Smack!
Xia Te slammed his palm onto the ground.
The moment he lifted his hand—
the earth of Area 1 in the Sabaody Archipelago began to tremble violently.
Not far away, the Straw Hat crew—who had just escaped a few hundred meters—were caught off guard. Nami stumbled and fell hard.
"W-What's happening!?"
On the other side, Bepo of the Heart Pirates was also startled.
"Th-This… could it be…?"
Rayleigh's expression changed.
Back in his younger days, he had seen this move countless times.
And the Straw Hats were no strangers to it either—
this very move had nearly wiped them out before!
"Lion's Majesty: Earth Scroll!"
ROAR—!!!
At Xia Te's command—
the upheaved earth formed into gigantic lion heads, each larger than the Navy's biggest warships.
The roaring lion heads let out beastly howls.
"The crew calls Shiki their father… and the captain inherited his power, huh?"
Rayleigh muttered in surprise.
"If possible, I would've loved to fight you in your prime. But unfortunately, both you and Whitebeard are already old."
Xia Te smirked, his eyes sharpening.
"Move aside, Weevil!"
"Yes, big brother!"
Weevil's massive seven-meter body leapt aside with surprising agility.
"Lion's Majesty: Earth Scroll!"
With a wave of Xia Te's hand—
the roaring lion heads crashed down like meteors, one after another, toward Rayleigh.
Rayleigh had faced this technique many times in the past.
With a swing of his blade, he unleashed a massive slash over ten meters wide, cutting through the incoming lions while dodging at high speed.
"...This is a battle between monsters…"
Both the Heart Pirates and Kid Pirates were stunned.
They had once believed themselves formidable as part of the Eleven Supernovas, some even planning to challenge the Yonko.
But now—
before even entering the New World—
they were witnessing what true top-tier power looked like.
"Run!"
Luffy saw that Weevil had locked onto them and immediately shouted.
Having witnessed his strength, he didn't dare fight.
Whoosh!
Suddenly—
a laser beam shot in.
"Luffy! Watch out!"
Zoro reacted instantly, tackling Luffy to the ground.
The beam struck where Luffy had stood—
BOOM!!!
A blazing explosion erupted, sending several Straw Hat members flying.
"That guy is—!?"
Seeing the attacker, Law and the others were shocked.
A massive figure with a cold, expressionless face—
Bartholomew Kuma, one of the Seven Warlords, known as the "Tyrant"!
"Hey! Why is a Warlord here!?"
Even someone as bold as Kid couldn't hide his unease.
Whoosh—!
Another laser fired—
this time targeting the Heart Pirates and Kid Pirates.
"ROOM!"
Law quickly created a spherical space, swapping the incoming beam with a distant rock.
BOOM!!!
Another explosion.
But when they turned—
their eyes widened in shock.
Another Kuma!?
What was going on!?
Two Warlords!?
"Mosshi mosshi~ This is Kizaru. I've arrived at the scene."
Atop the ruined auction house, a wrinkled old man casually spoke into a black Den Den Mushi.
"An Admiral and a Warlord!?"
A bead of sweat slid down Law's face.
"Captain! We need to run!"
Bepo panicked.
"I'd like to… but it doesn't seem like they'll let us go so easily…"
Law clenched his teeth.
A Pacifista was already approaching them.
"How strange~"
Kizaru scratched his head, noticing no response from the black Den Den Mushi.
"Old man, that black one's for listening! How many times do I have to tell you!?"
Sentomaru shouted irritably while leading the Pacifista PX-1 against the Straw Hats.
"Oh? Is that so? My bad, my bad~"
Kizaru apologized without sincerity, then looked down at the battlefield.
"What a spectacle… Three Supernova crews, the Xia Te Pirates who attacked Celestial Dragons, even the 'Dark King' Rayleigh is here… even I have to admit, this is quite something~"
His gaze shifted—
locking onto Shiryu, and the three Celestial Dragons piled beside him.
In an instant, he transformed into light and appeared right next to Shiryu.
"First things first—my mission is to rescue the Celestial Dragons~"
"Speed is power, Chief Guard Shiryu… oh, former Chief Guard. Have you ever been kicked at the speed of light?"
Kizaru's light-speed kick closed in—
less than half a meter away.
A savage glint flashed in Shiryu's eyes.
Drawing Raiu, he blocked the kick, gritting his teeth under the pressure.
"Oh? You blocked it? As expected of one of Impel Down's strongest walls alongside Magellan… but what about this?"
Kizaru raised a finger, light gathering into a laser far more powerful than a Pacifista's.
"Flying Slash!"
At that moment—
a massive vertical sword slash, as if tearing through the sky itself, shot toward Kizaru.
Kizaru's expression shifted slightly.
He had no choice but to disperse into light and dodge.
"Not just the fruit… he inherited the swordsmanship too? No… it's more than that."
Rayleigh was once again shocked by Xia Te.
"Run! Everyone split up!"
Under the joint pressure of Sentomaru and the Pacifistas, Luffy abandoned the idea of escaping together.
He ordered everyone to scatter and regroup later.
At this point—
in the original timeline, Kuma himself would step in to save them.
However—
"Don't even think about escaping. Criminals like you don't deserve to live!"
Unlike Kizaru's laziness, Akainu radiated pure, violent fury the moment he appeared.
"Hahaha! Now this is getting interesting!"
Seeing even Akainu arrive—
Xia Te couldn't help but laugh.