It had to be said—Red Hair really was outrageously arrogant.
And at that very moment, while everyone's attention had been drawn to the Red Hair Pirates, Lancelot seized his chance.
He took out the Paramecia-type Tremor-Tremor Fruit, shoved it into his mouth, and swallowed it down in one gulp.
Host: Lancelot
Marine Rank: Admiral Candidate
Talent: Superhuman Body — physical toughness, strength, and speed have reached the level of a true superhuman in the world of One Piece.
Lineage Factors: Whale shark Fish-Man lineage factor, Giant lineage factor
Sword Spirit: Dual-Blade Burns
Swordsmanship: One-Sword Style, Two-Sword Style
Sword Techniques:
-One-Sword Style: Iai: Frozen Slash, Ice Tiger, Dragon Fang; Iai: Flame Demon Slash, Flame Dragon Twister, Fire Phoenix
-Two-Sword Style: Ice-Fire Double Slash, Ice-Fire Whirlwind, Ice-Fire Two-Letter Tower Climb, Ice-Fire Full Moon Slash
Sword Spirit: Onigiri: Ashura
Swordsmanship: One-Sword Style
-One-Sword Style: Demon Aura: Onigiri, Demon Aura: Soul-Burning Onigiri, Demon Aura: Soul-Sealing Onigiri, Demon Aura: Ashura: Purgatory Onigiri, Demon Aura: Ashura: Nine Flashes
-Nine-Sword Style: Demon Aura: Ashura: Guard, Demon Aura: Ashura: Heavenless, Demon Aura: Ashura: Soul Destruction, Demon Aura: Ashura: God-Slaying Slash
Sword Spirit: Ryuma
Swordsmanship: One-Sword Style
-One-Sword Style: Return-to-the-Sea Single Slash
Sword Spirit: King Aska — the first king of the Kingdom of Aska
Swordsmanship: One-Sword Style
-One-Sword Style: Sword of the Sovereign — the swordsmanship of the first king of the Kingdom of Aska, a path of the blade that perfectly fuses Conqueror's Haki with swordsmanship, a sword art belonging solely to a ruler.
Realm: Great Swordsman
Martial Arts: Vice Admiral-level — Rokushiki
Rokushiki-Derived Techniques: Tekkai: Fist Art, Tekkai: Utsugi, Tekkai: Shatter, Tekkai: Steel, Rokushiki Secret Art: Rokuogan, Rankyaku: Shigure, Life Return
Doriki: Admiral-level
Speed: Admiral-level
Body: Admiral-level
Swordsmanship: Admiral-level
Conqueror's Haki: Top-tier — techniques: coating, manifestation, sovereign pressur
Armament Haki: Advanced — techniques: coating, emission, Ryou
Observation Haki: Advanced — large-area search, Voice of All Things
Devil Fruits: Zoan-type Mythical Model: Nine-Clawed Golden Dragon — Awakened, Paramecia-type Kibi Kibi no Mi — Beginner; Paramecia-type Tremor-Tremor Fruit — Beginner
Overall Strength: Fleet Admiral-level
Tch, tch.
At long last, he had obtained the power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit, just as he had wished.
In that instant, Lancelot felt as though he were standing at the very summit of the world, as if unmatched power had finally fallen into his hands.
Forget the Marine Admirals and the Four Emperors—even against Garp, Kong, or Sengoku, he would have no reason to fear.
Even fighting two of them at once would not be impossible.
From this moment onward, the Marine Admirals, the Four Emperors, Garp, Kong, and Sengoku were no longer his goals.
He had only one target now.
Imu, seated upon the Empty Throne.
Yet just as he was immersed in that surge of triumph, something unexpected happened.
Shank's gaze seemed to be drawn to him like iron to a magnet, locking firmly onto Lancelot.
'So this is the man who ignored my warning completely and still went for Jozu's life.'
Shanks's eyes turned colder, a trace of anger surfacing within them.
Then his gaze shifted slightly and fell upon Jozu's lifeless body. With just that one glance, his pupils contracted, and a faint shock rose in his heart.
Naturally, Shanks knew exactly what kind of man Jozu was.
He was a monster who could take bullets from Benn Beckman and Yasopp head-on and still hold his ground.
With defensive power like that, even Shanks himself could not claim absolute confidence that he would be able to break through it with a full-powered attack.
And yet now, this Marine had done exactly that with startling ease.
What did that mean?
It meant the power behind this man's techniques might very well surpass even his own.
At that thought, a wariness rose in Shanks's heart.
At the same time, he could not help feeling displeased. After all, this Marine had completely ignored him and openly defied his warning.
Thinking of that, Shanks's gaze naturally drifted toward Gin.
'Now look at him. That one at least knows how to give me face.'
A burst of Conqueror's Haki, and Gin had stopped at once.
Shanks's gaze, burning like twin flames, shot straight toward Lancelot, as though he meant to see through him completely. Lancelot's heart tightened despite himself.
His scattered attention was instantly pulled back, refocusing on the Red Hair Pirates.
First, he met Shanks's eyes.
For one fleeting moment, Lancelot felt the authority and pressure contained within that gaze.
But he was not intimidated by it.
His current strength was absolutely above Shanks's.
So, with perfect composure, he shifted his gaze away from Red Hair and locked onto the man standing beside him—Yasopp.
Yasopp naturally sensed Lancelot's stare as well, and his expression darkened slightly.
Just now, the shot he had fired had actually missed.
For a man famed for his precision shooting, that was nothing short of humiliation.
Aside from his own captain, his gun had never missed before.
That meant this Marine possessed Observation Haki no weaker than Shanks's.
And Lancelot was not the type to quietly take a beating. It did not matter who the other party was. If someone made a move against him, he would never let it go.
Even if that person was a member of the Red Hair Pirates.
Even if the Marine higher-ups had already made their decision in their hearts, he still intended to teach Yasopp a lesson.
Just as Lancelot was about to assume an attacking stance and give Yasopp a harsh lesson, a figure suddenly rushed over like a bolt of lightning and stood directly in front of him.
The sudden appearance caught Lancelot off guard.
He fixed his eyes on the newcomer, only to discover that the person was actually...
Lancelot: "..."
His eyes widened, shock spreading across his face.
He had never expected something like this to happen.
He had thought this battle had already become completely one-sided, with the scales of victory undoubtedly tipping toward the Marines.
And yet, under circumstances like these, this guy had actually jumped out too.
That was right.
The current situation was indeed overwhelmingly one-sided.
But one had to remember—this was the Whitebeard Pirates they were talking about.
They were no ordinary opponents. They were a powerful, world-renowned pirate crew.
So even though the Marines' losses were relatively smaller, they had still inevitably suffered a considerable number of casualties.
But war was cruel by nature. Casualties were unavoidable.
After all, this was a life-and-death struggle. Both sides were fighting with everything they had, trying to bring the other down.
Judging by the current casualty ratio, this battle was unquestionably an unprecedented, overwhelming victory.
So here came the question.
What exactly was this guy trying to do?
Why jump out at a time like this?
Did he have some special plan or purpose?
Or was he simply stupid?
Overflowing with sympathy? Some kind of saint?
Kizaru: "..."
Akainu: "..."
The two of them were rendered utterly speechless.
Truly, there was nothing they could say.
In Akainu's eyes, dense killing intent was already beginning to surface.
If the person being stopped right now had been him, he would probably have struck without the slightest hesitation.