Boom!
Bang!
Shiki, who was sent flying, abruptly stopped in mid-air using his Devil Fruit ability, the base of his cigar stained with blood.
Looking at the figure grappling with Nero, Shiki clicked his tongue: "Tsk, is this the prime 'Iron Fist' Garp?"
On the ground, a half-beastified Nero was fiercely exchanging blows with Garp, their two small figures creating the commotion of giant beasts.
Each collision sent out arc-shaped shockwaves, as if two colossal Sea Kings were battling.
If struck by such a punch, even Charlotte Linlin, known as the 'Steel Balloon,' would probably not last many hits.
Shiki, having disengaged from the fight, did not immediately rush back in, but instead raised his blade against the surrounding Marines.
"Lion's Might: Earth Scroll!"
Sand and stone, like a natural disaster, gathered and transformed into a giant lion, surging towards the people of Marineford.
"Fist Bone: Galaxy Impact!"
Suddenly, Garp unleashed a punch, knocking Nero back, and the force of his punch directly blasted away Shiki's Lion's Might: Earth Scroll.
"I told you, didn't I? I'll arrest all of you. Look closely, your opponent is still standing right here!"
On his iron fist, wrapped in black Haki, there seemed to be flowing lava, and the black-red Haki flickered like lightning.
Garp tore off his tattered white shirt and threw it aside. After fighting for so long, he hadn't weakened; instead, his momentum had grown stronger.
"Garp! You bastard! You're too resilient! Do you really want to die by my hand?" Nero's vertical pupils almost narrowed into a line, and her voice deepened.
"Kyahahaha! Garp, how long can you keep this up? Just let Roger go!"
"Even if you can hold on, these Marine soldiers can't. Or are you saying you don't care about their lives?"
Shiki laughed incessantly, trying to break Garp's psychological defense. In his view, this battle was already his and Nero's victory.
The rest was just a matter of time. If Garp could surrender, that would be even better.
"I am a Marine! There are no Marines in this world who would bow to pirates!"
Garp grinned, setting his fists in front and behind him, and looked up at the sun in the sky: "And by this time, Roger should already be dead."
"What?!" Nero's face was filled with disbelief.
"I just figured it out myself. Why was it me and Sengoku left to guard Marineford, while almost all other high-level combat forces were transferred away?"
Garp's brow furrowed into a knot, his words containing suppressed anger.
"You also have a great pirate like Shiki. How could you be allowed to roam freely across the seas? At least your general location... and why was Roger's execution time moved up?"
"Hmm, is it the World Government?" The demonic patterns on Nero's face became even more crimson, like flowing blood.
"But did you forget? The Roger Pirates are not just me. Do you think everyone would let Roger be killed by you?"
"Under normal circumstances, that's true," Garp said with difficulty, gritting his teeth. "But what if Roger himself was already on his last legs?"
"Hmm, are you starting to ramble, Garp? Using such petty tricks is unlike you."
Despite her words, Nero's mind instantly began to analyze: Roger's appearance when she first met him, how much thinner he looked upon reaching the Final Island, and Roger's somewhat hunched figure she saw in the newspaper earlier... Scene after scene collided and connected, and a conclusion Nero didn't want to believe was on the verge of emerging.
"Nero? Hey! You don't really believe Garp's obvious lie, do you?" Shiki, flying in the sky, frowned. He wouldn't believe a single punctuation mark of Garp's words.
But Nero's current demeanor clearly showed she believed him, forcing him to try and persuade her, while also sighing inwardly that this little girl was indeed still too naive.
"Pirate King, where is your treasure? Where did you hide it?"
"Do you want my treasure?"
"If you want it, I'll give you all of it!"
"Go find it! I've placed all the world's wealth there!"
"ONE PIECE!"
A familiar scene once again surfaced in Nero's mind. A violent headache assaulted her, but for her now, it was no longer an unbearable pain.
Everything aligned. The future she saw, Roger's will, all the answers were, as he said, placed on the Final Island—Raftel!
ONE PIECE!
Is this your choice, Roger!
The surrounding houses were damaged, the earth cracked, and the tattered bodies of Marines lay on the ground.
"Garp, did Roger tell you about the treasure on the Final Island, hmm, Raftel?" Nero lowered the hand that was covering her forehead, suddenly asking Garp a question.
"No!" Garp shook his head, staring at Nero's somewhat strange appearance.
"Hmm, then I'll tell you!" Nero smiled, a raging inferno seeming to burn in her eyes.
The intense headache and the unfolding of the real story made her mind feel chaotic, causing her to appear somewhat frenzied as she spoke.
"No need! I'm not interested in such things." Garp flatly refused.
Although he didn't know what was truly there, judging by the World Government's attitude, it was definitely a huge secret that could turn the world upside down.
The seas were already chaotic enough. This so-called great treasure should remain a hidden legend.
Shiki, on the other hand, was quite intrigued. He naturally saw Nero's abnormality at the moment, but as a great pirate, how could he not be interested in such a thing?
Therefore, he chose not to interrupt, but quietly floated in the air, listening to their conversation.
"Hmm, listen carefully, Garp!" Nero ignored Garp's answer and continued speaking to herself.
"Didn't I already say I'm not interested in this?"
Garp no longer hesitated, charging towards Nero with his fists swinging.
Nero calmly gripped her sword with both hands, like a poet, her words unhurried.
"Calamity comes from the sea—
Behold, this is the truth of your prosperity.
This is the light of a meteor tearing through the dome of sin.
O Seven Dragons! Become my fingers!"
'Kamisari? No! Is it beyond that?'
Garp instantly recognized the prototype of this move: a crimson seven-headed beast. This was the essence of Nero's Haki, like a monster devouring the world.
Taller than the walls of Marineford, it revealed seven grotesque dragon heads, drifting towards this stronghold of justice.
Garp's body, along with Marineford, was swallowed by the dragon heads, and even Shiki barely managed to escape.
The fires of hell blazed fiercely over the ruins of this land...
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