"Flame Emperor!!"
With the resolve of a man ready to die, Sabo pushed the power of the Flame-Flame Fruit to its absolute limit, channeling every ounce of his Armament Haki into the technique.
A blazing, radiant sun now hovered above his head.
This fiery orb radiated endless light and heat, as though the actual sun had descended.
The very air warped from the flames licking at its edges.
Even Caesar felt the scorching heat, his Haki depleting rapidly under the assault.
"A semi-awakened Logia? This heat... it rivals Akainu's magma now."
No longer underestimating Sabo, Caesar's body crackled as a translucent frost armor encased him.
Now clad in shimmering ice, his mountainous frame wreathed in lightning, Caesar stood like a wrathful deity.
Sabo's gaze flickered toward him, wordless.
Caesar understood the unspoken challenge in that look.
Sabo knew that in his current state, if Caesar chose to flee directly, the ultimate move he had painstakingly gathered all his strength to create would be rendered useless.
That was why his gaze carried a provocative challenge—'Do you dare to take this strike?'
"Kekeke hahaha! Flame Emperor, truly worthy of the name! I'll take this hit of yours, so you die without regrets!"
Caesar mimicked Sabo's stance, raising his massive arm toward the sky.
The frost energy within his body surged like a roaring river, rumbling as it erupted into the heavens!
A vast, ocean-like torrent of freezing air rapidly condensed into an enormous ice crystal sphere over a hundred meters in diameter.
The extreme cold it emitted instantly froze the surrounding air, causing thick icicles to shatter and plummet from Caesar's sides.
"I'll use this Ice Sun to settle this with you!"
Sabo's lips curled upward.
The fury that had twisted his face earlier faded, restoring his usual handsome features.
The scar over his eye didn't mar his appearance—instead, it added a touch of rugged masculinity.
"Thank you."
With a faint smile, Sabo whispered those words before thrusting his arm forward, hurling the blazing sun of flames in his grasp with a low roar as he charged thunderously toward Caesar!
Caesar's eyes gleamed with intensity as he raised his colossal ice sphere high, flapping his now even more enormous golden wings—spanning over a hundred meters—as he fearlessly met Sabo's assault!
.....
Flower Capital.
The moment Dragon and the others emerged from the underground cavern, they swiftly headed north toward Wano Country's cemetery.
Their destination was chosen because the steel battleship hidden deep beneath the sea was anchored in the northern waters.
Dragon speculated that if they could blast an opening in the northern cliff wall, the powerful currents might carry the Pluto Battleship out through the gap.
Dragon, carrying Ivankov and Lindbergh, rode the winds as they flew.
Behind them, Karasu transformed into a flock of black crows, carrying Robin and Hiyori on his back.
As for Hack and the other fish-men, Dragon had left them behind in the cavern.
On Karasu's back, Hiyori—who had been in a daze—suddenly lifted her head and gazed into the distance.
With her ordinary vision, she could see nothing but the vast, empty sky.
Yet, she felt an inexplicable pull—as if someone deeply connected to her existed in that direction.
"Is it you…?" Hiyori bit her lower lip, lost in thought.
Meanwhile, Dragon, who had been soaring on the wind, suddenly stiffened.
His expression shifted drastically as he whipped his head around, staring toward Udon's direction.
Even from dozens of miles away, he could see an intensely radiant sphere of light erupting at the horizon.
Buzz!
His peak-level Observation Haki instantly expanded, surging toward that location with overwhelming intensity.
Within moments, without a word, Dragon abruptly released Iva and Lindbergh, transforming into a raging gale as he shot toward Udon at top speed!
"Dragon?!"
Ivan yelped in shock as his body plummeted downward.
Fortunately, Dragon hadn't been flying too high, and neither Ivan nor Lindbergh were ordinary men.
Though their landing was far from graceful, neither was injured.
Karasu descended with Robin and Hiyori, frowning as he turned to Ivan.
"Iva, what happened? Why did the leader suddenly turn back?"
Their level of Observation Haki wasn't as strong as Dragon's, so they didn't sense anything at all.
"Not sure." Ivankov shook his head but spoke with a grave expression.
"Given Dragon's personality, he wouldn't just abandon his comrades and run off without saying anything. That means something major must have happened in that direction. What's over there?"
As soon as Ivankov finished speaking, Karas' eyes widened in shock, and he exclaimed.
"Udon! Damn it, something must have happened there! Sabo's been gone for so long and hasn't returned. I told you we should've just killed them all!"
Iva cut Karasu off, his voice low and serious. "It might not necessarily be trouble. Regardless, let's follow and see for ourselves!"
"Right! Let's regroup with them first, then think about breaking through the walls!" Lindbergh said urgently.
Immediately, Karasu transformed back into a swarm of black crows, carrying the group as they flew toward Udon.
.....
"Raaaaah! Caesar!! Take this—Flame Emperor!"
Sabo roared, propelling a scorching sun forward with a thunderous crash toward Caesar!
"Borororo! Bring it on, brat!"
Caesar threw his head back with a wild laugh, hurling a massive ice sphere down with devastating force!
BOOOOM!
High in the sky, the blazing inferno of the flame sun collided violently with the crystalline brilliance of the Ice Sun!
In an instant, the intense heat vaporized the ice, producing vast plumes of white steam that shrouded the sky in a dense fog!
The earth-shattering strike Sabo had unleashed with the resolve to die far surpassed the same technique he had used against Linlin back in the Flower Capital.
After all, Caesar wasn't a true master of ice like Kuzan.
Thus, the scorching flame sun rapidly melted the ice sphere Caesar had launched, both forces eroding each other.
But from the looks of it, Caesar's ice sphere was shrinking faster.
"Borororo, you win this one, brat." Caesar laughed heartily.
A bitter smile crossed Sabo's face as his body exhausted all its remaining strength.
Unable to even maintain flight, he began slowly descending.
"Don't lie."
The surging fireball engulfed Caesar's body, swallowing him whole.
Sizzle—sizzle—sizzle.
The raging flames burned through Caesar's Haki armor, leaving massive blisters across his skin—a horrifying sight.
Yet, in the next instant, his damaged flesh regenerated instantly.
His monstrously powerful recovery allowed him to stroll unscathed through the miniature sun.
Caesar raised an eyebrow, noticing the approaching storm in the distant sky, and a cold smirk curled on his lips.
BOOM!
Space shattered as Caesar's massive hand blotted out the sky, snatching Sabo's falling body midair.
With a flick of his finger against Sabo's forehead, he knocked him unconscious.
Then, at lightning speed, he expanded his Observation Haki to block Dragon's probing senses and thrust his hand into Sabo's skull...
Within seconds, Caesar released Sabo, letting him plummet from the sky once more!
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