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Under the suffocating siege of seven top-tier fighters, Arthur couldn't find a single opening to unleash the Positron Cannon. Even if he managed to fire it, the telltale signs of its charging sequence would have given them just enough time to dodge.
But then, Commander-in-Chief Kong made a fatal error. He led Sengoku and Akainu into the sky.
He had signed his own death warrant.
Even with the ability to "fly" using Moonwalk, a human could never move through the air with the true, unbridled freedom of a bird. To exert full power, a warrior needed their feet planted firmly on the earth!
The three Marines charged at Arthur in a triangle formation—Kong in the lead, the other two flanking—intent on knocking him out of the sky.
But they were too late.
"Positron Cannon!!"
Arthur gently raised his hand. The attack, charged to its absolute limit at his fingertips, was finally unleashed.
Positrons reacted violently with every negative electron in the atmosphere. They converged into a singular laser that tore through the sky, leaving a scar of visible devastation in the air.
"DON'T TANK IT! DODGE, NOW!!"
Fujitora's face, usually calm, contorted into a mask of horror. His stubble stood on end, and his sightless white eyes flew wide open. As he roared the warning, he manipulated gravity to levitate a massive boulder, hopping onto it and shooting off into the distance.
Although Fujitora had only recently been drafted as an Admiral, his terrifying mastery of Observation Haki commanded instant respect. His panicked warning triggered a survival instinct in everyone.
Stussy, having witnessed this apocalyptic attack before, didn't even wait for the warning. The moment she saw the setup, she fled faster than Fujitora to the absolute edge of Ruluka Island, squeezing her eyes shut in sorrowful anticipation.
Garp, lagging a step behind, didn't bother trying to close the distance. His colossal Titan body moved with shocking speed as he turned and sprinted toward safety!
But Fujitora's warning came a fraction of a second too late for the point man.
Sengoku and Akainu, trailing behind Kong, had just enough time to react. They kicked off the air, diverting their momentum instantly to leap out of the kill zone and land on the floating boulder Fujitora had summoned.
But Kong had no such luxury.
He had leaped first. He was already mid-air, face-to-face with Arthur, inches from his target. His massive fist was cocked, ready to strike. He had absolutely no way to alter his trajectory or evade the attack.
A crystal-clear beam traced a line through the sky.
It struck Kong squarely in the chest. The immense kinetic impact carried his body downward, smashing him into the island below—right next to where the injured Kizaru and Aokiji were positioned.
In the next instant...
Kong didn't even have time to scream.
His body was silently annihilated. Matter met antimatter. Positive and negative electrons collided, and a terrifying, god-like energy erupted from nothingness.
BOOOOOOM—
A tragic, deafening explosion resounded through the clouds. Ruluka Island shook as if hit by a magnitude 12 earthquake.
The island trembled.
Indescribable energy expanded like an invisible, encroaching hand.
Kizaru, clutching the stump of his missing shoulder, looked up. His eyes, usually hidden behind shades and a mask of indifference, were now filled with pure terror. He tried to transform into photons to escape, but he was too slow.
The energy wave hit him—violent as a tsunami, yet dismantling him with the gentle touch of total atomic breakdown.
He vanished without a trace.
Commander-in-Chief Kong. Admiral Kizaru. Under the light of the Positron Cannon, they were reduced to dust. Gone.
But the energy wave didn't stop there. It expanded rapidly in all directions.
Aokiji, who had watched the entire nightmare unfold, lost his usual lazy demeanor. Shaking with fear, he unleashed the fastest speed of his life to flee the impact zone.
The invisible blast wave swept past him, catching his left leg.
He didn't panic. His personality might have been laid-back, but his mind was icy calm. Gritting his teeth against the agony, cold sweat pouring down his forehead, he watched his left leg vanish into nothingness.
Without missing a beat, he instantly fabricated a prosthetic leg of solid ice to replace the missing limb and scrambled onto Fujitora's floating boulder.
The Positron Cannon dealt damage in two stages. The beam itself, and the secondary energy detonation. At close range, the explosion destroyed everything. That was why Arthur called it a "mutually assured destruction" attack.
The energy expanding through the air met no resistance. In an instant, the shockwave slammed back into Arthur.
Even with his resistance, the sheer force made him dizzy. His ears rang with a high-pitched whine, his internal organs rattled, and he vomited mouthfuls of blood.
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Ruluka Island, already small, had been bulldozed flat by the energy burst.
Countless residential buildings, the Marine base, towering peaks, and ancient trees—all wiped from existence. Only the distant Rainbow Mist, shielded by the cliff face, survived the terrifying impact.
Fortunately, the Marines had evacuated all civilians before the battle began. Otherwise, the defenseless population would have been ruthlessly swallowed by the energy.
Silence.
Not a sound remained. Even the ocean waves surrounding the island had been flattened into submission.
Suddenly...
HUFF... HUFF... HUFF...
Rapid, heavy breathing sounded like a primordial beast waking in hell.
Garp's chest, expansive as a mountain, heaved violently. plumes of white steam shot from his nose and mouth. His eyes were bloodshot, glowing crimson with suppressed, limitless rage. His colossal body trembled uncontrollably.
"ARTHUR... I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!!!"
Seeing Kong and Kizaru perish right before his eyes snapped something inside him. Even Garp, who had seen death and tragedy daily as a Marine, who was hardened to the cruelty of the sea, was consumed by a monstrous fury.
He swore, from the day he was born until now, he had never felt rage like this. Not when he saw civilians slaughtered by pirates. Not even when facing heavy Marine casualties in the past.
Garp was always open-minded, optimistic, the man who laughed off everything. But now...
"KILL!!!"
THUD! THUD! THUD! THUD!
Every step caused the earth to quake violently. Garp roared, charging toward Arthur, who was half-kneeling on the ground. His anger pushed his strength into a realm beyond logic.
A fist capable of cracking the sky and splitting the earth came crashing down. It was unstoppable. If it hit the ground, the island itself would shatter.
"Two dead, and you still think you can kill me? AHAHAHAHA—"
Arthur laughed with unparalleled arrogance. He forced his battered body to stand. Showing zero fear of Garp's assault, he swung his own fist to meet the mountain-sized strike descending upon him.
Beneath Garp's Titan shadow, Arthur's two-meter frame looked like an ant. His counterattack looked like an insect provoking a god!
BOOOOM!!
Arthur forcibly withstood the unrivaled power. The ground beneath his feet couldn't handle the load and finally shattered completely!
Sengoku, Aokiji, Akainu, Fujitora, and Stussy rushed back from the perimeter, rejoining the battle with vengeance in their hearts for the vaporization of Kong and Kizaru...
Overwhelming attacks swept toward Arthur's position from all sides.
Arthur shook his groggy head, forcing himself to snap out of the concussion.
He leaped into the air, aiming to take the high ground once more!
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