At the critical moment of life and death, Akainu explodes with unprecedented potential.
He forcibly interrupted the power output of his Mogu, redirecting more Haki to defense. At the same time, he twisted the muscles of his waist and abdomen to an extreme angle. Using the residual impact from Whitebeard's attack and the weak thrust generated by his own magma jet, he desperately shifted his body to the right.
Move. Move away.
His body moved.
But—
Swish!
The black-red blade light grazed Akainu's left shoulder and slammed down.
"Gyaah!"
A mix of a blood-curdling scream and a furious roar echoed across the battlefield.
A full left arm, still wrapped in magma and maintaining the motion of throwing a punch, was severed at the shoulder and flew high into the air.
"Too bad."
Luffy looked back. Akainu flew diagonally from the residual impact and crashed hard into an enormous iceberg hundreds of meters away, created earlier by the dissipation of the battle.
Boom, crash!!
The iceberg shook violently. The point of impact instantly melted, sending up a huge white cloud of steam.
But one had to admit that killing a top-tier Logia was quite difficult. Akainu had managed to save his life by sacrificing an arm in what was otherwise a lethal situation.
If the pirates and Marines on the battlefield knew Luffy's thoughts, they would be even more horified.
You did not just want to cut off Akainu's arm. You wanted to take his life too?
The battlefield fell into a brief silence.
"Admiral Akainu's arm has been cut off?"
"Th-That cannot be true, can it?"
"The combined strength of Straw Hat and Whitebeard is that terrifying?"
"Just now, Straw Hat was trying to kill Admiral Akainu, was he not?!"
The Marines could barely believe their eyes.
That was an Admiral, who in their eyes was invincible.
Monsters. Both of them were monsters!
Even while severely wounded, Whitebeard could set up an attack like that. Together with Straw Hat, they nearly killed Akainu.
Unlike the Marines, who were overwhelmed with mixed emotions, the pirates, after their initial shock, erupted into loud cheers.
"Did you see that? An Admiral's arm!"
"Straw Hat really tried to kill an Admiral!"
"That bastard Akainu got what he deserved!"
"Whitebeard is too strong. Even as badly injured as he is, an Admiral cannot compare to him. If he were just a few years younger..."
In the square on the Sabaody Archipelago, the people watching the war had similar thoughts.
How terrifying must Whitebeard have been in his prime?
No wonder the New World had always been a pirate's paradise. There were four monsters like that in the New World.
"Big news! Absolutely huge news! Admiral Akainu Sakazuki has lost an arm in the Summit War!"
"The Fifth Emperor, Straw Hat Luffy, is about to be rightfully crowned king!"
"The era is truly going to run wild!"
Boom, boom, boom...
A series of cannon blasts rang out from the sky in the frame, as if saluting the birth of a king.
"Still trying to stop me?" Luffy looked up.
These cannon blasts were not a celebration.
Watching Luffy walk toward Akainu, Sengoku was so frightened he immediately ordered the attack. He was truly afraid that Luffy would kill Akainu.
"Jihahaha! This is the end, Marines! You have angered the kings of this sea."
Golden Lion's wild laugh also rang out. "Do not underestimate this old man either!"
He pointed his twin swords downward.
The massive Chunks of ice, seawater, and warship wreckage floating in the sky, like a meteor swarm following orders, came crashing down on the Marine artillery positions below.
Boom, crash, rumble!
This too was like a natural disaster.
Almost simultaneously, the legends of the old era showed what legendary combat power meant.
"This is the terror of the world's top, Sengoku!" Golden Lion laughed heartily.
"You bastard!"
Watching this, Sengoku gritted his teeth.
Chaos. Total chaos. The entire Impel Down had turned into a complete mess.
Why had he pinned his hopes on those God's Knights?
They had made a grand entrance, and then one of them was killed by a single slash from Luffy.
The rest were not strong enough to make a difference.
Sengoku felt as if a few more people were just coasting on the battlefield.
"You Marines have your hands full as well." Luffy looked at Akainu and raised an eyebrow. "Now it is your turn."
He did not want to let this magma bastard off lightly.
Just then, a large group of Marines charged at Luffy. Everyone shouted loudly.
"Do not let him get near Admiral Akainu! We will buy the Admiral some time!"
"Do not be afraid. He is rubber. A sword can kill him!"
"Even Whitebeard has been beaten this badly by us. He is just a mere Straw Hat!"
"Kill him!"
"For justice!"
Are they treating me like Whitebeard?
That old man caused you Marines so much trouble, even though he was old and sick.
But, commendable courage.
Luffy grinned, took a deep breath, expanded into a balloon, and then forcefully exhaled.
The powerful blast of air sent the charging Marines flying. It also extinguished the streams of hot air rising from the iceberg.
At the indentation in the iceberg, magma gurgled out, rapidly melting the surrounding ice and forming an ever-expanding pool of molten rock.
The figure that had collapsed there gradually emerged. Akainu slowly rose from the center of the magma.
Akainu's face was pale. His forehead was covered in cold sweat.
The wound on his left shoulder was raw and horrific. Magma was Wriggling there.
His arm had been cut off. Truly cut off. The slash had been coated in Conqueror's Haki.
He could only use magma to form a temporary magma arm.
Disgrace. Utter disgrace.
Since becoming an Admiral, he had never suffered such a severe injury.
And in front of everyone, he had lost an arm to a brat who had been at sea for less than a year, teaming up with a dying old man.
This shame made him long to kill Luffy. But he was still watching Luffy, shaken by what had just happened.
Caught off guard by Whitebeard and Luffy's combined attacks, he had nearly died just now.
"I cannot fight him head-on."
This was Akainu's conclusion.
Losing an arm not only cut his offensive power in half but also severely disrupted his body's balance and the flow of Haki.
Normal attacks would probably no longer pose a lethal threat to that brat in this strange state.
If that slash came again, he might not be able to dodge it.
One look at Luffy's expression told Akainu that Straw Hat clearly had no intention of letting him go.
Now was not the time for anger. He did not even have time to treat the wound. He simply covered the stump with magma.
"Inugami Guren!"
Without hesitation, Akainu gathered magma on his fist and launched another penetrating attack.
The magma fist roared out. It split into several fierce magma hounds in the air, not rushing directly at Luffy but spreading out in a fan formation, biting at Luffy from different angles. At the same time, more magma splattered like raindrops toward the ground beneath Luffy's feet and the large rubberized area around him.
This was a classic, cheap tactic of Logia users.
Akainu felt the ache in his arm and knew he could not use conventional methods against Luffy.
Slashing attacks were probably useless.
If that sword slash came again, Akainu felt that even his strongest technique could not match it.
Akainu had immense combat experience. Since he could not win through sheer power, he had to rely on the terrain to win.
The surroundings were all ice. If he melted the ice, it would become seawater. Luffy was a Devil Fruit user. Seawater was his weakness!
Everything was for the sake of victory. Physical technique, swordsmanship, Haki, Devil Fruit abilities—they all served the final victory.
By any means necessary.
Against a weaker opponent, of course, you did not need to consider such things. You just crushed them.
But now, facing Luffy, Akainu had to consider such things. This guy had the ability to kill him.
Bang!
"You think this will work?"
Luffy snorted, stomped his foot, and leaped into the air.
At the same time, he swung his giant blade, weaving a web of pitch-black flying slashes that cut the approaching magma hounds to pieces.
Then Luffy charged at Akainu. Just as he swung his blade down, a huge fist suddenly shot up from beneath Akainu.
"Meiō: Mogura Jū!"
The seafloor beneath Akainu suddenly bulged. A giant fist broke through the ice from below and slammed hard into his abdomen from the bottom up.
Akainu was sent flying. The expression on his face was one of shock. This guy was not using his sword?
"I have said it many times. I am not a swordsman."
The voice came from ahead. Akainu looked down to see Luffy nearly right in front of him. The hand that had used his ability was still retracting, while his other hand held the sword and swung it up at Akainu.
If you are not a swordsman, then how should those who call themselves great swordsmen feel?
"Hatō: Slash!"
A slash carrying immense force came at him. Akainu gritted his teeth and raised both fists in front of him. Saying "both fists" was not quite accurate. One was a real fist. The other was made of magma.
Boom, boom, boom!
Haki and the covering magma collided, producing a nuclear explosion-like ring of shockwaves. The impact from the fist spread outward, blasting off Akainu's entire head, as magma dripped down to the ground.
The magma burst apart like blooming death flowers, scattering with high heat and shockwaves.
Because the damage was caused by the shockwaves, Akainu's body was constantly recovering. Magma flowed over his neck and condensed upward, reforming an intact head.
"Do not underestimate me, brat!"
Akainu's right leg turned into magma and swung horizontally. Even before it got close, its scorching heat was making Luffy sweat.
"Someone who has already lost an arm to me, and you still say that."
Luffy clicked his tongue, slightly dodged to the side, then tossed Magi into the air. His hands blurred as he threw out a massive barrage of Haki shockwaves.
"Meiō: White Gatling!"
"Dai Funka!"
Magma and rubber giant feet collided, producing a deep, thunderous impact.
Luffy's fists did not need to directly touch the magma. The intensive shockwaves knocked all of the magma down in midair. The ice below melted, turning into boiling seawater.
"You think I will fall?"
Luffy glanced at Akainu floating high in the air. He himself was also keeping his footing in the air using a technique similar to the Marines' Geppo.
"What a troublesome brat." Magma continuously dripped from Akainu's body. His body seemed to have fully elementalized.
Luffy looked at Akainu, feeling the rising temperature around him, and a hint of gravity appeared in his eyes.
This guy's ability had actually changed the climate of the area.
There was indeed a huge difference between one Logia and another.
Blackbeard's Yami Yami no Mi, for example, was also a Logia, but its most useful ability was nullifying Devil Fruit powers. It could not achieve this kind of effect.
The differences between Logia Devil Fruits were immense. Some were weak and barely noticeable. Their techniques were poorly developed and completely unthreatening. For example, Smoker, whom Luffy had encountered in Loguetown, only used his smoke as a concealment tool.
No wonder he was only a captain.
But that was not really Smoker's fault. The name "Smoke-Smoke Fruit" did not sound very impressive.
There was no comparison with Akainu's Magu Magu no Mi. The man standing there was a disaster in himself.
Magma's temperature was far higher than ordinary fire. Ace's Mera Mera no Mi had not yet been developed to that level. If he developed it to the point where he could instantly burn even magma, Akainu would not stand a chance.
Akainu's development of the Magu Magu no Mi was clearly quite high. Even in its normal state, his magma appeared orange, indicating a temperature above 900 degrees Celsius.
Flying magma droplets occasionally landed on Luffy's Haki-covered skin, making it somewhat uncomfortable.
If he hit it with a Haki-covered fist, it would probably burn him naturally after a few exchanges. This was where using a sword was advantageous.
That being said, it made sense why so many strong fighters were swordsmen. As the most offensively powerful profession, swordsmanship was also quite effective against Logias.
Without Garp's level of extreme Armament Haki, using a sword was the best way to break through a Logia's defenses.
So—
"You do not have that monkey's speed. If you have the guts, take a few of my slashes, you cripple." Luffy sneered at Akainu, whose body was covered in blood.
If he had not arrived in time, Ace would have been in serious danger.
The prisoners who had escaped from Impel Down were not in their peak condition. Otherwise, the situation would be different now. Even if Ace could not beat Akainu, he would not have lost so quickly.
Akainu glanced into the distance. Kizaru, who had been on his way, was cut down by Whitebeard.
Aokiji was held up by several Warlords.
Crocodile, Jinbe, and that dangerous Revolutionary Army guy named Ivankov.
That meant he was facing Luffy alone.
And those Whitebeard Pirates were escaping right before his eyes.
"Brat. Do not get too cocky!"
Magma churned beneath Akainu's feet.
He could feel the pain at his left shoulder stump intensifying. His Haki consumption was also far more severe than usual.
"Losing an arm is indeed a disgrace. In my long career in the Marines, this is also the first time I have suffered such an injury. But I have been in more battles than the number of grains of salt you have eaten! Do not underestimate the resolution of one who bears the name of absolute justice!"
Akainu growled. The magma flowing over his body suddenly accelerated, its color deepening.
The magma shifted from orange to golden yellow, and within it, a hint of white was faintly visible.
"Perhaps I have eaten more grains of salt than the number of battles you have been in." Luffy replied flatly, but his gaze grew serious.
"Dai Funka!!"
Akainu's attack was his response to Luffy. The magma bursting from his fist was like a fiery meteor. The moment it erupted, it raised the surrounding temperature even higher. The magma instantly surrounded Luffy.
The blazing heat turned the sky red.
"Hatō: Slash!" Luffy responded.
Below, the ordinary Marine soldiers and pirates who were caught up in the disaster were doomed.
The collision of these two monsters made even the water beneath unsafe. The icy seawater began to bubble, becoming extremely hot.
"Evil Straw Hat brat. This world cannot allow someone like you to exist. You must be nipped in the bud. You want to become Pirate King?! I will not allow such evil to appear again!" Akainu roared.
Akainu believed in absolute justice.
It did not matter that Luffy was the grandson of Marine Hero Garp. Even if it were Garp himself, if he betrayed the Marines, Akainu would still throw a punch at him.
Back when Admiral Aokiji had gone easy on Luffy, Akainu had scolded him harshly.
But now, it seemed he might have misunderstood Aokiji.
After all, not much time had passed. How could anyone's strength grow so terrifyingly fast?
If Aokiji had held back, then Akainu had held back too.
"Evil? Your standards are quite hypocritical. If you have the guts, go kill the Celestial Dragons who violate justice first." Luffy's face was expressionless.
Knowing what the Celestial Dragons had done, and still protecting their rule.
What kind of justice did these Marines represent?
The justice upheld by the Marines, from top to bottom, was hypocritical.
That was why Luffy had chosen to be a pirate rather than a Marine.
There was no absolute freedom in the Marines!
Akainu's face darkened. He said nothing.
Being called out like this by a brat, did he have no pride left?
"Justice requires sacrifice. Even my own!"
Akainu suddenly looked up. His remaining right arm raised high toward the sky. "But before that, I must completely incinerate you, the greatest evil!"
"Yōgan Jigoku: Tenzui!"
Boom, crash, rumble!
Centered on Akainu, the sky for hundreds of meters above was suddenly dyed a bloody red.
Countless house-sized magma fireballs came raining down from that blood-red sky like meteor showers.
This was the true destructive power of a Marine Admiral. Changing the weather. Creating a natural disaster-level area attack.
Luffy was somewhat angry.
Akainu also had ulterior motives. The massive magma attack was not only aimed at Luffy but also at the Whitebeard Pirates retreating behind him.
Attacking him was one thing, but trying to obstruct Ace and the others from escaping?
There were quite a few Marines there too. Was he really just going to rain down indiscriminate fire like that?
"Akainu, you are asking for death!"
Luffy's eyes glowed with intense red light. He stamped his foot and temporarily retreated from his Dark King state.
"Gomu Gomu no Giant..."
Luffy let out a low shout. His body expanded again. In an instant, he became a rubber white giant, his head in the clouds.
"Try my blade!"
Magi transformed with Luffy's will into a black blade tens of meters long. He gripped the blade with both hands and, facing the cascading meteor shower of magma, made the simplest of motions.
A horizontal slash.
Boom!
This scene, which looked like a volcanic eruption, was destroyed by the huge wind pressure from the sword slash. The flames burning on it were extinguished in an instant.
The remaining hot stones exploded, one after another, falling down. The sky, which had been dark and filled with lightning, was split open, revealing a path of sunlight.
Not even a natural disaster could surpass the power of a giant.
Especially a rubber giant like Luffy.
***
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