"You're saying... Tritoma and Amazon Lily?!"
"That's right!"
Doflamingo smiled and nodded.
He had Rayleigh's entire faction in the palm of his hand.
"Tritoma is my daughter!!"
Rayleigh snapped completely, his chest heaving violently as he roared,
"You just married Smoothie from the Charlotte Family—are you mocking me?!"
"I only just found out myself... that you had a daughter, Rayleigh-sama."
The smile in Doflamingo's eyes grew wider.
"But even before I knew, I had already decided—I want her!"
Before he knew this little connection, Tritoma was just a valuable vessel and fighter.
But now? As Rayleigh's soft spot? There was no way he'd let her go.
He'd married Rayleigh's daughter—and now Rayleigh wouldn't climb aboard his war chariot?
No way. He was going to make sure this dear son-in-law guarded the house with everything he had!
Boom!
The arena exploded beneath them.
But even before the sound rang out—
Rayleigh had already vanished from where he stood.
"So fast!"
Doflamingo's eyes locked on the longsword slashing toward his neck.
No wonder this old man could stall someone like Borsalino, who was built for speed. There was something to him.
Sun God Nika? Rayleigh-sensei's training was clearly effective.
In a flash, Doflamingo raised Tritoma and used her to block his neck.
Swish!
Rayleigh's expression twisted. He forcibly redirected the strike, his blade slashing beside Doflamingo.
Crack!
The arena split cleanly in two, reaching all the way to the distant stands.
"Fuffuffuffuffu~ No need to get so angry, Rayleigh-sama."
Doflamingo grinned wide, like a devil, seeing Rayleigh's expression of utter contempt.
"You want to rescue Tritoma-san? That's easy. You can have her."
As he spoke, he flung Tritoma toward Shakky.
Rayleigh and Shakky wanted their daughter back? Fine. He'd give her to them.
But in the end, didn't everything come down to strength?
Shakky leapt forward and caught the airborne Tritoma.
Rayleigh's expression shifted rapidly. Just a second ago, he thought this battle was going to be an utter humiliation.
But now... Doflamingo had simply handed over his daughter in broad daylight?
Finally, Rayleigh exhaled heavily and looked across at Doflamingo, his tone complicated.
"You... really are the most contradictory young man I've ever met."
"Treachery is a virtue of victors. I've never been short on virtues like that."
From above, Doflamingo finished the sentence Rayleigh hadn't spoken aloud.
He bent his knees and shot into the sky.
"Rayleigh-sama, let's change the battlefield, shall we? I imagine you wouldn't want your daughter's homeland burned to ash?"
This Amazonian kingdom was going to be his private property soon. He had no plans to treat it as roughly as he had the Marines' G-8 base.
Rayleigh glanced at the unconscious Kuja warriors strewn around, then vanished into the sky after him.
Shakky's eyes flicked to the ships above, anxiety deepening in her chest. Clutching Tritoma tightly, she leapt toward the nearby mountains.
President Morgans of the World Economy News Paper, Umit the Shipping King, Gibberson the old warehouse tycoon—
And a Lightning-Logia user watching hungrily from the sidelines.
What would be the outcome this time?
Morgans spread his wings and jabbed toward Enel as he watched the mother and daughter seemingly preparing to escape.
Zzzzt—!
Lightning arced through the air. Morgans' pure white feathers visibly darkened.
"Cough—"
Puffing out black smoke, Morgans finally voiced what had been stuck in his throat.
"Enel, you're not going to chase them?!"
"If the boss didn't say so, then it's not necessary."
Enel folded his arms, his Observation Haki completely focused on the battlefield at the edge of Amazon Lily.
That old geezer—how the hell was he matching the Boss blow for blow?
Doflamingo and Rayleigh clashed back and forth across the sky and earth.
Fist and blade collided over and over, their shockwaves erasing a swath of ancient forest from the world.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
Their exchanges grew ever faster, and the sound of steel on steel echoed across the entire island.
"He's actually going toe-to-toe with Father?!"
The same astonishment escaped from Tritoma's lips atop the mountain peak.
Eyes wide, she stared unblinking at the battle below.
Her father—the Rayleigh—was known as the Dark King.
This was the first time she had seen someone fight him without being at a disadvantage.
And this man—this Yonko—seemed even stronger than she had imagined.
Rayleigh roared, dragging a longsword wreathed in violet-red aura behind him like a comet.
He brought it down hard on Doflamingo's barrel-sized fist.
"Get off Amazon Lily!"
Boom! The blade struck Doflamingo's Armament Haki-covered fist, erupting in a shower of sparks.
"Fuffuffuffuffu~ Afraid I can't do that!"
Doflamingo laughed, his arms flooding with white material.
It merged into a muscle-like bio-armor made in the image of the Tontatta people, empowering him with tremendous force.
And with it, he blasted Rayleigh toward the ground.
There was no way he'd leave without getting Rayleigh.
Now was the time to crush Rayleigh—completely—and make him submit!
"That enough warming up? Let's see what being the Pirate King's right hand really means."
Twin black wings unfurled from his back.
The Tontatta-style bio-armor now covered his entire body, leaving only his sharp, determined face exposed.
He streaked through the sky, leaving behind sonic booms of white.
In a flash, he was in front of Rayleigh. He threw a punch.
"You've done an impressive job developing your Devil Fruit powers, kid."
Rayleigh clenched his cracked fist, a sudden wave of danger crashing through his senses.
This brat's speed and power—something was off.
Just now, in that split second, his strength had surged dramatically.
And that Conqueror's Haki wrapping around it—
Was this what the new generation at sea was like?!
This kid—he wasn't even thirty yet, right?
At this age, even Kaido and Charlotte Linlin had only been immature interns back in God Valley.
No time to dwell on it.
Rayleigh's pupils dilated. His Conqueror's Haki blasted outward.
With one hand gripping his sword high, just as the fist neared—
He slashed.
"Divine Avoidance!!"
A black-and-red Conqueror's-infused shockwave tore through the air, smashing into Doflamingo's fist.
It carved a massive groove into his punch and blasted him backward.
"Fuffuffuffuffu~"
Doflamingo bared his gleaming white teeth, exhilarated by the pressure on his hand.
This was what made a real battle worth fighting!
His Conqueror's Haki surged into his left arm.
The wings on his back beat rapidly, pushing back against the fading shockwave.
On his thick right arm, the bio-armor continued growing, reinforcing his power.
Then—he slammed his left arm down, shattering the attack completely.
"Rayleigh! That Divine Avoidance of yours packs a punch!!"
Divine Avoidance? I don't avoid—
I am the true god of this world!
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Fanfic is finished 527 chapters in total on p@treon/tambeerg