hot! Hot!" He immediately released it, smoke rising from his palms.
"Pathetic." Enel's cold voice echoed as he pressed his assault, jabbing rapidly with inhuman speed. Sparks flew as the trident thrust again and again, forcing Luffy to twist and duck desperately.
"Damn it!" Luffy cursed, barely avoiding another deadly strike. Every dodge came down to a split-second — one wrong move and he'd be skewered.
"Gum-Gum Axe!"
Luffy suddenly lashed out with a powerful kick, smashing into the trident's tip and sending it flying aside despite the searing pain that burned through his leg.
"So hot!" He hopped backward, clutching his foot. "Ow! My sandal's burnt! My poor straw sandal!"
Enel sneered, swinging his weapon back into his grasp. "So you are weak to heat and blades. Without your immunity to lightning, you're worthless."
Lightning flashed around him as he blurred forward again.
Luffy steadied himself, eyes hardening. "Then I'll just have to trust my instincts!"
"Gum-Gum… Instinctive Daze!" he shouted suddenly.
"...What?" Enel blinked, confused. "What kind of name is that?"
The trident lunged toward Luffy's abdomen.
"Abdomen in danger!" Luffy thought, jerking aside instinctively, narrowly avoiding the strike.
Enel followed up instantly, sweeping upward. Luffy ducked again, pure battle intuition guiding his every move.
Another horizontal slash — Luffy dropped low, rolling beneath the golden weapon.
"..." Enel retracted the trident with irritation. "Why aren't you fighting back!?"
"I'm in a daze!" Luffy said proudly. "You can't attack while you're dazed, right?"
"Are you an idiot?" Enel groaned. "I can't deal with this nonsense anymore."
"I'll finish this now."
"Come on, Big Ears!" Luffy smirked, clenching his fists. "I've already figured out how to fight you!"
A sudden burst of light filled the sky.
Boom!
A massive sphere of white flame appeared above Enel's head.
"Holy Flame: Fire Fist!"
A figure streaked through the air wreathed in white fire — Wyper, burning like a living torch, lunged down at Enel.
"The Shandian warrior?" Enel murmured, sensing the attack long before it arrived. He smirked, turning into lightning to evade it.
Bang!
The holy white flames exploded against the island cloud, scorching a crater into its surface.
"Eh?" Luffy looked up in confusion. "Ace? Why are you here!?"
Wyper landed, flames slowly fading.
"It's not Ace?" Luffy blinked. "Ohhh… you're that guy who attacked our ship!"
"My apologies," Wyper said quickly, keeping his eyes on Enel. "You're a companion of my teacher, right? I didn't mean to attack you before."
Luffy grinned. "Hehehe, it's fine!"
Enel watched them with cold amusement. "So, the so-called Battle God of the Shandians has become an ability user too. Don't think that makes you worthy of facing a God."
"Careful!" Wyper warned, seeing Enel raise his left hand.
"God's Punishment!" Enel roared.
Rumble!
Lightning exploded outward, a storm of white-blue energy roaring toward them.
"Holy Flame! Melting Fire Shield!" Wyper bellowed. Flames swirled around him, forming a blazing barrier of sacred fire.
Boom!
The lightning slammed into the shield, splintering it apart — but the rotating flames reignited, patching the cracks.
"He blocked it?" Wyper gasped in relief.
"It won't hold!" Luffy shouted.
A split second later, the lightning shattered the barrier and struck Wyper directly.
"Ahhhh!" The warrior screamed as electricity surged through his body.
Enel laughed coldly. "You gained power and thought you could face me? Foolish. You're nothing before a true God."
…
From a distance, leaning calmly against a tall tree, Shirogai watched the battle unfold.
"Wyper's still too inexperienced," he murmured, eyes half-closed and tone indifferent. "His control over the [Heavenly Fruit] is crude. Enel, on the other hand, has mastered his Devil Fruit completely. Fighting him head-on is asking for death."
The faintest smirk curved his lips as lightning flashed across the heavens.
---
[Tl/N: Shirogai needs to give his crew abilities too, by crew, I mean Nami, lol]
____
Advanced chapters are available on my patreon page
Read ahead of everyone 💙
Patreon.com/Zphyr