"Looks like if I don't beat him down first, he won't let my partners leave safely."
Demon Rocks didn't respond, but a faint "voice," filled with pain and struggle, suddenly rang out directly in their minds!
Rocks (Inner voice echoing): Roger!! Garp!!]
"What?!" Their pupils constricted simultaneously as they looked at the hideous demon opposite them in shock and doubt.
This voice... it was clearly Rocks!
But the Demon Rocks in front of them didn't make any movement to speak.
Rocks: [Please...!!]
Roger's brow furrowed into a knot: "What kind of... expression is that...!"
He saw it—in those eyes that were now nothing but whites, warm liquid actually rolled down, washing two shocking trails onto that demonic face.
That cold-blooded, brutal "demon" who knew only slaughter was now trembling violently all over!
It wasn't fear, but a frantic struggle against some invisible shackles from the deepest part of his soul!
Those flowing tears were the last wail and cry for help from humanity and reason before completely sinking!
Rocks' inner voice, filled with determination and plea, fell clearly into their minds:
[Please...]
[Kill me—!!!]
The man had once held a sword and rebelled against the high-and-mighty "gods," leaving behind unfulfilled dreams and sparks of hope.
Now, in the desperate situation where his consciousness was dragged into the deepest darkness and his body became a puppet of his enemy, he exerted his last strength to break free for a moment of clarity. What he sought was not survival, but—
To personally "end" himself, along with this cursed shell and the sins imposed upon him!
To end this broken legend at the hands of respected opponents!
To throttle this out-of-control disaster before it caused more irreversible tragedies!
To engrave this final dignity and pride upon the tombstone of the era in the most heroic way!
Garp's fist and Roger's blade felt as heavy as a thousand pounds at this moment.
They were no longer just facing a controlled monster, but a respectable and tragic... opponent and comrade-in-arms who was entrusting his life's final chapter to them with his last will.
The air froze.
In the next second, the faint light of struggle in Demon Rocks' eyes was again swallowed by surging paleness and tyranny. Dark red blade light tore through the air, pouncing toward the two!
But Garp and Roger's gazes were already different.
There was no more doubt, only heavy determination and a trace of... solemn sorrow.
"Rocks..." Garp growled low, the Haki on his Iron Fist pushed to its peak!
"Ah... I've received your 'request'!" A sharp light burst from Roger's eyes, the long blade Ace hummed, and Haoshoku coiled around it!
Two figures turned into streaks of light that tore through the heavens and earth, meeting the pouncing dark red that represented destruction and the tragic final chapter!
The final battle erupted with a bang amidst the ultimate ruins of God Valley!
Its light and roar played the most shocking overture for the fall of an Ambitious Hero and the budding of a new era in blood and fire!
Looking at Rocks' hideous, fanged, yet tear-streaked face of pain, the determined plea still echoed in Roger and Garp's minds, shaking their spirits.
"Did you hear that 'voice' too?" Garp turned his head and asked Roger nearby in a deep voice, his fists cracking.
"Yeah, heard it loud and clear." Roger wiped a trace of blood from the corner of his mouth, his eyes sharp as knives.
"That guy... is asking us for help."
But reality gave them no more time for sentiment.
The tearful Demon Rocks suddenly erupted, a dark tide of pure destructive will pouncing toward the two powerful "obstacles" before him!
"Hey! Your words, attitude, that ghostly expression, and this lethal stance don't match up at all! Rocks!!"
Roger roared, gripping "Ace" with both hands, pushing Conqueror's Haki and Armament Haki to their limits simultaneously as the blade hummed to meet the attack!
"CLANG—!!!!!"
Demonization not only caused Rocks' body to swell and his strength to surge, but even the long blade that had followed him for many years swelled with him!
Two peak-level Haki collided violently, the exploding black lightning instantly clearing all rubble and dust within a hundred meters. The ground suddenly sank as if struck by an invisible giant hammer!
Just as Roger gritted his teeth to withstand this violent blow, Garp moved! Seizing the opportunity while Rocks was fully attacking Roger, he stomped his foot, the scorched earth exploded, and his figure turned into lightning, charging straight for Rocks' face!
"Iron Fist: Meteor!"
His right fist, covered in Top-tier Armament Haki, had no flourishes, only the purest power, like a meteor from beyond the heavens, slamming into Rocks' distorted cheek!
"BOOM—!!!"
A solid, muffled thud! Combined with Roger's suppression as he held back the blade, Garp's powerful, momentum-building punch sent Demon Rocks' massive body staggering backward, plowing two deep furrows into the ground!
"ROAR—!!!"
The intense pain in his face and the frustration of the setback instead completely triggered Demon Rocks' ferocity. He instantly stabilized himself, bloodshot veins bulging in his pale eyes, and dark red Haki surged and erupted like boiling lava on the blade in his hand!
The next moment, with Rocks as the center, an indescribable, heaven-and-earth-swallowing tide of terrifying Haki erupted with a bang!
It wasn't an attack aimed at anyone in particular, but an indiscriminate outpouring of pure power!
The dark red Haki formed a visible circular shockwave, spreading frantically in all directions at speeds exceeding sound!
Roger and Garp, bearing the brunt of it, felt as if they had been struck by an entire raging sea. The force of their blades and fists was instantly crushed, and the two were sent flying like broken kites, crashing through a tottering rock wall dozens of meters behind them and disappearing into the rolling dust and rubble!
And the aftershock of this Haki tide didn't stop, charging straight into the sky!
CRACK—!!!
Above God Valley, the clouds—already chaotic from smoke, fire, and the aftershocks of the previous battle—were forcibly torn apart by the impact of this absolute Haki!
Revealing a huge "wound" spanning across the sky!
Tearing the sky apart with one's own strength—this was something no one else had ever achieved.
All the survivors still on the island, whether Marines struggling to survive or pirates scurrying in panic, all looked up in horror, witnessing this apocalyptic omen! Besides boundless fear, only one primal thought remained in their minds—
Escape! At all costs, escape from this island that was being swallowed by both a demon and a natural disaster!!
"That... that sky! It split open!?" A pirate collapsed to the ground, staring blankly at the crack in the sky.
"Don't just stand there! Go grab a ship! Leave this island!!" Xiong roared at his subordinates.
"Eh?! What... what about Rocks' ship?!" a Crew member asked subconsciously.
"Idiot! Who cares about that anymore! The Rocks Pirates are finished!!" In the sky, Shiki, who was using his ability to carry treasure chests away, declared arrogantly,
"Only those who survive are the winners!!"
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