Seeing Kujou Sara's posture, it was clear: if Beidou refused, a fight would break out immediately.
Beidou narrowed her eyes. "Seems we can't talk this out. How about a duel then? If you can beat me, I'll go with you to Narukami Island. If you lose, let me finish my job—destroy ten pirate ships and capture ten pirates. Deal?"
Fighting to decide the outcome? Beidou liked those odds.
"Agreed."
Kujou Sara's gaze was cold.
She was confident in her strength.
"Then let's fight!"
Seeing Sara agree, Beidou laughed heartily. Violent lightning erupted from her body, snakes of Electro energy dancing around her as she unleashed her Vision's power.
Rumble!
In the next second, Kujou Sara raised her hands. Endless electric light surged from within her. Her eyes glowed with pale purple light as she slammed her hands down!
BOOM!
Sara's body became a sphere of blinding lightning, firing over a dozen arm-thick bolts of electricity.
Clang!
Beidou drew her blade. Her Zanpakutō sliced through the bolts effortlessly. Without pausing, she charged straight at Sara.
Time to subdue this woman!
Facing the charging Beidou, Sara drew the longsword at her waist. Lightning enveloped her form as she struck back.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Endless lightning clashed. Two figures danced in the storm.
BOOM!
With a swing of Beidou's blade, a dazzling beam of Electro sword-light shot into the sky, illuminating the darkness. The massive arc of energy tore through the air, surging with raw power.
In a single exchange, the standard-issue sword in Sara's hand was shattered by Beidou's lightning-infused strike.
But in an instant, Sara vanished, reappearing in the distance.
In her hands now was a purple longbow.
Arcs of lightning wrapped around the bow, condensing into an arrow of pure energy. Thunder rumbled continuously.
Sara aimed at Beidou. Before she even released the string, a wave of terrifying pressure rolled off her like a tsunami, spreading in all directions.
Far away, Furong and Huixing gasped, their faces pale.
The Captain is fighting her!
They scrambled backward to safety.
BOOM!
The air exploded. A piercing shriek tore through the sky as a hundred-foot-long arrow of lightning roared toward Beidou.
The elemental energy was so dense it rippled the air itself.
Clang!
Facing the incoming arrow, Captain Beidou raised her sword. A brilliant blade beam erupted, lighting up the dim sky like a flash of lightning.
The purple slash, three to four zhang long, collided with the arrow instantly.
Rumble!
Terrifying Electro energies collided. Thunder shook the earth.
Explosions rang out continuously.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Kujou Sara transformed into a blur of lightning, flickering across the battlefield. With every flash, she fired another devastating arrow.
But every single one was cut down by Beidou's blade.
Rumble!
Finally, Sara unleashed a barrage. Countless lightning arrows rained down like a storm, engulfing Beidou in a series of earth-shattering explosions.
"Is the Captain okay?"
Watching from a safe distance, Huixing and Furong were worried.
Beidou was strong, but this opponent was also a Vision holder—and a ranged fighter at that. Beidou seemed suppressed.
"Holy sh*t, the Captain is fighting someone!"
"Fire the cannons! Blast that bastard!"
"Are you crazy? The Captain is right there! And Huixing and Furong are still on the beach!"
"Quick, send a boat! Get Huixing and Furong back first. Two Electro users fighting... it's going to get ugly."
...
On the Steam Battleship, the crew watched in horror as their Captain engaged the Tengu General.
Some crew members rushed to launch a rescue boat for the girls.
Meanwhile, at the cliffs where the road from Tatarasuna to Yashiori Island used to be.
General Kujou Masahito and his troops arrived.
They stared at the broken road and the terrifying lightning storm in the distance. Their faces went pale.
"It's General Sara."
"She's fighting a Vision holder. It's terrifying."
"Is this what a battle between Vision holders looks like? We wouldn't stand a chance."
"I heard the Sangonomiya rebels have Vision users too, but we barely have any."
"General Sara is so cool!"
...
The Shogunate soldiers watched Kujou Sara—fighting like a god of war—with fanatical devotion.
It was rare to see her unleash her full power.
But Kujou Masahito was grim.
He knew Sara was using her Vision, but the opponent wasn't backing down.
Since when did Nazuchi Beach have such a powerful enemy?
If this person attacked the Kujou Encampment, they would be defenseless.
"Holy sht! Holy sht!"
Suddenly, a soldier screamed. "The road ahead is gone!"
"What?!"
The group looked down. Their eyes bulged.
The road connecting to Yashiori Island... was gone.
Only churning seawater remained.
"What happened?"
"Where's the road? Wasn't there land here?"
"Without the road, how do we get to Nazuchi Beach?"
...
They were stunned.
How were they supposed to cross?
"It's not just the road."
Masahito looked at the distant, lightning-shrouded beach with a dark expression.
His eyesight was sharp. Beyond the beach, he saw the steel ship.
Connecting the blinding white light and deafening roar from earlier, a terrifying realization struck him.
The road... and a third of the beach... were blown up.
"She's strong."
Back on the battlefield, Sara watched as Beidou emerged unscathed from the arrow storm, surrounded by a purple Electro shield.
Fighting someone of the same element was always difficult.
She had never met an Electro user this tough before.
"You're good. One of the best I've fought," Beidou laughed, her shield crackling. "But you can't take me down with just that."
BOOM!
As she spoke, Sara drew her bow again. Another piercing arrow shot toward Beidou.
"Drink! Nozarashi!"
Facing the arrow, Beidou laughed wildly and shouted the command.
BOOM!
The slender Zanpakutō in her hand transformed instantly.
A massive, jagged cleaver appeared, the blade extending monstrously.
Beidou's aura exploded, lightning crackling around her with the intensity of a storm.
Holding the colossal weapon, Beidou looked small in comparison.
Sara's pupils contracted.
A transforming weapon?
The original sword was already durable enough to cut lightning and break steel. But this?
Beidou now held a gigantic, rough-hewn blade with a polygonal guard and a cloth-wrapped hilt.
Sara could feel Beidou's power skyrocketing, multiplying several times over.
Kujou Sara's face hardened.
Huge black wings unfurled from her back.
Her hair floated in the updraft of her power, and purple lightning coursed across her skin.
She levitated slowly into the air.
Above her, the clouds churned, drawn by her magnetic field into a swirling vortex.
Rumble!
Lightning flashed like an apocalyptic storm.
Bolts tore through the black sky, snaking down like dragons, converging on Kujou Sara.
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