At the moment Gion was sent flying, Rosse's Trident of the Sea God also collided with the Red Count's sword-cane.
Rip!
A burst of crimson Conqueror's Haki exploded at the point where the weapons met.
Conqueror's Haki entwinement!
As soon as they made contact, the Red Count didn't bother testing the waters, he went all out from the start.
He wanted to quickly bypass Rosse, kill Gion, and leave.
On Rosse's side, he didn't yield in the slightest either, instantly entering Sea God Form. Armament Haki and seawater jointly coated the Trident of the Sea God.
BOOM!
Two immense forces collided, their shockwaves wantonly surging.
Cobra, who was the closest, didn't even have time to react before he was directly smashed into a pile of flesh and blood.
And with the collapse of the platform, the bloody remains scattered downward.
"AHHHHH!"
"RUN!"
"YOUR MAJESTY!"
"MURDER!"
"..."
Only when Rosse and the Red Count's weapons became locked in a stalemate did the civilians below react, fleeing outward in a frenzy.
The Royal Guards wore mournful expressions, watching Cobra's blood scatter as they tried to get closer to the platform.
At this moment, everyone realized—
THE KING OF ARABASTA IS DEAD!
Clang!
After the first clash, the Red Count and Rosse pulled apart.
Rosse floated mid-air, while the Red Count stood in the sky using Moonwalk, staring at each other from afar.
From that collision just now, Rosse was pushed back over 10 meters, while the Red Count only retreated 3 meters.
Judging from the result, the Red Count had a clear advantage.
But at this moment, the Red Count actually found it a bit troublesome.
Rosse's strength was not weak. A few years ago on the Grand Line, only Roger, Golden Lion, and Whitebeard could reliably defeat the current Rosse.
Even someone like Rayleigh had little chance against Rosse.
From just a simple exchange, the Red Count could confidently conclude that.
With someone of Rosse's strength blocking his way, killing Gion would be no easy task.
The Red Count glanced behind Rosse.
Gion had taken a flying slash from him, though she looked a bit disheveled, she hadn't actually been injured.
That strength could rival pirates with 300 to 500 million bounties, completely incomparable to someone like Cobra.
If it were only Gion, even if Rosse had Gion's level of power, he could finish the battle within one minute.
But now, things had become troublesome.
"Damn it!"
The Red Count was still in a standoff with Rosse when he saw Gion take out a Den Den Mushi. His expression immediately changed.
He believed he was enough on his own, but that didn't mean he wasn't afraid of being surrounded.
He knew Zephyr had been following Rosse.
If Zephyr showed up too, he wouldn't even be able to run.
However, according to his prior scouting, Zephyr was still in Arabasta's capital, and even at the fastest speed, it would take an hour to get here.
In such a short time, the Red Count didn't think he could take down Gion.
Thinking of this, the Red Count immediately felt the urge to retreat.
Without hesitation, he turned around and tried to flee into the distance.
"Killed King Cobra and still want to run?", Rosse shouted, immediately framing the Red Count's actions.
Coming to assassinate Gion and killing Cobra in passing—
Versus coming to assassinate Cobra and incidentally involving her—
Those were completely different concepts.
In this battle, he had to win not only in combat, but also after the fight was over.
Hearing Rosse's words, the civilians and guards below looked at the Red Count with changed expressions.
After shouting, Rosse didn't stop either, quickly charging at the Red Count.
Though the earlier clash had shown the Red Count held the upper hand, that didn't mean his overall strength was higher.
The reason Rosse was pushed back more was simply because he didn't know how to entwine with Conqueror's Haki.
But in terms of raw power, Rosse still stood above the Red Count.
In speed, strength, and physique, it was the same.
The moment Rosse charged forward, he slashed with his Trident of the Sea God. Dozens of high-pressure seawater strikes similar to flying slashes were unleashed, heading toward the retreating Red Count.
The Red Count hadn't even run two steps before he felt the attack coming from behind, and his expression changed slightly.
Tear!
Facing Rosse's attack, the Red Count didn't dare take it head-on. He could only turn around and raise his sword to counter.
The Red Count's arm moved rapidly, his sword-cane creating afterimages in the air. With each slash, he deflected a high-pressure seawater strike, easily breaking apart all the water-based attacks.
But because of the delay, Rosse had already reached him.
SPLASH!
Seawater continuously surged at the Red Count, and Rosse swung the Trident of the Sea God at him.
Unlike when fighting Brogy, Rosse went all out from the start this time.
If he'd used this level of power against Brogy, he could've ended the fight in ten minutes.
Clang!
The Red Count's face remained expressionless as he swung his sword-cane, easily blocking Rosse's strike.
In that instant, Conqueror's Haki erupted from within him. The range was precisely controlled, only extending about ten meters around him.
When that tangible Conqueror's Haki burst out, the oncoming seawater seemed to hit a wall and splashed outward.
"If this is all you've got, you won't be able to stop me," The Red Count said flatly, using the force from clashing with the Trident of the Sea God to retreat and deflect the power.
Since he couldn't retreat directly, he would fight while falling back.
At their level, a decisive victory could take days.
As long as he reached the sea, he had ways to escape.
The world's Devil Fruits came in countless bizarre forms. The Red Count had seen fruits that could summon seawater before.
Even spatial-type abilities could achieve similar effects.
The Red Count never believed Rosse could enter the open sea, that was why he was never in a rush.
Rosse and Gion were both Devil Fruit users. As long as he dove into the sea, they couldn't do anything to him.
"Whether I can stop you or not, that's not for you to decide," Rosse chuckled lightly, gripping his trident and pressing the attack.
Zephyr was indeed in Arabasta and needed a long time to arrive.
Normally, that would be more than enough time for the Red Count to escape to sea.
But who said Zephyr was his only reinforcements?
BOOM!
The Red Count kept using his momentum to escape outward, while Rosse relentlessly chased.
The two fought from Elumalu Oasis, all the way to the desert near the Sandora River.
Even just the shockwaves from their clash made the ground shake violently. Buildings collapsed one after another, like the end of the world.
People of Arabasta had never seen a battle of this level, and were all frozen in terror.
It was only under Gion's command that the guards regained their senses and began organized rescue and evacuation efforts, as well as collecting Cobra's corpse.
"This is what you were relying on? A Marine warship on standby?", In the middle of the desert, the Red Count let out a mock ing laugh.
He was born with exceptional Observation Haki, and his mastery of it was extraordinary.
Three kilometers away on the Sandora River, a Marine warship was approaching. This was the feedback from his Observation Haki.
"Just a warship?", Rosse smiled playfully.
"Hmm?", The Red Count frowned slightly.
Suddenly, his Observation Haki gave feedback, a figure leapt from the warship, rapidly closing in.
"That's not Zephyr? You have another powerhouse with you?"
The Red Count's Observation Haki quickly captured the figure's appearance, and his expression drastically changed, "Former Marine Admiral, Sakazuki?"
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