Finn barely touched the ground before another slash came screaming toward him.
Fast. Precise. Ruthless.
"Damn it!" Finn crossed his arms, sank his weight low, and dark purple light flared around his feet as he anchored himself to the earth with gravity.
The blade struck the intersection of his forearms with a sharp ring. His Armament Haki held, but the edge still bit through, drawing a line of blood. The sheer force of the slash tried to send him flying backward, but the gravitational anchor kept him rooted in place.
The reason these attacks had put Finn in such a disadvantageous position wasn't simply that his attacker was strong. It was because Finn had been constantly reacting, never able to establish a proper defensive stance or counterattack rhythm.
This time, he'd managed to hold his ground. If he'd been knocked away again, he would have fallen completely into his opponent's tempo.
"Oh? You held on?" A slightly mocking voice came from ahead.
Finn finally got a clear look at his attacker.
His eyes widened with genuine surprise and disbelief.
Rayleigh?
The Pirate King's right hand. The Dark King. Silvers Rayleigh.
I saw him on Sabaody Archipelago. Didn't he run away after Roger's execution? How the hell did he suddenly appear here?
"Hmph!" Finn snorted and shoved his arms forward, forcing Rayleigh's blade away. His expression darkened. "Dark King Silvers Rayleigh. What are you doing here?"
Rayleigh's face twitched slightly. His tone carried a hint of irritation. "Thanks to you."
Finn blinked. What?
He glanced down at the wound on his arm, blood still flowing freely. Even though his defense had been hasty, he'd used both Tekkai and Armament Haki to block. Yet Rayleigh's slash had still broken through both layers, cutting into flesh.
This guy's swordsmanship is terrifying.
There was no question that Rayleigh stood among the absolute top tier of fighters in this world. In terms of pure strength, he was equal to Kaido, Charlotte Linlin, and Newgate. They might be able to determine a winner in a prolonged battle, but none of them were easy prey.
Looking at Rayleigh's condition, the bastard was clearly at full strength. Uninjured, energetic, looking like he'd just woken from a refreshing nap.
"So you're going to interfere after all. What happened to your retirement?" Finn wiped the blood from his arm, his gaze sharp.
Rayleigh looked at Finn with something resembling helplessness, then smiled. "Everything is fate, Finn."
What kind of cryptic nonsense is that?
Finn wasn't the only one surprised. Newgate, who had managed to escape the gravitational suppression during the chaos, also stared at Rayleigh with confusion.
It had been over a decade since they'd last met, hadn't it? The last time was when Roger became Pirate King and they'd said their farewells. They hadn't exchanged many words even then. So many years had passed in the blink of an eye.
Newgate had never heard from Rayleigh since. He'd assumed the old swordsman had died quietly in some remote corner of the world.
How had he suddenly appeared here? And why was he helping?
Regardless, Rayleigh's intervention had given Newgate the breathing room he desperately needed. He forcibly suppressed his internal injuries and slowly rose to his feet, Shindokutō still embedded in his chest.
"Mamamama!" Charlotte Linlin's distinctive laugh echoed across the battlefield as she fought with Kuzan.
Seeing Kuzan's darkened expression, Charlotte Linlin crowed even more arrogantly. "Didn't expect it? I didn't expect it either! But this world always gives people surprises! Mamamama!"
"Hmph!" Kuzan's cold aura intensified, and his assault on Charlotte Linlin grew even more fierce.
In the sky, Gion was sent flying by Kaido's tail whip. As she tumbled backward through the air, her gaze locked onto the situation on the island below.
What the hell is Silvers Rayleigh doing here?
There was no question that Rayleigh's sudden appearance was enough to tip the scales. If he joined forces with Newgate and defeated Finn, the Marines' entire position would collapse.
"Don't expect me to thank you," Newgate said suddenly.
Rayleigh maintained his relaxed demeanor, a calm smile on his face. Without even turning to look at Newgate, he replied, "I have no such expectations. To be honest, if it weren't for the Marines' schemes, I was perfectly content to watch Charlotte Linlin and Kaido beat you to death."
"Hmph!" Newgate snorted in dissatisfaction, but a small smile crept onto his face despite himself. After all, it was an old friend meeting again after so long.
"Come to think of it, we've known each other for decades, but we've always been fighting each other. We've never joined forces." Newgate's tone was almost nostalgic.
Rayleigh took two slow steps backward, his blade still raised defensively as he kept Finn in his peripheral vision. "After all, we've been rivals. Besides, were there ever any enemies in this world that required both you and me working together to defeat?"
Newgate glanced at the demon sword protruding from his chest, then fixed his gaze on Finn. "Maybe I didn't think so before. But now I have to admit that this guy is definitely a formidable opponent."
"Of course I can see that. He almost beat you to death." Rayleigh's response was delivered without a hint of sympathy.
Newgate didn't rise to the bait. Instead, he asked, "So what's your answer?"
Rayleigh's expression grew more serious. "The answer is obvious, isn't it?"
Yes. He'd already abandoned his neutral stance and attacked Finn twice when Newgate was in the most dangerous situation. The answer couldn't be clearer.
Finn rolled his neck, stretched his shoulders, and looked at Rayleigh. "Are you really going to wade into this mess?"
Rayleigh grinned. "Well, can you give me a chance?"
"As you wish." Finn's voice was soft.
Dark Armament Haki slowly wrapped around both his arms. His eyes sharpened into something dangerous.
Rayleigh's entire body tensed with alertness. He'd been playing dead among the rubble, watching the entire battle unfold. He knew exactly how strong Finn was. The Marine Admiral couldn't be underestimated for even a moment. He had to be treated with absolute caution.
After a few heartbeats, Finn's eyes flashed. His body became weightless, and he vanished from Rayleigh's line of sight in a single step.
Rayleigh's instincts screamed. He slashed out with his long sword, and in an instant, a flower of steel bloomed before him. The pattern seemed chaotic, but closer inspection would reveal that every petal of that sword-flower perfectly covered a potential angle of attack, blocking every flaw in his defense.
But his blade struck nothing. Rayleigh's shock was immediate. He understood instantly. "Whitebeard!"
Finn hadn't attacked Rayleigh at all. His true target was Whitebeard.
Though Newgate was seriously injured, he was far from helpless. When Finn appeared before him, he'd already anticipated it. His fist lashed out with devastating force.
BANG!
The two fists collided. To Newgate's surprise, he didn't feel the overwhelming power he'd expected from Finn's punch. Then he understood. This was a feint.
Finn was trying to retrieve Shindokutō.
Like lightning cutting through fog, realization flashed in Newgate's eyes.
Just as Finn's free hand reached for Shindokutō's hilt, Newgate, who was equally ruthless when it came to his own body, took a step forward. The movement made Finn miss his grab. At the same time, that step shortened the distance between them. Shindokutō's hilt slammed into Finn's body, and then Newgate used that force to drive the blade completely through his own torso, leaving only the hilt protruding from his chest.
At the same time, a powerful burst of vibration force erupted from Newgate's body and sent Finn flying backward.
Rayleigh was dumbfounded. What the hell was Whitebeard doing?
Did he just stab himself?
After knocking Finn back, Newgate's face flushed an unhealthy red again. Blood ran from his nose. He'd completely absorbed Shindokutō into his body, but of course, that had come at a price. His injuries had worsened significantly. But Newgate quickly wrestled the damage back under control, and a smile crossed his face.
"Without this sword, you can't use that technique, can you? Void Slash."
Finn had regained his balance. His gaze locked onto Newgate's. After a long pause, he whispered, "Indeed."
The Void Slash had been exposed. There was no such thing as a perfect technique.
Newgate was truly one of the world's top masters. He'd understood the weakness the moment Finn had revealed the slightest opening.
That's right. Although Void Slash came from Finn's Devil Fruit ability, the technique was too dangerous and didn't distinguish between friend and foe. Once touched by the collapsing gravitational force, even Finn himself would be injured by its devouring power.
So theoretically, using Void Slash required a medium. And that medium had always been Shindokutō.
Finn could channel the collapsing force through his demon blade, but it was absolutely impossible for him to channel it through his fist, his arm, or any other part of his body.
Therefore, what Newgate said was correct. Without the sword, Finn couldn't use Void Slash.
This was why Newgate would rather suffer more severe injuries than let Finn retrieve Shindokutō.
Because in Newgate's assessment, Finn with Void Slash and Finn without Void Slash were two completely different threats.
Without Void Slash, Finn was extremely strong, but still within the realm of normal opponents.
But with that technique available, the Marine Admiral would cut through anyone in his path. Especially when dealing with top-tier masters like Rayleigh who relied on Armament Haki and swordsmanship, the technique was essentially unbeatable.
A single strike could destroy your weapon entirely.
Newgate knew very well that against Void Slash, Armament Haki provided no defense at all.
In fact, this was also why Finn had shaken off Rayleigh and tried to retrieve Shindokutō immediately. Because he knew perfectly well that as long as he got the demon blade back and activated Void Slash, the so-called Dark King would be reporting to the River Styx. Why would he need to show off?
He just hadn't expected Newgate to be so sharp and so ruthless to himself.
Seeing Finn admit it so readily, Newgate felt a complex mix of emotions. Why had he never thought of something so simple?
He'd painstakingly researched a method to counter Void Slash, developing his advanced vibration defense specifically to resist it.
Now that he thought about it, if he'd just seized an opportunity during their fight and stolen Finn's sword, wouldn't that have solved everything?
But almost immediately, he smiled wryly. Was Finn's blade really so easy to steal?
This time, Finn had been careless only because he'd been confident he could handle Newgate alone. After all, if Rayleigh hadn't interfered, Newgate would probably have been defeated already.
It wasn't Finn's fault for being too careless and leaving the blade embedded. If anyone was to blame, it was Rayleigh's inexplicable appearance.
As Newgate and Rayleigh slowly moved to flank him in a pincer formation, Finn smiled.
"Don't tell me you think that just because I can't use Void Slash, I'm at your mercy?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Writing takes time, coffee, and a lot of love.If you'd like to support my work, join me at [email protected]/GoldenGaruda
You'll get early access to over 50 chapters, selection on new series, and the satisfaction of knowing your support directly fuels more stories.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~