Seeing the meteor-like Golden Lion's ship about to crash down, the giant squirrel Ragnir leaped up and transformed into hammer form.
"Kurii—!"
It let out a sharp cry and slammed its hammer down.
Boom—!!!
The Golden Lion's ship, already with a gaping hole blown through it, was completely shattered into pieces by Ragnir's hammer blow.
Wood planks, iron nails, canvas, ship wreckage, and the bodies of crew members scattered sparsely into the surrounding sea, causing large splashes.
"Who the hell is that?!"
A shout came from amidst the debris.
A familiar figure came into view of Makoto's group… it was Golden Lion Shiki, whom they hadn't seen for nearly forty years.
Just like back then, he was missing one leg, cut off by Makoto.
His signature golden mane of hair had also thinned, leaving him with a balding crown. The top of his head was bare, with only long golden hair at the temples and back fluttering in the wind.
Most striking of all was the ship's steering wheel embedded like a cockscomb in the top of his head.
That was an injury he had sustained twenty years ago while fighting the Roger Pirates.
However, unlike the original work, after Roger turned himself in, Shiki did not attempt to break into Impel Down as he had originally.
As a result, he had kept his other leg and could still wield swords with both hands, suggesting he was considerably stronger than his counterpart in the original work who was defeated by Luffy.
In the Movie version, Luffy was simply invincible.
Whether it was Shiki, one of the three great pirates alongside Whitebeard and Roger, or Douglas Bullet, known as the [Demon Heir] with strength rivaling Rayleigh's, they all could only serve as stepping stones for Luffy.
Even if Goku showed up in the One Piece Movie, he'd probably get a good beating.
Flying mid-air using his Float-Float Fruit, Shiki looked down at Makoto's smiling expression and shuddered violently.
The terror of being dominated in the past surged back into his heart.
His legs went weak, and he stumbled, nearly falling from the sky.
"Sensei."
Saeko stepped forward, showing Shiki sufficient respect.
She slowly drew her Shodai Kitetsu, the blade gleaming coldly in the sunlight.
"Now, I will surpass you."
Indeed, killing one's master was a fine tradition in the Naruto World, so it seemed it wasn't much different in the One Piece World.
After all, when Mihawk was teaching Zoro, he had said he was training a swordsman who would one day kill him.
Meaning, in the eyes of these swordsmen in the One Piece World, the way for a disciple to surpass their master was to kill them.
Well, each and every one of them had a strange way of thinking.
Looking at Saeko, Shiki was silent for a moment.
Then, he grinned and shouted, "You damn girl, my head is right here. Come and take it if you have the balls!"
He drew the two famous swords at his waist, Oto and Kogarashi, one in each hand, their blades coated in potent Armament Haki.
Saeko also gripped her sword with both hands, pushing her Armament Haki to its limit.
Their eyes met, sparking an invisible clash.
"Haah—!"
Shiki launched the first attack. The power of his Float-Float Fruit propelled him down like a cannonball. He crossed his two swords, and the violent flying slash formed a giant X-shape, slashing toward Saeko.
Saeko did not retreat and met him head-on.
The Shodai Kitetsu collided with Oto and Kogarashi.
Clang—!
The clash was deafening, and the waves churned.
The battle between master and disciple had officially begun.
Shiki's dual blades descended like a storm.
The blades of Oto and Kogarashi tore through the air with sharp whistles. Each slash carried the power of the Float-Float Fruit, whipping up the surrounding seawater and turning it into countless water blades that flew toward Saeko.
Saeko responded calmly, the Shodai Kitetsu like a black lightning bolt in her hand, blocking Shiki's attacks one by one.
The sound of blades clashing echoed over the sea, sparks flying, shockwaves spreading outward.
However, after dozens of exchanges, Saeko's brow furrowed slightly.
She had noticed a problem.
Though Shiki's attacks remained fierce, they lacked something—
Haki.
Not that he wasn't using it… he couldn't.
His Armament Haki was intermittent, his Observation Haki almost imperceptible, and his Conqueror's Haki was completely absent.
Saeko's gaze fell on the steering wheel embedded in the back of Shiki's head.
It had been lodged in his skull for twenty years.
She suddenly understood.
It wasn't that Shiki didn't want to use Haki… he couldn't.
That steering wheel had damaged his brain, preventing him from sustaining high-intensity combat.
If he tried to use Haki at full power, his brain would suffer immense pressure, leading at best to unconsciousness and at worst to death.
Right now, he was already at the end of his rope.
No wonder he hadn't joined the battle for supremacy after the Great Pirate Era began.
Saeko's blade slowed.
She looked at the old man before her… balding, a steering wheel in the back of his skull… and found herself reluctant.
Though Makoto had said more than once that the members of the Rocks Pirates were all trash who needed no mercy…
Knowing something and actually doing it were two different things.
Moreover, regardless of whether he was a bad person, he had indeed done her a kindness.
"Where are you looking?!"
Shiki roared, crossing his swords and sending an X-shaped sword energy slash at Saeko.
Saeko twisted aside, the slash grazing her cheek and exploding behind her, carving a rift over a kilometer long into the sea behind her.
"..."
Saeko's voice was very soft.
"Your body..."
"Shut up!"
Shiki cut her off.
"You think that just because I'm old, you can win?"
He gripped his swords with both hands, fully activating his Float-Float Fruit's power. The surrounding seawater began to flow backward, forming countless giant lions that reared up and lunged at Saeko.
"Lion Menace: Rolling Sea!"
Shiki bellowed, swinging his blades. Those seawater lions, like living creatures, bit and clawed at Saeko.
Saeko gritted her teeth, the Shodai Kitetsu spinning in her hand as she sliced through the seawater lions.
But the seawater lions were endless. Cut one down, and two more would form.
She was forced back step by step.
"I hate it when people pity me! I am the Golden Lion!"
Shiki roared as he attacked.
"I am the man who rules this sea from the sky!"
"Mercy to enemies is cruelty to oneself!"
He gripped his swords with both hands, channeling all his power into the blades.
The power of his Float-Float Fruit was pushed to its limit, causing the surrounding seawater to spin wildly, forming a giant vortex.
"I'll teach you one last lesson—"
Shiki roared, swinging both swords down simultaneously.
"A lion, when hunting a rabbit, uses its full strength!"
"Lion Menace: Earth Coiling!"
Both swords struck simultaneously, violent flying slash fusing with the power of the Float-Float Fruit, transforming into massive roaring lion heads that opened their cavernous maws to pounce on Saeko.
Saeko's pupils contracted sharply.
A few seconds later, she closed her eyes.
When she opened them again, all hesitation was gone.
She gripped her sword with both hands, raising the Shodai Kitetsu above her head.
Armament Haki coiled around the blade, turning it pure black.
Conqueror's Haki also wrapped around it, dark red lightning crackling and popping along the blade.
"Lion: Purgatory Slash."
Saeko whispered the name of the technique.
This was a sword technique Shiki had used in his youth, one he could no longer perform now that he was old and frail.
The slash she unleashed combined the pressure of Conqueror's Haki with the hardness of Armament Haki, taking the form of a roaring black lion.
The two male lions contended with each other, like a young cub challenging the position of the aged lion king.
Boom—!!!
The giant lion head was ripped apart from the middle by the sword-energy lion's roar, its body collapsing, disintegrating, and dissipating.
The sword energy did not stop and continued toward Shiki.
Shiki's pupils contracted sharply.
He wanted to dodge, but his body would no longer obey.
The steering wheel in the back of his head throbbed with intense pain. His mind went blank, his limbs stiffened, and he lacked even the strength to lift his hand.
"Pwah—!"
The flying slash pierced his chest.
Blood sprayed.
Shiki grunted, his body falling from the air.
He looked up at the sky receding above him, at the scattered debris of his own ship, at the distant Otherworlder-Go and the flag bearing the word [Makoto].
"Damn... this is how I end..."
His body accelerated downward, the infinite deep sea below.
Just as he was about to plunge into the ocean—
A figure appeared before him.
Makoto.
Without even a trace of movement, he simply materialized out of thin air.
Holding a Flying Thunder God kunai in his left hand, he reached out his right and grabbed Shiki's collar.
The next instant, both of them vanished from mid-air.
When they reappeared, they were standing steadily on the deck of Otherworlder-Go.
Shiki sprawled on the deck, looking at Makoto standing before him, his eyes filled with complex emotions.
"..."
"Even if you are trash,"
Makoto looked down at him, the corners of his mouth slightly upturned,
"You did teach my wife swordsmanship. At the very least, I figured I should let you die with some dignity."
Shiki paused.
Then he couldn't help himself and spat, "Pfft."
"The one... last regret of my life—"
He gritted his teeth, speaking his final words one by one.
"is that I never got to punch you, you bastard."