A flash of dark-red blade light tore through the air.
Kizaru, who had raised the Ame-no-Murakumo to block, and Akainu, whose arms were wrapped in Armament Haki, were both blasted backward at the same time.
This guy… he's grown this strong since the North Blue?
Kizaru, sent flying, stared at Don—still frozen in his striking stance—with open disbelief on his face.
It hadn't even been that long.
Back then, although Don had revealed formidable strength and Devil Fruit mastery, Kizaru had still been able to roughly gauge his limits.
But now, his Devil Fruit wasn't even the main force. Every exchange so far had been purely Haki and swordwork.
And just from that alone, the two Admirals were on the losing end.
Their Armament-coated arms weren't injured, but the force transmitted through them couldn't be fully absorbed, leaving their bodies unable to react in time.
This level of technique…!
Akainu was no stranger to Conqueror's Haki, and he knew Don possessed it.
But this technique—this advanced form—he had only ever seen from Sengoku and Garp.
It was the advanced application of Conqueror's Haki coating.
This brat… he's mastered it at such a young age?
A lawless, unrestrained monster—young, powerful, and growing far too fast.
If possible… he needed to be stopped here. Or captured.
Akainu's expression turned grim.
Compared to the shock of the two Admirals, Rayleigh—watching from a distance—suddenly shot to his feet, his eyes wide as he stared toward the clash.
"Divine Evasion?"
With Observation Haki, he had clearly heard the name Don shouted as he swung.
"No… not Divine Evasion!"
Rayleigh narrowed his eyes, replaying the moment of Don's slash in his mind.
Divine Evasion was once Roger's technique—essentially a blade strike infused with Conqueror's Haki in a very particular manner.
Rayleigh had followed Roger for years; he knew that move intimately.
Don's strike resembled a Conqueror-coated slash, but the truth was something else—it was another form of advanced Conqueror's Haki coating.
What Don had used was simply pure Conqueror's Haki coating—but the sheer quality and quantity of his Haki made Rayleigh's heart tremble.
He hadn't been using this advanced technique for long…
Yet he could already unleash such overwhelming power.
That alone spoke volumes—Don's Conqueror's Haki was monstrously abundant.
——
The transponder snail broadcast had just begun.
Screens lit up across countless islands throughout the Grand Line.
And on those screens, the very first image transmitted… was Don sending two Admirals flying with a single slash.
People who recognized Kizaru and Akainu stood frozen, staring blankly at the projection.
What the hell?!
But at this moment, no one was available to explain anything.
Boom!
The entire screen filled with flames—intermixed with glittering golden laser beams.
The projection shifted as the recording angle changed.
From this new view, the audience could see all three figures clashing below.
Billowing magma spewed smoke and fire, golden beams shot wildly in every direction, and amid it all stood a figure brandishing a blazing longsword.
The angle kept shifting repeatedly.
And because of this, viewers watching the screen were growing dizzy from the rapidly changing perspectives.
Yet Morgans, orchestrating everything behind the scenes, understood the reason perfectly:
The news birds were being buffeted by the shockwaves.
Compared to this monumental headline, the loss of a few news birds hardly mattered.
Even if it still hurt his heart a little.
The battle on Sabaody raged on.
Between Don and the pile of Celestial Dragons stood two Marine Admirals.
Under such circumstances, even when faced with Don's flame-coated slashes, Akainu and Kizaru couldn't dodge by elementalizing.
If they did, the attacks would sail straight toward the Celestial Dragons.
For that reason, with the Admirals constrained, Don—in his normal state—temporarily suppressed both of them at once.
But that same reason meant the two Admirals no longer needed to hold back either.
Boom!
A fist crackling with black lightning collided with a surging magma fist.
Shockwaves blasted outward in all directions.
Neither Don nor Akainu retreated.
Threads of black electricity erupted between the fists and magma. Under the impact, the magma slowly warped and twisted.
A burst of golden light—Kizaru's leg became a gleaming blade of light, sweeping toward Don.
Don blocked with Flame, though the force sent both him and his sword flying back.
"Have you ever been kicked by light?"
Only after connecting did Kizaru speak, one hand tucked casually into his pocket. His tone slipped back into its usual lecherous drawl—because this time, the kick had driven Don far from the Celestial Dragons.
"Well, I only just got kicked."
Don's voice rang out—and suddenly, a burst of fire exploded midair. The Don who had been sent flying detonated into scattered flames.
A fresh blaze ignited nearby, and Don stepped out from within it.
"I told you—my flames cover the entire area. If I want, I can appear anywhere."
He casually hoisted his blade over his shoulder, though inwardly he let out a sigh.
The Admirals have adjusted now.
His earlier advantage came only because they had underestimated him—or hadn't fully adapted to his style.
Even with Conqueror's Haki coating, without pushing his limits, dealing with two peak-condition Admirals at once was still too much.
Conqueror's Haki had greatly boosted his power
But facing two Admirals in their prime…
This must be what Whitebeard faced in the future war.
Well—Whitebeard had Aokiji on top of that. And he lost. Though his body had already begun to fail him.
"Looks like I'll need to take this a little more seriously."
Don glanced at Kizaru, whose expression had relaxed again.
"Oh? Are you saying you weren't serious earlier?"
Akainu's stern expression twisted unpleasantly.
He had already grasped most of Don's strength. The kid was terrifying.
Even with both Admirals combined, capturing him wouldn't be easy.
And yet he dared say such a thing?
He wasn't putting either of them in his eyes!
"You'll understand soon enough."
Don's expression did not change. His eyes sharpened
and suddenly, a violent surge of Conqueror's Haki erupted from him.
He unleashed it without restraint, letting it flood wildly outward.
The Conqueror's Haki rose like tangible black smoke.
The heat-distorted clouds overhead were blown apart instantly by the surging Haki.
Blazing sunlight poured down upon Area One.
Behind Don, the dense Conqueror's Haki twisted and writhed like a living mass of darkness.
Rip!
Don reached up, tore off his shirt, revealing his toned upper body. His black hair whipped wildly in the wind.
Flame rested before him. He placed his left hand along the flat of the blade, slowly sliding it down.
Where his hand passed, the blade glowed blindingly bright—its steel turning clear and radiant, as though formed entirely from condensed flame.
The air around the blade shimmered and warped.
END OF CHAPTER
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