The northern cliffs were slick with rain, the jagged rocks gleaming like blackened teeth under the sullen sky. Kaizen crouched behind a crumbling wall of stone, his Sixth Eye scanning the treeline with a precision that no ordinary senses could match. He had eliminated the first wave of lieutenants, but whispers of stronger forces reached him—pirates of extreme cunning and power, lieutenants rumored to be closer in strength to Empereurs than mere foot soldiers.
From the dense forest ahead, movement stirred. Not subtle; not the flinching, hesitant steps of the first groups. These were predators aware of him, and perhaps even expecting him. The first figure emerged: a woman of lithe build, her eyes glowing with cold calculation, wielding twin curved blades, each etched with patterns of silver and black that shimmered even in the rain. Her bounty was a staggering 800 million berries. Behind her, a hulking brute with a chain flail, easily surpassing 1 billion berries, and a third figure, cloaked and barely visible, manipulating a strange, mechanical contraption that rattled and hissed with ominous intent.
Kaizen's Sixth Eye flared. Three formidable opponents, each with a distinct advantage. This is no mere test. This is a trial by storm. He moved before they could fully coordinate, his steps silent, the katana Kurogami gleaming as it caught the muted light.
The first attack was simultaneous. The twin-bladed lieutenant lunged diagonally from the right while the chain flail swung from the left, and the mechanical contraption discharged a burst of projectiles from above. Kaizen's fruit power surged, amplifying speed and reflex. He rolled beneath the blades, slashing through the chain mid-swing, and deflected the projectiles with a controlled arc of Kurogami. Each movement was calculated down to the millisecond, yet executed with fluid grace that masked the lethal intent.
The forest became a battlefield of precision and chaos. Kaizen used the terrain expertly: broken trees as springboards, jagged rocks to redirect attacks, mud and rain to destabilize the opponents. The twin-blade lieutenant advanced, launching a flurry of strikes, but Kaizen's Sixth Eye predicted the micro-adjustments in grip and stance, allowing him to counter with surgical strikes. Sparks flew as metal met metal, the sound echoing like distant thunder over the cliffs.
The chain-wielder attempted to crush Kaizen with raw force, swinging in wide arcs designed to overwhelm. Kaizen danced between strikes, using Kurogami to deflect and redirect, and at one moment, leveraged the momentum to send the brute crashing into a cliffside. The impact reverberated through the rocks, leaving dust and debris cascading down. Yet the brute rose again, undeterred, each movement displaying the terrifying resilience of a seasoned warrior.
Kaizen's mind raced. Each adversary had strengths that could exploit a single mistake. He had to neutralize them one by one while maintaining full awareness of the others. With a feint to the right, he drew the twin-blade lieutenant into a trap: a collapse of a partially ruined tree. The lieutenant narrowly avoided being crushed but was temporarily stunned, giving Kaizen the opportunity to focus on the mechanical adversary.
The cloaked figure released a barrage of mechanized projectiles, hissing and sparking in the rain-soaked air. Kaizen leapt, slicing through the contraption with Kurogami, sparks and steam erupting from the wreckage. The figure stumbled, their advantage neutralized, leaving only the brute and the twin-blade lieutenant fully combat-ready.
The climax of the battle unfolded atop a jagged cliff overlooking the turbulent sea. The twin-blade lieutenant advanced again, faster and more precise, forcing Kaizen to exploit every ounce of skill, fruit power, and Sixth Eye anticipation. Each strike met resistance, each movement had consequences, and the wind whipped around them, threatening to unbalance both predator and prey.
Kaizen's katana sang as it cut through the storm, redirecting force, neutralizing attacks, and exploiting weaknesses. He combined high-speed slashes with bursts of fruit-enhanced energy, each strike calculated to incapacitate rather than kill. The twin-blade lieutenant faltered, her breathing ragged, her attacks slower. The chain-wielder, sensing the tide turning, roared in defiance and launched one final, desperate assault. Kaizen anticipated the trajectory perfectly, using the edge of the cliff and the energy of his fruit to redirect the force back at the attacker, leaving him sprawled across the jagged rocks below, unconscious.
As the rain eased and the mist began to settle, Kaizen surveyed the aftermath. The three lieutenants had been neutralized, the forest and cliffs marred by the violent exchange, and the echoes of combat still reverberated over the archipelago. Yet Kaizen's Sixth Eye remained vigilant. Stronger enemies lie ahead. The Worst Generation, the lieutenants of Empereurs… and forces beyond comprehension.
He stepped away from the cliff, leaving the defeated lieutenants secured and unconscious. Every strike, every calculated movement had been a message—not just to his opponents, but to the world. Kaizen, the Government's Black Hand, was moving through the New World, unstoppable, precise, and inevitable.