[Renn Hawk]
[Navy G-3 Commander and Headquarters Rear Admiral]
[Observation Haki: Supreme (Admiral-level)] (Upgrade requires 1,000,000 Justice Points)
[Armament Haki: Supreme (Admiral-level)] (Upgrade requires 1,000,000 Justice Points)
[Physique: Supreme (Admiral-level)] (Upgrade requires 1,000,000 Justice Points)
[Martial Arts – Fist: Supreme (Admiral-level)] (Upgrade requires 1,000,000 Justice Points)
[Conqueror's Haki: Supreme] (Upgrade requires 10,000,000 Justice Points)
Hawk's thoughts flashed through his mind like lightning.
"System, elevate my physique to the absolute peak!"
Ding. One million Justice Points consumed. Physique elevated to absolute peak!
Ding. Current remaining Justice Points: 1,354,800
Absolute Peak Physique: Your body becomes a divine realm; your blood flows like galaxies.
Injury heals with blood; every cell is a universe.
Immortal and indestructible, impervious to all, standing above the river of time. This is the ultimate form of life, the absolute peak of this world.
Ding. Lifespan limit removed. Current remaining lifespan: ∞
A profound, indescribable transformation quietly unfolded in the deepest core of Hawk's body.
He could feel it clearly: every single cell was rejoicing.
Strength, recovery, vitality…
Everything had reached an entirely new realm.
From now on, the concept of natural death was meaningless to him.
"Physique is the foundation that supports everything."
Hawk's mind cleared, unwavering. "The foundation has reached the summit of this world. Now, it is time to channel this power into the purest form of destruction."
His gaze fell on the "Martial Arts – Fist" panel.
Haki is skill, physique is the container, but only fists can release all of this power directly and completely.
"System, elevate my fist techniques to the absolute peak!"
Ding. One million Justice Points consumed. Martial Arts – Fist elevated to absolute peak!
Ding. Current remaining Justice Points: 354,800
Absolute Peak Fist Techniques: One punch, all truths collapse.
No fixed forms, no attachments to style.
The fist is the Way. The Way is the Law.
With absolute power, crush causality, reshape reality. Under one punch, all beings are equal. This is the pinnacle of fist techniques in this world.
In Hawk's mind, a timeless bell tolled.
Countless ancient truths about the fist flowed through him, converging, until all became one.
He slowly raised his right hand, fingers extended, then slowly clenched it.
With this grip, it felt as if the very laws of the world were in the palm of his hand.
Shanks, the closest top-tier opponent to Hawk, sensed the change immediately.
Hawk… his aura… had changed!
In that instant, something happened to this man that Shanks could not even comprehend.
How was this possible?
For a fighter of this caliber, how could his aura undergo such an extreme transformation in the middle of battle?
Had it awakened some hidden power of a Devil Fruit?
This aura was purer, more fundamental, as if it represented a leap in the very level of life itself.
"What… what is happening?!"
For the first time, fear born of the unknown surged within Shanks.
He instinctively scanned the battlefield.
Despair swept over him like freezing waves.
His most trusted first mate, Benn Beckman, had been killed by Kizaru.
Jesus Burg had been suppressed by that Navy girl, his deck scorched black, unable to lift his head since the battle began.
Lachi Loo had been pierced through the chest by Aokiji's ice spear after the bay was frozen.
Every other officer was surrounded by Navy commanders, on the brink of death.
The Navy, having finished wiping out the Whitebeard Pirates, now surged toward the remaining members of his crew like a tidal wave.
The Red-Haired Pirates were about to be annihilated.
Anger, regret, grief…
A torrent of emotions churned within him.
He came here to prevent war, to maintain the fragile balance of the sea.
But now it was clear: the Navy had no need for balance.
The Navy wanted peace.
"Shanks…"
Hawk spoke slowly, deliberately, "on this chaotic sea…"
"Not everyone will give you face."
He raised his right fist. "Face must be earned with fists!"
The moment the words left his lips, he moved.
He swung his fist forward, simply, straightforwardly.
The punch was slow.
Slow enough that everyone present could clearly see its trajectory.
But this seemingly slow punch produced a terrifying anomaly that defied reason.
Wherever his fist passed, space itself seemed erased by an invisible force.
Ice, air, light, sound…
Everything vanished silently, consumed into absolute nothingness.
This punch did not strike it declared a truth.
"Fist Principle: All things are void!"
Shanks' pupils constricted to pinpoints.
In the future glimpsed by his Observation Haki, he saw himself erased completely by this punch, his soul and body dissolved into nothingness.
One thought alone remained in his mind.
But there was no escape.
The void expanded toward him at a speed beyond space and time.
"Aaaaaah !"
At the brink of death, Shanks exploded with power.
He poured every ounce of Haki, will, and belief into his sword, Griffin.
"Divine Evasion!"
With all his strength, he swung his ultimate strike at the encroaching void.
This was a do-or-die slash.
The last vestige of honor for an Emperor of the Sea.
Fist and sword met at the heart of the void.
Time seemed to pause.
The world fell silent.
A faint cracking sound echoed.
It came from Griffin, Shanks' legendary sword.
The blade, which had accompanied him for decades, developed fine cracks under Hawk's seemingly simple punch.
Crack!
The fractures spread like a spiderweb.
In an instant, the great sword symbolizing an Emperor's glory shattered into countless flying fragments under the eyes of the entire world.
Hawk's punch did not stop.
Shanks spat a mouthful of blood as his right arm holding the sword exploded into a mist of gore.
The Red-Haired Emperor, Shanks, had both arms severed.