Boom.
Boom.
In the Calm Belt, the sea was as still as a mirror.
With each wave of impact, the seawater began to leap and churn.
Across the blue surface of the sea, booming collisions rang out, and from time to time, flashes of golden light and fire lit up the distance.
Then a sudden chill swept out. A layer of ice crystals instantly spread across the sea, freezing the surface solid. But immediately afterward, with another roar, cracks appeared, and the ice shattered into chunks that sank back into the ocean.
Not far from that stretch of sea, aboard the four Marine warships anchored nearby, the Marines who bore the word "justice" stared pale-faced at the battlefield in the distance, their bodies trembling.
The destructive force before them had already surpassed anything human beings could understand.
High in the sky, no human figures could be seen at all. There were only endless explosions, raging flames that burned across the heavens, and black lightning spreading through the sky.
The violent roars made every Marine's eardrums ache.
Boom.
Boom.
Boom.
"Hey, how long has it been…?"
"An hour… Admiral Sengoku has been fighting Pirate Yemu for an hour…"
"And there's still no winner?"
"How is that possible… Pirate Yemu is actually able to fight Admiral Sengoku… What kind of monster is he…?"
"Vice Admiral Borsalino, should we go help?"
Standing on the deck and watching the battle, Borsalino heard Rear Admiral Kadaru's question and looked at his subordinate as if he were looking at an idiot.
"Kadaru, do you think we'd be helping Admiral Sengoku if we went up there, or just getting in his way?"
Kadaru instantly looked embarrassed.
Seeing this, Borsalino ignored him and turned back to continue watching the battle in the sky, murmuring inwardly.
So that's it. This is the power of a Logia awakening?
In the cloudless sky, Yemu reached out with both hands and tore at the air. The surrounding sky burst into flame, as if he had grabbed the entire world in his hands. Then the fire gathered around his arms and met Sengoku's iron fist head-on.
Conqueror's Haki coating was certainly an overwhelming power, but even a monster like Sengoku could not keep using it forever.
In an instant, flames and Armament Haki collided.
The fire burst apart like fireworks, sending a rain of flames falling from the sky. But after that clash, the one who retreated was not Yemu.
It was Sengoku.
At the start of the battle, Sengoku had absolute confidence that he could capture Yemu.
Now, however, he had begun to worry.
"So this is the awakened ability of a Logia Devil Fruit? He uses the fruit's power to elementalize the surrounding world, then borrows those elements to attack. Unlike an ordinary Logia ability, this is no longer the power of the ability user alone. It's the power of heaven and earth. The attack range and force are on a completely different level…"
At the center of their clash, Sengoku could feel his Haki being consumed rapidly, while Yemu's flames were constantly replenished by the fire burning throughout the sky.
Human strength against the might of nature.
The answer was obvious.
But Sengoku absolutely could not allow himself to lose. He could not even afford to retreat.
Because he was a Marine Admiral, a representative of the Marines' greatest combat power.
If he were forced back by Yemu here, it would deal a devastating blow to the Marines' authority.
At that thought, Sengoku's unbreakable will erupted, and once again, he unleashed astonishing strength.
Sengoku, who had started to fall back, stabilized himself and launched a counterattack against Yemu.
"As expected of an Admiral. But don't underestimate the young either!"
Perhaps in terms of willpower, Yemu truly could not compare with an old Marine like Sengoku. But when it came to pure strength, he now felt that he was no weaker than Sengoku.
The awakened power of two Devil Fruits was enough to withstand the power of Conqueror's Haki coating.
In an instant, all the flames burning around Yemu and across the heavens and earth rapidly gathered onto his hands.
Sengoku only felt Yemu's strength surge. Before he could respond, his Armament Haki defense was completely broken, and Yemu's flame-filled fist struck his body.
Boom.
Sengoku's body flew backward in a straight line like a kite with its string cut.
Seeing this, all the Marines were stunned.
Even Borsalino and Shiki froze in shock.
"He actually pushed Sengoku this far?"
"You've got to be kidding… Admiral Sengoku… actually…"
"Is this the end of the Marines?"
"And Shiki the Golden Lion is still here… What do we do…?"
The past hour of back-and-forth fighting had already been hard for the Marines to accept.
But this strike, with Sengoku being sent flying by Yemu, broke through the mental defenses of many Marines.
However, Yemu, standing on flames in the sky, was not especially pleased.
Because after finally breaking through Sengoku's defense just now, the feeling that came back was not like striking flesh. It was like hitting a block of iron.
But that was exactly what made it enjoyable.
He could already feel it clearly.
During this hour of fist-to-fist combat, his body had been rapidly adapting to the new power he had obtained.
The awakened power of the Mera Mera no Mi and the Atsu Atsu no Mi.
And the power gradually reviving after the heart that once belonged to Rocks and the body containing Charlotte Linlin's Lineage Factors had both been fully awakened.
He had clearly already fought for an hour, yet Yemu did not feel tired at all. On the contrary, more and more strength kept surging out of him.
Sure enough, in this world, fighting true powerhouses was the fastest way to grow.
Once he defeated Sengoku, he should be able to stand at the peak among the strong of this world.
After that, only Whitebeard, Garp, and the hidden powerhouses in the Holy Land Mary Geoise would still be able to excite him.
Aside from these new powers, Yemu had also gained another new ability.
That was the true foundation behind his awakening of the Mera Mera no Mi and the Atsu Atsu no Mi.
It was also the foundation that would let him change this world.
When that time came, perhaps he could try paying a visit to the Holy Land Mary Geoise.
But that would have to wait until after he defeated Sengoku.
Thinking of this, Yemu's body grew excited once more, and power surged up again.
Just then, the sky suddenly changed.
The sky, which had been clear for thousands of miles, was suddenly covered by thick dark clouds that had drifted in from nowhere.
"This is… the will of the world being affected? Such a powerful will…"
At that moment, there could only be one person.
"Three Bodies of the Buddha: Asura!"
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