Jerry watched with satisfaction as Kizaru's attention shifted away from the direction where Ace and the others had fled. The Admiral's lazy gaze followed Jerry's pointing finger toward a completely empty section of mangrove, his expression showing the barest hint of curiosity.
Good. He's buying it.
The moment Kizaru turned his head to look, Jerry didn't hesitate. He spun on his heel and bolted in the opposite direction, his feet pounding against the massive mangrove roots as he put every ounce of speed into his escape.
Now that he knew Kizaru's target was him—the one who had destroyed the Bell Auction House—he could finally escape with a clear conscience. His crew was safe, and that was all that mattered.
"Oh my... were you trying to fool me?"
Kizaru's distinctively slow, drawling voice drifted after him, still maintaining that infuriating casual tone even after realizing he'd been deceived. There was no anger in his voice, no urgency—just mild amusement, as if Jerry's deception was nothing more than a mildly interesting diversion.
Jerry didn't bother looking back. He could already sense what was coming next through his Observation Haki—a sudden spike of overwhelming presence behind him, followed by the unmistakable sensation of Kizaru's body dissolving into countless particles of light.
The light particles scattered and reformed, moving at impossible speeds. In the blink of an eye, they were already closing the distance between them, streaking through the air like a golden comet.
"Speed is power, young man," Kizaru's voice materialized directly behind Jerry, so close he could feel the heat radiating from the Admiral's light-based form. "Have you ever been kicked at the speed of light?"
Jerry's Observation Haki screamed a warning. The signature move was coming—Kizaru's devastating light-speed kick, capable of sending even powerful pirates flying through buildings.
But Jerry had been expecting this. During his mad dash through Sabaody, he'd been secretly preparing for this exact moment. As he felt the overwhelming pressure building behind him, he activated his contingency plan.
The moisture in the air around Jerry's body, which he'd been carefully gathering and condensing during his escape, suddenly responded to his will. In an instant, a perfect water clone materialized in his exact position, complete with his clothes and even his facial expression of determination.
Jerry's real body used the explosive force of his Fishman Karate to launch himself sideways, rolling behind a massive mangrove root just as Kizaru's kick connected with the water clone.
The clone exploded into countless droplets, creating a spectacular spray that caught the light beautifully. Jerry couldn't help but grin at the theatrical effect—he'd always wanted to try a substitution technique like the ones he'd seen in ninja stories back in his world.
"Sorry, Uncle Kizaru," Jerry called out from his new position, peering around the root with a cheeky grin. "But I haven't been kicked yet."
"Oh? Your reaction speed isn't too shabby, little brother."
Kizaru's tone remained utterly unchanged, as if Jerry's evasion was exactly what he'd expected. The Admiral slowly turned toward Jerry's new position, his hands casually tucked into his pockets, that perpetual smirk still playing on his lips.
Without any visible change in his relaxed posture, Kizaru raised one finger. A pinpoint of intensely bright light gathered at the tip, growing brighter by the second.
"Pika Pika Beam."
The laser burst forth with blinding intensity, moving faster than sound. Jerry threw himself to the side, feeling the heat wash over him as the beam barely missed his shoulder. Behind him, the massive mangrove root that had been providing cover simply... disappeared. A perfectly circular section had been completely vaporized, leaving nothing but smoking air where solid wood had existed a moment before.
This old monster is just playing around, and he's still this dangerous, Jerry thought grimly, sweat beading on his forehead. If he ever gets serious, I'm dead.
"What a troublesome old man," Jerry muttered under his breath, then raised his voice. "Come on, Kizaru! Can't you just pretend you never saw me? I promise I'll be a good boy from now on!"
But the Admiral seemed completely unmoved by Jerry's attempts at negotiation. Another laser beam lanced through the air, forcing Jerry to dive and roll to avoid getting his head taken off.
"How scary," Kizaru commented in that same bored tone, as if he was discussing the weather rather than engaging in a deadly battle.
Jerry's mind raced as he continued his evasive maneuvers. He couldn't fight Kizaru head-on—that much was clear. The Admiral was simply too powerful, too fast, and too experienced. But Jerry did have one major advantage: he knew the terrain, and more importantly, he knew where he needed to go.
The ocean. Once he reached the water, even an Admiral would have trouble catching him.
Jerry activated his Observation Haki to its fullest extent, expanding his awareness like a radar. The technique not only allowed him to sense Kizaru's attacks before they came, but also helped him map out the locations of civilians and Marines scattered throughout the area.
He began moving in what appeared to be a completely random pattern—sometimes zigzagging, sometimes making sharp ninety-degree turns, occasionally even doubling back on his own path. To any observer, it would look like the panicked flight of someone who had completely lost their bearings.
In reality, Jerry was carefully threading a path that avoided any areas where innocent people might get caught in the crossfire. His seemingly erratic route was actually the most efficient path to the coast that wouldn't endanger civilians.
Despite his best efforts to dodge, Kizaru was relentless. The Admiral pursued him with the casual persistence of a cat playing with a mouse, never seeming to exert much effort but somehow always managing to stay close behind.
Laser beams continued to rain down around Jerry, each one precise enough to miss him by inches while still serving as a clear warning of what would happen if his luck ran out. Some of Kizaru's attacks weren't single-point strikes at all—massive explosions of light would detonate across entire sections of the mangrove, forcing Jerry to use increasingly creative methods to avoid the blast zones.
By the time Jerry could smell the salt air of the approaching coast, his clothes were singed in several places, and a thin sheen of sweat covered his body. He was breathing hard, but his spirit remained unbroken.
Almost there. Just a little further.
As another laser beam scorched the air behind him, Jerry made his decision. Instead of continuing to run, he suddenly changed direction, using the Marine's Six Styles technique Moonwalk to launch himself into the air.
But this wasn't the standard Moonwalk. Jerry had modified the technique to suit his fighting style. As his foot struck the air, he simultaneously condensed a thin layer of water vapor at the impact point, creating a more solid surface to push against. The result was a dramatic increase in both speed and distance, sending him rocketing through the air like a human cannonball.
He flew directly toward Kizaru, his fists already beginning to glow with the blue light of his Fishman Karate techniques.
"Oh? You're coming to me instead of running away?" Kizaru's eyes widened slightly, and he pursed his lips in what might have been surprise or amusement.
"Water Shot Barrage!"
As Jerry closed the distance, he unleashed a continuous stream of water-based attacks. Each Water Shot carried the force of a cannonball, creating a deadly barrage that filled the air between them.
Kizaru's response was almost insulting in its casualness. He simply swayed his body left and right, dodging each attack with minimal effort, as if he was dancing to music only he could hear.
In seconds, Jerry was within close combat range. His arms darkened as Armament Haki flowed over them, and he engaged Kizaru in a brief but intense exchange of blows.
Jerry had to admit, fighting an Admiral was unlike anything he'd ever experienced. Even when Kizaru seemed to be holding back, each of his strikes carried devastating power. Jerry found himself being pushed back, forced to give ground with each exchange.
But that was fine. Jerry had been slowly maneuvering their aerial battle, subtly adjusting their position with each attack and counterattack. Now they were exactly where he wanted them to be.
Jerry's fist began to glow with that familiar azure light, but this time, there was something different. Beneath the blue radiance, streaks of fiery red energy began to flow—his Armament Haki, raised to a level of intensity he'd never achieved before.
Kizaru, who had been treating the entire fight as a casual exercise, suddenly paused. His perpetually sleepy expression sharpened, and even his habitually pursed lips straightened into a more serious line.
"Water Dragon Fist!"
Jerry roared as he threw his punch. The dragon of pure water pressure that emerged was unlike any he'd created before—larger, more detailed, and crackling with the dark energy of his Armament Haki. The beast's purple-tinged form cut through the air with devastating force.
"Light Speed Kick!"
For the first time in their battle, Kizaru responded with genuine seriousness. His own leg darkened with Armament Haki as he delivered a kick that moved faster than the eye could follow.
The collision was cataclysmic. The air itself seemed to scream as the two attacks met, creating a shockwave that rippled outward in all directions. Windows shattered in nearby buildings, and several of the smaller mangrove branches were stripped of their leaves by the sheer force of the impact.
When the light and sound faded, both fighters were sent flying in opposite directions. Kizaru was knocked back toward the interior of the island, while Jerry plummeted toward the ocean like a falling star.
Perfect.
Jerry had calculated this trajectory from the very beginning. His entire escape plan had been built around reaching the water, where his Ocean Blessing would give him an overwhelming advantage.
As he fell toward the waves, Jerry used Moonwalk to adjust his angle of descent, making sure he would hit the water cleanly rather than crash into the rocky shore.
Above him, Kizaru had already recovered, his body dissolving into thousands of light particles before reforming in a more stable position. The Admiral's clothes were slightly rumpled now, and Jerry was pleased to note that he no longer looked quite as perfectly composed as before.
"That young man is quite cunning," Kizaru observed in his characteristic slow drawl, watching Jerry's descent toward the ocean.
Then, in a flash of yellow light, he gave chase.
Jerry hit the water with enough force to create a massive splash, but the moment he was submerged, everything changed. The exhaustion that had been building up during his fight with Kizaru simply melted away. His movements became fluid and graceful, his speed increased dramatically, and he felt the familiar comfort of being in his element.
This was his domain. In the ocean, Jerry's abilities rivaled those of a mermaid.
After swimming a safe distance underwater, Jerry surfaced, treading water effortlessly as he looked up at Kizaru hovering in the sky above.
He made sure to keep his injured right hand underwater—the collision with Kizaru's kick had done more damage than he wanted to admit. But with his left hand, he waved cheerfully at the Admiral.
"Thanks for the experiance, Admiral Kizaru!" Jerry called out with a grin. "Feel free to head home now!"
"Young man, that's not very kind of you," Kizaru replied, pouting slightly as he floated in the air. "You keep deceiving this old man."
"Hey, I was just trying to survive!" Jerry protested, spreading his free hand in a gesture of innocence. "I couldn't win in a straight fight, and even if I could, I'd be too scared of the consequences!"
"Eight-Foot Mirror Jewels!"
Apparently deciding that conversation time was over, Kizaru crossed his hands in front of his chest, his fingers forming an elegant orchid-like shape. Suddenly, countless points of brilliant light materialized in the air around him, hovering like a constellation of deadly stars before shooting downward at lightning speed, resembling a shower of falling meteors.
Jerry's expression grew serious as he recognized Kizaru's signature technique. But instead of fear, determination filled his eyes.
"I'm not afraid of you in the ocean!" Jerry declared boldly.
"Fishman Karate: Torrential Rain!"
Jerry pressed himself against the sea, drawing upon the vast power of the ocean beneath him. The water around him surged and churned violently as he channeled his Fishman Karate to its limits. Countless water spheres erupted from the surface like a raging storm, each one compressed to incredible density and launched with devastating force.
In an instant, the two massive attacks collided in the air above the ocean. Countless explosions erupted as light met water, creating a spectacular and deafening display that lit up the entire coastline of Sabaody Archipelago.
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