"Ability counter!"
The moment he felt the meteor he had pulled down lose control, Fujitora immediately understood. His Devil Fruit ability and the Golden Lion's were canceling each other out. The gravity he applied to objects could be completely nullified by the Golden Lion's power. But by the same token, the buoyancy the Golden Lion applied to objects could also be nullified by him.
If this were a one-on-one duel, Fujitora would have been eager to test whether his Gravity-Gravity Fruit was superior or if the Float-Float Fruit had the edge. But now, there was a formidable close-combat specialist watching him like a hawk from the side. How could he dare to focus all his energy on a contest of Devil Fruit abilities?
Gravity Blade: Thunderclap Hell!
A flash of his blade, and the meteor hurtling toward him exploded with a deafening blast. With the massive boom, countless dark fragments of rock shot out in all directions like rain.
If they were just ordinary fragments, they would have posed no threat to Bellamy or the Golden Lion. But these shattered meteorites were imbued with a terrifying gravitational pressure.
By this point in the battle, both Bellamy and the Golden Lion had a very clear understanding of Fujitora's strength.
"Whether attacking or defending, he draws and sheathes his sword with every strike."
"Fujitora, is this the path you have chosen?"
Combining swordsmanship with his Devil Fruit ability, naturally activating his power with every swing of his sword. It had to be said, it was a very interesting path.
"The youngsters these days are really something else."
As a top-tier swordsman himself, the Golden Lion had naturally considered this path back in his day. But even in his old age, his swordsmanship and Devil Fruit ability were still used separately, which showed that he was not optimistic about this path.
"Snake."
Facing the incoming fragments, the Golden Lion simply took a drag from his cigar and blew out a puff of smoke. The smoke took the form of a snake and darted through the air. Any fragment the smoke touched immediately lost all momentum and began to float harmlessly.
On the other side of the battlefield, Bellamy's response was far more aggressive.
In fact, Fujitora knew very well that these fragments posed no threat to the Golden Lion. So when he shattered the meteor, he had deliberately aimed in Bellamy's direction. More than half of the high-velocity, high-gravity fragments were hurtling toward him.
But faced with Fujitora's counterattack, Bellamy did not dodge. Instead, he flew up to meet it.
"Spring Body!"
Bellamy's body rapidly contracted in mid-air. His massive, three-meter-tall frame shrank to less than a meter in the blink of an eye. The most basic ability of the Spring-Spring Fruit—shape-shifting—had been mastered by Bellamy to a sublime degree. As his body shrank, the seemingly dense gaps between the fragments became vast.
Using Paper Drawing, Bellamy flew head-on into the meteor shower, speeding toward Fujitora.
"What a troublesome guy."
Fujitora had tried several times to force Bellamy out of the fight so he could focus on the Golden Lion. But each time, Bellamy would forcibly break through his techniques, forcing him to divide his attention.
"Hey, hey, don't get distracted."
Lion's Threat: Ground Burial.
While Fujitora was struggling with Bellamy, the Golden Lion on the other side did not stop his assault. The power of his fully developed Float-Float Fruit had, at some point, completely covered the beach. With a raise of his hands, the entire island began to tremble. Countless tons of sand leaped into the sky under the control of his ability. The sheer scale of it was like an apocalyptic disaster. The residents of the small, remote island were terrified and began to flee in all directions.
About ten nautical miles away, on the floating island, a group of people were observing the battle with binoculars.
"What terrifying power! So this is a legendary great pirate!"
Drake lowered the Doriki-scope in his hands and looked closely at the number on it: 9999. It had maxed out!
Under everyone's watchful eyes, the sky-blotting sand formed a giant lion's head and swept down. And at that exact moment, Bellamy's figure had already reached Fujitora's side.
Fish-Man Karate: Ocean Current Shoulder Throw.
From the very beginning, Bellamy's goal had been to tie up Fujitora. Although his attacks seemed fierce, he was secretly holding back a significant amount of strength. He had gathered the falling sand into a long whip, but instead of striking immediately, he wrapped it around himself, forming an outer layer of defense.
Just then, the Golden Lion's Lion's Threat: Ground Burial descended, swallowing both of them.
Under such a large-scale attack, with Bellamy constantly harassing him, Fujitora had no chance to escape. He only had time to raise his scabbard in front of him before he was engulfed by the endless sand. At the same time, Bellamy was also swept into the sandy ocean along with him.
Lion's Threat: Ground Scroll!
The Golden Lion mercilessly pushed his ability to its limit. The sea of sand began to churn, rotating rapidly like a tornado.
Inside the sand tornado, Bellamy swung the sand whip in his hand, lashing out at Fujitora. Why could he still attack in such an environment? One had to marvel at the Golden Lion's control over his own ability. Although countless grains of sand were swirling around Bellamy, they did not hinder his attack in the slightest. In fact, a flat stone even floated up beneath his feet, allowing him to stand easily within the sand tornado.
In contrast, on Fujitora's side, the countless grains of sand seemed to have transformed into innumerable sharp blades, slicing at his body. Moreover, the high-speed sand tornado was rapidly contracting, threatening to bury him completely within it.
Faced with such a desperate situation, Fujitora still held his sword hilt tightly. Although his eyes could not see, he was perfectly aware of his predicament. The sand whip coming from the front, though less powerful, was aimed at his vitals. If he didn't deal with it, he would be seriously injured even with Armament Haki. The countless sand blades spinning around him looked terrifying, but their actual damage was not great. It was the rapidly closing sand tornado that was the real threat. If he was truly buried within it, he would surely die today.
In a split second, Fujitora made the most accurate judgment of his situation. But now, he only had one chance to strike. If he couldn't escape with this one blow, he would either be seriously injured or completely buried by the sand.
Gravity Blade: Hell's Journey!