"Haa…"
Neither of them moved, yet the air around them seemed to freeze in that instant.
This was not the effect of Conqueror's Haki, but pure presence and killing intent.
Above them, dark clouds began gathering in the sky that had been filled with white, steaming mist. A sweeping gale followed.
Under the influence of their powerful wills, even the weather began to change.
The real battle was about to begin.
Shiki drew his most trusted partners from his waist, Oto and Kogarashi, and held them horizontally in front of him. He raised his head and looked at the two blades at Yemu's waist, his gaze arrogant.
"There's something I've been wondering about. Those two swords at your waist are Tengoku and Shishimaru, right? Like my Oto and Kogarashi, they're Meito. Captain John died at your hands too. He may not have been among the top fighters of the Rocks Pirates, but he was a genuine great swordsman. So you should be a swordsman too. Why didn't you use your blades when you fought Sengoku?"
The question caught Yemu somewhat off guard.
Still, he did not hide it. He drew the two swords from his waist, looked at the blades, and said, "Unfortunately, my swordsmanship hasn't reached the level of a great swordsman yet. In a battle of that caliber, using swords would only drag down my combat strength."
"Is that so? Then you're not a pure swordsman. Who taught you?"
"Rayleigh-san."
"Rayleigh?"
That answer surprised Shiki, and he asked several questions in a row.
"What's your connection to Rayleigh? You actually know him? Does that mean you've met Roger too?"
Yemu nodded. At this point, there was no need to hide many things.
"I once spent three days with the Roger Pirates. That was when I met Mr. Roger and Rayleigh-san. My Haki and swordsmanship were taught to me by Rayleigh-san back then."
Shiki's eyes widened at once.
"You're saying Rayleigh only taught you for three days…"
"That's not wrong. But when it comes to training, a teacher can only lead you through the door. The rest depends on yourself."
"Is that so?"
Shiki seemed to think of something. His eyes suddenly lit up, and he beckoned to Yemu.
"Hey, brat, let me see it. Your slash. Use everything you have and cut at me."
This time, Yemu was the one who froze. He did not quite understand what Shiki meant, but he still raised Shishimaru.
"In that case, I'll gladly obey."
In an instant, Yemu held his breath and focused. Shishimaru swept horizontally toward Shiki, sending a dazzling blue slash flying at him.
Looking at the incoming slash, Shiki's lips curved slightly. He lightly raised Oto in his hand and, like a bolt of lightning falling from the sky, cut Yemu's slash cleanly in two.
The severed slash passed by Shiki's body and struck the ice plain, producing a sharp cracking sound. The ground instantly split open into a hundred-meter-long ravine.
But Shiki did not even look back. He only stared at Yemu with a trace of contempt on his lips.
"I thought you were being modest, but your swordsmanship really is awful. That isn't swordsmanship at all. It's just an ordinary swing."
Yemu was already used to this.
"You don't need to tell me. I know. And you're not the first person to say that to me."
"That's true. But this is normal. If you were even highly skilled in swordsmanship, that would be a little too unreasonable."
At this point, Shiki seemed to grow interested and shouted at Yemu.
"Hey, brat, did Rayleigh ever tell you what a great swordsman really is?"
Yemu shook his head.
"Rayleigh-san only gave me some of his own insights into swordsmanship training."
"Is that so? Then let me tell you."
Shiki looked pleased with himself as he raised Oto and Kogarashi high. Black Armament Haki coiled around them.
"A body of absolute strength, indestructible black blades, refined sword technique, and overwhelming Haki. When a swordsman brings all four of these powers to their peak, they can step into the realm of a great swordsman. Of course, you may not understand just from hearing that, so I'll demonstrate it for you."
The moment he finished speaking, a fierce glint appeared on Shiki's face.
What followed was an eruption of overpowering Haki.
In an instant, Yemu felt as if his entire body had been enveloped by Shiki's Haki, as though no matter how he dodged, he would still be cut.
And then, Shiki swung.
"Shishi: Senjindani!"
In an instant, two dazzling slashes rushed straight toward Yemu.
But Yemu did not dodge.
At that moment, he sensed no killing intent from the two slashes. His Observation Haki also told him that their target was not him.
Sure enough, the two slashes flew past both sides of Yemu's body.
At that same moment, a thunderous rumble echoed across the entire island.
Looking down from the sky, one could see the huge island, nearly a hundred kilometers across, split into four pieces by an X-shaped slash, like a cake cut apart with a blade. Bottomless chasms opened across the land. Smoke from the slashes shot straight into the sky, followed by thick clouds of dust and scorching magma erupting from underground.
"That's ridiculous."
Looking at the scene, even Yemu could not help being amazed.
He could also destroy an island with a single strike, but only by relying on his Devil Fruit ability.
If he relied purely on swordsmanship, his slash could at most carve out a hundred-meter ravine like the one just now. That was already his limit.
Shiki, who had done all this, looked completely calm. He glanced at Yemu and asked, "Brat, did you see that slash clearly?"
"Mm."
Yemu nodded.
Since it had been a slash without killing intent, he had been able to focus on sensing the process behind it carefully.
"So the essence of a great swordsman's slash is Haki?"
"Shihahaha!"
Shiki laughed happily.
"That's right. A slash like yours, relying only on pure physical strength, will eventually hit a limit. But Haki is different. You may have defeated Sengoku with your Devil Fruit ability, but he wasn't wrong. Haki is the power that stands above everything in this world. Its destructive force surpasses all else."
Yemu did not refute him.
On the contrary, Shiki's words gave him a faint understanding of swordsmanship.
Just then, Shiki asked and answered his own question in front of Yemu.
"Brat, do you know why people call me the Golden Lion?"
"I wasn't given the name of a lion because of the Fuwa Fuwa no Mi. It was because of my swordsmanship, which is as savage as a wild beast. Now, I'll let you see it for yourself."
As his words fell, Haki surged around Shiki's entire body. Behind him appeared the phantom of a massive pitch-black lion, towering between heaven and earth. It carried the ferocious presence of the king of beasts, looking down on everything in the world with an unstoppable gaze before letting out a lion's roar.
"Roar!"
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