Thick clouds of dust blanketed the entire harbor.
Yuuki floated in the sky at the edge of the port with Robin, watching the harbor that had been destroyed in a single instant.
Robin's eyes were blank with shock.
"What… is this…?"
Her voice trembled.
Yuuki ignored her reaction and looked toward a spot deep within the dust-covered harbor. A hint of surprise appeared in his eyes.
"As expected of an Admiral."
Through his perception of aura, Yuuki could sense that Aokiji's presence within the smoke had barely weakened.
Here he comes.
Boom!
A massive pillar of ice shot upward from the dust, piercing toward the sky.
Aokiji rose along with the ice column.
"This height…"
Standing atop the pillar, Aokiji glanced toward Conrad hovering above.
The ice column alone was too slow to reach him.
In the next moment—
Aokiji's body completely transformed into ice, merging with the rising pillar.
Boom!
The hundreds of green portals floating in the sky activated simultaneously.
Every shard of ice and every freezing current was split apart and drawn into different portals.
But—
When one of the portals closest to Conrad absorbed a column of ice, that ice instantly transformed back into Aokiji himself.
His real body emerged.
He easily escaped the portal's pull.
"You're going to have to pay for destroying the harbor!"
Aokiji shouted as he swung an arm coated in Armament Haki, punching Conrad before he could react.
He had cleverly used the portals' absorption ability to slip out of Conrad's sight and appear directly in front of him.
That tactic proved Aokiji had already realized something—
Conrad did not possess Observation Haki.
BOOM!
Conrad was blasted from the sky and crashed into the ground below with a thunderous impact.
Yuuki watched the scene and shook his head faintly.
Conrad's magic had some restraining effect on Logia users like Aokiji.
But the effect was far smaller than expected.
The real issue was that Conrad retained only his battle instincts, not a complete consciousness.
Against weak opponents, that wasn't a problem.
But against powerful enemies—
His rigid patterns became predictable.
And more importantly—
Conrad did not possess Haki.
His magical sensing abilities were useless against someone like Aokiji, who had no magic power at all.
Aokiji quickly adjusted his posture midair and kicked downward.
His body descended like a green arrow.
Moonwalk!
The speed was astonishing.
Meanwhile, Conrad's hand burst out from the rubble below.
A surge of magic exploded outward, blasting away the debris burying him.
A powerful magical aura formed around him, like an invisible field.
Green lightning flickered faintly within it.
BOOM!
Aokiji descended from the sky, his leg falling like a battle axe toward Conrad.
The moment they collided—
BOOOOOOM!!!
The ground beneath them collapsed instantly.
Cracks spread in every direction.
Conrad caught Aokiji's descending leg with both arms.
But the immense force still drove his lower body deep into the ground.
The earth shattered.
Chunks of rock flew outward like bullets.
"Someone with your level of strength hasn't appeared in the East Blue in a long time!"
Aokiji's eyes sharpened.
"Who exactly are you people?!"
His lazy demeanor had completely disappeared.
Despite Conrad's strength, Aokiji noticed something important.
Fortunately… he doesn't have Haki.
Otherwise, this battle would be far more troublesome.
The Navy Headquarters—and Aokiji himself—had severely underestimated the Magic Eye Pirates.
At that thought—
Aokiji glanced toward Yuuki, who still floated in the sky near the harbor's edge.
A trace of caution appeared in his eyes.
He can fly too…?
What kind of Devil Fruit abilities do these two have?
If Conrad was already this strong—
Then the captain, "Magician" Yuuki, might be even stronger.
I need to end this quickly.
Conrad continued gripping Aokiji's leg.
But the pressure from Aokiji's strength forced Conrad's spine to bend slightly.
Blood surged through his body.
His face flushed red.
Yet he remained silent.
"Still not talking?"
Aokiji frowned.
"In that case—"
The Armament Haki covering his leg suddenly erupted with black lightning.
Advanced Armament Haki!
CRACK! CRACK!
Both of Conrad's arms snapped simultaneously.
Seeing the disadvantage of continuing the clash—
Conrad exploded with magic from his lower body.
BOOM!
The ground shattered as he used the recoil to retreat.
"Too late!"
Aokiji shouted, preparing to activate his Devil Fruit power and destroy Conrad's arms completely.
But suddenly—
He couldn't activate it.
The unexpected interruption made him pause.
That moment of hesitation allowed Conrad to retreat dozens of meters away.
"My Devil Fruit ability… isn't activating."
Aokiji stood still, attempting again.
Still nothing.
He didn't panic.
Instead, he calmly reviewed the fight in his mind.
Conrad must have done something.
There had to be a detail he overlooked.
Conrad's danger level rose sharply in Aokiji's mind.
He examined his own condition.
Then he frowned.
"A power that disables Devil Fruits…"
"So that's how Crocodile lost."
Until now, Aokiji had wondered how Conrad defeated a Logia user without Haki.
Now he understood.
Yuuki descended from the sky with Robin and landed beside Conrad.
Yuuki glanced briefly at Conrad's broken arms.
Then he looked toward Aokiji.
"Confused?"
"Would you like me to explain?"
Yuuki spoke calmly.
Aokiji brushed dust from his clothes.
His sharp gaze flicked toward Conrad before returning to Yuuki.
"It's that golden key… isn't it?"
Yuuki smiled.
"Sharp observation."
"That's right."
"Everything comes from that key."
During their battle, Conrad had lost both arms—
But he had also used Key Magic to shut down Aokiji's Devil Fruit ability.
Aokiji's eyes flashed.
He quickly reviewed Conrad's abilities.
Control over seawater.
Portals that devoured attacks.
And that golden key that disabled Devil Fruits.
Three completely unrelated abilities.
But now—
They suddenly made sense.
"Conrad's ability is simple," Yuuki said calmly.
"He opens and closes things… with a key."
Understanding dawned instantly in Aokiji's mind.
"I see."
"To think such a simple ability could be developed to this level."
"That's terrifying, Conrad."
But despite his words, Aokiji's eyes grew colder.
Such an ability was extremely dangerous to the World Government.
Nico Robin… you've found yourself an even bigger problem.
If she had remained alone in the shadows, the government might have ignored her.
But joining this crew—
They would now eliminate her without hesitation.
"I'm starting to regret coming here," Aokiji sighed.
"Maybe I should've taken the slow route."
Yuuki gestured lightly.
Conrad stepped back.
Yuuki had already judged Conrad's current level.
With both arms broken, continuing the fight was pointless.
An Admiral's strength exceeded the average Magic Knight Captain from the Black Clover world.
However—
They were still somewhat weaker than Conrad in his prime as Wizard King.
Right now, Conrad possessed only about seventy percent of his former power.
His true strength lay in his Mana Zone and his Four-Element Fusion Form.
But neither could be used in this world.
Furthermore—
The combat focus of the two worlds differed greatly.
Magic Knights specialized in overwhelming magical destruction.
But someone like Aokiji combined massive destructive power with monstrous physical endurance.
A close combat battle favored Aokiji heavily.
Robin quickly retreated as well.
She knew she couldn't participate in a fight at this level.
At the same time—
Seeing a Marine Admiral stopped by Conrad shattered her long-held sense of hopelessness.
Maybe my luck isn't so bad after all…
She looked at Yuuki's back thoughtfully.
Aokiji glanced at Yuuki.
"You revealed your companion's ability."
"Why not tell me yours too?"
Yuuki smiled faintly.
"You can guess."
"But before we continue…"
"I have a question."
"Go ahead," Aokiji replied.
Yuuki stared directly at him.
"You wear a coat of justice."
"But do you truly believe you stand on the side of justice?"
Aokiji paused.
He hadn't expected that question.
"This is the first time a pirate has discussed justice with me."
He spoke calmly.
"No matter how you look at it, the Marines protect civilians."
"That alone makes us the side of justice."
Yuuki shrugged.
"Is that so?"
"Then why do I see confusion in the eyes of an Admiral?"
He extended his hand toward Aokiji.
"So…"
"Would you like to help change this world?"
Aokiji stared at him, stunned.
A pirate inviting a Marine Admiral?
It felt absurd.
Yet the words "change the world" stirred something deep inside him.
But he quickly suppressed the feeling.
"That invitation is pretty casual."
"No sincerity at all."
He said dryly, though his body had already tensed for battle.
Yuuki sighed.
"I thought the invitation itself was sincere enough."
He lowered his hand.
"Looks like I've been rejected again."
Again?
Aokiji's eyes flickered.
He suddenly wondered who Yuuki had invited before.
"That kind of confidence is impressive."
The moment the word left his mouth—
Aokiji vanished.
A blue blur rushed toward Yuuki.
Yuuki smiled faintly.
He grasped the air.
Immense magic gathered in his palm as wind elements condensed rapidly.
"Wind Creation Magic…"
"Pseudo—Spirit of Zephyr!"
A powerful surge of magic erupted.
A green sword formed entirely from compressed wind appeared in his hand.
The moment it manifested—
The air vibrated with a sharp buzzing sound.
Even the air touching the blade was sliced apart.
Without hesitation—
Yuuki raised the sword.
And swung it toward the approaching Admiral.
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