"Ugh!!"
Mihawk shot upward like a meteor racing against the flow, soaring toward the deepest reaches of the sky.
His speed was so great that the air shattered around him, forming rings of sonic booms in his wake.
How strong is that bastard's power?!
It feels like he's trying to throw me straight out of this world!
Only now do I realize just how vast the gap between us has become.
Just from that overwhelming force alone, it's clear—Ian has already grown terrifyingly strong.
As he continued his flight, Mihawk suddenly noticed a massive presence floating high above the clear sky.
"Kaido?"
He raised a brow.
A colossal beast, nearly a kilometer in length, hovered in the heavens, its enormous eyes already fixed squarely on him.
Kicking off the air to break free from Ian's momentum, Mihawk propelled himself forward.
"Oh! It's Mihawk!"
Atop Kaido's head, Yamato happily waved at him, greeting like an old friend. "Long time no see! Are you here to help us?"
The corner of Mihawk's mouth twitched.
Originally, this should have been the moment where we were meant to clash.
But that despicable Ian pulled such a vile trick to frame me.
At a time like this, I can't produce any proof to clear my name.
So instead, I might as well switch sides.
Besides…
Being an enemy of the World Government doesn't sound so bad either.
Mihawk recalled that great swordsman under the Government's command.
Though their blades had only crossed for a fleeting moment, for swordsmen of the highest caliber, a single instant was more than enough to understand the depth of the other's strength.
That man was a true monster.
His power might even surpass my own.
To think such a swordsman exists in this world!
Compared to Ian, that man's presence is far more enticing.
"Consider me here to help," Mihawk said flatly.
From Kaido's back, Bullet gave him a surprised look, sizing him up.
This guy's strength isn't bad at all.
Mihawk then realized something strange. "Why haven't you all gone down there?"
You're just sitting here, watching Ian take on the entire force of the World Government by himself?
"You're asking why—"
Yamato chuckled slyly. "You'll know right away!"
Right away?
Yes, indeed—it came immediately.
From below, an overwhelming light suddenly burst forth.
Mihawk looked down in shock.
Several massive spheres of light had already formed upon the sea's surface.
They devoured everything around them without mercy.
Only after a while did the violent shockwave erupt upward, carrying with it an earth-shattering roar.
Kaido snorted coldly and released a torrent of flame clouds, forming a barrier to block the howling blast that rushed toward the sky.
"Dyna Stone?"
Mihawk was the first to recognize the move Ian had unleashed.
Of course!
Since they had already come knocking on his door, insisting on a fair one-on-one duel would be sheer stupidity.
With such a devastating weapon as Dyna Stone in his grasp, it was only natural for Ian to use it without hesitation.
And besides—
That guy Ian himself would never be harmed by the explosion!
Below, two Dyna Stones detonated with a world-shaking blast.
Brilliant flames swallowed half the island, while the terrifying shockwave pushed the surrounding sea backward in great retreat.
"Hm?"
Blown skyward in a storm of fire, Ian realized something was off.
The explosion's center wasn't just from his two Dyna Stones.
That ship seemed to have exploded as well.
Oh.
So that's how it was?
Ian laughed quietly.
They all had the same idea.
Well, in that case, nothing could be done.
The massive explosion gradually subsided. The blinding light and raging flames faded away into nothingness.
Gone along with them was the island below.
Strictly speaking—half the island.
The island had been enormous, though deserted. Yet, despite its size, more than half of it was obliterated in the blast, leaving behind only a crescent-shaped fragment.
Even that surviving half was battered and broken by the shockwave, crumbling and ready to collapse at any moment.
As for the great warship that had once carried the World Government's envoys—it had vanished completely, without even a trace of debris left behind.
Floating high above, Ian's body of fire gradually shifted back into his Human-Beast Form.
"Hm?"
He looked up.
In the sky ahead, light gathered and formed into the figure of Kizaru.
That guy appeared completely unharmed as well.
After all, how could an explosion possibly damage light itself?
"Oh my, this has turned into quite the problem," Kizaru remarked.
The silhouettes of the others were nowhere to be seen. Surely they couldn't all have been wiped out.
Of course, that was impossible.
"Meteor Volcano!!"
A furious roar echoed from the distance.
Countless chunks of molten magma were launched high into the air.
But instead of crashing down toward Ian, they fell straight into the sea.
The magma piled up endlessly on the water's surface, cooling and solidifying into obsidian.
Since the battle was already near shallow waters, before long the magma formed a small island.
From the sky above, figures descended onto that island one after another.
"Tch, what a disappointment," Ian muttered, clicking his tongue as he gazed at the scene. "So this is all the so-called power of the Dyna Stone? That's it?"
There stood Saturn of the Five Elders, Garling of the God's Knights, another robed stranger dressed much like Garling, the former Fleet Admiral Kong, the current Fleet Admiral Sengoku the Buddha, the Navy's Hero Garp, and Admiral Akainu.
Damn it… not a single one of them had died.
No wonder. Even in the movie, Dyna Stone's destructive power wasn't that impressive.
Zephyr, already weakened to the extreme, had been caught in its close-range explosion and suffered only injuries—not death.
Expecting this thing to wipe out the strongest of the strong was unrealistic.
That was why Kaido always said: Haki is the power that reigns supreme over all.
"Ian!!"
Saturn, completely unscathed, glared up at Ian in the sky with such venom in his voice it was as if he wanted to devour him alive that very instant.
On his ship, he had secretly been carrying Dyna Stones of his own.
And Ian, that damned bastard, had detonated it against them.
A weapon meant to be used against Kaido's Beasts Pirates had instead been turned on them!
Damn him!!
"What happened?"
The voices of his fellow Elders rang in Saturn's mind.
"Ian! He used the Dyna Stone! The weaker ones on our ships have already been completely wiped out!"
Saturn thought to himself.
"Summon us immediately!"
"All right!"
Saturn said, "I'll find a space big enough."
After ending the mental communication, he lifted his gaze toward the remaining half of the island floating on the sea.
"Gather on that island."
As he spoke, his body began to change.
What was already not a small frame swelled in an instant to a terrifying size.
A normal human transformed into a half-human, half-spider hybrid, with a pair of horns sprouting from his head.
Is this the power of the Five Elders??
Akainu, a Logia-Fruit user, hadn't really been hurt and watched Saturn's display with surprise.
Then he saw thick black smoke suddenly rising from beneath Saturn's feet, and an ominous magic circle appeared at his feet.
**********
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