Chapter 369: This Time, Going All Out
Sakazuki, who had thought he had already finished off his opponent, was ruthlessly slapped in the face by reality.
Though the shock inside him didn't show completely on his face, it was perfectly reflected in his actions.
That scorching, terrifying aura once again surged from his body—the power of the Magma-Magma Fruit had been unleashed once more.
At this moment, Sakazuki decided to go all out. He had to take down this terrifying opponent in one decisive strike.
He wasn't worried about what kind of counterattack might come after the ten-minute countdown ended—he was worried about the state of all Marineford.
The war against the Whitebeard Pirates was still far from over, and now there weren't just one, but three incredibly troublesome interlopers.
The strength of these mysterious figures was as unfathomable as expected.
If they decided to wreak havoc here, the Marines wouldn't just fail to complete the planned annihilation of Whitebeard's crew—they could very well suffer a humiliating defeat before the eyes of the entire world.
That was an outcome Sakazuki absolutely could not accept.
"You've got seven minutes and thirty seconds left."
"Does it really take that long to charge up your ultimate move?"
Uchiha Dali's clone looked down at Sakazuki below and couldn't help but mock him.
Hearing that, Sakazuki's gaze darkened again.
The Magma-Magma Fruit's power was indeed immense, but it also came with a flaw that couldn't be ignored.
Yes—its most devastating techniques required a short period of preparation.
It was only a few seconds, but in the eyes of top-level combatants, even that was a fatal opening.
Fortunately, he was already fully prepared now.
It was time to strike.
Sakazuki's knife-sharp eyes locked onto Uchiha Dali's clone, and in the next instant, he thrust his fist forward.
"Meteor Volcano!"
As Sakazuki's shout rang out, one after another blazing magma sphere shot into the sky at incredible speed.
It was a massive-area attack—and one he could freely control at will.
It could be an indiscriminate saturation bombardment, or a concentrated pinpoint strike.
This time, Sakazuki chose the latter.
Every massive magma fireball that rose skyward now rained down toward Uchiha Dali's clone.
The terrifying heat twisted the entire sky.
The air reeked of volcanic sulfur.
The scorching temperature and suffocating stench alone could kill—one didn't even have to be directly hit by the magma.
A single careless breath might drop you before Sakazuki even needed to move.
Seeing this move, the Marines watching were once again shaken.
Cries of awe erupted one after another.
"Admiral Sakazuki is finally fighting seriously!"
"As expected of Admiral Sakazuki! Incredible—such power!"
"There's no way that man can dodge this one!"
"Wait, didn't anyone notice? He said he wouldn't dodge or block earlier—but he did dodge that last attack, didn't he?"
"Yeah, I was thinking the same thing! He broke his word! That means he lost!"
"..."
As Sakazuki suppressed Uchiha Dali's clone with his fiery assault, the Marines began murmuring among themselves.
They had seen Uchiha Dali's clone reappear in the air afterward, and naturally assumed he'd dodged the previous attack.
But in truth, only Sakazuki knew exactly what had happened.
Of course, the other top-tier powerhouses present had at least guessed the truth.
In reality, Sakazuki's attack had indeed hit its target, and it had truly sent Uchiha Dali's clone plunging into the sea.
He had definitely taken a full-force blast of Sakazuki's Great Eruption head-on.
Yet shockingly, he endured it all.
Sakazuki didn't understand how, but one thing was certain—this man's power was far beyond imagination.
And he wasn't a Devil Fruit user.
Otherwise, there was no way he could have come back from the ocean.
What's more, his physical defense was likely on a level no normal person could even comprehend.
Even among Devil Fruit users, none could match that.
On the execution platform, Sengoku, Garp, and Vice Admiral Tsuru all stared unblinkingly at the battle above.
Once again, they saw Sakazuki's attack land squarely on its mark.
Just as the man had promised—he hadn't dodged at all.
Watching the magma meteors smash directly into their target, Sengoku, Garp, and the others grew increasingly grim.
They didn't know what the result would be this time.
Would it be like before—where that brat came out unscathed again?
And not just them—
Admirals Borsalino and Kuzan, still on the battlefield, also felt the same dread.
They had never seen anyone take Sakazuki's full-power blow head-on and still live to tell the tale.
Even they themselves, fellow admirals, couldn't manage that.
In just a few seconds, Sakazuki unleashed another full barrage.
But having learned from before, he didn't stop there.
Once he confirmed that the target was still airborne, he immediately launched a new round of attacks.
"Meteor Volcano!"
The same move again—
Sakazuki struck with his full might once more.
In an instant, more magma meteors soared skyward, hurtling straight toward Uchiha Dali's clone.
Everyone on the battlefield—pirates and Marines alike—instinctively held their breath, eyes locked on the figure in the sky.
They watched as the mysterious man was swallowed whole by the chain of fiery explosions.
The smoke and flames engulfed him completely, until not even a trace could be seen.
Yet this time, no one dared to draw any conclusions.
They simply waited in silence.
"What an impressive display of power."
"These people might not use chakra, but the destructive force of their abilities is still remarkable,"
Ōtsutsuki Kyōshiki said with a laugh as he watched Sakazuki's devastating strikes.
"The fiercer his attacks, the better,"
Uchiha Dali replied with a smile.
At this moment, they two were the only ones in the entire sea who knew what was really happening.
After enduring three consecutive powerful strikes,
Uchiha Dali's clone was receiving a stimulus and growth like never before.
Compared to when it had first been created, its aura had already multiplied fivefold—if not more.
And as Sakazuki's relentless bombardment continued, its power kept rising still further.
It was as if Sakazuki's energy was being transferred directly into Uchiha Dali's clone.