South Blue.
This was a sea region known for its peace, far removed from the clamor and strife of the Grand Line.
Across the vast waters, Kane transformed into a storm phantom, galloping at speeds far exceeding the speed of sound.
In just a single day.
Kane arrived at the area where intelligence suggested Roger might be hiding.
He hovered ten thousand meters in the air, looking down at the scattered uninhabited islands below.
"Roger... Heh."
A mocking curve hooked the corner of Kane's mouth.
"Hiding in a place like this won't change your status as the Pirate King."
The awakening of the Storm-Storm Fruit had granted his mental power a massive boost. With his Observation Haki fully unleashed, it instantly covered a radius of hundreds of nautical miles.
A few seconds later.
His gaze locked onto a small, nameless island that was vibrant with life.
There, two powerful life signatures were burning quietly beside a campfire.
"So they really are here..."
Kane murmured softly, a glint of excitement flashing in his eyes.
He slowly lowered his body.
The vibrations of the storm wings grew more intense... the campfire crackled.
The aroma of roasted meat permeated the air.
Two men sat cross-legged by the campfire, gulping down alcohol.
One of them was tall, with an exaggerated mustache and a Captain's hat—the man who made the entire world tremble: the Pirate King, Gol D. Roger!
At this moment, his face bore none of the majesty of a ruler; he laughed like a child.
"Gulp, gulp... Ha! Rayleigh, the wine in the South Blue really hits the spot!"
Sitting opposite him was his first mate, Dark King Silvers Rayleigh.
Rayleigh looked at his Captain's heroic demeanor and shook his head helplessly.
"With your body in that state, can't you drink a little less?"
"Hahaha! It's precisely because my time is short that I must drink to my heart's content!"
Roger took another large swig of wine, but his gaze drifted toward the distant horizon with a hint of melancholy.
"Speaking of which, I really want to see the world twenty years from now... Will the person Joy Boy is waiting for appear? And who will find the treasure of Laugh Tale?"
"Those aren't things we should worry about anymore."
Rayleigh also took a sip of wine.
"We have already completed our voyage."
"Yeah..."
Roger smiled, preparing to say something more.
The next moment.
His smile suddenly vanished.
Rayleigh's eyes became incredibly sharp at the same time.
The two of them simultaneously looked up toward the sky.
The previously clear sky had, at some point, been stained an ominous dark purple.
The sea began to churn, and the calm waves turned into roaring surges.
A pressure so heavy it was suffocating poured down from high above.
It was as if the entire sky was crumbling amidst the rumbling!
"Oh?"
A flash of excitement crossed Roger's eyes. He slowly stood up and placed his hand on his sword, Ace.
"It seems we won't be able to finish this drink in peace."
Rayleigh also stood up, his expression solemn.
The newcomer's aura was too strong.
Strong enough that even he felt threatened.
Rumble!
A bolt of lightning tore through the sky.
In the flash of light.
A slender figure, flapping wings made of storms, descended slowly like a god coming to earth.
The visitor wore a pure white Marine Justice cloak that flapped loudly in the gale.
On that impossibly handsome face hung a professional smile.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Roger."
Kane hovered in mid-air, looking down at the two below with an easy and composed tone.
"Allow me to introduce myself: Marine G-5 Branch Base Commander, Kane."
"Oh, a Marine brat."
Roger grinned, revealing a row of white teeth. The fighting spirit in his eyes, however, grew increasingly intense.
"I know you. You left quite an impression on me at Edd War three years ago."
"Is that so? Then it truly is my honor."
Kane smiled as his right hand slowly gripped the hilt of tensa zangetsu.
"Then, as a return gift..."
There was no further nonsense.
Ssh—!
The pitch-black blade was unsheathed.
The next second.
An extremely condensed black crescent-shaped slash cleaved down toward Roger!
Getsuga Tensho!!
"Please use your life to pay for this greeting gift!"
Facing that terrifying slash capable of splitting the entire island in two, Roger didn't dodge; instead, he burst into earth-shaking laughter.
"Gurararara! Good! Very good!"
"Now this is more like it!"
His momentum erupted violently at this moment!
He was no longer the down-and-out middle-aged man drinking by the campfire, but the sole King who reigned over the seas!
Clang!
The famous sword Ace was unsheathed.
Pitch-black Haoshoku Haki instantly infused the blade like ink, bursting with countless blinding black electrical arcs.
"Divine Departure!"
Roger advanced instead of retreating, meeting the black crescent with a horizontal slash!
In that instant, heaven and earth lost their color, and all sounds fell silent.
The black-red crescent and the red-black slash frantically consumed and annihilated each other.
Two breaths later.
BOOM——————!!!
The delayed shockwave turned into a visible white ring of light, sweeping in all directions.
The entire uninhabited island shook violently.
The beach vanished instantly, revealing the pitch-black bedrock beneath.
The sea surface within a radius of several thousand meters was forced down by 10 meters, forming a terrifying vacuum depression.
After an unknown amount of time, the dust settled.
Sunlight spilled back through the gap, illuminating the three distinct faces below.
Kane still wore a smile, though his eyes held a bit more seriousness.
Roger looked thoroughly invigorated, as if he had just tasted the strongest wine in the world.
Meanwhile, Rayleigh's pupils had shrunk to the size of pinheads.
He blocked it?
He had seen that strike clearly just now.
The power contained in that Marine brat Kane's slash was already completely on par with Whitebeard and Golden Lion!
And Roger... Rayleigh glanced at his Captain's slightly trembling right hand, and his heart sank.
Roger's illness was far more serious than he let on.
"Marine brat," Roger shook his somewhat numb arm and grinned, "the aura on you is different from two years ago!"
Two years ago at Edd War, Kane had felt like a sharp, unsheathed sword.
But now, he felt unfathomable.
Like a sea that appeared calm but was actually filled with undercurrents, ready to whip up monstrous waves at any moment.
"People always have to progress."
Kane replied nonchalantly, but his figure instantly vanished from the spot.
Godspeed: Flowing Light!
"Too slow!"
Roger's Observation Haki had already locked onto Kane's movements. Without even turning his head, he swung his sword backward.
CLANG!!!
The sound of clashing metal was deafening.
tensa zangetsu and Ace.
Two black blades imbued with top-tier Haoshoku Haki slammed together in the void, separated by only a few inches!
That thick, ink-like Haoshoku Haki overflowed frantically, turning into countless thick black-red lightning bolts that exploded and roared between them!
A terrifying airwave exploded outward with the two at its center!
Debris flew everywhere, and the surrounding coconut trees were uprooted, ground into sawdust in mid-air!
Rayleigh's feet were rooted to the ground; his clothes flapped violently in the wind, yet he didn't retreat a single step.
His gaze was deathly locked onto the two combatants.
Too fast!
Kane's speed had already surpassed the limits of what the naked eye could capture.
Every time he swung his blade, it was accompanied by sonic booms and thunder. Everywhere the blade passed, it seemed as if it would cut through all things. He followed like a shadow, his storm wings flapping behind him, each beat erupting with startling speed and power, making his attacks both unpredictable and incredibly heavy.
Roger, though slightly inferior in speed, used his back-to-basics, unadorned swordsmanship to accurately predict Kane's attack trajectories with every swing, neutralizing the most violent offensives with minimal effort.
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