The dull thud of hooves echoed from the top of the tower as Saint Ethanbaron V. Nusjuro stood in his monstrous Bakotsu form—a skeletal horse yokai. He pointed his legendary blade, the Shodai Kitetsu, at Aaron Kyle on the distant city wall, and the icy killing intent in his eyes seemed to freeze the very air.
"Aaron Kyle," Nusjuro's voice was cold and empty. "When Roger was executed, you spoke out of turn. The World Government chose to overlook your arrogance, blaming it on your youth and ignorance. Why have you come here today, so determined to seek your own death?"
His words were both a question and a final warning.
Kyle, however, threw his head back and laughed as if he'd just heard the funniest joke in the world. His laughter rolled over the burning Holy Land, filled with arrogance and pure contempt.
"Why should I ever have to explain myself to you?"
Before the words even left his mouth, he vanished from the city wall. At the exact same moment, Saint Nusjuro shot from the tower like a streak of cold light.
"Clang—!"
In mid-air, two figures—one black, one white—collided with violent force. The black-gold naginata, Nidhogg, crashed against the Shodai Kitetsu. The light from their impact was brighter than the massive fires below, lighting up the entire night sky as if it were day. A powerful shockwave exploded outward in a visible ring, tearing through the air in every direction.
In his Yokai form, Saint Nusjuro's speed was unimaginable, each movement leaving a ghostly afterimage. Every slash from the Shodai Kitetsu carried a chilling cold that felt like it could freeze a man's soul.
But Kyle was not afraid. He met the attacks with wide, powerful swings of his naginata. His strikes were so strong they seemed to stir the wind and thunder, making the air roar like a dragon. Each time their blades met, Kyle's power shattered Nusjuro's eerie coldness.
"Clang!"
With another fierce clash, Kyle used the force of the impact to send Nusjuro flying backward. The Elder stabilized himself in mid-air, but a storm was raging in his mind. This boy's strength is far greater than we predicted! His power, speed, and Haki were all at the absolute peak. This man was a serious threat to the World Government.
Before Nusjuro could recover, a deadly sense of danger came from his side. A razor-sharp, emerald-green slash was already tearing through the air, about to hit him. His eyes widened. With no time to think, he twisted his body and blocked the attack with his sword.
"Boom!"
The green sword pressure exploded against his blade, and the incredible force sent him tumbling back dozens of meters.
"How shameless!" Nusjuro roared in anger. To be attacked two-on-one—it was an insult to a warrior of his standing. As one of the most powerful men in the world, he never imagined he would be ganged up on. It was a disgrace!
"Shameless?" Kyle's amused chuckle echoed in his ear. "What a joke. We are… pirates!"
As he spoke, a dark shadow closed in. Dracule "Hawkeye" Mihawk, holding his Black Blade, Yoru, struck with eyes as calm as a deep well. His powerful slashes collided with Nusjuro's Shodai Kitetsu again and again. For a moment, the air was filled with the flash of blades and overwhelming killing intent.
Kyle flew up, ready to join the fight and crush the Elder with their combined strength. But just as he moved, a massive, ominous, crimson-red summoning circle appeared in the sky above him.
"Roar—!"
A roar that did not belong to any human erupted from the circle. A moment later, a monstrous creature with a boar's head, long tusks, and a body as large as a mountain burst out of it.
The Warrior God of Justice, Saint Topman Warcury, in his Houki form!
His massive body slammed toward Kyle like a meteor. Warning bells screamed in Kyle's mind. He had no time to dodge. His arm muscles bulged as he pushed his Armament Haki to its absolute limit, bracing Nidhogg for the impact.
Boom—!!!!
An unstoppable force crashed into his blade. Kyle felt like he had been hit by an asteroid. His arms went numb, and all the air was forced from his lungs. He shot backward like a black meteor, flying over the burning lands of Mary Geoise. He finally crashed into the Red Line below, digging a deep trench hundreds of meters long as smoke and dust filled the sky.
"Damn it!" Kyle cursed as he climbed out of the deep pit, shaking his numb arms. That kind of brute force brought back some bad memories. It reminded him of the out-of-control truck that had sent him to this world in the first place. This pig, he thought, is a lot stronger than that truck!
Just as he got to his feet, a powerful sense of danger came from right beneath him. Without hesitating, Kyle pushed off with his legs and launched himself high into the air.
"Rumble—!"
The second he moved, a colossal creature burst from the ground. It was a ferocious sandworm, bigger than a Sea King, with a circular mouth filled with rings of teeth that could crush steel. It snapped its jaws shut, only biting down on rocks and air.
The Warrior God of Agriculture, Saint Shepherd Ju Peter, in his Sandworm form!
Kyle was still in mid-air, unable to change direction. Before he could find his footing, the sky on the other side of him suddenly went dark. Black flames, like a river from the underworld, rolled toward him, blocking out the stars. The flames were strange; they seemed to burn space itself, which let out a hissing sound as they passed.
The Warrior God of the Environment, Saint Marcus Mars, in his Itsumade form!
"Hmph!" Kyle snorted. He twisted his body in mid-air and swung his black-gold naginata with one hand, striking at the sea of black flames. A powerful slash coated in the black and red lightning of Conqueror's Haki tore through the sky, splitting the sea of flames in two.
The waves of fire roared past him on both sides. Kyle used the force from his swing to land lightly on a giant rock that had been flattened by the earlier shockwaves. He ripped off his burning jacket, revealing a muscular upper body covered in scars.
Before he could even catch his breath, a faint sound came from behind him. A sharp, glowing pincer, coated in a venom that could melt flesh in an instant, stabbed toward the vital spot on his back.
Kyle didn't even turn around. He flipped his grip on the naginata and blocked the attack from behind at a near-impossible angle.
"Clang!"
The harsh sound of metal on metal rang out as sparks flew. Kyle had blocked the massive, dark pincer of a spider-like monster. Looking back, he recognized an old enemy from God Valley.
The Warrior God of Science and Defense, Saint Jaygarcia Saturn, in his Ushi-Oni form!
At the same time, a cold light flashed. Saint Nusjuro, who had been fighting Mihawk, left his opponent and reappeared on the Red Line. The chill from his Shodai Kitetsu made the temperature drop.
In the sky, the giant bird, Mars, circled above. The giant boar, Warcury, approached with heavy, thundering steps that shook the ground. Underground, the presence of the sandworm, Ju Peter, could be felt, blocking any escape.
Five monstrous figures now stood on the ground and in the sky, locking onto Kyle from five different directions.
The Bakotsu, the Houki, the Sandworm, the Ushi-Oni, and the Itsumade.
Five monsters from myths and legends, each radiating a terrifying power that could make even gods tremble, had turned the area into a death trap.
At that moment, the World Government's highest authority, the strongest shields of Imu, the Five Elders, were all present.
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