"Divine Impact…"
As Marco met Nusjuro's slash head-on, Warcury's hands twisted into massive pig trotters. He thrust them forward, unleashing a violent shockwave. Even with his left arm raised to guard, Marco was blasted away by the impact, sent hurtling straight out through the dome.
The Gorosei immediately gave chase.
"They're this fast…? Watching the three of them close in on him again, Marco felt another flash of surprise. He darted back into the sky, but Mars, with his wings, was already airborne and the first to catch up.
Warcury and Nusjuro snorted coldly. Demonic wings sprouted from Warcury's back, while bony wings grew out from the skeletal horse body of Nusjuro's centaur form. Both beat their wings and shot up, rising toward Marco.
"Seriously… they can do that too?" Marco swore under his breath. What kind of monsters was he up against?
Not only had they juiced their strength with some mysterious blood, they could suddenly grow wings as well.
With the three of them circling in from all sides, Marco's expression grew increasingly grim.
He had originally thought that after raising his Haoshoku to the legendary level, he'd have a shot at breaking the Gorosei's immortality. But now they'd amplified their own power as well. He still didn't know whether legendary Haoshoku could really shatter their undying bodies—and with their strength boosted this far, even landing a truly serious injury on them would be incredibly difficult.
The three said nothing. In seamless unison, they launched a coordinated assault on Marco. Marco's eyes hardened; black flames erupted around him in great waves as he met them head-on.
In the sky, the clash of the four turned the air itself into a battlefield. Every exchange triggered a tsunami of Haoshoku. Crimson lightning burst from their collisions and crashed down like thunderbolts, while the storm of Conqueror's Haki knocked those with weak wills flat.
Below, the battles between Marines and pirates gradually ground to a halt. The overflowing Haoshoku Haki from above washed across the entire island. Marines below rear admiral rank couldn't endure that pressure at all, collapsing unconscious one after another.
The same thing happened among the Phoenix Pirates. Any pirate below vice-captain level dropped where they stood. The fierce melee faded away as everyone who remained conscious looked up into the sky.
"Is this… a war between gods?" A rear admiral in his thirties stared upward, watching the Gorosei and Marco trade blows. With every impact of fists or feet, red lightning sprayed out like shrapnel, raining down like cannon fire and gouging craters into the earth.
Under that kind of overwhelming Haoshoku Haki, just staying awake and on your feet was already a luxury for ordinary humans.
Ace stared at the figures in the sky, his face tight with apprehension. Beside him, Yamato blurted out, "Why do the Gorosei look a bit different from last time?"
Opposite them, Admiral Ryokugyu gazed at the battle with crazed devotion in his eyes, like a fanatic worshipper. He laughed, harsh and twisted. "Kekeke… of course they do! Did you think what you saw last time was the gods' true power? This is true divine might! How could a god's power be compared to that of mortals?"
Ace snorted, his tone scornful but firm. "Then why don't they dare fight Marco one-on-one? Why do three of them need to gang up on him?"
Ryokugyu's face went cold. "Hmph… you rotten brat, you're on the brink of death and still mouthing off. The Five Elders are using their true power this time. Don't think you'll get lucky like you did at Whole Cake Island. Today, all of you are going to die. Not just the Phoenix—Vegapunk and all you pieces of trash are going straight to hell!"
Vines exploded from beneath his feet, surging wildly forward, crashing down toward Ace and Yamato.
Ace's body erupted in flames as he roared, "None of us are dying here. The one who's going to die is you!
He thrust his arm forward and unleashed a searing torrent of fire straight at Ryokugyu.
Fujitora tilted his head toward the sky. Though his eyes were blind, his Observation Haki clearly caught the clash above, tracing the overwhelming auras of the Gorosei and Marco.
He let out a quiet sigh. "There's always a higher mountain and a stronger man. Phoenix Marco's power is greater than last time… and the Gorosei have grown stronger as well."
High in the sky, Marco and the three Gorosei broke apart. Azure flames licked across Marco's wounds, knitting them back together in an instant. Opposite him, the Gorosei's injuries had finally drawn blood—only to close up just as quickly. Seeing that red splash before it healed, Marco's lips curled into a grin.
"Finally, I see you bleeding," he said. "So if Haoshoku is strong enough, it really can hurt you."
Warcury and the others stopped bickering among themselves. Their gazes turned frigid.
"Indeed," one of them said coldly, "if Haoshoku is strong enough, it can hurt us. But this is as far as you go."
Marco's expression hardened. All of them were at the king level—on that point, he had no doubt. In a one-on-one fight, he was absolutely confident he could defeat any single one of them.
He had already found their weakness. Their so-called "immortality" was terrifying to anyone with weak Haki, but it wasn't absolute. Against someone whose Haki was strong enough, even an "immortal" could be killed.
Just now, he had wounded them again and again, forcing out normal, red blood.
But with that immortality, so long as the damage wasn't outright fatal, their bodies recovered almost immediately.
The problem was that the current Gorosei were simply too strong. One against three, Marco couldn't land a decisive, killing blow fast enough.
Back during the battle on Whole Cake Island, the Gorosei's Haki and Devil Fruit abilities had already been formidable, but their basic physical stats—speed and raw strength—had been lacking. Years of sitting in offices with no real exercise had left their bodies dulled; their speed and power had clearly declined.
Now, it was different. Even putting their immortality aside, these three had surpassed an admiral in sheer might, reaching the level Kaido had displayed after his Devil Fruit awakening. In fact, Warcury and Nusjuro were even slightly stronger than Kaido had been then.
They no longer needed to lean on immortality as their main crutch. Or rather, when facing king-level opponents—people who could very well wield legendary Haoshoku—that kind of immortality didn't grant any overwhelming advantage. At best, it gave them monstrous recovery.
Their offense, their defense—everything about them now was on a completely different level from before.
God's Blood… So that's the Gorosei's trump card?
At that moment, several immense auras burst from the sea of clouds above Egghead's dome.
Above those clouds, the Moby Dick hovered in plain sight. From the mirrors aboard her, Kaido and the others stepped out onto the deck.
One after another, Kaido, Zack, King, Jack, and the Tobiroppo emerged, grinning like beasts scenting prey.
"Wororororo! I can feel it—several powerful forces," Kaido rumbled.
"Mama mamamama! So this is Egghead?" Big Mom strode out as well, flanked by Katakuri, Smoothie, Fossa, and the rest.
The Beasts Pirates and the Big Mom Pirates had brought nearly all of their top officers with them, leaving almost no one behind to guard their own territories. There was no need. The New World was already under the Three Emperors Alliance's control; the only enemies left to consider were the Marines and the World Government.
"Marco…" Zack's gaze shot toward the distant battlefield, where Marco was still trading blows alone against three Gorosei. Worry immediately clouded his face.
Kaido's grin turned savage as his body swelled and stretched, transforming into a massive Azure Dragon. "Wororororo! Linlin, let's go!"
"You're right!" Big Mom hopped onto Zeus and, with a crackle of lightning, shot off toward Marco.
The three Gorosei's eyes turned even colder as Kaido and the others closed in. Even with all three of them working together, they still hadn't been able to finish Marco quickly. The Phoenix Fruit's regeneration was simply too monstrous, and Marco's Haki had grown to the point where he could genuinely wound them.
"Wororororo! Marco, I'm not late, am I?" Kaido boomed as he approached.
"Mamamamamama! These guys look a bit different from when we last saw them!" Big Mom cackled, eyeing the Gorosei.
"Captain Marco," Zack had already taken on his Pink Dragon Human-Beast Form, standing on flame clouds as he floated in midair.
Marco gave him a slight nod, noting that alongside Kaido and Big Mom, Zack, King, and Katakuri had all arrived as well.
He spoke in a grave tone. "Kaido, Big Mom, these guys are using a drug called 'God's Blood.' It's boosted their strength massively. They're completely different from how they were on Cake Island."
Kaido's interest was piqued at once. He grinned, baring his teeth. "Hmph. So even the Gorosei need outside help to power up? I'd like to see how long strength from a drug can really last!"
Marco, however, remained serious. "They claim this drug has no side effects and lasts seven days. I don't buy that completely—but you'd better be careful."
Big Mom's face twisted into a dark scowl. She'd already suffered when fighting Warcury alone on Egghead. Now that they were all using drugs, they would be even more troublesome.
Kaido's eyes narrowed as well. He could feel the weight of the Gorosei's power pressing against his own. Against these opponents, he would have to go all out.
Watching the three emperors gather, Warcury slowly descended from the sky.
Marco and the others followed suit, dropping toward the shattered ground below. Marco excelled at aerial combat, but on land he was even more dangerous. The only reason he'd stayed in the air up to now was because it had given him a slight edge over the Gorosei.
Warcury snorted. "So you've all come. Good. I'll take care of you all at once this time."
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